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UBRARY OF CONGRESS 



DDODSbSTTaH 



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PAST AND PRESENT 



OF 



MAHASKA COUNTY, IOWA 



BY 



MANOAH HEDGE 



TOGETHER WITH 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES 



OF MANY OF ITS PROMINENT AND LEADING CITIZENS AND ILLUSTRIOUS DEAD 



ILLUSTRATE D 



CHICAGO: 

THE S. J. CLARKE PUBLISHING CO. 

190(> 






BeMcateD to the 

Pioneers 

of /iDabasMa County 




PRKFACB. 



THE publishers take pride in presenting this vokime to the public. The historical part is 
the work of Manoah Hedge, of Oskaloosa, Iowa, and the citizens of the county 
are to be congratulated on his services being secured by the publishers, as no man 
in the county is better qualified for the task. A perusal of the volume will show 
that his work is well done. 

The biographical part of the work is the compilation of well qualified men, those 
long experienced in the business. They have gone to the people, the men and women 
who have, by their enterprise and industry, brought the county to a rank second to 
none among those comprising this great and noble State, and from their lips have the story of 
their life struggles. No more interesting or instructive matter could be presented to an intelligent 
public. In this volume will be found a record of many whose lives are worthy the imitation of 
coming generations. It tells how some, commencing life in poverty, by industry and 
economy have accumulated wealth. It tells how others, with limited advantages for securino- 
an education, have become learned men and women, with an influence extending throughout 
the length and breadth of the land. It tells of men who have risen from the lower walks of 
life to eminence as statesmen, and whose names have become famous. It tells of those in 
every walk in life who have striven to succeed, and records how success has usually 
crowned their efforts. It tells also of many, very many, who, not seeking the applause of the 
world, have pursued the "even tenor of their way," content to have it said of them, as Christ 
said of the woman performing a deed of mercy — "They have done what they could." It 
tells now many in the pride and strength of young manhood, left the plow and the anvil, the 
lawyer's office and the counting-room, left every trade and profession, and at their country's 
call went forth valiantly "to do or die," and how through their efforts the Union was 
restored and peace once more reigned in the land. In the life of every man and of every 
woman is a lesson that should not be lost upon those who follow after. 

Coming generations will appreciate this volume and preserve it as a sacred treasure, from 
the fact that it contains so much that would never find its way into public records, and which 
would otherwise be inaccessible. Great care has been taken in the compilation of the work 
and every opportunity possible given to those represented to insure correctness in what has 
been written; and the publishers flatter themsejves that they give to their readers a work with 
few errors of consequence. In addition to biographical sketches, portraits of a number of 
representative citizens are given. 

The faces of some, and biographical sketches of many, will be missed in this volumt. 
For this the publishers are not to blame. Not having a proper conception of the work, some 
refused to give the information necessary to compile a sketch, while others were indifferent. 
Occasionally some member of the family would oppose the enterprise, and on account of such 
opposition the support of the interested one would be withheld. In a few instances men never 
could be found, though repeated calls were made at their residence or place of business. 
May, 1906. The S. J. Clarke Publishing Co. 



HISTORICAL 



IXTRODL'CTIOX. 

The history of a commonwealth like Ma- 
haska county is the history of the upward 
struggles and achievements of individual life 
and the study of human life is always interest- 
ing. We have inherited the soil which in some 
measure has been made sacred by the ]iriva- 
tions and toils of a generation which in a few 
years will have no living representatives among 
men. The pioneers received these lands with 
rejoicijig from the hand of nature, and have pa- 
tiently subdued and nurtvu-e<l the soil into its 
])resent richness and beauty. These heroic spir- 
its now only modestly ask a resting place from 
their toils in the bosom of mother earth. These 
cha])ters have grown out of a desire to perpetu- 
ate their memory and the valor of their achieve- 
ments. Two things have been kept constantly 
in the mind of the author. \iz. : To see that each 
page should breath a spirit of appreciation for 
the work of the pioneers of Mahaska county and 
to make all the facts stated clear and interest- 
ing to the reader. 

The almost exclusive source of information 
for the pioneer period has been the men and 
women themselves who were early on the fron- 
tier and know whereof they ha\e spoken. To 
them most of all we are indebted for the facts 
and incidents herein related. .\s it would not 
be possible to give sketches or to make per- 
sonal mention of any large number of ])ersons. 
we have confined ourselves to the briefest out- 
lines in the lives of only a few of the leading 



spirits who were put forward in the organiza- 
tion and settlement of the county. The bio- 
graphical department can be relied upon for 
extended personal sketches. It is not an easy 
task to write such a history, but the hours of 
thought in arranging and presenting these facts 
so as to make them interesting and readable 
have been lightened by the pleasure in the la- 
bor which prompted the undertaking. If the 
readers of this volume shall take as much 
pleasure in the perusal of its chapters as the 
author has in gathering and arranging the 
facts the compensation will have Iseen mutual. 



CHAPTER I. 



THE KIRST IOWA EXPLORERS .\.\n WH.\T THKV 
FOUND. 

The first inhabitants of Iowa and the Mis- 
sissippi valley are known as the "Mound 
Builders." From the implements of stone and 
copper and the fragments of woven cloth and 
other trinkets which are found in the moimds 
which they left we have reason to believe that 
they had made some progress in the scale of in- 
telligence. Strange as it may seem, these 
mounds have i)reserved the work of their 
hands, including skeletons, through the ages 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



without number that ha\'e elapsed since they 
became an extinct race. Of what absorbing in- 
terest it would be if we could know something 
of their manner of life, their numbers, cus- 
toms, the purpose of these imperishable earth- 
works, how long they were here and the cause 
of their extermination; but alx>riginal races 
preserve no historj' and further definite knowl- 
edge of this interesting race must remain for- 
ever unknown. 

Two Frenchmen, James Marquette and 
Louis Joliet and their five French Canadian 
companions were the first white men who ever 
looked upon Iowa soil. Both these }'Oung men 
had been educated at a Jesuit college in France. 
Marquette was twenty-six years of age and 
had been a missionary among the Indians in 
the French possessions for a number of years. 
Joliet was twenty-seven years of age. He was 
thoroughly acquainted with the Indian life and 
customs, having conducted an Indian trading 
post for some years near Quebec. The two ex- 
plorers met at Mackinaw and proceeded to 
Green Bay and passed up the Fox river for 
some distance to a village of the Miami and 
Kickapoo Indians. This was the farthest west- 
ern outpost to which even the zealous Jesuit 
missionaries had ventured. Calling- a council 
of the chiefs and head men of the village they 
told them of the object of their voyage. The 
Indians tried in vain to dissuade them from 
pursuing so perilous a journey by telling them 
of the savage tribes they would meet and the 
monsters which infested forest and river, but 
the two young explorers were unmoved. Their 
minds were ripe for adventure, and they an- 
swered, "We are firmly resolved to do all and 
suffer all for so glorious an enterprise." They 
engaged Miami guides to pilot them across the 
portage between the Fox and the Wisconsin 
rivers. Here they dismissed their guides and 
embarked in the two little bark canoes which 
they had brought with them and for seven days 
they floated down the waters of the W^isconsin. 
On June i6, 1673, they were swept into the 
broad waters of the ]\Iississippi river and beheld 



the rugged bluffs on the western shore a few 
miles below where the city of McGregor now 
stands. Floating down on the bosom of its spa- 
cious waters they felt the inspiration of their 
great discovery. The Indians at Green Bay had 
told Marquette of the rumor of a great river far 
toward the setting sun and his consuming am- 
bition to be among- the first Europeans to look 
upon its valleys and plains and to earn,- a 
knowledge of the true God to its people had 
been gratified. The only supplies they had 
brought with them was enough Indian corn and 
dried meat to forward them on their journey. 
It was the delightful month of June, the month 
of singing birds and blooming flowers and new 
born foliage. Herds of buffaloes, deer and elk 
roamed the prairies and forests. They were 
passing through the richest and fairest region 
in the world. Yet if was an entire solitude. 
There were no signs of human habitation. Mar- 
quette called the river the "Broad River of 
Conception." Its present name is a compound 
of Algonquin words, "Missi" signifying great 
and "sepe," a river. 

Floating down the current of the great river 
they landed from time to time and supplied 
their camp with abundance of fish and game. 
Every day added new joys to the explorers. 
The prairies stretching" on either shore and the 
fringing woodlands marked the course of the 
streams in the distance. All were laden with 
the rich perfume and fragrance of June. After 
eight days they landed in the western shore and 
discovered human footprints in the sand. 

^Marquette and Joliet left their five com- 
panions in charge of their canoes and followed 
the footprints to the river bluff. Here they 
found a trail leading westward across a prairie. 
They looked in vain for some sign of camp or 
wigwams but saw none. All had the stillness 
of a wilderness solitude but the waving mead- 
ows and the distant clumps of forest and thicket 
had an entrancing beauty. They followed the 
trail for six miles and saw another river and 
on its banks an Indian village. A few miles 



PAST AND PRESENT OF ^lAHASKA COUNTY. 



fiirtlier on the uplands there were other vil- 
lages. The natives were greatly astonished 
at the approach of the white men but made no 
hostile demonstrations. The)- received them 
cordially and appointed four of their old men 
to meet the two strangers in council. Mar- 
quette, who had spent most of his young man- 
hood as a missionary among the Indians in the 
lake region, could speak their language, which 
was a great delight to the natives. They in- 
formed him that they belonged to the "Illini" 
tribe, (meaning in their language, "we are 
men"). They smoked the pipe of peace to- 
gether and extended them a most welcome 
greeting, inviting them to share the hospitality 
of their village. IMarquette told them the ob- 
ject of their visit and that they had been sent 
to them by the French who were their friends. 
True to his vows, the good man told them in his 
fii-st formal address of the great God wor- 
shiped by the white man and that he was the 
same as the Great Spirit which they adored. 
One of the chiefs addressed them as follows: 

"I thank the black gowned chief and his 
friend for taking so much pains to come to 
visit us. Never before has the earth been so 
beautiful nor the sun so bright as now. Never 
has the river been so calm or free from rocks, 
which your canoes removed as they passed 
down. Never has the tobacco had so fine a 
flavor nor our corn appeared so beautiful as 
we behold it today. Ask the Great Spirit to 
give us life and health and come ye and dwell 
with us." 

At the close of this fraternal conference the 
visitors were invited to a feast prepared by the 
squaws. Marquette has also given us a com- 
plete description of this feast. It consisted 
of four courses. The first was a preparation of 
corn meal boiled in water and seasoned with oil. 
The second course of boneless fish nicely 
cooked. The third roasted dog, which, when 
the visitors had declined with thanks they at 
once removed from sight. The last course was 



a roast of buffalo, the fattest pieces of which 
were passed to the Frenchmen, who found it to 
be most excellent meat. 

Marquette's narrative is rendered in verse in 
Longfellow's beautiful poem, "Hiawatha." 

The two Frenchmen remained six days with 
their Indian friends, hunting, fishing and bath- 
ing. Every day with them was a day of feasting. 
The natives exerted themselves in every possible 
way to contribute to their entertainment and 
comfort. This is the generous and beautiful 
spirit shown to the first white men who visited 
Iowa. The stream on whose banks this con- 
ference and reception occurred was the Des 
Moines river and the place of their landing on 
the Mississippi is supposed to be near -where 
the town of Montrose now stands, in Lee 
county. Marquette and his party could not be 
induced to remain longer. They were accom- 
panied Ijack to their canoes by an escort of 
six hundred Indians. They parted regretfully 
with their newly made friends, who gave them 
repeated invitations to renew their visit. 

As an expression of his sincere friendship, 
the Illinois chief presented Marquette with an 
ornamented pipe of peace — the sacred calumet. 
This he was to suspend from his neck as a sure 
protection from savage tribes whom the party 
might meet. This expression of friendship 
proved a timely safeguard to the brave party of 
explorers. They continued their journey down 
the river, being carried on its current by day 
and camping at night on the shore. Frequent 
excursions were made, exploring forests and 
prairies and rowing up the streams which emp- 
tied into the Mississippi. They passed the 
mouth of the Missouri and called it "Muddy 
Water." The clear waters of the Ohio w^ere 
called the "Beautiful River." In latitude 32 
degrees we are told they came into the terri- 
tory of a savage tribe which appeared on the 
bank of the river armed with bows, arrows and 
tomahawks ready for battle. The fearless Mar- 
quette was undaunted and held aloft his sa- 



lO 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



cred Calumet. These signs of peace checked 
the rage of the warriors and after a conference 
the chief invited Alarquette and his party to 
their village, where they feasted them for sev- 
eral days, and furnished them with fresh sup- 
plies for their journey. Marquette was quite 
a different character from the Spanish free- 
booters of the south a hundred years previous 
to his visit. The explorers extended their 
journey as far south as the mouth of the Ar- 
kansas river, a distance of nearly eleven hun- 
dred miles. It was extremely hot. The In- 
dian tribes were extremelv hostile and ]\Iar- 
quette was unacquainted with their language. 
Should the company be killed their discovery 
would never lie made known to the civilized 
world. As in ever)' case, from the first deci- 
sion to embark in the exploration, until its close, 
these young men acted from a sense of duty. 
After considering the situation thev decided it 
was their duty to return to Canada and make 
a report to their sovereign. For days and 
weeks the)' made their way against the current 
of the majestic ri\er until they reached the Illi- 
nois. Here they learned from the Indians that 
in ascending this river they would find a shorter 
route than the way they had come. Going 
up the Illinois river for two weeks, they crossed 
the short portage to the Chicago river and 
reached Lake Superior. Here the two explorers 
separated, Marquette returning to resume his 
work as a missionary among the Indians, and 
Joliet going on to Quebec to make a report of 
their joint discoveries to the governor of Can- 
ada. They had made a long journev of over 
two thousand miles without the loss of a man. 
Joliet received as a reward for his services the 
gift of the island of .Anticosta in the Gulf of 
St. Lawrence. There is no record that Mar- 
quette ever received anvthing. He asked noth- 
ing, but counted it a pleasure to bear a knowl- 
edge of the true God to these wilderness tribes. 
James Marquette was at the top of the list of 
noble men sent out by the Roman Catholic 



church to do missionary work in the Mississippi 
\'allev and the St. Lawrence basin. 



CHAPTER II. 



FIR.ST WHITE SETTLERS IN IOWA. 

It was one hundred and. fifteen }'ears after 
the exploration made by Marquette and Joliet 
until the first permanent white settlement was 
made in ^vhat is now the state of Iowa. 

Julien Dubuque had the honor of forming 
such a settlement within the jiresent limits of 
the city of Dubuque in the year I788. He was 
born in the province of Quebec January 10, 
1762, and received a good education: was a 
good writer and entertaining conversationalist. 
Going west at the age of twenty-two, he be- 
came an Indian trader. He settled at Prairie du 
Chien, Wisconsin, which was at that date the 
province of Louisiana. Thei'e was a Fox vil- 
lage on the western shore of the Mississippi 
where the citv of Dubuque now stands named 
for the chief who presided over it, the village 
of Kettle Chief. 

Lead had been discovered near the village 
in 17S0 by the wife of a prominent Fox war- 
rior.' Young Dul)U(|ue succeeded by shrewd 
management and persuasive methods in gain- 
ing the confidence of Kettle Chief and his peo- 
ple. He had given some attention to mineral- 
ogv and mining and obtained permission to 
cross the Mississippi and explore its western 
shore for lead ore, v\'hich he found in liberal 
(juantities. Having secured the lease to a tract 
of land nine miles wide up and down the river, 
Dubuque took with him in that year ten Can- 
adians, crossed the river and fonned a settle- 
ment near the Indian village The lease bears 
the date of September 22, 1788, and was 
drawn at Prairie du Chien. As Dubuque 



IWST AND PRESEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



II 



liad secured the friendsliip of Kettle Chief, 
himself and his companions were allowed to 
make their home in the Indian lodges in the 
\illage. 

He had his overseers, smelters, wood chop- 
pers and hoatmen. The point now known as 
Dulni(|ue Bluti' was the site of a smelting fur- 
nace. He kept a store, hought and sold furs. 
Indian trinkets, and did quite an extensive busi- 
ness in connection with mining ad preparing 
the ore for market. He gave employment to 
the Indian women and old men of the Fox 
tribe, the stately warriors counting it a disgrace 
to ilo manual labor of any kind. As a compli- 
ment to the Spanish governor, he gave the 
name nf the "Mines to Spain'" to his growing 
industry. 

In comnmn with most of the French traders 
he married an Indian woman and adopted in 
a large measure the Indian mode of life. 

Twice each year Dubu(|ue took a barge load 
of ore. furs, hides and other frontier ijroducts 
to St. Louis, which he sold or exchanged for 
goods and supplies for his settlement. He was 
known as the large-t trader in the Mississippi 
vallev and his semi-annual \is!ts were often 
the ficcasion of l)an<|ueting and festivitv in that 
frontier town. 

He is described as a man of medium size but 
strongly built, black hair and eyes, having the 
courtlv, gracious and ])olished manner of an 
acc<:m])lislied h'renchman. 

In the course of years of trade Dubu(|ue be- 
came indebted to St. Louis merchants, which 
considerably involved his estate. His diplo- 
macy always won for him a favorable hearing 
by those high in autborit}- and influence, but he 
was not so successful as a financier. 

He built homes for his people, encouraged 
farming and erected a mill. His settlement was 
known exervwhere to possess all of the con- 
\eniences of which its remote frontier situation 
would permit. 

iMjr twenty-two years Dul)uque and his col- 
ony of whites li\ed with the Indians, carrying 



on mining operations and trade with the settle- 
ment down the Mississippi river. 

Dubuque died March lo. 1810. from an at- 
tack of pneumimia. The leader and pioneer of 
the first white colony in the future state of Iowa 
left no family. He was followed to his grave 
not i)nl\- by his own people Init by the popula- 
tion of the entire village, by all of whom he 
was beloved. He was buried on one of the 
bluffs, two hundred feet above the river. Some 
years afterward his friend, the Fox chief, was 
buried near his grave. 

Dul)uque"s death brought great changes to 
the little colony. The Indians refused to al- 
low the mining operations to continue. School- 
craft says they burned down his house and 
fences and erased every vestige of civilized 
life. 

During the twenty-two years that Duljuque 
was at the head of his settlement, from 1788 
to iSio. the territon,- was owned by three dif- 
ferent nations, viz. : Spain. France and the 
United States. The mines afterward came to 
be called "The Dulnuiue Lead Mines." 

.At the close of the Black Hawk war the 
mines were reopened and in 1833 there were 
500 white people in the mining district. .\t a 
meeting of the settlers the next year the ])lace 
was called. Dubuque. 

The next white settlement made within the 
limits of Iowa was by Basil Gerard, a French 
American, in 1795. in Clayton county. It con- 
tained over 5.800 acres and is known on Iowa 
mai)s as the "Gerard Tract." .\fter the Louisi- 
ana purchase a patent was issued to Mr. Ge- 
rard bv the U. S. government. This document 
is interesting because it is the first legal docu- 
ment ufranting land to a white man within the 
limits of the state of Iowa. 

Louis Honore Tesson, a French Canadian, 
made the third settlement in 1799. He pro- 
cured the liberty of establishing a trading ix)st 
at the head of the Des Moines Rapids on the 
west bank of the Mississippi, and selected his 



12 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



location in Lee county, where ^Montrose now 
stands. He erected buildings for a trading 
post, opened a farm and planted crops. Some 
of the seedling apple trees planted by Tesson 
bore fruit for seventy-five years. 

The first Iowa school house was built in Lee 
county in 1830. and the first school was taught 
by Berryman Jennings. In that early settle- 
ment that year also was born the first white 
child within the limits of the state, Eleanor 
Galland, a daughter of Dr. Isaac Galland, who 
settled in Lee county in the spring of 1829. 

Dr. Samuel C. Muir was an army surgeon 
located at different times at the frontier forts 
along the Mississippi river. He was a native of 
Scotland and a graduate of Edinburgh L'niver- 
sity and highly respected by every one as a 
man of rare culture. He had married a bright 
and intelligent Indian girl of the Sac nation. 
While located at Fort Edwards, now Warsaw, 
Illinois, he crossed the river and built a cabin 
•where Keokuk now stands. Some time after- 
ward the war department issued an order which 
required officers of the frontier to abandon their 
Indian wives. Dr. Muir refused to abandon 
his family and resigned his position as surgeon 
Mith the army. A\'hen he was urged to recon- 
sider his action he took up his first born child 
and said : "May God forbid that a son of Cale 
donia should ever desert his wife or abandon 
his child." Himself and wife lived happih- 
in their little cabin home on the ^Mississippi 
until hi? death in T832. 



CHAPTER III. 



IMPORTAXT L.\XD DE.\LS WITH THE IXDI.\XS. 



The name Iowa was first applied to a large 



district of country lying between Lake INIichig 



an 



and the Mississippi river. The \\'isconsin 
river was the north line and tlie Illinois bounded 
it on the south. This extensive area was called 
Iowa county in 1829. It was so named be- 
cause it had been the fomier home of the Iowa 
Indians. In about the year 1700 they migrated 
westward, crossing the Mississsippi and locat- 
ing on the Iowa river. This tribe of Indians 
gave their name to the ri\'er on which they 
located and from it the territory and state were 
named. 

On the 30th of April, 1803, France ceded to 
the United States her territory between the Mis- 
sissippi river and the Rocky mountains, known 
as the "Louisiana Purchase," for $15,000,000. 
In 1804 what is known as the State of Iowa was 
included in the District of Louisiana. ]\Iarch 
3, 1805, it was organized into the Territory of 
Louisiana. In 1812 it was included in the juris- 
diction of the Territon,- of Missouri. June 28, 
1834, Congress provided that "All that part of 
the territory of the United States bounded on 
tlie east by the Mississippi river, on the south 
by the State of Missouri, on the we.-t by the 
^lissouri and White Earth rivers and on the 
north by the northern boundaiy of the United 
States, shall be attached to Michigan Territory." 

The state of Iowa was embraced in this ter- 
ritory and for judicial purposes was made a part 
of Michigan. In Septemter of 1834 the Mich- 
igan Assembly divided the Iowa District into 
two counties b}- running a line due west from 
the lower end of the island of Rock Island. The 
territon,^ north of this line was named Dubuque 
count}' and all south of the line was called Des 
Moines county. The courts were organized in 
each county. The place of meeting for the 
county on the north was Dubuque, and Burling- 
ton on the south. 

The first court was held in a log house in 
Burlington in April, 1835. The Governor of 
Michigan appointed the judges for these new 
counties. Isaac Loeffer was appointed to preside 
in Des Moines county and John King in Du- 
buque county. Judge King was the founder 



PAST AXl) I'KRSEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY, 



13 



and piililisher of the Dubuque Visitor, the first 
newspaper estabhshed within tlic hniits of the 
state of Iowa. 

A census taken in 1836 ga\e the two counties 
in the Black Hawk Purchase, Duiniquc and l)es 
Moines, a iwpulation of 10,531. 

The first book ever puhhshed descriptive of 
Iowa, or Iowa District, as it was then called, 
was published in 1836 by Lieutenant Albert M. 
Lea, for whom Lee county was named. Lieut. 
Lea was a civil engineer and a skilled draughts- 
man. His work as a soldier enabled him to ex- 
plore much of the then unknown region in cen- 
tral and southern Iowa. Mr. Lea pays this trib- 
ute to the Iowa pioneers he had met while 
scouring about over the new country : "Tlie 
character of the population settling in this beau- 
tiful countrv is such as is rare!}' found in other 
new territories. With few exceptions there is 
not a more industrious, orderly and energetic 
jTopulation west of the Alleghcnies than are 
found in the Iowa District." 

Mr. George Catlin, a famous Indian painter 
and historian, visited the Indian tribes in Iowa 
some years earlier than Mr. Lea and has many 
enthusiastic descriptions of the beauty and soli- 
tude of these western prairie lands. We give a 
short extract : "The stately march of our grow- 
ing pnpulatiiin to this vast ganlen spot will 
surely come in surging columns and spread 
farms, houses, orchards, towns and cities all 
over these remote wild prairies. Half a century 
hence, the sun is sure to shine on countless vil- 
lages, silvered spires and domes, denoting the 
march of intellect and wealth's refinement in 
this beautiful and far-off solitude of the west, 
and we may perhaps hear the tinkling of the 
bells from our graves." 

In the Louisiana Purchase from b'rance on 
April 30, 1803, as in all purchases made by the 
L^nited States, it was always the jxilicy of the 
government to recognize the claims of the vari- 
ous Indian tribes to the territory which they 
occupied. Xo bona fide grant or guarantee 



could be given by the government to any of 
these lands until the Indians' title had beeii sat- 
isfied by treaty and purchase. 

A number of treaties were made with the 
Sacs and Foxes, who occupied almost all of 
eastern Iowa. 

A treaty made September 21, 1832, known as 
Black Hawk Purchase, opened the first lands in 
Iowa for settlement by the whites. This treaty 
was made on the spot where the city of Daven- 
port now stands. 

General Winfield Scott and Go\-ernor John 
Reynolds, of Illinois, represented the United 
States. The Indian tribes were represented by 
Keokuk, Pash-e-pa-ho, Black Hawk and other 
chiefs. The negotiations were conducted in a 
large tent erected on the west bank of the river. 
It is described as an unusually interesting scene. 
In contrast with the gay uniforms of the sol- 
diers and tlie painted warriors, adorned in their 
\-ery best costumes, were the hardy hunters and 
trappers who hung about the council to watch 
the proceedings. 

June I, 1833, was the date when the first 
Iowa purchase was thrown open to the settlers. 
Antoine Le Claire acted as interpreter for this 
treaty. He had long lived among the Indians 
and had married an Indian wife. To show their 
strong friendship for him they had reserved for 
his wife 640 acres f)f land where Da\'cnporc 
now stands and an equal amount for himself 
nordi of Davenport, where the town of Le 
Claire is now located. 

By this treaty the Sacs and Foxes ceded to 
the United States a tract of land containing 
six million acres extending from the northern 
boundary of Missouri to the mouth of the Up- 
per Iowa river, having an average width of fifty 
miles west of the Mississippi river. 

The consideration paid for this grant of land 
was the payment of an annual sum of twenty 
thousand dollars for thirty years, and also the 
sum of fifty thousand dollars of indebtedness 
which these tribes owed to certain Indian trad- 



14 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ers on the rixei". It was estimated that the cost to 
the government was about nine cents per acre 
for this splendid cession of lands. At this time 
the Sacs and Foxes numbered about thirty-five 
hundred persons. They moved their families 
o\-er near the Des Moines ri\'er between Ot- 
tumwa and Agency City, which latter place 
became the new Indian agency. 

On October ii, 1842, a final purchase was 
made from the Sac and Fox Indians of all their 
remaining lands west of the Mississippi. The 
treaty was negotiated at Agency b)- John 
Chambers, governor of Iowa Territory. 

These deliberations took place also in a large 
tent. To insure good order a troop of dra- 
goons from Fort Des Moines were present 
under the command of Caqjtain Allen. There 
was always considerable display on these treaty 
occasions. The Indians loved show and pa- 
rade and the government officials encouraged 
it so that the dignified chiefs and their braves 
might be properly impressed. The governor 
at this treat}- wore a brilliant uniform of a 
brigadier general of the United States Army. 
He and his staff sat at one end of the tent on a 
slightly elevated platform. The chiefs were 
seated in front of tliis platform and the inter- 
preter occupied a position between the two rep- 
resentative bodies. The Indians were likewise 
attired in their best. Each had purchased a 
new blanket at the agency. Leggins of white 
deer-skin, feathers, beads, rings and painted 
faces made up their apparel. It is said also 
that each chief carried a profusely decorateil 
war club to give decorum to the occasion. 
There was much talk, for the Indians Ime to 
make speeches and listen to them. The words 
of each speaker were translated by the inter- 
preter that it might be clearly understood. 

The Indians pleaded eloquently for their 
charming hunting grounds with their be-uitiful 
forests and meadows. They loved Iowa as 
dearly as tli€ white man does today. The com- 
]3ensation seemed a large sum to them, but 
it was as trasli compared with the liome of 
their forefathers. 



The winter of 1842-3 was the severest that 
had yet been known in Iowa. It was a trying 
winter on the settlers as well as the disheartened 
savages. The chief medicine man of the tribes 
who had strongly opposed giving up their 
lands, now said to the Indians : "This cold 
weather and these hardships have come upon 
}ou because the Great Spirit is angry at you. 
You have parted with the last of your posses- 
sions. You have sold the home of }'()ur fa- 
thers. Alanitou is displeased." 

The Indians had confidence in their prophet 
and observed solemn ceremonies to pacify the 
Great Spirit. 

This grant of land CdUiprised perhaps two- 
thirds of the present state of Iowa, containing 
10,000,000 acres, for which the disheartened 
and retreating red man received $800,000 in 
annual payments, with five per cent, interest 
])er annum. 

It was this purchase from the Sacs and Fo.xes 
which included the territory from which ^la- 
haska county was surveyed, the history and 
growtli of which should be of absorbing inter- 
est to every citizen within its limits. 

The early settlers almost always speak of 
this grant as the "New Purchase." The In- 
dians were to vacate the eastern portion of 
these lands on ■May i, 1843, and two years later 
they were to leave their beautiful Iowa hunting 
grounds and cross the ^Missouri, never to re- 
turn. They had been crowded westward from 
the state of Ohio. They lingered about their 
mice cheerful camp fires, brooding sadly over 
their certain doom. Women wept as they went 
about the drudgery of gathering their 
household goods together for the long 
journey. Men were melancholy and silent as 
the\- looked for the last time on forest, stream 
and prairie. But there is no alternative. Primi- 
tive races must retreat or be absorbed by the 
aggressive forces of civilization. Over and 
over again history has written this almost un- 
alterable decree. Only once in all recorded his- 
torv has this law Iseen re\-ersed. When Wil- 
liam the Conqueror came o\'er to England from 



PAST ANT) I'UI'LSENT OF MAHASKA COL'X'IA" 



tlie continent in tlie year 1066 with his Nor- 
man-Frencii army and subdued our forefa- 
tliers, the gritty Anglo-Saxon never gave up his 
native tongue. He submitted as best he could 
to the d(iminion of the French Court. l)Ut clung 
with everlasting tenacity to his own language 
and his own individuality and in the end of the 
centuries the strong character and life of the 
Anglo-Saxon dominated and his once proud 
conc|uerors were absorbed and lost to sight in 
tlie iostle of the ^•ears. 



CHAPTER IV. 



SOME E.XRI.V M.XHASKA SETTLERS. 

The settlement and organization of the coun- 
ties in h>wa Territor}- was begain by the legisla- 
tme by first organizing counties along the west 
bank of the Mississippi river. As each county 
was organized and the settlements moved west- 
ward it was made to include all settlers beyond 
its western l)order. This was done for legal 
and judicial purposes. It gave settlers located 
beyond the geographical borders on the west, 
election privileges and equal protection under 
the law. In this way Mahaska county com- 
missioners exercised jurisdiction over the re- 
gion as far west as the territory now- included 
in the cit)- of Des Moines. Among the count\- 
records is an order granting a license for one 
year to John Scott allowing him the liberty of 
"keeping a ferry across the Des Moines river 
at the mouth of the Raccoon river near I'ort 
Des Moines on the payment of the sum of ten 
dollars into the county treasury." The license 
limited the ferryman to specific charges, rang- 
ing frnui fwc cents for sheep and hogs to fifty 
cents for four horses and wagon. 

The first cabin erected within the boundary 
of what is now Mahaska countv was built on 



the flat north of Eddyville in the fall of 1842 
by a Mr. William Mcllvain, who was a hunter 
and trader of that period. Mr. Mcllvain ob- 
tained permission from the Indians, as no set- 
tlements were allowed by the government until 
the following spring. The winter of 1842-43 
was an unusually severe winter. The snow 
which fell in the fall remained on the ground 
until late in the spring. This cabin was occu- 
pied by the family of John B. Gray, who had 
arrixed from Texas. November ist, of that 
year. The cabin has onl\- l)een destroved in 
recent years. 

Mrs. F. A. l'~rench. of Keokuk, who is the 
youngest daughter of the Gray family, states 
to the author, who was well acquainted with 
the family, that she distinctly remembers about 
her mother relating the incidents and the ex- 
periences of that trying winter, located as they 
were so far from civilization. 

It has been stated l)y several historians of 
the count}- and state that a man by the name of 
McBeth had built the first cabin and that Mr. 
Gray secured it from him. This, however, must 
stand corrected, as we have this information 
from those who were on the scene. Mrs. Gray 
and Mrs. Mcllvain were sisters. 

Mr. Mcllvain came from Indianapolis, Indi- 
ana, and afterward entered land out near Six- 
Mile, where he remained until the year 1850. 
when he joined one of the man}- caravans which 
crossed the plains to California in search of 
gold. A letter from his son, J. H. Mcllvain, 
of Harlan, Kansas, corroborates the above 
facts. 

Mr. Gra}- was born in Caledonia county, 
X'ermont. .\pril g, 1809. His grandfather was 
a member of a New- Hampshire regiment and 
lost his life while servingasa .soldier in the Rev- 
olutionary war. In February, 1834. he emi- 
grated to what was then known as the Black 
Hawk purchase. Michigan Territory, stopping 
near the little village of Flint Hills, now Burl- 
ington. The town had been laid out the pre- 



i6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



vious fall. Had a small general store and a 
ferry boat. At a meeting of its citizens to give 
the town a better name Mr. Gray suggested 
Burlington, the name of his home town in Ver- 
mont. It was well received, and the company 
agreed that if Mr. Gray would put in a gen- 
eral store he should have the honor of naming 
the place. He consented to this proposition 
and remained in business in Burlington until 
1838, when he removed to the republic of 
Texas. Finding things very unsettled in that 
country, he turned his property into horses 
and drove them north overland, selling them 
as he came through the states. Tlie fall of 
1842 found him as above stated. When the 
Sac and Fox reservation was opened for set- 
tlement on May i, 1843, he entered three hun- 
dred and sixty acres of land two and one-half 
miles west of Eddyville, where he remained 
until his death in 1876. 

Mrs. Gray was the daughter of a pioneer 
flatboat captain on the Mississippi and was in- 
ured to frontier life. She drove a team through 
on the return ^trip from Texas. On this long 
journey she was often separated from her hus- 
band for several days, camping where night 
overtook her with her three little ones. 

Eddyville was then known as Hard Fish's 
Village, this being the name of the chief who 
presided over the inhabitants. At this time 
J. P. Eddy had a trading' post near the Indian 
village and supplied the Indians and hardy 
woodsmen for twenty-five miles distant, or 
more, with blankets, saddles, guns, ammuni- 
tion and other frontier necessities. His books 
were kept by Richard Butcher. These books 
are still in existence and show the names repre- 
senting 2,004 Indians, who had open accounts 
at the post. The accounts are kept in the name 
of the head of the family and give the number 
of persons which he represented. Kish-ke- 
kosh, our Mahaska county chief, ran up a bill 
amounting to almost two hundred dollars. 
Other prominent chiefs whose names appear on 



these books are Wapello, Pashe-pa-ho and the 
wife of Keokuk. Mr. Eddy had a grant from 
the government of 640 acres of land lying on 
the east bank of the Des Moines river, and 
when the Indians moved toward the west in 
1843 he laid off 160 acres into a town plat and 
called it Eddyville. At this time about one 
hundred of its population is in Mahaska county. 

By the first of May, 1843, the date when the 
reservation was opened to settlement, many 
of the anxious settlers had quietly worked their 
way across the borders in spite of the vigilance 
of the patrolling dragoons, who kept constant 
watch on the eastern and southern border of 
the Indian reservation to keep off intruders. 
Wagons were not allowed to cross the line but 
a small company of men on foot without axes 
were permitted to pass into the "Promised 
Land" and make such observations as suited 
their fancy. Hatchets and axes were almost 
invariably smuggled in without handles in bun- 
dles or under the clothing, and handles were 
improvised when needed. These hardy chil- 
dren of nature when worn by the day's tramp- 
ing, would lie down wherever night overtook 
them, and with some slight protection from the 
wild beasts would rest until the welcome dawn 
of another day. 

Richard Parker, who was an early arri\al in 
the New Purchase, told the author that he had 
often found himself alone when night came on 
when on these frontier exploits and would 
crawl into the thickest hazel brush, so as to 
make it quite impossible for wolves, which he 
dreaded most, or any other animal, to approach 
his hiding place without making sufficient 
noise to awaken him. Here, with his trusty 
gim well loaded and lying by his side, he would 
sleep soundly and sweetly until morning. 
These adventures, which seem thrilling to us, 
were a part of the hardy life of those who fol- 
lowed close upon the heels of the retreating In- 
dians. They simply made the best of their sur- 
roundings and thought but little about it. 



PAST AXi:) PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



17 



Tliere was considerable relaxation in the 
rules governing the settlers as the time a])- 
proached when all restriction should be re- 
moved. Perhaps hundreds of the newcomers 
had their claims selected before that date, and 
on the night of April 30. 1843, camped on the 
ground and had sharpened stakes and primitive 
torches already manufactured, so that when the 
moon and stars indicated the midnight hour 
they left their campfires with exultation and 
rejoicing to measure ofif as accurately as pos- 
sible the three hundred and twenty acres which 
should be the home of the family, which awaited 
their return, near the border of the reservation. 
It was a night of too much joy and gladness to 
sleep and we are told that the woods rang with 
many a hurrah and cheer as they went with 
torch in hand over hill and valley, here driving 
a stake or there blazing a tree, or in some defi- 
nite way marking the corners and lines of the 
land which should be the much-coveted abiding 
place of themselves and their children in the 
peaceful passing of the years. This was the de- 
lightful dream of the early settler. The first 
settlers avoided the prairies. Their ideal was 
a comfortable cabin in the edge of the timber, 
near a spring or a running stream, where game 
would be plentiful and fuel close at hand. 

Dr. E. A. Boyer. who was one of the early 
pioneers in Scott township, was bom in Mary- 
land, March 13, 1816. His father was a slave 
holder at the time df his birth but liberated 
them and removed to Ohio, where the Doctor 
grew to manhood, receiving a medical educa- 
tion. Dr. Boyer was married in 1840 to Miss 
Mary Wiley, who sun'ives her husband and 
stil] presides over the old home, which was built 
near where the first cabin stood on the banks 
of the Des Moines ri\er. in Scott township. .\1- 
though far advanced in years she has a distinct 
memory of most of the events that have tran- 
spired in the west in the sixty-five years of her 
residence in Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Boyer came 
to hnva the same year of their marriage and 



made their home in Van Buren county until 
the opening of the New Purchase. He was one 
of those who staked off his land at midnight 
April 30, 1843. A cabin was built at once and 
his family removed to the new home. Mrs. 
Boyer says the temporary floor of that first 
cabin was made of bark, and that those years 
brought them the fullest measure of happiness 
and contentment. The Doctor practiced his 
profession actively for fifteen years. In the 
days when the river traffic counted for much he 
had a general store at Rochester and Belle- 
fountaine. He was enterprising and became 
wealthy, but made no one poorer. The Boyer 
estate still has over a thousand acres of land 
in Mahaska county. 

\'an B. Delashmutt came at the same time 
and was a neighbor of Dr. Boyer and they were 
lifelong friends. Born in Virginia, he served 
two terms in the legislature of that state. Com- 
ing west to better his condition, he became 
widely known in Iowa and the west. He was a 
typical pioneer. His son, W. A. Delashmutt. 
states to the writer that when he crossed the 
plains in 1849 he was laid up for fourteen days 
in Salt Lake City with mountain fever. While 
in that condition, lying in his tent, he was vis- 
ited by Brigham Young, who placed him under 
the care of a skillful physician, gave him com- 
fortable quarters and visited him every day of 
his illness. The great leader told young De- 
lashmutt that when his people were going 
through Iowa a few years before a large party 
of them had camped for the winter near his fa- 
ther's house and that his kindness to them had 
made his father's name a household word in 
many a western home. The young man had 
been absent from home that winter. The Mor- 
mon chieftain also stated that the Iowa people 
had been universally kind to his people and they 
should be well treated in passing through his 
flominion. but that the people of Illinois and 
Missouri should not be allowed to camp nearer 
to Salt Lake Citv than four miles, because of 



i8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



their cruel and inhuman treatment of those who 
had embraced the Mormon faith. Mr. Delash- 
mutt says that to his certain knowledge this 
rule was adhered to during his stay. 

Poultney Loughridge came from Ohio to 
Iowa in 1842. wintering in a cabin four miles 
north of Richland. The following spring in 
March, himself and three others, John McAl- 
lister and Edwin and Robert Mitchell quietly 
slipped across the border of the New Purchase 
in search for choice claims. They made their 
selection in Spring Creek township, but decided 
not to return home but to remain on the grountl 
until the land should be open for settlement. 
Fearful of being discovered by the Indians or 
the dragoons, they selected the most dense 
thicket that could be found in which to build a 
small cabin which would afford them temporary 
shelter and seclusion. On the night of April 30th 
they did not sleep. Stakes, torches and land- 
marks had all been selected. They had brought 
with them a pocket compass, which proved of 
much value in the wilderness. Mr. Lough- 
ridge's father was a surveyor and his son \\as 
versed in that science. As soon as the hour of 
midnight had passed they struck out, torch in 
hand, and before daylight their claims were all 
staked. Cabins were built as soon as possible 
for the families who were in waiting, and the 
conquest of the new farms began. For the first 
year letters were mailed at Fairfield or Brigh. 
ton. Letter postage was twenty-five cents, but 
later reduced to ten cents. Produce was some- 
times hauled to Fort Des Moines and exchanged 
for calico at twenty-five cents per yard, and 
other useful household supplies. Hogs were 
driven to Keokuk and sold for one dollar antl 
twenty-five and one fifty per hundred pounds. 
Ague and fever were much dreaded. James 
Loughridge, the youngest son of the family, 
still owns the farm which his father entered. 

Mrs. H. P. Martin, now in her eighty-third 
year, came to Spring Creek township, where 
she still lives, in 1843. Her husband staked off 
his claim by torchlight in the early morning 



hours of May ist of that year. He was ac- j 
companied by his brother, Silas. Mrs. ^Martin 
says the first years were \ery trying in man\- 
ways. They usually went to Bonaparte to 
mill. \Mien Miss Hobbs was teaching the first 
school taught in the county she often stayed at 
the Martin home, especially during these long 
milling trips. Ague was the scourge of the 
country in the summer and early fall. Those 
who were compelled to be early and late in the 
fields were the worst sufferers. Mr. Martin 
was a great sufferer at a time when he felt that 
he must be at work. He would go do\\"n on the 
prairie near ^\^right to cut grass for the stock. 
Late in the afternoon the hot fever would fol- 
low the chills, at which time he would hardlv 
be able to account for himself, being so com- 
pletely deranged. He always took the precau- 
tion, however, to prepare for himself a bed of 
hay on which to lie until his consciousness re- 
turned. Mrs. Martin says that when her hus- 
band failed to return at a reasonable time in the 
evening her anxiety for his safety would become 
so intense that she would take her bab}' in her 
arms and go until she would find him still at his 
work or on his way home, the wolves all the 
while howling about her pathway. It was a 
pleasure to sit in the presence of the good old 
modier and hear her talk in her entirely unaf- 
fected way alx)ut those primitive days in what is 
now Spring Creek township. She said she 
could not understand why a loving Providence 
had kept her through so many hardships and 
dangers to see the quiet days of these later 
years. She has been a widow twelve years and 
is now living quietly on a small farm with her 
son Byron not far from the old home selected 
in the wilderness. 

There is a charm in a quiet, peaceful life, 
whether it be in the strength of matured years 
or in the halo of a well preserved old age. Like 
the waters that flow to the sea, life is at first 
a fretful rivulet, then a stately ri^•er, and lastly 
a quiet and broad sweeping tide until it is swal- 
lowetl up in the unknown. In all of these stages 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUXT^'. 



19 



when unaffectetl and naUiral. it is most interest- 
ing and l^cautiful. 



CHAPTER V. 



PIOXEHK M.\.\.\I:R UF LU-E HLXTIXG, AMUSE- 
MENTS, DRESS. 

W'lien a settler reached the end of his long' 
journey his first business was to select his claim 
and locate his residence. In the absence of sec- 
tion lines he determined the points of the com- 
pass by the sim at noon and in the evening. So 
many steps each way would measure three hun- 
dred and twenty acres more or less, which an- 
swered all necessary purix)ses for seciu"ing a 
claim. it was always understood that in 
the righting of irregularities by the final 
survey each settler would be absolutely sure to 
receive the full amount of his claim. 

Having selected a location the most pressing 
business at hand was to construct a lemporarv 
house for the protection of the family. The 
style was not.a thing to be considered. A shel- 
ter was the only thought in the minds of the 
first home builders. We do not read of many 
dugouts in Iowa, but thirty years ago the 
writer visited many such homes on the prairies 
of Nebraska. Even with dirt floors the average 
home was always kept neat and clean. The 
hardy settler usually hafl no means and but 
few appliances for home building. He was 
i|uite content with a cabin such as would af- 
ford shelter and protection from the winter 
storms and excessive weather. A one-room 
caliin fourteen or sixteen feet square, with a 
bark or cla])board roof and a roughlv built 
stick chimney with a good big fireplace was 
joy and undisturbed contentment for years to 
come for the early settler. Doors and win- 



dows were not always immediately pro\-ided. 
.\ blanket often did good service in gtiarding 
the door until they found time to split the tim- 
bers, that when com])leted, would swing on 
its wooden hinges and fasten with a latch made 
of seasoned hickory. As for furniture, there 
was not room for much, and it was f|uite easy 
to im])ro\ise tables and chairs. Sometimes the 
door was taken from its hinges and used as a 
table on special occasions, and when needed no 
longer for that purpose, was lifted into its place 
again. In the earlier days, after the cabin was 
enclosed and made comfortable, the deft hand 
of the good housewife was generally equal to 
almost any emergency, and the father of the 
family was left free to look after outside af- 
fairs. How cheerful the old fashioned fire- 
])lace always seemed, with its huge back log 
and its crackling fire. The family sitting in a 
semi-circle around its wide mouth is a picture 
of contentment and unmeasured joy. No mem- 
ber of that circle can ever forget the scene or 
get away from the influence of its holy fel- 
lowship. 

The site for the home of the early settler was 
usually on the edge of the timber, near a spring 
or running stream. The timber served as a 
protection from the storms of winter and the 
excessive heat of summer. Then the nearness 
to the timlier afforded an immediate supply of 
fuel and logs for the cabin. Along the edge of 
the timber, also, the sod was more easily 
broken than on the prairie. A truck patch with 
the larger portion of it in corn was all that 
could be done the first year. These were the 
trying years for the early settlers. Mills were 
scarce and usually a distance of several days' 
journe_\-. In a number of instances in this 
county, we are told, that after a long winter 
which caused the scanty food supply to nm 
very low, it required the time of one member 
of the family during the spring months to be on 
die road to and from the mill, which was often 
sixty to seventy-five miles distant. The trip 



20 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



was often made on horseback, as there were 
no ferries, and the swollen streams had to be 
crossed in a canoe or raft and the horse or oxen 
would swim. In making these long and diffi- 
cult trips the pioneer would camp at night on or 
near the prairie, where his team could feed on 
the grass. After a week or more of exposure 
and toilsome travel, he would be disheartened 
to learn on arriving at the mill that his turn 
would come in a week. He was lucky if he 
found a job to pay expenses while waiting. 
When his turn came he was expected to' be 
promptly on hand to claim it, or another would 
take his place. His grinding finally ready, he 
was delighted to turn his face homeward and 
meet the dangers of the return trip. These 
milling trips occupied so much valuable time 
that it made the cost of breadstuffs extremely 
high. 

Timber and prairie wolves were a great men- 
ace to the early settler. While it was quite true 
in a figiu-ative sense that the pioneer had a hard 
time to "keep the wolf from the door," it was 
equally true in a literal sense. As the countiw 
became more settled wolf hunts were organ- 
ized to rid the country of these pests. It is 
said that as many as fifty have been killed in 
a day at one of these regular wolf hunts. 

There were times when it was impossible to 
obtain flour, and corn bread was an acceptable 
substitute. The ingenuity of the good mother ' 
was often taxed to supplement the supply of 
wild game. Corn was often ground on hand 
mills or a home-made grater and sifted through 
a piece of dressed deer skin which had been 
perforated by a hot wire or sharpened nail. 
Bread made from this contained all the health- 
ful ingredients of the grain and could not fail 
to be sweet and nutritious. 

This is no imaginative description of the dif- 
ficulties to be overcome in settling the soil of 
Iowa and Mahaska county. There are persons 
yet living who participated in these hardships. 

The necessities of life were not large during 



those first years. They had not yet learned the 
lesson of extravagance. Many a happy meal 
was -eaten of corn bread and meat, prepared 
under the most humble circumstances by the 
cheerful and constant wife. No destitution was 
ever permitted in any neighborhood. What 
one had all were free to use while it lasted. 
The last pound of meat or peck of meal was 
generously divided with a needy neighbor. 
There was no selfishness. A cordial and gen- 
erous life made all the days of the year happy 
days. The first settlers who came into this 
country thought themselves fortunate to get 
mail from their friends once in three or six 
months. After the days of post offices all news 
was several months old before it reached its 
destination. The postal authorities at that time 
allowed excess of postage to be paid by the 
person to whom the letter was addressed. Judge 
Seevers used to tell of a young pioneer who 
was unable to raise the twenty-five cents back 
postage for the want of which he was not per- 
mitted to lift the letter from the office. He 
made periodical trips to the office to have the 
satisfaction of inspecting it until such time as 
he could raise the price which enabled him to 
secure it. 

The perils and suffering to be encountered 
by the pioneers did not prevent them from be- 
ing a cheerful and light-hearted people. Frolics 
were frequent. Whenever anything was to be 
done requiring more help than the family could 
supply, a day in the future was selected on 
which to make a frolic.. These occasions were 
widely advertised, and everybody was made 
welcome, and as a rule the whole neighborhood 
planned their work to attend the gathering. 
There were the house-raising, log-rolling 
wood-chopping and the like for the men 
and quilting and sewing for the wom- 
en. On these occasions ample prepara- 
tions were made to entertain the crowd with 
plenty of food and drink. With joking and a 
general merry-making time the work went on 



PAST AXD PRESEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



21 



until the allotted task was done. In the evening 
the fun-making Ijegan in earnest and continued 
far into the night, especially among the young 
people. A house-raising, which was always re- 
garded great fun, would furnish a stimulus and 
excitement for a neighborhnod for weeks pre- 
\ious and after the event. 

The first cabins were built with the logs just 
as they came from the forests, round, with the 
bark on, A little later it was accounted an 
indication of good taste to chip off two sides of 
each log. Then came the more elegant home 
made of hewed logs, presenting a flat surface 
both inside and out. A good deal of prepara- 
tion was necessary on the part of the host to 
have all in readiness for a house-raising. The 
timbers must all be prepared in proper-lengths, 
then cut and notched and ready to be laid in 
place, yien who were specially skillful with an 
axe were placed on the corners of the building 
to clip out just the right sized chip to allow 
the log to make a close fit. 

Horse racing, foot racing and shooting 
matches were popular amusements. At these 
gatherings there were almost always tests of 
physical strength in some form and sometimes 
vicious fights were precipitated l)y an imagined 
insult or some boastful spirit whose superflu- 
ous vitality was chaffing to demonstrate that he 
was the best man in the crowd. He usually got 
what teasters deserve, a good "licking," from 
which time he ceased to be the champion of the 
neighborhood. A too free use of liquor gen- 
erally brought on these pernicious contests, 
^^fost of these festivities wound up with danc- 
ing, which was always a favorite diversion 
with the early settlers. 

There was but little attention paid to stvlc 
in dress. During the first years the garments 
they brought with them were made to go as far 
as possible. A coon skin or a wolf skin cap 
was counted a luxury. The skin of the deer, 
known as "buckskin," was used by the men for 
the blouse, pantaloons and moccasins, and the 
women wore knit hoods and fabrics of their 



own weaving until the general store came into 

the settlement. 



CHAPTER VI. 



CL.\IM ASSOCIATIONS THEIR LAWS THE 

MAJORS CASE. 

The earliest claims of the land west of the . 
Mississippi river were made by the fearless pio- 
neer farmers, or squatters. They had no titles 
or patents to the soil they occupied, no legal 
rights, and hence no protection by the United 
States Government. In many cases they were 
there because they had dared to violate an act of 
Congress prohibiting settlers from trespassing 
on the puljlic domain. Even for inany years 
after the lands were open for settlement the pio- 
neers were a law unto themselves. Because of 
this condition there developed a system of popu- 
lar government peculiar to the frontier commu- 
nities of the west. It was known as the Claim 
Association, or Land Club, Each communit}'^ 
had its own land association, the object of which 
was the protection of the actual settlers in their 
rights against speculators and "land grabbers." 
Cases of dispute arising between members of an 
association were settled by a Claim Committee 
and from their decision there was no appeal. 
The laws of these associations were the out- 
growth of the strongest sense of justice and 
equity in the community and an intentional vio- 
lation of these laws was punished by the strong- 
est public condemnation. Sometimes tar and 
feathers and the lash were resorted to in order 
to emphasize the chastisement. The number of 
acres of land allowed to any one .settler varied in 
the different communities from one hundred and 
sixty to four hundred and eighty acres. Bounda- 
ries to these claims were designated by section, 
and the township line if the Government survey 
had been completed, otherwise, by stakes, blazed 
trees, streams, hills and rocks. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Tlie settlers continued tu improve these 
claims until the date set by the go\-ernment for 
the sale of the land. In the meantime all claims 
were recorded and marked off on a map of the 
township. On the day of sale this map was 
placed in the hands of a "bidder" chosen by 
the association for the entire community. A. 
S. Nichols was the bidder for the Oskaloosa 
community. As the auctioneer called the 
claims of the members of the association he 
would bid one dollar and twenty-five cents per 
acre which was the minimum price. As no 
one dared to bid against an original claimant, 
the land was invariably bought at that price. 
If an outsider was courageous enough to put in 
a counter l)i(l he was roughly handled at once 
and compelled to withdraw his bid or risk 
his life in the hands of the members of the 
claim association, who were all there ready to 
deal swift i^etribution to the intruder on their 
frontier rights. At home as well as at the pub- 
lic sale, no one ventured to raise their voice 
against the law of the claim association. It 
was the l)est protection the country afforded 
and the supreme rule of the community for 
which it was created. New comers were prac- 
tically compelled to respect its regulations. 
Roliert Lucas. Iowa's first governor, subscribed 
to the constitution of such an organization in 
Johnson county, where he had purchased a 
claim. 

Mahaska county had se\-eral of these pioneer 
organizations and they were thoroughly effect- 
ive in always bringing equity and justice to the 
bona fide settler. 

A distinguished citizen, who was one of the 
pioneers of that period, said inlater years: 

"The law never did and never will protect 
the people in all their rights so fully as the early 
settlers protected themselves by their claim or- 
ganizations." 

W'e are told that these claim laws had their 
origin in Jefferson county. Although they were 
not legally enacted, they were in a certain sense 
sanctioned by the territorial legislature, in 
1839. They were "founded upon the theorv 



that a majority of the people had the right to 
protect their property by agreeing to such reg- 
ulations as they deemed necessarv to accom- 
plish that object." 

The officers consisted of a president, vice- 
president, a recorder of claims, seven judges — 
whose duty it was to adjust all boundaries in 
dispute — and two marshals. One of the judges 
was an officer whp was authorized to adminis- 
ter oaths. Each member of the association was 
required to make hftv dollars' worth of im- 
provements on his claim within six months af- 
ter filing it. and improvements to the value of 
that amount each six months thereafter. 

In those frontier days courts were many 
miles away, sometimes fifty or more miles from 
the place of dispute. \\'ith the embarassing 
methods of travel, causing long delays, the 
claim associations were almost a necessity. 

The following well worded document, which 
forms the basis of these settlers' clubs, will 
doubtless be of interest to this more fa\'ored 
generation : 

"\Miereas, it has become a custom in the 
western states, as soon as the Indian title to the 
public lands has been extinguished by the gen- 
eral government for the citizens of the United 
States to settle on and improve said lands, and 
heretofore the improvement and claims of the 
settlers to the extent of three hundred and 
■ twentv acres has been respected both l)y the 
citizens and laws of Iowa. 

"Resolved. That we will protect all citizens ^ 
on the public lands in the peaceable possession 
of their claims to the extent of three hundred 
and twent}' acres for two years after the land 
sales and longer if necessary. 

"Resolved. That if any person or persons 
shall enter the claim of any settler that he or 
they shall immediately deed it back again to 
said settler and wait three vears without in- 
terest. 

"Resolved. That if he refuse to comply with 
the above requisition, he shall be subject to 
such punishment as the settlers see fit to in- 
flict. 



PAST AX I) I'R1':SF.X'|- iW MAHASKA COL'X'IV 



23 



'■|\csi)l\e(l, Tlial we will reiii<i\e an\- person 
ir ])ei"si)ns who ma\- enter tlie claim of any set- 
tler and settle upon it, ])eacea1)l}-. it we can, t'or- 
i:il)ly it we must, even it their remo\al slunilil 
lead to hloodshed. being' compelled to do so 
for our own common safety, that we may not 
he driven 1)\- ruthless specidators from our fire- 
sides and homes. 

"Kesohed, That a committee of fne lie ap- 
|xiinteil to settle all difficulties that may arise. 

"Resolved. Tliat any settler who may ha\e 
^igned these hy-laws. and refuses to do serv- 
ice when called upon by the proper officer, and 
^vithout reasonable excuse, shall he fuied the 
^um of ten dollars, to he di\ided .among; those 
ulto may have rendered tlie service necessary." 

These resolutions sound like business, and in 
i|uite a number of cases in this county, the as- 
sociations had some interesting business on 
their hands. .\ speculator from Towa City who 
had entered and purchased a claim of a settler 
in the eastern part of the count}-, was visited 1)\- 
a committee of fi\c members and when he 
showed no dis]:)osition to deed back the land. 
was lirought to Mahaska county. On his steadi- 
ly refusing' to obey tlie law's of the claim as- 
sociation, he was taken to the Skmik river, 
hound and tied to prevent his swimming and 
tlirown into tlie water with a ro]5e attached to 
liis body. This was repeated three times, be- 
ing allowed to remain under water a little 
longer each time. On being' informed that 
if another plunge was needed it would l)e the 
last one. he concluded to g"i\e up the land and 
stay a while longer. He com])lied with In-law 
-Ximiber Two and received back the amount he 
had paid for the claim, less the expenses made 
necessary in adjudicating' the case and the li(|- 
uor wliich had been consumed by the crowd 
during the chastisement. 

The action of the chili was often necessary 
in settling' disputes of greater or less niagni- 
tude between claimants. 

The case whiclt became most noted in this 
county was that of Jacob H. Majors, who 
settled in Scott township in 1844, A widowed 



mother, several brothers and two sisters had 
all settled and entered land in that community. 
It was afterward called the Majors Settlement. 

.\fter Mr. Majors had entered land for him- 
self and his friends at the land .sales in 1848, he 
also entered claims belonging to John Gillaspy. 
Jacob Miller and Peter Parsons. He claimed 
he did nut know he was entering some one 
else's Jand but after. making the discox'ery he 
failed to restore it to the proper owners. 

.\ meeting of the club was called and his ac- 
tion denounced. Majors was inflexible. A del- 
egation, including the neighboring clubs, vis- 
ited the [Majors home and found him in Oska- 
loosa. Messengers were sent after him but he 
declined to return. A crowd staid around the 
home until the next niorning, when some of 
his outbuildings were burned and a number of 
hogs killed. On hearing of the destruction of 
In's pro])erty. Majors agreed to niake restitu- 
tion, but in a few day? changed his mind and 
determined t(~> prosecute the leaders of the mob 
;nid \'igoroush' began by securing warrants 
for their arrest. The general puljlic sentiment 
was against him and he made no headwa}" in 
his prosecutions. Peter Parsons had l)cen ar- 
rested and his trial was set for Monday morn- 
ing. Sentiment warmed into indignation, and 
a iTiass meeting was called at Durham's Ford 
on .Sunda\- morning jireN'ious to the trial of 
Parsons. Some five hundred men gathered 
there and remained until Monda\- morning, 
when tliev hoisted the flag and led by 
martial music, this young arniv took uj) its 
march to Oskaloosa. armed with such e(|uip- 
ments as the countrx' afforded, and including 
members of the clubs from Clarion and Jasper 
counties. The main body were on horse back. 
but the excitement ami interest was widely 
spread, and a goodly number were on foot. 
They were met out on the Pella road by a dele- 
gation of Oskaloosa citizens, and halted for a 
])arley. but could not be persuaded to disband. 

Coming on into the town they stacked their 
;n'ms under guard and formed in military or- 
i\cy in the public S(|uare. Parsons was released 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and his trial postponed without date. A pubHc 
meeting was called and the forenoon was spent 
in discussing the situation from both sides. Ma- 
jors had been secreted in a room on the south 
side of the square, but within hearing distance 
of the speakers. We are told that Judge See- 
vers made a proposition that if the company 
would disband that Majors would be required 
to deed back the land to the rightful owners. 
To this the army consented and Van Delash- 
mutt became security for the fulfillment of that 
promise. The crowd returned home and Majors 
made the deeds. 

In the face of all this widespread indigna- 
tion the incorrigible Majors began again 
to prosecute his neighbors who had been 
so active against him. Although he car- 
ried his gun wherever he went, by a 
well laid plan the club committee over- 
powered him, bound him and took him to 
Knoxville, where he was treated to a double 
coat of tar and feathers. The prosecution on 
both sides was kept up until Majors abandoned 
the contest, sold his realty in Scott township 
and moved into Missouri. 

It perhaps should be stated here that the Ma- 
jors family were highly esteemed and their old 
neighbors always speak of them as industrious 
and friendly people. The gentleman simply 
made the mistake of his life in resisting die 
just claims of the claim association. 



CHAPTER VII. 



CHIEF M.\H.\SK.\, MOST NOTED CHIEF OF THE 
lOWAS. 

Our county bears the name of the most noted 
chief of the Iowa Indians, who at one time 



held dominion over a large part of the state of 
Iowa. He was the son of Manhawgaw, under 
whose leadership the tribe migrated westward 
from the region of the Great Lakes. They 
crossed the Mississippi river and made their 
home on the banks of the Iowa river near its 
mouth, and gave their name to the stream. An 
Indian legend cited by T. S. Parvin, who is ex- 
cellent authority, says : "This tribe separated 
from the Sacs and Foxes and wandered off 
westward in search of a new home. Crossing 
the Mississippi river, they turned southward, 
reaching a high bluff near the mouth of the 
Iowa river. Looking off over the beautiful 
valley spread out before them, they halted, ex- 
claiming, Toway,' or 'This is the place.' " Their 
wandering in the years that followed reached 
as far west as the Dakotas. 

They were in continual warfare with the 
Sioux, Osages and other western tribes. In a 
conference with the Sioux Indians Man-haw- 
gaw was treacherously slain. The indignant 
lowas resolved on an immediate revenge. They 
raised a war party, of which the son, Mahaska, 
was the legitimate chief. He modestly declined 
the honor, stating that he wished to accom- 
pany the expedition as a common soldier. He 
tlrerefure conferred the leadership upon a dis- 
tinguished and tried warrior until he should 
liave opportunity to prove himself worthy of 
■assuming command of his tribe. The expedi- 
tion into the Sioux country was most success- 
ful as savages measure success, and young Ma- 
haska brought home a bunch of scalps that left 
no doubt as to his ability and bravery as a 
leader. We are told that he was in eighteen 
battles against numerous bands of Indians and 
was never defeated. On his return from an 
expedition against the Osages on the north 
bank of the Missouri river he married four 
wives. It was a custom' in his tribe when hus- 
liands or brothers fell in battle for the suiwiv- 
ing warriors to adopt their wives or sisters. 
The young chief found on his return that four 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



25 



sisters liad been deprived of their protectors, 
all of whom he married. One of the youngest 
of these was Rant-che-waime. or the Female 
Flying Pigeon, who during all her life was his 
favorite wife. 

In another foray against the same tribe, af- 
ter his warriors had dealt the enemy a severe 
blow, he received a rifle ball in his leg. Bleeding 
profusel}-, he was easily tracked by his enemies, 
and sought a hiding place where he might rest 
and recuperate. This he found under a large 
log that lay across a water-course. Guided by 
the trail of blood that flowed from his woiind, 
the Osages followed him to the stream where 
they lost his trail, for Mahaska had taken the 
precaution to step into the water some distance 
below the log, they supposing that he had 
crossed the stream at the place where he en- 
tered. He remained under the log with just 
so much of his face out of the water as en- 
abled him to breathe. He had succeeded in 
completely throwing his pursuers ofif his trail. 
When the stillness of night had settled down 
upon all nature and nothing could be heard but 
the tinkling of the bells on the Indian horses 
as they fed in the valley. Mahaska crept out of 
his hiding place, caught one of the best horses, 
and, mounting, made off toward the north to 
join his tribe, whose home was then on the 
Des Moines river. 

.Arriving at the Missouri river, he tied one 
end of the halter around the horse's neck and 
tlie other he took in bis teeth. Then driving 
the horse into the flowing stream, he com- 
pelled the animal to supplement his own 
strength as a swimmer and was safely carried 
across. 

This was the Indian mode of meeting such 
difficulties. Through all these vicissitudes he 
clung to his gim and the three scalps which he 
had taken in the battle. 

When he arrived home he was joyfully re- 
ceived by his people, and ordered the war 
dance. Being unable, on account of his wound. 



to lead the dance himself, he conferred that 
honor upon Big Axe, one of his trusted braves. 
As Mahaska placed the scalps in his hands he 
made it the occasion for an address which 
marked an epoch in his histor}'. These were 
his words : "I have now revenged the death 
of my father; my heart is at rest. I will go to 
war no more. I told Manshuchess (meaning 
Cieneral Clark) when I was in St. Louis that I 
would take his peace talk. My word is out. I 
will fight no more." 

Mahaska in our language means White 
Cloud. His home was near where the city of 
Eldon now stands at the old town of lowaville. 
He was always the friend of the Americans 
and always rejoiced in the reflection that he 
never had shed American blood. 

In 1824 Mahaska accompanied a select party 
of warrior chiefs to \\'ashington to have an 
interview with President Monroe. They went 
by the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to \\'heeling. 
West \^irginia, and thence by stage to the na- 
tional capital. A "talk" was had with the presi- 
dent. Mahaska was presented with a medal 
and a treaty was concluded between the United 
States and the Iowa tribe. The treaty granted 
certain concessions to the United States for a 
satisfactory consideration. Provisions were 
made for supplies of blankets, farming uten- 
sils and cattle, and assistants in taking up agri- 
cultural pursuits. The conditions also stipu- 
lated that an annual payment of five hundred 
dollars should be made to his tribe for ten years. 

Mahaska's favorite wife, Rant-che-waime, 
had accompanied him to Washington. One 
evening on coming to their hotel after having 
indulged freely in the use of firewater, through 
the day. the agent in charge of the company 
heard a racket in the room and hastened to the 
door. He found that the chief was settling an 
imaginary difficulty with his faithful wife. On 
hearing his approach, Mahaska, not caring to 
meet him just at that time, lifted the window 
sash and stepped out, forgetting that he was 



26 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



lodging in the second story. The fall broke his 
arm. But so accustomed was he to such trifles 
that he insisted on riding out two miles the next 
day to see a cannon cast. 

While in Washington he sat for a portrait 
to Mr. King, and we know something of the 
form and features of the noted chief. Mahaska 
was six feet two inches in height, possessed un- 
common strength and activity and was a man 
of perfect symmetry of person and unusually 
handsome. He returned to his home from the 
east a man of peace. Wiat he had seen and 
heard made a deep impression on his mind. He 
took the advice of the Great Father, the presi- 
dent, and built himself a double log house, lived 
in greater comfort, and began in earnest to 
cultivate his land. 

The lowas and Sacs and Foxes were deadly 
enemies. The last battle between these tribes 
was fought on the Des Moines river near the 
town of lowaville in 1824. The entire force of 
the Iowa trilie had gathered on the river bot- 
tom, about two miles from their village to wit- 
ness a horse race, with no thought of any im- 
minent danger. They had gone out to enjoy 
the excitement of the occasion and were en- 
tirely unarmed. The Sacs and Foxes had been 
watching for just such an opportunity to deal 
a crushing blow to their enemies. Their spies 
reported this gathering to their chief, Pash-e- 
pa-ho, who, with his warriors, were secreted 
in the forest near by. 

Pash-e-pa-h(i led two di\'isions to make the 
imexpected attack, while Black Hawk, then a 
young man unknown to fame, commanded a 
third division, whicli was to burn the defense- 
less village and murder its remaining denizens. 
Just at a time when the excitement was the 
highest and all attention was given to the two 
competitors in the race, the savage Sacs and 
Foxes swept down upon the unsuspecting and 
terrorized assemblv with their piercing war 
whoop. The Iowa warriors rushed back to' 
their village to find it in flames and their wives 



and children falling beneath the blows of the 
tomahawk and war club of young Black 
Hawk's band. Their confusion and dismay 
pre\ented them from securing their arms, but 
they fought in desperation with clubs and 
stones, only to be massacred until there was 
left but a remnant of a brave and powerful 
tribe. As further resistance was utterly hope- 
less, those who remained after the awful slaugh- 
ter surrendered. Their power was gone. Their 
national spirit bad received a blow from which 
it never could recover. They lingered for a 
time about their old haunts but were hopeless 
and despondent. They were no longer an in- 
dependent people and wandered about over the 
domain which was at one time their own lanfl. 
and which will forever perpetuate tlieir proud 
name. 

When Mahaska was fifty years old he was 
foully murdered while asleep in his tepee on 
the \udawav river. The deed was committed 
by one of his own band, whom Mahaska had 
caused to be arrested and placed in prison at 
Fort Leavenworth for going on the war path 
against the Omahas. The prisoner felt the dis- 
grace so keenly that be determined ti) take re- 
venge on his chief. 

A delegation of his Id^al followers carried 
their murdered chieftain to the okl haunts of 
the tribe on the Des Moines river about one mile 
east of the mouth of the Raccoon and there he 
was doubtless laid to rest by the river which he 
lo\-ed, with honors becoming a brave warrior 
and a true friend of his tribe. .\s savages leave^ 
l)ut few monuments to mark the resting place 
of their dead the location of this old Indian 
burxing ground was forgotten until the relent- 
less hand of civilization revealed its where- 
.abouts. It has long been included within the 
citv limits of the city of Des Moines. In July. 
1880, a gravel pit gang in the employ of the 
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad was 
digging in one of the gravel pits on the Des 
?\Ioines river bottom and unearthed an occa- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUXTV 



27 



s'uiual human skeleton fnini its Ijed. Among 
tlieni was one whicli attracted special attention 
because of the number of trinkets found depos- 
ited witli it. A profuse use of war paint Iiad 
preser\ed a fragment of the scalp on the skull 
and also a part of the skin on one hand, .\mong 
the relics were found a medal bearing the name 
and inscription of President Monroe on one 
side and on the other was stamped the bust of 
tiie distinguished author of the Monroe doc- 
trine. T. J. Rrunk had charge of the workman 
and these valued treasures of the Iowa chieftain 
^vere placed in his hands. L. R. Rosebrook. of 
Oskaloosa. states that he examined the medal 
and found it as above descriljed. The where- 
abouts of this historic medal is not known at 
this time, but an earnest effort is now being 
made to secure it for the Mahaska County His- 
torical Society. 

Mahaska, the second son of the great Ma- 
haska, succeeded his father and became- the 
ruling chief. He was a quarrelsome and 
drunken fellow, inheriting none of the ability 
and genius of his father. In 1838 the lowas 
sold their interest in Iowa lands to the United 
States for $157,000, which was kept as a trust 
fund : the interest at five per cent, to be paid 
annually to the tribe. They accepted lands be- 
yond the Missouri river and became in some de- 
gree civilized. 

During the civil war the lowas were loyal 
to the union. Many of them enlisted in the 
army, making good soldiers. 

This tribe, in common with most of the In- 
dian irilies in America, were worshipers of the 
(ireat Siiirit. whom they lielieved was the cre- 
ator and ruler of the mu' verse. They had a 
tradition that a long time ago a month's rain 
came upon the earth and drowned all living 
creatures except a few who escaped in a great 
caime. The lowas were divided into eight 
clans. Each clan had its own name and had 
its own ])eculiar methods of cutting and wear- 
ing the hair. 



In October, 1891, the lowas had made such 
])rogress toward civilized life that they gave up 
their tribal relations and accepted lands in sev- 
eralt}'. 

In the journal left by Lewis and Clarke in 
their expedition up the Missouri river in 1804, 
they refer to this tribe of Indians as the "Ayou- 
ways." In the years that followed the orthog- 
raphy was changed to "loway": later the "y" 
was dropped and we have the smooth sounding 
ing and beautiful word, "Iowa," with the ac- 
cent on the first svllable. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



ORG.\XIZ.\TIOX OF M.\HASKA COUNTY. 

By an act of the legislature of the Territory 
of Iowa, b'eljruarv 5, 1844, provision was made 
for the organization of the counties of Keokuk 
and Mahaska. This act provided that the in- 
habitants of all territory ranging north and 
west from the last organized county should 
be under the jurisdiction of said county for all 
judicial and other legal purposes. For this 
reason Mahaska county records show that its 
count\' commissioners controlled the scattered 
inhabitants of the territory as far west and in- 
cluding that on which the city of Des Moines 
is now located. Mahaska county territory was 
a ])art of the original Des Moines county. \Vil- 
liam Edmundson was appointed sheriff, and 
Micajah T. Williams was appointed clerk. 
L'lKin these two officials, according to law, de- 
volved the duty of perfecting the organization. 
.As there was no ofificial in the community au- 
thorized to administer oaths. William Edmund- 
son was also appointed justice of the peace by 
(lovernor Chambers. March 10, 1844. 

M. T. Williams was a young attorney who- 
had recently come into the new community from 
Mount Pleasant. The author knew him as an 



28 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



accurate, painstaking and reliable business 
man. No selection could have been more for- 
tunate than Mr. Williams for the task of mak- 
ing accurate records for the new county. He 
continued to serve as clerk of the court until 
1854. He also served two terms in the state 
legislature and filled other important offices in 
the county. 

William Edmundson. the first sherifif of the 
county, served from 1844 to 1850. He was 
also elected to that office in 1856 to fill a va- 
cancy, serving until 1859. He was a good ex- 
ecutive officer. The first sherifif of Mahaska 
county had quite an interesting experience in 
the pioneer life of the west. Born in Harrison 
county, Kentucky, on October 7, 1805, where 
he spent his boyhood and received a good com- 
mon-school education. At twenty-two years 
of age he went with his father's family to Put- 
nam county, Indiana. From that state in 1832 
he enlisted in the Black Hawk war. His com- 
pany reached the frontier, but were not actively 
engaged, as the war was of short duration. He 
made a trip to New Orleans with a boat load 
of provisions and was in Texas at the time it 
was passing through its revolution. After his 
father's death in 1836 the entire family moved 
to Des Moines county, Iowa, where he engaged 
in farming. While here he served for 
several years as justice of the peace and 
one year on the board of county commissioners. 
These experiences were valuable to him in view 
of his subsequent history. In 1843 Mr. Ed- 
mundson came to the New Purchase, locating 
on a; claim near Six Mile. While there he re- 
ceived appointment as sherifif, and also justice 
of the peace. He represented this county in the 
state legislature during the sessions of 1847-8. 
In 1850 he went with a company of emigrants 
to California, where he remained until 1855, 
since which time his home continued to be at 
Oskaloosa, until the time of his death in 1862. 

These two gentlemen had no easy task be- 
fore them. Their first duty was to divide the 
new county into election precincts. There was 



no map or outline of the county. Indian trails 
were the onh' highways. No bridges or well 
known fords in the rivers. It sometimes re- 
quired hours of search to find a settler's cabin 
hidden away in some sheltering grove. Hav- 
ing divided the county and its adjacent western 
territory into election precincts, they called to 
their assistance John W. Jones and William A. 
Delashmutt to aid them in finding and appoint- 
ing a sufficient number of election officers for 
holding the first election, which took place on 
the first Monday in April, 1844. The elections 
were held at some settler's cabin having a cen- 
tral location. Nine election precincts were 
named, each having a board of five members, 
except Jackson. They were as follows : 

Harrison — Brittain Edwards, John Newell, 
Jacob Hamilton, Ephraim Munsell and Col. 
Vance. 

Spring Creek — Jonathan Williams, Isaac N. 
Seevers, D. Bowers, George W. Seevers and 
William Pilgrim. 

Dr. D. A. Hoffman has among his relics and 
curios the box used in receiving the ballots at 
this first election in Spring Creek. The elec- 
tion was held at the home of Poultney Lough- 
ridge. 

Jefferson — A. C.Sharp, Allen Lowe, Thomas 
Long, Thomas Stanley and John Long. 

White Oak — John N. Butler, Henry Bond, 
Pleasant Parker. B. Stone and Jacob Hunter. 

Six Mile Prairie — G. G. Rose, Thomas \\'il- 
son, \\'esley Freel, William Bassett and John 
Patcher. ' 

Monroe — John Hollingsworth, Isaac Bed- 
well, M. P. Crowder, Robert Ritchey and 
George Bailey. 

Red Rock — ^^'ilIiam E. James, Samuel Ged- 
dis. Argus A. Martin, John I\I. Mikesell and 
John Jordan. 

Jackson (now Scott) — Jacob H. Majors, 
]\rr. Highland and Hezekiah Gay. 

^^'hite Breast — J. B. Hamilton, Albert Ver- 
treese, Elias Elder. Osee Matthews and Green 
T. Clark. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



29 



Red Rock and White Breast are now parts 
of Marion county. 

The election returns showed the following of- 
licers to have been chosen : John White, pro- 
bate judge: William Edmundson, sherifif ; Wil- 
liam Pilgrim, recorder; \\'illiani D. Canfield, 
treasurer: W. A. Delashmutt, assessor; Brit- 
tain Edwards, coroner; A. S. Nichols, Wilson 
Stanley and Robert Curry, county commission- 
ers ; David Stump, sur\'eyor ; and John W. 
Cunningham, commissioner's clerk. 

These gentlemen were sworn into office 
shortly after their election and constitute the 
first quonmi of ofificers which appears im the 
records of the county. 

The county commissioners met on May 14, 
1844, and selected the first grand jury and petit 
jury. On the same day the count}- was divided 
into twelve election precincts. For the want of 
a suitable seal the commissioners selected the 
eagle side of a dime, which on July ijth was 
superseded by substituting a twenty-five-cent 
piece to be used as a temporary seal. 

The first court ever held in Mahaska county 
\\ as in July. 1844. by Joseph ^Villiams. of Mus- 
catine, who was judge in the second judicial 
district of Iowa Territory. The court had jur- 
isdiction in both federal and local affairs and 
was su])p(irted by the government. Its sessions 
were held in a log house owned by \\'illiam D. 
Canfield and located within the present city 
limits of Oskaloosa. The building was un- 
tlnislicd. being without a floor. By the use of 
some tliiur barrels and loose boards a platform 
and desk were improvised for ^he use of the 
judges. The other attendants at court fared as 
l)est they could. Major Thompson was 
United States attorney. Other attorneys pres- 
ent were W. W. Chapman, C. \\'. Slagle, 
George Atchison, Henry Templeton and John 
W. .\lley. The last named gentleman was from 
Red Rock. 

There seems to have been but very little 
business before this court, but they managed 
liy fre(|uent recesses and adjournments to re- 



main in session for one week. The grand jury 
held its session in the hollow a quarter of a 
mile north of the square, hidden away in the 
tall prairie grass. There were no accommoda- 
tions for strangers except in the cabin homes 
of the increasing population. As these were al- 
ways open to the wayfarer, those in attendance 
at court sought lodging wherever it could be 
found. 

The records show eight civil and four crimi- 
nal cases on the docket. The jury case was an 
appeal by James Hall vs. Joseph Koons, and 
involved a conflict of claims. The grand jury 
brought in four indictments. One for larceny, 
two for assault and one for selling liquor to the 
Indians. In each of these indictments the 
United States was the prosecuting party. 

On July 28, 1845, the first naturalization pa- 
pers were granted by this court. 

Judge Joseph Williams was quite a noted 
character in his time. x\t the time of his ap- 
pearance in Mahaska county he was about fifty 
years of age and had been on the bench as a 
judge in the district courts of the Territory of 
Iowa for a number of years. From what is 
said of him. he seems to have had a, good repu- 
tation as a jurist, but was very popular as an 
entertainer. He was especially skillful in the 
use of musical instnmients, as well as being a 
good singer and an entertaining lecturer. He 
always had a faculty of making the most of the 
rude surroundings of frontier life, which made 
him welcome wherever he went. 

We are told also that Judge \\'illiams was 
a ventriloquist of peculiar power, and that he 
never failed to exercise his gifts on the uniniti- 
ated when opportunity ofTered. 

Micajah T. Williams. clerkof Mahaska coun- 
ty, granted the first marriage license on May 30, 
1844, to S. N. Nicholson and Eleanor May, and 
the marriage ceremony was performed June 
2d by Levi Brainbridge. a justice of the peace. 
These parties, however, lived west of the pres- 
ent boundary of the county. In point of fact, 
the first marriage of persons living in the coun- 



30 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ty occurred June 6, 1844. George Lawrence 
and Amanda Jered were the contracting par- 
ties. George N. Duncan was the justice who 
performed the ceremony. 

We are told of one wedding occasion where 
tlie justice required the contracting parties to 
take an oatii with up-hfted hands. 

The first hill of divorce found on the county 
records bears the date of November 15, 1845, 
Rebecca Ash vs. Thomas Ash. in which the 
court granted the petition. 

The first Mahaska county courthouse was 
built during the winter of 1844-45. The means 
Avere secured from the sale of certaiji town lots, 
the law requiring the proceeds oi such sale to 
be set apart for the purpose of building a court 
house and jail. Mr. James Edgar had the con- 
tract for the erection of the building. It was 
a frame structure. 28x50 feet two stories in 
height. A house raising was advertised on a 
given day and the timbers were put in place 
with a frontier frolic. It was Ijuilt on the 
northwest corner of the square, the lot now oc- 
cupied b}' the Oskaloosa National Bank. The 
second floor was used for offices. The first 
floor was occupied by the county as a court 
room until 1855. It was also used for relig- 
ious services and other public gatherings. In 
1875 the building was sold and moved three 
l)locks west on High Avenue, where it was 
used for a time as a hotel. Later it was partly 
destroyed by fire and ga\e place for buildings 
of a more substantial character. 

^A'e have no absolute census of the county 
imtil 1850. when its population is reported by 
the government census to be 5.989. In 1860 
the census returns show 22,508: 1870, 25.202; 
1880. 28,805 ■ ^iid in 1900, 34,273. The cen- 
sus returns of 1905 show a falling off in popula- 
tion of 2,941, reducing our population to 31.- 
T,T,2. It is quite probable that the child is now 
living who will see Mahaska county with twice 
its present population. 



CHAPTER IX. 



PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS AND EARLY REMI- 
NISCENCES. 

For a dozen or more years after the period of 
settlement in 1843. great emphasis was given to 
hunting both for sport and for profit. Quite 
a number of persons in different parts of the 
county kept a dozen or more hounds and other 
dogs for the chase. The bounty on wolf scalps 
was the chief incentive for hunting that animal. 
\\'illiam Frederick, Harry Williams, John 
Simms and Butler Delashmutt kept a 
pack of dogs and trained horses to ride on 
hunting- occasions. When these hunters com- 
bined their forces for a special effort it fur- 
nished excitement and interest for whole neigh- 
borhoods for days, both prior to and following 
the event. It is related that on one of these 
occasions when several hunters had set a day 
to unite their forces for a big hunt, Butler De- 
lashmutt was suffering with fe\'er and ague 
so severel}- that he found it quite impossible 
to join the company. The start was made not 
far from his home, where the pack of hounds 
struck a fresh wolf trail and their hideous mu- 
sic liegan. Mr. Delashmutt heard it and was 
thoroughly versed in its meaning. The spirit 
of .the chase was too strong- for him to remain 
in l)ed and he arose in spite of the protests of 
the family and hastened down to the stable and 
saddled his favorite steed who was chafing to 
join the fra}'. Summing his old courage he 
declared that fe\'er and ague should not concpter 
him. and was soon in the lead of the cavalcade. 
The pioneer who related this story to us also 
stated tlaat the old hunter thoroughly enjoyed 
the excitement of the day and did not have a 
shake of the ague again that year. 

The Mormon trail was south of ^lahaska 
county, but quite a number of Mormons passed 



PAST AX I) I'KliSKXT OF .MAHASKA COUNT V. 



31 



tlirough this county on their slow march to ihc 
inciuntains. They were usually supjilied with 
iix teams for hauling their plunder and convey- 
ing the sick antl infirm. Many of them died 
and were • buried in shallow and unmarked 
graves by the wayside. 'JMiey appreciated kind 
treatment, but were uncommunicative. Occa- 
sionall}" thev would hold meetings in the cabins 
of the settlers when permitted to do so. Men. 
women and children went on foot. Sometimes 
a few individuals ]nilled a cart or pushed a 
wheelbarrow. The single thought of reaching 
a promised land where they should be unmo- 
lested in their religious views and practices, 
dominated the entire life. Mr. Mose Davis, of 
I larrison township, relates that he was in 
Council Bluffs early in the fifties and saw the 
last detachment leave for the west from their 
settlement just above that city, on the opposite 
side of the river. They formed a long serpen- 
tine trail reaching away across the boundless 
prairie. Some of them had wheelbarrows, some 
carts, but all were afoot, the larger number 
driving ox teams. They were seeking for a 
city whose builder and maker was Brigham 
Young, and those who lived through the hard- 
siiips and dmdgery of the journey found it. 

It is said that Keokuk with fifty of his braves 
with their squaws and papooses once visited 
Xauvoo to smoke their pipes of ])eace witli his 
"brother," Joseph Smith. In reply to his re- 
citals of their great expectations, the demoral- 
ized old chieftain said: "As for the new Jeru- 
salem to which we are all going to emigrate, so 
far as we are concerned, it depends very nuich 
on whether there would be any government 
annuities, and as far as the 'milk and honey' 
which was to flow over the land, he was not 
particular — he much preferred wliiskev." 

Mrs. Emily J. Correll, who is a daughter of 
Poultney I^iughridge, states that in the verv 
early years when mills were so very far awav 
and flour very scarce. Washington Threldkill 
dug out a hard wood stump near his cabin so 
as to form a kind of basin and fastened an 



iron wedge to the end of a stick, giving it a 
handle, which he used as a pestle to crush 
shelled corn. When the corn was thoroughly 
beaten it was sifted and the fine portion used 
as meal, while the coarse ])articles were worked 
up into hominy. This contrivance proved to be 
of much \alue to the neighborhood and people 
came in good numbers to use it. taking their 
turn, just as they did at liie mill. At one time 
in 1844 when supplies in the neighborhood 
were low, her brother, John Loughridge, ac- 
companied a Mr. Thompson to Burlington for 
milling and goods. They had two ox teams. 
There was much rain that season and no 
bridges as yet in the territor\'. The oxen swam 
the streams and the wagons and their contents 
had to be carried over piece-meal. It was a most 
tedious and perilous journey and only dire ne- 
cessity had prompted die undertaking. Eight- 
een days had passed without a word as to their 
welfare. The suspense became unbearaljle and 
her father determined to take up their trail on 
horseback. \\'hen he got as far east as 
Waugh's Point, now Hedrick, some twenty 
miles, to his great jo}', he met them returning. 
They were almost as empty-handed as when 
they left home. The high waters had prevented 
the mills from grinding and bread stufifs were 
short. Mr. Loughridge returned the same 
night to relieve the anxiety at liome. 

Stephen Wharton, father of J. M. W'harton, 
came to Iowa from Illinois in March, 1846. 
The only vacant cabin they could get was lo- 
cated on West High Avenue about three blocks 
from the square. It was without a chimney or 
floor and chinked but not daubed. A good 
fire was kept in the center of the room and the 
smoke allowed to escape through an opening 
directly above. Mr. J. M. Wharton recalls the 
kindness of Mr. A. G. Phillips in making them 
welcome and in assisting them to become set- 
tled. He says that in that crude home his 
cheerful and patient mother made her family 
of nine rather comfortable, doing all her cook- 
ing about the fire. They remained in Oska- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



loosa only a few weeks, just long enough for tlie 
father to make a claim and build a cabin. 

Mr. Lafayette Brolliar, of Keokuk county, 
stated to the writer that when his father's fam- 
ily came to Iowa in 1844 he found a broad 
swath cut through the tall prairie grass and 
brush marking the line across which settlers 
were not allowed to pass into the Indian terri- 
tory until the period of the opening of the res- 
ervation. The line extended northward from 
a point agreed upon, west of Fairfield, and was 
kept mowed out by government surveyors. In 
a few instances this line was tampered with by 
the settlers in order to secure a good location 
for a house or mill site which could be recog- 
nized onlv when the Indians gave their consent. 
In the days of the stage coach during the 
'50s and early '60s Oskaloosa was a quite impor- 
tant station on the routes north and westward. 
For several years there were no stages or regular 
conveyances of any kind. A hack line ran to 
Fairfield. When the business grew Fink & 
Walker ran a stage twice a week to points 
down nearer to the river. Then came the West- 
ern Stage Company. The unbridged streams 
and sloughs made staging a difficult task, but 
the profits were large and the company became 
wealthy. The time between Oskaloosa and 
the ri\er was from one to two days. When 
the roads were good passengers could lea\e 
Oskaloosa in the evening and take breakfast 
in Des Moines. 

There was a line of stages running up the 
river from Keokuk through Oskaloosa to Des 
Moines and from this point also directly north 
to Marshalltown. Another line left Washing- 
ton and followed the divide w^estward crossing 
the north and south line at Oskaloosa and go- 
ing on to Knox\-ille and the west. The stage 
barns of the W'estern Stage Company stood 
where the Young Men's Christian Association 
building now stands and the residence of the 
manager and agent of the company, Richard 
Lonsberrv', was just across the street south. 
The old stage coaches came and went in those 



days with stately dignity and precision. A 
faithful stage driver felt the responsibility' of 
his charge as much as the modern conductor 
of a passenger train, and he ranked with that 
unselfish class of public servants. Occasionally 
a faithful stage driver went out with his prec- 
ious load of passengers and the U. S. mail never 
to return. Settlements were scarce and the long 
driA-es in the bitter cold weather were too much 
for even the hardiest natures. Public anxiety 
and sympathy were always keenly alive for the 
welfare of these heroic men in times of peril. 
A belated stage was often cheered as it wheeled 
up to the old Madison House. The driver al- 
ways alighted with his passengers and passed 
his lines into the hands of the hostler, taking 
them again when he stepped up into his airy 
seat for a fresh start. Horses were changed 
e\'ery ' ten or fifteen miles when possible and 
were driven on the gallop between stations 
when the road permitted. 

During the four years following 1S48 long 
lines of teams of California gold hunters could 
be seen on the main roads leading westward 
across Iowa. They had large, strong wagons 
mostly drawn by oxen, because cattle could 
subsist on the grass on the way. while horses 
required grain. Scores of Mahaska county 
people joined the thousands from the eastern 
states to tr}- their fortunes in the search for 
gold on the Pacific slope. These voyagers 
furnished a good home market for the surplus 
hav and corn of the settlers, in the early spring 
before tlie grass was of sufficient lengtl>to sup- 
ply feed to the slowly moving caravans. Rich- 
ard Parker, who lived on the old stage road 
southeast of Oskaloosa, told the writer that 
during the spring months in those years his 
cabin was the center of a veritable camp of 
travelers and that he cleared enough money to 
pav for a good farm. Several of the trains 
were fitted out in Oskaloosa and many of them 
carried quite a surplus of goods which they 
sold in the mountains and bordering the coast 
country at their own prices. One of these for- 



PAST AXl) PkluSENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



33 



t\-niiieis told the writer tliat he received over 
three lumdred dollars as his share of such 
l)rotits nil g-iKxls sold in the region of Salt Lake 
Citv. It is difficult to tell whether the county 
lost or gained in population hy this general 
hegira across the plains. Many eastern adven- 
turers became stranded and remained in Iowa. 
Others made the limg jnumey, spent their sub- 
stance and came back to iowa ti) make a home. 
Xo person could cross Iowa without being im- 
pressed with its possibilities as a great com- 
monwealth. 

Driving stock to the market in the fall and 
winter was a task of the early stockman or 
"drover" as he was called. The prices ranged 
from one dollar and a half per hundred in 
the early years to three dollars per hundred just 
before the coming of the railroads. Stock 
from this section was driven to Keokuk or Bur- 
lington. Buyers would select twenty or more 
trust}- young men for a large drove and gather 
their stock together for the long, tedious march. 
Lewis Cruzen made three trips to the former 
place with large droves of hogs. They traveled 
very slowly, making from three to six miles a 
day. The last trip was made after the holidays 
in 1857, with one thousand and fiirty hogs 
in the drove. These young men received for 
their services fifty cents a day and no dinner 
on the outgoing trip, and were allowed seventy- 
five cents a day with dinner and pay for four 
days" march on the home trip, which was gen- 
erally made if the weather was good, in two 
and a half nr three davs. 



CHAPTER X. 



E.\RLY OSKALOOS.\ COUNTY SE.\T CONTEST — 

OTHER FACTS LE.VDING UP TO DATE OF 
I.XCORPORATION AS A CITV. 

The act of the legislature authorizing the or- 
ganization of Mahaska count v. appointed three 



impartial commissioners from outside of its 
territory to visit the new county in the spring 
of 1844 and decide the question of locating the 
cnunty seat. 

This court was composed of Jesse Williams, 
of Johnson county, Ebenezer Perkins, of Wash- 
ington county, and Thomas Henderson, of Keo- 
kuk ci unity. These gentlemen were each paid 
at the rate of two dollars per day for their serv- 
ices. Three locations claimed the attention of 
the commissioners. 

First, the geographical center of the county, 
about two and one-half miles north of Oska- 
loosa. It was rather an inviting location, only a 
little north of the ridge marking the divide be- 
tween the Des Moines and the Skunk rivers. 

Second, Auburn, a village which had been 
laid out at the head of Si.x Mile bottom, which 
extends six miles along the river, some miles 
beyond where Beacon is now located. This 
\illage had been platted a short time before in 
liope of securing the county seat. The advo- 
cates of this site were firm in the belief that the 
lack of timber on the open prairies would pre- 
\ent them from being settled for several genera- 
tions and that this location near the river which 
was then the only highway of the county 
would be the center of population in the county. 
Third, The Narrows, meaning the narrow- 
est i»int in the ridge forming the watershed 
between the two rivers. The timber from each 
stream almost joined at this point and left only 
this elevated ridge uniting the two prairies, 
one southeast and the other northwest. Before 
the prairies were settled the traveler could see 
this high ridge for fifteen or twenty miles. 
This was a great highwaj' of travel between the 
Mississippi river and Fort Des Moines and on 
to the far west. There \\as at that time two 
cabins within the limits of the original city 
plat. One was the residence of Perry Cross- 
man and wife and Mns. Grossman's mother, 
Airs. Jones, with her two sons, George W. and 
John W. Jones, and daughter Sarah, now Mrs. 



34 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



]\Ic\\'illiams, wlio is still a resident of Oska- 
loosa. The commissioners were entertained at 
the Crossman-Jones home and when they had 
carefully examined the three places desiring the 
county seat they returned to this cabin to com- 
pare notes and announce their decision. Tiiis 
decision bears date of May ii, 1844. a copy of 
which is as follows : 

"Territoiy of Iowa. Mahaska County. May 
II, 1844. 

"The undersigned. Commissioners appointed 
by the Thirteenth Section of an act entitled, 
'An Act to Organize the Counties of Keokuk 
and Mahaska,' after being duly qualified agree- 
able to the ]3rovisions of said Act, have come 
unanimously to the conclusion to locate the 
County Seat of said County, and do hereby 
locate said County Seat on the southeast quar- 
ter of Section Thirteen (13), in Township 
Seventy-five (75) of Range Sixteen (16), 
"Jesse Williams, 
"Thomas Henderson, 
"Ebenezer Perkins." 

The beautiful name of the seat of justice of 
Mahaska County was originally spelled Ouska- 
loosa. The name is associated in Indian history 
with a Creek princess. The Seminoles had made 
war upon the Creeks and destroyed their entire 
body of warriors and taken captive their fami- 
lies. Among these prisoners was an attractive 
and beautiful princess who finally became the 
wife of Osceola, a chief of the Seminoles, and 
he gave her the name of Ouskaloosa, meaning 
"The Last of the Beautiful." 

The three Commissioners recommended the 
name of Ouskaloosa for the new County Seat. 
But owing to a difference of opinion on the part 
of the citizens of the county, they left the name 
of the new county to be settled by the County 
Commissioners. Quite a number of persons 
preferred the name ^lahaska for the proposed 
town. The County Commissioners were A. S. 
Nichols, Robert Curry and Wilson Stanley. At 
their first meeting. May 14, 1844, ^^'^^. D. 



Canfield, disliking the name Mahaska, requested 
the Commissioners to make choice of another 
name. M. T. Williams, who was Clerk of the 
Board, proposed Oskaloosa. There were a 
mmiber of persons present and the sentiment of 
all was taken. A large majority favored the 
name suggested by Mr. Williams, whereupon 
we find the following entry made by the Clerk : 

"Ordered, By the Board, that Oskaloosa 
shall be the name of the Seat of Justice of Ma- 
haska County." 

We are not told just why the name of this 
beautiful i:)rincess should have been in the minds 
of so many at that time. When Mr. Williams 
anglicised the word he left out the letter "u" 
and gave us the full, rotmded, euphoneous 
name which is an inspiration to anyone who 
has ever been a citizen of Mahaska County. 
Mav its streets and homes and the lives of its 
people grow in beauty until the stranger who 
lingers but a short time within our borders will 
always think of this city as Oskaloosa. the 
Beautiful. 

We are told that Wm. D. Canfield had built 
a cabin on his claim near where Seibel's mill 
now stands, in the spring of 1844, there being 
at that time a flowing spring in the draw 
which slopes to the southwest. \Miile Mr. 
Canfield's home was not in the original plat of 
the city, it was the first cabin erected within the 
present city limits of Oskaloosa. The quarter 
section chosen by the locating commissioners as 
abo\'e described had been staked ofif by torch- 
light on the morning of May i, 1843, by John 
Montgomery. John \Miite had claimed the 
c|uarter section just north (5t town, and Felix 
Gessford had a half section just east. This 
claim was sold to A. G. Phillips and included 
most of what is now East Oskaloosa. Mr. 
James Seevers had a claim just southeast of the 
Narrows. Mrs. T. G. Phillips tells us in her 
well written reminiscences of Mahaska county 
that when Mr. See\'ers learned that the com- 
missioners had chosen the Narrows as the loca- 




sor-iii SI1II-: ()i- I'l T.i.ic siuAKE— isw. oskai.oosa. 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



37 



ion he threw up his hat and exclaimed: "Proud 
Uahaska!"' thus giving rise to that expression. 

The town of Oskaloosa was laid out by 
David Stump, the county surveyor, and 
rhonias I-"ansher, father of .\. J- Fansher, car- 
ied the chain for him. A day in June was se- 
ected for the jjublic sale of lots. There was 
itrong opposition from the settlers out at Si.x 
Mile and die lot sale was a failure. After sac- 
ilicing several lots the commissioners stopped 
he sale and delegated to ^1. T. Williams the 
uithority to dispose of them at private sale. 
iX'hen a sale was made Mr. Williams gave sim- 
ply a certificate of sale with the guarantee of a 
leed when the board should obtain a title to the 
grounds from the United States. The records 
show that the lots sold from five to fifty dollars, 
riie commissioners' records give a very com- 
plete report in Mr. \\'illiams' own hand of this 
;ale for the year 1845. '^'lie highest price paid 
For any one lot was fifty-six dollars. 

Lot 5, Block 19, where the Downing House 
low stands, was sold June 9, 1844, to Harmon 
Davis for forty-one ' dollars. The election of 
:his year entered largely into the county seat 
juestion, the Six !Mile settlers working vigor- 
ously to have the location moved. Candidates 
,vere nominated according to their views on the 
[uestion of location. The result of the election 
vas .so large a majority in favor of Oskaloosa 
hat the question of location was forever settled. 

Gradually the town grew. Cabins multiplied 
■apidly. Streets and roads were laid out. Saw 
nills were soon in the neighborhood and ran 
light and day to supply the demand for nati\-e 
uinlicr. Frame buildings began to appear 
mil lUg the rough log cabins. Charles Purvine 
juilt and opened the first tavern on the Down- 
ng House lot in the late fall of 1844. W. D. 
ranfield had entertained guests some months 
jefore, butJiis house was of short duration. The 
'Canfield" House was located where the Ba- 
ihaw livery stable now stands. It is said of this 
louse that its proprietor was at times under the 
3 



necessity of going out among the settlers and 
borrowing a supply of stores for his pantry 
until his goods should arrive from the river. 
Borrowing was a necessity of the times and no 
one hesitated to loan, even to the last quart of 
meal. .At the time the town was located there 
were but few trees on the quarter section 
named. Tall prairie grass covered the surface 
everywhere. It was provided on the plat of the 
original survey that a public square should be 
reserved near the center of the quarter section 
on which the county seat was located. The 
square was surrounded by a fence. Later dif- 
ferent individuals planted trees in the square 
and as a matter of local pride took care of them 
until their growth was assured. 

Dr. Crowder says he distinctly remembers 
while going with his mother from the square 
northwest to where the old normal school build- 
ing now stands they came on to a spotted fawn 
near the path, \\'liich bounded away and hid 
itself in the tall grass. 

Mr. Micajah T. Williams built the first 
frame dwelling in Oskaloosa in 1845, doing the 
work with his own hands. It was located on 
the corner where the postoffice building now 
stands. To this home in the fall of that year 
he took his young bride. Miss Virginia R. See- 
vers, a sister of the late Judge W. H. Seevers. 

Few names are more closely identified with 
the history of Oskaloosa than the name of Mi- 
cajah T. \Villiams. He was a graduate of the 
Ohio law school at Cincinnati, and was ad- 
mitted to the bar at the age of twenty-two. He 
came to Mahaska county in December, 1843, 
and as has been stated, was associated with 
William Edmundson, the first sherifif in the 
organization of the county. In 1846 he was 
one of the locating commissioners to locate the 
county seat of Polk county. One of the three 
commissioners failed to appear, and another, a 
Mr. Pinneo, was taken sick while making the 
necessary observations, and the task of complet- 
ing the work fell upon Mr. Williams. Whai 



38 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



the stakes had been driven fixing the site, Mr. 
^\'ilHams said to the company of men al»ut 
him, "Gentlemen, I have not only located the 
county seat of Polk county, but I have fixed 
upon the site of the future capital of the state." 
It is said that the crowd went wild with enthu- 
siasm and carried him about the village on their 
shoulders. The sequel of that prophecy shows 
how well Mr. \\'illiams had studied Iowa. In 
the fall of 1854 he was elected to the State Leg- 
islature and again in 1861 he sei^ved the county 
in the same capacity with marked ability. Mr. 
Williams was a friend of education. His name 
appears as a member of the board of trustees 
of Oskaloosa College. The merest sketch of 
his life would require a chapter. He died in 
Oskaloosa, the city which delighted to do him 
honor, on Sunday, January 15, 1884, and he 
rests in Forest cemetery. 

Baxter B. Berry built the first brick house in 
Oskaloosa. It is still standing on North First 
street, just south of the Christian church. In 
the veai- 1848 Mr. W. T. Smith purchased the 
place for four hundred and fifty dollars. Him- 
self and wife began housekeeping in Oskaloosa 
in this home in 1849. ^^^- Smith has been a 
prominent figiu'e in the development of all the 
enterprises of the city and county until the year 
1894, when he went to make his home at Des 
Moines. He was elected prosecuting attorney 
of the county in 1848 and the first mayor of 
the city in 1853, and filled that office a number 
of tenns in after years. He was a liberal sub- 
.scriber to and one of the chief promoters of 
Oskaloosa College, as the records show ; was 
president two years of the Iowa Central Rail- 
road, and in all like enterprises his name ap- 
pears as an unselfish promoter. 

So far as we have been able to learn, the 
chief business houses in Oskaloosa in about 
1 850 were as follows : 

General Stores — Street Brothers; Wm. S. 
Dart: E. Perkins and Phillips & Moreland. 

Dry Goods — H. Temple & Co., Jones & 
Young. 



Tailors — ^I. Baldwin, James S. Chew, R. C. 
Campfield and Currier & Company. 

Boots and Shoes — Wise & Matthews and J. 
M. Whitnej-. 

Saddlers — W. S. Edgar and J. D. Fletcher. 
Eagle Hotel ; j ewelry, Santler & Co. ; wagon 
maker, J. W. Rodgers : gunsmith, T. Schriver 
& Co. ; stoves and tinware, B. Goodrich ; furni- 
ture, B. D. Perkey. 

The principal lawyers were M. T. ^^'illiams, 
J. A. L. Crookham, Wm. T. Smith, John R. 
Needham, Wm. H. Seevers, Eastman & Skifif 
and A. M. Cassady. 

The physicians were C. G. Ovven, N. Hen- 
ton, A. Baker, E. \\'. Hyde and W. Weather- 
ford. 

Steps were taken in Decemljer, 185 1, to es- 
tablish city go\'ernment. Attorney E. W. East- 
man, afterward lieutenant-governor, present- 
ed a petition from the citizens to the 
county court requesting a special election at 
which tlie citizens might be permitted to vote 
for or against incorporation. The election was 
ordered and held December 27, 185 1. Tliere 
were sixty-three ballots cast "for incorporation" 
and sixty-one "against incorporation." At an 
election held January 3, 1852, E. W. Eastman, 
John R. Needham, A. S. Nichols, W. H. See- 
vers and M. T. Williams were chosen to pre- 
pare a charter. For some reason this committee 
did not act, and at the request of Wm. Lough- 
ridge, Judge Crookham ordered another special 
election held on i\Iay 28, 1853, to select persons 
to pfepare a charter. The records show the fol- 
lowing report of this election : 

"Oskaloosa, May 30, 1853. 

"Now comes S. A. Rice, one of the clerks 
appointed to conduct an election in the village 
of Oskaloosa for the election of three resident 
voters of said village to prepare a char- 
ter or articles of incorporation for the 
said village to become . a city, holden 
on the 28th day of ]\Iay, 1853, and files a re- 
turn of said election, by which it appears that 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



39 



1. 'I'. Williams, S. A. Rice and W'ni. Luugh- 
\i\ge were elected by the voters of said village 
I prepare said charter or articles of incorpora- 
on for said village to become a city, and it is 
lereupon ordered that the clerk of this court 
otifv said officers of their election, and it is 
iirthermnre ordered that they prepare said 
liartcr or articles of incorporation and ]jresent 
lem to tliis court on or before the next regular 
?rm of this court. 

"J. .\. L. CROOKHA.Vf, 

"County Judge." 

On the i/th day of June the charter was pre- 
;nted to the court, and submitted to the people 
n the j8th, when it was almost unanimously 
;itified. 

The first city election was ordered to be held 
uly 2. 1853. 

The charter under which the city was or- 
anized defined the city limits, provided that 
s council should be composed of a mayor and 
ivo aldermen from each of the four wards into 
■Jiich the city was divided, provided for elec- 
ons and named the powers and duties of the 
ity officers. 

On Jul\' 12. 1S53. ;i meeting of the ofificers 
f the city was called at the office of W. T, 
inith, at which time Mayor Smith was duly 
ualified by Judge Crookham and the council 
:as organized and held their first session as the 
iw making power of the new city. .\t this 
me Oskaloosa had a jjopulation of about 
A-elve hundred. The city government of the 
ity of Oskaloosa became effective July 2, 1853, 
ith the following city fathers in charge: 

.Mayor — William T. Smith. 

Marshal — Isaac Kalbach. 

Clerk — William Loughridge. 

Treasurer — James Edgar, 
'ouncilmen — 

First ward — J. M. Dawson, R. R. Harbour. 

Second ward — I. N. Cooper. E. W. Eastman. 

Third ward — Tobias; Leighton, Smidi E. 
'tevens. 



b'ourth ward — E. M. Wells, Henry Temple. 

Isaac Kalbach came to Oskaloosa in May, 
185 1, coming from Pennsylvania, a cabinet- 
maker by trade. He is the head of the well 
known Kalbach family and one of our much 
esteemed citizens. ^K majority of the years of 
his residence in Oskaloosa Mr. Kalbach has 
been in the lumber Vnisiness. 

William Loughridge was a young attorney 
of e.Kcellent ability who had recently come to 
Oskaloosa. In 1855 he was elected mayor of 
the city, and the \-ear following he was chosen 
state senator. Later he served as judge of the 
Sixth judicial district and in 1866 he was 
elected l)_\- the republicans as representative 
in congress, in which bodv he served three 
years, where his ability won for him a wide 
reputation. James Edgar was one of the early 
settlers of Cedar township. 

The young city is now full fledged and has 
entered the race for supremacy and usefulness 
in the peerless commonwealth of the west. We 
will study its growth in another chapter. 



CHAPTER XL 



FACTS AND INCIDENTS ABOUT MAHASKA 
PIONEERS. 

There is no better way to learn of the strug- 
gles and embarassments of the early settlers 
than to relate the actual experiences and leave 
, the reader to make his own comments. So we 
ha.\e decided to devote a few chapters to the 
recital of some of these interesting fortnightly 
happenings and incidents in the lives of the pio- 
neers, just as they have been given to us by the 
old-timers themselves. Some of these are most 
pathetic, some heroic and others' amusing, but 
all of them are interesting to the readers of this 
generation, lliey illustrate the wonderful re- 
sources of those whose life on the frontier had 



40 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



brought them so close to the heart of nature 
and the unshrinking tenacity with which they 
threw their hves into the struggle for the con- 
quest of the wilderness. 

In the year 1843 ^^^- Matthew Kinsman took 
a claim just east of Wright, building his cabin 
in the edge of the timber. In the fall of that 
year he made a trip to Pickerell's mill down 
on Skunk river below Brighton, about sixty 
miles distant, to lay in a supply of flour and 
meal for the winter. 

During his absence one afternoon Airs. Kins- 
man took violently ill. Their neighbors were 
several miles distant and she was alone with 
one daughter eight or ten years old and one or 
two younger children. Toward evening she 
felt that she must have relief before morning. 
There were no roads or pathways leading to the 
homes of her neighbors, or the child could carry 
a message. It was approaching evening and 
the child would be almost sure to lose its way. 
In her desperate loneliness she heard the tink- 
ling of a cow bell on the prairie. She bundled 
up the little girl and sent her out into the gath- 
ering shades of the evening with the instruction 
to keep the cow moving and to follow her until 
she should reach the home of its owner and to 
tell him to make all haste to come to her as- 
sistance. It is not difficult to imagine the 
double anxiety and suspense under which the 
good woman labored until she was sure of the 
safety of her child. The little girl obeyed her 
instructions strictly and brought the relief in a 
short time. A messenger was sent to Mr. Kins- 
man and found him at the mill patiently wait- 
in his turn. He mounted his fleetest horse, 
and leaving the grist in the care of others he 
covered the distance home in the shortest pos- 
sible time. No doubt there are a number of 
persons still living who knew Mr. and Mrs. 
Kinsman during th'eir residence in this county. 
Tlie pioneer who told us this story said he 
would ask for no better neighbors than they 
were for a whole lifetime. 



In the fall of 1842 while the Indians still had 
possession of this territory, a party of seven 
hunters came up from Jefiferson county and re- 
mained two weeks hunting mostly in the timber 
along Spring creek and the Skunk river. 
Judge Campstock, his two sons, A. J. and Sam- 
uel, and William Pilgrim were members of this 
hunting party. Painter creek and Spring 
creek were named by tliis party of advance 
nimrods. Painter Creek was so called because 
while camped on that stream they were sere- 
naded by what they supposed to be a panther. 
The season of 1842 was unusually dry, and the 
hunters found pure water in Spring creek, 
which was supplied by a number of unfailing 
springs along its course. Hence the suggestive 
name. 

The party killed five deer and other smaller 
game and from thirty-six bee trees secured two 
barrels of strained honey of excellent quality. 

There were doubtless a goodly number of 
bears in the primeval woods of Mahaska coun- 
ty, but the following records are the only in- 
stances that have come down to us where this 
animal has appeared on the scene within the 
limits of the county. 

Mrs. S. A. Phillips tells us in her book of 
reminiscences of Mahaska county that her 
uncle, Aaron Cox, and a Mr. Coontz, killed a 
young bear southeast of Oskaloosa. Samuel 
Coffin, who came early to the New Purchase, 
killed a young bear over on Skunk river early 
in the '40s, and a full grown bear was killed 
l)y Butler Delashmutt and \Mlliam Frederick 
in the forests of Harrison township sometime 
in the '40s. 

Wolves were bold and plentiful in the earlier 
years. Russell Peck is said to have shot sev- 
enteen from his cabin door during the winter of 
1843-44. During the same winter Dr. Boyer, 
who was quite a hunter, found himself the 
owner of ninety-three scalps at the close of the 
season. A bounty of fifty cents was paid on 
each wolf scalp until the summer of 1845. -^^ 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF AL\HASl^ COUNTY. 



41 



leir meeting in Jnly nf tluil yoar the county 
inmiissioners decided tliat it was making too 
eavv a draft on the county funds and abol- 
hed it. 

Game was abundant and that of the very 
loicest and best. Dr. W. L. Crovvder, of Os- 
aloosa. says that when a boy in his father's 
enerous home over on Spring creei<, in Mon- 
)e township, he has often heard his mother re- 
lark that in that early day slie liad many times 
laced -the kettle filled with water on the crane 
\cr the tire and then called to her husband that 
le wanted a turkey. He had but to take his 
un from the antlers over the door and slip 
Liietly down the creek a few rods to a cleared 
lot where the corn and wheat grew. This 
as one of their haunts. A single shot brought 
i)wn the choicest of the flock and he was back 
ith his prize by the time the water was sutifi- 
ently hot to dress it. 

Prior to May i, 1843, settlers were not al- 
)wed to cross what was called at that time the 
dead line." which marked tlie di\ision between 
ie lands then open for settlement and those 
hicb belonged to the Indians. Any one cross- 
ig this line into the New i'urchase must re- 
eive permission from the military autlmrities 
r from the Indians, who were the owners of 
le land. For months before the opening day, 
:ores of enterprising men would take the risk 
nd wander aljout over the new territory select- 
ig their claims in advance. On two such esca- 
ades Dr. Boyer was caught by the dragoons 
nrl required to give an account of himself. On 
le first ot¥ense he told the judge before whom 
e was brought that he was on the hunt of a 
ee tree to replenish his supply of sweets for 
is family. It was an unwritten law in the 
arly days that the bee hunter was a f|uite privi- 
;ged character. He was not prohibited from 
unting bees anywhere and was allowed to cut 
le tree when found. As the time was so short 
•hen all restraint would be removed, any ex- 
use was accepted and the Doctor was exoner- 



ated. The second time he w'as taken as far as 
J. I', luldy's trading post where Eddyville is 
now located. There the guards got on a spree 
and Dr. P)oyer was miles away before they 
came to themselves. 

W. A. Delashmutt tells us that himself and 
sixteen other settlers were marched to Fairfield 
In- the dragoons tlirough the April mud and 
snow, only to be promptly released by the kind 
hearted old judge before whom their case was 
brought. They had been taken from their 
camp over on the Des Moines river. They 
were not only released, but an order was given 
on the commissary for a month's provisions for 
seventeen men, which had been appropriated by 
the soldiers. 

Mr. George DeLong, of Scott township, came 
to Iowa in 1842, locating for a time in Wash- 
ington county. Mahaska and Keokuk counties 
were at that time under the jurisdiction of 
\\'ashington county, it having been first organ- 
ized. He says that si.x feet of snow fell that 
winter at various times and during most of the 
winter from November until April snow laid 
on the ground three feet deep. Grains of all 
kinds were plentiful but it was a hard winter on 
the settler. Stock froze to death for want of 
protection and attention which could not be 
given them and for the want of food, packs 
of wolves driven to frenzy howled about the 
.settlers' cabins and menaced everything living. 

Mr. DeLong relates that on one of the crisp}' 
cold nights of that winter he was at Pickerell's 
mill waiting his turn for his grist in company 
with twenty-five or thirty others. They almost 
always had to wait a week at the mill and 
often twice that time. Men would bring 
with them a supplv of provisions to last 
them for a time and when it was gone they 
would subsist on parched corn and wheat until 
the end of the probation. On this particular 
night they were all seated around the great fire- 
])lace in the mill parching corn and wheat and 
telling stories to pass away the time. To their 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



surprise there suddenly dropped down from the 
half-open loft abo\'e a hog weighing one hun- 
dred and fifty pounds or more. It had been 
frozen out of its nest and in wandering along 
the bluff against which the mill was built it had 
quietly walked on a plank which led iiito an 
opening of the second story of the mill and 
while settling itself the loose boards gave way. 
It had no more than landed on the floor than 
some one said, "Let's kill it and eat it." The 
suggestion was acted upon at once and Mr. 
DeLong says in thirty minutes it was dressed, 
skinned and slices of it being roasted on the 
end of a stick by the hungry settlers. Some 
one furnished a supply of salt and a feast was 
installed that made everybody happy. 

According to the treaty of 1842, made at 
Agency City, the Sac and Fox Indians were to 
leave the state in 1845 ^'^^ their reservation in 
Kansas. In October of that year the govern- 
ment furnished teams and wagons to convev 
the women and children and the aged men 
across the country from their camp south of 
Fort Des ^Moines to their destination in the 
southwest. But the able-bodied men to the 
number of about five hundred went down the 
Des Moines river in canoes to the Mississippi 
river, thence by steamer to St. Louis and up 
the Missouri to Kansas City. They passed 
^lahaska county one morning in a long line of 
canoes stretching up and down the river as far 
as the eye could see. Those who witnessed 
the scene describe it as an impressive spectacle. 
Most of them seemed cheerful and as they 
floated down the current past their old haunts 
they were jabbering to each other in seeming 
hilarity. R. I. Garden, who was a witness of 
the jjageant. says that as they passed his fa- 
ther's cabin in Scott township they espied the 
family canoe pulled up on the shore, but on the 
opposite side of the river to which his father 
had gone on business. Two of the Indians 
left their canoes and waded toward the shore 
to add another boat to the number of their fleet 



of canoes, but his vigilant mother called to them, 
whereupon they returned to their boats amid 
the laughter and derision of their companions. 
It was the powerful arm of civilization that 
made the mother's entreaty respected. While 
on the surface they seemed light-hearted, there 
must have been some serious and thoughtful 
minds among them. They were looking for 
the last time on the graves of their fathers and 
their dehghtful hunting grounds. With sub- 
dued and broken spirits they were drifting down 
the beautiful waters of the ri\er they loved to 
sure oblivion and extinction as a race. There 
is eloquent blood in the veins of the genuine 
Indian. He spends his life in communion with 
nature and nature always inspires and elevates 
her children. In a few more generations the 
true Indian character will be lost. An amal- 
gamation has been going on for years in the 
southwest that has produced a hardy and reso- 
lute people, just such a mixture of races as is 
necessary for harmony and the conc[uest of 
the rugged hills arnd extensive plains of the 
region which thev now call their home land. 



CHAPTER XII. 



KISH-KE-KOSH, THE MAH.ASK.\ COUNTY CHIEF, 
.\ND HIS PEOPLE. 

The onlv Indian \'illage that we have any 
record of in Mahaska county was the village 
of Kish-Ke-Kosh, located out near the Skunk 
river in what is now White Oak townshij:). 
W'hen Monroe county was first organized it 
was called Kish-Ke-Kosk county, but the name 
was afterward changed by an act of the legis- 
lature. 

He is specifically described to us as having 
a splendid physique. Tall and straight as the 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



43 



irrow in its (|uiver. a fine, intellectual head, 
.nd an eye that delij^htcd in humor. He was 
, niagniticent tNpc ni the Indian l)ra\e that mi 
nore exists except in tiie best Indian literature. 

Prior to the year 1S37. Kish-Ke-Kosh was 
mly one of the principal warrior chiefs in the 
illage of Keokuk. The warrior chief was in- 
erior in rank to the \iilage chieftain, the latter 
anking next to the chief of the tribe, who held 
bsolute sway over all under him. 

In 1837 (leneral J. M. Street, who was the 
ndian agent at Agency City, conducted a depu- 
ation of Sac and I*"ox Indians to Washington 
"ity. The party inckulcd Keokuk. IMack Hawk, 
^oweshiek, Kish-Ke-Kosh and fifteen other 
hiefs of the Sac and Fox tribes. 

Kish-Ke-Kosh was always regarded as the 
lown and wit at all the tribal councils, and in 
his journey to the east he had opf^irtunity to 
five full play to his humor and sarcasm. The 
lelegation took a steamer on the Mississippi, 
nost likel\' at Keokuk, and descended to the 
")hio, thence up that stream to Wheeling, Vir- 
ginia, where they took stage across the moun- 
ains to Washington, where the embassy was 
eceived by the president. 

On their way out a party of ladies came on 
lie steamer and were curious to learn all tliey 
iiulil .iliout the party of Indians. A young 
nan accompanxing the Indians, on becoming 
cqtiainted w ith the ladies, took particular pains 

show the Indian trinkets and costumes, and 
icnt so far as to finger the garments and 
ringes of the chiefs and comment on them 

1 the amusement of his guests. Kish-Ke-Kosh 
Dok decided exception to the liberty taken by 
liis presum])tive yotUh and determined to teach 
im some manners. So when the ladies had 
etired he stepped up to him and began vigor- 
nsly to minutely examine his clothing, feeling 
is hair, his watch chain and exhibiting his 
jeth to the much-amused company of observ- 
rs, chattering all the while in his native tongue. 
Jefore he had fmished his pretended inspection 



he had taught the young man a les.son in con- 
siderate beha\ior not to be forgotten while his 
memory should serve him. 

.\ party of Sioux chiefs were in Washing- 
ton when the Sac and Fox chiefs arrived and 
as the two nations were constantly waging war, 
the government officials requested that a coun- 
cil be held with representative chiefs present 
from each of the tribes. The council was held 
in the chamber of the house of representatives. 
Kish-Ke-Kosh took his place in one of the 
large windows dressed in a buffalo hide which 
he had taken in combat from a Sioux chief. 
The mane and horns of the buffalo were used 
as a head-dress and its tail was allowed to trail 
on the floor. The Sioux were sorely grieved 
at his suggestive costume and indignantly pro- 
tested, claiming that it was aimed as an insidt 
to them. The presiding officer infonued them 
that he saw no reason why Kish-Ke-Kosh should 
not be allowed to appear in his own chosen 
costume. A Sioux chief opened the discussion, 
com])Iaining bitterly how the Sacs and Foxes 
had o\errun their lands, l)urning their villages, 
driving them from their homes and killing 
their warriors. Next came Keokuk, the great- 
est Indian orator of his day. Each address 
was repeated by an interpreter. Webster. Clay, 
Calhoun and Benton had simken in this same 
hall. Those who heard Keokuk's impassioned 
ekjquence diat day were ready to declare that 
the old chief had surpassed them all. 

Kish-Ke-Ko.sh was next called upon to speak. 
He ridiculed the complaints of the Sioux, 
laughed at their weakness and mimicked their 
tale of woe. 

From Washington the\- proceeded to make 
a tour of several eastern cities. At New York 
they received but little attention. When Gen- 
eral Street attem])ted to show them the city on 
foot the party were so embarrassed by people 
crowding about them that they were glad to 
escape through a store into an alley and return 
to their Imtel. At Boston an escort met them at 



44 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



the train and on the second day they were 
shown the city in open carriages. Governor 
Edward E\erett gave them a banquet. On all 
occasions Kish-Ke-Kosh won popular favor by 
his witicisms, humorous stories and jokes, es- 
pecially among the ladies. He returned home 
^\■ith many beautiful and costly presents which 
they had given him. For many years of his 
after life he took great pleasure in displaying 
these presents, saying they were given to him 
by the "white .'^quaws." The ability displayed 
and the distinction won by Kish-Ke-Kosh on 
this tour of the east led to his promotion as a 
village chieftain on the banks of the Skunk 
river farther towards the frontier of the hunt- 
ing grounds of the tribe. After Kish-Ke-Kosh 
had returned from the east he made a hard ef- 
fort to inaugiu'ate some reforms among his 
people. He taught his warriors that it was 
manifest!}" wrong for them not to assist their 
wi\'es in the drudgery of the camp and in rais- 
ing the corn crop. Although he set them an 
example by helping his own wife in her toil, his 
advice and exampie had little effect on his 
people. This village contained about two hun- 
dred and fifty inhabitants. A short time after 
the treaty of 1842 they removed westward, lo- 
cating on the Des Moines river three miles 
southeast of where the capital of the state is 
now located. Here they remained until 1845, 
when they were conveyed in government wag- 
ons to their reservation seventy miles south- 
west of Kansas City. 

Once the supreme rulers of a great common- 
wealth, they had become a crestfallen and hum- 
bled race, bandied about at the caprice of ad- 
vancing civilization. 

Some of the bark huts of Kish-Ke-Kosh vil- 
lage were still found in White Oak township 
when the white settlers came, and tliey afforded 
shelter to a number of wandering pioneer fami- 
lies in their search for a home in the New Pur- 
chase. Near the village was found the burying 
place. There were yet to be seen graves cov- 



ered by rude slabs. Here their dead had been 
tenderly laid away with such ceremonies as in 
their estimation lightened the sorrow of part- 
ing with their relatives and friends. 

The Sacs and Foxes generally ha\e their 
graveyards on a hillside. The body was 
wrapped in blankets -and laid out in full length. 
The graves were shallow. The Indians be- 
lie\ed that people have souls which live some- 
where after they die, and these souls delight to 
do the things which they did in their lifetime. 
Hence they laid on the grave or buried with 
them various articles : for men, knives, toma- 
hawks, bows and arrows; for women, buckets, 
pans, ornaments and choice treasures. When 
children died we are told that thev would place 
on the grave its baby board on which it used 
to lie, and its rude little toys. Then a little dog 
was killed at the grave to accompany the little 
one on its long jouney to the spirit land. They 
believed that animals and things had souls the 
same as persons and that the souls of these went 
with the departed to help them on their way to 
the happy spirit land. 

When Lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike ascended 
the Mississippi river in 1805 he found Sac and 
Fox villages on both sides of the Mississippi 
river. He reported 1,750 Foxes and 2,850 
Sacs. In 1736, the Foxes having become 
greatly decimated by wars, had fomied a con- 
federacy with the Sacs. Both these tribes had 
come originally from the lake regions in the 
northwest. Fox river in AMsconsin took its 
name from the smaller tribe, and Saginaw, 
INIichigan, received its name from the Sacs. 
Among the celebrated chiefs of these two na- 
tions were Black Hawk, Keokuk, Appanoose, 
Wapello, Poweshiek and Pash-e-pa-ho. During 
the first quarter of the nineteenth century the 
Sacs and Foxes were often at war with the 
Iowa tribe, the last battle being fought at lowa- 
ville on the Des Moines river, near Eldon, about 
the year 1824. Atithorities differ as to the date 
of this famous battle. Like manv dates in In- 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



45 



ian liistiiry. it is not very definite. At this 
attle tlie Sac and Fox triljes completely crushed 
leir rivals and forced them to surrender. 

Savage and tierce as were ihe.-e Sacs and 
"oxes. they had periods of deep religious fer- 
or and their religious ceremonies were ob- 
erved with all the earnestness and sincerity of 
leir nature. In Ajiril. if^43, when 1 )r. James 
-. Warren with a pirty of li\e others were 
oming up the divide to look out for claims 
efore the rush that would follow May ist of 
liat year, they came suddenly on to quite a 
irge camp of disheartened and retreating In- 
ians. The Doctor, who had some knowledge 
f military tactics, suggested they march 
hrough the place in military order. On enter- 
;ig the camp they found these children of the 
crests to be engaged in worship and gave no 
.ttention to their passing. The men were seated 
n a circle singing in a mournful, monotonous 
one to the rattle of what seemed to be beans 
n g<iin-ds, which were being shaken up and 
lown to regular time. The door of the tent 
vas closed to exclude intruders, but one of the 
vhite men. seeing that there was not the slight- 
st spirit of molestation, had bis curiositv so 
roused that he lifted the tent wall slightly and 
)eeiJed under at the performance. The .soleinn- 
aced worshipers did not allow their devotions 
o be the least disturbed by this ungrateful in- 
rusion. An old squaw who seemed to be the 
)nly guardian of the place, saw the impertinent 
ellow and ordered him awaw When he did 
lot promptly obey, she indignantly took hold 
)f him. giving him a violent pull as she ut- 
ered the word "Manitou," which was their sa- 
■red word for God. She meant by this to con- 
■ey to the rude white man the sacredness and 
eclusion of the exercises within. 

Those were days of much heaviness of heart 
'or the subdued Indians. They were about to 
ea\-e forever the land of their fathers which 
hey loved. W'e are told that at Appomattox, 
nen who bad ne\er uttered the name of God 



but in blasphemy, were most fervent in prayer. 
It was the cry of the soul which would not be 
hushed in that hour of awful agony. 

It was doubtless a feeling much like this that 
shadowed the gloomy heart of these Indian 
braves. Once the proud and happy monarchs 
of these western prairies and woods; now driven 
before the surging columns of civilization he 
knew not where. To his keen mind his doom 
was clear. In this thickening shadow his soul 
spoke to him of "Manitou," and he gave liim 
devotion. 



CHAPTER XIII. 



HOIXAXD IX M.\II.\SK.\ COUNTY. 

.\mong the makers of Iowa there came in 
the summer of 1847 se\en hundred Holland 
colonists and settled on what was at that time 
the principal highway across Iowa, the divide 
between the Des Moines and Skunk rivers. It 
was religious persecution that brought them to 
America. They were dissenters from the es- 
tablished Reformed church and came to the 
great west to find a refuge. Of course, many 
of them came to better their worldly condition, 
Init the founding of the colony had its origin 
in the inliorn desire to be free, which has always 
existed in the blood of sturdy little Holland. 
Hallum says that in Holland self-government 
goes back beyond any assignable date. low^a 
has producefl many romances but none of them 
more interesting than the story of these Pella 
Iieojjle. 

The Dutch republic has been for long cen- 
turies the asylum for the persecuted. The 
French Huguenots found a refuge in Holland 
'.nd the Pilgrims and Pui"itans sailed from its 
shores to the new world. The Pella pilgrims 
in Holland opposed the formalities of the Es- 



46 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



tablished church. It gave no expression of 
their faith, being empty and meaningless. 

Not being able to bring about any reforms 
in the Established church, they became Separat- 
ists, like the English Puritans under Robinson 
and Brewster. Several young men who had 
been trained in the universities and theological 
schools became leaders of these dissenters. One 
of these men, Henry Peter Scholte, became a 
prominent exponent of tlie advanced thought 
and the three congregations over which he pre- 
sided seceded from the state church. He was 
tried and for a short time imprisoned. Then 
another long trial that cost him $3,000 to de- 
fend himself against his persecutors. He was 
ordered to vacate his pastorate and soldiers 
were ordered to the infected district to prevent 
his people from meeting. He submitted to 
these increasing indignities with Christian pa- 
tience and his followers multiplied. "They came 
to feel the longing for a new fatherland." A 
commission was appointed in 1846 to receive 
applicants for emigration, every one of which, 
if not well known, were required to bring cer- 
tificates as to their Christian conduct and char- 
acter and also as to their worldly condition. A 
permanent organization was formed and prepa- 
tions were made for the emigration in the 
spring of 1847. Four ships departed for Amer- 
ica between the 4th and nth of April of that 
year. Many pathetic scenes are described on 
leaving the Fatherland. Family bonds were 
broken. There was much to urge them for- 
ward and many dear ties to be broken on leav- 
ing the home of their childhood. 

Of the four ships, only one made the trip in 
twenty-six days. The other three were at sea 
from thirty-six to forty days. On the voyage 
a temporary go\-ernment was instituted on each 
ship. Order and cleanliness were strictly en- 
forced. ^^"e are told that the crews of the four 
vessels were deeply impressed with the daily 
religious services and exceptional decorum. The 
sailors could not understand why they were 



compelled to leave their native land. When 
the ships landed at Baltimore the health offi- 
ers were so pleased with the cleanliness of 
their ships that they omitted the usual inspec- 
tion, saying. "Oh; these emigrants are all right." 
One of them added, "Welcome to America." 
Strangers in a strange land, as they were, this- 
greeting was a joyous note to them under tlie 
circumstances. They supposed they were com- 
ing to a wilderness and had brought with them 
all manner of household goods, chests, cabinets, 
plows, farm wagons — all of which could have 
been purchased in St. Louis. They had much 
to unlearn and many more things to learn. They 
journeyed by the primitive American railroads 
and canals to Pittsburg, thence by steamer on 
the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to St. Louis. 

The journey was tedious and wearisome to 
these peasant people. The cars were so small 
that they scarcely accommodated eight persons 
with comfort and were drawn up steep grades 
by stationary engines. The emigrants were un- 
accustomed to mountains. There were no hills 
in the home land. They were accustomed to 
canal boats but these were so different. Amer- 
ican boats climbed mountains by means of locks, 
crossed rivers and viaducts and passed through 
tunnels under mountains. 

They were three weeks in making the jour- 
ney from Baltimore to St. Louis. They reached 
St. Louis early in Jul}'. It was three months 
since they left Holland. Twenty had died on 
the sea voyage and four since they left Balti- 
more. They remained in St. Louis during July 
and a part of August. The weather was ex- 
tremely hot to them and their accommodations 
were poor, but they were thankful for the cor- 
dial American welcome everywhere. One of 
the St. Louis Presb}'terian churches was thrown 
open to them during their stay and they used 
it for both church and Sunday-school sen-ices. 

The newspapers of the cities through which 
they had passed had published the report that 
they were possessed of much wealth and these 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



47 



rumors caused them to have to pay higher 
prices for what tiiey needed dian were paid hy 
otlier emigrants who had tlie re])Utation of lie- 
ing in ])nor circumstances. 

In trutli. tiiey had with diem quite an amount 
of money, all in gold, which they kept guarded 
very closelv. Mone)- was extremely scarce at 
that time in the west, especially west of the 
Mississippi. At St. Louis H. P. Scholte. the 
l)resident of the colony, joined them, after ha\- 
ina: made a tour of a number of the eastern 
cities in the interest of the coming settlement. 
He was much gratified at die cordial welcome 
extended to his countrymen everywhere he 
went. In Xew York he met many of the de- 
scendants of the Hollanders whose ancestors 
had come to America some two hundred years 
before. 

From St. Louis they sent out five spies to 
report on a suitable place to fomi their settle- 
ment. Missouri was objectionable because of 
the sla\erv (|uestion ; Illinois was seriously con- 
sidered and it is stated that the town of Nauvoo, 
which had just been abandoned by the Mor- 
mons, was offered to them at a bargain. From 
the first Iowa had Ijeen regarded with favor 
and the commissioners to this state went to 
Fairfield to counsel with General Van Ant- 
werp, who had charge of the government land 
ofiice. The Dutch name attracted them. While 
there they met die Rev. M. J. Post, a Baptist 
missic iuary. in whom Mr. Scholte says he "nested 
the hand of (jod." Having been all over the 
New Purchase, he persuaded the commissioners 
to visit the divide in Marion county, which he 
called the "garden spot of Iowa." The com- 
missioners were pleased with the beautiful roll- 
ing prairies, and accordingly bought two civil 
townships of land, paying the government 
price, $1.25 per acre. This done, they returned 
to St. Louis to bear the good news to their 
people. 

All were thoroughly glad to be on the move 
and a steamboat was chartered from St. Louis 



to Keokuk. They left St. Louis on Saturday 
afternoon and reached Keokuk on Monday 
morning. Impressive religious services were 
had on Sunday. In the addresses the colonists 
were compared to the Israelites entering the 
promised land. At Keokuk they purchased 
horses, oxen and wagons, into which their 
goods were loaded. They paid for everything 
in gold, much to the delight of the Americans, 
who were little accustomed to see so much 
money in the west. The seven hundred stran- 
gers attracted no little attention and their outfit 
formed quite a procession. 

Some amusing things occurred as they were 
preparing for their overland journey. Mr. Mat- 
thias De Booy purchased a team and wagon for 
$250 and loaded up his household effects and 
family ready for the march. But when the 
word of command was given his team refused 
to move a step. Persuasion and argument failed 
and he was about concluding that he was the 
owner of balky horses when an amused by- 
stander assured him that his team was true and 
faithful, only diey did not understand the Dutch 
of their new master, whereupon the stranger 
took them in hand, and speaking to them in the 
vernacular of the country, they at once started 
off so vigorously that the driver became fearful 
he should not be able to make them understand 
when to stop. 

Up the Des Moines valley they came, some 
riding in wagons drawn by horses and others in 
carts drawn by oxen. To the scattered settlers 
they seemed a strange people speaking a strange 
language. Some rode on horses and many were 
afoot, the men in velvet jackets and the women 
wearing caps and bonnets. This young army 
of emigrants must have passed through Oska- 
loosa. After some days of tra\el they came 
on August 26, 1847, to a level place on the 
prairie ridge, where a hickory pole had been 
planted deep into the sod, and nailed across the 
top of it was a shingle and on the shingle the 
single word "Pella." It was September and 



48 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



they liad come to the end of their journey. 
They set about digging cellars and building 
dugouts for winter protection. From a saw- 
mill at soriie distance they obtained lumber to 
build the first house, a long structure with uy>- 
right boards and divided into compartments for 
■each family. Prof. Newhall, a pioneer corre- 
spondent of the Burlington Hawk-Eye, who 
passed by the settlemetit some weeks after the 
Hollanders had arrived at their destination, 
writes thus of the new race which he found on 
this Iowa prairie : 

"The men in blanket coats and jeans were 
gone and a broad-shouldered race in velvet 
jackets and wooden shoes were there. Most 
of the inhabitants live in camps, the tops of 
their houses covered with lint cloth, some with 
grass and bushes, the sides barricaded with 
countless numbers of trunks, boxes and chests 
of the oddest and most grotesque description. 
They are all Protestants who have left their 
native land, much like the Puritans of old. on 
account of political and religious intolerance and 
persecution. They appear to be intelligent and 
respectable, quite above the average class of 
European immigrants that have ever landed on 
our shores." 

]\Iany things were done at Pella which com- 
mend themselves to our highest and best civil- 
ization. They made provision before all else 
for the worship of God, for the instruction of 
their children, and for citizenship. Busy as 
they were, they observed the first Sunday in 
Pella, and have never neglected that sacred 
day since. 

It is worthy of note that when some two 
hundred of the men took the oath of allegiance 
to their adopted countiy only two of the whole 
number made their mark. 

For centuries in Holland it has been laid 
down as one of their laws that education is the 
foundation of the commonwealth. In the years 
that followed large additions were made to the 
colony. The community has prospered and has 



Ijeen greatly enlarged. Instead of the two origi- 
nal townships the settlement is now nearh- forty 
miles long by ten or fifteen miles wide. They 
are always buying land but seldom sell. The 
language of the home in most cases is still 
Dutch. English alone is taught in the schools 
and is used in almost all public addresses and 
sermons. 

The number of Hollanders in INIahaska 
county is estimated to be about three riiousand. 
They are found mainly in Richland, Black Oak 
and Scott townships, with a goodly number in 
Prairie. Madison and Garfield. They are an 
unpretentious but prolific people. Strictly up- 
right in everything, strict in their religion and 
sincere in all things. Their homes are kept 
clean and wholesome. These are qualities of a 
high type of citizenship. 

On the first and second days of September, 
1897. the people of Pella celebrated the fiftieth 
anni\ersan- of their settlement. Ten thousand 
gathered where the first seven hundred halted 
and began the conquest of the wilderness in 
1847. Only a few of the pioneers remained. 
It was a memorable occasion for the descend- 
ants of these pioneers. 

Their personality as a people has been much 
changed since the coming of their fathers. In 
another century or more they will ha-\'e become 
gradually absorbed and lost in the great Amer- 
ican familv. 



CHAPTER NIV. 



THE FLOOD YE.\R 185I. 

Mr. Isaac Kalbach relates that himself and 
eight other passengers left Fort Dodge on a 
small vessel in the spring of 185 1, coming 
down the Des Moines river to its mouth, and 
found the waters very low. So shallow in 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



49 



places that to lighten the load, tlie passengers 
would often get off the boat and walk around a 
small rapids in the river. On May uth the 
rain began to fall. These dates are clear in 
Mr. Kaltoch's mind because of the fact that 
he arrived in Oskaloosa with his family on May 
13th of that year. 

The water fell in torrents and sheets almost 
every day for about a month. Then it began 
to let up snmc, but not wholly. Everything 
was flooded. Grist mills and saw mills and all 
industries of that kind were closed Ijecause of 
the tloiids. Their machinery was under water. 
The new roads of the county were practically 
impassable. Merchants could get no more 
goods, and the people found no sale for their 
products except the home consumption. Fann- 
ers could do but little work, tradesmen were 
idle, and business was jjaralyzed. There was 
corn enough in the county selling for ten or 
twelve cents per bushel, but corn meal sold 
for two dollars and fifty cents per bushel, be- 
cause of the difficulty of getting it ground, 
b'lour sold for twenty-one dollars a barrel and 
much of the time could not be had at any price. 
Hominy had to be made every day, as it would 
not keep longer than about twenty-four hours 
in hot weather. Many families used the mor- 
tar and pestle to reduce the corn to meal for 
mure conxenient use. John W. Jones, an Os- 
kaloosa merchant, and John B. Stewart secured 
the loan of a pair of burrs from Duncan's mill, 
north of town, which they fished out of the 
water and brought to town and set them up 
just north of the old jail. They were enabled 
to make pretty good meal for their neighbors 
out of the corn that came to them, but made 
no effort to produce flour. Just about this 
time we find this note in the Herald 
of June 27th of that year: "We have 
learned that on Tuesday night last a 
steamer laden with flour landed at Eddyville 
and there discharged its entire cargo. It is 
thought the boat will return in a few davs and 



ascend the river to Fort Des ^loines. Success 
to the trade, we say." 

James Young, another enterprising Oska- 
loosa merchant, determined that he would have 
some goods from Keokuk if they were to be 
had. So he took a good team of horses and man- 
aged to reach the city and made a purchase of 
about eight hundred pounds of needed supplies 
for his store. On the return trip, he got as far 
upas Birmingham and there hehopelessly mired. 
Leaving his goods, he managed to reach home. 
One of his customers, Wesley Mettler, had a 
six-yoke team of oxen which he used in break- 
ing prairie. IMr. Young secured the service of 
these stalwarts and their owner to make the trip 
to Birmingham for his much needed supplies, 
which they did in the slow and sure method of 
these faithful servants of men. 

During the period of excessive rainfall, flow- 
ing water was everywhere. Culverts and 
bridges in the country, and sidewalks and street 
crossings in town were swept away. Water 
ran across South Market street ten feet deep. 
.\fter a hard rain the square and its adjacent 
streets would be covered with water. The city 
was not graded then as now. Fish, which had 
come up from the river, were left in ponds 
within two and three blocks from the square. 

The events occurring out on the rivers in the 
county were both serious and tragic, especially 
on the Des Moines. Mr. George DeLong re- 
lates an incident with which he was conversant. 
Being unable to do much work, the men of the 
neighborhood spent much time about the river 
bottoms doing what they could to save the prop- 
erty of those who were suffering most. While in 
this w-ork Van B. Delashmutt and a Mr. Dunn 
were in a skiff in the flooded district trying to 
rescue drifting property, when they struck a 
swift current and upset their craft. Delashmutt 
caught hold of a bending sapling and seeing 
that his companion was about to sink, he seized 
him by his hair as he w-as going under. Twist- 
ing around over the bending liush which was 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY, 



almost submerged in the water, he cking with a 
death grip to liis now senseless companion, hold- 
ing his head out of the water as much as possi- 
ble and calling to the men on the shore. One 
of the men — Jarvis Boyd — took in the situation 
in a flash and mounting a spirited horse he en- 
tered the stream far enough alDove to swim by 
where the life and death struggle was going 
on. In spite of his best efforts the swift cur- 
rent carried him by. Undaunted, however, he 
landed as soon as possible and struck again into 
the angry waters. During this time Delash- 
mutt was in imminent peril of being swept into 
the current with his heavy load. This time 
Boyd came near enough to seize Dunn and 
dragged him to the shore half dead for a time. 
He then made the third trip and brought in De- 
lashmutt from his perilous situation. 

Eddyville was under water and its people 
took refuge on the eastern bluffs. Dick Butcher, 
who was one of its enterprising merchants in 
that year, moved his stock of goods to the sec- 
ond floor and carried them out in boat loads to 
the foot of Cemeterj' Hill, where he retailed 
them out to his customers from a wagon. 

The question of bread for the family when 
mills were many miles distant with no roads 
or bridges, was a hard question for the early 
settler to solve. In the spring of 185 1 Dr. E. 
A. Boyer and his neighbor. Van Delashmutt, 
found their supply of meal and flour almost ex- 
hausted. It was quite impossible to get any- 
where because of the high water. They heard 
of a corn cracker some eight or ten miles up the 
river and sent W. A. Delashmutt with four 
bushels of corn packed on two horses. He ar- 
rived at Mr. Nossman's, the owner of the mill, 
only to find that it was out of repair. On 
learning, however, of the pressing need, the mill 
was doctored up and by daylight next morning 
Mr. Delashmutt was ready to return with his 
four Ijushels of ground corn. During the day 
Dr. Boyer noticed a vessel ascending the river 
loaded with flour. He put out into the swollen 



stream with two men and a large canoe. Hail- 
ing the steamer, he requested the captain to 
sell iiim a supply of flour. The captain told him 
it had been ordered by the government for the 
soldiers at Fort Des Moines and he could not 
sell it. Dr. Boyer told him he must have some 
flour if he had to scuttle the boat to get it. 
After some conversation the captain agreed to 
let him have two barrels of flour for die privi- 
lege of loading his vessel with rails which were 
floating about in drifts along the river. His 
vessel had made the trip from St. Louis and 
was short of fuel. Dr. Boyer got his flour 
ashore and rolled it up Ijy the side of his cabin, 
covering it with some boards. When his friend 
Van Delashmutt came over shortly afterward 
he took him out to show him his prize. He 
could not have been more dumbfounded if he 
had been confronted b}" a bear. How two bar- 
rels of flour could have reached that wilderness 
home unannounced was more than he could 
understand. The true pioneer never enjoys a 
good thing alone, and Mr. Delashmutt got one 
of the mysterious barrels and its welcome con- 
tents. 

\\"e gi\e below a number of extracts from the 
editorial pages of the Herald during the sum- 
mer months of this disturbing year. 

"The stage coach in attempting to cross a 
small stream between Ottumwa and Eddyville. 
Wednesday last, met with a serious difticultv 
by getting into deep and rapidly running water. 
The current being rapid and the animals be- 
coming entangled, it was with difficulty that 
the driver and passengers were saved. In the 
struggle the coach turned over in the water 
and one horse was drowned. The driver and 
two passengers in the coach got out as best they 
could after taking a cold water plunge." 

"One of the heaviest rains we ever witnessed 
occurred on Wednesday of last week. The rain 
literally fell in torrents for over an hour. The 
face of the whole country presents the appear- 
ance of one vast lake of rushing water. Much 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



SI 



<lamage has l.een done by tlie floating away of 
fences, bridges, etc. The corn has been injured 
l)y washing of the ground and ])ortions of it 
\\ ill have to be replanted. The small creeks and 
( liber streams are much higher than was ever 
before known. It is said that scarcely a bridge 
or footlog remains ()\er a stream in the whole 
country. 

"The mail matter received here a few days 
since was completely saturated with water. One 
sack took a new route down the Des Moines 
river. 

"Destruction of property on the Des Aloines 
ri\er has been very great. Whole farms have 
been cleaned of fences, grain houses and every- 
thing else of a movable nature. The river was 
never known to be so high before. The inhabi- 
tants of the bottom lands have been compelled 
to desert tlieir houses and flee to the bluffs for 
refuge. .\ number of dwellings were carried 
entirely away. This calamity will doubtless 
be hard on the citizens in the immediate vicin- 
ity of the river, as it has not only destroyed the 
present crops, but lias taken away the old crops 
that were in store for tiie present season. Ot- 
tumwa. Eddyville. Red Rock and Fort Des 
Moines are almost submerged liy the ox-erflow- 
ing of the ri\'er. 

"A man named Sendert DeYong, a native of 
Holland, was drowned - at Union Mills, in 
this county, on Saturday last. He and 
a number of others were engaged in re- 
jilacing the floor in the bridge. He was a 
much esteemed workman in the mill. 

"We learn that a young man was drowned 
in the Des Moines river in the vicinity of Des 
Moines on Friday last. Two small toys were 
also drowned at Red Rock a few days ago." 

The Keokuk Dispatch of June 6th of that 
year says : 

"Alexandria is tiiree feet under water and 
the Mississippi and Des Moines bottoms are 
submerged for miles, and still the rivers are 
rapidly rising and the fluids descending. The 



inhabitants at Alexandria are driven into their 
second stories and cut off from communication. 
The state of things is most deplorable. Not 
(inly the city but the country for eight miles 
back is submerged. W'e can not but express 
the hope that they will accept the hospitalities 
of our city, which are most cordially tendered 
them." 

Ottumwa Courier; "This is the greatest rise 
ever known by the whites in the Des Moines 
ri\er \-alley. and probably will not occur again 
in the next half century. Owing to the wet 
weather and extremely bad roads we have not 
been able to get our supply of paper from the 
rixer. Our subscribers, therefore, need not be 
disappointed should there be no issue next week. 
This we regret but can not prevent. The fault 
is not ours. By the week after we expect to 
be on hands again, as usual." 

During this year, when the roads were quite 
impassable, there was great interest in the build- 
ing of plank roads in this part of Iowa, espe- 
cially between Burlington and Oskaloosa. The 
old Herald files are filled with notices of public 
meetings for that purpo.se all along the line. 

Oskaloosa was at that time very prominently 
considered as a most suitable location for the 
state capital. ' A correspondent of the Burling- 
ton Gazette of March 19, 1852. has this to say 
on that subject : 

"Oskaloosa, the point to which all now center 
In- common consent, is known to be one of the 
healthiest and most beautiful inland towns in 
the west. It can easily be made the focus of 
all the stage lines in the state, and, as if nature 
were destined to do for her what the state has 
blindly failed to do. it is a positive fact that no 
less than one railroad from Muscatine and two 
[jlank roads from Burlington, the one through 
Keokuk count}- and the other through Fair- 
field, are now pushing onward toward Oska- 
loosa. making her their declared destination. 
These facts, which are well known, if none 



PAST AND PRKSKX r OF MAHASKA COIN IV. 



othersk would pivunpt us to select Oskakvxsa 
for the future seat of go\-enunent." 



CHAiTEK N\ 



MAHAi^A COVNTY Mll.1^ — ik^ME lUS-OKV K.E- 
lATING Tv^ THFIR KSTAEUSHMENT. 

One of the nK>si ditScult questions which the 
pioneers had to solve was the question which 
can onh- be sohevl by a gji>xl grist mill. The 
ground was pivxiuctive and bnx^t fcath 
a: . but grain in the crude state was 

ail. . . J. ;o use. Hominy and boilevl wheat 
would not remain fresh long, especialh- in warm 
weather. All of the old settlers with whom we 
have talkevl speak of the long niilling trips with 
renx>rfe- HetKe it was a great relief when gvxxi 
mills were established within the hmits of the 
count}-. The mill that supplies the family with 
t«ead becomes a dear old landmark and e\-ery 
hon>e is made to feel a sense of gratimde to 
the nuQer. and the entire estaWishment which 
made home feasts p».^ssible. There are many 
things of intense connectevl with the estahlish- 
ii^ of especialh" the earlier miUs of this coun- 
ty which if they could be writtai. would make 
a -^ ■ '" ., e sonw of them. 

. - / -. -. ^ ^ .- ::i running order 

in Mahaska co«nt\- was the work of George X. 
DiuKan. There is no record of the former life 

of Mr. p— r- •• - - e\~identh~ an enter- 

pristr^ n- ist confidence in his 

Ktsiness .i Samod Gossage did Ae me- 

chanical wxrk Oil - He was a calsnei- 

makor by trade ;uu. ._< ..:ed the tirst shop of 
that kind of work in OskaIcv>ia- He came to 
Ae county in 1844. Was representative from 



For son>e yetirs before his death he was pro- 
prietor of the old Blackstone House in West 
OskaKxvsa. 

One e\-ening in 1844 when M. P. Crowder, 
father of Dr. M. L. Crowder, was returning 
from Oskaloosa. following an Indian trail, he 
iK»tice<.l a horseman cv^ming towaal him and 
could readily see from the careless manner of 
the rider that it was white nvm. So he waited 
for him. The two men havl never met before, 
but after some cvmvers:ition each learned that 
the other belongeil to the same comnxin brother- 
hood of homeseekers in the New Purehase. 
There was ;dnx\?t no reser\-e among strangers 
in those (.lays. There w;is a kindred fellowship 
that made etich confide in the other. Mr. Crow- 
der told him he was opening a new home over 
on Middlecreek and asked the stranger of his 
plans. He said he was building a mill on 
Skunk ri\Tfr nonh of Oskaloosa but lacked sixty 
(.lollars of luwing enough nK>ney to purchase the 
uecessaiy- machinen." to equip the mill. The 
idea of ha\-ing a mill so near to himself and his 
neighbors appealed so strongh- to Mr, Crowder 
that he said, without a nx^meni's hesitation. - - 
even knowing the stnuigers name, that he ' 
that amount of money in the house with whicli 
he had intended to «iter his land as soon as it 
came into nnrket, and that if the stranger would 
return the nioney when neevled he would let him 
haveittouseft»rsolaudableapurpose. Thestran- 
ger watt home witft his newly n«de friend and 
the e\-ening was spent in a pioneer conference. 
The next nwming Mr. Crowder counted out to 
his guest, who proved to be Mr. George Dun- 
can, sixty-five dollars in sih-er. Sixt\-five dc4- 
lars was quite a smtg sum of monej" in diat 
day. especaJh- wh«i it had be«i sacredly laid 
aside for the p - -chasing a boBoe for 

the tamih". N, ,. j, .> or specified rate of 

interest was thought of by Mr. Crowder in 
makii^ this loan. He simph~ thought of die 
immeasured advantage of a nearby grist mr' 
the whole conanunitv ar.v! to his own fan: 




XORTJI SIDE I'lnMC SOUARE— 1«W. OSKaLOOSA. 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUXTY. 



55 



•. Duncan went to Burlington antl completed 
: purchase of the necessary machinery for his 
11. 

Samuel Coffin was given the task of bring- 
^ the first milling outfit to this county. We 
I told that it required six yoke of oxen to 
ng the heavy castings from the river. Mr. 
fiin was a Titan of strength and endurance 
his early life, a typical frontiersman, who 
,s equal tn any occasion. He visited this 
mtv in 1842 and brought his family in 1844. 
rs. Sarah Cruzen, his daughter, relates that 

his first visit her father and his two com- 
ninns, Daniel Votaw and William Rouse, 
lie suddenly upon five hundred Indians in 
np. They at first thought they would have 
juble, but they were treated kindh' and al- 
ved to go on in their meanderings. Mr. 
iffin was the father of sixteen children, repre- 
iitcd this county in the state legislature one 
•m, and was always a leading spirit in pulilic 
terprises. 

When Mr. Crowder learned thai the Duncan 
ill was in full blast, he took his ox-wagon, 
ided up a grist and gave the new miller a call, 
hen he had been there a short time he noticed 

stepping out of the door that his team was 
me. After looking about for them for a time 

went into the mill and told Mr. Duncan that 

believed the Indians had driven away his 
usty team of oxen. Mr. Duncan replied, "I 
ink you will find them up on the hill in my 
;ible. and I want you to take dinner with me 
day." He then told Mr. Crowder that when 
; came to his mill he should never be com- 
•llcil to take his "turn" like the other patrons, 
It as soon as the grist then grinding was out, 
s grain should next fill the hoppers. This rule 
: maintained as a distinguishing mark of 
iendship to Mr. Crowder as long as he owned 
le mill property. It scarcely need be men- 
oned that the sixty-five dollars was gratefully 
;turned to its generous owner in good time for 
le land purchase. 

4 



We have given full space to this beautiful 
story of friendship because it emphasizes a 
phase of life among the better class of pioneers 
which is worthy of emulation. 

The Duncan mill was built where the J. S. 
Whitmore mill now stands. 

Messrs. Comstock and Pilgrim visited the 
South Skunk regions with a hunting party in 
1842 and selected the present site of the Glen- 
dale mills as the spot for a mill site when this 
county should be opened for settlement. Dur- 
ing the month of May, 1843. these two gentle- 
men proceeded to carry out their designs, and 
constructed a dam across the Skunk river at the 
above point, using brush and rock, which served 
them for a number of years. The mill was con- 
structed under the direction of Alexander Mc- 
Cleery, a millwright, and a partner in the new 
enterprise. It was built almost entirely from 
the native woods, gearing wheels and all being 
hewn and chiseled out of the most suitable tim- 
ber from the nearby forests. The mill was 
completed as a saw mill in 1844 and was oper- 
ated night and day for a time to supply the 
growing demand for building material for the 
new settlements. A little later attachments were 
made for grinding corn, and in 1845 ^^^^ man- 
agement were able to turn out good wheat flour. 
In these early years these two Mahaska county 
mills had many customers from Fort Des 
Moines and vicinity. The records show that 
they registered their grists and waited some- 
times as long as eight days for their turn. In 
the early days these two mills were known as 
the upper and lower mills. The fall of water is 
about six inches to the mile between them. 

A quite important law suit appears on the 
county records between Mr. Duncan, who 
brought the suit, and the owner of the lower 
mill. Mr. Duncan claimed back water dam- 
ages. Ex-Governor Eastman represented the 
prosecution and W. H. Seevers the defense. 
The defense won the suit and Mr. Duncan 
aftenvards bought the lower mill. 



56 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



The Huron mills were built on the Skunk 
river in Black Oak township in 1857 by Morris 
Brothers at a cost of some five thousand dollars. 
In 1868 the mills were bought by Reynolds & 
Bowdel, who enlarged and improved it, making 
it a ten thousand dollar property. Parker &. 
Cramer purchased the plant in 1870 and did a 
good business for a numljer of years. The above 
mill was the successor to Warren's mill, built 
by R. B. Warren in 1846, afterwards burned, 
and rebuilt in 1850. 

A grist mill was built in Oskaloosa in 185 1 
by Roop, Harbour & Co. In the following year 
it w'as used as" a grist mill and a distillery. It 
w-as much enlarged in 1857. The property 
passed into the hands of Siebel & Co. in 1866 
and the rooms formerly occupied as a distillery 
and whisky refineiy were used as a woolen 
mill. In recent years the manufacturing fea- 
ture has been discontinued and the property 
used as a grist mill. 

The South Spring mills, in the south part 
of the city, was an old established grist mill, 
but has recently been rebuilt to be used as a 
factoiy. 

Union mills, on North Skunk, in Union 
tow-nship, was built during the summer of 1849 
by Jacob Wimer and Christian Brolliar. Mr. 
Wimer was quite a mill builder: he built and 
owned three mills in Keokuk county before 
this date and several in Missouri in the years 
following. Mr. Brolliar was the millwright 
when the Roberts mill was constructed, and 
was the leading workman in the construction 
of a number of mills in the counties west of 
Mahaska. Mr. AA'imer put in a stock of gen- 
eral merchandise at Union Mills in the fall of 
1849. ^^1'- James Bridges states that he opened 
a store at Indianapolis that year and he and 
Mr. Wimer chanced to be in Burlington mak- 
ing purchases at the same time. The mill did 
a large business in the years that followed. The 
custom that was drawn to the village induced 
tw'o other general stores to spring up. A saw 
mill was kept in operation in connection with 



the power that run the grist mill. ]\Ir. Isaac 
Kalbach, who was a cabinet-maker in Oska- 
loosa in the early '50s, says that he secured 
lumber from the mill at times when it was im- 
possible to get other stock from the yards along 
the Mississippi river. During those years both 
the village and the mill did a good business and 
contributed much toward building up that part 
of the county. 

Currier's mill in White Oak township was 
built by Charles Currier, in the early '50s. It 
has always made a superior grade of flour, and 
after more than fifty years of service still main- 
tains its good reputation. Mr. Currier was a 
typical miller, honest, faithful and reliable. 
These are the expressive words used by his old 
neighbors in speaking of his labors of years 
ago. 

Stone Ridge mill in Monroe township was 
built In- Oliver and Henry W'imer in 187^. It 
was owned for a time by James Bridges and 
was afterward moved to What Cheer. The 
Baughman mill in the same township was built 
by a ^Ir. Cox in 1849. It was destroyed by 
fire in more recent years. The first iron bridge 
built in the county was built across the North 
Skunk at this mill. Several miles up the river 
was once located the Roberts mill. On its site 
a saw mill was built in 1849 by Wesley DePew. 
In 1870 j\Iark Roberts built a grist mill. After 
some years the property came into possession 
of a famih' of brothers by the name of Senate. 
They pro\'ed to be, a set of robbers and were 
credited with belonging to a western bandit 
gang. They were driven out of the country. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



RECOLLECTIONS OF PIONEER DAYS. 

In the happy hunting days of the pioneers 
there were those who spent much of their time 
about the camp fires in the forest. On their 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



57 



eturn from these hunting excursions it was the 
jeat dehght of these jolly sons of Nature to 
it around the home grocery — (every grocery 
lad a barrel of whiskey) — and relate their ad- 
eiitures and experiences. S. L. Pomeroy re- 
ates one which he knew to be true. Two of 
hese old lovers of the trail whom the boys had 
licknamed Fox and Kangaroo, were over 
cross Skunk for an outing. One day around 
he camp tire Fox says: 'T am a braver man 
lian }(>ti are." Kangaroo replied : "I will not 
elieve it until you prove it." Whereupon Fox 
lirew his hat into the fire. Not to be outdone 
lis partner did the same. Coats, jackets and 
very thread (if wearing apparel fdllowed until 
lieir blankets were the only covering they had 
ift. CJathering up their traps they managed 
ome way to get across the river and started 
lomeward. Passing a large pool of water, 
■"ox again challenged his companion's bravery, 
aying: "I can stay longer under the water than 
ou can." The words were no sooner uttered 
han both men made the dive. Fox, who came 
p first, chanced to find himself under the 
preading roots of a near-bv tree on the shore. 
ie could breathe comfortably and awaited de- 
elopments. In a short time Kangaroo came 
]). panting at a furious rate. \\'hen he could 
ollect himself he looked around for his friend, 
hen climbed out on the bank. and. becoming 
lore serious, took a long pole and prodded 
bout in the water. Fox now thought it was 
bout time for him to appear, and diving out 
ito deeper water came to the surface. Kanga- 
CK) was prompt in according to his com])anion 
s being the braver man of the two. 

.Ml the pioneers agree in tlie incredible num- 
er of wolves in the countr\- in the carlv davs. 
'hey were the scavengers of the land, devour- 
ig whatever they could find, both living and 
ead. S. L. Pomeroy, who came in 1847, is fujl 
f reminiscences of those beginning years in 
Tahaska county. He was himself quite a 
unter. He kept two greyhounds for tleetness 



on the trail, and a large, savage dog of mixed 
breed to do the killing, when the hounds had 
overtaken the wolf and had it pretty well wor- 
ried out. All were well trained, and even if the 
wolf was in sight would invariably follow it at 
the horses' heels until the word of command 
was given for the attack. Mr. Pomeroy says 
when he chanced to take one alive he would 
sometimes bring the hunting outfit to town and 
ha\'e the boys form a circle in the public square, 
where the animal was let loose and compelled to 
run in the circle until it would break through 
and make for its life. Then the dogs of the 
town were let loose and the race began. 

Hunting was the chief excitement of the 
times, and when a settler started to mill or on a 
journey, if his dogs chased up a wolf or deer he 
would often unhitch his fleetest horse and give 
chase. Jordan Whitacre, an old hunter who 
lived across Skunk river in Madison township, 
at one time shot seven deer without moving 
from his hiding place. A heavy sleet covered 
all nature and while bunting in the forest he 
came unexpectedly upon a group of seven who 
had not noticed his approach because of the 
cracking and crashing of falling branches ev- 
erywhere. They took no notice of the report 
of his gun until the last one had falllen. 

In 1848, James Woods, who lived on Middle 
creek came over to Samuel Coffin's to borrow 
some money. He found Mr. Colifin some miles 
from home breaking prairie. Mr. Coffin told 
him he did not have time to go to the house to 
get him the money, but if he woukl g'o over to 
the house he would find a package of money in 
a particular corner of the smokehouse. Take 
from the package the sum he wanted and put 
the rest Ijack where he got it. No note or obli- 
gation whate\er was given. S. L. Pomeroy 
was administrator of the Cofifin estate and says 
this was a fair sample of the business methods 
of this large-hearted man. He aimed to deal in 
that way only with men of veracit\- and his 
losses were not overly large. 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASK-\ COUNTY. 



Back in the '40s when E. ^^'. Eastman was 
practicing law in Oskaloosa, one spring he 
chanced to own a calf which he was quite de- 
sirous to dispose of at almost any price. So he 
bantered one of his constituents, a Major Nee- 
ley, for a trade. Said he would take anything. 
The Major said he had nothing to trade but 
chickens and turkeys. If he wanted that kind 
of a trade he should take until he was satisfied 
if he would catch them himself. "Aery good," 
says young Eastman, congratulating himself. 
"You take the calf and if we can't get the 
fowls any other way I am a good shot with my 
rifle." The Major cautioned him to come quite 
early in the morning or late in the evening, as 
they were off to the woods during the day. 
Early one morning Eastman drove out to the 
Neeley home, some miles southeast of town, to 
bring in a buggy load of toothsome chickens 
and turkeys. The Major told him he had 
come a little late for the turkeys, as they were 
off for the day. Taking him out into a piece of 
deadened timber he showed him a prairie 
chicken here and there in the tree-tops. "Are 
these the fowls you promised I should have for 
the catching?" said Eastman. "O, yes," said 
Neeley ; "our chickens and turkeys are all of the 
wild variety." The young attorney was too 
badly unner\ed to trj- his skill as a marksman, 
but drove back home, making the mental rec- 
ord of defeat number one. 

Perhaps the first pork packing done in this 
county was done by Leeper Smith in the winter 
of 1847-48 at the lower end of Six Mile bot- 
tom on the Des Moines river. It was an open 
winter and favorable to the business. The hogs 
were brought into Oskaloosa already dressed 
and hauled down to the packing house. The 
work was superintended by Henry Leister. To- 
ward spring a large flatboat some Mty feet long 
and half as wide, was built of heavy native 
lumber with the expectation of floating the 
cargo down to some southern market when the 
spring rains should bring water enough in the 
river channel to make the trip with safet}-. That 



year, however, proved to be a ver}- dry year, 
and the spring went by without the usual 
freshet. A Dr. Lee had a similar packing house 
and boat further up the river. W'hen these 
gentlemen saw in the earh- summer that the 
ri\-er route would not l^e available to them, they 
secured teams and moved their pork products 
overland to Keokuk, \\here it was sold or sent 
down the Mississippi on boats. A few years 
later they loaded their flatboats with corn which 
brought them a good price down the ri\-er be- 
cause of the large demand for it by the emi- 
grants on their westward march. 

We examined with much interest several 
primitive articles owned by S. L. Pomeroy. 
Among them was a hand-made hammer made 
seventy-five years ago and used in the family 
for three quarters of a century. A door with 
wooden hinges, having all its fastenings with 
pegs instead of nails, was made by John Mor- 
gan, north of Fremont, in 1848. An oak clap- 
board four feet by eight inches rived out by 
his father- in 1855. A huge prairie plow made 
by Nichols & Tolbert in 1851, in their black- 
smith shop, which stood on High avenue one 
block west of the square, where Lewis Broth- 
ers' implement store now stands. Mr. Prine 
says they kept the old ser\ant pretty busy in 
those early }ears. It was drawn by six yoke 
of oxen and sometimes ten. This larger num- 
ber, howev^er, were only used when they were 
breaking young cattle to work in the yoke. A 
yoke of cattle broke to work were worth much 
more than those who had yet to be initiated. 

An old-fashioned lantern carried by our fa- 
thers sixty or more years ago. It consisted 
of a perforated sheet of tin welded in circu- 
lar form, with a conical top, into which a 
ring of convenient size was inserted for carr\-- 
ing it. A door of the same material hung on 
hinges and allowed a candle to be inserted on 
the inside. 

John R. Baer showed us a receipt given by 
his father, G. W. Baer, to Thomas Fancher in 
1848, when the former was county treasurer 



'AST AXD PRESEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



59 



af Mahaska county. Tlie recei])t is written in 
a plain iianrl on a scrap of fool's-cap paper of 
a blue tint, and reads as follows: "Received 
:)f Thomas Fancher his taxes in full fnr the 
vear 1847. Januar_\- 7, 1848. G. \V. Baer, 
T. M. C." Mr. Baer was a tailor by trade, his 
residence and shop being located on the west 
side of the square. In the year 1845 fire de- 
stroyed both shop and residence. It was quite 
I notable tire at the time, being the first that 
lad occurred in the village of Oskaloosa. Mr. 
Baer recalls the visit to Oskaloosa of a company 
jf Musquakee Indians in die spring of 184S. 
riiey were led by their chief who was widely 
<nc_)wn as Old J"hn (ireen. His father was 
:[uite well acquainted with the tribe, having 
n the year previous purchased from them their 
furs. Because of an acquaintance formed in 
:his w-ay they called him the White Chief. The 
[ndians were met on North Market street and 
:liey said to Mr. Baer by signs and scraps of 
jroken English that they had been without food 
for three days. He told the chief to come down 
:o the house and he would give him something 
;o eat. Whereupon the whole company ac- 
:epted the invitation and marched after their 
eader. ]Mr. Baer persisted in vain that it would 
3e impossible for him to feed so many. They 
•eplied that they were hungry and must be fed. 
\fter they had devoured all of the eatables in 
he neighborhood, the villagers loaned them a 
iuppl}- of pots and kettles and they were di- 
■ected to a grove over on the hill on what is 
low North Third street. Here they camped 
)ver Sunday. On Monday the warriors went 
o Mr. Baer's residence, a half block north of 
he Christian church, and left in the care of 
Mrs. Baer all of their implements of war while 
hey went up to the old courthouse and repaid 
he villagers for their hospitality by giving 
hem a genuine war dance with all nf its con- 
usion, pow wow and frenzied gesticulation. 
t was always their custom to place their war 
;quipment out of their reach before going into 



these war dances, lest in frenzied excitement 
ulien the war spirit had taken full possession 
of them, some violence might follow. After a 
visit of less than a week they departed toward 
the northwest into. their wilderness home. J. 
R. Gentry relates that one cold wintry night 
a loud rap was heard at the door of his father's 
frontier cabin in Jasper county which was then 
die home of the family. His father had gone 
to mill some days' journey away and his reso- 
lute mother demanded to know who was there. 
The answer came "John Green." As every- 
body knew Old John Green, chief of the Mus- 
quakee Indians, he was invited in. Asking for 
something to eat, Mrs. Gentry told him that her 
husband was away and she could not keep him 
for the night, but he should sit by the fire and 
warm himself, and she would share with him 
her scanty supply of food. She set before him 
a pot containing about a gallon of hominy in 
its crude state. To him it was a veritable 
feast, nor did he turn away until the last grain 
had disappeared into his capacious stomach. 
Then he silently wrapped his blankets and furs 
around him and disappeared into the night. 
Curiosity led the boys to watch which way he 
went. The old son of nature went to the hog 
pen, and driving them out of their warm nests, 
he lay down covering himself head and feet 
with his wrappings. The hogs piled up around 
him, and notwithstanding the relentless cold, 
with a full stomach to give heat within and the 
nearness of his not far remote relatives, he 
slept like a roach until the morning dawned, 
when he shtxik himself and went on his jour- 
ney. 

All the old settlers of this count}' with whom 
we have conversed, shake their heads when 
speaking of the annual prairie fires which 
swept the western prairies every fall after the 
frost had killed the grass and left a bed of 
dry straw covering the whole face of nature. 
The cautious settler always surveyed the land- 
scape far and near before retiring at night. If 



6o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



there was an unusual light anywhere in the hor- 
izon some one of the household remained on 
guard throughout the night to give warning 
in case of its approach toward the cabin. In 
case of its approach a counter fire was started. 
Much damage was done in the early years by 
these fires. Mrs. G. B. McFall states that in 
their early home in Cedar township when one 
of these resistless fires was rolling across the 
prairie toward their home a sudden change in 
the wind re\'ersed its course and saved their 
property from destruction. 



CHAPTER XVn. 



FIRST SCHOOLS .\ND THEIR TEACHERS. 

The first school in Mahaska county was 
taught by Miss Semira A. Hobbs, who had 
come to the settlement in August previous to 
the time of beginning her school. A number of 
the settlers had been on their claims over a year 
and began to be desirous to ha\'e their children 
in school. .\ rude log house was built two and 
one-half miles east of Oskaloosa in the timber 
and on September i6, 1844, Miss Hobbs began 
her thirteen weeks of school. A very business- 
like agreement was signed by both parties. 
Miss Hobbs agreed to teach the school for the 
sum of one dollar and twenty-five cents for each 
of the eighteen pupils attending the school. The 
names on the original contract and the number 
of pupils from each family are as follows : 

Aaron Co.x, 6; Nathan Coontz, 3; Brantiv 
Stafford, i ; Poultney Loughridge, 5 : John 
Cunningham, 3. Miss Hol)bs had taught one 
term of school down in Henry countv. The 
death of her widowed mother some months 
previous had left her an orphan and she had 
come to the New Purchase to make her home 
with her uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. Aaron 
Cox. She had a winning disposition, was quite 



accomplished, and being always disposed to 
make the best of things, was heartily welcomed 
by the best people in the settlement. 

Miss Hobbs afterwards became Mrs. T. G. 
Phillips and has written a volume of entertain- 
ing reminiscences of that period. Her own de- 
scription of that first schoolhouse with its in- 
mates cannot fail to interest the reader. 

"The settlers set a day to repair to the 
woods on the borders of the sixteenth section, 
taking with them axes, mauls, wedges, frees, 
augers, saws and broad axes. Tbe\- then pro- 
ceeded to chop down some linn trees, not taking 
time to hew them, but built a cajjin ijf round 
logs, leaving the bark on. They rived out 
boards of oak to cover it, putting weight poles 
on to hold the boards in place. The floor, 
benches and writing desk were made of pun- 
cheons. Puncheons are made of logs split and 
made smooth on one side by hewing with a 
bniad a.xe. Some of the early settlers had be- 
come experts in hewing puncheons and ri\-ing 
clapboards.' This temple of learning was sup- 
plied with a sod chimney, a hearth long and 
wide, not made with stone or brick, but with 
rich black loam. .\ log was sawed nut of one 
side of the house, leaving a space eiglit or ten 
feet long, for the purpose of admitting light. 
One of these primitive carpenters with a pocket 
knife whittled out sticks the proper length, then 
placed them in an upright position at regular 
distances apart along this opening. Glass being 
a luxury not easily obtained, oiled foolscap pa- 
per was pasted over this improvised window 
sash. In laying the foundation of this edificce 
the architects were partiailar to observe the 
]3oints of the compass. A door was made by 
sawing out logs to the proper height and width. 
No shutter was provided, only an opening look- 
ing toward the south.. \Mien the sun shone 
there was no trouble in telling when it was 
noon. Every one of the children were well be- 
ha\'ed and obedient, tried hard to learn and 
made considerable advancement. These bovs 



I'AST AXD rRP:SEXT OI' MAMASKA COUNTY. 



6i 



and ijirls liad ])luck. They kept warm it they 
could l)ut (hd not whine if tlie\- were a little 
cold. They were used to cold houses, with 
only a fireplace, where the face would Ijurn 
while the hack would freeze. When the cold 
liecame severe one of the kind, thoughtful 
mothers sent a coverlet to hang oxer the door. 
Deer rmd rabbits scampered over ])rairie and 
slough. These pioneers were good marksmen 
and along with their corn bread, had ven- 
ison and ])rairie chicken in aljundance. One 
evening on returning home from school the 
teacher was informed that the head of the fam- 
ily had killed a bear." 

.^^rs. Phillips still lives in Oskaloosa. now 
herself a widow, hut honored and lo\ed as in 
the days of her girlhood years. Of the eight- 
een l)oys and girls who sat around the big fire- 
place in that frontier school room three still re- 
main in Mahaska county: Mary Loughridge 
Shaver. Emily Loughridge Correll, and Jfis. 
Loughridge. The latter owns the original 
Loughridge farm in .Spring Creek township 
and all live in Oskaloosa. 

Miss Hobbs taught a second school in that 
log schoolhouse in the spring of 1845. '^"^ in 
the fall of the same \'ear taught a term in a 
more ciiUifortable cabin which was located on 
the corner of Xorth Third street and A avenue. 

In the year that followed almost ever^- settle- 
metit in the coimty had some sort of a school 
• luring at least a few months in the _\ear. 

In the winter of 1844-45 -^ gentleman by 
the name of Samuel Caldwell taught a small 
school in East Oskaloosa in one end of a doulilc 
log house belong'ing to A. G. Phillips. In the 
summer of 1845 James Johnson, a brother of 
.\llen Johnson, the founder of the Methodist 
church in Oskaloosa. taught a school in an 
unfinished frame house on the south sifle of the 
square, belonging to Levi Smith. 

One of the best schools of that ]jeriod was 
taught in 1847 liy W'm. Hearst. He occu])ied 



the courthouse two terms and then removed to 
a frame building which he had built on the 
corner of B avenue and D street. On account 
of its color the building went by the name of 
Greencastle. He had some fifty pupils, among 
whom were Mrs. Eveline H. Xeedham, John R. 
Baer and his sister Mrs. Amelia Wilson. Mrs. 
Emily J. Coryell and H. B. Owen. Mr. Hearst 
was educated for the ministry and took up 
teaching for a time. When the tide of emigra- 
tion to California set in he sold his school and 
outfit and in 1841; joined one of the western 
caravans. 

In 1853 a school was taught in the Xormal 
School building by Mr. and Mrs. George W. 
Drake. Both were graduates of Oljerlin Col- 
lege in Ohio and' were accomplished people. 
}ilrs. C. P. Searle, then Miss Mattie Turner, 
also taught with them. The school continued 
for several vears and we ha\e heard onl}- words 
of the highest praise for this school, .\mong 
its students in those years were John F. and 
James Lacey. James and William Edmundson, 
Mrs. H. J. Knowlton. S. H. M. Byers, John 
Baer, j\Irs. Amelia Wilson and F. Walden. 

.\fter Rev. R. .A. ^IcAyeal came to Oska- 
loosa in 1856 he organized a school in the old 
Cnited Presbyterian church, of which he was 
pastor. It was called a female academy. The 
church was located at the corner of High 
avenue and Third street. 

Among' the teachers of this school was a Miss 
ALirtha McKown, a young lady of superior 
culture and more than ordinary gifts. She was 
principal of the school and a de\'out member of 
the United Presbyterian church.. An invitation 
came to her from the foreign mission board of 
that church to become a missionary in Egypt. 
The young man of her choice had extended his 
hand offering to become her life companion. 
She felt that this call to become a teacher 
among a benighted people in a wider field was a 
di\-ine call. The ideal of everv true woman is 



62 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKLA COUNTY. 



to sometime become the mistress of a happy 
home where love reigns supreme. Such a con- 
genial retreat was now offered her, and from a 
temporal standpoint her heart gave consent to 
the felicitous thought, but her loftier nature 
said to her. "You should gi\e up this pros- 
pective joy to become a messenger of light to 
them who have it not." ^liss McKown 
yielded to the voice of conscience, resignefl her 
position and cheerfully gave her talents to 
teaching the gospel message and training the 
downtrodden race in Eg}pt. This she contin- 
ued to do until she became blind. The exces- 
sive sunlight in that land is more than many of 
the natives themselves can endure \vithout 
great suffering. After her eyes had utterly 
failed Miss McCowen still continued to teach 
from memorw For forty years she instructed 
old and young how to lift themselves up into a 
better and nobler life. 

Joseph McFall taught the first school in 
Cedar township northwest of Fremont, in 
1846. Sarah Kinsman, afterwards Mrs. W. S. 
Edgar, taught the first school at what is now 
Concert schoolhouse. E. H. Bobbitt taught 
the first school in Fremont. Mr. Bobbitt is still 
living in White Oak township north of 
Wright. He is now past eighty years old. B. 
M. Doolittle was the second teacher in the little 
log schoolhouse at Fremont. His home is now 
in Washington, Iowa, where he is enjoying a 
hale old age. These men were the teachers of 
the village in the early '50s. When the log 
cabin had given place to the little brick school- 
house a few years later we find among the 
honored list of teachers in that village the 
names of J. C. Chambers. William White, .Al- 
fred Gleason, Thomas Jefferson Seevers. W. A. 
Rankin, afterwards captain in the Thirty-third 
Iowa. Margaret and Sarah Canon, sisters of S. 
R. Canon, W. F. and Daniel Haydock, now* at 
the head of the Haydock ^Manufacturing Com- 
pany of St. Louis, Missouri. 



John Scott, of Adams township, was one of 
the pioneer schoolmasters of this county. He 
was born in the lowlands of Scotland, his par- 
ents coming to Iowa at an early period. He was 
well educated and a tailor by trade, but never 
followed his trade in the west. He was a de- 
vout member of the Presbyterian church. He 
was chaste in his life and exacting in his habits. 
There was a \ein of sadness that ran parallel 
with his pathway. The cause was onlv known 
to his most intimate friends. Before coming 
west he had won the heart of the girl of his 
choice and while he was preparing the home 
that was to be theirs to enjoy together, down to 
old age, her spirit was taken to the better land. 
He never married. He was living to be true to 
her. So for almost twenty years he taught the 
children of the adjoining districts. He took 
pleasure in their young lives and they loved and 
respected him. He owned a farm but always 
rented it and lived with the famih-. In the 
earlier days his comfortable home was known 
as "BuckKorn Tavern." He seldom turned a 
traveler away. The house got its name from a 
pair of large antlers being nailed above the 
door. Mr. Scott was always highly esteemed 
for his good judgment and character, but as the 
years advanced he became quite eccentric. He 
never owned any personal property of any 
kind, not even the furnishings of his own roorn. 
He accei)ted the equipments furnished by his 
tenants and when he chanced to be out of a 
tenant for a time he found a welcome home 
with one of his neighbors. And so he lived 
unembarrassed, waiting for the call to the 
spirit land. When it came it found him ready. 

In the year 1845 Wm. Laurance took a claim 
in Madison township and built a claim cabin 
some 12x14 feet. It was located in the timber 
not far from where the present Madison school- 
house now stands in the Cruzen neighborhood. 
He took a contract to furnish a certain number 
of rails for some adjoining improvement and 



I 'AST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



63 



was hard at work at his task when liis neigh- 
bors learned tliat lie could teacli scliool, and l)e- 
sousfht liim to o])en a schcx^l in his cabin for the 
cbilcb'cn nf tlie growing settlement. When he 
persisted that he could not leave his work the 
settlers offered to complete his rail-splitting 
contract if he would accept the easier task of 
teaching their children during the winter. This 
he agreed to do and rude wooden lienches were 
improvised and the school opened. So far as 
we are able to learn thirteen children attended 
that school during the winter of 1845-46. Win. 
Shnmake, Mrs. Hamilton Cruzen, Jacob and 
Juhn Coffin and Mrs. S. L. Pomeroy were 
among the numlier. This teacher of long ago 
gave himself during the sclmol hours to giving 
his little claim cabin the air of an orderly place 
of learning. It was his custom to stand at the 
cabin ddcir and bid the children good-night as 
they retired. Then taking his ax on his shoul- 
der he would repair to the timber to prepare 
■"night wood" for himself and a sufficient f|uan- 
tity fur use during the next day. After barring 
his door to make himself secure from the 
wolves who gathered nightly in quest of the 
scraps about the place, he read for a time In- 
the light of the big fireplace, and then lay down 
to sound sleep on a mattress of prairie hay. Mr. 
Laurance boarded himself, baking^ his corn 
cake on a flat rock before the big fireplace three 
times a day and roasting his meat on a forked 
stick. He was the fortunate owner of a cow 
that roamed alxiut the woods eating buds and 
bark from the newly fallen trees. Tliis cow^ 
sup])lied the pioneer teacher with milk and 
cream and helped to keep the school .going- 
while she protected herself from the w-intrv 
storms as best she could. Mr. Laurance served 
the new settlement as justice of the peace. 
Later he moved up into Prairie township and 
bis fan-lily are now well known citizens of the 
countv. 



CHAPTER NVHL 



PIONEER DOCTORS. 

Minor ailments were taken care of by the 

early settlers themselves. Mothers understood 
the medicinal properties of the native plants, 
barks and herbs. The Indians were \'erv con- 
\ersant with the simple remedies of the countrv 
and their advice was always freely given when 
sought for. 

It is generally conceded that the lndiai-is did 
not suffer from many diseases that came w-ith 
civilization. They were doubtless lietter accli- 
mated, but there were conditions jiroduced by 
the cultivation of the soil which develo]^ed par- 
ticular kinds of fe\-ers. There were a number 
of things which contributed to make the new- 
countr_\- appear unhealthy. Impure water, 
coarse and scanty food and the multiplied pri- 
vations of the wilderness were extrcmelv trving 
on the first settlers. 

The prevailing diseases were intermittent 
fevers, fever and ague, or the "chills." which 
refused to yield to anything but the use of qui- 
nine, then a common remedy in its crude form. 

Cuts and wounds were treated with ])oultices. 
the only antiseptic being hot or cold water, and 
it is interesting to learn that there were \erv 
few cases of blood poisoning. There were no 
laws governing the practice of medicine and 
self-made doctors sprung up w-ho carried sad- 
dle-bags filled with bitter herbs and roots. 

Dr. Seth Hobbs was one of the first physi- 
cians who practiced in the Narrows and vicin- 
ity. Dr. E. A. Boyer, out on the Des Moines 
river, was a man of culture and a highly es- 
teemed ])hysician. Being one of the first set- 
tlers in the county, he became widely known 
and for fifteen years had an extensive prac- 
tice. .\. gentleman, then a young n-ian. who 
was a neighbor of Dr. Boyer. stated to us that 



64 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



he had frequently accompanied the Doctor on 
his perilous trips in the early days, when they 
often had to swim their horses across swollen 
streams and make long journeys. The pay 
never entered into the trjp. 

Once, after a long ride through snow and 
storm almost to Albia, where the Doctor had 
been called in great haste, when they arrived 
almost frozen, the Doctor preceded him into the 
house and immediately returned, telling him 
not to come in. as it was a contagious disease. 
He then laid off all his outer wrappings, went 
inside in his shirt sleeves and prescribed tempo- 
rarily for the patient, and again took to the sad- 
dle for the liing ride home, telling his patient to 
secure another physician, as it would not be 
possible for him to treat the case. Dr. Boyer's 
practice reached from Bonaparte on the south 
to Red Rock and occasionally to Des Moines 
on the north. 

Dr. C. G. Owen came to Oskaloosa in 1845 
and was a practicing physician in this county 
for forty years. Mrs. H. B. Owen, who came 
in 1852, relates some of his frontier expe- 
riences. We g"ive one that will illustrate a 
phase of life among one class of early settlers. 
The Doctor was called some twelve miles into 
the country. It had been raining some through 
the day, and in the evening, when the message 
came for him, it had turned into sleet. He 
was riding a strong, sensible black horse which 
he had named "Nig." He was so sure footed 
and obedient that the Doctor always felt safe 
on his back. When he had gone about ten miles 
he came to a narrow, swollen stream. It could 
not be forded as there was thick shore ice on 
either side. The only possible way he could 
continue his journey was to select the narrowest 
place in the angry stream and leap across it. 
There was only a possibillity of success, as the 
water was deep. Pioneer physicians were not 
accustomed to thinking much about their own 
safety and the good doctor informed "Nig" 
that he would have to make the leap. To this 
the pioneer Black Beauty tacitly consented to 



do his best, which he did in the darkness, and 
proudly carried his master over the danger. 
Reaching his suffering patient, he found the 
cabin in utter darkness ; nothing in the room 
to make a light ; no comfort of any kind. They 
expected the presence of the doctor to bring 
health and cheer to the home. Dr. Oavcu tied a 
button in the center of a small piece of cloth, 
which, when he had twisted he dropped into a 
saucer of some sort of grease which was 
brought out. When the cloth had become satu- 
rated with the melted grease it furnished a fair 
light as the end of it hung over the edge of the 
saucer. The Doctor was always a cheerful man 
and made the Ijest of the circumstances and suc- 
ceeded in giving the needed care to his patient, 
but never forgot the perilous ride and the cold 
reception of that stormy night. 

Dr. Warren, father of Robert \\^arren, was 
an early settler in Black Oak township. Besides 
being a practicing physician, he made himself 
doubly useful to the settlers l)y looking after 
the spiritual welfare of the community in which 
he laborecL All of the old-time residents speak 
his name with reverence. J. M. Wharton says 
that shortly after his father's family had lo- 
cated in West Garfield township. Dr. \\'arren 
called at their cabin and his good mother came 
to the door and called the children in. When 
the Doctor had read a portion of scripture, he 
offered a short prayer. This was his custom. 
Air. Wharton said that the incident awakened a 
train of thought in his mind that has never left 
him. Coming to the county in 1843, '^^ ^^^^ 
stopped in Black Oak township in this county, 
but shortly afterward moved over into Marion 
county, three miles southeast of Pella, where he 
made a claim and remained until 1847, when 
he returned to this county and settled south of 
Peoria, where he resided until the time of his- 
death, January 18, 1870. 

Dr. D. A. Hoffman is one of the men who 
has rendered most faithful and constant service 
to Mahaska county people. Coming to the 
countv in 1861, he has gi\'en his life to answer- 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



65 



ng calls night and day, wherever the services 
)f a competent physician were needed. .-\ 
gentleman related to the writer that on the 
light of December 31. 1862, when the ther- 
nonieter was 26 degrees below zero and as 
earful a storm raging as ever passed over Iowa, 
)r. Hoffman responded to a country call in a 
ery critical case, and insisted on returning 
lome the same night, when stock of all kinds 
\as freezing to death by the hundreds. No 
loubt cases like this might be nuiltii)lied man}' 
imes. Through cold and flood and heat Dr. 
ioffman has lived almost a charmed life in his 
nore than forty-four years of service in minis- 
ering to suffering humanitv in this county. In 
he course of these long years of almost unin- 
errupted service as a physician, Dr. Hoffman 
las been a constant student of nature. He has 
:ollected perhaps the finest private museum in 
his part of Iowa. 

.Among the pioneer doctcjrs in the northeast 
)art of the county was a German lady by the 
lame of Hoopes. Herself and husliand consti- 
uted the family and their home was over on 
diddle creek in .\dams township, near what 
vas then known as Buckhorn Tavern. She was 
, thorough-going, energetic character, and had 
ic(|uired some skill as a nurse, to which she 
elded a practical knowledge of herbs and sim- 
)le Imme remedies. These herbs she carried in 
. cloth sack or when prepared ready to be ad- 
ninistered, the liquid was conveyed in a jug so 
s to have a ready supply if the case demanded 
t. She answered calls da_\' and night as a mid- 
life. Her practice was in the late '40s and 
arly '50s. There were no roads leading any- 
vhere in that early day. Mrs. Hoopes had a 
rusty young animal which seemed to partake of 
ler own resolute spirit, which she rode, answer- 
ng calls for eight or ten miles distant. She 
:new every Indian trail, cow path and ford in 
he entire neightorhood and alw ays led the wa\- 
vhen sent for. and the messenger needed tn ply 
lis spurs to kee]) along with her. Her charges 
vere alumt (Hic dollar per daw and her patients 



seemed to get along about as well as tlK)se of 
the regular profession, so the old settlers say. 
The good lady was well respected and esteemed 
by her neighbors. She used the gifts she pos- 
sessed and served her generation well. 

Dr. Carter, afterwards Capt. Carter, prac- 
ticed at Indianapolis for some years in the '50s 
and early '60s. Dr. \\\ L. Crowder relates that 
while he was a young man studying medicine 
he witnessed an operation by Dr. Carter in 
which he amputated the shattered arm of a gen- 
tleman who had met with an accident, using 
only a butcherknife and a common saw. The 
operation was entirely successful. 

Dr. E. N. Woodworth practiced twenty 
years in the north and northwest part of the 
county. First at Georgetown and then at Peo- 
ria. He moved from this county to southern 
Missouri. 

Dr. .Amasa Fisher came to this county in 
1854, locating north of Indianapolis, where he 
practiced medicine for twenty years or more. 
We find the names of Doctors S. S. Cook, Da- 
vid Mills. Matthew Griswold, Samuel Evans 
and Cyrus Bond, who in the early years l<ioked 
after the ills of the settlers in the vicinity of 
Fremont. Dr. Wm. Edmundson, son of the 
first sheriff of Mahaska county, practiced in 
Fremont during the war of the Reliellion, from 
which place he mo\ed to Denver, where he built 
u]) a lucrative practice. 

Dr. L. F. Ellsworth, of Mauch Chunk, came 
to Iowa in 1864 and for man\- years was a 
practicing physician in the northwest ])art of 
the county. 

DrA\'illiam Jarvis, of Ro.se Hill, began prac- 
ticing in the east part of the county in 1847 ^"^^ 
was a pioneer ])hvsician during most of the 
early years. 

Dr. W. L. Crowder began practicing in 1864 
at Springfield, just across the Keokuk county 
line. In 1876 he located at Rose Hill. In the 
course of his practice in those years he recalled 
the unusul fact of having ele\en cases of frac- 
ture in a single week following a heavv fall of 



-66 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



sleet. Dr. Crowder has made Oskaloosa his 
home since 1884. and still keeps his mind fresh 
by study and in the practice of his chosen pro- 
fession. The first county medical association 
Avas organized in the year 1855. The names of 
the men who appear on the old records as hav- 
ing perfected this organization are as follows : 
J. F. Smith. S. E. Rliinehart, F. \\'. Coolidge. 
G. Elkins. S. H. Evans, C. H. Harrison, C. B. 
AlcCabe, J. C. ]\Iacon. J. Y. Hopkins. Cyrus 
Bond and N. Henton. Many of the older citi- 
zens will recall the laborious life of at least a 
part of these men who in their day did a large 
practice and faithfully served their generation. 
The pioneers always speak with tender affec- 
tion of the unselfish services of the men whose 
names appear in this article. An unselfish phy- 
sician is a great factor in building up a com- 
munity either new or old. He gets very near to 
the heart and life of the people whom he serves 
and is an unconscious builder of character as 
well as physical health. There are doubtless 
names of other doctors of whom the author has 
no knowledge, who should be included in this 
list of pioneer physicians. 



CHAPTER NLN. 



HISTORY OF AD.\MS, BL.\CK 0.\K AND CEDAR 
TOWNSHIPS. 



.\DAMS. 



This township took its name from President 
Adams. The first survey line were made by 
William and Alvin Burt in July and August, 
1843. ^t originally formed a part of Monroe 
township, but was re-surveyed by Deputy Sur- 
veyor Stiles S. Carpenter in October, 1847, 
and made an independent township. 

The first justice of the peace in the township 
■\vas Matthew P. Crowder. father of Dr. W". 



L. Crowder, of Oskaloosa. The first school 
was taught by A. N. Atwood in a cabin belong- 
ing to Squire Crowder. 

Among the old settlers were Gideon Daugh- 
erty. William Vermilyea, A. Ruby. .\din !Mc- 
Donough, John Ruby, Joel Briney, Adam Vic- 
tor, Elijah Busby, James Roberts and the Mc- 
Lansborough family. 

Back in the very early years an incident oc- 
curred in this township which illustrates the 
type of life of the earlv settler. James Rob- 
erts found himself one year with well filled 
cribs of corn, while his neighbors for miles 
around were destitute or had only a scanty 
supply, there being a general failure in the 
crops the previous year. Roop's distillery was 
in operation in Oskaloosa and was materially 
injured by the failure of the corn crop. Learn- 
ing of Mr. Roberts' good fortime, Mr. Roop 
sent, to the Roberts farm a dozen or more 
wagons and instructed the foreman to bring 
the corn in regardless of the price, as they 
must have the corn to keep the mills going. Mr. 
Roberts informed the teamsters that while he 
had more corn than he could possibly use him- 
self, many of his neighbors had none, and would 
undoubtedly suffer if the corn left the neigh- 
borhood. W'hile his neighbors had nothing 
to buy with, he had made up his mind that it 
was his duty to loan them all a sufficient quant- 
ity until they should be able to raise a crop. 
The pioneer who related diis incident stated 
that his father borrowed one hundred bushels 
and returned the same quantity the next year. 
Many others availed themselves of ^Ir. Rob- 
erts' generosity, and the surplus supply of grain 
was used for the beneficent purpose of bringing 
happiness to the homes of the new settlers. 

The first church in the township was a ^leth- 
odist organization formed in the house of John 
Ruby in 1846. 

The village of Lacey located on the Iowa 
Central Railroad on the western border of the 
township, has a Methodist Episcopal church, 
postoffice, general store, a grain elevator, and 



PAST AND I'RESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



(^7 



orms the center of an yiterprising community. 
Tlie South Skunk river forms the soutliern 
oundary and Middle creek llnws diagonally 
cross the township toward the southeast, 
^hese two streams have favored quite an abun- 
ant growth of timber and given the township 
n abundant supply of water. The township 
as one hundred and forty-nine farms, whose 
mds are valued at $233,066. with \alue of per- 
onal property at $39,340, and a population of 
,000 persons. 

BLACK 0.\K. 

Black Oak township was partly surveyed in 
843 by United States Surveyor W. A. Burt 
nd completed in 1845 '^Y ^- L. D. Ewing. 
iho afterward became governor of the state 
if Illinois. At an early day there is said to 
lave been a black oak grove on sections 8, g and 
6, from which the township took its name. It 
s watered by Muchakinock creek and Skunk 
iver. This township originally belonged to 
ackson township, which extended at one time 
IS far north as Poweshiek count)-. 

C. Chipman taught the first school in the 
ownship and Dr. James H. Warren held the 
irst religious services at his own home. Dr. 
A'arren emigrated to Iowa from Jefiferson 
:ounty, Tennessee, and settled in Lee county 
n 1 84 1. Coming to this county in 1843, ^^ 
ettled in Black Oak township, being one of its 
flrliest settlers. Those who came with him up 
Tom Lee county were John B. Hamilton, Rob- 
;rt Hamilton, Harry Miller, Green T. Clark 
md Henry McPherson. This company seem 
have been "sooners," or early comers, as the 
Iragoons would not allow them to pass Liber- 
yville, the border of the New Purchase, with 
heir teams until May ist. They therefore left 
:heir wagons and families and packed their 
lorses with what they supposed was enough 
provisions to last them until May ist. On the 
26th of April they reached the prairie on which 
Pella is now located. Here they camped for 



a time, intending to stake off claims on that 
inviting highway, but after contemplating the 
subject for awhile they concluded, just like 
almost all of the early comers, that it was too 
far from timber to be settled in many years, so 
they selected claims three miles to the south- 
east, nearer the timber lands. Their supplies 
running short, they sent Green T. Clark back 
to bring up the wagons. Before he had time 
to arrive they were entirely out of eatables, and 
resorted to hunting in earnest, to supply their 
wants. One of two things they must do, find 
something to eat or starve. Robert Hamilton 
concluded he could l)est succeed in finding a 
turkey, and Henry Miller thought his quickest 
returns would be in locating a bee tree. Both 
were successful. Added to this piece of good 
fortune their wagons and supplies came the 
next day. 

Dr. Warren returned to Mahaska county in 
1847. He was among the first ministers of 
the Methodist Episcopal church in the county, 
and he never tired in ministering to the spiritual 
and medicinal wants of his large practice. He 
was especially successful in the management of 
miasmatic diseases. Those who were with him 
and shared the privations of his pioneer life, 
loved him best. It is an enviable record for a 
man to make when his faults are completely 
hidden by his virtues. Such is the record of 
Dr. Warren as it has come down to us. 

Among the early settlers in Black Oak town- 
ship were John Gillespie, William, Jacob and 
John Majors, Aaron Folk, Richard Ouinton, 
William Owens, Henry Groves, John Randall, 
Fielding Betz, John Shoemake, Wesley More- 
land and Jacob Miller. 

Leighton, a village located in the southeast 
part of the township, was laid out February 
9. 1865. The town was named for William 
Leighton, who, with John W. Carver, were the 
projectors of the new village, and at that time 
lessees of the iteokuk & Des Moines Railroad,^ 
running through the place. It has never had 



68 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



a large growth. IduI furnislies a good market 
and trading point fur the wealthy community 
surrounding it. 

Black Oak has 163 farms, whose lands are 
valued at $276,143. with personal property val- 
ued at $63,913. and a population of 1.200 
persons. 

CEDAR. 

The township lines of Cedar township were 
run by Alvin Burt in the fall of 1843. It is 
mostly prairie. There is some timber in the 
northeastern part of the township and also 
along Cedar creek, which crosses the southwest 
corner of the township, flowing to the south- 
east. \\'hen the author first saw this part of 
the county, in 1865. it was an unbroken prairie, 
with scattered settlements. In passing from 
Skunk river to Eddyville. crossing Cedar and 
Harrison townships, we traveled eight miles 
without passing a dwelling. While seldom out 
of sight of farm homes they were not located 
on the traveled highway. It took many years 
for the settlers to learn that the rich prairie 
farms held the wealth of the land. 

Samuel McFall settled on section 1 1 in 1844 
and Iniilt the first schoolhouse in 1846, where 
his nephew. Joseph McFall, taught a subscrip- 
tion school, the first in the township. 

In the spring of 1844 religious meetings were 
held in the house of Samuel Barbee. near where 
the Concert Methodist Episcopal church was 
afterwards built in 1856 at a cost of $1,700. 
This church has been the center of active 
Christian work for more than a half century. 
The names of the church officers at the time the 
building was erected were Joseph Paul, David 
Mills, John Zaring, Gideon McFall, ^L Kins- 
man, David Beck, F. W. Lindsley. Thos. Paul 
and Jas. Wright. The church was dedicated 
January 3, 1858, by Rev. Cowles, of Oskaloosa. 

William Morrow was the first justice of the 
peace in the township. George Lentz, J. 0. 
W'hite, Christian Wild. Nicholas Allender.Jo- 



seph and Smith Aldridge, G. B. McFall and 
their families were among the old settlers. In 
1855 Wright & Winnett Inhlt and operated a 
quite extensive steam flouring mill on the farm 
known as the J.ohn Pugh place, northwest of 
Fremont. John D. Cochran now has the frame 
built into a barn. About ten years later the 
machinerv of the mill was sold and removed to 
Wisconsin. 

Cedar, located on the Chicago, Burlington & 
Quincy road, in the west part of the township, 
is a growing village with good shipping facili- 
ties. It has a number of fine homes. 

Cedar township has 247 farms with lands 
valued at $254,651. and personal property 
\-alued at $67,414. and a population of 1.800 
persons. 

FREMONT. 

Fremont is one of the oldest villages in the 
count)". It was laid out by W'illiam Morrow 
in 1848. and named in honor of John C. Fre- 
mont, who, according to current belief, with a 
party of explorers on their way westward in 
the late '40s, had camped for a time, most 
likely, at McEwen's Springs, a mile north of 
Fremont. General Fremont afterward became 
the first candidate of the republican party for 
President. ]\Ir. Morrow built the first dwelling 
house and store building and opened a stock of 
general merchandise. Its postoffice was estab- 
lished in 1848 with its founder as postmaster. 
Before the days of railroads Fremont was quite 
an important town, being located on the "di- 
\ide"' which was then a well known and much 
traveled highway for overland emigration as 
well as teaming and staging from the river. 
In the '50S and early '60s J. H. White oper- 
ated a quite extensive saw mill in Fremont 
which ointributed much to the building up of 
that part of the county. Elisha Vance owned a 
large tan yard. In those years merchants with 
general stocks were John O. White, Charles 
Adams, Solomon Way, Lee & Cochran and 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF .MAHASKA COL'NTY. 



69 



Thomas Rankin. Simon l-"elsenthai ran an ex- 
clusive clothing store, and Peter Shepper was 
the (Iruj^gist of the place. Nicholas .\llender, 
loliii li. Raines. Phillip Akerman ami James 
1 loiison were the blacksmiths. The latter added 
to his [xipularity as a workman by making cow 
bells for the neighborhood. Fifty years ago 
the \illage blacksmith was looked to for a thou- 
sand thingvs which are now turned out by ma- 
chinery. 

Jonathan Buzzard. Jacob limwu. George 
Lentz and Edwin Allen were wagon-makers, 
and the two cabinet-makers were Jacob Goehr- 
ing and Christian Weil. Coffins were all made 
from nati\e walnut lumber, because of its dura- 
bility, and seldom kept in stock, as now, but 
made to order. Accompanying the order for a 
coffin was the length of the corpse to be buried 
in feet and inches. The cabinet-maker took his 
tools and rough lumber and worked night and 
day to have all in readiness for the funeral. 

We are told that during the war period busi- 
ness in Fremont was almost paralyzed. With 
the coming of the Iowa Central Railroad in 
1871, and the Chicago, Burlington & Ouincy 
some years later, its merchants have had a pros- 
perous trade. Its present excellent schoolhouse 
was built in 1890. An extensive tile factor)^ 
is owned and operated by Walter Dawson. 

The Fremont Gazette is the ably edited 
newspaper of the place. In the year 1902 a tire 
destroyed a good number of frame business 
buildings in the place. These were at once 
replaced by brick structures which have added 
much to the substantial appearance of the town. 
Canon & Gunn liegan business in Fremont in 
1S73. carrying a stock of general merchandise 
and also in after years doing a banking business. 
The partner.ship continued for thirty-one years, 
h'remont has four churches. Baptist. Christian. 
Methodist Episcopal and Presbyterian. S. R. 
Canon relates that in the early years his brother, 
William S. Canon, secured from Col. James 
Thompson, of Fairfield, the contract for carry- 
ing the weekly mail o\-er one of the star routes 



of the period. The mail for seven postofifices 
was carried in a mail sack on horseback. Leav- 
ing Fairfield the rider stopped at the following 
jxjstoffices: Brook\i]le, Abingdon, Marysville, 
Waugh's Point ( now Hedrick), Fremont, 
Cherry (Irove, south of White Oak in this 
count}-, and Oskaloosa. There was often not 
more than a hat full of mail to distribute. Al- 
most no papers were taken. Fremont now has a 
population of about fi\e hundred and fifty 
persons. 



CHAPTER XX. 



HISTORY OF EAST DES MOIXES TOWNSHIP 



EAST DES MOINES. 

Des Moines township is known in the survevs 
as township 74 north of range 16, west of the 
5th principal meridian. The township lines 
were surveyed by William A. Burt in August, 
1843, and the section lines by William Dewey 
January, 1845. It took its name from the Des 
Moines river, which runs across the township 
diagonally toward the southeast, dividing it into 
two almost equal parts. From 1845 until 1S85 
it was known on the county records as Des 
Moines township. Ephraim Munsell was 
elected the first clerk. In the latter year the 
territory on the east side of the river was organ- 
ized under the name of East Des Moines town- 
ship. This division was made necessary by the 
river, which formed such a barrier as to prevent 
its citizens from effectual co-operation. 

There is quite a growth of wJiite oak. walnut 
and Cottonwood timber along the bottoms of 
the Des Moines river. 

In point of settlement this township was one 
of the very first. A party of six white men 
came into that section on April 26, 1843. It 
was composed of Ephraim Miuisell, Isaac De- 



70 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Witt, Harvey Case, Phillip Schuyler, Mr. 
Scribner and Harry Brewer. They found In- 
dian huts scattered along Muchakinock creek. 
The dragoons, mostly on horseback, were at 
that time patrolling the country, just as the 
mounted police do in Canada at this time. It 
was their business to keep order in the new 
country, but especiall}- t(j prevent the whites 
from making their way into the New Purchase 
before May i, 1843, the date fixed by the gov- 
ernment when all restrictions should be re- 
moved and every one who cared could have his 
choice of the rich lands. These men had doubt- 
less been granted the liberty to come into the 
country without their wagons and learn some- 
thing of the choicest locations in the territory. 
They carried their axes in their knapsacks, and 
improvised handles when they were needed. 
On their way up the river they passed a burn- 
ing wagon, which had been set on fire by the 
dragoons for venturing to trespass on forbidden 
territory. It was a pretty severe loss to some 
bold spirited fellow who hoped to escape the 
vigilant and somewhat reckless dragoons. 
These men were well treated by the Indians, 
who kindly took them to a fine spring of water 
and showed them about the country which they 
loved so well. With their hearts already break- 
ing to part with their humble homes and the 
dear old scenes of their childhood, yet they re- 
fused not to make the newcomers happy. One 
night the men camped in the hollow trunk of a 
laree fallen tree. Some davs later a number of 
the settlers found temporary homes in the aban- 
doned Indian huts until they could build a claim 
cabin. 

John L. Plennis, Hollom Price. Daniel 
Downing and a Mr. Anderson were other set- 
tlers who had taken claims up on Six Mile Prai- 
rie. Colonel Rose and John Dusenberry were 
located on North Muchakinock, and on the 
south were the Benedict brothers, who 
had built a saw mill on the lower Muchakinock 
in 1843 and had added a pair of corn crackers 



the ne.xt ^'ear. The mill was built in the sim- 
plest manner and did the coarsest kind of work. 
The burrs were made of the hard stone found 
in the river bottom. The old settlers say there 
was a larger flow of water in Muchakinock 
creek then than there is at this time, which was 
evidently true. Crude as was the old mill, set- 
tlers came to it with grists from beyond Fort 
Des Moines. 

The first justices of the peace were Holland 
Benedict and John Brown. Des Moines and 
Harrison formed a single precinct for holding 
the first election, which was held at the home of 
Colonel Vance. The first school was taught on 
Six-Mile bottom about the winter of 1844 or 
1845, ''1 "^ 'o? cabin. The first schoolhouse was 
built by private enterprise in 1848 and the 
school was taught by Adelaide Schuyler. We 
have not been able to obtain any particulars of 
this school except the above facts. The timber 
along the river was an inviting retreat for game 
of all kinds, and many a reminiscent story is 
related of the hunting feats of the early days. 
A sad incident occurred to a family by the name 
of Clayworth, who owned a home near where 
Muchakinock is now located. The father was 
working about an old well near the home when 
he chanced to drop the bucket into the well and 
went down to recover it. He was overcome by 
the poisonous gases which had accumulated at 
the bottom. Mrs. Clayworth missed her hus- 
band and when she discovered his condition she 
also descended into the well in the hope of ren- 
dering him some assistance. There were sev- 
eral children in the family, the oldest being but 
nine vears of age. They gave the alarm to the 
neighbors and A. J. Baughman undertook the 
perilous task of rescuing the parents. Mrs. 
Clavworth was still alive, and with sublime 
heroism was holding her husband's head above 
water. Mr. Baughman was not sufficiently 
overcome to prevent him from rescuing both of 
them, but before they reached the upper air 
both were beyond recovery. 




KAST SIDI-; (i|- ITMI.ir Sni".\RK -ISU-I. OSKAt.DOSA. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



73 



East Des Moines township lias one hundred 
:ind fifty-lour farms whose value is S78.535, 
rt-ith personal property to the value of $16,527. 
It has a piipulation of 900 persons. 

C.UIN". 

This \-illag;e was laid out by Harry Brewer 
in 1870 and was so named in honor of John 
Givin. of Keokuk, then superintendent of the 
Keokuk & Des Moines Railroad. The first 
store was built liy Mr. lirewer in that year. 
There was a postotfice at this point as early as 
1862. Hiram Ethridge was the first postmas- 
ter. It was made a railroad station in 1871. 
At the time that Givin was laid out it was on 
land owned by Mr. Brewer. As stated above 
Harry Brewer was one of the very early comers 
to this township and entered one hundred and 
si.xty acres just east of Givin on the hill where 
himself and his fjood wife patiently wrought, 
raising their family and maintaining a generous 
and orderly home. It wa:s an informal home 
but always having an air of restful hospitality. 
Like many such western homes it was founded 
in open-hearted pioneer spirit and so remained 
until both father and mother were laid to rest 
in Eorest cemeter\-. The old farm is now 
owned and occupied by the youngest son of the 
family, Harry A. Brewer. 

The early settlers greatly dreaded the venom- 
ous bite of the ratlesnake. W'hile there were com- 
paratively few deaths resulting from its poison, 
whenever there was a victim the whole commu- 
nity held its breath until the danger was past. 
Every family had near at hand its home reme- 
dies to counteract the poison until the services 
of a physician could be seanxd. which was al- 
ways done in the greatest possible haste. E. D. 
Brewer relates an instance which occurred in 
his father's family. His brother George chanced 
to have lieen bitten by one of those dreaded rep- 
tiles. His father at once saddled a spirited 
young horse, a favorite of the family, and rid- 
ing to John Harper's, his closest neighbor 



(neighbors in those days meant much more 
than it has come to mean in these later years), 
he told Mr. llari)er tn bring a doctor in the 
fewest possible minutes, even if it cost the life 
of his valiant charger. Mr. Harper covered the 
six miles to Oskaloosa in just twenty minutes, 
and fortunately found Dr. Rhinehart sitting in 
his buggy- ready to make a call somewhere in 
the country. He gave the Doctor the same mes- 
sage and in another twenty minutes both were 
at the Brewer home. \Miether by the skill of 
the good doctor or the potency of the home 
remedies which had been applied in the mean- 
time, or both, the boy was saved. We doubt 
if our marvelous telephone could equal this rec- 
ord for s\\ iftness. 

MUCH.\KIXOCK. 

This place took its name from the creek on 
which it is located. The work means muddy 
water and is of Indian origin. It is now a mere 
village, but twenty-five years ago it was the 
home of two thousand people, mostly colored, 
who worked in the coal mines. In 1873 the 
large coal fields in this section came into the 
possession of H. W. and W. A. McNeill and 
under their management reached an unexpected 
development. Between four and five thousand 
acres of land lying in East Des Moines and 
Harrison townships were mined, averaging the 
owners at least one hundred dollars per acre 
without entirely destroying the lands for fann- 
ing purposes. Muchakinock was the center of 
these operations. In 188 1 the stock of the coal 
company controlled by the McNeill brothers 
was sold to the Chicago & Northwestern Rail- 
road Company for $500,000. The company 
extended a branch of its railroad from Belle 
Plaine into these coal fields and built a depot 
and railway yards at Muchakinock. These 
mining operations were a great source of in- 
come to the people of Oskaloosa and Maha.ska 
county because of the thousands of dollars that 
were continually changing hands in the com- 



74 



PAST AND PRESENT OF JNIAHASKA COUNTY. 



niunit}-. With the extension of the road to 
Buxton and other coal fields across the Des 
Moines river [Nluchakinock has almost ceased 
to exist. 



CHAPTER XNI. 



HISTORY OF G.VRFIELD AND H.\RRISON TOVVX- 
.SHIPS. 



G.\RFIELD. 



Until 1882 this township was the west half 
of Oskaloosa township and has been closely 
associated in its history with the life of the 
city. In that year Spring; Creek and Garfield 
townships were created and Oskaloosa town- 
ship was confined to the city limits. Garfield 
township was named in honor of James A. Gar- 
field, the brilliant statesman who was elected 
President of our republic of states in 1880. 
Robert Seevers, one of its pioneer farmers, was 
the first man to introduce Merino sheep and also 
to bring a herd of shorthorn cattle to this 
county. Henry Prine. S. L. Pomeroy and \\'. 
T. Smith, of this township, were among the 
progressive stockmen of the county, (iaiiield 
has for years had large coal mining interests. 
The township has two hundred and thirty-five 
farms whose value with its town lots is $236.- 
365. The value of its personal property is $53,- 
149. It has a population of 1,800 persons. 

BE.\CON. 

Beacon is a village located on section 27, 
two and one-half miles southwest of Oskaloosa, 
in Garfield township. It was laid out in 1864 
under the name of Enterprise. On the comple- 
tion of the Keokuk & Des Moines Railroad it 
was called Oskaloosa Station. About the year 
1863, when Hiram Ethridge was postmaster at 
Givin. he opened a coal shaft at Beacon and 



quite a community sprang up. They applied 
for a postoffice but were denied one because 
of their nearness to Givin and Oskaloosa. As 
Mr. Ethridge's interests were mostly at Beacon 
and it had the prospect of growing more rap- 
idly, he flecided to use his authority as post- 
master and without any consultation or petition 
he went down to Givin one Sunday on a hand- 
car and took the postoffice effects from the 
home of Harry Brewer, where it was kept, and 
brought it up to Beacon. The Givin commu- 
nit\' reported the matter to the postoffice de- 
partment and in a short time received a second 
commission which deprived Beacon of an of- 
fice. A second application to the department 
from Beacon brought a reply that their petition 
would be granted, but not under the name of 
Beacon, because there was at that time another 
office by that name in the state. This brings 
us to the year 1864. when the village and post- 
office were founded under the name of Enter- 
prise, which was changed some years afterward 
to its present name. E. J. Evans was the first 
postmaster. Beacon has been quite a business 
center in the past. Since the mines ha\-e been 
worked out adjoining it. its population has de- 
creased. It has three churches, several general 
stores and good schools, \\ith a pt^pulation of 
aljout six hundred. 

EV.\NS. 

Evans is located in section 17. on ^luchakin- 
ock creek. It was first called Elida. being the 
name of the coal compan}- which first began 
operations there. When the postoffice was es- 
tablished it was named for D. J. Evans, whose 
land was among the first to be mined. Mr. 
T. J. Evans was the first postmaster. The 
railroad men called it Knoxville Junction be- 
cause of its being located at the crossing of the 
two roads leading north and west. Evans has 
been for years the center of the operations of 
the American Coal Company, which, until re- 



r.\SI' AXD PRl'.SEXT OF MATTASKA COL'XTY 



75 



:ently was owned and cperated 1>\' \\ . A. ^^c- 
\'ein. The population of tlie place lias Ikictu- 
ited with the coal development. 

Bolton, a new mining town in sectimis 30 
nid 31. has a population of several hundred 
vorkmen and bids fair to become quite a vil- 
age. It took its name from Mr. J. B. Bolton, 
he originator of the enterprise. 

HARRISON. 

Harrison is one nf the fnur townshiijs in the 
outhern tier of the count}-. It was laid out 1)\- 
\lvin and William A. Burt in June and Au- 
i;\ist. i!~^43. and its section lines were run liy 
government Surveyor George Wilson in the 
vinter of the following year, it was named 
or (jeneral William H. Harrison, wlm was 
lected President of the L'nited States in 1840 
)}• the whigs. He had lived anmng the pio- 
leers of the west fnr more than fortv rears 
lUfl was loved by the western ])eople. His 
)arty adopted the log cabin as their campaign 
ymbol. It was an e.xtremelv exciting cam- 
)aign and (juite demoralizing on account of the 
arge <|uantities of cider and li(|uors which were 
Irank at the rallies. 'Hiis drinking was in- 
ended to symbolize the pioneer hospitalitv of 
he old hero, but manv a voung man dated the 
)eginning of his intemperate life to the hard 
ider revels of that campaign. 

This township has but little timber, its rich 
oil consisting mostly of rciUing prairie. The 
loundaries of the tov.nshi]) fixed in 1S44 have 
leen unchanged. The tir-t elections were held 
t the home of Samuel Tilbets. 'i'he first white 
nan's cabin ever built in the comitv was located 
11 the south part of Harrison. 

Of the large number of settlers in the earlv 
40s but few remain. 'R. ^^^ Moore, of Cedar, 
■; l)erhaps the onlv man now living in the town- 
Inp who was here in 1843. His father. J. F. 
Joore. staked out his claim in that year. James 
!]iurlock, Jes.se Xewell. Sanuiel Cole, father of 



I )r. 1). L. Cole, and J. D. White are all spoken 
of as men whose lives and influence are still at 
work in that community. They had some abil- 
ity as religious teachers and kept up meetings 
in their own and other neighborhoods, afford- 
ing regidar gatherings for the settlers, and 
trained their neighbors to the highest and best 
citizenship. Mahlan Thomas and his brother 
Benjamin were also here in 1843. ^^^'- Ross, 
who lived some miles east of Eddyville. is re- 
membered as a useful man in the early years. 

The fi*-st schoolhou.se was built on the Jesse 
Xewell farm and Thomas Ross, a brother of 
the Doctor, taught the first school, in 1846. He 
served also as township clerk. Each settler 
contributed his share of the logs and work to 
put up the schoolhouse, which soon came to be 
u.sed as a church. It was callefl the X'ewell 
schoolliouse. In the early '50s James .\llison 
bought out Jesse Newell, who went to Jeffer- 
son county. Kansas, and founded Oskaloosa, 
Kansas, which is now the county seat of that 
county. Families were trained in that school 
who went to m;ike new homes in different ])arts 
of the west. Its successor is now known as 
Round Top school. 

William H. Buffington, Jo,se])h Inmk. Silas 
and William Scott, l-'ranklin Wall and T. R. 
(iilmore (afterward state senator) came into the 
township a little later. On the west side of the 
townslii]) were Samuel Vance. Butler Delash- 
niutt. William iM-ederick. D. D. Miller. M. M. 
Davis and others. 

.\ full grown bear was killed on the William 
Frederick place by Delhshmutt and I'rederick 
in the early years. In the battle for its life the 
bear killed one of Delashmutt's favorite hunt- 
ing dogs, much to the chagrin of the old hunter. 

Cedar chapel was built in 1869 and the post- 
office established in 1873. R. W^ Moore was 
the first postmaster and gave the village its 
name. Some years later, when Wright station 
began to grow, there was an effort made to 
move the Cedar postoffice to Wright. Wdien 



76 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Mr. Moore and others learned of the move they 
cirailated a petition for the establishment of an 
office at Wright and recommended the name 
to the postoffice department because of the 
number of persons by that name in the com- 
munity. The request was granted and J. A. 
Baitsell was made postmaster. 

Wright is located in the corners of four 
townships and is in the center of an intelligent 
community. 

Pekay and Lost Creek, in the south part of 
the county, are mining camps of varying popu- 
lation and activity. The latter place is operated 
by the Lost Creek Fuel Company and is ten 
miles southeast of Oskaloosa. 

On January 24, 1902, there occurred an ex- 
plosion in one of the shafts, which killed twenty 
and wounded fourteen men. It was the great- 
est catastrophe that has ever occurred in the 
annals of the mining industry in Iowa. 

The explosion was produced by a shot fired 
by Andrew Pash in room No. 10 at mine No. 2. 
He was among the dead. A fund of almost 
$3,000 was shortly afterward raised by special 
donations for the widows and orphans who 
were left penniless and homeless by this fatal 
accident. 

Harrison township is rich in coal beds and 
several tragedies have occurred in the mining 
districts. A disaster which shocked the entire 
state occurred on the farm of William G. 
Briggs on the morning of August 12, 1871. A 
coal shaft had been dug a few hundred yards 
below the house. It was thirty-two feet deep 
and eight feet scjuare, a ladder leading down to 
the bottom of the shaft. The water which ac- 
cumulated in the opening was used for stock 
water and drawn by a bucket with horse power. 
Two sons of Briggs, Mahlon, aged eighteen, 
and Charles, aged ten, went out to the shaft on 
this morning to water the stock. While they 
were there a neighbor boy named Jimmie Cow- 
den came along looking for some stray hogs, 
and was assisting them. The water was quite 



low in the shaft and the bucket failing to fill 
as usual, Charles, the younger boy, was sent 
down to fill it by dipping. He had only 
reached the bottom of the shaft when he called 
to his brother that he was suffocating, and 
]\Iahlon went immediately to his rescue, put his 
brother in the bucket, got in himself and called 
to the boy to draw them up, which he did at 
once, with the aid of the horse. But just as 
the bucket was approaching the top with its 
precious burden, young Cowden noticed ]Mah- 
lon grow faint, and losing" his hold, he fell tO' 
the bottom. Charles was raised out, btit in- 
sensible. The boy then called to \Mlliam G. 
Briggs, the father, who was within hearings 
distance. He ran to the shaft and down the 
ladder, perhaps only tliinking there had been 
an accident. Seeing his mistake, he started out 
but was overcome and fell into the water. 
Young Cowden then ran across a field more 
than half a mile to where there was a threshing 
crew, to give the alarm. On his way he met; 
Anna Briggs. a fourteen-year-old daughter, 
running to the shaft, and warned her not to de- 
scend into the shaft. But while he was gone 
the girl shared the fate of her father and 
brothers. George Briggs, a brother of \\'illiam 
G. Briggs, was the first to reach the mouth of 
the pit, and being confident of his ability to do 
what he had done many times before, descended 
the ladder to his death. Edward Grier, an 
Irishman who had worked in the family for four 
years, arrived with the crowd a little later and 
could not be dissuaded from going down. The 
crowd wanted to tie a rope around him, but in 
the excitement he would not wait, and shared 
the fate of those whom he had tried to rescue. 
Grappling hooks were obtained as soon as pos- 
sible and the bodies raised. Six lives had been 
snuffed out inside of perhaps an hour, almost^ 
an entire family. William G. Briggs had been 
put forward by the citizens of his township as 
a candidate for the state legislature. On the 
morning of the accident he had stepped out of" 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



77 



his (Idor on his way tfi attend the townshi]) 
priniarw hijldino- tlio ])iill 1j(K)1<s in liis hand. 
0\\ hearing- the confusion at tlie coal sliaft he 
liastily laid them down and res]ionded to the 
call fur help whicii ended in such a thrilling 
tragedy. 

I larrison township has 336 farms, whose 
value is $290,978. The value of per.sonal 
property is $59,705. The corporate limits of 
the city of Eddy \i lie extend across the county 
hne into this township, adding about one hun- 
dred to its population, making the population 
of the entire townshii) 1.600. 



CHAPTER XXII. 



III.STORY OF JEFFERSON, LINCOLN, M.XDISON 
AND MONROE TOWNSHIPS. 



JEFFERSON. 



This township was surveyed as a township 
and divided into sections by \Mlliam Dewey in 
the winter of 1844-5. Although we have no 
definite knowledge as to the origin of the 
name, it is generall\- conceded that this town- 
shi]) was named for Thomas Jefferson, the 
third President of the United States, the author 
of our decimal system of coinage and the 
writer of the Declaration of Independence. -It 
is the southwest corner townsiiip. and was for 
a number of years after its settlement isolated 
b\' the Des ]\Ioines river. Closes Nowels. Hi- 
ram Cove)' and A. Flanders were among the 
first settlers in JefTerson. They came in April, 
1843, and each staked otY his claim on the 
memorable first day of ]^Iay of that year. Van 
B. Flanders was the first white child l)orn in 
the township. For several years tliey reached 
Oskaloosa. the nearest postoffice, by swimming 



their horses across the river and taking the 
wagon and its load across in a canoe. Mr. 
Nowels introduced the first fanning mil! into 
the county, having it brought up the river from 
Keokuk by boat. For a number of years the 
settlers did not aim to raise an}- grain but corn. 
When wheat became a part of the annual crop 
it was treaded out by horses on the threshing 
floor, or beaten out with the flail in the hands 
of the hardy frontiersman, and cleaned 1)\- pour- 
ing out the grain while the rapid motion of a 
sheet in the hands of two persons winnowed the 
chafif from the wheat, when the breeze was not 
sufficiently strong to do that work. This fan- 
ning mill was a great boon in the neighborhood. 
The first school was taught by Mr. George 
\\'. Baer, on section 3 in a log schoolhouse. It 
was a subscription school, and taught alwut 
1846. Jefferson township had rich lands and 
grew in population rapidly. Among the set- 
tlers who came later were Robert \Miarton. 
who has been school treasurer of the township 
for forty years: Horace Lyman. P. G. Butler, 
Joshua Way, John Eveland, Thomas Lee, 
Henry Eveland, J. H. Evans, A. Rogers, John 
M. Lacey, Nelson Cone and Emanuel Hites. 
Besides the Des r^loines river. Coal creek. Bluff 
creek and other small streams afford a good 
water supply. In April, 1843, j"'^t ])rior to the 
opening of the new purchase, Edward Davis 
and his eldest son, coming from Illinois, crossed 
the Des Aioines ri\-er near where Eddvxille is 
now located, and camped for a time at the 
mouth of the first creek flowing into the Des 
Moines on the west side of the river. On ac- 
count of its high bluffs, they named it Bluff 
creek, (ioing some miles further they thought 
they discovered coal in the bed of the second 
creek, which they named Coal creek. Reconnoi- 
tering still further n(^rth along the river, thev 
came to a third small stream which, from the 
cedar trees growing on its banks, was called 
Cedar creek. These streams have alwavs borne 



-8 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



the names given them in tliat early clay. Air. 
Davis determined to locate on Bluff creek, and 
returned to its banks and awaited the opening 
day. Before the day had dawned he had 
staked off two hundred acres of land which be- 
came his home while he lived. Like many of 
the pioneers, the attachment to the farm be- 
came so strong that himself and wife could 
think of no spot more lovely to them, and chose 
to be buried in the S(jil that had nourished them 
in their lifetime. 

Simon Covey, a son of Hiram Covey, was 
fifteen vears of age when he came and is now 
living in Oskaloosa. He recalls many interest- 
ing reminiscences of frontier life. In 1845 '"''^ 
father and A. Flanders took a raft of logs down 
the Des Moines river to Bonaparte to replenish 
their supply of flour and meal. He was sent 
overland with a two-wheeled cart and an ox 
team to bring back the proceeds of the \enture. 
The home supply of food was very short, and 
before he got to his destination his keen young 
appetite had devoured the last morsel, leaving 
him to make the last day's journey on an empty 
stomach. According to the custom of the time 
he jogged on without thinking much abcuit so 
common a thing as running short of something 
to eat. .\bout noon a fellow traveler shared his 
dinner with him. They brought back with 
them the proceeds of the sale, sixteen bushels 
of corn meal and two hundred pounds of flour. 
Mr. Covey says that both his father and mother 
were teachers in New York, their native state, 
and his mother taught the first school in Scott 
township, at Rochester. Their home was only 
a short distance across the river, and she took 
her children with her for the day, crossing the 
river in a canoe. She gave her family a fair 
education around the home fireside. Mrs. A. 
Flanders is still living with her daughter, Mrs. 
Daniel Mattox, on the home farm which her 
husband staked out on May i, 1843. 

Mining interests in Jefferson township have 
received a wonderful impetus in the last few 
years. Buxton, a mining camp of four or five 



thousand people, lies mostlv across the line in 
Monroe count}', but has se\eral hundred of its 
population in this county. The Durfee mining 
camp, on sections 19 and 20, has a poinilation 
of between three and four hundred ; \Miite City 
has five hundred : the Cricket mines have one 
hundred and fifty, and the Eveland mines about 
the same population. These mining camps vary 
in the number of their jiopulation as the de- 
mand for workmen is slow or active. 

The township has 191 farms whose value is 
$217,923, and personal property to the value of 
$60,307. Its population as last reported l:)y the 
count\' auditor was 2,400. 

LINCOLN TOWNSHIP. 

Lincoln township includes a territory out- 
side of the city of Oskaloosa. The line mark- 
ing its bounds extends in a somewhat zigzag 
form about the city, taking in several sections 
from the northeast corner of Garfield. It was 
created for the convenience of the property 
holders adjoining the city limits. It is scarcely 
necessary to mention that this little township 
bears the name of the great freedom-loving 
Lincoln. It has a population of five hundred, 
with 115 farms, whose value is $83,626. The 
\alue of its personal property is $69,527. 

MADISON TOWNSHIP. 

The township lines were run by the govern- 
ment suveyors in 1843. and the section lines 
four vears later. This township received its 
name from James Aladison, who was the na- 
tion's chief executive during the war of 18x2. 

Tlie south fork of the Skunk river divides 
the township into North and South Madison. 
The soudi part of the township was settled 
first. Samuel Coffin, Jerry Libbey, Greenberry 
Coftin, Simeon Johnson, Benjamin Crispin. 
William Windsor, Enoch Shoemake and John 
Padgett were among the early settlers south of 
the ri\er. The district north of the river was 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



79 



for many \ears a liunting ground. JcjIui and 
l-{ol)ert Mitclicll. .Milton Crookliam and a few 
others liad things their own way for x'ears. on 
the nortii hottom. As already .stated, the hrst 
school in Madison to\vnshi]5 was taught b_\' Wil- 
liam Laurancc. in his town claim cabin. Like 
all of the early schools it was a subscription 
school, but well ordered and effective. .\ spell- 
ing school in those days was counted a greater 
luxury than an opera of today. 

The settlers in this part of the county at- 
tended the land sales at Iowa City, going on 
foot in companies and banded together under 
the clul) laws for ijrotection. 

I-'rom the earliest i)eri(id there has been a 
deep religious sentiment among the people of 
South Madison. Tn some instances extreme 
and radical views ha\e been taught. 

The Duncan & Peck mill was started in this 
townshi]) in 1843. '"^'^1 '^^^ wheels have l)cen kept 
mo\ing almost constantly ever since. Sixty- 
two years is a long period to ha\e furnished 
bread to the children of men who ha\e come 
within its circl'e. l'"ew if any mills in the county 
lia\e contrilnUed so much to its ci\ilization and 
comfort. This mill is s])oken of by all the old 
settlers as the "I'pper Mill." .V saw mill was 
in operation at this place before the grist mill 
started, and it is generally conceded- did the 
first work of that kind in the county. .\ (|uar- 
ter of a century ago it was counted a fine i)iece 
of property. Of later years it has not as])ired 
to do so extensive a business, it is now owned 
and operated by J. S. W'hitniore. 

The jjcople of North Madison have a good 
shipping ])oint in t!ie \illage of Lacey on the 
Towa Central Railroad, just across the town- 
ship line. Mrs. Helen Bailey, a daughter of 
Simeon Johnson, who came to the townshi]) in 
1847, has written a nmnber of entertaining 
letters about the early settlement and ])ioneer 
customs of those early years. Mrs. Bailey still 
resides in Madison townshi]) in sight of the 
home owned and occu])ied b\' her father's fam- 



ily. She has been an intelligent observer, not 
only of her own neighborhood, Init of the great 
west, from the da}s when it was a wilderness. 
These personal observations and recollections 
are the very best material of which history is 
made. 

MONROE TOWN.SHIP. 

This township is named for the author of the 
Monroe doctrine, and is the seventh of our 
townshi]js which are named for l^residents of 
the United States. 

.\mong the first settlers were Jacob Johns, 
James Bridges. Henry W'yniore, W'illiam'Kim- 
berly, John Baker and Thomas Linsley. Wil- 
liam Kimberly was a local Methotlist Episcopal 
preacher and a very strong abolitionist. Those 
who sat under his preaching say that he never 
closed a ])rayer without (iffering a i^etition for 
"the ])oor black l)rother in bondage." l'"or his 
\iews. which were then thought to be extreme, 
he was subjected to many indignities. These 
he liore with fortitude and i-ejoiced to be per- 
mitted in his advanced years to see the ac- 
cursed institution of slavery wi]jed out. Jacob 
Johns is said to have been the first man 
to break the soil. ' He located fin section 13 in 
the southeastern ])art of the townshi]). and 
soon made for himself a good farm, which he 
enjoyed for many years. All of the ])ioneers 
unite in saying that they never spent happier 
days than in the comfortable old cabins of the 
early years. 

.North Skunk river runs diagonally southeast 
across the townshi]). and Middle creek along 
the southern boundarw The townshi]) is well 
watered and timbered but has no railroad. 

The first school of which we have any record 
was taught liy Henry McMillan in the winter 
of 1852. He was a brother of the late Dr. B. F. 
McMillan, of Oskaloosa, and died on the west- 
ern plains while en route to California in 1859. 
Like all the schools of that period, it was a 
subscri])tion .schools. The township now has 



8o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



nine schools. The Center school, on section 21, 
is the handsomest and best equipped country 
school in the county. There are also many 
fine homes and well kept farms. There are 
several generations of the Brown family in 
Monroe township, ^^'illiam Brown and Ma- 
tilda McMillan Brown came to the Spring Val- 
ley settlement in 1852 from Kno.x county. Ohio. 
They purchased a home on section 21 and while 
the log cabin was being built they lived in a 
temporar}' shelter. The family had been here 
about six weeks when Mr. Brown took chills 
and fever and died, leaving a family of seven 
boys ranging in age from six to twenty-one 
years. Mrs. Brown had been a teacher in her 
earlier life and resolutely completed the home 
and engaged the Spring Valley school two 
miles distant, which she taught through the 
winter. She taught her faniil\- l)y the cabin 
fireside. She was a constant student herself 
and her home became the literary center of the 
neighborhood. Her spirit still lives in the sec- 
ond generation of the well known Brown fami- 
lies in the community. Two of her grand- 
children. Justin Brown and Ethel Brown Gar- 
rett, son and daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. H. 
Brown, are missionaries in China, and Bruce 
Brown, son of Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton Brown, 
is a preacher of national reputation in the Chris- 
tian church. 

INDI.\N.\POLIS. 

This village was laid out by \\'illis Baker in 
1845. ^Jf'"- Baker named it for the capital of 
his native state, Indiana. James Bridges 
opened the first store in the place, bringing the 
goods from Burlington. He was the first post- 
master. Mr. Bridges secured a land warrant 
in Indiana for $112.50, and turned it in on his 
160-acre claim. Land warrants issued to the 
soldiers of the war of 1812 were quite plentiful 
and could be had at very moderate prices. Air. 
Bridges says that so hungry were the settlers 
for a trading point that he sold half his stock 
the dav they were unboxed. 



Up to twenty-five or thirt\- vears ago Indian- 
apolis was an attractive country village. The 
decline came when business went to the rail- 
roads. It still maintains good schools and 
churches and is the center of a thoughtful peo- 
ple. The township has a population of i.ooo; 
has 209 farms whose value is $241,614. The 
value of its personal property is $41,801. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 



HISTORY OF PLEAS.\NT GROVE, PR.\IRIE .\ND 
RICHLAND TOWNSHIPS. 



PLEASANT GROVE. 

This township was suveyed about the same 
time as the other townships of the county, but 
not settled until 1850. 

.\mos Holloway. S. Whitaker, Noah Van 
Winkle. William Hambleton, John ^^^y- 
more, John W'yatt, John Whitaker and 
Benjamin Murrey were among its early 
settlers. These men, with their families, 
came from Ohio and Indiana. After they had 
erected cabins for themselves they proceeded 
to provide churches and" schools for the grow- 
ing settlement. The first school was taught b}^ 
Richard ^Nlayberry. This school was a private 
enterprise, but two years later the districts were 
organized under the law and three school 
houses were built. The township now has 
eight modern schoolhouses outside of Barnes 
City. 

The township was named from a fine grove 
of timber which it contained. Coal and lime- 
stone are its mineral products. The northern 
and eastern portions of the township are mostly 
prairie. X^crth Skunk river runs across the 
southwest corner, and by its tributaries the 
lands are well watered and drained. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



8i 



Dr. Fisher is said to liave conducted the first 
religious services in the township, which re- 
sulted in the organization of a Christian church 
in 1854. 

Agricola. a village near the north center of 
the tinvnshi]). was laid out in the last named 
year liy Da\id Santee. It furnished a home 
market and trading place for the community 
initil in recent years the coming of the Chicago. 
]\ock Island and Pacific Railroad across the 
mirtheast corner of the townshi]) changed the 
center of business to Barnes City. 

This village has an excellent school building. 
Avhich. with its well ordered schools, is the 
pride of the place. It contains about three 
hundred population and is well represented with 
churches and commercial interests. 

The township contains 190 farms, whose 
A'alue is $223,560, and its personal property 
value is $47,909. It has a population of about 
1.000 persons. 

PRAIRIE rowxsiiii'. 

This township was originally a part of Madi- 
son township and was not separately organized 
until 1856. It received its name from the fact 
that there was almost no timber at all on its 
rich, rolling prairies. For that reason it was 
among the last townships to be settled and or- 
ganized. Its homes and famis are now among 
the most valuable in the county. 

Middle creek originates in Prairie township 
and drains almost its entire surface. It has no 
rock quarries or coal deposits. 

The first settler was John Hiler. a half- 
blooded negro, who settled on section 3 in 1844. 
.\ man named Wallace came next from Indiana 
in 1845. Alexander Stewart moved from 
Pennsylvania in 1847. living alone for one year 
in bis claim cabin before his family joined him. 
A. C. Doze came in 1848. Other settlers fol- 
lowed, locating mostlv in the northern sections. 

The first schoolhouse was built in 1856 in 



the center of section 3. and Jesse Ballinger 
taught the first school. Shortly after the close 
of this term of school this young man professed 
the Mormon faith and took, up his march to 
Salt Lake, where he has since made his home. 

The first sermon is said to have been preached 
in the same year at the home of Le\i Stewart, 
by John Curry, a Baptist minister from Vir- 
ginia. 

As the demand for public lands grew the 
township became the home of enterprising 
farmers who had learned the value of good 
])rairie lands. The first election was held April. 
1856, at the home of Jesse Grace on the south- 
west quarter of section 8. Alexander Stewart 
and T. B. Campbell were elected justices ; Jesse 
Grace, assessor, and John ^IcCrery, clerk. The 
trustees were Levi Stewart, P. Heitsman and 
J. R Jackson. Milton Crookham was elected 
constable and Robert W. Oldham and Alexan- 
der Morton supervisors. The oath of oftice 
was administered by J. B. Stewart, Esq., w'ho 
was then a resident of Union township. Though 
the last to l>e organized Prairie is now one of 
the richest and best townships in the count}-. 

The village of Taintor is located on section 
6. of the Newton branch of the Iowa Central 
Railroad, and affords a -trading point and mar- 
ket for the farmers of a rich section of country. 

The township has 194 farms, whose valua- 
tion is $397,041. Personal property amounting 
to $142,190. The entire population is 2.600. 

NEW SH.\R0X. 

This town was ])latted July 22. 1856. and is 
located on sections 13 and 24. After sOme 
searching for a suitaljle name, it was decided 
that the name of the postoffice should be Sha- 
ron. When it was found that Warren countv 
already had an office by that name New Sharon 
was recommended to the postoltice department 
and was accepted by all as the name of the 
town. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Edward Ouaintance erected the first Iniilding 
in 1856 and James Winder the second, in 
which he opened the first store for general mer- 
chandise in 1857.- 

i\Ir. H. J. \'ail-. the editor and founder of the 
New Sliaron Star, has \\ritten a ([uite complete 
history of Prairie tr)\vnship. from wliich we 
quote : 

"The growth of the town was tlecidedly slow 
until the years of speculation, as one of the 
natural results of the Civil war. which was in- 
augurated in this country in i860. Gradually 
it developed until the close of the war. when the 
spirit of enterprise and speculation that was 
swelling e\'ery a\enue of our commercial sys- 
tem with unhealthy vigor, pushed it rapifUv for- 
ward. In 1870 the prospect for the early com- 
pletion of the Central Railroad of Iowa 
through the town was so flattering" that the at- 
tention of enterprising men in various parts of 
the countr}- was directed thereto, and as a re- 
sult the population of the town increased l3\- 
hundreds. Like all other towns. New Sharon 
reached a point when a too rapid growth neces- 
sarily received a check. Between the years of '~2 
and "76 she added more than 400 to her popula- 
tion through emigration alone and could boast 
of about 900 inhabitants." 

New Sharon was incorporated in 1871, the 
first election being held on October 4th of that 
year. H. M. Forney was elected mayor. A 
prohibition ordinance was the first act passed by 
the council, and the city has always maintained 
a clean record on the liquor question. 

The city has had two severe fires in its his- 
toiy. one April 29, 1876. in which the damage 
amounted to $30,000, and another December 
14. 1886, resulted in a loss of $16,000. 

It is a good trading point, being well repre- 
sented in the various lines of business. It has 
an electric light plant, a good system of water 
works, substantial business buildings and ele- 
gant homes. 



Its present population is 1,300, and a large 
per cent of them are church-going people. The 
denominations represented are Friends, jNIetho- 
dist. Christian, Presbyterian and Baptist. 

They have a fine school building and employ 
the liest talent in tlieir teaching force. 

RICIILAXD TOWNSHIP. 

Richland tnwnslii]) is in the northwest cor- 
ner of the county. The name was suggested 
by William Laurance, who came in 1843. '^^" 
cause of the productiveness of its soil. Its sec- 
tion lines were run in 1845 by James Grant, 
who afterward liecame a leading attorney, a 
district jndge and a man of wealth. In the 
draft of his surveys among the county records 
are found located the claim of George Buckley, 
who was the first settler in the townshiix and 
Imilt the first cabin about one mile west of the 
town of Peoria. 

J. E. Godby, L. Miller. J. James. Thomas 
Baldwin, Moses Wasson, L. Osborn, Powell 
Bush and ^Villiam Laurance are among the 
first settlers. 

Moses \\'asson was the first justice of the 
peace of the township, having been elected in 
1846. 

The first school in the township was taught 
liy Miss Mary Westlake in 1847 '" ^ '"§' cabin 
lielonging to T. Baldwin. The second was con- 
ducted by AX'arren Lathrop. 

The Methodist Episcopal church in Peoria, 
built in 1856. was the first church. The first 
religious services, however, were held in George 
\\'estlake's cabin some time prior to the build- 
ing of the church. 

The verv early settlers went to Wliistler's 
mill, southeast of Sigourney, on North Skunk. 
A majority, however, went to Duncan's mill, 
where a register was kept of each grist and 
applications for grinding were waited on in the 
order in which their names appeared on the 
record. It is said that work was thus engaged 



PAST AND PRESEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



83 



tor t\V(i more weeks for a constant run day 
and niylit. litis scarcity of mills, ho\\e\cr. was 
nn!y tcm])orary. The Robert Warren mill was 
built on Soutli Skunk in tlie southwest portion 
of the townslii]) and did a good Inisiness in its 
day. 

Near the center of the township the \illage 
of Peoria is located. It .was laid out May 21. 
1853. by Tlieodric Spain on land owned by 
himself, George W'estlake and Sanford Haines. 
The Hollanders have absorbed almost every- 
thing in that part of the township. There is 
a Metho<list and Christian church, but they 
have fallen into decay for want of support. The 
best farm lands are in the northern and eastern 
portions of the town.ship. The southwestern 
portion is liroken and covered with timber. 
There are excellent quarries of building stone 
near Peoria. I-'rom these quarries some fifty 
years ago Jasper county obtained stone to build 
a courthouse. Ciranville. located on section i, 
was also laid out by Theodric Spain. It served 
as a neighliorhood trading place in the early 
years, but the business has gone to the rail- 
roads. Richland township now has ten schools. 
At least half of its population are Hollanders, 
who .are among its best citizens. It has two 
hundred and t\\ent\-t\\ n farms, whose value 
is $2iS,o(')o, and personal ])niperty to the value 
of $48,991. Its last reported population was 
1,200. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 



HISTORY OF SCOTT. .SPRING CREEK. X'XIOX, 

WEST nES .\IOIXE.S .\X1> WHITE 0.\K 

TOW XS HI PS. 



SCOTT. 



As originally surveyed, Scott township was 
a full congressional township, but in more re- 
cent vears almost the entire southern tier of 



sections which are south of the Des Moines 
river have Ijeen set off into Jefferson townshi]). 
It is known on the surveys as No. 75 north of 
1 7 west of the 5th principal meridian. The 
Des Moines river cuts off the southwest corner 
of the townshi]). Along the ri\er in the south- 
west portion it is somewhat rough and there is 
an excellent growth of walnut, wliite oak and 
other timbers. In the north and west are undu- 
lating prairies, rich and productive. Dr. E. 
A. Boyer, one of the very earliest settlers in 
the township, sold $12,000 worth of black wal- 
nut lumber fnim his river lands on the Des 
.Moines. When the township was organized 
it was named Jackson by the county commis- 
sioners. In the election of 1852, when Scott 
and Pierce ran for president, the townshi]) cast 
a solid \-ote for the Mexican war veteran. 
When making the election returns to the county 
officials, Dr. Boyer requested that the name of 
the township be changed to that of Scott, not 
ai)preciating the democratic name. When asked 
for the ])etition he called attention to the solid 
vote in his returns. The board so acce])ted the 
election returns and granted his recpiest. Mrs. 
Hiram Covey taught the first school in the 
township, at Rochester. The house was a well 
built structure for its day and .served the dis- 
trict for several generations. 

.\mong the \ery early settlers in this town- 
shi]) were Dr. E. .\. Boyer, Van B. Delash- 
mutt, Jacob H. Majors, John Majors, Joseph 
Tally, R. Garden, John Thompson and J. E. 
Utter. There were numerous settlements along 
the river from the lirst. In the summer of 1843 
when e\er\thing was new and wild and occa- 
sional l)ands of Indians were passing through 
the country, several families, after locating 
their claims, built their cabins on Dr. Boyer's 
])lace in a circle for better protection and lived 
in conjmon for the first year or two. They 
called their settlement "the Phalanx." Of this 
primitive community we have the name of 
Dr. Boyer, a man by the name of Nor- 
ton, and John Pope, with their families, and 



^4 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



twi) single men, George and Jcihn Rose. 
There were doubtless others whose names 
ha\'e not come down to us. During the 
first years there was almndance of game along 
the ri\er. Dr. Boyer was a hunter of that pe- 
riod, always keeping choice hunting dogs and 
a spirited horse for the chase. During the first 
year he shot ninety-three wolves. Mr. R. I- 
Garden, of Tracy, has done valuable service in 
quite a number of well written descriptive let- 
ters of the early history of Scott township. He 
is the son of the pioneer, R. (iarden, and has 
been an interested observer of its growth and 
development from the beginning. Of the old 
town of Bellefountaine Mr. Garden writes : 

"The first town in Scott township was laid 
■out at Talley's Ford, on the west bank of the 
Des Moines river, by Nathan Gregoiy and Ezra 
H. Thissell, August 24, 1846. The first log 
cabin erected was by Ezra Thissell, with a log 
shed addition. One room was a residence and 
the addition for a store room. Mrs. Malinda 
Thissell was the first woman to live in the town 
and to her was given the honor of naming the 
town, which she named Bellefountaine, that be- 
ing the name of a town in Ohio, near which 
she had resided before moving to Iowa. 

Thissell opened a grocery store, which was 
a big lioom for the settlement. It is not gen- 
erally known, but true, that when the fifth 
general assemVjly, which convened at Iowa 
City on December 4, 1854, passed an act to 
relocate the state capital, that when the first 
ballot was taken on a new location, Bellefoun- 
taine came within one A'ote of being the choice 
and securing the location." 

Doubtless this vote was influenced by the 
large calculations, then thought to be perfectly 
feasible, of making the Des Moines river a 
navigable stream the year round by means of 
a system of dams and locks at different places 
along its course. Rochester had been selected 
as the point in this county where there was to 
be built a succession of dams for slack water 



purposes, and locks through which the boats 
might pass with an abundant supply of water. 

As late as 1858 steamers made regular trips 
up the Des Moines river. James Hayes, who 
came to this county in 1856, had charge of 
Gateleys ferry during the summer of the first 
named year, and states that twelve boats passed 
up and down the river regularly. Among them 
were the following vessels : Clara Hine, Alice 
Skipper, Emma Harmon, Defiance, Michigan 
City, Des Moines City and the Des Moines Bell. 

Bellefontaine had a hotel and several gen- 
eral stores in its more prosperous years, but 
necessarily retrograded with the coming of the 
railroads. 

In the year 1846 Joseph Tally built and op- 
erated a ferryboat at the new village for the ac- 
commodation of westward travel. Prior to this 
time all transportation of tra\-elers with their 
wagons and goods was made with a skifif and 
the horses or oxen swam the stream. This ferry 
boat was operated by means of' poles and oars 
for some time, when it was changed into a rope 
ferry. 

One of the clearest headed pioneers we have 
consulted states that the first appropriation for 
a highway made in Mahaska county was made 
b}' Judge Crookham in the early '50s for a 
rope to be used on the Bellefountaine ferry. 

The village of Rochester, further down the 
river, was laid out by John Wright on October 
26, 1850, About this time there was a great 
air line railroad route projected from IMusca- 
tine through Iowa, known as the Mississippi & 
Missouri River Railroad. In its survey through 
^Mahaska county it was to cross the Des ]\Ioines 
river at Rochester. There was a good boat 
landing and finite a good country trade at its 
stores. In the late '50s Dr. Boyer ran a general 
store, both at Rochester and Bellefountaine. 
State Bank, had charge of both stores at dif- 
Bank, had charge of both of these stores at dif- 
ferent times. ]\Iarion White also had a store. 
The village never attained any prominence. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



85 



Olivet, a village located on section 9, is a 
station on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific 
Railroad. The village took its name from the 
Olivet Presbyterian church, which had been 
organized several years before. The village was 
laid out in T877. The first house was erected 
by William Sumner, who also opened the first 
store. Samuel Casey was the first station agent 
and H. D. Ross was the first postmaster. The 
\illage never made much growth, and now con- 
tains ten or a dozen families. 

Scott township has some rich coal mines. It 
has seven schoolhouses. The county poor farm 
is located on section 24, in this township. 

The townshi]) has 221 farms, whose value 
is $169,669, and jiersonal property to the value 
of $33,407. Its present population is 1,200. 



SPRING CREEK TOWNSHIP. 

This township took its name from the creek 
flowing through it, which in some part is sus- 
tained l)y a number of springs along its banks. 
Until 1882 what are now Spring Creek, Oska- 
loosa, Lincoln and Garfield townships, were 
known as Oskaloosa township. 

Poultney Loughridge, John McAllister, Ed- 
win and Robert Mitchell and Patterson Martin 
were among those who staked off their claims 
by torchlight May i, 1843. Poultney Lough- 
ridge was the founder of the United Presbyte- 
rian church in Oskaloosa. It was organized 
in the first .schoolhouse built in the county, in 
about 1847. For a number of years services 
were held during the winter in his cabin and in 
the summer in the open groves. 

Thomas Stafiford and family came in the sum- 
mer of 1843. ^^r- Stafford belonged to the So- 
ciety of Friends and formed a nucleus for quite 
a large settlement of those of his own religious 
views. The first Friends meeting house in the 
county was built in that settlement. In later 
years a building was erected and an academy 



established which finally led to the establish- 
ment of Penn College. The first Friends 
yearly meeting in Iowa was held in Spring 
Creek grove in 1863. Just how much of all 
these beneficent results is tracable to the life and 
character of Thomas Stafford it is difficult to 
tell, but the influence of the life of a man with 
a conviction grows like leaven. Mr. Stafford 
refused to become a member of the claim asso- 
ciation because he was conscientiously opposed 
to its contemplated violent measures. Neverthe- 
less the association gave him the same protec- 
tion which they took to themselves. William 
Stafford's marriage to Miss Eliza Stanley was 
the first marriage in the township. The first 
birth was that of John Mitchell in 1844. 

The first schoolhouse in the county was built 
and the first school taught in this township in 
the fall and winter of 1844 by Miss Semira 
A. Hobbs. A more complete account of this 
school is given in another chapter. The town- 
ship now has ten schools. 

In the summer of 1862 there occurred a 
freak in the big bend of the Skunk river, a de- 
scription of which is worthy the pen of John 
James Audubon, the ornithologist. We refer 
to an old-time pigeon roost. It is the custom of 
these birds to repair in countless numbers to a 
selected spot in the forest and make it a rendez- 
\-ous for a sufficient length of time to hatch and 
rear their young. This year they gathered on 
the Skunk river about four miles east of Oska- 
loosa on the William K. Sopher farm. Their 
roost covered between forty and fifty acres of 
timber land on both sides of the river. They 
covered the trees like swarms of bees. There 
was a never-ending roar and din that could be 
heard for miles away, especially in the evening 
on the return of the flocks from their foraging 
excursions through the day hundreds of miles 
away. Those who lived only a few miles away 
say that the noise was like the roar of a cataract 
or an approaching hurricane. Branches of the 
trees were constantly swaying and breaking 



86 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



under the weight of the settling myriads that 
were constantly circling in the air or lighting 
on the tree tops. They came in such numbers 
as to darken the sun. Pandemonium reigned at 
the roost day and night. Out of such an aggre- 
gation of flocks, amounting to millions of indi- 
vidual birds, the air «as constantly tilled with 
the screams and fluttering of the wounded, the 
greetings of the incoming flocks and the de-, 
parture of others. The constant fatalities of 
the living, and the falling of broken branches 
kept up a constant roar and confusion. Those 
who visited the roost killed pigeons and young 
squabs by wagon loads with clubs and poles. 
They were sold in the villages and towns about 
the country until there was no market for them. 
Naturalists tell us that these swift-winged little 
creatures will fly a mile in two and a half min- 
utes and will keep it up for hundreds of miles, 
^liey assemble at these roosts for the annual 
hatching and rearing of their young, which 
grow into maturity in a few months and swell 
the vast migratory throng. The following year 
several hundred came back to the old roost for 
a time, but the gathering described above was 
the only genuine pigeon roost that ever oc- 
curred in the history of IVlahaska county since 
the coming of the white man. 

Spring Creek township has a number of rich 
coal mines. In the early '90s the mining vil- 
lage of Carbonado, several miles northeast of 
Oskaloosa, was a busy camp with a var^-ing 
population for a number of years until the coal 
in the vicinity was worked out. The north half 
has been covered with timber and is somewhat 
broken, while the south portion is a rolling 
l)rairie. The township has 324 farms Axhose 
\'alue is $280,475, ^"<^^ personal property- to the 
value of $69,906. Its population is 1,600. 

UNION. 

When this township was first formed it 
comprised five congressional townships, viz. : 
Union and Pleasant Grove in Mahaska, and 



Union, Jackson and Deep River in Poweshiek 
county. Hence its name. In the organization 
of Poweshiek county the last-named three 
townships went with it, and Pleasant Grove 
was organized in January, 1850, leaving Union 
the ordinary sized township containing thirty- 
six square miles and known as township No. "/"j 
north of range 15 west of the 5th principal me- 
ridian. The township lines were run by Alvin 
Burt in July, 1843, and the section lines by 
Stiles C. Carpenter in October. 1847. The 
North Skunk river runs diagonally across the 
township from the northwest. Except in the 
southern sections the country is somewhat 
broken and was originalh' covered with timl)er. 
There are, however, very few farms that are 
not rich and productive. The very first settlers 
were John Morrison, Jacob Klinker and Jesse 
i\Ioore. Among those who came a little later 
were John and James Widows, Nathan Brown, 
Jacob Dalby and Isaac N. Griflith near the 
count}" line, and farther south were the Brad- 
shaws, John Graham, Robert Telford, John 
Deardorf, David, James and Reuben Kisor, 
Daniel Rogers. John McMaines, Benj. Groves, 
.\nderson James, Fred \\'eimer and others. 

The books of original entry among the 
county records show that the first lands pur- 
chased from the government in this township 
were the following: October 9. 1848, by Sim- 
eon Johnson, a part of section i. Same date, 
b}- R. B. Ogden, a part of section 4. October 
12, by Joshua Gorsuch, a part of section 11, 
.Same date, Robert Telford purchased section 
T2. The first school was taught by Mrs. Dr. 
I'ry, on section II, and the next at Union Mills. 
This \-iIlage was laid out by Jacol.) Weimer in 
1849, and called Middletown, on account of its 
being about half way 1)etween Montezuma and 
Oskaloosa. Later the village took the name of 
the mills which were built by Mr. Weimer and 
C. Brolliar. Several stores sprang up and flour- 
ished on account of the patronage at the mills. 
At one time there was a carding mill and a 



I'AS r AXl) I'KI'.SRX'l" 0]<^ MAHASKA COUNT V 



87 



chair factory attached t(i tlie mill. A post- 
<ilfice was estal)lished in 1855. The old mill 
and the village are things of the past. The 
abundant timber lands were inviting for wild 
game in the early years. Afrs. David Kisor re- 
calls nian_\- pleasant memories of the log cabin 
days. One afternoon while sitting at her cabin 
window she saw a herd of deer pass quietly by 
the cabin window and out into the range. Like 
most of the pioneers the good old lady reso- 
lutely clings to the old home place where her- 
self and her husband spent their happiest days 
and from which the family have gone out to 
found honics of their own. We are told that 
somewhere back in the late "40s three young 
men lost their lives during a flood in the river, 
and these were among the first who were 
liuried in the beautiful cemetery grounds near 
{ nion Mills. 

Some tliirt)- }-ears ago James Stiles Chew 
and others were instrumental in purchasing 
liethel (irove. located on section 1 1, and having 
it deeded to the Methodist Episcopal church for- 
ever for camp meeting purposes. A chapel has 
been erected on the ground and the place serves 
as an in\iting gathering place for the neighlior- 
hood. Since its purchase the community has 
changed, and but few members of that church 
remain, but the terms of the deed .are unalter- 
able, and as long as there is .^omeone to .see that 
the tax is paid, it must remain the ])ropertv of 
the church who first accepted it. There is a 
good Methodist Episcopal church on section 
33, known as the Fairview church. The neat 
frame church standing on the eminence at Un- 
ion Mills belongs to the Christian church. .\n 
organization of this church was formed here 
back in the '60s by X. E. Cory. 

Union township has 225 farms, whose \alue 
is S231.404. with per.sonal property valued at 
$54,8 19. Its population is T.200. 

WEST DKS MOINES. 

The settlement and history of this township 
are closely connected with East Des Moines 



because it has onlv e.xisteil as a separate organ- 
ization since 1885. Among its old settlers are: 
.\. Brundage. John B. Thomas, Henderson 
England. J. P. McCrea and John Taylor. 

Recent years have brought great develop- 
ments in the coal fields in that part of the 
county. The Northwestern Railroad has ex- 
tended its branch as far west as Bu.xton, which 
is a large mining center, almost wholly across 
the line in Monroe county. 

Lakonta is the only postotTice in the town- 
shij). It contains a population at present of 
aboiU one hundred and fifty, but is growing. It 
has two general stores, a blacksmiths shop and 
a lumber yard. The large railroad yards lo- 
cated here require the constant services of three 
engines. The yards have eight or ten miles 
of track and are still enlarging. 

This township has 1 1 1 farms, whose value 
is $109,957, The value of its personal prop- 
erty is $25,312. with a po])ulation of 700. 

WHITE 0.\K TOWX.SITIP. 

White Oak township took its name from the 
abundant timber of that name predominating 
along the South Skunk river, which runs di- 
agonally across the township. Among the first 
.settlers in the township were Alexander Troy, 
^[. Kinsman. Henry Bond. W'illiam Bridges, 
James Stanfield. John and William Butler. John 
N. Kinsman and others. (Jn each side of the 
ri\er channel for several miles the land is quite 
l)roken and has been pretty heavily timbered. 
There are seven or eight hundred acres of 
low lands which are not tillable, but valuable 
for their timber and ])asture. 

Rose Hill is located on sections 3 and 10, and 
was laid out on' the completion of the Oskaloo.sa 
branch of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific 
to Oskaloosa in 1875. It is located about ten 
miles east of Oskaloosa. The first business 
house was built in that year by Baily & Stubbs. 
It prospered for a time and was incorporated 
in 1877. The postoffice was established in 1876 
with ?I. L. Orr as first postmaster. It has sev- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



eral good general stores, a bank, three churches, 
a good scliool and is a good market for the rich 
farming country of wiiich it forms the center. 
There are a number of well kept homes, but the 
population is not more than about 250. 

\\'here White Oak postoffice now stands Wil- 
liam Bond built a crude saw mill in the begin- 
ning years, to help the settlers make a better 
use of some of the fine timber in its tlien quite 
extensive forests. The power was produced by 
the treading of a team of oxen. Because of 
the presence of these faithful creatures it took 
the name of Oxford. Then for a change it was 
called Slabtown for a time. It is said that in 
the early years several acres of ground were 
laid out in town lots and a number of buildings 
were erected. Later a steam engine was used. 
A pair of corn crackers were added to the mill, 
and it did grinding for the community. O. R. 
Gaskill ran a blacksmith shop, to which he 
added a few groceries to accommodate his 
trade. His stock began gradually to grow un- 
til it developed into a good general store in 
which he continued to serve his neighbors as 
postmaster and storekeeper for some twenty- 
five years. 

The first school in the township was taught 
by Miss Sarah Kinsman. It is the persons who 
do the unusual things that find a place in his- 
tory. S. M. Peddichord came from Kentucky 
in 1854. He was a wheelwright by trade, and 
constructed a lathe run by foot-power by the 
use of which he made chairs and the old-fash- 
ioned spinning wheels for the spinning of flax 
and wool for the neighborhood. Some of the 
chairs of his manufacture are still in use in the 
township. Currier's mill, located on section 7, 
has served several generations with flour, corn 
meal and other milling products. Near the 
Ijostoffice is located White Oak church, and 
back of it the cemetery grounds. The Indian 
village of Kish-ke-kosh stood where Oscar Mc- 
Curdy's barn now stands, and just east on the 
hill was their graveyard, where they buried 



their dead. The settlers who came very early 
made use of the bark huts which they found 
still standing. Heni-y Bond lived in one of these 
huts until he got his cabin 'built. The dense 
woods and thickets of this township were a 
favorite resort for the pioneer hunter. He was 
almost sure to find game. This may have been 
the reason for the Indians locating their village 
here. White Oak township contains 277 farms 
valued at $193,774, with personal property 
worth $38,891. Its population is 1,800. 



CHAPTER XXV. 



E.\RLY ox RO.\STS MISSIONARIES FOLLOWED 

EARLY SETTLERS. 

In the early days an ox roast was counted a 
great event. This luxury was only announced 
on occasions when the interest was at the high- 
est pitch and a great crowd was expected. Our 
A'ounger readers may be interested to know 
some of the particulars of such an event. We 
give them as they came to us from an enthusi- 
astic pioneer, who participated in these occa- 
sions. A local committee where the feast was 
held had charge of the details. The day pre- 
ceding the roast a trench was dug some ten or 
twelve feet long, four or five feet wide and as 
many deep. On the night previous, or early 
the next morning, a fire was built in this trench 
and kept burning until a heavy bed of coals was 
formed at the bottom. Then the ox was killed 
and dressed and cut up into pieces of convenient 
size, then laid on bars of iron which were placed 
across the trench over the bed of coals. The 
master of this part of the service watches the 
beef while it roasts, turning it with a pitchfork. 
When thoroughly cooked it is placed on im- 
provised tables and e\enone present was \vel- 
come to help themselves. 




WKST Sllil'. Ill' I'lr'.I.R- SOIAUK- lS(i4. OSKAt.c )OS.\. 



I'AST AXI) PRF.SF.XT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



91 



Such a banquet as tliis was licM mi July 3, 
1853. Independence day coinint:^ on Sunday. It 
was made the occasion of the laying of the cor- 
ner stone of the old Xomial School building, 
as well as a Fourth of July celebration. Ferris 
Goodwin superintended the o.k roast on this oc- 
casion. His st)n, James Goodwin, who lives 
near Ruse Hill, has a distinct rec<illection of the 
event. Two thousand fi\e hundred people are 
said to have been present and the event was con- 
sidered the beginning of better things in an edu- 
cational way for Oskaloosa. M. T. Williams 
read the Declaration of Independence and Wil- 
liam Loughridge and W. H. Seevers were the 
orators of the day. After dinner there were 
numerous toasts and responses, among which 
were the following: "Here's to the goose that 
grew the cpiill that wrote the Declaration of 
Independence," M. T. Williams; "May the to- 
per's bottle speedily be broken and the cause 
of teinperance thrive." by S. S. Stewart. It 
might be well to state that the use of the steel 
pen is quite a modern invention. Our fathers 
did all of their writing with a goose quill. 

i'^ifty and sixty years ago all cattle ran out 
on the prairie. Milk cows usually wore a 
bell. The blacksmith who could make cow 
liells added many a shilling to his income. All 
stock was marked in some peculiar way, gen- 
erally in the ear — smooth cro]). swallow fork, 
upper bit, under bit or round hol^. All of these 
marks were recordetl by the owners with the 
township clerk, who settled all disputes with 
reference to the ownershi]j of the stock. There 
was hut one market a year for hogs and that 
was during the winter months. They were 
then collected in large droves and driven to the 
river. Generally to Burlington or Keokuk. 
They were sold by weight and had to be 
weighed with a large pair of steelyards. Each 
hog had to be handled separately. Breeching 
was improvised to place around the hog and 
this was hooked to a chain or rope which was 
fastened to a sweep like those used in lifting 
6 



a bucket of water fnmi the well. When every- 
thing was ready the weigher said : "Hog up," 
and up he went until he was ordered down. The 
weight being ascertained, was recorded, and so 
the work went on mitil the weight of each 
bunch was known and turned into the drove. 
The accommodations for caring for stock on the 
road were poor, and the owner had often to 
spend the night with his hogs to keep them 
from freezing to death. 

In Mahaska county, as in almost all parts of 
the world, the American missionary followed 
close on the heels of the first settlers. One of 
these young men was B. A. Spaulding of sa- 
cred memory. In 1866 he was county superin- 
tendent in Wapello county and gave the author 
his first certificate as a teacher in that year. 
.\. J. Comstock says that in 1843, shortly after 
his father's family had settled in the county, 
a young man, who was a missionary of the 
Presbyterian church, came to their home. His 
father's family all belonged to that church and 
gave the stranger a cordial welcome. Just at 
that time his father had gone to Bonaparte to 
mill, and they were entirely without bread. His 
mother sent him two and a half miles to a neigh- 
Ixir who li\ed across the ri\er to borrow some 
flour. He made the triji afoot, crossing the 
river on a large drift, but returned without any 
flour. There was none to be had. Then his re- 
sourceful mother went to the bran barrel and, 
carefully sifting a part of its contents, she ob- 
tained a sufficient quantity of pretty good flour 
to supply bread for the hungry missionary. 
While that would hardly be possible now, it 
was then, because of the less perfect method of 
bolting the flour. 

In all great movements for the onward march 
of civilization the names of the real heroes are 
often lost sight of until the jostling of the years 
brings them to the surface. In August, 1843, 
the Methodist Episcopal conference met at Du- 
l)uque. The New Purchase had been open for 
settlement three months. This conference de- 



92 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



cided to establish two missions in the new ter- 
ritory and to send young men to occupy the 
field. The whole district was called the Des 
Moines Ri\er District and extended from 
Farmington as far northwest as there were any 
settlements. At that time there was a dearth 
of names in this region and the name given to 
the field which afterward became Mahaska 
county was Muchakinock ^Mission. The name 
of the young man assigned to this mission was 
Joseph T. Lewis. He was the first Methodist 
preacher, if not the very first herald of the 
cross, who ever looked after his scattered flock 
in this new region. ]\Ir. Lewis was a gradu- 
ate of Woodward College, Cincinnati, Ohio. 
Trained as he was in the more polished life 
of the east, he was illy qualified for the hard- 
ships and exposure of missionary life in a new 
countr}-. But he was not wanting in an un- 
selfish and heroic spirit which was willing to 
endure hardness as a good soldier of Christ. 
He came on to the field assigned him and did his 
work faithfully until late in the fall of that • 
year. He was without a home. The settle- 
ments were scattered and the cabins were all 
small. He had often to swim streams, picket 
his horse and camp out on the wild prairies with 
scanty food and covering. It began to tell on 
his health and his presiding elder^ Henry Sum- 
mers, sent him to- Iowa City to teach in a school 
which the church was fostering there. This 
was more agreeable to this training and cul- 
ture. He remained in Iowa City a few years 
and then returned to his home in Cincinnati, 
broken in health. He lingered for a time and 
then went down to a premature grave from ex- 
posure while at work in the Muchakinock Mis- 
sion. So the obituary announcing his death 
stated. It is a pathetic story of a young man 
who brought his contribution to the new west. 
We do not know that he organized a single 
church, but no human wisdom can measure the 
influence of the seed sown on that virgin soil. 
He willingly gave his life in. the sowing, and 



his name should be held in sacred memory by 
his brethren of another generation. Mr. Lewis 
was succeeded in his work in what the old rec- 
ords of Dubuque conference called the INIucha- 
kinock Mission, by Allen Johnson, who organ- 
ized the first Methodist Episcopal church in 
Oskaloosa on October 13, 1844. 

In the pioneer days the handling of money 
"was quite a problem for the settler who was 
fortunate enough to have a sufficient quantity 
for his actual needs in securing a homestead. 
The modern banking system was then unknown 
and impractical in the west. Some interesting 
stories are told of the means resorted to in 
order to prevent robbery and preser\-e the cum- 
bersome coin. E. D. Chew came to Oskaloosa 
from New Jersey in the spring of 1844 and 
landed from the boat at Keokuk late in the 
evening. For convenient handling he had placed 
$3,000 in silver and gold coin in a keg and 
headed it up. He found it almost impossible 
to take personal charge of his treasure for the 
night and reluctantly left his ducats lying over 
night on the wharf with the other household 
stuft'. At the lot sale in Oskaloosa that year 
he ])urchased the corner lot southeast of the 
square, now occupied by the Bertsch-Shurtz 
drug store, paying therefor $50. He took a 
claim of several hundred acres northwest of the 
fair grounds, covering two farms, now owned 
by A. E. Caldwell and Fred Butler, which he 
retained and occupied most of his lifetime. The 
Caldwell farm changed hands recently at $125 
per acre, and Mr. Butler paid $175 per acre 
for his attractive homestead. 

Wesle}' ]\Iettler was one of the industrious 
citizens of Oskaloosa in the earlier years. He 
was somewhat eccentric, but not wanting in 
persistent economy. At one time when his fru- 
gality had rewarded him with several hundred 
dollars in silver coin, he deposited it for safe 
keeping an old iron teakettle in the back shed 
kitchen. One morning he was chagrined to 
find that some thief with a vein of generositv 



PAST AND PRESFA'T OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



93 



in his nature luid relieved him o\ just one-half 
of his treasure. Some years afterward he found 
himself custodian of more than $2,000 in gold 
coin. He owned a good sized farm at that 
time, just northwest of where the first wanl 
school huilding is now located. With his usual 
caution he sought a secure hiding place for his 
hard earnings. This time he secreted the yel- 
low metal under a near-liy hay-stack where he 
was sure no one but himself would think of 
looking for money. Occasionally he slipped 
cautiously over to the place to experience the 
peculiar satisfaction there is in handling a much 
prized treasure. All unconscious - to himself, 
his movements had attracted attention and one 
night his money was stolen. This seemed more 
than he could bear, and he mentioned his loss 
to a few of his friends, among them ex-Sheriff 
Dan Swearingen. To him he gave every clue 
of wliich he had any knowledge, and offered 
him one-half of the beautiful gold pieces if he 
wiiuld I)y any means secure the money. He did 
not care for the thief. Mr. Swearingen was not 
long unra\eling the mystery and the money was 
restored. Hard as it was to part with the coin, 
the division was made. A thousand dollars was 
a dear lesson, but Mr. Mettler was exceedingly 
pleased to have recovered so generous a portion 
of his earnings with which to begin his old busi- 



CHAPTER XX\T. 



Tlir. W.\R PERIOD T.M.LV R.MD, SKVXK RIVER 

ARMY PEORI.V RIOT. 

As in many northern communities during the 
Rebellion, there was a misguided element in 
r^lahaska county who was not in .sj'mpathy 
with the war measures of President Lincoln and 
his admirers. Organizations known as "Knights 



of the (iolden Circle." who held secret meetings 
and were in communication with similar so- 
cieties throughout the state, are known to have 
existed in this county especially along its north- 
ern border. In fact, tlie.se associations of men 
were in sympathy with the Southern Confed- 
erac\', and were never more light-hearted than 
when victory came to the Southern army. In 
a letter to Secretary of War E. M. Stanton, 
dated March 18, 1863. Governor Kirkwood 
expresses the belief that these organizations 
were effected liy paid agents of the Southern 
Confederacy. 

On North Skunk river, near Indianapolis, 
three men were arrested on the charge of trea- 
son bv the United States marshal. They were 
Silas Parr, B. .\. Smith and Wesley Thomas, 
all public men. They were brought to Oska- 
loosa and placed in jail and a company of 
guards were ordered from Eddyville to prevent 
the possibility of their friends releasing them. 

Some days after their arrest a company of 
se\-eral hundred men gathered and started for 
Oskaloosa for the purpose of liberating the 
prisoners. They held a parley on the north 
side of Skunk river and sent a committee to 
Oskaloosa to confer with the authorities. Little 
attention was paid to their presence, and after 
some threatening remarks of what they in- 
tended to do, they returned to their companions 
and the company dispersed to their homes. 

.\fter a short confinement Parr and Thomas 
were released on the payment of a small fine. 
Smith, being a man of limited means, was sent 
to Des Moines to serve out a six or nine months' 
imprisonment. His friends sent him a purse, 
but he sent the ransom money to his family, 
determining to submit to the sentence imposed 
after which he was permitted to go free. 

T.\LLY RAID. 

Confederate sympathizers were known in tlie 
north as "Copperheads." They wore a badge 
of half a butternut or a copper cent as a breast 



94 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



pin. Perliaps tlie most rabid, disloyal strong- 
hold in Iowa was over in the forks of the Skunk 
ri\ers in Keokuk county, with allies in Ma- 
haska, Poweshiek and Wapello counties. On 
Saturday, August i, 1863, when our country 
was under its darkest cloud a meeting of "Peace 
Democrats," as they chose to call themselves, 
was held in a grove near English river, a half 
mile from the town of South English, which 
was of strongly Union sentiment. There were 
se\'eral hundred persons at this meeting. Their 
leading spirit was George C. Tally, a young 
Baptist minister, \\'hose father was a Tennes- 
seean. He was an open advocate of slavery as 
a divine institution and a defender of the Re- 
bellion. They had gone to this meeting with 
arms secreted under the hay and straw in the 
bottom of their wagon beds. Some republicans 
were at the meeting and hot words had passed 
and butter-nut badges had been stripped from 
a couple of ladies who had displayed them. 

Tally was an uneducated man, liut endowed 
with much natural ability as a speaker. On 
this occasion he w"as the .chief speaker. Some 
of the party had made absurd threats that as 
they returned they would clean out the town 
of South English. These facts were made 
known in town and in the afternoon when the 
Tally forces were returning home they passed 
through South English just at the close of a 
republican meeting and found the entire town 
armed, making no effort to disguise their 
weapons. Excitement ran high and the streets 
were crowded. Tally was in the rear part of 
the front wagon with a revoh^er and bowie 
knife in his hands. The Union element bitterly 
hated the Copperheads, and taunted them as 
traitors and cowai'ds. At this all of the com- 
pany took up their weapons from the bottom of 
their vehicles and one man discharged, by acci- 
dent he claimed, one barrel of his piece into the 
ground. This gave license for the firing to be- 
come general. Tally fell dead after firing two 
chambers of his weapon. One of the horses 



drawing the front wagon was shot, which 
caused the team to run, and the fusillade ceased. 
Tallv was shot three times. Once in the head 
and twice through the body. A democrat by 
the name of \\'yant was severely wounded, but 
afterward recovered. Tally was carried to his 
home in luka. The revolver and knife which 
he held in his hands when he received the fatal 
shots were so tightly clinched that they could 
only be removed with difficulty after the body 
reached home. That afternoon and night mes- 
sengers were sent to adjoining counties to 
notify sympathizers. By daylight Sunday 
morning an army of variously estimated at from 
500 to several thousand were on their way to 
a rendezvous agreed upon on Skunk river south 
of Sigoumey. Here they formed a camp and 
spent the day molding bullets, gathering am- 
munition and arms. Bill Tally, a cousin of the 
unfortunate A'ictim at South English, was se- 
lected as their leader. This hastily assembled 
bodv of men are known in history as the "Skunk 
River Army." Governor Kirkwood had been 
promptly notified of the occurrence, and with his 
usual foresight and activity was ready for the 
emergency. He at once ordered eleven military 
companies and a squad of artillery to proceed 
forthwith to Sigourney, where he himself with 
three aides met them on Wednesday. The gov- 
ernor made an address at the courthouse to the 
large assembly who were in waiting. He urged 
oliedience to law, and proniised the jjower of 
the state to bring guilty parties to justice. The 
army had called Charles Negus, a prominent 
Fairfield attorney, to act as their counsel. After 
a conference with the state authorities he wisely 
advised the leader of the army of the utter folly 
of trying to resist the legally organized state 
authorities. Col. N. P. Chipman was com- 
mander of the state guards. When Tally re- 
ported to his crude soldiery that they were 
called upon to disperse or face the state troops 
without delay, their courage gave way to more 
mature judgment and they concluded to dis- 



I'AS'I- AXi:) PRKSEXT OF ^FATIASKA COUNTY. 



95 



liaiul. The Iciiipnrary eiu-ampmcnt was ahan- 
(Iciiieil in as slmrt a s])ace nf lime as they had 
gathered. It is estimated that ahout 150 men 
frum Mahaska eounty were members of that 

infill iric HIS musluMdm army. 

PEORI.X KIOT. 

Oji Auq-ust J2. hSi'i^^, a similai" occurrence 
took i)lace in this county, one-half mile west of 
Peoria, at a democratic rally. Capt. Simon G. 
(iarv and Sergt. .\. T. Allnway. both of Com- 
])an\- II. I'hird Icua Infantry, were in Peoria 
at that time at home on wounded furlough, 
(iary had been at this mas.s meeting in the fore- 
noon and had had some trouble with some par- 
ties wearing butternut badges. In the after- 
noon after indulging in some liquor he returned 
to the meeting and took with him his comrade. 
-\lloway. from whom he had borrowed a pistol. 
Capt. James A. Seevers, of Oskaloosa, was the 
speaker for the afternoon, and .\. L. Shangle 
presided at the meeting. The two woiuided 
soldiers got into rui altercation with the disloyal 
element and were persuaded to retire by some 
of their friends. .\s the\' were leaving tlie 
grounds a ])artisan named Mart Myers stepped 
in frunt and dared either of them to remove his 
InUternut badge. 'Hie hated symbol was at 
once removed an<l Alliiway and Myers clinched. 
In the struggle which fnllowed M\ers shot Al- 
way. who was unarmed, through the Ijody. 
Whereupon the soldier, miw suffering from a 
second wnuid. snatched the weajjon from his 
antagonist and threw him on the ground, and 
after striking Myers several times with his pis- 
tol, he fell to the ground coni]iletely exhausted. 
Inuuediatelv after the first shot was fired, it 
was followed by the discharge of a num1)er of 
other weapons. Gary was wounded in the wrist 
and a Dr. Spain received a w^ound in the leg. 
Excitement and consternation followed anrl the 
meeting broke up. The few republicans j^resent 
placed Sergeant .MIoway in a wagon, but he 
expired before reaching Peoria. The dead sol- 
dier was to have been married in a short time to 
a cousin of the man who took his life. 



Sherift:' Frank Alumbaugh and two marshals 
shortly afterwards arrested Myers and he was 
placerl in the county jail in Oskaloosa. After 
two lengthy and expensive trials, one in Ot- 
tumwa and the other in .\lbia, in which a hard 
effort was made by the defense to ])rove that it 
was the shot fired by Gary that killed his com- 
rade, the county already having been at a large 
expense, with no hope of conviction, the case 
was dismissed, and Myers remained unpunished 
for his crime. There is not much wonder that 
such men went unpunished when we remember 
that it was estimated by Gov. Stone in that 
vear that there were 30,000 members in the 
disloyal organizations of the state. 

R,\in ON TIIK TIME.S OFFICE. 

The Times was a tlemocratic paper pul:)lished 
in Oskaloosa. .\. .A. W'heelock was its editor. 
He was of the radical democratic tyi)e of that 
]>eriod and in conuuenting on the death of Allo- 
w ay he is said to have referred to the murdered 
soklier as l^eing "only a Lincohi hireling, em- 
ployed in killing his betters." Several copies of 
the Times reached his comrades of Company 
H. Third Iowa Regimetit, where they were on 
duty at Xatchez, Mississippi. They w'ere very 
justly indignant at that kind of journalist refer- 
ence to their services in behalf of their country. 
.\ meeting was called and they decided tliat Air. 
W'heelock should do one of two things, viz.: 
retract his ultra statement, or accept confeder- 
ate money for his paper at its face value. Fail- 
ing to do either of these, his paper should be 
suppressed just as soon as Company H should 
reach home. These alternatives were sent to 
the indiscreet editor by mail. He refused the 
first two and the .soldiers determined to stop the 
publication of the i)a])er. In March, 1S64, a 
number of troojjs came home on veteran fur- 
lough, and among the numlier a part of Com- 
])any H of the Third. At a meeting held at 
luldyville, which was at that time the nearest 
railroad point. (|uite a number of veterans op- 
])osed \iolent measures; others were bent on 



96 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



carrying out the decision of the company while 
in camp. A delegation of veterans alighted 
from the stage. at the Madison house and called 
at the Times office and told Mr. W'heelock they 
were comrades of Alloway, whose calling he 
had derided and belittled through his paper. 
They would be at home for thirty days and re- 
quested that his paper should be suspended for 
that length of time. When asked by what au- 
thority, their reply was : "By military author- 
ity." Mr. Wheelock stated in the next issue 
that he had been threatened by soldiers, that 
he wished no quarrel with them, but if his busi- 
ness was interfered with they would be called 
upon to settle with the democracy of ]\Iahaska 
county. The Saturday following this publica- 
tion was selected by the soldiers to make their 
work effective. The veterans had all been noti- 
fied and were present, likewise a goodly number 
of the Times supporters were in town and were 
known to be armed. • The Times office was near 
the northeast corner of the square, where the 
jail now stands. A squad of Company H, 
Third Iowa, visited the office about two o'clock 
in the afternoon, and g'oing into the press room 
the}' f|uitly carried to the window everything 
that was in sight — forms, font and type, and 
threw it into the street. It was only the work 
of a few moments, and without touching any- 
thing else they met their comrades on the mit- 
side. The work was completed without a shot 
being fired and the suppression of the paper was 
effectual. 'Mr. \Mieelock left the city and alian- 
doned the field of journalism. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 



THE WAR PERIOD KILLING OF THE M.\RSH.ALS 

OTHER W.\R INCIDENTS. 

During the draft of 1864 a number of men 
were drafted from Sugar Creek township in 
Poweshiek county, who failed to report them- 



selves to the authorities. Under the law this 
disobedience to orders caused them to be 
treated as deserters. On Saturday, October i, 
the provost marshal of the fourth district of 
Iowa sent out two deputy marshals to arrest 
the drafted men as deserters. These two offi- 
cers were Captain John L. Bashore, of Center- 
ville, and Deputy Marshal J. M. Woodruff, of 
Knoxville, whose headquarters were at Oska- 
loosa. On entering the township just before 
noon the_\- met Mike Gleason, and thinking him 
a I(_iyal man, they made some in(|uir}' as to 
where they would find the drafted men. When 
they had parted with Gleason, they stopped 
with James A. Craver for dinner. From Mr. 
Cra\-er the officers learned of the existence in 
the township of a somewhat secret organization 
knows as "Democrat Rangers." As they 
were known to be well armed the deputy mar- 
shals determined to report to Marshal James 
Matthews, their superior officer, whose head- 
quarters was at Grinnell, before going further 
in their search. 

After dinner they had proceeded only a short 
distance when they met John and Joe Fleener 
(relatives of Myers who had shot Alloway in 
the year previous), and Mike Gleason. The 
behax'ior of the men showed clearly to the offi- 
cers that they were about to have trouble. Ba- 
shore sprang out of the buggv with his revolver 
in his hand and began remonstrating with the 
three men, saying they had no quarrel with 
them, but were in search of other citizens of 
the township. Woodruff remained in the 
buggy. After a short parley Bashore turned to 
join his fellow officer and John Fleener leveled 
a double-barreled shot-gun at the officer and 
shot him in the back. W(^()druif was shot with 
the other barrel in the chest. A second shot 
struck him in the face, breaking his lower jaw. 
His team took fright and ran away, throwing 
him on his face. While in this position he was 
shot through the head and instantly killed. 
Woodruff was murdered where the Hickory 



PAST -VXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



97 



drove schoolliouse now stanils. W'c ha\e tlie 
al)ove brief facts from T. S. Craver, a nepliew 
lit" J. A. Craver, who was on tlie ground a short 
time after tlie shooting and as a young man 
took note of every detail. Mr. Craver had si.x 
brothers in the army and still lives near the old 
homestead in Sugar (jrove townsbi]). (iieason 
had received so severe a wmnid in the thigh 
that he was unable to get away, but had 
strength enough to approach Bashore and 
break his gun over the fatally wounded mar- 
shal. Pashore li\ed four nr fi\c hours and re- 
lated all the ])articulars of the double murder 
lit these union ofhcers. The cnwardlx- I'leeners 
made good their escape, leaving their confeder- 
ate to his fate. Jn a \ery short time the citizens 
o\ the neighborhood, who heard the firing, 
came to the spot and remo\ed the dead and 
wounded to the J. .\. Craver home which was 
but a short distance away. Gleason was ar- 
rested. According to his testimony, after leav- 
ing the marshals in the forenoon, he went di- 
rectly to ^[iller■s sawmill where there was a 
meeting of the "Ivangers" for drilling tliat 
afternoon, it being on Saturday. It seems that 
the three men named ajjove were delegated bv 
the company to take care of the marshals. 
Shortly after these United States officers were 
nnnxlered, several wagon loads of these rebel 
sympathizers passed the spot where they were 
lying" without offering the slightest assistance. 
Pnn'ost ]\rarshal Matthews ordered two com- 
panies iif militia, one from ("irinnell and the 
other frciui Montezuma, and acc<ini]ian.ied them 
himself to the scene of the shooting to 
assist in making the arrests. On Sunday 
(ileasiin and se\en others were sent to Os- 
kalniisa under guard, 'idle names of the latter 
were .\ndrew Powers and son Joseph. Solomon 
Watson and son George, John Malony. .Mien 
Daniel and I'erry Mcl""arland. Several other 
arrests were made. .\ ])art of them were sent 
to Davenport. Piut as sutticient evidence to 
comict was wanting, thev were soon after- 



wards released. On Monday the bodies of the 
murdered officers were brf)ught to Oskaloosa. 
A delegation of citizens met them outside the 
city. .\s they were escorted through the streets 
the church bells tolled and every mark of re- 
spect was shown to them as men who had been 
slain by the spirit of insurrection while at the 
))ost of duty. The following day the bodies 
were removed to Center\ille and Knoxx'illle, 
their respective homes. The most dihgent 
search for the Fleener brothers was unsuccess- 
ful. They left the country antl have never been 
seen in these parts since. It was iiuite well 
known in after vears that thev went to the fron- 
tier in Kansas and e\'er afterward lived under 
an assumed name. Alike Gleason, the mis- 
guided "Ranger," languished in the Oskaloosa 
iail fur a number of months, awaiting the time 
when his wounds should be sufficientl}- healed 
to be brought to trial. When the trial was com- 
pleted he wfas sentenced for a long term in the 
state penitentiary, from which he never 
emerged until the dav came when he was car- 
ried out and lairied in a felon's grave. 

There were cjuite a number of (|uarrels and 
feuds about over the county at different times. 
To match the Skunk river arm\- and the demo- 
crat rangers, in the north part of the county 
there was a union organization known as the 
Border Brigade. The presence of these antago- 
nistic elements, each working in secret and 
often usurping authority which did not belong 
to them, made the war period a pretty warm 
time in Mahaska county. .\t one time a man 
by the name of Street, wlio had been .sentenced 
to imprisonment for treason, was being brought 
by stage from one of the southern counties in 
the state on his way to Des Moines. The 
Skunk river army, who were always threaten- 
ing but never did anything, passed a resolution 
to rescue the prisoner as he passed through Os- 
kaloosa. Abniit one hundred armed men ap- 
peared in Oskaloosa on the day he was ex- 
pected and planned to intercept the stage. The 



98 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



autliorities were warned of the probable inter- 
ruption, and laringing" with them a company 
of militia from Eddyville, passed the city by 
another route and coming in from the north, 
locked the prisoner in the jail. Seeing the mi- 
litia the would-be deliverers struck out for 
home and the prisoner was taken on his way 
to Des Moines the same night. 

Ten companies of infantry were enlisted in 
Alahaska county, the aggregate of which \\as 
about i,ooo men. Besides this number there 
\\ere some 300 who enlisted in other commands 
in the state and who were recruited for the ten 
companies as their ranks became depleted dur- 
ing the progress of the war. This makes a to- 
tal of 1,300 men who answered the call of pa- 
triotism and manfully took their places in sol- 
dier array between their home and sdutbern 
treason. 

In 1861 the entire papulation of the county 
A\as about 15,000. In that year four companies 
were recruited, viz.: Company H, Third Iowa; 
Company C, Seventh Iowa; Company H, 
Eighth Iowa; Compan}- C, Fifteenth bnva. In 
1862 the following companies were recruited: 
Companies C, D, E and K, Thirty-third Iowa, 
and Company C, Fortieth Iowa. The follow- 
ing year Company I, Forty-sexenth Iowa, was 
enrolled. 

The Thirty-third Iowa Infantry contained 
more Mahaska men than any other regiment. 
Its place of rendezxous was at the county fair 
grounds named Camp Tuttle, in honor of Colo- 
nel Tuttle, the gallant soldier of the Second 
Iowa. In the )-ear 1862, when the Thirty-third 
Iowa was encamped here while recruiting its 
ranks before going to the south, a company of 
women were organized to prepare such articles 
as the soldiers would find useful in their more 
active service in field and camp life at the front. 
One of these articles the bo\s called their house- 
wife. It was a needle-lx)ok made like a fold- 
ing pocketbook. fastened with a flap and but- 
ton, and contained needles and pins, thread and 
buttons and such other articles as befitted a .sol- 



dier's toilet. Among other articles presented 
to each individual soldier was a copy of the 
New Testament, given Ijy tbe Mahaska County 
Bible Society. These tokens of afifection were 
generally much prized by the men, and we 
know of some of them who ha\'e that Testament 
}'et. and would not now part with it for its 
weight in gold. 

Three companies of this regiment were from 
Keokuk county antl three were from Marion 
county. The regiment was raised and organ- 
ized by Colonel S. A. Rice, whose splendid 
record as a brave commander is a treasured 
memor}- of both countv and state. It was sworn 
into service on October ist. and numbered in 
all 980 men. The command left the barracks 
November 20th. marching to Eddy\ille. where 
they took the train for Keokuk, thence bv 
steamer to St. Louis and the south, where the\" 
spent the winter of 1862-3 in the most acti\'e 
and trying service. The following spring 
Colonel Rice was placed in command of the 
brigade of which his regiment formed a part, 
and Lieutenant-Colonel Mackev became the 
first officer in the regiment. Elliott \\'. Rice, a 
brother of the atove, was also a Mahaska 
county man. He enlisted in 1861 as second ser- 
geant in Company C, Seventh Iowa Infantry, 
and rose to brigadier-general in 1864. 

Captain A. J. Comstock, of Company C, 
Thirty-third Iowa, was a veteran of the Mex- 
ican war, having enlisted October 25, 1848, 
at Hannibal, Missouri, as a private in the Four- 
teenth Tennessee Regiment. He was the only 
Mexican volunteer from Mahaska county. But 
the treatv of peace had alreach' l)een signed and 
the war practically over early in that year. 
News traveled slowly in those days, and it took 
some months to reach the north. Mr. Corn- 
stock was mustered out in August, 1849. 

In 1862 the board of supervisors of Ma- 
haska county passed a resolution offering a 
ten-dollar bountv warrant, which should be re- 
ceived for county taxes, to all volunteer pri- 
\-ates from the countv. The of¥er continued in 



PAST AND I'l'JI^SEXT OF MAHASKA COL'XTV, 



99 



force until January, 1X63. As in almost all of 
the liiyal conmiunilies of the north, the ladies 
I if this ciiunty cnntrihuted much to the aid of 
the soldiers tluring the war period. Societies 
were or^fanized which sent to the front sani- 
tary su])i)lies. Soldiers' widows and orphans 
were tenderly cared for, the Christian Com- 
mission, the I-reedman's Aid Commission and 
all like organizations receiving generous con- 
trihutions. During the summer of 1864 alone 
the following subscriptions were made by Ma- 
haska county citizens : Sanitary Commission, 
$1,000; Christian Commission. $1,000; Freed- 
man's Aid Commission, $1,000; Soldiers- 
Orphans" Home, $2,000 ; making a total of 
S5.000 for these beneficent purposes. 

.\ partial report of a committee appointed 
January 10. 1865, to solicit similar donations 
shows a total from the differfent townships of 
$3. ,^82.37. In November, 1864, ninety men 
were drafted into the service from seven town- 
ships, who had not filled their quota In" enlist- 
ments. Only forty-five men were wanted, hut 
it was the custom of the war department to have 
twice the number drawn, and when a suffi- 
cient number nf men from a given township 
had j)assed the examination, beginning with 
numlier one, the others who had been called tc 
report were excused. 



CHAPTER XX\III. 



FIRST THINGS IX M.\H.\SK.\ COUNTY E.\U- 

LIEST CABIN BUILT IN 1842. 

The first cabin built in the territnr\- ni Ma- 
haska county was built in the fall (if 184-' by 
William Mclllvain. He was a clerk at thai 
time at J. P. Eddy's trading post. By profes- 
sion an Indian trader and hunter, he secured 



his permission to build the cabin from the Sac 
and Fox Indians, who hung around the trad- 
ing post. The home was built f(;r the family 
of John I!, (jrav. who arri\ed from Texas in 
Xovember, and occupied the place until the fol- 
lowing spring, when he took a claim just over 
the county line in Mom'oe county on a small 
stream since known as (ira\' creek. We ba\'e 
this information from the ( iray family, and also 
froni Mr. J. H. Mclllvain. son of William 
Mcllhain. now in Kansas. 

The first judge of Mahaska county was J. 
A. L. Crookham. His term of service began in 
.\ugust, 1 85 1, and ended in August, 1835. 

David Stump was the first surveyor in the 
county, serving from 1844 to 1846. It fell to 
bis lot to survey the original plat on which the 
city of Oskaloosa is now located. 

Tlie first grand jury in the county held its 
first session in the hollow, a (|uarter of a mile 
north of the square, surrounded by tall prairie 
grass. This was in the summer of 1844. 

The first courthouse owned b}' the county 
was built on the northwest corner of the square 
during the winter of 1844-5. ^^ '^'^'^^ «! two 
stor)- frame structure. James Edgar was the 
contractor. 

The first jail was built in 1843. ^^ ^^''i* built 
of logs and was located on the old jail site on 
Xorth .V street, .\fter a prisoner named Les- 
ter had distinguished himself by boring bis way 
out with a common auger, the l)uilding was 
plated high with iron. 

The first school in the county was opened in 
a rude, doorless log cabin in the timber two 
miles east of Oskaloosa in September, 1844. It 
was taught 1)\- Miss Semira A. Hobbs. now 
Mrs. T. Ci. Phillips, of Oskaloosa. 

A. S. X'ichols was chairman of the first 
board of commissioners of the county. The 
financial affairs of the coimty were managed by 
three commissioners. Mr. Xicbols had charge 
of laying out the original plat of the town of 
Oskaloosa. 



lOO 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



He dug the first well in Oskaloosa. Poult- 
ney Loughridge. of Spring Creek, dug the first 
well in the county. The settlers depended on 
springs for water. Henr}- Stafford says there 
was a spring in the early years where the Pres- 
byterian church now stands. When wells be- 
gan to be dug it ceased to flow. 

Mr. Nichols also started the first blacksmith 
shop in the county. He had customers who 
came from fifty miles west of Des Moines. 
There was no shop further west in this part 
of Iowa. 

W. D. Campfield was the first treasurer of 
Mahaska county. His report for the year 1844 
was $505.63 as a total amount of taxes due. 
Amount collected, $361.99, leaving a balance 
of unpaid taxes of $143.64. 

The first appropriation for a public highway 
in the county was made about 1854 by Judge 
J. A. L. Crookham for a rope to stretch across 
the river at Bellefountaine for the use of the 
ferry boat. The request was made in the pres- 
ence of John \\niite. While ^iv. Crookham 
hestitated, doubting his authority. Mr. \\'hite 
said to him. "I will stand by you if you make 
the appropriation." It would be interesting to 
know tile full amount of money that has been 
appropriated by county and township boards 
for public highways since that cautious begin- 
ning. 

The first brick kiln burned in the county was 
undertaken by Goodwin & Harbour in 1846. 
o\xr on Spring creek. From this kiln the first 
brick house in Oskaloosa was built. It still 
stands the first house south of the Christian 
church, and is now occupied as a residence. 

The first cemetery in the count}' was located 
on the ridge southwest of the second ward 
schoolhouse building. It was known as the 
Judge John \\'hite cemeterv in distinction from 
the second cemetery on north Market street. 

The first grave robbed in the county oc- 
curred at this cemeterj' in 1849. -"^ California 



emigrant had died and was buried here. An 
about-town fellow, known as Captain Moore, 
robbed the grave. It produced a great sensa- 
tion at the time. Moore fled. He has the odious 
distinction of being the first grave robber in the 
county. 

The first murder in the county occurred in 
Adams township, eight miles' northeast of Os- 
kaloosa, on Middle creek. It occurred in 1843, 
before Oskaloosa was born. ' \\'illiam John- 
son, who had a romantic and vicious history, 
was an outlaw. He always carried fire-arms 
to resist arrest. His cabin was located in a 
grove on what is now the Vermillia farm. He 
had bitter enemies, and one night while he was 
standing in front of his cabin fire about seven 
o'clock he was shot, the bullet passing through 
a crevice in the cabin wall. It was never known 
just who committed the deed. The next morn- 
ing a grave was dug beside the cabin and in 
this the criminal was buried. 

Major Neeley started the first liven,- stable 
in Oskaloosa. It was located just north of the 
Oskaloosa dry-goods store. In 1848 Henry 
Staft'ord purchased its belongings and moved 
it to the opera house corner. One day a party 
passed through town with two large elk. Mr. 
Stafford conceived the idea of having a team of 
reindeers and traded a horse for the two. He 
says he tried every way possible to train them 
to work with safety in harness, but utterly 
failed. Mr. Stafford had twenty-three head of 
horses and liveried as far west as Council 
Bluffs. 

The first marriage license in the count}' was- 
issued by county clerk M. T. Williams. May 
30, 1844, to Samuel C. Nicholson and Eleanor 
May. 

The first bill of divorce found on the records 
of the county is dated November 15, 1845; i" 
the case of Rebecca Ash versus Thomas Ash. 
The court granted the petition and declared the 
complainant to be the injured party. 



PAST AND PRESEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



lOI 



The first set of naturalization papers granted 
in the county was issued July 28, 1845. 

The first meeting house in the county was 
Imilt in Oskalnosa in i84(). I)\- the Cumberland 
I'resbyterian churcii. Jt was located on the lot 
now occupied by the residence of Dr. Hugg on 
h'irst street one and one-half blocks south of the 
s(|uare. This congregation was organized by 
Rev. R. B. Bonham November 10, 1844, with a 
membership of twenty-two persons. The bell, 
which fnr a Idiig term of years called the wor- 
shipers together was brought from Keokuk 
iin a lumber wagon and was so hung in its place 
on the wagon that it rang all the way when the 
wagon was in motion. This liell is still pre- 
served as one of the city's relics. 

The first hotel built in the city was erected 
by Charles Purvine, on the Downing House lot 
in the summer of 1846. Jonathan Ogden was 
the mechanic. This lot 5. block 19. was sold to 
Harmon Davis, June 9, 1844. for $41. Ever 
since the construction of this first little frame 
building the property has been used as a hotel 
for the entertainment of the public. 

J. S. Chew came from Philadelpliia in 1850. 
1 le made and sold the first ice cream ever man- 
ufactured in Oskaloosa. He was a man of 
^■aried talent : a local preacher, the first man in 
the county to take up the work of organizing 
Sunday-schools over the county. 

The first teachers' institute ever held in the 
county was brought about by J. F. Everett, in 
the summer of 1858. Mr. Everett was then a 
young teacher in the county. Prof. Enos, of 
Cedar Rapids was president and Miss Emma 
Jack, secretary. No records of this institute 
have been preserved. 

The first camp meeting in the county was 
held at a spring north of Oskaloosa, in what is 
now Gibbs' Grove, in the fall of 1847. There 
were stirring times at some of these meetings. 
Some of the pioneers can give the te.xt of the 
great sermons to which they listened. 



The first election for choosing officers for 
the city go\ernment of the city of Oskaloosa 
occurred on July 2, 1853. The election resulted 
in the following: Mayor, W. T. Smith: mar- 
shal, Isaac Kalbach : clerk, W'm. Loughridge : 
treasurer, James Edgar; councilmen — First 
ward, J. M. Dawson, R. R. Harbour ; Second 
ward, 1. X. Cooper, E. W. Eastman; Third 
ward, Tobias Leighton, Smith E. Stevens; 
Fourth ward, E. W. Wells, Henry Temple. 

The first railroad in the county was the Des 
Moines Valley, built to Eddyville in 186 1 and 
extended through this county three years later. 

The first barrel of sugar ever retailed in Os- 
kal(josa was haided from Burlington by Harry 
Brewer. 

The first Mahaska County Fair was held in 
the fall of 1852. 

The first buggy brought to the county was 
owned by ^^'illiam Edmundsun. who was the 
first county sherifif and organized the county. 

The first frame dwelling in Oskaloosa was 
erected during the summer of 1845 by Micajah 
T. Williams. Mr. Williams did the work with 
his own hands. It was located on the corner 
Avbere the postoffice now stands. It was the 
first home of Mr. Williams and his young wife. 
\^irginia Seev'ers. 

The first lumber yard in Oskaloosa was 
opened on June 13. 1865, by Isaac Kalbach. 
He hauled his first supply of lumber from Ed- 
dyville. Mr. Kalbach was a cabinet-maker by 
trade in his earlier life, and knew the superior 
advantage of working with pine lumber over 
the hard native woods. This yard still remains 
in the Kalbach family. 

The first carding machines brought to Oska- 
loosa were placed in the mill erected by A. S. 
Nichols and Jonathan .\dkins. north of the old 
jail site. 

The first fanning mill brought into the 
county was introduced by Moses Nowels in Jef- 
ferson township. It was brought on a steam- 



lOJ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



boat from Keokuk and used l^y the settlers 
for miles around in caring for their small grain 
luitil it was worn out. 

The first newspaper in the county was issued 
July 2, 1850. For some months it was known 
as the Iowa Herald. Then the name of the pa- 
per was changed to the Oskaloosa Herald, the 
name it still retains. John R. Needham was its 
editor and Hugh McNeeley had charge of the 
composing work. It has been a regular visitor 
to its patrons now for more than fifty-five 
years. 

The first bridge built across Skunk river was 
constructed by Major James Pomeroy for 
George N. Duncan during the winter of 1848-9. 
The frame was put up on the ice. The follow- 
ing spring a freshet swept the whole structure 
away. 

The first county fair held in Mahaska count}- 
Avas held in the public sc|uare on Saturday, Oc- 
tober 23, 1852. The officers were as follows : 
Poultney Loughridge. president ; John Bond 
and C. N. Smith, vice-presidents ; Thomas F. 
See\ers, secretary ; Andrew Williams, treas- 
m-er. There were but few entries and but little 
interest. The race track extended from the 
west side of the square a mile or more along 
the ridge to the northwest. The second fair 
held a year later made a much better showing. 
At this fair \\"illiam Frederick took the first 
premium on corn, having raised 138 bushels 
on one acre of ground. 

Joseph T. Lewis was the first ^Methodist 
Episcopal preacher who was assigned by his 
conference to do missionar}- work in Mahaska 
county district. It was called Muchakinock 
Mission. He only labored for three or four 
months, as the exposure to which he was sub- 
jected broke down his health, causing his death 
some vears later. 



CHAPTER NNIX. 



OSK.\LOOS.\ S CEMETERIES E.\RLV FUXER.XLS 

RECOLLECTIONS OF DE.\D. 

In the very early years, when death came to 
the home of the western 'traveler, some ridge 
or hill was selected on which to bui'y the dead. 
It would be a spot well marked by a huge tree 
or grove or stream. Sometimes, in the neces- 
sity of keeping up with the caravan, a grave 
was hurriedly dug by the side of the trail. 

Thomas A. Stoddard, who passed through 
Fort Kearne}', July 14, 1852, on his return 
from California to Iowa, counted 6co fresh 
gra\'es by the roadside between that prnnt and 
his Iowa home. He also states that up to the 
foregoing date the government records showed 
that 41,156 emigrants had passed through Fort 
Kearney going westward. 

The first cemetery near Oskaloosa was laid 
out on an acre of land donated for that pur- 
pose by Judge John ^A'hite, who lived on the 
ritlge just southwest of town. Mr. White was 
the first probate judge in this county ( 1844- 
49) and retained the title throughout his life- 
time in distinction to John White, the financier 
and banker, whose home was just north of 
Oskaloosa. 

This cemeterv was located on the ridge south- 
west of the second ward school building. Mr. 
George \\'hite, a son of Judge \Miite, states 
that the first person buried there was a Cali- 
fornia emigrant -^ho died while his caravan 
was passing through on their westward 
journey. 

Quite a number of the early settlers, whose 
names have not come down to us, were buried 
in this old graveyard. One pioneer, who was 
a boy at the time, describes clearly the simple 
burial ser\'ice. The crude walnut coffins and 
the wooden head boards whicli had the name of 



]>AST AXD TRKSEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



103 



the interreii iiiscrilied upon it with oil and lamp 
Mack. 

It is a serious reflection on tiie ingratitude 
of this city that this sacred spot has been al- 
lowed to be desecrated in so many ways. The 
people whose bones lie there, whoever they 
may be, fought the battle of civilization for us, 
enduring hardships and giving up life itself for 
the con(iuest of the wilderness. They have be- 
i|ueathed to us this good land for which we did 
not toil. Their last resting place deserves to 
be protected and treated with reverence and 
gratitude. Unless we set the example to fu- 
ture generations. God's acre will only have a 
commercial \aluc in the mind of the multiplied 
thousands, who shall take our ])laces. As the 
plain marble slab and the unmarked grave have 
meant nothing to us, so the [Milished munument 
and the splendid mausoleum will mean nothing 
to the children of men, who shall struggle for 
an existence in Mahaska county in one or two 
hundred years from today. May heaxen i)less 
the memory of the unselfish life of the pioneer 
and keep us from being ungrateful to his dust. 

On account of the wet and spongy condition 
of the soil in this first cemetery, the ladies of 
the city organized a society in 1848. which had 
for its purpose the raising of sutficient means 
to ])urchase and iiuprove a five-acre lot a luile 
north of tow'n. They raised money by making 
different articles of plain clothing and placing 
tiiem on sale at the stores in Oskaloosa. With 
lueans thus acquired, they purchased from John 
W hite the plat of ground now known as the 
old cemetery. This was used as the city's burv- 
ing ground until i860. In June of that year a 
])ublic meeting of citizens was called to organize 
a cemetery association. At this meeting P. 
-Mxers, J. R. Xeedham, C. F. Childs and Wil- 
liam Loughridge were appointed as a committee 
to rqjort articles of incorporation for adoption 
at the next meeting. Another committee con- 
sisting of Wesley ?vIoreland, W. S. Edgar and 
W illiam C. Khinehart were apix)inted to se- 



lect a site and ascertain the cost of lands suit- 
able for the location of a new cemetery. At the 
ne.xt meeting the committee on articles of in- 
corporation reported a suitable charter. We 
give the preamble in full because it contains a 
good list of well known names and shows the 
spirit of the founders of the new movement: 

"Be it known by these i)resents that we, 
James Rhinehart, J. 1-. Childs, Henr>' Lyster. 
James .\. Seevers, J. H. Macon, Eli Ketner, 
John V. Hopkins, John R. Needham, James 
McOuiston. D. Warren Loring. Henrv How- 
ard, Philip Meyers, A. F. Seberger. Benja- 
min F. Ingels, N. C. Crawford, William 
Loughridge, James P. Dixon, Saiuuel A. Rice, 
AI. L. Jackson, W'illiam M. Wells, John D. 
Gaunt, William S. Edgar, Samuel Ingels and 
Solomon K. Rhinehart, desiring to establish a 
new cemetery at or near the city of Oska- 
loosa, in the cotinty of Mahaska and state of 
Iowa, do, hereby, in accordance with the pro- 
visions of an act passed by tlie seventh general 
assembly of the state of Iowa, entitled, 'An 
act for the incorporation of benevolent, char- 
itable, scientific or inissionary societies,' ap- 
proved March 22d, .\. D., 1858, adopt the fol- 
lowing articles of association." The entire pa- 
per has the ring of completeness. It provided 
that the naiue of the society should be Forest 
Cemetery Association. On the adoption of the 
charter the following officers were elected : 
President, Rev. J. F. Childs; vice-president. 
Samuel A. Rice; secretary, James McQuiston; 
treasurer. D. \\'. Loring; director, W. S. 
Edgar. On August 20, i860, the association 
purchased of William S. Dart twenty acres of 
land at $50 per acre, lying northeast of the 
city. The land was surveyed, fenced and laid 
out in lots under the name of Forest ceiueterv. 
An average valuation of not less than five cents 
l)er square foot was determined by a committee 
and a day appointed on which lots were sold to 
the highest bidder, with the provision that each 
sale should bring not less than the price of the 



I04 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



assessed valuation. John R. Needham, James 
Seevers and W. S. Edgar were appointed a 
committee to report suitable rules and regula- 
tions. These rules, with the articles were pub- 
lished in pamphlet form. A majority of the 
projectors of this new cemetery are now sleep- 
ing in its bosom. In later years an additional 
tract of land, consisting of about twenty acres 
was added to the original purchase on the east. 
The Catholic cemetery is now located on a part 
of the grounds last purchased. 

A house was built for the sexton in 1875. 

Many of the well known pioneers are buried 
in this city of the dead. A. S. Nichols, who 
was chairman of the board of county commis- 
sioners from 1844 to 1848, lies here. He su- 
pervised the surveying and platting of the town 
of Oskaloosa. We are told that he traded a 
horse for a claim of several hundred acres of 
land just west of town, which he afterward en- 
tered and improved, on a part of which Iowa 
Christian College now stands. Micajah T. Wil- 
liams rests here, on the spot which he himself 
selected under the restful branches of a large 
oak tree. Mr. Williams was the first county 
clerk, and suggested to the county commission- 
ers the name of this city. William Lough- 
ridg"e, who for years was the Ijrilliant congress- 
man from this district. His wife. Diploma 
Loughridge, was the first burial in the Forest 
cemetery. Her death occurred November 26, 
i860, at the early age of twenty-five years. A 
gentleman who attended the funeral says the 
ground was a veritable tangle of hazel brush 
and forest trees at that time, and in no sense 
an inviting spot in which to lay a loved one. 
Since then there has been between four and 
five thousand laid to rest beneath its sod. The 
monument of Brigadier-General Samuel A. 
Rice is on one of the prominent drives. It is 
twenty-three feet in height and five feet and 
four inches square at the base. On the upper 
part of the marble column is carved the names 
of the eight battles in which the General en- 
gaged. It was erected by the Twenty-ninth 



and Thirty-third Iowa Infantiy. The two 
Iowa regiments which were in General Rice's 
brigade. The gallant ofticer died of wounds 
recei\-ed at the battle of Jenkin's Ferry. Cap- 
tain Comstock, who was se\'erly wounded in 
that engagement, says as General Rice rode 
over the field, in the heat of the contest, on see- 
ing a number of his own brave men among the 
dead and wounded, he paused for a moment 
and, dismounting, with tears of sympathy, he 
shook hands with the wounded and expressed 
deep solicitude for the issue of the battle. Then 
remounting, he swept onward to meet the en- 
em}'s last, but desperate and unsuccessful at- 
tack. While riding down his left wing, he 
\\as wounded by a minie ball which caused his 
death. 

The Grand Army of the Republic have 
grounds on the western slope of the ridge where 
thirty-five of their number have found their 
last resting place. Eighty-nine of the original 
members of the post are dead. Many of these, 
however, are buried in lots with their families. 
There are 218 members of the post yet living. 
The entire number of graves, which are an- 
nually decorated by their comrades, is 158. The 
aliove grounds now controlled by the Grand 
Army were purchased by an organization of 
ladies during the war. After the war had closed 
and the Grand x\rmy of the Republic had been 
org-anized, this plot of ground was deeded to 
the post here and has been somewhat enlarged 
by a donation from the cemeterj' association. 

Among the dead will be found the names of 
John R. Needham, the founder of the Oska- 
loo.sa Herald, elected lieutenant-governor of 
Iowa in 1861. As noted above, INIr. Needham 
was chairman of the committee on rules and 
regulations, and suggested the name of the as- 
sociation. He seems to have lived an unusu- 
ally busy and useful life, for he died at the age 
of forty-four years. 

\A^illiam Edmundson, the first sherifl:' of this 
coimty, has a monument to his memory in this 
cemeterv'. Likewise his brother. Matthew Ed- 



PAS r AND i "RESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



lo: 



niundsiiii. wliii \\;is also a Alahaska county 
l)iiineer. 

I\e\-. Asa Turner, who came to Iowa in 1838. 
and had much to do witli the founihng nf l;i)th 
I)Liimai"k Academy and (jrinnell College. 

William H. Seevers, one of Iowa's supreme 
judges. 

The talented M. E. Cutts, who died in his 
li fty-first year. 

The studious and impartial Judge J- Kelly 
Johnson. 

These and many of our most distinguished 
citizens of the earlier days are buried here. 
Near the entrance to the cemetery on Ninth 
street stands a large receiving vault which is 
used much in the winter when the ground is 
frozen. 

There is a growing number of beautiful 
monuments and private vaults which' adorn the 
grounds. Among the more prominent of these 
is the Ferrall vault and the Spencer vault, the 
latter now in process of construction. The 
management have already recently received a 
bequest of some $10,000 from James McCauley 
to be used in building a memorial structure to 
his manory. With this fund it has been de- 
cided to build a memorial chapel on the ceme- 
tery grounds which will acconunodate about 
I 50 persons. 

The present board of officers are as follows : 
President. W. R. Lacey: vice-president and 
.secretary, John .A. Kalbach; treasurer, W. Es- 
gen: directors. W. P. Hawkins and Frank 
Glaze: superintendent. W. H. Cunningham. 
The last named officer lias served the associa- 
tion f<ir nineteen years. There ha\e been but 
few changes in the entire board in that length 
of time. Mr. Cunningham was preceded by 
James McQuiston, who had charge of the as- 
sociation grounds for a long term of years. 

The cemetery association now has a surplus 
fund of about $20,000. This fund will continue 
to grow until the grounds are filled, and then 
form the basis of a pennanent income which 



will be used ])erpetually to keep in order and 
beautify the grounds of the association. 



CHAPTER. XXN. 



R.\lLKO.\US OF M.\1I.\SK.\ COUXTY THlilR BE- 
GIN XI. NX. .\XD GROWTH. 

Early in the "30s an air line railroad route 
was projected thmugb Imva by a company 
named the Mississippi & Missouri Railroad 
Ci)m]jany. \\'ork was begim at IMuscatine. The 
proposed route was surveyed directly through 
Mahaska county, crossing the ri\er at Roches- 
ter. During Judge Crookham's administration 
of county affairs one hundred thousand dollars 
of county bonds as a subscription to the enter- 
prise were voted to the company, but for some 
rea.son they were not issued. Soon after Judge 
Rhinehart was elected county judge in answer 
to a petition of more than one-fourth of the 
voters in the county, he submitted to the people 
the question whether he should subscribe in the 
name of the county $150,000 more in bonds 
payable in twenty years at ten i)cr cent interest, 
payable semi-annually. The subscription was 
voted in March, 1856. Before delivering the 
bonds Judge Rhinehart required security from 
tlie company that the road should be built. The 
security was not given and the bonds were not 
delivered. In 1859 Judge Rhinehart called for 
an election to decide whether the loan 
should be rescinded or delivered to the com- 
jjany. A decided majority were against re- 
scinding and bonds to the amount of $200,000 
were delivered to John A. Dix. president of the 
company, with the understanding that the road 
was to be completed to Oskaloosa before Sep- 
tember, t86o. The company was to expend the 
sum of $13,000 in Mahaska countv during the 



io6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



summer of 1859, '^"'^' ^'^^ county was to pay 
interest on $100,000 of the bonds until the road 
was completed to Oskaloosa. Certificates of 
stock to the amount of the subscription were 
given 1)v the company and also bonds for the 
execution of its contract. In a short lime the 
sale of the bonds was enjoined because parts 
of the agreement had not been complied with, 
and the only loan ever made by the county was 
annulled. 

The bonds remained in possession of the 
company until 1870. when steps were taken by 
the board of supervisors to recover them. In 
this they were successful and William G. 
Briggs, cliairman of the board, and the county 
auditor were appointed a committee to burn tlie 
documents. 

H. R. Kendig says that in 1857, when the 
disposition of these bonds was in doubt, a dele- 
gation of gentlemen from Burlington, among 
whom were Fitz Henry Warren, afterwards 
General, and Judge I. C. Hall, representing the 
Chicago, Burlington & Ouincy road, visited 
Oskaloosa and a public meeting was held in the 
old courthouse. The Chicago, Burlington & 
Quincy was at that time completed to Rome. 
These men proposed to our financiers that if 
they would make o\-er to them the bonds which 
had been voted to the douljtful Mississippi & 
Missouri road, the Chicago, Burlington 
& Quincy company would come up the 
divide from Rome and coming through 
Oskaloosa would take die third tier of 
counties to Council Bluffs instead of the second 
tier, over which their route had been surve}-ed. 
They counted that they would gain a decided 
advantage in the management of their road lied 
on this upland route across the state. Although 
these men pleaded their cause earnestly and 
eloquently, the moneyed men in Oskaloosa 
failed to see the immense v^alue to be gained 
by the ofifer, and turned it down. Everybody 
can see it now that it was the golden opportu- 
nity not only in the lifetime of one generation, 



Ijut in the lifetime of a city. Just what Oska- 
loosa would have been all these years with a 
great transcontinental trunk line touching its 
life eighteen to twenty hours out of the twenty- 
four of each day, it is difiicult to tell. It is said 
that E. W. Eastman became so discouraged 
over the failure to accept this of^er that he left 
the city, locating at Eldora, and in after years 
was elected lieutenant governor of Iowa. 

KEOKUK & DES MOINES. 

The Keokuk & Des Moines Railroad was 
built from Keokuk to Eddyville as early as 
1 86 1. It was intended to extend it to Des 
Moines and then on north into Minnesota. Un- 
til it reached Des Moines some years later it 
was called the Keokuk, Des Moines & Min- 
sota Railroad Company. Then for some years 
it \\as known as the Des Moines Valley. La- 
ter the name was changed to the Keokuk & 
Des ]\Ioines Railroad Company, which it re- 
tained until the road became a pfert of the Rock 
Island system in 1878. 

From Eddyville the road was built up the 
Muchakinock valley through the southeast part 
of the county during the summer of 1864. 
The company which furnished the capital for 
the building of this road were Gilman & Son, 
of New York city. Certain alternate sections 
of land located ten miles on each side of the 
Des Moines river had been granted to them by 
the state in consideration of this public im- 
pro\-ement. These lands had been granted by 
congress to the Des Moines River Improvement 
Company. This concession had been made 
l)y congress because of the belief then generally 
shared that the Des Moines ri\er could, with a 
s}stem of locks and back water dams, be made 
• a navigable stream throughout most of the 
\ear. Upon the failure of this company these 
lands were transferred to the Keokuk, Des 
Moines & Alinnesota Railroad Company on 
condition that thev should assume certain obli- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



107 



gatioiis and claims which were due ihe 
settlers from the impruNement company. 
It was to the interest >.)t the railroad 
company to build the road along the 
river adjacent to their lands and it was their 
intention to follow the stream, keeping above 
high water mark to Des Moines. Their plea 
was that they were compelled to avoid the 
prairies because of the drifting snoW'S which 
had been a great source of expense to many 
western roads in previous winters. At the ses- 
sions of the legislature in 1863-4 the ow'ners 
of tlie road desired to secure such legislation 
as would give them a complete title to their 
lands, in order that they might raise sufficient 
cajtital to continue building the road b}' mort- 
gaging these lands. Mahaska county was rep- 
resented in the legislature by Judge Crookham, 
antl Poweshiek and Iowa counties by M. E. 
C'utts, who resided at that time at Montezuma. 
While these gentlemen fax'ored tlie grant and 
were an.xious to see the road built, they deter- 
mined to oppose the bill unless the managers 
were willing to bring the road through Oska- 
loosa. When the liill w'as introduced into the 
seiiatc, ^Ir. Crookham had an amendment pre- 
sented by Senator Clarkson ]iroviding that the 
road should go williin one-half mile of the 
square in Oskaloosa. .\fter some del)ate it 
jiassed the senate and went to the house. The 
chairman of the house committee pigeonholed 
the l)ill and refused to present it to that body. 
lie being on the other side of the question. The 
railroad men then declared that if the Oska- 
loosa amendment was insisted upon, they would 
build tlie road up the river without legislation 
and leave Oskaloosa out. John R. Barnes 
states that there was a distinct understanding 
between Dr. Boyer and the Keokuk managers 
of the road that at a suitable point on the Des 
^foines river along the bne of the road above 
Eddyville a town site should be selected and 
that Dr. Boyer should have charge of platting, 
laying out and selling lots for the same. This 
7 



fact was not known to the legislative lobby at 
the ca])itol. 

The friends of the Oskaloosa measure finally 
determined to make the best compromise which 
they could with the railroad authorities. They 
agreed to support the bill which had passed 
the senate ]jroviding that the road should be 
built up the Muchakinock valley to the nearest 
]joint on that stream to Oskaloosa, and from 
there it was understood that the road would 
turn back to the Des Moines river. Back in 
i860 an Oskaloosa company had been organ- 
ized under the name of the Mahaska County 
Railroad Company, having for its purpose the 
building of a railroad from Eddyville to Oska- 
loosa. Tliey had the road graded, partly 
bridged and furnished with ties. In the spring 
of 1864 the Keokuk, Des Moines & Minnesota 
road built upon this grade to Beacon and left 
the Oskaloosa company without compensation. 
.\n ofifer of several thousand dollars from Pella 
relieved the management of the road from fear 
of prairie snow drifts and instead of going back 
to the Des Moines river as they had intended to 
do, the road was surveyed through Pella and on 
to Des Moines, reaching that city in the fall of 
1866. In the year 1874 the road was Ijought 
by the first mortgage bond-holders for $1,175,- 
000 and called the Keokuk & Des Moines Rail- 
road Company. Some years later it was leased 
to the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, which 
now operates it in connection with its other 
lines. 

CIIIC.\GO. ROCK ISI,.\ND & r.\CIFIC. 

For a number of years the terminus of this 
branch of the Rock Island was at Sigourney. 
In 1875 Superintendent Riddle proposed to the 
people of Oskaloosa that he would build the 
road into this city at once if they would fur- 
nish the right-of-way and raise the sum of 
$20,000. The proposition was accepted by Os- 
kaloosa and the money was raised by local sub- 
scription. By February of the following year 



io8 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTV.^ 



the trains were running into the city regularly. 
The road extends across the county directly 
westward to Knoxville. its present terminus. 

IOWA CENTRAL RAILROAD. 

While David Morgan was teaching in Spring 
Creek Institute two and a half miles east of 
Oskaloosa. he called the first meeting to con- 
sider the building of the Iowa Central Rail- 
road. This was about 1863. ^Ir. Morgan 
was an organizer of unusual ability. He came 
to this county from Tennessee in i860. He 
was a brother of our Dr. J. W. ^lorgan. As 
early as 1858. a north and south road had been 
talked of by J. B. Grinnell and others. The 
wealth of the Iowa coal fields had been recog- 
nized and the coming demand for fuel for the 
railroads being built farther north had been an- 
ticipated. But the breaking out of the rebellion 
paralyzed the undertaking for several years. A 
corporation was formed and an organization 
completed at New Sharon. January 5. 1865. 
with headquarters at Oskaloosa. The follow- 
ing officers were elected : Da\id Morgan, presi- 
dent ; A. C. Williams, vice-president : Z. T. 
Fisher, secretary: W. T. Smith, treasurer: di- 
rectors, David Morgan. H. P. Pickerell, W. T. 
Smith. \\\ H. Seevers, Daniel Anderson. A. C. 
Williams. Peter Melendv. Z. T. Fisher and 
Reuben Michel. 

During this vear a railroad CDiu'ention of del- 
egates along the proposed line of the road from 
the state line to Cedar Falls was held at Oska- 
loosa. The first spadeful of dirt was thrown 
by President Morgan, with a silver spade, 
south of Cedar Falls, and at the same time a 
contract for twenty miles of grading was let. 
The indifference of the citizens of Black Hawk 
and Tama counties to the new road afterwards 
caused a new survey to be made through Mar- 
shalltown, and the grade was never used. \^^ 
T. Smith succeeded IMr. ^lorgan to the presi- 
dency and during his administration the grad- 
ing was pushed. 



-\fter the usual vicissitudes in railroad build- 
ing, the road was completed from Albia to Ma- 
son City and on February 4, 187 1, the cere- 
mony of driving the last spike took place, just 
across North Skunk river, about thirt_\"-fi\'e feet 
this side of the Mahaska county line. The road 
has since been extended to connect with lines 
which run from St. Louis to St. Paul, and with 
the Peoria branch, which was Iniilt in 1882, is a 
most valuable adjunct to Oskaloosa and ]\Ia- 
haska county interests. 

CHICAGO, BURLIXGTOX & QUIXCY RAILROAD. 

This road came to Oskaloosa from W'infield 
in the year 1883 and was successfully operated 
as a narrow guage until it became a part of the 
Chicago, Burlington & Ouincy Railroad sys- 
tem. On June 29, 1902, the entire 105 miles 
from Mediapolis to Oskaloosa, and the 
eighteen miles running from W'infield to 
\\'ashing'ton, were in twelve hours rebuilt and 
widened to a wide gauge road. Up to January 
I, 1893, the road was known as the Burlington 
& Western Railroad. Since that date it has 
been operated as a part of the Chicago, Bur- 
lington & Ouincy system. During the spring 
of 1903 the road was completed to Tracy and 
now runs regular trains between Chicago and 
Des Moines. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 



ORIGIN, GROWTH AXD HISTORY OF OUR 
COLLEGES. 



PEXN COLLEGE. 



Everything good originates in the heart of 
some beneficent person who is not living wholly 
for him or herself. This is especially true of 
our institutions of learning. There is hea\'A- 



PAST AND ] 'RESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



109 



toil and anxiety all aloiio- the pathway of all 
kinds cif unseliish labor. But hack in the he- 
ginning years there is a distinct character whicli 
orows brighter witii passing time, whose faith 
and hope outreached his fellows, and gave birth 
to the new idea. Such a man was Thomas Staf- 
ford, whom everybody knew in the earlier days. 
His father came originally from North Caro- 
lina. The household goods were hauled in a 
one-horse wagon, and the family walked to 
Richmond. Indiana. Mr. StalYord was a de- 
\out member of the Frieufls' church, and was 
the head wi irkman who built the historic 
b'riends" church at Richmond, Indiana. Hav- 
ing accumulated a small fortune, he went with 
a number of friends to southern Missouri with 
the thougln of building up a coluuv. The 
country was not to his liking, and through the 
influence of his friend, Samuel Coffin, he came 
to Iowa in the summer of 1843, locating in 
Sjiring Creek township. Through his influ- 
ence other members of the Friends' church be- 
came his neighbors, until there was quite a com- 
munity of his own sturdv faith. .V house of 
worship was built. This modest building is 
now doing service as the Friends' Mission 
Chapel, in West Oskaloosa. 

Thomas Stafford lived to he eighty-seven 
years old. He sleeps in the pioneer cemetery, 
in Spring Creek town.ship, which he himself 
helped to found. 

Later, largely through ^fr. Stafford's ]ier- 
sistent labors and influence, the Friends estab- 
lished a school two and one-half miles east of 
Oskaloosa. The building was a substantial 
frame three and half stories high, and the 
school was opened November 27, i860. It 
was known as the Spring Creek Institute, and 
was placed in charge of Prof. Da\id Morgan, 
of Friendsville, Tennes.see. This village was 
located not far from Knoxville in east Ten- 
nessee. The town had been built up and named 
by Mr. Morgan, who had charge of a fiouri.sh- 



iiig academy in the place. The breaking out of 
the Rebellion paralyzed all educational efforts 
in the south, and Mr. Morgan and his brother. 
Dr. J. \y. Morgan, accepted an invitation to 
take charge of the new Friends' school, which 
had been established in this county under the 
care of the Friends' Yearly Meeting. 

Those who knew Prof. David Morgan, the 
head of the .school, say that he was a man of 
broad culture, possessing unusual force of char- 
acter. He was a mathematician and taught 
these branches in his school. Dr. Morgan says 
that he preceded his brother some weeks, and 
when he opened the now historic institute sev- 
enty-five young men and women enrolled as 
students. Among the first graduates from the 
school were Prof. Jesse Macy, of Grinnell Col- 
lege, and Prof. M. Stalker, state veterinarian. 
.\t the end of three years the building ttxik fire 
and was wholly destroyed. 

After the destruction of the Spring Creek 
Institute by fire in 1863, steps were taken by 
the Iowa State meeting of the Friends' church 
to establish a college to be located at Oskaloosa. 
This organization was first called the "Iowa 
Union College Association of Friends." Under 
this name grounds were purchased from John 
White, north of Oskaloosa, and work was be- 
gun on the foundation. .\s usual in the begin- 
ning of even,' good and useful work, many 
difficulties were in the way. The foundation 
for the west wing of the present building was 
first undertaken. It was partly destroyed by a 
storm, but persevered in and completed in 1872, 
;it a cost of $17,000. A school was opened in 
the f.ill of that year under the management of 
Prof. J. W. Woody, who was president of the 
institution for four years. 

.At the I'riends' annual meeting in 1873 the 
name of the school was changed to Penn Col- 
lege. The first term of collegiate work began 
September 9, 1873. On the retirement of Prof. 
Woody, the presidency was held by William B. 



] 10 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Morgan for two years. In 1879 Benjamin 
Trueblood became the head of the school and 
ably filled the office of president until 1890, 
when he was invited to become secretary of the 
American Peace Society, and editor of The 
Peace Advocate, which office he still holds. 
President A. Rosenberger, the present incum- 
bent, was chosen by the board of trustees to 
succeed President Trueblood. The first class to 
graduate from the school was in 1875. Since 
that time there has been a graduating class each 
year. In the year closing 1905. the graduating 
class numbered thirty-two, the largest in the 
history of the institution. 

The school is growing rapidly, both in a 
broader usefulness and in larger equipments. 
Se\en }-ears ago the endowment fund was $20,- 
000; now it is $106,000. But $75,000 of this 
fund, however, is productive, the balance is in 
the shape of bequests and gifts which are not 
interest-bearing at present. The above sum 
does not include the generous gift to the school 
of $10,000 by the late James Callahan, of Des 
Moines. The institution has been favored by a 
number of gifts in recent years. Through the 
subscription and influence of David Skull, of 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, $10,000 endow- 
ment has come to the chair of English Litera- 
ture, which has for some years been filled by 
Prof. Rosa E. Lewis. Other friends of the 
college ha\e given generously to its support. 

The number of students enrolled during the 
year just closed was 354. The management 
calculate that the school brings annually to this 
city $45,000. The cost of the buildings and 
grounds as they now stand is $64,000, and the 
institution is free from debt. The library^ is 
valued at $1,000; the laboratories and museum, 
$4,000: and the art collection, $2,000. 

The school is essentially Christian, and the 
Bible is one of its text-books with which every 
student must be familiar before graduation. In 
a recent summary of its alumni, we notice for- 
tv-two ministers and eightv-seven teachers who 



are filling important places from New York 
to Oregon. It is difficult to estimate the local 
value of such a school to this, city and county, 
as well as to the general cause of higher edu- 
cation. 

The present faculty and instructors of Penn 
College are as follows : 

Absalom Rosenberger, president; Professor 
of Economics and Sociology. 

Rosa E. Lewis, Professor of English Litera- 
ture. 

Stephen M. Hadley, Professor of Matlie- 
matics and Astronomy. 

William L. Pearson, Professor of Biblical 
Literature and Exegesis. 

David M. Edwards, Professor of History 
and principal of the preparatoiy department. 

Edwin [Morrison, Professor of Physics and 
Chemistry. 

Ella H. Stokes, Professor of Philosophy. 

Walter J. Meek, Professor of Biology and 
Geolog}'. 

Ethel C. Rosenberger, Professor of the Ger- 
man and French languages. 

William E. Berry, Professor of Greek and 
Latin. 

J. Emory Hollingsworth, Professor of Latin. 

Lola Irene Perkins, Elocution and Oratory. 

B. A. ^^'right, Instructor in Bookkeeping^ 
and Stenography. 

Louis F. Burnett, Instructor in Vocal Music. 

Elmer H. Gifford is the present financial 
agent. 

0SKAI.00S.\ COLLEGE. 

At the first state convention of the Disciples- 
of Christ in Iowa, held in Mount Pleasant, 
Iowa, in June, 1855, a resolution was passed 
to establish a college in Iowa, the location to be 
decided at a future time. Oskaloosa, Marion, 
Winterset and ]\Iount Pleasant were desirous 
to secure the location. A. S. Nichols, of Oska- 
loosa, offered to donate ten acres of ground for 
such an institution, and the citizens of Oska- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Ill 



Idosa raised a sul)scriptiiin of $30,050 and se- 
cured its location. This tlecision was reached 
at an adjourned meeting of the state conven- 
tinn iicld in Oskaloosa, October 10 to 13, 1856. 
The charter niemhers of the hoard of trustees 
were the following': .Aaron Chatterton, Rich- 
ard ['arker. Dr. C. G. Owen. J. Atkins, W. T. 
Smith, J. H. Bacon, A. S. Nichols, Matthew 
Edmundson, C. Hail, J. M. Berry, W. A. 
Saunders. J. Swallow, S. H. Bonham and S. 
H. McClure. At a Ijoard meeting in Novem- 
l)er. .\aron Chatterton, W. T. Smith and A. 
Johnsiin were appointed a committee on articles 
of incorporation. .\t a later meeting the report 
of the committee was adopted, and on motion 
of .\aron Cliatterton, the institution was named 
Oskaloosa College. On June ly. 1857, the con- 
tract for the building was let to J. J. Adams 
for $24,500 and .\aron Chatterton and J. F. 
Rowe were employed as soliciting agents to 
raise an endowment fund. The work was begun 
with energy and earnestness, and in a short 
time they had secured in endowment notes the 
sum of $20,000. Everything looked auspicious 
for the lieginning of regular college work in 
1858. But when everything seemed promising 
the financial crisis of 1857 burst upon the coun- 
try. Contractors failed, subscribers were un- 
able to pay their pledges, delrts were incurred, 
and mortgages and leins were followed by law 
suits. It seemed as though all was to be lost, 
when, with the help nf a few friends, Richard 
Parker saved the enterprise from absolute 
wreck. He was treasurer of the college board 
and it became the passion of his life to see the 
work completed. By great self-sacrifice he 
raised enough money to save the property from 
sale, and made some progress upon the build- 
ing of the walls. After four years of patient 
effort, one wing was enclosed. On June 9, 
i860, the state convention of the church voted 
to raise a relief fund of $10,000. Two young 
men. (ieorge T. and W. J. Carpenter, recent 
graduates of Abingdon and Eureka Colleges, 



were secured to open a school in the f;dl of 
1S61. The tirst annual catalogue was issued 
in 1863. The building whose contract was let 
in June, 1857, was not completed until ten 
years later. The first students to finish the col- 
lege course were Finley L. McGrew and George 
\\'. See\ers, who graduated in 1867. Those 
who acted as college president in the years that 
followed were: B. W. Johnson, F. M. Bni- 
ner, George T. Carpenter. G. II. Laughlin, R 
H. Johnson, J. A. Beattie. .\. AI. Haggard. J. 
AI. Atwater and A. J. A'oungblood. A. F. Ross 
and S. P. Lucy acted as presidents pro tern for 
a short time, and J. M. Stoke conducted a nor- 
mal school in the building for one year. 

-At the close of the normal school the halls 
of the old college were silent for a year. It was 
impossible to keep up the regular college course 
without a larger endowment fund, and the 
board decided to dispose of the building and 
grounds. Charles J. Burton, of Canton, Mis- 
souri, was prevailed upon to move his corre- 
spondence school, which he had built up in con- 
nection with Canton University, to Oskaloosa. 
Having purchased all of Oskaloosa College be- 
longings, Jul\- 17, 1902, he re-chartered the 
school under the name of Iowa Christian Col- 
lege. He has advertised extensively through 
advertising agencies, and has students in all 
parts of the world, wherever the English lan- 
guage is spoken. East year the number of his 
corres]3ondence students reached 700 and aver- 
aged throughout the year 600 students. He has 
been graduall\- building u]) a local school, which 
numbered la.st year 117. There were eleven 
graduates in the year just closed from the va- 
rious departments. The .study of the Bible is 
strongly emphasized in the correspondence 
w<irk. I'nder the head of die business depart- 
ment, Ijookkeeping. shorthand and telegraphy 
are thoroughly taught. Regular college courses 
iir parts of courses may !)e taken entirelx' by 
correspondence. 



112 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



CENTRAL HOLINESS UNIVERSITY. 

A third school of higher learning in Oska- 
loosa has been organized within the last year 
which bids fair to have a most promising fu- 
ture. Friends of the institution first purchased 
220 acres of land southeast of the city in 1905. 
Later a portion of it was platted, and by the 
sale of lots and subscriptions, over $40,000 
have been realized to be used in the erection of 
the main building. The name of the new in- 
stitution is to be the Central Holiness Univer- 
sity. It is to be auxiliary to the growing inter- 
denominational movement among an earnest body 
of Christians known as the Holiness people. 
They have no desire to form a new sect, but 
simply to culti\'ate a higher and purer spirit- 
ual life, both for themselves and for those 
whom they may be able to win to Qirist. A 
contract has been let for the main building, and 
the campus will be Cfinnected with the city by 
the street car line. Every effort is being- made 
to be ready to open the institution on Septemljer 
II, 1906. 

Rev. L. Milton Williams is financial agent. 
The following are the board of trustees with 
their offices: C. W. Aloore, president: Eph- 
raim Smith, vice-president; Ella C. Coffin, sec- 
retary: \\'. R. Gilmore, treasurer: L. Milton 
Williams. D. F. Brooks, George A. McLaugh- 
lin, Dr. D. S. Bunce, William C. Carpenter, 
Ella C. Coffin, George Ramsey, Mrs. George 
Ramsey, William Crosson, Ephraim Smith. C. 
\\' . Moore. Mr. and Mrs. ^V. R. Gilmore. Ed- 
gar P. Ellyson. Wesley Shoemake, H. A. Beal 
and J. H. Shroyer, trustees. 

At this time but three members of the faculty 
ha\-e been chosen, viz. : Prof. A. M. Hill, A. 
:\I.. president: Prof. B. W. Avers, Ph. D. : and 
Prof. D. F. Brooks. Other members will be 
added later. A large wooden tabernacle will 
be built during the summer for the accommo- 
dation of their state gatherings, camp-meeting 
and Giautauqua purposes. The management 



confidently look forward to the establishment 
of a great institution of learning and religious 
influence. The Bible will be one of the text- 
books of the school. 



CHAPTER XNXII. 



THE COUNTY PRESS ITS DEN'ELOPMEXT AND 

GROWTH. 

The newspaper is the people's great uni- 
versity. It has done wonders to unify the sym- 
pathies of civilized men and con\-ince mankind 
that they are all brothers. The well conducted 
daily and weekly newspaper keeps us in touch 
with one another and our s\mpathies become 
broader than (jur neighborhood as we know of 
the prosperity or sufferings of earth's multi- 
tudes. 

It was quite an undertaking to start a weekly 
paper in a town where its entire population was 
only about 800 people, but Mahaska county has 
never been wanting in enterprising men. 

The first newspaper in this county was born 
in the brain and heart of John R. Needham. and 
the first number was issued July 2, 1850. For 
four months it was known as the Iowa Herald. 
On November i, 1850, it went to its suliscribers 
as the Oskaloosa Herald and has so continued 
for fifty-five years. 

John R. Needham and Hugh ]\IcNee]e\- were 
its editors and publishers. The paper, when 
first issued, was a six-column folio. Both these 
young men were from Ohio. Mr. Needham 
seems to ha\'e been the leading spirit in the en- 
terprise. He came to Oskaloosa in 1849: was 
twice elected senator from this county and also 
served one term as lieutenant governor of Iowa. 
From all that has been said and written of Mr. 
Needham since his death, he must have lived a 



PAST .VXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUXTY. 



113 



lite which insi)ired men to tlieir highest and 
best efforts. He liad ihe unreser\ ed confidence 
of his fellownien. 

Mr. McXeele\' was apracticalprintcr and was 
the mechanical head of the liini. A printint;^ 
outfit had been brought from Cambridjj^e, Ohio. 
It had been used in ])ublishing the Cambridge 
■|"imes and had l)eeii ])urchased at the suggges- 
tion of Mr. Xeedham b}- his father. 'Idiis was 
supplemented by the ])urchase of additional ma- 
terial Ijy Mr. McX'eeley in St. Louis. .\11 was 
transported to Keokuk by the Ohio and Mis- 
sissippi rivers, thence overland to Oskaloosa. 
Miles Prine sa_\-s that he got the first paper that 
came from the old hand ])ress on the day of its 
issue. Mis father had sid)scril)ed for the pajjer 
and sent him to the office for a copy. The press 
work was just ready to begin and he waited and 
was given the first copy. 

The first Herald office was located on the 
second fl(Mjr of a two story frame building on 
the southeast corner of the square, on the site 
where now stands the W. I. Xeagle grocerv. 

Popular enthusiasm nourished the ])a]ier and 
it grew with the growth of the city and county. 
In 1858 the editorial management ])assed into 
the hands of Dr. Charles Beardsley. who pi- 
loted the paper through the war i)eriod. In the 
early '60s a small Herald e.xtra — only a sheet 
giving the latest bit of news — was issued as the 
news demanded. l''ddy\ille was then the near- 
est telegraph and railroad station. .\ messen- 
ger from the Herald oflice daily waited at Ed- 
dy ville for the incoming train that brought the 
Burlington Hawk-Eye, which contained the 
latest news. Then this courier would ride with 
all speed to the city and the paper would be in 
the hantls of the people before the stage coach 
carrying the mail could arrive. It i^ said that 
four times during the war every emi)!oye in the 
Herald office laid down his task to join the 
ranks of the tnwps going to the front. 

March 16, 1865, ^He paper was issued tmder 
the management of Colonel C. W. Fisher and 



\\ . E. .Sheijpard. A few years later Captain 
W. .\. Ilunter had editorial charge. H. C. 
Leighton and W. H. Xeedham. a brother of 
John R. Xeedham, became the owners of the 
])a])er in 1870. Botli were young men of skill 
and ability and for eight years the paper saw 
good days. Henry C. Leighton, who was 
largely responsible for the editorial work, was 
called to lay his pen aside just when he seemed 
to be at the zenith of his usefulness. He was 
postmaster at Oskaloosa at the time of his 
death. January 31, 1878. and had served his 
party two years as chairman of the state central 
committee, winning a state rejnitation for his 
skill and energy. Mr. Leighton died when he 
was but thirty-five years of age. The editorial 
work on the paper w^as done for a time by Chas. 
Leighton. his brotlier, and Geo. R. Lee. both of 
w horn were interested partners. 

-\. W. Swalm became Connected with the pa- 
per in 188 1. He was an editor of soine years' 
experience and gave the Herald a distinct indi- 
\'idualitv. 

The Evening Herald was published Se])tem- 
ber 3. 1887, to meet the progressive spirit of 
the times. It was well recei\'ed from the begin- 
ning and we now have a six-column eight-page 
daily which contains the happenings of the 
world as reported by the .-Vssociated Press. 

On December 31. 1896. Chas. \'. and Phil 
Hoffmann became the owners of the Herald 
pro])ert\-. Both gentlemen had served an a]i- 
prenticeship in the various lines of the work in 
the office. Their management has been vigor- 
ous. Ever}' want of the times has been met. It 
has been conservative without being narrow, 
outspoken in ])rinci])le. but never radical. 

On January i. 1905. the Oskaloosa Herald 
company was organized and incorporated and 
Chas. S. Walling and Miss Maggie Hoffmann 
became stockholders. The company is organ- 
ized as follows: Chas. \'. Hoffmann, president; 
Phil Hoffmann, editor; Chas. S. Walling, man- 
ager: Maggie Hoffmann, secretary -treasurer. 



114 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Through the agency of the Herald Oskaloosa 
has become a news center. From tlie old W'ash- 
ington hand press, with a capacity of 120 copies 
an hour, the paper is now reeled ofif from a new 
Babcock Dispatch press at the rate of 3,000 per 
hour. 

The Herald was started as a whig paper but 
has been republican in doctrine since the organ- 
ization of that party. 

In 1850 the Herald's entire outfit cost $300. 
In i860 it sold for $4,000; in 1874 for $12,000 
and in 188 1 for $20,000. Since then it has 
steadily increased in value in a ratio equal to 
that of the past. 

More than a score of newspapers of different 
faith and doctrine have been launched in Oska- 
loosa since the establishment of the first office 
in -1850. We are told that the Herald has 
never missed but two issues since its first publi- 
cation. This was caused by high water during 
the first year of its life. 

The Oskaloosa Times was first published in 
1854, by Cameron «S: Ingersoll, then by R. R. 
Harbour and David Comes. Later it fell into 
the hands of A. A. Wheelock, whose drastic 
editorials so ofifended the soldiers in the field 
from this county that in 1864, when at home on 
furlough, they raided the office and partly de- 
stroyed its contents, which ended its publica- 
tion. \\'illiam Leighton showed us a cop\- of the 
last issue of Wheelock's paper. Shortly after 
the suppression of the Times, Ira C.'jMitchell 
established a paper called the Watchman, which 
had a short life. In 1866 P. C. \\'elch began 
the publication of the Democrat-Conservator. 
Later it was changed to the Iowa Reform 
Leader, .\bout 1874 the Oskaloosa Standard 
came into existence and was conducted by Nel- 
son D. Porter for some ten years. I. R. Eckart 
started the Oskaloosa Messenger, which was 
published for six years. In 1S84 the Messen- 
ger and Standard consolidated and founded the 
Oskaloosa Labor Union. Out of this came a 
revival of the Oskaloosa Times, a straight dem- 



ocratic paper, edited by James E. See\-ers until 
his death in 1896. In that year the Daily and 
Weekly News, which had been in existence 
about a year, consolidated with the Times, un- 
der the management of G. B. McFall. For a 
time the paper prospered. Later L. J. Ander- 
son had charge. Some mishaps in the manage- 
ment caused the paper to suspend March i-j. 
1897, and the plant was sold to satisfy a mort- 
gage held by Mrs. Zoa Seevers, widow of 
James Seevers, the former editor, who had 
practically given his young life to keep the 
paper moving. June i. 1898, Richard Burke 
revived the Times and continued its publication 
as a weekly. ]Mrs. Burke uniting with her hus- 
l)and in the editorial work. They are cultured 
people and gave their readers a paj^er of high 
merit. 

The Oskaloosa Daily and Weekl}- Journal 
was started in June, 1892. It was at first edited 
by George H. Blanchard, and was reall\- the 
successor to the Farmer and Miner. At the 
close of the first year Mr. Blanchard severed 
his connection with the paper and it was edited 
for a time by Miss Anna Delashmutt, who had 
been the local editor. A year later Fred and 
Harry Davis and Alf. Wooster Ijecame inter- 
ested in the paper and it was published under 
the firm name of Wooster-Davis Publishing Co. 
In 1897 L. J. Anderson became associated with 
the ownership and the firm became Wooster & 
.Anderson until 1902. when the plant was pur- 
chased by C. E. Lemley and Richard Burke and 
consolidated with The Times. The paper was 
then issued as a daily and weekly, under the 
name of The Times-Journal, until December i, 
1904, when it was purchased by C. A. Dickens. 
On January i, 1905. the daily came out as a 
morning pajjer, called The Morning Telegram. 
It gave a complete report of the Associated 
Press dispatches and was published at a heav}- 
cost of labor and money. The paper failed to 
become self-supporting and on July 29, 1905. 
was sold to C. E. Lemlev and H. S. Rosecrans. 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



II! 



wild will continue the ])ai)er as a democratic 
weeklv, under tiie name of The Oskaloosa 
Times. 

Xe.xt til the Herald, the paper which ha.s out- 
lived all other contemporaries, is the Saturday 
Globe, published and well edited by Shockley 
l^iros, & Cook. The ])a])er was estaldished by 
Alimzo Siierman. in i(S8i. and called The Tele- 
plmue. It was first issued as a four-column 
folio and shortly afterwards enlarged to double 
that size. In 1882 it was sold to J. W- Jar- 
n.igin. who continued its publication for two 
\ears and w<in a fair degree of prosj^erity and 
recognition. In May, 1884, J. W. Johnson 
bought the Tele]ihone office and formed a part- 
nership with (i. W. and T. M. Shockley. The 
firm was known as Johnson & Shockley Bros. 
The pai)er grew rapidly in pulilic favor. July i, 
1894, Mr. John.son sold his interests to I. W. 
Cook, changing the name of the firm to Shock- 
lex- L'ros. & Cook. The Globe office is well 
c(|ui])ped with modern machinery and its man- 
agement is along- the lines of advanced thought 
and methods. In addition to this representative 
weekly there is issued from the office each 
month the Iowa Sunday-school Helper. The 
Christian Endeavor News, The Congregational 
Iowa and Penn Chronicle. 

The first issue of the New Sharon Star ap-' 
peared January 22. 1873. Its ofifice was on the 
second floor of the H.T.Wright building at the 
northwest corner of ]\Iaiu and Market streets. 
The building is now owned b}- George W.Way. 
1 1. J.\'ail was its edito;- and publisher. The pa- 
per was a success from the first. In 1875 Mr. 
A'ail erected a half block north of the first ofifice 
the comfortable two story building 20x90 feet, 
which has since been the home of the Star. 
-April I, 1885, Mr. Vail sold the jiaper and its 
belongings to his brother, David \"ail, who was 
its editor until January i. 1897, when Ross .\. 
Nicholson became the owner of the property. 
On August I. 1900, II. J. \'n\] again came into 



possession of the paper and is still at the helm. 
The Star has ahvays been good property and its 
value has increased with the growth and pros- 
perity of the territory which it covers. Mr. 
\'ail has alwaxs l)een a clear and \igorous 
writer. A paper is what the editor makes it, 
and the New Sharon Star has won a creditable 
place in the journalistic field. 

The Fremont Gazette is now in its fifteenth 
year of publication. After the usual years of 
battling for an existence it is now under the 
management of A. P. Norton, w-ho purchased 
the ])a])er in July. IQ02, and has put the plant 
on a paying basis. It is much appreciated In- 
the community which he serves. The paper 
was founded by Sam Sherman, who has a rec- 
ord of establishing twelve different papers in 
Iowa. In its existence it has had as editor 
Horace Greeley, a namesake of the great jour- 
nalist, and Charles Pearson, who is now the ed- 
itor of the Sucker State, at Mohamet, Illinois, 



CHAPTER XXXIII, 



OSK.\LOOS.\ KIKTY VE.ARS AGO AND OSKALOOSA 
TODAY. 

Oskaloosa was incorporated as a city in July, 
1853, and had at that time a population of about 
1,000 persons. Three years previous its as- 
sessed valuation was $754,170. 

There was perhaps a score of sawmills in 
different parts of the county turning out lumber 
for permanent improvements both in the city 
and country. 

.\t the close of the fiscal years ending June 
30, 1852, there had been received at the post- 
office 13,938 letters. During the same time 
there had been mailed 15.762 letters. 

The population of both city and county grew 
very rapidlw The original plat of the city 



ii6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



covered a quarter section of land lying on the 
divide known as The Narrows. The public 
square is located exactly on the water shed be- 
tween the Skunk river on the north and the Des 
Moines river on the south. Since the square 
has been elevated and the band-stand erected it 
may be said with truth that the water falling 
from the roof on the north side goes to the 
river on the north and that which falls from the 
south side of the roof reaches the Father of 
Waters through the channel of the Des Aloines 
river. The public square -in Oskaloosa is 860 
feet above the level of the sea. The bed of the 
Des Moines river at the southern boundary 
line of the county is 660 feet above the sea level. 
making a fall of 200 feet from the public 
square to the county line. 

As is well known, there was not a tree on 
this ridge when the town was located. .The 
old Herald files show that John R. Needham. 
its editor, kept continually before his readers 
the value of planting trees. It is to him, in a 
large measure, that we are indebted for the 
o\'erhanging boughs in many of the a\enues of 
the city, which has earned for this place the 
name of "The City of Trees." A goodly num- 
ber of men. who have laid out additions to the 
city, ha\'e been persistent tree planters. It was 
about 1853 when the first trees were planted 
in the square. They were nourished and cared 
for by different enterprising indi\'i(luals. Al- 
most all of the original planting are gone. 
Dwight Downing calls attention to the large 
elm in front of the Downing Hotel, which he 
says was planted by A. F. Seiberger, who built 
the first story of the brick house known as the 
D. W. Loring home, on East High avenue. B. 
y. See\'ers says that the large elm south of it 
was planted and nurtured by his uncle. George 
W. Seevers, who wrote the first carriers' ad- 
dress for the Oskaloosa Herald, January i, 
185 1. 

About this time brick began to take the 
place of native timber in the better class of 



luiildings. John H. Shumate built the old 1. 
Frankel home on South Market street, also the 
Jonathan Adkins home. \\'esley Moorland built 
the Dr. Rhinehart home. Both these places are 
south of the Congregational church. Samuel 
McWilliams built the brick edifice known as 
the Isaac Kalbach place across the street north 
of the Salvation Army barracks, and Samuel 
Ingels built the Greenough property, which still 
stands, west of the O. B. & F. stables. 

It would be interesting to make a trip around 
the square in the early '50s, about the time that 
the village thought itself old enough to put on 
city airs. \Vith the help of \\"illiam T. Smith, 
tlie first mayor, and Isaac Kalbach. the first city 
marshal, we undertake the task. These vener- 
able gentlemen are the two surviving memljers 
of the first city government. 

Beginning on the Hulier & Kalbach corner, 
there stood a two stor}- frame building occu- 
pied by Ebenezer Perkins, who was one of the 
commissioners who located this city. He liad 
a general store and lived in the rear part of the 
building. Next to him on the west in a wo:)den 
building was the postofifice, kept by Samuel 
Ingels. An '"L" to this building also gave the 
family a home. Then came the largest brick 
block which had yet been built, called the Union 
block. It was completed in 1854, but had 
been in process of erection for several years. 
The 20-foot store rooms to the allev were built 
by their owners in the following order : To- 
bias Leighton, George Roland, John N. Kins- 
man and Samuel Ingels. Across the alley west- 
ward were frame Ijuildings owned by John 
\\ aggoner and Thomas Thompson. Next was 
John Abraham's grocery and queensware store, 
and J. D. Fletcher, harness and saddlery store. 
The next two stores were brick, the first oc- 
cupied by A. F. Seiberger with hardware, and 
the one on the corner by D. W. Loring's dry- 
goods store, which he built and which his es- 
tate still owns. Across the street on the north- 
west corner of the square stood the old court- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



117 



house. On llie P>al(Iauf corner the first twenty 
feet was occupied by a frame building contain- 
ing' a oeneral store, kept by W. S. Dart. On 
the adji lining' lot south was his small brick resi- 
dence standing" back from the sidewalk sunie 
twenty feet. .After a vacant lot came Dr. Hin- 
ton"s drug store and then two buildings owned 
li\' W. S. I-'dgar and Jones & Young. Across 
the alley south was the first brick business 
building on the square, owned by W. B. Street 
and (i. W. Baer. The adjoining lot was va- 
cant, and on the next two lots w'ere small wood- 
en buildings containing groceries. One of them 
was kept In- Wesley ^lettler. It is stated that 
Mr. -Mettler's frugal habits pronipted him to 
invoice his little stock of groceries quite often. 
One day a customer called and found the door 
locked, .\sking the reason, the proprietor an- 
swered. "We are devoicing, sir." On the Ma- 
haska L'ounty Bank corner stood the old Oska- ' 
loosa House. It was a two story frame in front 
with a porch above and below. The proprietor 
was John X. Kinsman. Mr. Kinsman was 
elected county treasurer in i860. We are told 
that during the early years this hotel had no 
superior in the town. Acrt)ss the street south 
on the Will .Seexer's corner were one story 
frame buildings. Heiirv Howard kept a gro- 
cery store tliere at one time. Continuing east, 
at the Boyer corner was a two storv wooden 
building in which .\. (1. Phillips kept a dry- 
gotxls store in 185 1. Then as far east as the 
alley on the south side of the square were small 
shacks of wooden buildings. In one of these 
Charles Evans, a brother of Captain Evans, 
kept a bakery for a time, .\cross die alley was 
first a one story frame and then a one and one- 
half story, with some xacant lots. On the 
Xeagle corner stood a two story frame, the 
second floor of which was for several years 
the home of the Oskaloosa Herald. On the 
eye-tooth corner southeast of the square was a 
one story frame in which John Hagey kept a 
grocery. .Across the street to the north John 
Montgomery had a general store in a two 



story frame on the corner, and a one stt)ry brick 
residence adjoining, set back into the lot. Xext 
came a little frame building with a tin sho]}. and 
then the Madison House, which was known be- 
tween the ri\ers as the home of the tired and 
hungry traveler. In the earlier years before the 
west was thoroughly organized, the hotel be- 
came the headquarters not only for the traveling 
public, but for stranded humanity from what- 
ever cause. John R. Baer relates that in 1855 
a California emigrant, returning east, was 
taken with cholera at this tavern. As there 
were no jirovisions for the care of such cases 
in the city, the patient remained at the hotel un- 
til he died. The authorities found it very diffi- 
cult to get anyone to care for the body. The 
case appealed to his father, George W. Baer. 
and he volunteered to assist in preparing the 
body for burial. When all was over he took 
down with the same deadlv malady. While he 
was yet ill, Mrs. Baer w-as smitten and died 
at the early age of thirty-five years. His fa- 
ther's only sister, who made her home in the 
famil}', also liecame a victim. She had cared 
for Airs. Baer during her illness and went down 
rapidly to an early grave. The home of the 
Baer family at that time was in what is now an 
old story and a half weather-beaten house still 
standing at the corner of .A a\'enue and B street. 
It is a mute sentinel of the old daxs,- and has 
afforded shelter to an Oskaloosa family for 
more than fifty years. 

The ground on which this old hotel stood 
has never been used for any otlier purpose ex- 
cept a hotel site. In 1856 Alajor F. L. Down- 
ing purchased the Aladison House, and being 
especially fitted by nature and culture to handle 
the public, he made a great success. He related 
to a friend that during those early years when 
two or four stages stopped every morning for 
breakfast, he made $6,000 in fifteen months 
from ten rooms. 

In 1874 the old house was removed and an 
elegant three story brick. 60x110 feet, was 
erected and when furnished cost $48,000. The 



ii8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



new building' took tlie name of tlie pro- 
prietor and was called the Downing House. 
^Mtll but few interruptions Mr. Downing was 
connected with this hotel for twenty-five years, 
until the time of his death, April 4, 1881. He 
was at all times one of Oskaloosa's most en- 
terprising citizens. In recent years the Down- 
ing has been remodeled and another story 
added. 

Across the alley where the courthouse now 
stands was Yankee Smith's grocery. D. W. 
Oglevie had a clothing store on the next lot. 
Passing a vacant lot, John W. Irvin had a 
jewelry store. Next to the corner was Ma- 
con Brothers' drug store, and on the corner 
Hardy, Searle & Young kept a stock of dry 
goods. All these were temporary one story 
buildings. This corner and across the street 
north, when \-acant, are said to have been the 
show grounds of the town in the earlier years. 
The northeast corner of the square at this time 
was without buildings. 

The north boundary of the original plat is 
one-half block north of D avenue, and the east 
boundary one-half block east of Third street. 
The south is bounded b}' Third avenue and the 
west line is one-half block west of D street. To 
this plat have been added at different times ad- 
ditions to the city usually bearing the name of 
the person or firm who platted and sold the 
property. On the south and southwest were 
the first and second Montgomeiy additions, the 
Lacey addition the first and second Houtz addi- 
tions, the Ninde Williams & Company addi- 
tion, and the Southside. On the west we find 
the Marks, Loughridge & Cassady, West Oska- 
loosa and Baugh's addition. 

On the north we have Crookham, Donahey, 
Hanibleton, \Vhitacre, Westervelt, Ninde & 
Searle, Mendenhall, Mulhallen and Ridge Place 
additions. On the east were the W. T. Smith 
and W. H. Seevers first and second additions, 
Baer, Kemper, Hetherington, Street. Meyers & 
Smith, and in the southeast part of the city is 



located O'Neill's recent addition. These and 
many other smaller additions appear on the city 
map. The city grew very rapidly in the later 
years of the '50s. Emigration to the state was 
very heavy in the years preceding the war of 
the Rebellion. During the four years of the ter- 
rible Civil war the nation gave almost its entire 
energies to the preservation of the Union. In- 
ternal improvements received but little atten- 
tion. 

In the summer of 1863 six frame buildings 
were burned on the south side of the square. 
These were rebuilt some years later, and on 
January 20, 1873, were again destroyed by 
fire. From the ashes of these two fires has 
sprung the Phoenix block, built in the latter 
year. In 1874 four buildings were burned on 
the northwest corner of the square, causing a 
loss of $17,000. A fire on the north side of 
West High avenue in 1877 entailed a loss al- 
most as large. The destmction of the opera 
house block in 1889 included besides the opera 
house, Byron S. Henry's furniture store and the 
postoffice. All the buildings in this block were 
rebuilt at once. Gradually the old frame struc- 
tures were destroyed by fire, or became unten- 
able and were replaced by more substantial 
brick buildings. The Centennial block, on 
the north side, was built in 1876, by I. Fran- 
kel, Richard Parker and Christian Houtz. 
Joining it on the east is the Dixon block, 
erected in 1897. The Huber & Kalbach cor- 
ner, now owned by Williams Brothers, was 
built in 1882. Across the street stands the W. 
R. Nugent corner, built in 1892. and the J. B. 
McCurdy buildings were completed in 1884. 
Adjoining these is the W. .\. See\ers block. 
No. 2 now owned by John A. Kalliach. On 
the corner south of the Downing House are the 
Gibbs buildings, btiilt in 1889. Mr. Gibbs also 
built the Glolje block, adjoining the opera 
house, and the building now occupied by the 
Herald office on North Market, and several 
other creditable stnictures. 



PAST AND TRESEXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



119 



Tlie McMillen lilnck. on East l-'irst a\cnuf. 
was built ill 1881 by Dr. B. F. McJMillen. Tbe 
Evans block, on the southeast corner of tlie 
square, was built by David Evans. The W. A. 
Seevers brick block coxers tbe soutlnvest corner 
of the square. 

The Eacey hotel, covering;' the southeast 
(|uarler of this block, is an elegant three story 
brick structure containiui;' one luuulreil and 
forty rooms, and cost $75,000. Among tbe 
newer buildings on the west side of the square 
are tbe Williams block, built in 1892; the 
I'Vankel building, now occupied Ijy the Pfeifer- 
Belmont Co., was built in i88g, and the Sam- 
uel Baldauf corner, built in i8go. The Jones- 
Reigel and b'itch Brothers' new brick block on 
West High avenue, just completed, is a model 
structure. Its erection was made necessary by 
a destructive fire in February, 1905. 

Our splendid courthouse, located on the east 
side of the square, was completed in 1885, at a 
cost to the county of $145,000. Just east of the 
(|uarter block on which the courthouse stands, 
the new county jail is located. It was built in 
1901, at a cost of $25,000. The first bank in 
Oskaloosa was opened March i, 1855. in the 
Union block, by \V. T. Smith and M.' T. Wil- 
liams. The building now occupied by the Ma- 
haska County Bank was built by Crookham & 
White in the early '60s. and has been used as a 
bank building since its erecti<jn. Mahaska 
County Savings Bank built the corner building 
now owned and occupied by the Oskaloosa Na- 
tional Bank, in 1876. It was converted to a na- 
tional bank three years later by a vote of the 
stockholders. The Frankel Bank is located in 
the Centennial block on the north side. The 
building occupied by the Oskaloosa Savings 
Bank on the west side was built by Henr>' Price. 

The Wightman block on the south side of 
East High avenue is a recent substantial ini- 
l)rovenieiit. Our elegant Y. M. C. .\. building 
on East High avenue, completed in 1903. at a 
cost of $40,000, is the measure which Oska- 



loosa places on the life and character of its 
young men. 

Oskal(W)sa has now about thirty-five indus- 
tries, giving employment to nearly 600 people, 
to wbiiin are ])ai(l in wages about $240,000 per 
annum, and the annual output of the combined 
industries amounts to over $2,000,000. While 
these figures do not show us to be a large man- 
nfacturing center, it is encouraging to note that 
it shows an increase of about 100 per cent dur- 
ing the last five years. 

The Carnegie library was completed in 1903 
at a cost of $25,000. Its shelves nov^- hold 
5,175 volumes. The new postoffice building was 
completed in 1902 at a cost of $75,000. The 
city has twelve churches, six school buildings, 
twelve miles of street paving, sixty miles 
of cement walk, thirteen miles of sewer- 
age and water mains, sixty-two miles of 
improved streets, two telegraph and two tele- 
phone lines, and five railroads. 

The improvements in 1904 amounted to 
$683,700. Oskaloosa is the fifteenth city in 
size in the state. Its growth has always been 
permanent and healthful. Its population is now^ 
10,108. If our republican institutions live this 
city and county is but a child in the number of 
its [Xjpulation to what it will be before the open- 
ing of another century. 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 



TWO USEFUL 0RGANIZ.\TI0NS. 

SIAIIASKA COUNTY F.XRMERS' INSTITUTE. 
By F. F. Everett, Sechf.tafv. 

In the early winter of 1892 a paper was 
circulated among the influential farmers of Ma- 
lia.ska county, for the purpose of obtaining 



120 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASK.\ COUNTY. 



members to organize a Fanners' Institute. One 
hundred and thirty-four signers were secured 
to this petition, who signified their wilhngness 
to become acti\e members in such an institute. 

On December 17. 1892, the first meeting to 
organize was held, a form of constitution and 
by-laws was offered by Harden Tice and adopt- 
ed. At this meeting J- G. Harrold was elected 
president; Samuel Jones, vice-president: \\'. 
T. Hites. secretary: Wilford Hull, treasurer; 
directors. Harden Tice. T. B. Wh'ne and E. D. 
Arnold. 

On December 24. 1892. the executive board 
met and decided to hold a two-days' session and 
set the dates as Januar^^ 18 and 19, 1893, and 
also arranged the program for these days. 

The first ^lahaska County Institute was held 
January 18 and 19. 1893. Papers were read 
at these sessions on different subjects b}' A. J. 
Jewell. J. F. Everett, D. C. Garwood, Robert 
Thomas, Eli Ketner, W. H. Barber. T. For- 
sythe. R. C. Harris, R. Redman, John !Moore, 
G. \\'. France, A. J. Lytic, E. C. Hull, Samuel 
Jones and Harden Tice. When Mahaska 
county built its fine courthouse in 1885, the 
board of supervisors decided that the farmers 
should have a place for holding meetings in the 
courthouse. So they set aside the small room 
in the southwest corner of the third story, to 
be known as the "Farmers" Club Room." This 
room will seat about one hundred people and 
was deemed by the board of supenisors to be 
amply large for all requirements of the farm- 
ers. In this room all the preliminary meetings 
and the first five or six regular sessions of the 
Mahaska County Institute were held. At tlie 
second session, held January 16 and 17. 1894, 
some prizes were given for farm products, and 
the first exhibition of farm products was made. 
These prizes were made possible by using the 
appropriation of fifty dollars from the state. 
From these first sessions, held in this small room 
the Farmers' Institute has grown steadily and 



surely each year, until now the toard of di- 
rectors engage the opera house a year in ad- 
vance for two days, and also occupy the entire 
courtrooms and jun,- and judges' rooms for 
four days, tlie latter two rooms being for the 
exhibition purposes. As many as 160 different 
people make entries each year, some making as 
high as fifty entries. At each of the two ses- 
sions on January 16 and 17. 1906. over 1.300 
people were in attendance, and over 6,500 peo- 
ple attended the eight different sessions of 1906. 
The institute now prints 2,000 copies per 
year of a program and permium list. This list 
contains the program and premiums to be given 
the following year, also all the papers read be- 
fore the preceding institute and the discussions 
as taken by a short-hand reporter. The photo- 
graph of ten children who won first and second 
prizes in different declamatory and oratorical 
contests, the names of all officers, directors 
township \ice-presidents. judges antl superin- 
tendents of the different departments for the 
following sessions. Advertisements of 200 of 
the leading merchants and farmers of the ci ainty 
and the rules and duties of the different officers. 
These make a book of 200 pages, in size. 5x8 
inches. The books are printed in the summer 
and distributed each fall by the township vice- 
presidents, who visit the schools in their town- 
ship and leave one book for each family. When 
visiting the schools the vice-presidents encour- 
age the children to enter the township declama- 
torv contests. The winners of the township 
contests enter the institute contests. Premiums 
to the amount of $150 are given each year for 
these prizes : Seventy-five dollars on butter ; 
S60 on bread; $180 are given on seed corn and 
other farm products accordingly. Such prizes 
and numbers of programs and premium lists 
are made possible only by the liberal donations 
and advertisements of the merchants of Oska- 
loosa. One day of each institute is set apart 
for the ladies and is known as"\\'oman"s Dav." 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUM Y. 



121 



The ladies have their own officers, furnish the 
entire program and ])residc at all sessions on 
tiiis day. 

Prof. W. J. Kennedy of Iowa .\gricultnral 
College. |jrohal)l\- the hcst known authority on 
live stock in the L'nited States, .stated in the 
course of his introductory remarks before the 
1904 institute that he had been in active insti- 
tute wurk for six or se\'en years in Canada. 
Illinois and Iowa, and had spoken at the best 
institutes in the county, and had studied their 
methods carefull} . Profes.sor Kennedy said : 
"1 do not say it in tlattery when I say that Ma- 
haska county has the best institute that I have 
ever visited, and 1 am sincere when I assure 
you that _\ou lia\e the best institute on the 
American continent." 

The officers of the institute for the year 
1906 are as follows: President, A. J. Lytle; 
\ice-president, W'ilford Hull: secretary. F. F. 
PAerett; assistant secretary. Charles Roe: treas- 
urer. W'ilford Hull: solicitor. J. H. Williams. 

THE OSKALO0S.\ WOMAn's CLUB. 
Bt Menza R. Burke. 

The largest organization in Oskaloosa for 
women exclusively is the Oskaloosa Woman's 
Club. It was organized in April of 1895, 'i"*-' 
its object, as stated by its constitution, is three- 
fold. First, to promote a spirit of comradeship; 
second, to assist in developing the higher tyi)e 
of womanhood; third, to strengthen, by organ- 
ization, our effort in behalf of the interests of 
our city. 

In accordance with the broad spirit evinced 
in this statement of purpose, the constitution 
of the Woman's Club makes eligible to memlier- 
shi]i "any woman sympathizing with the ob- 
ject of the club, who is eighteen years of age, 
and has been a resident of Oskaloosa for one 
year." 

There were ninety charter members of the 
Woman's Club, and its lirst president was Mrs. 
C. P. Searle. 



The first work undertaken for the interests 
of the city was for the establishment of a public 
library. In this the Woman's Club worked in 
conjunction with the Young Men's Christian 
As.sociation. In June. 1S95. two months after 
organization, the two societies entered into a 
working agreement concerning the library. The 
Young Men's Christian Association agreed to 
furnish a libnirian and a room for the library, 
and to donate to it its 500 volumes. The 
Woman's Club agreed to donate $100 to the 
cause within two months. Both parties ful- 
filled their pledges. The library remained un- 
der their joint control until after the spring 
election of 1899, when the qualified electors 
\-oted to levy a tax for the sujjport of the public 
library. The Woman's Club and the Young 
Men's Christian Association then surrendered 
the responsibility of the management to the 
city. 

The library then consisted of 2,000 volumes 
of well selected books. During the period of its 
connection with the library, the Woman's Club 
donated to its equipment $800 in money, be- 
sides a quantity of books and periodicals. 

The next great w'ork undertaken by the 
Woman's Club was the estalilishment of a city 
hospital. In December, 1900. at its open ses- 
sion, the philanthropic department of the Oska- 
loosa W'oman's Club, of which Mrs. Blanche 
Reed was chairman, fully discussed the hospital 
jiroject and resolved to devote its best energies 
U) raising money for the same. The club at 
large voted to aid in the work. 

By rummage sales, by chain letters, by run- 
ning the street cars on their first day's tri]j. by 
acting as patronesses for various entertain- 
ments, the club has succeeded in raising the 
sum of $5,000, which now (March, 1906) lies 
in the Mahaska State Bank subject to the order 
of the board of hospital trustees. 

X-or has the club been lacking in other al- 
truistic work. 



122 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



In the spring of 190 1 the Woman's Club, act- 
ing with the Commercial Club, made a system- 
atic effort toward beautifying the city. Prizes 
were offered for flower beds, gardens and 
lawns. The club furnished conmiittees to look 
after these matters, and raised the funds neces- 
sary to pay the premiums. 

The same season the club succeeded in estab- 
lishing a rest room in the basement of the 
courthouse for the comfort and convenience of 
ladies and children trading in town or passing 
through. The general supervision of this room 
is still in die hands of a committee from the 
Woman's Club. 

Through the efforts of the art department 
of the W'oman's Club each schoolroom in the 
town has been presented with a fine large car- 
bon or platinum photograph suitably framed. 
These pictures are copies of famous artists. The 
public library also has a fine frieze and a child's 
picture given by the same department of the 
Woman's Club. 

During its eleven years of existence the club 
has aided various charities, public and private; 
it has also donated to a Young Men's Christian 
Association piano. 

While it has never mixed in politics, it has 
advocated certain reforms which have crystal- 
ized into municipal law. The anti-spitting ordi- 
nance, passed by the present council, is an ex- 
ample. 

At present the clvib is preparing to entertain 
the biennial convention of the Iowa State Fed- 
eration of Woman's Clubs, which will meet in 
Oskaloosa in 1907. 

For convenience of work the club is divided 
into seven departments : Eduction, history and 
travel, literature, philanthropy, music, home 
and current events and art. Each department 
may be sub-divided into classes at pleasure of 
the members. 

The presidents of the club since the organi- 
zation are as follows: 1895-96, Mrs. C. P 
Searle; 1897-98, Mi,ss Leoni McMullen; 1899, 
Mrs. Sam Baldauf; 1900-1901, Mrs. Richard 



Burke; 1902, Jilrs. A. A. Hugg; 1903-1904, 
Mrs. H. L. Spencer; 1905, Mrs. J. C. Wil- 
liams. The membership of the Woman's Clul 
has grown from the original ninety to nearly 
200. 



CHAPTER XXXV. 



SOME INTERESTING F.\CTS G.\THERED FROM 
THE OLD COUNTY RECORDS. 

The oldest records in possession of the county 
auditor appear on two quires of fool's-cap pa- 
per, fastened together with strong linen thread, 
the thread being doubled to make it more se- 
cure. This precious old document of ninety-six 
pages is written in the clear, plain hand writing 
of Micajah T. Williams, the county clerk. Most 
of his life Mr. Williams wrote wdth a quill pen 
of his own manufacture and it is fair to con- 
clude that these old records were made with the 
quill carefully plucked from the wing of a 
wild turkey or goose, both of which were abun- 
dant in the early days. The ink used was most 
likely a home manufactured article but it is 
not materially obscured when we count the lapse 
of sixty years. Every item is spaced and num- 
bered and Ijears the stamp of Mr. Williams' 
well known conventional and exact manner oi 
stating things. The first page starts out as 
follows ; 

"Mahaska county, Iowa Territory, May 13, 
1844. Be it remembered that on this day Rob- 
ert Curiy and Abraham S. Nichols, having 
heretofore been duly elected county commis- 
sioners of said county, met at the county seat of 
the above named county for the purpose of hold- 
ing a called session of the commissioners' 
court of said county, Wilson Stanley, the other 
commissioner, not being present. Court was 
called and opened by the two commissioners 
who were present, and adjourned until tomor- 




IOWA CIIRISTIAX Cor-rjCGE. BLILT IX l,si34. 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



125 



row morning" at <) d'clm-k." The next item 
is dated Tuesday nmrning. May 14. 1S44, y) 
o'clock, and relates to the qualifying nf Wilson 
Stanley, the third commissioner. The hoard 
then ])rin-edeil to select a graml iur_\- and petit 
jurors for the first term of the district court 
which was held in Oskaloosa on the third Mon- 
da\' I if the following Julv. The names of the 
grand jurors selected were as follows : James 
Vance. John Argahright. John Rose. Aaron D. 
Bowers. Richard Parker. Adam Cline. Michael 
S. Morris. ( )see Mathews. George W. Jones, 
Jefferson Oiitwix:)d. Wellington Nascman. 
William Bean, James Heckinhatani, James 
Ccimpstock. Adam Storts. William Welch, John 
Shelledy. Harmon Davis. John B. Steward, 
Brantly Stat^'ord. Jacol) Crane, .\lexander May 
and John Vance. 

The following persons were selected to serve 
as petit jurors for the satne term of court : John 
Newell, Samuel Peters. John D. BahKvin, 
Thomas Brooks. Alfred Seevers, William Bo- 
vell. Robert Hammond, Thomas Fancher, Ja- 
cob Nordike, James Seevers, William D. 
Brown, James Ross, Alfred Hood, Solomon 
Barhee. Pleasant Parker. Green T. Clark. John 
P. Majors. Joseph H. Benedict. Thomas \\'il- 
liams. Isaac Parker, Wesley H. Freel. Robert 
Curry, Jr.. and Benjamin Thomas. 

The decision and the oath of the locating 
commissioners of the seat of justice are the next 
items of record. Then follow the boundaries 
of the twelve precincts into which Mahaska 
county and the adjoining territory to the west 
and north of it were divided for election pur- 
poses. We gi\e them in the order and almost 
in the exact language in which they appear on 
this old home-made record. 

White Oak Grove. — Ordered by the board 
that the following Ixnindaries compose the first 
])recinct for holding election. That townships 
numl)er fourteen west and seventy-four anfl 
seventy-tive north shall form said precinct and 
8 



the i)lace of holding elections shall be at the 
house of Henry Bond. 

.Muchankinock — That township seventy- four 
north, fifteen west and that part of township 
seventy-four north of sixteen west, which lies 
east of Rice's creek, shall form the second pre- 
cinct. Place of holding the election at James 
Vance's. 

Oskaloosa. — That township numl)er seventy- 
five north, and fifteen west, and all that part of 
township seventy-five north of sixteen west, 
that lies east of Rice's creek, shall form said 
third precinct, and the place of election at Os- 
kaloosa. 

Harrisburg. — That township seventy-four 
and seventy-five north and seventeen west, and 
that part of seventy-four and seventy-five north 
and sixteen west, and lying west of Rice's 
creek shall form the fourth precinct, and the 
place of election at G. W. Jones", in Harrislmrg. 

North Fork Precinct. — That township sev- 
enty-six and seventy-seven north, fourteen and 
fifteen west, shall form said fifth precinct, and 
the place of holding election to be fixed by the 
sheriff. 

.Skunk Ri\er Precinct. — That township num- 
ber seventy-six and seventy-seven north of six- 
teen west shall form the sixth precinct, and the 
place of holding election shall be fixed by the 
sheriff. 

Black Oak Grove Precinct. — That township 
number seventy-six and seventy-seven north, 
seventeen west, shall form the seventh precinct, 
and the place of holding election shall be fixed 
by the sheriff. 

Lake Prairie Precinct — That township sev- 
enty-six and eighteen township west, and the 
place of holding election at the home of Levi 
Brainbridge. 

White r^reast Precinct. — That all the unsur- 
\eyed territory which lies west of Mahaska 
county except that part which lies north of John 
Mikesell ;uid attached to Mahaska countv for 



126 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



election purposes, shall form the ninth precinct, 
and the place of holding elections at the house 
of Edward Billips. 

Cedar Precinct. — That township number 
seventy-four and seventj'-five and eighteen 
west, shall form the tenth precinct, and the 
place of holding elections at the house of George 
Henry. 

Poweshiek Precinct. — That the west half of 
Powesheik county and all the unsurveyed terri- 
tory lying west of said county and attached to 
Mahaska for election purposes, and north of 
John Mikesell, .shall fomi the elevenUi pre- 
cinct, the place of holding elections shall be 
fixed by the sheriff. 

Poweshiek Precinct, No. 2. — That all die 
east half of Poweshiek county shall form the 
twelfth precinct, and the place of holding elec- 
tion to be fixed by the sheriff. 

Tlien follow various orders for small sums is- 
sued Ijv the board to sundry persons for services 
rendered. The names of die judges of election in 
the different precincts and an order naming the 
28th day of June, 1844, when the sale of town 
lots should take place. At this meeting it was 
also ordered that sealed bids would be received 
by the board of commissioners until the first 
day of July for the building of a courthouse at 
the new county seat. David Stump, county 
surveyor, was directed to survey and plat two 
dundred and ninety-two in lots and twenty-one 
out lots which should fonn the inclosure of the 
county seat. 

M. T. Williams was appointed agent for the 
board when not in session and his duties de- 
fined, "To attend to the surveying and platting 
of said town and to such other business as may 
by him be deemed necessary." For this service 
the record shows that Mr Williams received the 
sum of $7.50. In making these sales the clerk 
inserted a clause in each certificate issued by 
him to the purchaser which provided that said 
commissioners should not be required to make 
a deed for the property until they should obtain 



a title to the same from the United States. At 
a later meeting the record shows that "David 
Stump be allowed the sum of $78.75 for sur- 
veying the town of Oskaloosa, out of the funds 
a'ccruing from the sale of said lots." At a meet- 
ing of the board. May 25, 1844, we have the 
order of the board that a grocery license 
shall be allowed to grocery-keepers in said 
county for the sum of $25 per year, and at the 
same proportion for a shorter period." G. W. 
Jones & Company, Oskaloosa's first merchants, 
are allowed an order of $1.75 for stationery 
furnished the board. Doubtless this old home- 
made record forms a part of this bill. The 
terms on which lots were sold was that one- 
eighth should be paid in cash and the remainder 
be paid in two equal annual payments. 

W. .\. Delashmutt, the first assessor of the 
count}-, was allowed the suniof$6o for his serv- 
ices for appraising the property of said county. 
William D. Canfield. the first tavern-keeper, 
was allowed the sum of $5 for "boarding the 
hands while surveying town lots." 

The amount of personal property reported 
in the year 1844 was $46,661. A tax of fifty 
cents on each $100 had been issued, making a 
collectable tax of $233.30. Tax on 498 polls at 
fifty cents each, $249.00: with a territorial tax 
of one-half mill on the dollar, $23.33; total 
amount collectable tax, $505.63. 

On October 8, 1844, road viewers were ap- 
pointed liy the board to confirm the survey of 
a road leading from the northwest corner of 
the public square to Duncan's Mill. This com- 
mission was to meet on October 18, with David 
Stump, the county surveyor, and lay out said 
road as the law directed. 

A large number of the orders issued by the 
county board of commissioners in 1844 were 
for services rendered by sundry citizens for 
work done on the Brighton road, the Fairfield 
road, the Eddyville road and the Iowa City 
road, as well as for other public highways. 
The meeting of January 6, 1845, opens with a 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



127 



long list of orders for the liounty on wolf scalps, 
which are kejit up through the year. 

Other curious records to this generation such 
as the ear marks for the purpose of distingui.sh- 
ing cattle, hogs and sheep on the range. Pleas- 
ant Parker chose a swallow fork in each ear; 
William Jolly, a crop off the right ear; Samuel 
McFall, a swath crop off the left ear. 

On September 25, 1843. the hoard appointed 
A. D. Jones to superintend the mason work and 
Christmas Heatherington to superintend the 
carpenter work on the jail built in Oskaloosa. 
The contract hail been let to \\'illiam G. Lee. 
The amount of expenditures of Mahaska coun- 
ty for the year closing December 31, 1845, was 
$857.46. 

On April 13, 184C), a license was granted to 
Joseph Tally to keep a ferry across the Des 
Moines river at Tally's ford, on the payment of 
an annual fee of $5 to the county clerk. He 
was authorized to charge the following rates : 
Two horses and wagon, thirty-seven and one- 
half cents; four horses and wagon, fifty cents; 
man and horse, eighteen and three-fourths 
cents; single horse, ten cents; cattle, per head, 
eight cents ; sheep and hogs, per head, five 
cents; and footman, ten cents. 

Tt seems that one of the good citizens of the 
county had been shamefully maltreated by ex- 
cessive taxation, and we find this alleviating 
record ; 

"Ordered that Robert Wilson be released of 
twenty-nine cents of his tax, which was as- 
sessed to him for the year 1845." This looks 
like a smrdl sum to bring before the county com- 
missioners, but when we remember that the 
twenty-nine cents would purchase almost one- 
fourth of an acre of Mahaska county land, the 
transaction is given a new setting. 

On January 6, 1846, we find the following; 
"Ordered that the road from Oskaloosa to Dun- 
can's Mill be recorded and declared a pul)lic 
highway." A similar record is made of the 
road leading east to the line of Keokuk county 



and west to .\ulnnn. and several other roads 
in the county which had been recently estab- 
lished. Order No. 595, read: "Allowed G. 
W. Jones $2.75 for furnishing candles and sta- 
tionery for the use of court." Elsewhere we 
learn that candles w'ere worth sixteen cents per 
pound. Many of the orders in these years were 
for services which accord with the Ijeginning of 
things in a new settlement, such as road view- 
ers, chain carriers, surveying, road grading and 
the like. 

The receipts for grocery license for the year 

1845 were $100; for ferry, $10; fines, $10. 
The amount of county orders paid and can- 
celled by G. W. Baer, county treasurer, for the 
year ending December 31. 1846, was $360.14 

January 7, 1848, M. T. Williams filed with 
the board of commissioners his annual report 
as the agent for the sale of town lots. We 
give it in part: "The undersigned agent by 
your appointment for the sale of lots in O.ska- 
loosa would respectfully report that since the 
5th day of January, A. D. 1847, the date of 
my last settlement, I ha\e sold thirty-eight lots 
amounting to the sum of $622.00." This 
would give an average of $16.37 P^'' 'ot. 

On the same date G. W. Baer, county treas- 
urer, makes his report. One item may be of 
interest : "I have collected on the tax list for 

1846 in all to this date, including interest, 

$559-89-" 

It was ordered by the board of commission- 
ers on April 10, 1848, "Tliat all licenses issued 
for the purpose of retailing intoxicating liq- 
uors in Mahaska county, shall be thirty-three 
and one-third dollars." 

The records above referred to are known as 
the minute books of the board of commission- 
ers. One of these old l)lank books had been 
well preserved, but used for a time as a 
sera]) book. It had evidently been brought from 
the east with the family effects, and necessity 
had converted it into a more dignified service. 
Necessity is often a good mother to modest men 



128 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and -women. It calls out the splendid ca- 
pabilities of heart and life, all unknown because 
unused. 

There are a series of blank books in the 
office of the county auditor called road books. 
Book number one is dated December, A. D. 
1844, and describes the "Territorial road com- 
mencing at a ix)int on the old Indian boundary 
line in Des Moines township, in Jefferson 
county, where a territorial road from Fort Mad- 
ison in the county of Lee, passing through the 
counties of Van Buren and Jefferson terminates 
on said boundary line on the nearest and best 
route to Agency City, in the county of Wa- 
i:)ello. thence to Dahlonega, in said county, and 
from thence to the county east of Mahaska 
county, making the whole distance of said road 
from the old county line thirty-seven miles and 
twenty-two chains." Then follows a quite mi- 
nute description of the entire route, making 
specific mention of what the traveler would 
pass. Timber, sloughs, prairie, creeks, ridges, 
etc. Stations are numbered from the starting 
point, distances in miles, chains and links be- 



tween stations. The kind of trees on which 
the bearings were recorded nearest to the mile- 
posts, such as white oak, sweet oak, wild 
chern,', white elm, red oak, black walnut, hick- 
ory, etc. The survey was made by David 
Stump, who surveyed the town of Oskaloosa. 

A similar minute description is given of the 
survey of a territorial road commencing at the 
west door of the capitol of the territory, in Iowa 
City, in Johnson county, and covering a dis- 
tance of sixty-seven miles and thirty-four 
chains to the east boundary of the public square 
in Oskaloosa. We have not been able to learn 
much of the life of this early sun^eyor. but his 
careful records have raised him in our estima- 
tion as a man of the strictest fidelity and more 
than ordinary ability in his chosen work. Ex- 
tracts and comments on these old records might 
be extended indefinitely. These will serve to 
show something of what the pioneers had to 
contend with as they received this good land 
from the hand of nature. One thing will im- 
press the reader; the patience, painstaking care 
and unselfish spirit of these toilers. 







^:^t-'r-^^ 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 



HnX. LUCIAX C. BLAXCHARD. 

Hull, laiciaii C Lilaiicliard. who in public ol- 
tice as a member of the state legislature and 
(111 the bench has been actuated by a spirit ni 
tlircct and immediate serviceableness, was 
burn in Diana, Lewis county. Xew York, a smi 
of Caleb and Penelojie ( Aldrich ) Fjlanchanl, 
natives of Rhode Island and X'ernioiit respect- 
ively. 'I'he father, born in 1797. removed 
from Xew Rngland to Xew \ ork at an early 
])eriod in the de\'elopment of the latter state 
and became a prominent factor in local affairs. 
serving as supervisor and also as justice of 
the ]ieace f(jr many years. Judge Blancbard, 
born April 15. 1839. was only fi\e years of 
age at the time of his father's death. He was 
educated in the common schools and the Car- 
thage Academy at Carthage. JefYerson county. 
Xew York, and in 1858 came to the middle 
west, after which he attended the Rock River 
Seminary at Monnt Morris. Illinois, for t\vi> 
years. He also engaged in teaching for sev- 
eral \ears and in i860 went to Pike's Peak, at- 
tracted liy the discovery of gold there, but in 
the fall of the same }'ear returned to the .Mis- 
sissippi \-alle_\- and taught school in jasper 
count}'. Iowa. He took up the study of law 
at Xewtou. Iowa, antl in June. iS()_'. he en- 
listed for service in the Civil war as a member 
of Com])any K. 1'wenty-eigbth Regiment of 



Iowa \'olunteers. With that command be i)ar- 
ticipated in the Ijattles of Port (libson. Cham- 
pion Hill and the siege of Vicksburg. In his 
militar}- service lie was active and loyal and 
with a most credital)le record returned to his 
home. 

Returning to the north Judge Blancbard re- 
sumed the study of law and entered the law 
department of the University of Michigan, 
from which he was graduated in the class of 
1866. He began practice in Montezuma, 
Iowa, and soon demonstrated his capability 
to successfully handle important litigated in- 
terests by reason of comiirehensive knowledge 
of the ])rinci])les of law and a correctness in 
their a])|)lir;ition to the ])oints at issue. In the 
fall of i8f)8 be was elected circuit judge for 
a four-years' term, was re-elected in the au- 
tumn of J 872 and again in 1876. thus serving 
for three full terms or twelve years upon the 
bench. In a review of the legal history of the 
disti"ict at that time we bud that bis decisions 
indicate strong mentality, careful analysis, a 
tiiorough knowledge of law and an unbiased 
judgment. The judge on the bench fails more 
frecpiently perhaps from a deficiency in that 
broad mindedness which not only comprehends 
the details of a situation (|uickl_\- and that in- 
sures a complete self-control under even the 
most exasperating conditions tlian from any 
other cause: and the judge who makes a sue- 



132 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



cess in the discharge of his multitudinous deh- 
cate duties is a man of well rounded character, 
finely balanced mind and strong intellectual 
attainments. That Judge Blanchard is re- 
garded as such a jurist is a uniformly accepted 
fact. He removed to Oskaloosa in 1874 and 
following his retirement from the bench in 
1880 continued actively in the practice oi law 
until 1886, when he spent the summer in 
Europe. 

Natural fitness for leadership combined with 
a public recognition of his devotion to the 
welfare of county and state led to Judge 
Blanchard's selection for representati\-e in the 
house in 1893 ''"^^ ^^^ served for one term 
of two years. In 1895 he was elected senator 
and was re-elected in 1899, serving in the 
twenty-sixth, twenty-seventh, twenty-eighth 
and twenty-ninth general assemblies. He took 
an important part in framing the legislation 
enacted during those periods. He served as 
a member of the judiciary committee and on 
a number of other important committees and 
he was largely instrumental in securing the 
passage of a law prohibiting the eighty per 
cent insurance clause in fire policies and was 
the author of the anti-combine insurance law. 
In 1900 he was president of the Iowa State 
Bar Association and was the candidate of his 
party for judge of the supreme court. 

He stands high in Masonic circles, having 
attained the Knight Templar degree of the York 
rite. He was grand treasurer in 1879-80 and 
grand orator, serving also for many years as 
chairman of the committee of jurisprudence. 
^^'ith Judge Wilson, of Newton, Iowa, he pre- 
]jared and published the Masonic Digest and 
he is a past master in Tri Luminar lodge at 
Oskaloosa. He is also a member of the Grand 
Army of the Republic and in 1890 was senior 
vice commander of the department of Iowa. 
He is now a member of the Iowa Vicksburg 
National Commission. He was a member of 
the International Congress of St. Louis in 



1904 and he now devotes his attention to the 
practice of law with the other interests previ- 
iiuslv mentioned. His attentidii, however, is 
concentrated chiefly upon his legal business and 
his practice is extensixe and of an important 
character. 

On the 13th of January, 1870, occurred the 
marriage of Judge Blanchard and Miss Sarah 
Kilburn, daughter of F. A. Kilburn, of Monte- 
zuma, Iowa. To them were born a daughter 
and son. Rose and Claude, the former the wife 
of Dr. B. O. Jerell, of Oskaloosa. After los- 
ing his first wife Judge Blanchard was married, 
June 9, 1886, to Jozelle \Villiams, a daughter 
of Micajah T. \Viniams, of Oskaloosa. Her 
death occurred .\pril 22, 1897, and Judge 
Blanchard was married to May Farmer, of 
Kirksville, Missouri, September 29, 1904. 
^^■ ith a mind of much compass, laudable ambi- 
tion and strong and unfaltering determination. 
Judge Blanchard has won a position of prDuii- 
nence in his chosen profession, his talents 
gaining him prestige as a lawyer at a bar which 
has numbered many eminent and prominent 
men. ^Moreover his official record is one that 
has reflected honor upon the district that has 
honored him. 



CURTIS AUGUSTUS ABBOTT, M. D. 

Dr. Curtis Augustus Abbott, to whom has 
been accorded a liberal patronage during the 
years in which he has engaged in the practice 
of medicine and surgery in Oskaloosa, was born 
in .\thens county, Ohio, in 1869. His father, 
William Abbott, was born in Athens county, 
Ohio, and died in 1876, at the age of fifty- 
se\en years. He remo\ed to Kentucky when 
his son Curtis was but three years of age and al- 
though a blacksmith by trade he followed the 
occupation of farming for a long period and 
during the last few years of his life was a 



PAST AXI) PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



133 



nierchaiU in Carter county. Kentucky. An earn- 
est Christian man, he held nieuiherslii]) in tlie 
Methodist Episcopal church antl took an active 
anil helpful interest in its work. His political 
support was gi\'en to the republican part)-. In 
business affairs he possessed keen discernment 
and enterpri.se and liecame well-to-do. His 
wife, who bore the maiden name of ]\Iary Cole- 
man, was born in Ohio and died in 1900, at the 
'age of seventy-four years. She, too, was an 
earnest member of the ^fethodist Episcopal 
church. In their family were twelve children, 
six sons and si.x daughters, all of whom reached 
adult age, and in the course of years repre- 
sented various occupations. By a former mar- 
riage the father had had two children and one 
of these. James Abbott, was a soldier in the 
Union army during the Civil war. 

Dr. -Abbott attended school in Kentucky and 
at Valparaiso, Indiana, where he pursued his 
more specifically literary course. He afterward 
entered the Kentucky School of Medicine, at 
Louisville, in 1889, and was graduated in 1893. 
He took up post-graduate work in 1897 and 
spent one year in the Kentucky University, at 
Louisville. He also spent a year as interne in 
the post-graduate school in Chicago, and thus 
added to his theoretical knowledge broad prac- 
tical training and experience. Following his 
graduation from the Kentucky School of Medi- 
cine he entered upon the practice of his profes- 
sion at Beacon, Iowa, where he remained for 
four years, and in 1900 he came to Oskaloosa, 
forming a partnership with Dr. John F. Swa- 
rens under the firm style of .\bbott & Swarens. 
This relation was maintained until Februarys 
20, 1906, and Dr. .Vbbott is now practicing 
alone. 

On the 19th of .\ugust, 1903, the Doctor 
was married to Edith .Allen, who was born in 
Illinois in 1879, a daughter of David and Ade- 
laide -Allen. The father was a farmer and mine 
superintendent. Dr. and Airs. .Abbott have one 
child, Maxine, born December 28. 1905. They 



hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal 
church and occupy a very enviable position in 
social circles. Dr. .Abbott votes with the re- 
publican party and has fraternal relations with 
the Knights of Pythias lodge, while in the line 
of his profession he is connected with the Ma- 
haska County Medical Association. In his 
practice he is meeting with well deserved suc- 
cess, ha\ing carefully prq^ared for his profes- 
sion and bringing to his work a sense of consci- 
entious obligation which enables him to ably 
perform each day's duty. 



WILLI A Al 11. K-\LBACH. 

\\'illiam H. Kalbach, a representative of com- 
mercial and financial interests in Oskaloosa, 
has attained a position of distinctixe precedence 
ami ing the business men whose efforts have con- 
tributed to general prosperity as well as indi- 
\-idual success. The strong purpose, safe and 
conser\-ati\e judgment and guiding will jjower 
which are strong characteristics (n his business 
career contain the sei^ret of his ad\ancement and 
prosperitv. He is one 01 Oskaloosa's native 
sons. l)orn in 1858. his parents being Isaac and 
Christina (Koch) Kalbach, both of whom were 
natives of Pennsylvania, and of German line- 
age. The father, whose sketch appears else- 
where in this volume, is now living in Oskaloosa 
at the venerable age of eighty-three years, but 
the mother died in 1897. in the seventy-sixth 
vear of her age. 

William H. Kalbach was reared in Oskaloosa 
;uid was a public-school student until the age 
of lifteen years, when he entered the hardware 
store of Cary Cooper, with whom he remained 
for six years as a clerk. He ne.xt went to New 
Sharon, where he established the ])rivate bank 
of Kalbach Sons & Company, continuing ac- 
tive in the management of that concern for six 
vears. He then returned to Oskaloosa and en- 



134 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



tered into partnership with C. Huher under the 
firm name of Huber & Kalbach. This was in 
1885 and in 1890 the Huber & Kalbach Com- 
pany was organized, which is still in operation, 
conducting- an extensive wholesale and retail 
hardware business. In fact this is the largest 
enterprise of the kind in Oskaloosa. and Mr. 
Kalbach was the acti\e manager until about a 
vear ago, the dexelopment and growth of the 
business being therefore largely attributable to 
his efforts. In 1895 he succeeded Judge Wil- 
liam H. Seevers as president of the Oskaloosa 
National Bank and is still acting in' that ca- 
pacity. In 1892 the Union Savings Bank was 
organized with Mr. Kalbach as president and 
he al.^o remains at the head of this institution. 
He was one of the promoters of one of the first 
independent telephone companies in the state of 
Iowa, known as the Home Telephone Com- 
pany and was active in its management for six 
vears. when with the other original stockhold- 
ers, he sold out the business, being unable to 
give it the time required. It had proved a suc- 
cessful venture in every respect. 

In 1884, Mr. Kalbach was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Nell Seevers, who was born in 
Oskaloosa in 1864, and is a daughter of Judge 
\\'illiam and Caroline M. (Lee) Seevers 
There are now two children : Lee. bom in 
1888: and Maria, born in 189 1. Mrs. Kalbach 
is a member of the Episcopal church and Mr. 
Kalbach belongs to the Masonic fraternity and 
Elks lodge. Wherever found he is a social, 
g-enial, affable gentleman, whose friends are le- 
gion and all honor and esteem him for his manly 
A'irtues and genuine worth. As a man his busi- 
ness ability has been constantly manifested in 
one phase or another and everything that he 
undertakes he masters, so that the extensive 
and important commercial and moneyed con- 
cerns with which he has been identified have 
felt the stimulus of his untiring effort and co- 
operation and ha\e profited by his keen discern- 
ment and sound judgment. 



U. G. DECK. 

L'. G. Deck, a retired farmer, now filling the 
office of countv recortler — which came to him 
unsolicited — has a record which many might 
be proud to possess, characterized as it is by 
fidelity tn duty and by persistent purpose that 
exerted along well defined lines of labor has 
led to success. Starting out empty-handed and 
with the care of several younger children de- 
volving upon him, he has steadily worked his 
way upward and his labors have at length won 
reward in a \-er\- desirable competence and the 
respect and esteem of his fellowmen. He was 
born February 28, 1868, in Carroll county, 
Ohio. His father, Martin T. Deck, born in 
Germany, came to the United States with his 
parents, Mr. and Mrs. John W. Deck, when 
three years of age. Having attained his major- 
ity he entered a claim of eighty acres in Carroll 
county, located thereon and made the place his 
home until 1878, when he came to Iowa and 
settled on what was known as the Rothell farm, 
five and a half miles northwest of Oskaloosa. 
About six months before his death he removed 
to another farm which he had purchased about 
six miles southeast of Oskaloosa, and there died 
soon afterward. He was an industrious, en- 
ergetic and ijrogressive farmer, who by earn- 
est and well directed efforts accumulated a 
handsome competency leaving his family well 
provided for. In politics he was a stanch repub- 
lican, eager for the success of his party and 
ever lending a helping hand to further its in- 
terests. He never sought office for himself 
but gave unfaltering support to the party candi- 
dates. Before his marriage he had spent about 
five years engaged successfully in merchandis- 
ing in Colorado, and for a short time was in 
the gold mines, but his attention through life 
was chiefiy given to his farming interests. He 
stood high in the regard of friends and neigh- 
bors and was unifonnly respected. He was 
conservative in his opinions, never bitterly ag- 



I'AST AXI) PRESENT OF MAIIASKA COUNTY. 



135 



5.;res>i\e and tlimugh liis devntion tn princi- 
ples of riglit and duty made an honored name. 
Me wedded Matjjiie J. Harper, who was born 
near New Cumlierlanti, Ohio, and was of Irish 
parentage. Slie lield membership in tlie J'res- 
livterian chnrcii and dietl October 7. 188 1, at 
the age of forty-six years. L'nto Mr. and Mrs. 
Deck were born nine chikh'en : .Mlison F., 
a farmer of Spring C"reei< tnwnshi]). tliis 
■county; Ira E., of Atkinson, Nebraska; U. G., 
of this review; Cora L.. the wife of Worth 
McW'hinney, a merchant of Clay county, In- 
diana; William L., a farmer of Bussey, Marion 
counlN ; Maggie L., li\iiig in Sedalia, Missom'i ; 
Clara 1).. deceased; Burchard H.. who has 
served in the United States regular army, and 
is now in Ottumwa, lnwa: and Maud B., whii 
died at the age of foin- years. 

Til a limited extent C G. Deck attended the 
cdnminn schools of Madison township, but is 
large!)- self-educated and has had to depend 
u])()n the school of experience for the instruc- 
tion which has fitted him for life's jiractical 
and responsible duties, .\fter the deatli of lii'^ 
mother he did the work of the household, cook- 
ing, etc. He was reared to the occupation of 
farming, which tias been his life work sa\e 
for a brief period dcNutcd to the o])eration of 
a mine upon a farm which he purchased in 
1897, in Garfield township about a half mile 
"west of Beacon. .\s the years went b_\' his 
earnest and indefatigable labor brought to him 
cai)ital sufficient to justify his purchase of land 
and lieginning farming on his own account he 
has prospered in his undertakings, becoming 
the owner of good land which he brought under 
a high state of cultixation. He now li\es upon 
a tract of land of ten acres which he i)in'chased 
when removing to Oskaloosa in 1903, on which 
he lias Iniilt one of the modern residences ol 
the 'city. 

On the loth of September. 1890, .Mr. Deck 
was married to Miss Minnie H. Tullis, wiio 
was born in Maiiaska county in 187 1, a daugh- 



ter of \\illi;im 11. and .\nna Tullis. Her father 
was one of the pioneer farmers of the county 
and a \eteran of the Civil war. Unto Mr. and 
Mrs. Deck have been born four children: 
Harry E., May M., Ralph M. and Helen G. 
'idle parents are members of the Methodist 
EpiscojMl church and Mr. Deck belongs to the 
Masonic fraternity and the Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows. In politics he is an earnest 
republican. He has held several township cjf- 
fices and in 1904 was elected to the office of 
county recorder, which position he is now ably 
and satisfactorily-filling and which came to him 
unsolicited. Free from ostentation and display 
he is nevertheless a progressive citizen. 



LISTON McMILLEN. 

Liston McMillen, legist and author, whose 
infiuence in behalf of high standards in social 
and business life and in citizenship has left its 
infiuence for good in Mahaska county, where 
he is well known and in many other localities 
where his published volumes have been read, 
was born in Richwood, Union county, Ohio, on 
the TOth of December, 1847. His jiatcmal 
grandfather, John McMillen. was a soldier of 
the war of 1812 and became a i)ioneer teacher 
and representative citizen of this county. He 
died at the age of eighty-four years and was 
buried in a quiet little cemetery in Monroe 
townshi]) by the side of his wife, who passed 
awav at the age of eighty \ears. Their son, 
Benjamin F. McMillen. father of Liston Mc- 
Millen, was Iwirn in Wheeling, West \'irginia, 
studied medicine and in 1868 came to Oska- 
loosa. where for many years he successfully en- 
gaged in practice, being recognized as one of 
the ablest members of the medical fraternity in 
this district. He was born in 1820 and died in 
i88g. In earl\- manhood he had wedded Miss 
Caroline .V. Maxwell, also a native of West 



136 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Virginia and a daughter of Robert Maxwell, a 
prominent pioneer and stock man, who resided 
near Cardington, Ohio, and died at the ad- 
vanced age of ninety-one years, while his first 
wife, Mrs. Rosanna Maxwell, passed away at 
the early age of thirty years. Unto Mr. and 
Mrs. Benjamin McMillen were born a son and 
two daughters: Liston; Leoni ; and Lena ^'I., 
the wife of Dr. ^^'illiam S. Windell, lecturer in 
Penn College, at Oskaloosa. 

Liston McMillen liegan his education in the 
common schools in Richwood, Ohio, and con- 
tinued his studies in Cardington until fourteen . 
years of age, when he entered the Ohio Wes- 
leyan University at Delaware, from which in- 
stitution he was graduated in 1867. In .\pril 
of the following year he came to Iowa and 
studied law in the office of Hon. G. D. Woodin, 
of Sigourney, being admitted to the bar in 1869. 
In the fall of the latter year he came to Oska- 
loosa, where he has since been engaged in prac- 
tice and in point of residence he is the oldest 
practitioner of the city. His position, too, is 
among the foremost representatives of the bar 
and his capability, making him known far be- 
yond the borders of the county, has classed him 
with the prominent lawyers of Iowa. 

Mr. McMillen is a republican in politics. 
Recognizing the fact that offices are few and as- 
pirants many he believes that good standing at 
the bar has as much glory as comes to the office 
holder and has therefore concentrated his ener- 
gies upon his law practice and kindred interests. 
He is the author of two volumes, one called 
Christian Hygiene, published in 1895. The 
other is McAIiIlen"s Monograph on Interna- 
tional Peace, published in July, 1905, the basic 
thought of which is the Golden Rule as being 
the essence of all jurisprudence whether na- 
tional or international and all ramifications of 
law are simply evolutions of this principle. A 
copy of this work was placed in the hands of 
President Roosevelt during the Portsmouth 
conference and in the president's message is- 



sued the following December the same doctrine 
is announced and for the first time in any state 
paper the Golden Rule is mentioned. Mr. Mc- 
Millen and many friends of peace were highly 
gratified to find this confirmation of the doc- 
trine in such influential public papers as the 
president's message. It is a seed sower the 
world over. Whether the president imbibed 
the thought from Mr. McMillen's book or not 
the correspondence grants encouragement to 
every worker for the splendid result no matter 
how humble his eflforts. 

Mr. McMillen's name appears in more than 
one hundred cases of published volumes of the 
supreme court reports of Iowa. He has been 
admitted to practice in the L'nited States su- 
preme court, the Ohio supreme court and in the 
Dakotas. Some of the cases which he has tried 
have become matters of recognized authority 
upon certain judicial principles. One especially 
is that of Smothers versus Hank, which is 
cited as authority in all modern works on ques- 
tions concerning the degree of skill required of 
lawyers and physicians. Another notable case 
with which Air. McMillen was connected was 
that of Allen versus Central, settling the ques- 
tion as to the right to sue a railway company 
whose property was in the hands of a receiver. 
The case of Whitaker versus Parker, in which 
Mr. McMillen was also one of the lawyers, 
clearly brought out the thought that the reason- 
ableness of the story of witnesses must be taken 
into consideration in the weigliing of testimony. 

Mr. McMillen has always been a supporter of 
public improvement and progress and has been 
a close and earnest student of sociological, eco- 
nomic and political questions as well as those 
more directly connected with his profession. He 
manifests a statesman's grasp of affairs and 
keeps in touch with the trend of modern 
thought. He has never identified himself with 
any lodge or secret society for the reason that 
he has found ample fraternal and social life in 
the brotherhood of the church, his membership 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



137 



l)ciiig in tlieC(ingregation:ilcliurch. Hcis the au- 
tlior of a little treatise on the Proofs of the Res- 
urrection of Christ and lectures on the subject 
as occasion offers, this being the held peculiarly 
adapted to his training and experience as a 
lawyer. 

On the 14th of September, 1901, Mr. Mc- 
Millen was married to Miss Minnie Foreman, 
at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and they li;i\c one 
son, John Franklin, born June 14, 1902. Happy 
in his home life and in his social relations. Mr. 
.^^cMillen has a nature that has constantly e.K- 
panded under the induences of general develop- 
ment and has grown by his keen research and 
investigation into matters of public moment. 
His life exemplifies a rare and valuable combi- 
nation of high ideals and i)ractical methods. 



JOHN R. BAER. 

Jiihn R. Baer, who has been an active factor 
in business and official circles but is now living 
retired in Oskaloosa, is a native son of Indiana, 
having been born in Rockville, Parke county, 
on the I ith of March, 1839. His father, George 
\\ . liaer, was a nati\e of \'irginia and when a 
} I lung man went to Ohio, where he remained 
until after his marriage to Elizabeth Lundy, a 
native of that state. Soon, however, they re- 
moved to Parke county, Indiana, and in 1843 
went to Sarcoxie, Missouri. In the fall of 1845 
they came to Oskaloosa, which was then a 
small . village, ha\ing few business enterprises 
and but a small number of houses. The father 
followed the tailor's trade for a short time 
and then eng;iged in general merchandising, 
while later he bought, sold and shipped stock 
tiir many years. In this way he accumulated 
a handsome competency, but he lost his capital 
bv financially accommodating a friend. In 
early life he was an old-line whig, and under 
the laws of biwa filled the office of collector 



and treasurer of the county for one term, act- 
ing in the latter capacity in 1847-8. He was 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal church 
antl died in that faith in 189J, at the age of sev- 
enty-eight years. His wife, an earnest Chris- 
tian woman, passed away in May, 1855, when 
thirty-five years of age, dying of cholera. In 
their family were seven children, of whom tliree 
are yet living, namely: John R. ; Amelia, who 
is the widow of Reason Wil.son, of Oskaloosa ; 
and Cieorge W'., of die Indian Territor\\ Those 
deceased are : Rebecca, wife of John W. Mur- 
phy : Mary ; Martha Henrietta ; and Lloyd. By 
phy ; Mary : Martha Henrietta : and Lloyd. By 
Clark county, Iowa, George \V. Baer had two 
children : Elizabeth, the wife of L. D. Fowler, 
of Washington, D. C. ; and Byron, of Ne- 
braska, 

John R. Baer was educated in the pul)lic 
schools and when a boy began clerking for the 
firm of Hardy, Searle & Young, with whom he 
remained for three years. He afterward spent 
two years on his father's farm in Oskaloosa 
township and was next employed by Benjamin 
Roop until the spring of i860, when he drove 
across the country with ox-teams to a town 
seventy-five miles west of Denver, Colorado, 
there prospecting for gold. In the fall, how- 
ever, he returned in the same manner to Oska- 
loosa, being fifty-two days on the outgoing trip 
and thirty-one days on the return trip. He 
then liecame a clerk for George M. Downs, of 
this city, the store being on the present site of 
the courthouse. In the previous fall he cast 
a vote for Abraham Lincoln, which was his 
first ballot. He continued clerking mitil the 
15th of July, 1861. 

On that date Mr. Baer, responding to his 
country's call for troops, became a member of 
Company C, Seventh Iowa Volunteer Infantry, 
which was the second company raised in Ma- 
haska county. He was present with his regi- 
ment at the capture of Forts Henry and Don- 
elson, in the battle of Shiloh and the siege and 



U8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



battle of Corinth. He also participated in the 
battle at Pulaski, Tennessee, where he was de- 
tailed for service in the commissary department 
under Captain Palmer and Hon. C. C. Carpen- 
ter, ex-g-overnor'of Iowa, and thus acted until 
mustered out on the loth of August. 1864, at 
Chattanooga, Tennessee. 

When the war was over Mr. Baer returned 
to Oskaloosa and clerked for the firm of Jones 
& Tullis in a general store for two years. In 
the meantime Mr. Tullis purchased his part- 
ner's interest, and Mr. Baer bought the interest 
of John W. Tullis, and the firm of Tullis & 
Baer \\as formed and so continued for a year. 
At the end of that time our subject sold his in- 
terest to his partner and began dealing in 
stock, which he bought and shipped for three 
years. He next removed to Beacon, this county, 
where he became a clerk in the coal company's 
store, owned by the firm of Evans, Jones & 
Baer, the last named being his father. After 
three years the father sold out and John R. 
Baer withdrew from the store and joined his fa- 
ther in the partnership under tire firm name of 
Baer & Son. Two years later the father sold 
his interest to J. P. Davis and the firm of Davis 
& Baer existed for one and a half years. The 
junior partner then returned to Oskaloosa and 
became a bookkeeper in the hardware store of 
C. Cooper, by whom he was employed for two 
}-ears. He was next deputy sheriff of Mahaska 
county for a year and a half under Sheriff Barr, 
and when his former employer sold his hard- 
ware store to W. H. Todd, Mr. Baer returned 
to the store, where he acted as bookkeeper for 
a year, when the business was sold to Knapp & 
Spaulding. Mr. Baer then went upon the road 
as a traveling salesman until the fall of 1885, 
when he was elected on the republican ticket 
to the position of county auditor, which he filled 
for four years, proving a capable official and 
retired from the office as he liad entered it — 
with the confidence and good will of all con- 
cerned. Re-entering commercial life, he went 



upon the road for George Hall & Company, 
wholesale hardware dealers, with whom he con- 
tinued for two years and later he was on the 
road for Huber & Kalbach Compan}-, hardware 
dealers, for two years. He afterward served 
as deputy county auditor under J. B. Cruzen 
and \\'. T. ]\Iartin, filling the office for eight 
years, or until Januar\', 1905. since which time 
he has lived retired. 

On the 8th of November, 1866, j\Ir. Baer 
was married to Miss Frances Carnahan, a na- 
ti\e of Ohio, who died in 1900, at the age of 
fifty-two years. Their children are: Nellie 
.\., the wife of C. C. Pike, of Oskaloosa; Grace 
L., wife of C. W'. Carr, of the same city: and 
Bernice L. Mr. Baer belongs to Triluminar 
lodge. No. 18, A. F. & A. ]M., having been 
made a ]\Iason in 1866. He also holds member- 
ship relations with Phil Kearney post. G. A. R., 
and in politics is a stalwart republican, having 
stood loyally liy the part_\- which was the chief 
defense of the Union and of the administration 
during the dark days of the Civil war. He is a 
representative citizen of the town and county, 
interested in all movements which are a matter 
of civic pride, and his efforts in behalf of gen- 
eral impro\ement and progress ha\-e been ef- 
fective and far-reaching 



HON. J. KELLY JOHNSON. 

Hon. J. Kelly Johnson, lawyer, legislator 
and jurist, is numbered today among those 
whose professional records adorn the history of 
the bar of Iowa. A man of progressive ideas, 
fine attainments, high minded, making the most 
of his opportunities in life. Judge Johnson arose 
to a foremost place among the repre.-entatives 
of the legal fraternity and is said to have been 
one of the strongest and most able district 
judges of the state. 

.\ native of Greene county, Ohin. J. Kelly 
Tohuson was Ijorn August 22. 1841. a snn of 



I 'AST AXD I'RESEXT OF ^FAliASKA COUNT Y. 



139 



Abijali and l-"li/alictli ( Bailey) Jiilins<in. The 
fatlicr was bom in Warren cinintx'. Ohio, and 
married Elizalietii ilailey. a native of \'irginia, 
hy whom he liad eight cliildren : Syl\ia B., 
j. Kelly. Micajah !).. Rebccai O.. Overton A.. 
Warren C. A. Henry and Anna. The father 
was a farmer by occnpation, and also engaged 
in merchandising and milling in Oliio. In 
1X54 he renuued fnim the Bnckeye state t(.) 
Crawfords\ille. Indiana, where he carried on 
mercantile pnrsnits and in 1865 he came to 
Iowa, where he engaged in merchandising for 
a nnmher of years. In. 1870 his wife died ancl 
in 1881 Mr. Johnson went to California to ben- 
efit his liealth. bnt death claimed him in the 
snmmer of 1882. Both he and his wife were 
members of the Society of Friends. 

When a yonth of thirteen years J. Kelly 
Jdhnson accompanied his parents on their re- 
niiixal ti) Indiana and snpplemented his prelimi- 
nary edncational privileges hy stndy in Wa- 
bash College, and in Battle Ground Institute, 
therein completing his literary course. He af- 
terward entered the law department of the 
Michigan University at Ann Arbor, where he 
attended one winter. In 1865 he came to Oska- 
loosa and entered the office of J. R. Barcroft 
as a law student. Subsequently he continued 
his studies in the law school at Des ^Nloines and 
in 1867 was admitted to the bar. He dien 
went to Fddyville, Iowa, where he formed a 
partnership with Henr\- X. Clements, a fellow- 
student at .\nn .\rlxir, Michigan. Xot long 
after taking up his aliode in Fddyville he was 
appointed by the council nf that village to the 
office of city attorney, which position he filled 
until his removal to Oskaloosa in 1868. Here he 
formed a law partnership with (ieorge W. Laf- 
ferty. with wlmm he continued actively in the 
])ractice of bis profession until bis election to 
the bench in 1883. In i869hehadbeen appointed 
city attorney and the next year was elected to the 
office, which position he filled for six years. Xot 
oiilv was he connected with the execution of 



the laws but also become a factor in framing 
them, for in 1879 he was chosen by popular suf- 
frage to represent his district in the state sen- 
ate and was a member cH' the eighteenth and 
nineteenth general assemblies of Iowa, acting 
as a member when the amendment for prohibit- 
ing the manufacture and sale of intoxicating 
licpiors was framed and submitted to the peo- 
ple. In the nineteenth general assembly he was 
chairman of the committee of the constitutional 
amendments. In 1882 he received his party's 
nomination of the sixth judilcial district and in 
i88(') was re-elected on the republican ticket, at 
which time the democrat and greenback parties 
refused to put u]) a candidate against him. In 
T890 he was re-nominated and re-elected. He 
continued u]K)n the bench up to the time of his 
death, which occurred before the expiration 
of his third term. He was soon recognized as 
an able lawyer, thoroughly read in his pro- 
fession, a faithful counselor and a fine speaker. 
His methods were well worthy of emulation 
and he enjoyed the highest confidence of his 
clients, so that his acKancement in the profes- 
sion was steady and sure. In the trial of a 
case he .saw quickly everv- advantage and dis- 
advantage, noted effects of any argument with 
remarkable rapidity and was recognized as 
coml)ining to the fullest extent the qualities 
which go to make up a successful advocate. His 
course upon the bench was equally commend- 
able and his position was indicated by the fact 
that the opposing parties would place no nomi- 
nees in the field at the time of his .second elec- 
tion. He was absolutely fearless in the dis- 
charge of his duties and favor could not tempt 
him from the straight path. He pos.sessed a 
mind particularly free from judicial bias and 
he brought to his duties a most thorough knowl- 
edge of the law and of human nature, a com- 
prehensixe knowledge and calm and deliberate 
judgment. His decisions were models of ju- 
dicious fairness, and he was of a type of the law 
that respects and protects, not condemns hu- 



I40 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASK.\ COUNTY. 



inanity. He was ardently devoted to his pro- 
fession and was an orator of recognized ability. 

On the 27th of April, 1871, Judge Johnson 
was married to Miss Ann E. Gruwell, who was 
bom in Colnmbiana county, Ohio, and is a 
daughter of Dr. J. P. Gruwell, also a native of 
the Buckeye state. She came of French ances- 
try, while her husband was of Scotch lineage. 
She is now living in Oskaloosa at the age of 
sixty-five years and is a member of the So- 
ciety of Friends, to which Judge Johnson also 
belonged. Her father. Dr. John I*. Gruwell, 
came to Iowa in 1870. and practiced his pro- 
fession for a number of years, after which he 
returned to Ohio, where his death occurred. 
Judge and Mrs. Johnson had seven children, of 
whom two died in infancy, the others being: 
Irving C, mentioned elsewhere in this work; 
Elizabeth, the wife of Fred W. Esgen, a whole- 
sale grocer at Los Angeles, California ; Carl, 
who is reading law with his brother Irving; 
Alice P.. a teacher in the high school at Oiari- 
ton, Iowa ; and Emily, a student at Br\m Mawr 
College, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

Judge Johnson was a genial, courteous gen- 
tleman, a pleasing, entertaining companion, and 
had many stanch and admiring friends among 
all classes of men. As an energetic, upright 
and conscientious lawyer, a jurist and a gentle- 
man of attractive, social qualities, he stood high 
in the estimation of the entire community. He 
died in 1894, at the age of fifty-two years, and 
his life had been one of such signal serviceable- 
ness that his death was deeply deplored through- 
out the entire countv. 



JAMES ARTHUR DEVITT. 

James Arthur Devitt, a member of the law 
firm of Devitt & Burrell, practicing at Oska- 
loosa, was torn in Dewitt, Clinton county, 
Iowa, June i, 1872, and is a son of John and 



Mary ( Murpln) Devitt, both of whom were 
natives of Ireland. The father, crossing the 
Atlantic to the United States in 1863. located in 
New Haven, Connecticut, where he engaged 
in teaching school. He afterward removed to 
Clinton county, Iowa, in 1870, where he con- 
tinued his educational work up to the time of 
his death in 1874, when he was fifty-four years 
of age. His political views accorded with 
democratic principles. His wife also passed 
away in 1874, when fifty years of age. In their 
family were five children : John, an attorney at 
^luscatine. Iowa; Anna, the wife of James 
Thornton, a merchant at Dewitt, Iowa; Mag- 
gie, also of Dewitt; Nellie, the wife of Albert 
Johnson, of Chicago; and James A., of this 
review. 

In the common and high schools of Eldora, 
Iowa, James A. Devitt pursued his preliminary 
education, while his law course was mastered in 
the Iowa State University, which he entered in 
1894 and from which he was graduated in 
1897. He then began the practice of his pro- 
fession in partnership with W^alter C. Burrell 
at Oskaloosa and has continued with him suc- 
cessfully to the present time, the firm being a 
strong one. Mr. Devitt has served for two 
terms as countv attorney, elected in k)oo and 
in 1902. In the discharge of his duties he 
shows neither fear nor favor and is entirely 
free from partiality, standing firmly as con- 
servator of the rights and liberties and the 
privileges of the people at large. 

In August. 1901, ]Mr. Devitt was married to 
^liss Pauline Lewelling. who was born in 
Salem, Henry county, in 1878. a daughter of 
Lorenzo D. and Angle Lewelling. Her father 
in early life was a newspaper man and founded 
the Iowa Capital. Prominent in the west, he 
served as governor of Kansas from 1892 until 
1894, and his influence has been a potent fac- 
tor in developing the policy of the two states in 
which he has resided since crossing the Missis- 
sippi. Unto ]\Ir. and ]\Irs. Devitt has been born 



PAST AXn T^RESKXT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



141 



OIK- sun. Janu's Lcwellinij. The parents are 
members of the Congregational cinnch and Mr. 
Devitt lias taken various degrees in the Masonic 
order and is also a prominent h.Ik, liaving 
served two terms as e.xalted ruler of Oskaloosa 
lodge Xo. 340, and as delegate to the grand 
lodge. B. P. O. E. His political allegiance is 
given to the republican party. He is a young 
man wlmse years, however, have seemed no bar 
to his progress and already he has gained an 
enviable position in a profes.sion where ad- 
N'ancement dejicnds upon indi\'i(lual merit. Not 
by purchase or influence can it be attained, but 
through clo.se and unremitting labor that brings 
broad knowledge, supplemented by keen analyt- 
ical power and a readiness in grasping points 
as presented by the opponent as well as the 
strong features of one's own side of the cause. 
Mr. Devitt has been accorded a liberal clientage 
and his practice is constantly growing in vol- 
ume and importance. 



JOHN R. BUSBY 



Jiihn R. Busby, of Rose Hill, wjm is engaged 
in the banking business and also carries on a 
general mercantile enterprise which he has con- 
ducted for twelve years, is one of Mahaska 
county's native sons, his birth having occurred 
in Oskaloosa, November 25, 1869. He is a son 
of Elijah Busby, who is mentioned elsewhere in 
this work. The father was born in Carroll 
county, Ohio, and when a young man came to 
Iowa, settling in Mahaska county, where he 
was married to Eliza Bass. She was born in 
Indiana but was reared in' Iowa, her father, 
\\llliam Bass, being one of the ]iioneer settlers 
of this state. 

John R. P)usby S])cnt his y(iuth in his ])arcnts' 
home, acquiring his education in the public 
schools of Mahaska county and afterward at- 
tending Des Moines College. lie remained with 



his father until nineteen }-ears of age and for 
al)out a year engaged in teaching school. He 
studied pharmac\- and afterward spent two 
years as a i^barmacist in Des Moines. He then 
came to Rose Hill and purchased a drug and 
grocery store, since which time he has been 
identified with the business interests of this 
town. He soon built up a good trade and has 
enlarged the scope of his undertakings by put- 
ting in a stock of dry goods and shoes. He now 
carries a large and complete line of general mer- 
chandise and has a liberal patronage owing to 
his reliable business methods, his earnest desire 
to please his patrons and his reasonable prices. 
In 1900 he established the Rose Hill Savings 
Bank, a stock bank capitalized at $15,000. The 
president is Robert Bass, while Mr. Busby is 
cashier. A prosperous business is being con- 
ducted and Mr. Busby has thoroughly ac- 
quainted himself with l)anking in all of its de- 
partments, so that he is able to give excellent 
ser\'ice to the public. The institution has long 
since become a paying one and is a valued addi- 
tion to business interests of Rose Hill. It is to 
the bank that Mr. Busby gi\-es the greater part 
of his time and attention. 

On the 1st of January, 1894, was celebrated 
in Jasper county the marriage of John R. Busby 
and Miss Lulu Austin, who was born and 
reared in that county. She was educated in 
Oskaloosa and in Des Moines and is a daughter 
of Henry .\ustin, a native of Maine, who spent 
his boyhood and youth in the Pine Tree state. 
Later he came to Iowa and owned and con- 
ducted a big stock farm in Jasper county. He 
was a pioneer there, entering land from the 
government and was closely associated with the 
early development and progress of that part of 
the state. Mrs. Busby was reared and educated 
in Jasper county and by her marriage has be- 
come the mother of one child, Lois. Mrs. Busby 
belongs to the Friends' church but attends the 
Methodist Episcopal church at Rose Hill. Both 
Mr. and ^Frs. Busby arc deeply interested in the 



142 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



work of tlie church and of the Sunday-scliool 
and he has served as Sunday-school superin- 
tendent for several years. They contribute gen- 
erously to the support of the church and do 
everything in their power to promote its growth 
and extend its influence. 

Politically Mr. Busby is independent and 
has never sought or held office, preferring to 
give his undivided attention to his business in- 
terests and other duties. He is one of the active 
and prosperous business men of Alahaska 
county, a good financier and man of keen dis- 
cernment. He is public spirited in an eminent 
degree and while advancing his individual inter- 
ests has also contributed to the genera! welfare. 
He built a large double store building in the 
town, also a residence and has thus contributed 
to the material improvement of the village. He 
is ever ready to give aid and encouragement to 
all enterprises for the advancement of the com- 
munity and he is well known in Oskaloosa and 
, Mahaska county, he and his estimable wife en- 
joying tile warm regard of a very large circle 
of friends here. Their influence is distinctively 
on the side of the just, tlie true and the Ijeauti- 
ful, and their geiniine personal worth is recog- 
nized 1)}' all with whom they have come in con- 
tact. 



VERNOR EDWARD HAMILTON. 

Vernor Edward Hamilton is treasurer of the 
Huber & Kalbach Company, wholesale and re- 
tail dealers in hardware. This is one of the most 
prominent commercial enterprises of the city 
of Oskaloosa — an important factor in the busi- 
ness activity. He was bom in Grundy county. 
Illinois, in 1875, and comes of Scotch descent. 
His great-grandfather was an officer in the 
Revolutionary war. which indicates that the 
family was established in America in colonial 
days. Charles Vernor Hamilton, father of our 
subject, was bom in Fulton, New York, and 



was engaged in business as a hardware nier 
chant for many years. He possessed excellen 
lousiness discernment and sound judgment 
which, combined with his indefatigable energy 
won fur him the success which now enable 
him to li\e retired in the enjoyment of th 
fruits of his former toil. He makes his honn 
in Gardner, Illinois, and is now sixty-one year 
of age. Fratemally he is connected with thi 
Masons, while politically he is a democrat. Hi 
married Miss Ellen Huston, who was born ii 
Grundy county, Illinois, is of Scotch-Irish de 
scent and is a daughter of Robert Huston. Sh( 
is now fifty-three years of age. In the faniih 
(if this worthy couple were seven children 
namely: Vernor E., of this review; Robert J. 
a professor in the ^Manual Training School, a' 
Indianapolis, Indiana; Charlotte M., the wif« 
of Edward A. Ellis, superintendent of school; 
at Geneva, Illinois ; Clarence, deceased ; Charles 
who is with the Huber & Kalbach Company 
one who died in infancy; and Frances Willard 
who is attending school. The mother is a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian church. 

X'ernor E. Hamilton at the usual age enterec 
the public schools of Gardner, lUlinois. anc 
steadily advancing through the different grades 
was e\entually graduated from the high school 
there. He also spent two years in the Univer- 
sity of Illinois, and thus well equipped by a 
liberal education for life's practical and re- 
s])onsible duties he entered liusiness circles as 
an employe in the wholesale hardware house of 
Hibbard, Spencer, Bartlett & Company, at 
Chicago. He was then eighteen years of age 
and he served successively as clerk, checker, 
price clerk, house salesman and traveling sales- 
man, representing that iirni in the different ca- 
pacities for six years. In 1900 he came to Oska- 
loosa, where he engaged in the retail hardware 
business with J- F. Hamilton under the firm 
style of Hamilton & Hamilton. This relation 
was maintained until 1904. when he sold his 
interest in the business in order to become a 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



143 



stockholder in tlie Huber & Kalhach Company, 
wholesale and retail dealers in hardware. He is 
now treasnrer of the company, which is con- 
ducting an extensive business, being one of the 
most prominent commercial enterprises of that 
city. He became thoroughly familiar with the 
hardware trade during the early years of his 
Ijusiness career and was well equi])])ed to un- 
dertake the arduous duties which devolve upon 
liim in his present connection. 

-Mr. Hamilton maintains fraternal relations 
with the ]\last)ns and the l-'lks. but is independ- 
ent in liis political views. It is a noticeable fact 
in the commercial world that the young men 
;ire diose who are powerful factors in trade 
;ircles, possessing unfaltering enterprise and 
iuer^y that readily solve intricate business 
Droblenis and are constantly alert for opportu- 
lities for the advancement and fur broadening 
Jie scope of their undertakings. Mr. Hamilton 
s a typical representative of this class and each 
>tep in his career has been a forward one, lead- 
ng him nearer and nearer to the goal of pros- 
Derity. 



HORACE \V. GLEASON. 

Horace W. (jleason, a member of the bar of 
Dskaloosa, former representative in the general 
issembly and United States commissioner for 
he southern district of Iowa since 1904, was 
)orn in Warren, Grafton county, New Hamp- 
ihire. May 2, 1846. His father, Salmon Glea- 
on. was born in Langdon, New Hampshire, 
n 1804, and was of English ancestry, the first 
epresentatives in the United States having 
Tossed the .Atlantic in 1652 and settled at 
.Vatertown, Massachusetts. They were Puri- 
ans and one, Thomas Gleason, the first of the 
lame in this country, was in charge of the 
M|uasachems lands. Windsor Gleason, grand- 
ather of Horace W. Gleason, served as a mem- 
9 



her of the First New Hampsire Infantry in the 
Revolutionary war and was wounded in battle. 
Salmon (ileason, his son, was educated in Wil- 
berham (Massachusetts) College, now Fiske 
University, and was ordained to the Alethodist 
ministry at the age of twenty-five years. He 
filled a number of pastorates and was at one 
time presiding elder. Not only did he labor 
untiringly for the upbuilding of his church, but 
he used his oratorical power — being a fluent 
speaker — to advance the interests of atolition 
in the state of New Hampshire, lending his 
\(iice and efforts to the cause in which he so 
firmly believed. He was the first abolitionist in 
New Hampshire. In antebellum days he be- 
longed to the freesoil party and when the repub- 
lican party was formed to pre\ent the further 
extension of slavery he joined its ranks, casting 
his ballot for its first candidate, John C. Fre- 
mont, afterward for .\braham Lincoln. In 
certain business affairs he prospered, becoming 
a man of moderate means. His death occurred 
in Warren, New Hampshire, in 1889, when he 
had reached the age of eighty-five years and a 
life of great usefulness and influence was thus 
ended. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
Jerusha Willard, was born in Hartland. Ver- 
mont, in 1803, and died in 1876. She, too, 
came of Puritan stock of New England ances- 
tr}^ and her father, Charles \\'illard, was one of 
the patriot army who fought for the independ- 
ence of the nation. Others, too, served with 
the colonial troo]js and the great-great-uncle. 
Colonel Willard, was killed in the French and 
Indian war. Relics of the military sen-ice of 
her ancestors are still in possession of the fam- 
ily. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Salmon Gleason were 
born six children : Charles and William, who 
died in infancy; Salmon W., a retired miller 
living in St. Charles, Minnesota: George L.. 
pastor of the Riverside Congregational church 
at Haverhill. Massachusetts: Orange Scott, a 
retired farmer living in \Varren. New Hamp- 
shire: and Horace W. 



144 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



In the common schools of his native town 
Horace \\ . Gleason acquired iiis ele- 
mentary education wliich was supplemented 
1.)y academic work in Xewbur\', Ver- 
mont, and also by study in the Phillips 
Academy in Andover. Massachusetts, pre- 
paraton- to his entrance in Dartmouth College, 
where his collegiate -work was done. His edu- 
cational work, however, was interrupted by his 
service in the Civil war, for in August, 1862, 
in response to his country's call for aid he en- 
listed at \\'arren. New Hampshire, for service 
with the Union army, Isecoming a member of 
Company G, Twelfth New Hampshire Volun- 
teer Infantry, with which he remained until Au- 
gust, 1865. when he was mustered out at Hamp- 
ton, A'irginia. He w-as at Fredericksburg, 
Chancellorsville, Gettysburg. Drury's Bluff. 
Swift Creek, the last engagement at Fair Oaks, 
the battle of the Crater at Petersburg, was in 
the Appomattox campaign, and at Gettysburg 
sustained a slight wound. From the above rec- 
ord it will be seen that he was in a number of 
the most hotly contested engagements of the 
war and he was promoted from the ranks to 
the grade of fourth sergeant, afterward became 
sergeant major, later was second lieutenant and 
eventually became first lieutenant. 

\\dien the war was over Lieutenant Gleason 
returned to his native state. He taught school 
for two years in Iowa, coming to this State in 
1867, and first locating at Fort Dodge, where 
he engaged in the insurance liusiness for a 
year. He then removed to Belle Plaine, Iowa, 
where he taught school and read law. He was 
admitted to the bar at Toledo, Iowa, in i86q, 
and began practice in Monroe, this state, where 
he remained for two years. In ]\Iay, 1872, he 
came to Oskaloosa. where he practiced for fif- 
teen years, after which he removed to Hutchin- 
son, Kansas, continuing a member of the bar 
at that ])lace for nine years. The succeeding 
fi\e years were passed in Chicago, and in 1901 
he returned to Oskaloosa, where his ability is 



winning him recognition from a constantly in- 
creasing clientele. Careful in the preparatior 
of his cases, his earnest effort and keen insighl 
into legal principles and complex situations 
have enabled him to win many notable forensic 
victories. 

On the 2 1st of October, 1871, Mr. Gleasor 
was married to Miss Flora A. Howard, whr 
was born in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, in 1853, j 
daughter of Henry and ]\Iary Howard. Hei 
father came to Oskaloosa in 1855 and engagec 
in mercliandising here among the early business 
men of the city. Mr. and Mrs. Gleason hav( 
liecome the parents of four children : Howarc 
L.. who is auditor of the Pullman Palace Cai 
Compan}- : Helen and ^^'illard, who died in in 
fancy; and \\'arren E., who is with the Goldei 
Eagle at Oskaloosa. The parents are commu 
nicants of the Episcopal church and Mr. Glea 
son is a member of the \-arious ^lasonic bodic 
and of the ]\Iodern \\'oodmen camp. He i: 
likewise a member of Phil Kearney post, G. A 
R., of Oskaloosa, of which he was at one timi 
commander. He is senior w-arden of St. Jame: 
Episcopal church and was lay chancellor of tin 
diocese of Kansas and also a member of th( 
standing committee. In the line of his profes 
sion he is a member of the Mahaska Count; 
Bar Association and has been a member of thi 
Kansas State Bar Association and the Chicagc 
Bar Association. It is evidence of his positiot 
in public regard among those with whom he i 
closely associated that in almost all of the dif 
ferent associations with which he has been con 
nected political, social, religious and fraternal 
he has been called to office. He was a directo 
of the Hamilton Club, of Chicago, the larg-es 
republican club west of New York city. Whih 
in his profession he has won a notable place, hi 
is perhaps equally prominent in political circle: 
and his opinions carrv- weight in the councils o 
the republican party because of his hearty sym 
pathy with its platform and his untiring effort: 
for its success. In 1887 he was elected count; 



PAST AND I'RESRXT OF MAHASKA COUXTY. 



145 



attdiiiev liut aflcrwanl rcsit^ncd the office. He 
represented .Maliaska cuiinty in the seventeentli 
p^eneral assenihiy of hnva and prnxcd an earn- 
est and able working: member of the legislature, 
being directly concerned in some of the impor- 
tant constructive measures of the session. He 
was ap])ointed in 1004 as United States com- 
missioner fur tlie southern district of Iowa. 
Progress and patriotism might well be termed 
the keynote of his character, these qualities 
ha\ing been manifest in all of his public serv- 
ice ami his pri\ate business interests. 



ELWOOD H.\TCHEK. 

Elwiiixl Hatcher is nnw h\'ing a retired 
life in Xew Shanm. 1)ut for man}- years was 
closely identified with agricultural interests and 
at one time was the owner of six hundred and 
fifty acres of very valuable land in this county. 
He was born in Portage countw Ohin. .\ugust 
19. iSi^T,. and is a son of Joshua and Ann Eliza 
(Rosseter) Hatcher, the former born in Co- 
lumbiana cnunty. Ohio, in 1809, and the latter 
in the state of Xew ^'ork in iSit. The father 
was always a farmer 1)\- occupation and owned 
a tract nf land in the Buckeye state but, be- 
lieving that be might enjoy still better business 
opportunities west of the Mississippi, he came 
to Iowa in -1856, locating in Mahaska county 
near Indianapolis, where be purchased a farm 
of three hundred acres. He afterwarfl bought 
more land fn^n time to time and became one 
of the extensive property owners of this ])art 
of the county and in his farming operalinns was 
very successful. He possessed keen insight 
into l)usiness affairs and his unfaltering dili- 
gence proved an excellent foundation upon 
which to rear the superstructure of prosj^erity. 
He continued to make bis home in Mabask.i 
county up to the time of his death, which oc- 
curred near Indiana])olis when he was seventy- 



fi\e years of age. His widow reached the very 
\enerable age of lu'nety-one years, passing 
away in Whatcheer. Iowa. They were both 
devoted and worthy members of the Christian 
church and Mr. Hatcher was an earnest repub- 
lican although never an office seeker. In their 
family were six children, who in order of birth 
are as follows: Elwood, of this review; Eliza- 
beth, the widow of William C. Beans, a resi- 
dent of Mahaska county ; Marv' D., the de- 
ceased wife of Alljert Lewis, also of this coun- 
ty : Emeline, who died in Ohio at the age of 
fifteen years : Erastus, who is living at What- 
cheer, low-a; and Washington, who resides at 
Norton, Kansas. 

Elwood Hatcher spent his youth in his par- 
ents' home, remaining with them until twenty- 
one years of age, and his early education was 
ac(|uired in the common schools and was sup- 
plemented by one-term's study in Hiram Col- 
leg'e. In the spring of 1856 he left Ohio and 
made his way to Hancock county. Illinois, 
where for a year he lived u])()n a farm near 
Xauvoo, lielonging to his uncle. On October 
I, 1856, he arrived in Mahaska county, where 
he invested his capital in one hundred and 
twent\' acres of land, of which about twent\'-fiye 
acres had been broken. Only slight improve- 
ments had been made thereon. There was a 
hewed log house and a prairie stable, while 
otherwise the entire farm was in its ])rimitive 
condition. Mr. Hatcher at once began to clear 
and cultivate his land and resided thereon until 
about fifteen \-ears ago. when he retired from 
active business life and removed to X'ew 
Sharon. He had prospered in his farming 
operations and in connection with the tilling of 
the soil bought, fed and shipped stock, which 
brruicb of his business he found to be a very 
profitable source of income. As his capital in- 
creased he invested more and more largely in 
real estate and at one time owned si.x hundred 
and fifty acres of farming land. He disposed 
of a part of this .and sold the remainder to other 



146 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



parties. Now with a very desirable competence 
to suppl)' him witli the comforts and some of 
tlie hixiiries of hfe he is Hving in well earned 
ease and comfort in a beautiful home in New 
Sharon, which he purchased on his removal to 
this village. He has rebuilt and added to the 
place And it is now a very attractive, commodi- 
ous and comfortable residence. 

Before leaving Ohio Mr. Hatcher was mar- 
ried on the nth of March, 1855, to Miss Clara 
E. Lewis, who was born in Trumbull county, 
that state, and who died in IMahaska county, 
Iowa, January 17, 1890, at the age of fifty-four 
vears, her death being deeply regretted by many 
friends as well as her immediate family, for she 
possessed excellent qualities of heart and mind. 
She had become the mother of eight children, 
of whom seven are now living, one having died 
in infancy. Those who still survive are: 
Emma, a widow, residing in Norton, Kansas ; 
Charles 1',., who is living on a farm near ^^'hat- 
cheer, Iowa : Albert L., who resides upon a part 
of the old homestead; Ida M., the wife of 
James T. Simpson, who is living on the old 
Hatcher farm; Cora A., the wife of Eria Haw- 
ley, a resident of Horton, Kansas ; and Ed, who 
follows farming in Union township, this coun- 
ty. After losing his first wife Mr. Hatcher was 
married June 6, 1891, to Mrs. J. K. Smith, nee 
Ferrell, a daughter of Fred Ferrell, who came 
to this county in 1857. 

Mr. Hatcher has been a lifelong republican 
and although he has never aspired to office he 
served as trustee of his township for several 
years, being called to the position by his fellow 
townsmen who recognized his capability and 
fidelity. He was a member of the school board 
of Pleasant Grove township, was president of 
the Prairie Farmers Mutual Insurance Com- 
pany, and president of the ^^^^atcheer Fair As- 
sociation for four years, taking an active and 
helpful interest in this work, which has been a 
stimulus to agricultural development. He be- 
longs to the Christian church and is a very 



pleasant, genial gentleman and has manifested 
a most public-spirited interest in the general 
welfare and has ever been willing to support 
any cause for the general good. 



WILBUR A. McNeill. 

Wilbur A. McNeill, capitalist of Oskaloosa, 
was born June 12, 1843, in Springfield. Illi- 
nois. The ancestry of the McNeill family in 
America is traced back to two brothers who 
came from Scotland to the new world in 1770. 
One of these, Archibald McNeill, was a ])hy- 
sician and settled in Georgia. The other. Gen. 
John McNeill, won his title by service in the 
British army and while on leave of absence 
settled in Kent county, ?klaryland. This was 
only a few years before the outbreak of the 
Revolutionary war and he noted the conditions 
among the colonies that led to the outbreak nf 
hostilities. His sympathies were aroused in 
behalf of the oppressed rmd he forfeited his 
commission in 1776 by taking sides with the 
American troops in the war of the Revolu- 
tion. General McNeill was the father of four 
children. The eldest, John McNeill. Jr.. who 
became a lawyer by profession, removed to 
Cumberland, ^Maryland, in 1800 and was for 
many years judge of the orphans' court of 
Allegany county. By his marriage to ^liss 
INIary Myers there were born five sons and 
three daughters. 

One of these, the Rev. Francis Ashnr}' ^Ic- 
Neill, was the father of the representatives of 
the name now living in Oskaloosa. He was 
born Januar)- i. 1809, and was married in 
Frederick City, Maryland, to Miss !\Iary E. 
Cronise, who was bf)rn in that city ?ilarch 4, 
7812. Dr. McNeill was baptized by the Rev. 
Francis Asbury, the first bishop of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church in America. He 
joined the church when very young and was 
received into the ministrv at the age of twent\^ 





f^dcM- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



151 



•ears. In i8_^3 lie was <inlainc(l a dcacnn at 
jaltiniore. Maryland, by Uishop I leddiiii;- and 
vas ordained elder in 1837 at Jacksonville. Illi- 
lois. hv Bishop Soule. He found time to pursue 
I course of medical studies in addition to his 
vork in the ministry and was graduated from the 
Jniversitv of Maryland at Baltimore in 1834. 



.^ocating al .Springtield in the sjirint 



'«3.S. 



le there practiced medicine and at the same 
ime maintained his pastoral connection with 
he church for over two years, after which he 
\'as locateil b\' the conference at various ])nints. 
ie not only did much for his fellowmen in 
he way of ministering to jihysical and spiritual 
leeds hut was also an active factor in political 
ife and an ardent oi)])onent of slavery. It was 
his that largely influenced him to leave Mary- 
and. He made campaign addresses through- 
)Ut the state <if Illinois in support (if William 
lenry Harrison in 1840 and was a delegate to 
he convention which nominated Henry Clay 
or the i)residency. He also attended the 
iloomington convention in 1856. which gave 
ise to the republican party in Illinois and at 
he time of the outbreak of the Civil war was 
I member of the state legislature. The news- 
)aper which he ])ublished in Ogle count\' was 
mong the first to advocate the cause of .\bra- 
lam Lincoln and of the martyred president 
le was a very warm, jiersonal friend and ar- 
leut admirer. After the outbreak of ho.stili- 
ies lietween the nortli and the south he was ap- 
)ointed surgeon of the Thirty-fourth Illinois 
nfautry b_\- Governor Uicbard ^'ates. l)ut later 
esigned on account of ill health and was after- 
vard appointed post chaphnn at Paducah. Ken- 
uck)'. Subsequently he filled a similar posi- 
ion in Loni.sville. Kentucky, but in 1865 left 
he service. His death occurred h'ebruary i. 
.8-2. at Mount Morris. Illinois. He had al- 
vays maintained a high standard of conduct 
n every relation of life and had entertained 
)rincipies that con.stitute the basic elements of 
^ood citizenship and Christian living. 



His wife, Mrs. Mary E. McNeill, died at 
Springfield, Illinois, November 4, 1849. ^'""^1 
Dr. Mc.Veill was married again February 2, 
1857. .Miss Barbara E. Wagner, of Mount 
Morris, becoming his wife. Of the children 
born of his first marriage there are three liv- 
ing and two are residents of Oskaloosa. Mrs. 
.Vnn .Xorvella Little, l)orn June 25. 1835. in 
Washington county, Maryland, lives in Chi- 
cago. Illinois. James Floyd, born October 15. 
1 841, in Springfield, where he was reared and 
obtained his education, enlisted for serx'ice in 
the Ci\il war, .\ugust i_'. 1862. He joined 
the army for three years as a member of Com- 
pany Ci. One Hundred and Fourteenth Illinois 
Infantry, and was iiromoted to the rank of 
sergeant major. He served until the close of 
the Rebellion and was honorably discharged 
Augu.st 15, 1865, after uhich he liecame clerk 
in the adjutant general's office in Illinois, acting 
in that capacity until the ofifice was abolished. 
He was married November t8, 1872, to Julia 
E. Hibbs. of New ^'ork city, and they became 
the parents of two children, Walter F. and 
Mallei. Wilbur .\. McNeill, of this review, is 
the ne.xt of the family. Hobart W. McNeill. 
one of the leading citizens of Oskaloosa, was 
born June 18, 1847, ^^ Peoria, Illinois. His 
mother dying soon afterward he was reared by 
an aunt in Allegany county, Maryland, and 
he attended the University of Virginia until 
that school was closed by the Confederacy. He 
])tn"sue(l the work of his senior college year in 
1865 at Rock River Senu'nar}' in t)gle county. 
Illinois, after which he read law and pursued 
a course of lectures in the Cniversity of Michi- 
gan in 1867. He w-as admitted to the bar in 
Springfield. Illinois, the following year and in 
i86q located at Eldora. Iowa, where he formed 
a law ])artnership with Ex-Governor Enoch W. 
Eastman. In 1870 he entered the service of the 
To\\a Central Railroad Company, becoming 
their general agent in 1871. .\s special agent 
of the Iowa \'alley Construction Company. 



1^2 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUXTY. 



which built the central railroad, he settled its 
affairs ^Yhich in two years involved an expen- 
diture of four million dollars and which were 
very much complicated. His report, made in 
Xew York city, was printed by the compau}- 
and was accepted as a final and complete settle- 
ment of the business. In 1872 he was tlie se- 
cret agent of tlie St. Louis & St. Paul Rail- 
road and became president of the road. In 
1873 in connection with \\". A. McXeill he un- 
dertook the development of the Mahaska coal 
fields, organizing the Iowa Central Company 
with a capital stock of one hundred thousand 
dollars and of the company became president. 
The stock soon sold at a large premium, the 
lowest sales beii^ fifty and the highest one 
hundred and twenty-five per cent above par. 
This corporation was merged into the Consoli- 
dation Coal Company, which absorbed several 
other companies. In 1881 the stock was sold 
to the Chicago & X'ordiwestem Railroad Com- 
panv for five hundred thousand dollars in cash. 
In that year H. ^^^ McXeill became assistant to 
the president of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. 
Paul Railroad Company and in X'ovember oi 
the same year resigned to resume the presi- 
dency of the Dubuque International Improve- 
ment Compan}-. He formulatetl the financial 
plan whereby was built the Masonic Opera 
House in Oskaloosa. He organized and was 
president of the Oskaloosa Power & Land Com- 
pany, capitalized at fifty thousand dollars: the 
Oskaloosa Tanning Company, capitalized at 
twenty-five thousand dollars; the Oskaloosa 
Edison Light Company, with a capital of twenty- 
five thousand dollars : was vice-president fif the 
\\'estem Uriion Fuel Company, capitalized at 
two hundred thousand dollars; vice-president 
of the American Coal Company, with a capital 
oi two hundred thousand dollars ; vice-presi- 
dent and manager of the Iowa Iron Works 
Company, of Dubuque, capitalized at one hun- 
dred and fift}- thousand dollars; vice-president 
of the Dubuque Steam Heating Company, cap- 



italized at thirty-five thousand dollars; vice- 
president and manager of the Rasmussen West- 
em Railway Cable Company, of Chicago, Illi- 
nois, capitalized at two million dollars; was 
a director of the Fanners & Traders Xational 
Bank of Oskaloosa ; and of the Oskaloosa Oat- 
meal Company with headquarters at Mason 
City. Iowa. Few men in the state operated 
more largely in business affairs than H. W". 
McXeill. He thought out new plans of action, 
ventured upon untried fields and carried for- 
ward to successful completion whatever he un- 
dertook, being systematic at all times in his 
work and utilizing even.- opportunity to the 
best advantage. He became one of the most 
eminent and prosperous men of the state and 
was a typical American citizen, who while pro 
moting individual success also largely contrib- 
uted to the commercial and industrial advance- 
ment and prosperity of the county and the 
commonwealth. He was married May 13. 
1869. to Miss Lizzie Phillips, of Eldora. low.a. 
to which place she had removed fr<?m Alle- 
gany county, Mar\land. She had been a child- 
hood friend and playmate of her husband and 
was educated at Dr. Brooks' College in Balti- 
more. There was one child of this marriage. 
Anna, bom July 12, 1873. H. \V. McXeill 
died at San Jose, California, January 2^. 1900. 

Of Dr. McXeill's second marriage there 
were bom four children, of whom two are li\"- 
ing; Catherine M.. bom in Mount Morris. 
Illinois, ^lay 20, i860, received a liberal liter- 
ary- education and then devoted herself to the 
studv of vocal music, spending two years in 
Chicago, after which she studied for three 
vears under the best masters of London and 
Paris, completing her course abroad in 1886. 
She now lives with her husband. Dr. Walter 
Huft'mann. in Honolulu. Hawaiian Islands. 
Frank A. ^IcXeill. bom October 26. 1862. is 
now living in Tishomingo. Indian Territory.-. 

The life record of Wilbur A. McXeill has been 
closelv interwoven with die history- of Oska- 



PAST AXD I'kKSEXr OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



153 



l(josa's (levelopiiient ami upljuildin^- in later 
years. He ac(|uire<l his early education in the 
nld Sandstone Seminary at Mount Morris, Illi- 
nois, and in 1S61. when l>ut eij^hteen years of 
asj'e, res])onded to the countrx's call for troops, 
eidisting: in the l''oin-th Illinois C'axalry. He 
had a horse shot from under him at Shiloh 
;in(l sustained such injuries as necessitated his 
discharsje on account of physical disability, 
hut his ])atriotic sjjirit was not to be (|uenched 
in this wav and in i>>()2 he re-enlisted. W hilc 
skirmishing at Griesson's Bridge l)elow Mem- 
phis. Tennessee, and engaged in a h-md-to-hand 
])istol duel he was Se\"erelv wounded, being 
shot through the right breast, l)v reason of 
which he was again discharged from the 
service. 

In iSj^^ Mr. .Mc.Veill associated himself 
with his brother 11. W. in the coal business. 
o])erating hrst in Monroe county. Iowa, as sec- 
retary and treasurer of the Iowa Central Coal 
Company. Through all the clianges that oc- 
curred in the organization of the corporations, 
as mentioned in the history of H. \V. McNeill. 
W. .\. McNeill had ])ersonal charge of the ac- 
counting and hnancial part of the business. 
which he managed with marked abilitx- and 
signal success, and on his brother's deatli took 
entire charge of the business. In 1881 he es- 
tablished the Oskalnos;i Liverv X: Tnmsfcr 
Compan}-, his arrangements and ajipointments 
reaching such a degree of perfection that his 
business was unsur])assed In- anv similar con- 
cern in the state. He is now president of the 
W. .\. Company, of Seattle, Washington, and 
the II. W. McNeill Company. Limited, of 
Canmore, Alberl.i, C.inad.i. 

To Wilbur A. McNeill there has come the 
attainment of a distinguished ])osition in con- 
nection with the great materia! interests of the 
.state and his efforts have been so discerningly 
directed along well defined lines that he .seems 
to have realized at any one point of ])rogress 
the full measure of his opportunities for ac- 



complishment at this point. A man of distinc- 
tive and forceful intellectuality, of broad men- 
tality and most mature judgment he has left 
and is leaving his impress upon the industrial 
anil agricultur.'d world. 



H. E. C.VRVRK. M. D. 

1 )r. H. E. Carver, who is engaged in the 
practice of medicine at Rose Hill, where he has 
been located for four years, was kirn near Os- 
kaloosa, October 14, 1875. His father, Jerrel 
Carver, was one of the earl\- settlers of Ma- 
haska county and was married here to ^liss 
Izora Freeman, a native of Ohio, who was 
reared and educated, howexer, in Mahaska 
ciiuiUy and for a number of vears was a ca- 
pable teacher in the schools of Oskaloosa. [er- 
rel Car\er is still a resident of Oskaloosa and 
is rcs])ecte(l as one of its worthv and \alued 
citizens. 

Dr. Carver was reared in the city of his na- 
tivity and at the usual age began his education, 
])assing through successive grades until he bad 
coiupleted a course in Oskaloosa high school. 
He afterward attaided Penn College and won 
the degrees of Bachelor and Master of Science. 
He afterward attended the medical dei)artment 
of the State University at Iowa City, and coiu- 
pleted his course there by graduation with the 
class of 1890. While a senior he served for 
one x'ear in the L'niversitv Ilos])ilnl and thus 
added to his theoretical knowledge broad and 
helpful practical training. .\fter completing 
his cour.se he located in the city of Oskaloosa. 
where he began practice, remaining there for 
three years, and in 1901 he came to Rose ETill. 
where he opened an office and has since fol- 
lowed his profession. Here he has built up a 
good liusiness and is accounted one of the al)1e 
and successful physicians of the county. Ev- 
erything which tends to bring to man tlie key 



t54 



PAST AND PRESENT OF IMAHASKA COUNTY. 



to the complex mysten- whicli we call life is 
of interest to him, and he is quick to adopt all 
new methods of improvement and progress in 
his profession. He is a Master Mason, belong- 
ing to Rose Hill lodge, and he belongs to the 
Knights of Pythias fraternity at Oskaloi:>sa. A 
young man. he has attained success which many 
an older practitioner might well envy, and his 
fidelity to a liigh standard of professioiral 
ethics has won liim the regard f)f his lirethren 
of the medical fraternitv. 



ALONZO MOBLEY. 



Alonzo Mobley. president of the Oskaloosa 
Ice Company, was born in the western part 
of ]\Iahaska county, on the jth of Septem- 
ber. i860. His father, John B. Mobley, was 
a native of Belmont county, Ohio, and came to 
Henry county, Iowa, in 1852. In 1859 he pur- 
chased forty acres of land south of the Des 
Moines river and removed to Mahaska county. 
He settled in Centerville and there he engaged 
in carpentering and l)uilding, erecting the first 
house there and also a number of others, thus 
contributing to the early upbuilding and de- 
velopment of the town. He erected many 
houses in the western ]:)art of the county. Later 
in life lie purchased a farm of one hundred and 
four acres and devoted his remaining days to 
general agricultural pursuits, there dying on 
the 6th of November^ 1899. He was twice 
married, his first wife being Lucy Pratt, by 
whom he had three sons, Chester, Seth and 
George, all of whom served in the Seventh 
Iowa Cavalry during the Civil war. After los- 
ing his first wife he wedded Elizabeth Dana, a 
native of Washington county, Iowa, now living 
in St. Louis, Missouri. The sons and daugh- 
ters of this marriage are James. Richard. 
Owen, William. Fred, Max, J. Brice, Alonzo : 
Mrs. ]\Iay De Van; Mrs. Grace Moore, de- 



ceased ; and Mrs. Carrie -Snorf. who has also 
passed away. 

Alonzo Mobley pursued his education in the 
district schools and for some time worked in 
mines. He afterward engaged in the conduct 
of a fruit farm, devoting his time and energies 
to horticultural pursuits until 1890, when he 
turned his attention to the ice business, with 
which he had been connected. In 1904 he be- 
gan the manufacture of artificial ice and is to- 
da}- the president of the Oskalot)sa Ice Com- 
pany, which has a large trade, supplying many 
patrons. The plant is a well ecjuipped establish- 
ment, supplied with the latest improved ma- 
chinery in that line and the business has been 
carefully developed and is now one of the lead- 
ing productive industries and profitable enter- 
prises of Oskaloosa. 

Mr. Mobley was married to ]\Iiss Elizabeth 
Henry, of Beacon, and to them were born two 
children, Byers and Roy. For his second wife 
he chose Belle Ruby, a daughter of Morton C. 
and Ella (Downs) Ruby, of Beacon. The chil- 
dren of the second marriage are Edward and 
Harold. The family reside in a beautiful home 
at No. 403 A avenue East in Oskaloosa, and its 
social functions are among the most attractive 
features in the social life of the city. Mr. Mob- 
ley is a member of the Modern Woodmen camp. 
He has made for himself a creditable position 
and honored name in business circles and al- 
though he started out in life empty-handed, he 
is toda}' one of the prosperous residents of his 
native count v. 



COLONEL JAMES F. ]\IcNEILL. 

Colonel James F. McNeill, now residing in 
Oskaloosa, Iowa, is a native of Springfield. 
Illinois, born October 15. 1841. His parents. 
Dr. F. A. and :\Iary F. (Cronise) McNeill, 
were natives of .\l!egany county. Maryland. 
Following his marriage the father removed to 



PAST AND I'RJiSKNT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



157 



S])rinqfiel(l. Illiiinis. wliere he engaged in 
)reacliing as a minister of tiie Methodist l-Lpis- 
:opaI cliurch. Later he took up the practice 
>f medicine in Sangamon county, tiiat state, 
md subsequently removed to Ogle county, 
lllinnis, where he became a prominent and in- 
fluential citizen, lx;ing called to represent his 
district in the state legislature. He was burn 
January i, 1809, and died in Ogle county, Feb- 
ruary I, 1872. His wife had passed away in 
Springfield several years previously. In their 
familv were ten children but only three are 
:iow living: ^\'. A., a resident of Oskaloosa: 
Ann X., the widow of H, I. Little, of Chicago; 
md Lames F. H. \V. McNeill, a brother of our 
subject, died in looo. He had been promi- 
nently identified with the business afYairs of 
r)skaloosa and Mahaska countv, being particu- 
larh' active in the dex'elopment of the coal 
mines in this locality and also in Canada. 

Entering the public schools, James F. ]Mc- 
Neill passed through consecutive grades until 
he had completed the high-school course. On 
the 1 2th of August, 1862, he enlLsted for serv- 
ice in the Civil war as a private in Company G, 
One Hundred and Fourteenth Illinois In- 
fantiy, and was promoted to the rank of ser- 
geant major of that regiment and was honor- 
ably discharged August 15. 1865. Following 
the close of hostilities Colonel McNeill re- 
turned to Springfield, Illinois, where he was 
employed. for many years in the First National 
Bank, until 1883, when he came to Oskaloosa 
and was made assistant cashier in the Farmers 
& Trades National Bank, which position he 
filled for ten years, being a popular and promi- 
nent official. In the meantime he had become 
connected with his brothers, H, W, and W. A. 
McNeill, in the development anfl operation of 
coal mines, having charge of other Imsiness in- 
terests in Mahaska county under the firm name 
of McNeill Brothers, 

On the i8th of November, 1872. Colonel 
McNeill was married to Miss Julia E. Hibbs. 



of Springfield, ll'innis. Their children are: 
Walter F., now managing McNeill Brothers' 
interests in Seattle, Washington, and .Vlberta, 
Canada: and Mabel, now the wife of George 
M, Martin, traveling passenger agent for tiie 
Towa Central Railroad Company at Oskaloosa. 
Colonel McNeill was an active meml^er of 
the Lincoln Guard of Honor in .S])ringfield, 
Illinois, and wdien the body of the martyred 
president was stolen he assisted in sectiring it 
and ])lacing it in a permanent and secret burial 
spot. He was an active participant in organ- 
izing the Illinois National Guard, was the 
first assistant adjutant general of the Second 
Brigade, and as such officer issued the general 
(irder mobilizing that brigade, and at tlie date 
of moving from Illinois to Iowa was lieuten- 
ant colonel of the Fifth Infantry Illinois Na- 
tional Guard. The Colonel is prominent in 
Grand Army circles, having been twice elected 
commander of Phil Kearney post. No. 40, of 
Oskaloosa, Iowa, and is at this writing .senior 
\ice commander. Department of Iowa, Grand 
Army of the Republic. He is a man of af- 
fairs, who has been successful in his business 
dealings, yet is modest and unassuming in 
manner. 



PHIL HOFFM.\NN. 



Phil Hofifmann, editor and one of the owners 
of the Daily and Weekly Herald published at 
Oskaloosa, was born in this city, August 16, 
1868, a son of Phillip and Eleanor (Addy) 
Hoffmann, the former a native of Germany and 
the latter of Ireland. The father was born in 
Steinweiler, Bavaria, October 13, 1830, and 
his parents were Peter and .\nna ( Pflatzgraff) 
Hoffmann. Phillip Hofifmann was the youngest 
of three children and the only one that left Ger- 
nianv, the others having died in childhood, .Af- 
ter acquiring his literary education he learned 



158 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



the glazier's trade in Strasburg, and for some 
time was engaged in making repairs on the 
famous Strasluirg clock, a fact in which he took 
great pride. He came to America in 1853, ar- 
riving at New Orleans, and for two years he 
worked at his trade in Cincinnati and St. Louis. 
In 1855 he came to Oskaloosa, but finding that 
work at glass fitting was very limited here, he 
learned the cabinet-maker's and carpenter's 
trades, thoroughly mastering the work. He es- 
tablished one of the first groceiT stores at Oska- 
loosa in 1885, conducting it for two years, 
when it was destroyed by fire, leaving him pen- 
niless. His death occurred after a brief illness, 
July 10. 1902. 

Phil Hoffmann, whose name introduces this 
review, was educated in the public schools of 
Oskaloosa and in Penn College, being a gradu- 
ate of the high school of this city of the class of 
1885. While in school he was employed for 
three }-ears in the drug store of W. S. Mays, 
at Oskaloosa, working nights and during the 
vacation periods. He also served as "devil" in 
the Herald oflice. After finishing his education 
he entered the editorial department of the Her- 
ald, where he was employed for five years, or 
until 1892, when, with his brother Charles V., 
under the firm name of Hoffmann Brothers, he 
purchased the Oskaloosa steam laundry, which 
he conducted until December, 1896. On the 
expiration of that period they disposed of the 
laundiw and bought the Oskaloosa Herald 
plant of Colonel A. W. and Pauline G. Swalm. 
and the firm of Hoffmann Brothers as owners 
and proprietors succeeded to Ixith the daily and 
weekly papers. The Herald had been established 
in 1850 as a weekly paper and the Daily Her- 
ald was started in 1887 by Swalm & Leighton. 
It was first a whig organ, and on the dissolu- 
tion of that party advocated republican princi- 
ples, having since been a champion of this or- 
ganization. The Herald has survived some 
twenty-si.x papers that have gone to the wall in 
Oskaloosa. The circulation of the Dailv Her- 



ald has increased fourfold and the Weekly 
Herald fifty per cent since the present nwners 
took charge. Charles S. Walling and Maggie 
Hoffmann became partners in the ownership of 
the oflice and plant in January, 1905. and the 
business was incorporated at that time under 
the style of the Oskaloosa Herald Company. 
The history of the Herald would seem an ex- 
emplification of the term, "survival of the fit- 
test," ha\ing had a continuous existence of more 
than a half century, while other papers for lack 
of public support have had to suspend publi- 
cation. The paper to-day is kept at an excel- 
lent standard and a good business is enioved 
Ixith in the circulation and advertising depart- 
ments. 

On the 20th of September, 1905, Mr. Hoff- 
mann was married to Anna M. Glaze, a daugh- 
ter of F. W. Glaze, of Oskaloosa. Since 1904 
he has been a member of the Masonic fraternity 
and also afiiliates with the Woodmen of the 
World. He served five years in Company F, 
of the Iowa National Guards, the last two as 
first .sergeant. Politically he has been a repub- 
lican since casting his first presidential bal- 
lot, and he is a member of the Chicago Press 
Club. 



JESSE H. PHILLIPS, M. D. 

Dr. Jesse H. Phillips, successful!}- engaged 
in the practice of medicine and surgery in X'ew 
Sharon, was born in Barnes\ille, Belmont 
county, Ohio, August 2, 185 1. His father. 
Barnett Phillips, was a native of Virginia, born 
in 1798, and when twelve years of age he ac- 
companied his parents on their remo\'al to Bel- 
mont county, Ohio, where he spent his remain- 
ing days, his death occurring within sight of 
the farm upon which his father had located on 
first settling in the Buckeye state. Barnett 
I'liillips became a farmer and also a shipper of 



r.AST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



159 



li\e stock and in tlu' early days Ik- wmild (lri\e 
the stock over tlie public highway to Pittsburg-. 
Pennsylvania, for shipment. He was twice 
married and by the first union had h\e children, 
of whom two sons are living: Elwood. now a 
resident of Barnesville, Ohio; and F.lmore. who 
is living in Harrisonvilie. Jefferson county. 
Ohio. For his second wife Mr. Phillips chose 
Susan Heskett. who was born in Maryland in 
1S14 and died in Demorest, Georgia, at the 
\ ei"}' venerable age of eighty-eight- _\-ears. In 
their family were five children : Rhoda I'"., the 
wife of Henry Dromfield. a resident of Okla- 
homa; Martha, wiio is lixing in Deninrcst. 
Georgia; Jesse H., of this review: V.huu A., 
who (lieil in Ohio twenty-six years ago: and 
Anna, the wife of Le\i Wilkinson, now lising 



in Demorest. Georgia. 



Dr. Phillips remained in his parents' home 
until twenty-one years of age and tlien began 
life on his own account. He had no definite 
idea then of becoming a physician. He bad 
attended the con-imon schools while imder the 
|i;u-eiital roof and afterward pursued a course 
of study in the Normal school at Ho])eda]c. 
Jefifcrson county. Ohio. Pater he became a 
student in f^ebanon. Ohio, and afterward en- 
gaged in teaching school, devoting three years 
to that profession wliile in Ohio and thence 
coming to Alahaska county, To\v;i, where he 
engaged in teaching for thirteen vears. He was 
a very capable and successful educator, inciden- 
tally recognizing the best niethods of in-i])arting 
instruction and never failing to leave a deep 
impress upon the minds of his students. Tn 
his school work his labors were attended with 
good results and he became recognized as an 
able representative of educational interests 
here. It was after his marriage that he decided 
upon the practice of medicine as a life work and 
with his family, then nimibering wife and four 
children, he went to Chicago, where he pursued 
a course in the Hahnemann College, from 
which he received a diploma on the 25th of 



March. 1<^<J7. He then i-eturned to New 
Sharon, where he has since engaged in the 
practice of his profession. There were at that 
time seven physicians in the town but now onlv 
Dr. Phillips and three others remain. He has 
a \-cry extensi\e practice, coxering a radius of 
ten miles and he is now practicing niedicine and ' 
surgery in the locality where he taught for so 
many years. He has an intimate knowledge 
of the principles of the profession and is care- 
ful in his diagnosis, so that his judgment is 
rarely if e\'er at f;uilt in furetelling the outcome 
of a case. 

On the ir)th of March, 1880. Dr. Phillips 
was married to Miss Ruth Hicks, who was 
born in Belmont comity, Ohio, in i83(). a 
daughter of Abel and Ruth (Bolen) Hicks, 
both of whom are now deceased. The father 
served in the Civil war from Ohio and died one 
year after his return from the arm\-. Unto Dr. 
and Mrs. Phillips have been born seven chil- 
dren : Forest, Retha and Jesse, all of whon-i are 
students at Drake Universitv in Des Moines: 
Ruth Lena, who will complete the course of 
study in the New Sharon high school in the 
class of i()o6; one who died in infanc\-; and 
Walter Bryan and Ral])b W'illard, at home. 
The parents and four daughters are men-ibers 
of the Christian church. 

Dr. Phillips has always been a supporter of 
the deiiKicracy when national questions are in- 
volved. Init at local elections casts an independ- 
ent ballot. He is a third degree Mason and his 
wife is a member nf the Order of the Eastern 
Star. He has ser\-ed on the school board biu 
otherwise has never consented to accej^t dttice. 
He possesses a large fund of the cpiality which 
w-e call conimon sense and which is too often 
lacking in the business world and it is this that 
has enabled him to accomplish what lie has 
(lone. He proved a very competent and suc- 
cessful teacher and through his ow-n exertion 
won the money that enabled hin-i to study medi- 
cine. He is now a physician well versed in the 



i6o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



science of medicine and a large practice is an 
indication of the confidence reposed in him by 
tlie general public. 



BYRON W. PRESTON. 

Byron W. Preston, a practitioner at the Os- 
Tcaloosa bar, was born in Newton, this state, 
h'ebruary 13, 1858, a son of S^dvester S. and 
Amelia M. (Wild) Preston, the former a na- 
tive of Vermont and the latter of New Hamp- 
shire. The father came to Iowa in 1857, set- 
tling in Jasper county, where he remained for 
many years, and then removed to Marseilles. 
Illinois, where he carried on merchandising. 
He afterward established his home in Grin- 
nell, Iowa, and subsequently went to Los .\n- 
g-eles, California, where he is now living, but 
in 1883 he was called upon to mourn the loss 
of his wife, who died at the ag'e of forty-seven 
years. In their family were ten children, all 
of whom are living. 

Byron ^^^ Preston, the eldest of the famil\-. 
pursued his education in the puljlic schools, 
in Grinned College, this state, and in Pougii- 
l-reepsie Business College, which he attended 
in 1876-7, completing a commercial course by 
graduation. He then returned to Grinnell, 
Avhere he carried on merchandising with his 
father for six years and on the 31st of July. 

1883, he came to Oskaloosa. where he took up 
the study of law under the direction of Judge 
Blanchard. Eight months later he was admit- 
ted to the bar. covering a two-years' course 
of reading in that time. It was in ]\Iarch. 

1884, that he passed his examination whereby 
be was made a member of the Iowa bar accord- 
ing to the laws of the state and later he was 
employed in the office and subsequently became 
a partner of Judg^e Blanchard. with whom he 
practiced until 1890. The relationship Avas 
then dissolved between tliem and ^Ir. Preston 



was elected to the office of count}^ attorney, 
which position he filled for two terms. On his 
retirement from the office he resumed the prac- 
tice of law and in 1894 he became candidate 
for judge, but was defeated. He had filled 
the office of city attorney in 1899 and 1900 and 
in 1902 was elected district judge, assuming 
the duties of the office in January. 1903. He 
is now serving on the bench and is an able 
exponent of the law, unbiased by partisan 
measiu"es or personal prejudices in the dis- 
charge of the duties that devolve upon him. 
He will undoubtedly be renominated at the 
con\ention May 22, 1906, as no opposing can- 
didate has as yet been bnuight forward and 
if nominated will doubtless be elected. In 
former years he took an active part in political 
work and in 1888-9 served as chairman of the 
republican county convention, while in 1895 he 
was a member of the state republican commit- 
tee for his district. Devotedly attached to his 
profession, systematic and methodical in habit, 
sober and discreet in judgment, diligent in re- 
search and conscientious in the discharge of 
every duty, courteous and kind in flemeanor 
and inflexibly just on all occasions, these qual- 
ities enabled Judge Preston to take first rank 
among those who have sat upon the circuit 
bench of the district. He has practiced in all 
the courts of Iowa, handling many important 
cases during his connection with the bar and 
he is regarded as one of the strongest members 
of the legal profession in Iowa. 

On the 6th of October, 1880, Mr. Preston 
was married to Miss Nellie Blanchard, of 
Newton. Iowa, a daughter of M. A. and 
Mary E. (Lindley) Blanchard. of New 
ton. Iowa. Their children are : Edith, 
the wife of Harry K. Spencer, of Oskaloosa : 
and Blanchard W. Judge Preston is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic fraternity, in which he has 
attained the Knight Templar degree. He be- 
longs to the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows, the Woodmen of the ^^'orld and the Be- 





X^l^^-,^^-*-!.^^^''^-^-^^^ 7 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



163 



ne\-(ilent and I'rotective Order of Elks, and he 
is a cfimmunicant of the Episcopal clunxh. in 
which he has heen vestryman fur twelve years. 
His is a well rounded character in which due 
attention is given to the great cjuestions effect- 
ing the sociological, economic, ])olitical and re- 
ligious conditions of the country, and he has 
keen insight into these as well as into the intri- 
cate legal problems which claim his attention 
upon the bench. His reported opinions indi- 
cate his legal learning and superior ability, 
showing a thorough mastery of the questions 
inx'olved, a rare sim])licit\' of style and an ad- 
mirable terseness and clearness in the state- 
ment of the principles uixm which his opin- 
i( iiis rest. 



LEWIS M. BACON. 



Lewis M. Bacon, who has been actix'ely con- 
nected with public life in Oskaloosa, being 
called to various positions of honor and trust, 
is one of the native sons of Mahaska county, 
horn in \\'hite Oak township, December 6, 
1S56. He is also a representative of one of 
the olflest families of the county. His grand- 
father, William Bacon, a native of England, 
came to this countrj' at an eafly period in its 
development and here reared a large family of 
ten children. One of his sons, Martin Bacon, 
who was born in 1S22, is now li\ing in C^ska- 
loosa, having made his home in Mahaska coun- 
ty for thirty-five years. He has reached the 
eighty-fourth milestone on life's journey and 
is therefore one of the oldest citizens of the 
county. 

John Bacon, father of our subject, was horn 
in Ohio and became an early resident of Ma- 
haska county, where he entered land from the 
government in connection with his brfither, Ru- 
fus P. Bacon. They lived in White Oak town- 
shi]) and held their land together for some time, 



but later sold out and bought other land in 
White Oak township, wdiere John Bacon con- 
tinued to carry un agricultural pursuits for 
many years. He was active and energetic in 
his work and through well directed lators at- 
tained to a position of affluence. He married 
Miss Nancy Wymore, who removed from the 
PifKisier state to Iowa and spent much of her 
residence in this state in Mahaska county. She 
had four brothers and two sisters w"ho are yet 
living, namely: Robert E. ; Jasper N. ; Elam 
M. ; Reuben ; Amanda, the wife of James Haw- 
kins ; and Margaret, the wife of Dr. Garrett El- 
kins. Four of the family are deceased, there 
having been ten in all. John Bacon spent his 
last daysin honorable retirement from labor in 
a pleasant home in Rose Hill, where he died in 
Ajjril. I goo. at the age of seventy-six years, 
ha\ing for about two years survived his wife, 
who passed away in 1898. at the age of fifty-six 
years. 

Lewis M. Bacon was a student in the com- 
mon schools of the county and was reared upon 
his father's farm, where he remained until 
twenty-six years of age, early becoming con- 
versant with all the work incident to the devel- 
o])ment of the fields and the care of stock. 
Thinking that he would find other lines of labor 
more congenial than farming, however, he in 
1882 engaged in merchandising in partnership 
with C. L. Slatten, opening a drug store in 
Rose Hill under the firm name of Slatten & Ba- 
con. Subsequently he was engaged in general 
merchandising as a partner of R. H. String- 
fellow, under the firm name of Stringfellow & 
Bacon, and when his partner sold out, the firm 
became L. M. Bacon & Company. This firm 
dealt in groceries and men's furnishing goods. 
Later, under the firm style of Bacon & Bump, 
Mr. Bacon engaged in dealing in groceries and 
hardware for one and a half years. He next 
sold out, after which he conducted a hardware 
business akine in connection with the grain 
trade. In 1892, however, be disposed of his 



i64 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



stock of hardware but continued in the grain 
business and was associated for a time in the 
lumber business with J. H. Augustine. This 
was in the year 1899 and in the same year lie 
built the present grain elevator at Rose Hill. He 
thus became a prominent factor in the commer- 
cial development of the town, contrilmting in 
large measure to its business activity and con- 
sec|uent prosperity. 

\Miile li\-ing in Rose Hill Mr. Bacon was also 
called to various public offices, serving as ma)-or 
for one term, as township clerk for four years, 
justice of the peace four vears, president of the 
school 1)oard and president of the city council. 
He was postmaster during President Cleve- 
land's second administration and in all of these 
offices he discharged his duties with promptness 
and fidelity that reflected credit upon himself 
and satisfaction to his constituents. Removing 
to Oskaloosa he became engaged in the real- 
estate and insurance business here as a member 
of the firm of Bacon & \\ inkleman. which re- 
lation was maintained for three years, at the 
end of which time Mr. Winkleman sold his in- 
terest to Newton Coxe and the firm name of 
Bacon & Coxe continued until about two years 
ago. In the fall of 1904 Mr. Bacon was elected 
justice of the peace of Oskaloosa, receixing a 
majority of seventy-seven although he was a 
democratic candidate and the county returned 
a strong republican majorit}- for President 
Roosevelt. In connection with the duties of his 
office he has engaged in the settling of several 
estates and he owns eighty-six acres of land, 
upon which are rich coal deposits, the mine be- 
ing operated by the Atwood Coal Company. 

In December, 1880. ]\Ir. Bacon was married 
to Miss Destia Stringfellow, a daughter of G. 
W. and Amanda (Dixon) Stringfellow, of this 
county. They have one son. Pearly ]\I., and 
they also lost a daughter, Effie, in 1889. Mr. 
Bacon, having spent his entire life in this coun- 
ty, is well known and his activitv in public af- 
fairs has been of direct and permanent good to 



the localities which he has represented in office. 
Patriotism and progress may well lie termed 
the keynotes of his record and as in business 
life his public service has been characterized by 
keen discrimination and practical methods. 



\\\ W. \\^RIGHT, ^I. D. 

Dr. W. W. Wright is one of the young and 
active members of the medical fraternity of Ma- 
haska county practicing in Rose Hill, where he 
has remained for the past nine years He is a 
nati\'e son of Mahaska county, his birth having 
occurred in the city of Oskaloosa. November 9, 
1867. His father, Alexander Wright, was a 
native of Ohio, in which state he was reared. 
There he wedded Mary Brown, a native of 
X'irginia, born at Harper's I'~erry. He later 
removed to Illinois, where he engaged in con- 
tracting and building, and he still makes his 
home in Oskaloosa. where for a long period he 
has been connected with building operations. 

Dr. Wright was reared in Oskaloosa and 
was a public-school student 'there. He later 
took up the study of medicine and attended the 
State University at Iowa City, being gradu- 
ated from the medical department with the 
class of 1897. He then located at Rose Hill 
and began the practice of medicine here. In 
the years which have since come and gone, he 
has built up a good business in the village and 
surrounding country and is now numbered 
among the capable physicians of the county. 

Dr. Wright was happih' married in Rose 
Hill on the nth of October, 1904, to Miss 
Lois Slocum, a native of Mahaska county, who 
was reared and educated in Oskaloosa. She is 
a (laughter of Eugene Slocum and a grand- 
daughter of Dr. Jarvis, one of the first settlers 
and a pioneer physician in Mahaska county, 
\\ho for three years was also a merchant at 
Rose Hill. He is mentioned elsewhere in this 



I'ASr AXI) PRESENT OF MAHASKA C0L:NTY. 



165 



wink. Dr. and .Mrs. Wriglit began their do- 
mestic life wliere they now reside. They have 
an attractive and well furnished h(ime, where 
good clieer alH)un(ls, wiicre a isindly greeting 
is extended to all and where the hospitality is 
most generons. 

Dr. Wright maintains an office in the busi- 
ness district and has telephone connections both 
at his home and his office, so that he may be 
easily reached by his patrons. He belongs to 
the .Mahaska County ?iledical Society and 
keeps in touch \vith the advance of the medical 
profession through his perusal of medical lit- 
erature. He holds membership in Rose Hill 
lodge. A. 1'". & .\. M.. and in the chapter ami 
commandery at Oskaloosa, and is also a mem- 
ber i)f the ^lystic Shrine at Davenport. Im- 
bued w ith laudable ambition to attain success, 
he has closelv applied himself to his chosen 
work and his energy and fidelity have been sa- 
lient tVatnres in his professional life. 



ABSALOM ROSENBERGER. 

Absalom Rosenberger. president of Penn 
College and thus a leading representative of ed- 
ucationn^l interests in this section of Iowa, was 
born near 'i'liorntown. Indiana, in 1S4Q. His 
father, James H. Rosenberger. was a native of 
the Shenandoah valley of \^irginia and of Ccr- 
man lineage. He was a farmer by occupation 
and removed from the Old Dominion when but 
fifteen years of age. ha\-ing taken a strong dis- 
like to sL'ucry. ]\raking his wa\- northward, he 
settled in Thorntown, Indiana, where he lived 
until called to his final rest in 1865. He was a 
member of the Society of Friends and possessed 
the gentle spirit and kindly disposition so char- 
acteristic of the people of that religious sect. 
He married Elizabeth Mills, who was born in 
Xorth Carolina and was of English lineage, 
tracting her ancestry- back to the time of the 



arrixal of William I'enn and his colony in 
America. Iler ancestors held property in Phil- 
adelphia and were identified with the Society of 
Friends, of which she also became a member. 
She passed a\\a\' in 1863, at the age of forty- 
three _\ears. In the family were eight children, 
four sons and four daughters. One son, Nathan, 
now a ])racticing lawyer at Muscatine, Iowa, 
was at one time superintendent of schools of 
Jefferson county, this state, and is the author of 
a \olume entitled, "Cixil Government of Iowa."' 

Absalom Rosenberger was a common-school 
student near Thorntown, Indiana, and after- 
ward spent a }ear in the high schtxil of his na- 
tixc \'illage and one _\-ear in S])iceland I In- 
diana ) .\cadem\-. while later he was graduated 
on the completion 'of the classical course in 
Earlham College at Richmond, Indiana, being 
numbered among the alumni of 1876. The de- 
gree of Bachelor of .\rts was at that time con- 
ferred upon him. Leaving college he taught 
school for nine years in different high schools 
and academies and subse(|uently spent two 
years as a student in the law department in 
Michigan L"ni\-ersity at Ann Arbor. Nvhere be 
was graduated in 1887 with the degree of 
LL. B. He practiced law for two years at 
\\'icbita, Kansas, and in 1889 came to Oska- 
loosa to accept the jiresidency of Penn College, 
since which time he has remained at the head of 
the institution, placing it ujjon a high standard, 
its efficiency and the scope of its labors being 
constantly extended. As an educator in Iowa 
he has won foremost rank, for added to his 
al)ility to impart clearly and readily to others 
the knowledge that he has attained he also has 
the faculty of inspiring the teachers and ])ni)ils 
connected with him with much of his own zeal 
and energy in the work. 

On the 5th of Septemlicr, 1877. was cele- 
brated the marriage of Professor Rosenberger 
and Miss Martha E. Kendall, who was born in 
Thorntown. Indiana, in 1837, and died July 3, 
1905. There were five children born of that 



1 66 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



marriage: Homer G., who is a graduate of 
Penn College of 1900 and is now a member of 
the class of 1907 in Rush Medical College at 
Chicago ; Ethel C, who is a graduate of Penn 
College of the class of 1902 and has studied for 
two years in Germany and France, while at the 
present time she is serving as professor of mod- 
ern languages in her alma mater ; Lucile, who 
completed a course in Penn College with the 
class of 1905 ; Frank K., who died in child- 
hood ; and Helen, who is attending school. 

Professor Rosenberger gives his political al- 
legiance to the republican party and has been 
a close and earnest student of the questions of 
the day, keeping in touch with the trend of 
modern thought along political and other lines. 
He is a member of the Society of Friends and 
his efforts in behalf of the cause and its ad- 
vancement have been far-reaching and benefi- 
cial. Under his guidance Penn College has 
made continuous progress, for he believes in 
maintaining a high standard of scholarship, in 
employing competent teachers and putting forth 
every possible effort to make the school a prepa- 
ration for the responsible duties of life, de\elop- 
ing the physical and moral nature of the stu- 
dent as well as the intellectual. He is himself 
a man of broad scholarly attainments, whose 
collegiate training has been supplemented by his 
extensive reading, research and investigation in 
later years. Moreover, he is imbued with hu- 
manitarian principles and there is in him an 
abiding sympathy and charit\- \d:ich has gained 
for liini the respect and trust of his fellowmen. 



A. N. CALDWELL. 



A. N. Caldwell is numbered among the earh- 
settlers of Mahaska county, having for many 
years lived wnthin its borders, watching its 
growth and development as changes have oc- 
curred showing the advance of civilization. 



He now follows the occupation of farming- 
and in fact has made this pursuit his life work. 
He was born in Greene county, Tennessee, in 
1839, a son of Thomas F. and Sarah (White) 
Caldwell, who were also natives of the south, 
the father following the occupation of farming 
in Tennessee. The son is indebted to the pub- 
lic-school system of his native state for the 
educational privileges which he enjoyed in 
early life. He gave his attention to the masteiy 
of the common branches of learning and dur- 
ing much of the time he attended school onlv 
through the winter months, his services beincr 
needed upim the home farm during the summer 
seasons. 

He left Tennessee when tweh'e vears of age. 
becoming a resident of Mahaska county, Iowa. 
He attended school no longer after attaining 
his majority. He was the eldest of a family 
of eight children and was but fifteen years of 
age at the time of his father's death. He thus 
liad to take the father's place in the family in 
the management of the work anil providing for 
his younger brothers and sisters. Thomas F. 
Caldwell had just secured a claim of one hun- 
dred antl sixty acres of land and was building 
thereon a house at the time of his demise. Mr. 
Caldwell of this review at once assumed the du- 
ties and responsibilities of carrving on the 
farm and improxing the fields and throughout 
his entire life he has engaged in farming. He 
has for many years lived in this county, xvit- 
nessing the greater part of its agricultural de- 
\-elopment, and the home propertv which he 
owns in Lincoln and \\'hite Oak townships 
stands as a monument to his enterprise and la- 
bor, indicating- his careful supervision and dili- 
gence in its excellent appearance. 

In September. 1875, Mr. Caldwell was 
united in marriage to Miss Catherine Stump 
and unto them have been bom five sons: 
Charles C, Earl S., Fred B., ^^'arren A. and 
R. ^^^ Caldwell. The eldest son is now mar- 
ried and lives in Mahaska coiuitv. where he 




(l,J(.iaicLHJl' 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



169 



follows farming, luirl Caklwcll is also mar- 
ried and is a resident farmer of this county. 
In his political \-ie\\s Mr. Caldwell has been a 
stalwart republican since the organization of 
the partw casting his ballot for each of its 
presidential nominees. Elected as a member of 
the board of county supervisors, he entered 
ujjon the duties of the office on the ist of Janu- 
■<u\. i8cSi, and served continuously in that ca- 
pacitv for si.K years. He has for thirty }'ears 
been a member of the Cumberland Presby- 
terian church and his life has been in harmony 
with its principles and teachings. He has been 
straightforward in his business dealings, never 
being known to take advantage of the neces- 
sities of his fellowmen in anv trade transaction 
and his life record is that of a self-made man, 
for fmni an earlv age he has been dependent 
upon his own resources. He has worked per- 
sistently and energetically as the years have 
gone by and his history proves the force of 
industry, economy and capable management in 
winning success. 



J.\MES SUMNER HAYES. 

James Sumner Hayes, secretary of the 
wliolesale and retail hardware concern of Os- 
kaloosa, conducted under the style of the Huber 
& Kalbach Company, is a native son of Ma- 
haska county, his birth having ocatrred here in 
1864. His father. James Hayes, was born in 
McDonough county, Illinois, and is now living 
at the age of sixty-seven years. Hecame to Iowa 
in 1856 with his parents. Nathaniel and Priscilla 
Hayes, the family home being established at 
Eddyville, W'apello county. The grandfather, 
Nathaniel Hayes and two of his sons, Isaac and 
Henry, were soldiers of the Civil \var. James 
Hayes was a youth of eighteen years when he 
came to Iowa. Upon arriving at the age of 
manhood he located in Jefferson township, Ma- 
10 



haska county, where he remained until 1880. 
when he removed to Scott township. There he 
resided for six years. Later he and his son J. 
S. jjurchased land in Jefferson township, where 
they both resided until 1888, the father then 
l^eing called to serve the county as steward of 
the poor farm, which position he filled accept- 
ably for three years. He then bought a farm 
adjoining the old town of Rochester, which he 
still owns. He retired, however, and removed 
to Oskaloosa in 1900 and has since made his 
home in the city, enjoying a well earned rest 
in the midst of the comforts that have been se- 
cured by him as the result of the years of his 
former activity and enterprise. Fraternally he 
is a Mason and his political views are in accord 
with republican principles. He married Miss 
Nancy Margaret Whittinger, who was born 
near Indianapolis, Indiana, and died in 1901, 
at the age of sixty years. They had five chil- 
dren : William H., now deceased; James Sum- 
ner: Frank and Lily, who have passed away; 
and Harry W., who is traveling agent for the 
Huber & Kalbach Company of Oskaloosa. 

In the usual manner of farm lads J. S. Hayes 
was reared and in the country schools acquired 
his education. He taught school for five years 
and in 1890, leaving the farm, he pursued a 
Imsiness course in the Oskaloosa Business Col- 
lege. In i8gi he entered the wholesale and re- 
tail hardware house of the Huber & Kalbach 
Company as stenographer and bookkeeper and 
has since been associated with this concern. He 
was made treasurer of the compan\- in January. 
i()03. and acted in that capacity until January, 
1904. when he was chosen secretary, which is 
his present connection with the house. 

In 1887 Mr. Hayes was married to Miss 
Mary M. De Long, who was born in \\'hite Oak 
township, Mahaska count}-, in iS()C). and is a 
daughter of George and Julia (De Witt) De 
Long, the father a farmer of Scott township. 
Llnto Mr. and Mrs. Hayes have l)een born four 
children but the eldest died in infancv and W'il- 



I/O 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



liam D. died in 1893, at the ag-e of eighteen 
months. The otliers are Charles S., born in 
1895: and Louis F., in 1904. ]\Irs. Ha}es is a 
member of tlie Congregational church and Mr. 
Hayes is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity. 
His study of the jjolitical questions and issues 
(if the (hi\' has led him t(5 g'i\"e his support to the 
republican party but he is not an aspirant for 
office, preferring to concentrate his efforts upon 
his business affairs and his labors are directed 
along lines of modern commercial progress and 
are proving an element in the successful con- 
duct of the interests of the company of which 
he is now secretar\-. 



FOSTER F. PARIvFR, D. A'. M. 

Dr. Foster F. Parker, engaged in the practice 
of veterinary surg'ery in Oskaloosa, is a native 
of Cedar cimnty, Iowa, born February 22. 
1875. His ]5arents are D. L. and Elizabeth 
( Orr ) I^arker, the former a native of Ohio and 
the latter of Pennsvh'ania. rhe\' spent their 
married life in Iowa, having come to this state 
when young. The father followed the occupa- 
tion of farming in Carroll county for a number 
of years and in 1894 took up his abode in Ames, 
Iowa, whence he came to Oskaloosa in 1905, 
and he and his wife are esteemed residents of 
this city. In their family were two children. 
Foster F. and Jessie. 

Foster F. Parker spent his bo\hood davs on 
the home fainn and early developed a fondness 
for animals, particularly horses, being always 
a lover of fine, high grade stock. His educa- 
tion was begun in the public schools of Carroll 
county and he afterward attended the high 
school at W'allake, Iowa, \\here his parents re- 
sided for a time. He was graduated from that 
institution in the class of 1894 and subsequently 
entered the Iowa .State College, at Ames, where 
he remained for some years, pursuing a scien- 



tific course and later a course in veterinary sur- 
gery, being graduated with the degree of D. V. 
M. in 1900. He began practice the following 
year at Belle Plaine, Iowa, and in the fall of 
1901 came to Oskaloosa, where he has since re- 
mained, enjoying a high reputation here for 
his efficiency in the line of his chosen profession. 
He has established a general hospital for the 
treatment of horses and other animals and in its 
conduct is meeting with success. He is cer- 
tainly well efiuipped b}- nature and training for 
the profession and in the work is meeting with 
a large patronage. \\'hile in college he was 
greath' interested in amateur athletics and was 
later a coach for the Penn College football 
team for a period of three years. 

Dr. Parker is a member of the Elks lodge 
and of the Knights of Pvthias fraternit\', while 
jiolitically he is a republican although not active 
in the work of the party. On the ist of Janu- 
ary, 1897, he was married to Miss Alice Myers, 
a daughter of John Myers, of Ames, Lnva, and 
their children are Jovce R., Guerden D. and 
blldon Parker. 



FRANK B. SHAFER. 

.Among the earnest men ^\•hose depth of char- 
acter and strict adherence to duty have won for 
them unifonn respect as well as a position of 
distinctive prominence in business circles, is 
numbered Frank B. Shafer now vice-president 
and cashier of the Frankel State Bank. He is 
also president of the Pfeifer-Balmont Company 
and is interested in a number of other enter- 
prises of the city. He was born in La Salle 
county, Illinois, May 30, 1864. His father, Ben- 
jamin Shafer, was born in Knox county, Ohi(^. 
and is now living in Streator. Illinois, at the 
age of .seventy-eight years. He came of Cer- 
man ancestry, the founder of the family in 
.\merica ha\ing come to Illinois in 1835, set- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



171 



linj^ ill .Marsliall county. This was lkMir\- 
Sliiitcr. wlio was accnmpanicd liy his wife. 
Their son, Benjamin Shafcr. liccanic a thrifty 
and prosperous farmer, who for niuny years 
carried on the work of tilhng the .soil Ijut is now 
Hving retired n])on a competency ac(|uirc(l 
through his own efforts. In pohtics lie is an 
earnest tleniocrat and for many years served as 
supervisor of Iiis town.slii]). He married Juli- 
ette Reeder, who was Ijoni in Wisconsin, and 
is now li\-ing at the age of si.xty-eight years. 
She is of I'^XMich-Canadian stock, a daughter 
of Jacoh and Jane (Lord) Reeder, the former a 
farmer hy occupation.. Unto Mr. and Mrs. 
Shafer were horn three sons and a daughter: 
Jason, now deceased; l"'rank B. ; Lloyd, wh<T 
has charge of the plant of the .\rmour Pack- 
ing Conii)any at Streator, Illinois: and Zelma. 
the wife of Dr. George Dicus, a practicing 
piiysician at Streator. 

Frank B. Shafer was reared upon the old 
home farm and was a student in the district 
schools in his early Ijoyhood. Later he was 
graduated from the Streator high school and 
suhsequently attended a Inisiness college at Val- 
paraiso, Indiana. iMitering upon his l)usiness 
career, he Iiecame an emi)loye in a Ixuik at 
Streator at the age of twenty years and re- 
mained there for tliree years, gaining an excel- 
lent knowledge of the l)anking business in its 
various departments. In 1890 he removed to 
Oskaloosa to accejit the cashier.ship in the pri- 
vate hank of i. i''rankel. which institution was 
incorporated as a state bank in 18(^3 with a 
capital of sixty thousand dollars, with I. 
Frankel, president, .\. Frankel, vice-president 
and I'rank B. Shafer, cashier. The last named 
is now vice-president as well as cashier. The 
bank was established upon a safe, conservative 
policy that has always l)een maintained and it 
has become a strong moneyed concern, b.aving 
die entire confidence of the public. With the 
increase in his financial resources. Mr. Shafer 
has broadened the scope of his business activity. 



In 1889 occurred the marriage of Mr. Sha- 
fer and Miss Lillie McCall, who was born in 
Oskaloosa, March 18, 1864, and is a daughter 
of I-'rank W. and Emma McCall, die former one 
of die pioneers of this city in the marble busi- 
ness. Mr. and Mrs. Shafcr have four chil- 
dren. Hazel, Helen, Zelma and Carl. Mr. Sha- 
fer and his wife are members of the Congre- 
gational church, interested in its work and lib- 
eral contriljutors toward its supjiort. He is 
identified with the Ma.sons, Elks and Knights 
of Pythias fraternities and in politics is a stal- 
wart democrat. He belongs to the Iowa State 
Bankers Association and the National Bankers 
.\ssociatioii. He is always courteous, kindly 
and aiTable and tho.se who know him personally 
lia\e for him warm regard, while in his business 
life he lias persevered in tlie ]nn"suit of a per- 
sistent purpose and has gained a most satis- 
factnrv reward. 



LEROY E. CORLET' 



Leroy E. Corlett, recognized as one of the 
leading members of the republican party in Ma- 
haska county and also a practitioner at the Os- 
kaloosa bar. is a native of Clayton county, Iowa, 
born ]\Iarcli 18. 1875. his parents being John E. 
and Catherine A. ( Crawford) Corlett, the for- 
mer a native of the Isle of Man and the latter of 
Pennsylvania. The parents are now living in 
Elkader, Iowa, and the father has retired from 
active business ]3ursuits. He has spent the 
greater part of his life in this state and was 
prominentl}- identified with agricultural iiiter- 
ests for many years. In the family were twehe 
children, of whom nine are living. 

Leroy E. Corlett was educated in the schools 
of Iowa, where he attended the district schools, 
also a high school, and the National Normal 
L'niversity at Lebanon, Ohio, Determining upon 
the practice of law as a life work, he began 



172 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



reading under the direction of his brother. 
James E., at Elkader, Iowa, and he completed 
his law studies in Drake University at Des 
Moines, where he was graduated in the class of 
1901. He continued in practice with his 
brother until January, 1903. when he was 
elected reading clerk in the house of representa- 
tives at Des Moines. In the summer of that 
year he located in Oskaloosa. where he opened 
a law office and he was appointed to take charge 
of the clerk's office of Mahaska county during 
the absence of Clifif B. West, county clerk, for 
the winter of 1905-6. He is a young man. but 
has already attained a creditable position in the 
ranks of the legal fraternity and his laudable 
ambition, earnest purpose and capability 
promise well for the future. 

In June. 190J. Mr. Corlett was married to 
]\Iiss Jennie ^I. Good, a daughter of L. F. and 
Hannah 'SI. (Cross) Good, of Neoga, Illinois. 



GEORGE S. PRINE. 



George S. Prine. the owner of valuable 
farming interests comprising one hundred and 
seventv-three acres in Lincoln township, where 
he is also engaged in the breeding and ship- 
ping of Berkshire hogs, was born in Fayette 
county, Indiana. October 29. 1847. His father. 
^liles Kenneth Prine. was a native of Ken- 
tucky, and removed thence ti> Indiana, whence 
he came with his family to Mahaska county, 
Iowa, in the '60s, settling in Garfield township 
in that section on the Pella road now known as 
the Prine district. Tlie Pella road in those 
days was a part of the old route from Burling- 
ton to Des !Moines and was (Mie of the much 
traveled highways of pioneer times. Mr. Prine 
devoted his energies to general agricultural 
pursuits. For many years the firm of M. K. 
Prine & Son was well known throughout the 
countrv as breeders of fine horses, cattle and 



hogs, making a specialty of Berkshii-e hogs. 
The firm has had an existence since 1871 and 
the business has reached extensive proportions. 
In politics 'M. K. Prine was a stanch republican 
and for many }ears was a member of the board 
of school directors. He believed in the em- 
ployment of com.petent teachers and in the es- 
tablishment of good schools and did everything 
in his power to advance the cause of public edu- 
cation here. He was also greatly interested in 
the Mahaska County Fair Association, being 
for many years a director and superintendent. 
He departed this life in 1900. at the age of 
seventy-eight years. His wife, who bore the 
maiden name of Mar}- Nelson, was a represen- 
tative of a pioneer family of Indiana, whose 
parents occupied the farm upon which George 
S. Prine was born. They were natives of 
]\Iaine and removed from New England to the 
middle west at an early day. Mrs. Prine 
reached the age of seventy years, five months 
and ten days. For nine years she was con- 
fined to her invalid's chair and had si night help 
at Colfax and at the ^Medical Institute at 
Omaha, but was not materially benefitted there- 
b}-. Daniel and Henry Prine, brothers of 
^liles K. Prine. were prominent farmers of 
Mahaska county for a long period, the name 
having been associated for many years with the 
business development, especially along agricul- 
tural lines, of this part of the state. Joseph D. 
Prine. a brother of our subject, still occupies 
the old family homestead. 

In the district schools near his father's home 
George S. Prine pursued his education and 
afterward attended the Oskaloosa Business 
College, from which he was graduated in the 
class of 1875. K^ 'i*"^ been reared to the occu- 
pation of farming and stock-raising, assisting 
his father from an early age. and there are few 
men better informed concerning the value of 
stock than he. For twent)--five years he never 
missed making an exhibit of stock at the Iowa 
state fairs and won many premiums. He 




M. KENNETH PRINE. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



1/7 



also exhibited at other state fairs and 
at the different connty fairs. His i)o- 
sition in li\e stock circles is indicated by the 
fact that he was iionored with the appointment 
to tlie snperinteiulency of the swine exhibit at 
lite I.onisiana Purchase Exposition at St. l.onis 
in KJ04. lie has also at different times been 
snperintendent of the Iowa state fairs. He is 
a member of the American Berkshire Record 
Association, having; served for two years 
as the president of that association, and 
for tln'ee years was president of the Ma- 
haska Connty Fair Association. For fif- 
teen years he acted as secretary of the Iowa 
Swine Breeders Ass(x:iation, which was or- 
ganized for educational purposes in the way of 
scoring stock. He has prepared many ])apers 
on the subject of stock-raising which were read 
bef<n-e tliis organization. The meetings of the 
organization were held twice a }ear, on which 
occasion there was generally a big banquet. 
The election of officers was held in Des Moines 
and the exercises covered a week. He is one of 
the contributors to the American Berkshire 
lo\-e feast and sale. This is held at Kansas 
City, where one hundred bred sows are sold, 
only one being sold by eacli breeder, who must 
be there in ])er,son. The farm of Mr. I'rine 
comprises one hundred and seventy-three acres 
of valuable land in Lincoln township. Mahaska 
county, adjoining the city, on which he buys 
and fattens cattle in large quantities and ships 
to the Chicago market and to the east. 

Mr. Prine has been married twice. On the 
loth of February. 1870, lie wedded Marv 
Himes. a native of Ohio, who died a year later, 
and their son, .Mford. died in infancv. On the 
ir)th of August. 1876. Mr. Prine married 
Frances A. Zollars, a daughter of I'riah and 
Mary Zollars. who were natives of Pcnns\l- 
vania and settled in Oskaloosa. The children 
of this marriage were, Mary H.. a musican of 
note, who is a graduate of the Oskaloosa high 
school; and M. Kenneth, who was born I-'ebrn- 



ary 2H. 18S3, and died July ly, 1900, being 
killed in a runaway accident, the bit breaking 
in the horse's month. Before he passed awa}' 
be expressed the desire that his mother should 
ha\e the buggy and his father the horse, but 
Mr. I'rine sold the latter at auction and gave 
the proceeds to the Young Men's Christian 
Association of Oskaloosa. of wdiich the young 
man was an active member. He. too, was a 
graduate of the Oskaloosa high school and was 
very popular among his associates, being a 
young man of good moral character and pleas- 
ing disposition, who was well liked by all who 
knew him. He was a member of Compan\' !•". 
Fifty-first Regiment Iowa National Guards. 
He was the first of the Young Men's Christian 
Association to pass away, and a very fine por- 
trait of himself now adorns the walls of the 
association rooms. Being an onh- son bis 
death was a sad blow to his parents. His burial 
was conducted by Company F. with ushers 
from his class in the Oskaloosa high school. 
Tgoo. 

Air. I'rine has always been an earnest repub- 
lican in bis political \'iews. He is regarded as 
one of the reijresentative agriculturists of his 
])art of Iowa and has controlled business inter- 
ests of great importance to the state at large 
and winch have ]>r(n-ed as well a source of 
much individual profit. He is a charter mem- 
l)er and director of the Farmers National Bank 
of Oskaloosa. Upon his farm he has a splendid 
residence, commodious and substantial barns 
and sheds and all et|uipmcnts for the care of 
crops and stock. His 'place is situated on the 
Pella road just outside the corjxiration limits 
of Oskaloosa. Coming to this cotmty in his 
youth, he has since resided within its borders 
and has become interested in ,'i business of 
much im])orlancc. his labors contributing in 
large measure to the improxement of the grade 
of stock raised in Iowa. The farming class 
have been greatly benefited thereby owing to 
the consequent advance in prices, and through- 



v« 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



out Iowa and in otiier states as well Mr. Prine's 
opinions are regarded as authority upon manv 
subjects connected with stock-raising. 



GEORGE P. BERTSCH. 

George P. Bertsch. senior partner in the 
Bertsch-Shurtz Drug Compan}- in Oskaloosa, 
doing business at No. 202 First avenue east, is 
a native son of Iowa, his birtli having occurred 
in Sigourney on the 4th of June. 1873. As the 
name indicates, tlie family comes of German 
lineage. The parents, Jacob and Katherine B. 
(Jacobs) Bertsch, were both natives of Hesse- 
Darmstaclt. Germany, and are now residents of 
Sigourney, where they are living at the ages of 
seventy-three and seventy years respecti velv. The 
father came to the United States in 1848. set- 
ling first in Baltimore, Maryland, where he fol- 
lowed the butcher's trade for two years. He then 
removed to Indianaixalis, Indiana, and thence 
went to Washington. Iowa, and later to Daven- 
]3ort, Iowa, where he continued in business as a 
Initcher for several years. In 187 1 he remo\ed 
to Sigourney, where he established a meat mar- 
ket, which he conducted successfully for a num- 
ber of years, until feeling that his capital was 
sufficient to justify his retiring from further 
business life, he is now living in the enjoyment 
of a well earned rest. He belongs to the 
Knights of Pythias fraternity and from the 
time he became a naturalized American citizen 
gave his political allegiance to the democracv 
until 1896, when he voted for \\'illiam ]McKin- 
ley, again supporting him in 1900. In 1904, 
however, be cast bis ballot for Judge Parker, 
the presidential candidate of the democracv. 
His wife came to the United States when a 
young maiden of seventeen years, joining her 
brother in New York. They afterward re- 
mo\-ed to Davenport. Iowa, and it was there 
that she gave her hand in marriage to Jacob 



Bertsch. She is a communicant of the Catholic 
church. Unto the marriage there were born 
ten children, of whom only three are now liv- 
ing. Two of the number bore the name of 
George P. Bertsch, the other having died be- 
fore the birth of our subject. Jacob 'SI. Bertsch, 
now living in Oklahoma City. Oklahoma, is a 
l)hotogra])her by profession. In earlier years he 
engaged in farming in Oklahoma but was in the 
cyclone at Snyder there in 1905 and on account 
of the destruction of his property be removed to 
Los Angeles, California, but has since returned 
to Oklahoma. Anna, the only sur\iving daugh- 
ter of the family, is the wife of Edward M. 
b^ritz, a cigar manufacturer, who is also a musi- 
cian. He has been on the road as a conductor 
of leading bands of the country and is now 
located in Ottumwa, where lie is giving instruc- 
tion in music. 

George P. Bertsch was a public-school stu- 
dent in bis native city and is a graduate of the 
high school of the class of 1890. He then en- 
tered a drug store as a clerk and studied phar- 
macy, oljtaining a pharmacist's certificate in 
1892. In the fall of the same year he entered 
the Philadelphia College of Pharmac}'. from 
which he was graduated in 1894 and in the au- 
tumn of that year he came to Oskaloosa. where 
be purchased the drug store of Strain & Bat- 
terson. .\ year and a half later be admitted 
T. E. Boal, of Buda, Illinois, to a partnership 
under the firm name of Bertsch-Boal Drug 
Company, which relation was maintained until 
.\pril, ic;o4. when Mr. Boal retired and was 
succeeded b\- Charles Y. Shurtz. of Ottumwa. 
who entered the firm and the present style of 
the Bertsch-Shurtz Drug Company was as- 
sumed. Their store is most advantageously lo- 
cated at tlie corner of First avenue and First 
street and their patronage is extensi\e. The 
store is well appointed and its tasteful arrange- 
ment together with the reliable business meth- 
ods of the house have secured a large and grow- 
ing patronage. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



179 



ill liSyO .Mr. licrtscli was married td Miss 
Anna Elizabeth Holdefer, \vli<> was Ijorn in 
Baltimore. Maryland, November 16. 1875. a 
(lauyliter of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Holdefer. 
tiic former a commission merchant. There is 
one child of this marriage, (jeorge Tracy. l)orn 
in \qoo. Mr. Bertsch is a Knight Tem])lar Ma- 
son, a member of the Mystic Shrine and an b'lk. 
and his wife l^elongs to the I'ir.st Pre.sbyterian 
chnrch. He votes with the deniocrac\- and is a 
good business man who has been ver)- success- 
ful l>v reason of the fact that he thoroughlv ])re- 
parcd himself for the line of work which he has 
undertaken and has <lisi)la)ed close aijplication 
and unremitting energv in carrving on his busi- 
ness. In manner he is rather retiring but he 
stands high in public esteem. With his little 
family he occupies a beautiful hr:me on Tliird 
avenue east. 



CLARENCE WATLAND. D. D. S. 

Dr. Clarence W'atland. who is engaged in 
the practice of dentistry in New Sharon with a 
well e(|uipped office that indicates thorough un- 
derstanding of the most modern methods 
kiKiwn to the science, was horn in Prairie town- 
■-hip. Mah-Aska county, on the loth of August, 
1881. His father, Ole Watland. was a native 
of Norway, born in 1828. and when a young 
man he came to America in company with 
(ioodman \\'atland. He first settled in Illi- 
Udis near Leland and in the earlv Vios came 
to Mahaska county. He was marrierl in O.ska- 
loosa to Miss Bertha Strom, whd was born in 
Norway. July 12. 1840. and came to .Vmeric^ 
with her widowed iiKither. li\ing for a time in 
O.skaloosa. Mr. and Mrs. Watland remained 
for a brief period in the county seat and then 
removed to a farm in Prairie townshiji where 
Mr. \\ atl.and gave his attention to general ag- 
ricultural pursuits up to the time of his death 



in 189J. He lii'st purchased eighty acres of 
unimprii\ed Kind, which he at once cleared and 
cultivated, transfoniiing the tract into product- 
i\-e fields, from which he gathered good har- 
\ests. J I is .sale of his cro])s enableil him to add 
to his farm from time to time and at his death 
he was the owner of a valuable property of two 
hundred acres. His political allegiance was 
given to the republican party, but he never held 
nor desired office, preferring to gi\'e his undi- 
\i(led attention to his farming interests. He 
held memliershi]) with the .Society of F'riends, 
or Quakers, to which Mrs. Watland, who yet 
resides in New Sharon, also belongs. 

Tn their family were seven children: .\melia. 
the wife of Samuel Sawyer, a resident of Le- 
land, Illinois; Gideon, a grain dealer of Iowa, 
who has recentlv sold his business and is now- 
spending the winter in California; Henry, who 
was the owner of eighty acres of the old hiime- 
stead but has sold the property, and is now liv- 
ing in New Sharon; Tena. the wife of Albert 
Rinder. living on a farm near Oskaloosa; Al- 
bert, a dentist of Albert Lea, Minnesota, who 
is a graduate of the New Sharon high .school, 
and spent two years at Penn College at Oska- 
loosa, after which he won his diploma from the 
Chicago College of Dentistry'; Ole, at home; 
and Clarence of this review. 

In taking up the pers(jna] history of Dr. 
Watland we present to our readers the life rec- 
ord I if one who is widely and favorably known 
in New Sharon and Mahaska county, for his 
entire life has been passed here and those with 
whom he has been acquainted from his boy- 
hoo;l (lavs know that his has been a creditable 
record. He was graduated from the high school 
at .New Sharon in 1900, and afterward spent 
four years at Iowa City, devoting two years to 
a Cdllegiate course and two years to the study 
of dentistry. He later spent one year in the 
dental department of the University of Penn.syl- 
vania. at Philadelphia, and received his dijiloma 
from that institution on the 14th nf June. 1905. 



i8o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Immediately afterward he opened liis dffice in 
New Shan in, and altliough less than a year has 
gone by, he has builtupaver\^ gratifying patron- 
age, having a well equipped otifice on the second 
floor of the Sherman block over the Citizens Bank. 
He is thoroughly familiar with the most mod- 
em methods of dentistry and added to his 
theoretical knowledge is a meciianical skill and 
ingenuity without which the dentist is never 
truly successful. He makes his home with his 
mother and sister. He is a birthright Quaker 
and his political views are in accord with the 
principles of the republican party. Among a 
large circle of friends and acquaintances here 
he is popular and his social qualities combined 
with his professional skill will undoubtedly 
bring him constantly growing success in his 
chosen profession. 



JAMES C. SELLERS. 

James C. Sellers, engaged in the insurance 
business, is truly a self-made man and his pres- 
ent enviable position in the business world and 
financial circles is due to his efforts and his 
fidelity to purpose which everxwhere cummand 
respect and confidence. He is a native of Gar- 
rard county, Kentucky, bom January 14, 
182S. His parents. Nathan and Mary (Yow- 
ein Sellers, were also natives of Kentuck}- and 
in 1830 removed to Indiana, where they re- 
sided until 1854. Mr. Sellers becoming well 
known there as a farmer and business man. 
His capability and worth led to his selection 
for various positions of honor and trust. He 
served as treasurer and assessor of the county, 
was also deputy sherifif and filled other local 
positions. Tn 1836 be traveled through the 
country on horseback to collect taxes and to 
make assessments. Leaving Indiana in 1854 
he went with his family to Monroe county. 
Jowa. and later moved to Appanoose county. 



where he lived for twent}- years, his death oc- 
curring- in Moulton in 1874. at the ag-e of sev- 
enty-four years. His wife reached the ad- 
vanced age of eighty years, passing awav at 
.\lbia, Iowa, in 1876. The Sellers family 
were of Scott-Irish lineag-e. while the Yowells 
were of the same extraction. L'nto Mr. and 
Mrs. Nathan Sellers were born eight children, of 
whom five are living, namely: Burnettie, the 
wife of William Mercer, of Albia, Iowa; 
George D., a clergyman of the Christian 
church now located in Kansas: Moses Y., a phy- 
sician of Moulton, Iowa: and Sue, the wife of 
A. J. Byrelee, proprietor of a hotel at Albia, 
Iowa. Those deceased are : Ann Eliza, the 
wife of James Reed: William C. : and Marga- 
ret J., the wife of William E. Neville. 

James C. Sellers acquired only a limited ed- 
ucation in his youth, attending the country 
schools and also continued his studies to some 
extent in Greencastle, Indiana. He spent the 
first twenty years of his life on a farm and in 
1851 came to Iowa, niaking his way to Albia. 
Monroe county, where he taught school, fol- 
lowing that profession in Albia and in Chari- 
ton. Lucas county. He afterward engaged in 
merchandising in 1852 and 1853. In 1854 he 
went to Albia, where be turned his attention 
to general ag'ricultural pursutts and being 
joined that year by his father they together 
bought a farm of three hundred and twenty 
acres which they operated from 1855 until 
1 86 1. In 1857 the country became involved in 
a financial panic and Mr. Sellers lost heavily. 
He then began anew and taught school for 
several years, after which he once more turned 
his attention to farming and in 1866 engaged 
in the insurance business in which he has con- 
tinued to the present time. He has continu- 
ouslv represented the Iowa State Insurance 
Companv. of Keokuk, since 1867. writing his 
First policy for that company on the 8th of 
April of that year. He also represents the 
^^'estchester Insurance Company of New 



PAST A\D PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



183 



Yorl<. the Citizens of St. Louis and the h'arm- 
ers Insurance Company of "Cedar Rapids. He 
came to Oskaloosa in Octoher, 1873, where 
lie has since hiaintained his office and al one 
time he was trustee and secretary of tiie board 
<if Oskaloosa Colleg;e. His business has jjrown 
under liis caretul (hrocliim ami close ap])lica- 
tion and he is now one of the well known rep- 
resentatives of insurance in this part of the 
state. 

On the 29th of December, 1853, Mr. Sell- 
ers was married to Miss Aby .\nn Read, a 
daughter of \'incent K. and E\-eline O. ( Ten- 
nant ) Read. Their children are: Eva, the 
wife of Dr. Lee H. Dowling-, of Los Angeles, 
California: Alice, the wife of Dr. S. A. Spill- 
man, of Ottumwa, Iowa; Dell, the wife of E. 
A. Priiwn, editor of the DaiK' Press of Ne- 
braska City. Nebraska : Carrie, the deceased 
wife of H. W. Comstock : and James C, who 
is engagetl in imjiorting in London, England. 
In 1842. \\hon fourteen }ears of age. James C. 
Sellers became a member of the Christian 
church, which he jnined at Gree4icastle, Indi- 
ana. He is now an elder in the Stone Chapel 
church of Oskaloo.sa and at one time was a 
<ieacfin. He has ever been earnest and zealous 
in his advocacy of the church and in all re- 
formatory measures that tend to u])lirt m;in 
ami ad\'ance the mural progress of the race. 



FRED A. I^RESTON. 

Fred .\. Preston, attorney-at-law of Oska- 
loosa, is a veteran of the Spanish-. \nierican 
war. A third of a century had passed in the 
history of the country liefore new names were 
adrled to the roll of its military heroes and then 
came the call to arms in the spirit of liberty and 
in opposition to oppression and Mr. Preston re- 
sjjonding, aided in the struggle wliich extended 
the colonial possessions of America. He is a 



nati\e son of Iowa, ha\ing been born in Grin- 
nell in 1872. His father. Sylvester S. Preston, 
was born in Manchester, Vermont, and is now 
li\ing in Los Angeles, California, at the age 
of se\enty-three years. On leaving New Eng- 
land he removed to Iowa in the '50s, locating at 
Newton, where he followed farming for about 
five years and thenremo\-edto(irinneIl. where he 
engaged in merchandising, having previously 
been in the same business for a short time at • 
.Newton. In 1885 he sold his store and since 
that time has practically lived retired. 

Fred .\. Preston was a public-sch(Tol student 
in his native city and afterward attended ( Irin- 
nell College. He came to Oskaloosa. in i'^ebru- 
ary, 1898, and entered the office of his brother. 
Judge Byron W. Preston, as a student, remain- 
ing with him until June oi the same ^■ear, when 
his spirit of patriotism having been aroused, 
he enlisted as a member of Company F, Fifty- 
first Iowa Infantry at Des Moines. The regi- 
ment left the capital city Jmie 15. 1898, for San 
Francisco, where thev remained in camji imtil 
the 1st of October, when they embarked on the 
trans]5ort Pennsylvania for the Philippine Is- 
lands, arriving in Manila harbor on the 7th of 
December. The transport remained there for 
thirty days without the disembarkation of the 
tmops and then steamed south to lllililo. where 
the troop ship remained for thirty days and 
then returned to Manila harbor, the men land- 
ing at Cavite, where the regiment went into 
barracks. There continued for a week and 
then went to the trenches where the boys 
stayed until the following September. The 
regiment experienced many hardships and did 
considerable fighting and Mr. Preston then re- 
turned to San Francisco in November, 1899, 
reaching home on the 7th of the same month. 
He attained the rank of corporal. ba\ing made 
:i creditable military record in the orient. 

Following his return home Mr. Preston re- 
sumed his studies in the office of his brother, 
where he remained until the spring of ujoo. 



1 84 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



when he entered tlie law department of tlie 
State University and was graduated in June, 
1901. Returning to Oskaloosa he formed a 
partnership with his brother, which continued 
until the latter went upon the bench in January. 
1903, and at the same time Mr. Preston formed 
a partnership with H. W. Gleason. under the 
firm style of Gleason & Preston, a connection 
that has since been maintained with mutual 
pleasure and jirofit. Air. Preston belongs to 
the Grinnell Congregational church and to the 
Alodern Woodmen cam]j. In politics he is a 
republican, while in the line of his profession 
he is connected with the Mahaska Countv Bar 
Association. Already he has attained success 
that many an older lawyer might well envy and 
a constantly growing clientage is the unmis- 
takable e\'idence of the trust rep(.ised in his legal 
abilitx- b\- his fellnw tuAvnsmen. 



WILT.TAM T. MARTIN. 

\\ illiam T. Alartin, now ser\'ing as deputv 
county clerk for two terms in the otfice of 
the county clerk of Mahaska county, was born 
in Louisa county, Iowa, February 22. 1857. his 
parents being Henry C. and Elizabeth (Jack- 
son) Martin, the former a native of Ohio and 
the latter of Indiana. The family comes of old 
Virginian ancestry, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject. John Martin. ha\ing been born in the Old 
Dominion, in which he spent almost his entire 
life. One of the g'randfathers of our subject 
left North Carolina on account of his distaste 
for sla\'ery. A great-grandfather in the ma- 
ternal line came from Ireland and he had four 
brothers, who were officers in the Irish army. In 
the maternal line Mr. Martin is also descended 
from the prominent Seth Thomas family. His 
grandfather. Joseph Jackson, a resident of 
Maryland, furnished four sons to tiie armv in 
the Cix'il war, nanielv : Elias G., Reuben C, 



Jesse S. and Joseph J. Henry C. Martin came 
to Iowa in 1856. first locating in Louisa county, 
after which he removed to Mahaska county, 
settling near Fremont. This was in 186S and 
he lived the quiet life of a farmer de\oting his 
attention to the tilling of the soil upon the old 
home i)lace for thirty-two years. He passed 
away in 1900. at the age of .seventy-six years 
and is still sur\-ived by Mrs. Martin. Unto 
Henry C. and Elizabeth (Jackson) Martin 
were born six children, namelv : W'illiam T. ; 
Josephine, the wife of Samuel Rankin, of Fre- 
mont. Iowa: Jessie, the wife of L. E. Tidball, 
of Kansas; James B.. of Kirkville, Iowa: Jen- 
nie, the wife of C. J. Triplett. of Fremont. 
Iowa: and Nell}-, a teacher in the Fremort 
schools. 

\\ illiam T. Alartin was educated in the dis- 
trict schools of his native town and spent much 
of his life upon the farm until 1900. continu- 
ously (le\()ting his attention to agricultural pur- 
suits sa\-e for three }-ears, from 1801 until 
1893 inclusive, when he served as ste\var(l of 
the ])oor farm. His fellow townsmen, recog- 
nizing his worth and aliilitw called him to sev- 
eral public offices. He was ma\'or of Fremont 
for one term, was school director and held 
other local ])ositions. He was recognized as a 
leader in the councils of his part}' in the locality 
in which he lived, being a stalwart advocate of 
republican principles. In the fall of 1000 he 
was elected to the office of county clerk ;'.nd in 
1902 was re-elected so that he filled the position 
for four \ears and since January, 1905. he has 
acted as deputy county clerk under Cliff B. 
West. 

On the 21st of August, 1887, Mr. Alartin 
was united in marriage to Miss Elvira Triplett. 
a daughter of Mortimer and Nancy Triplett, of 
Fremont. Their children were: Leslie B.. 
Fairy. Bessie. \\ illiam AIcKinley and Lark M. 
Mr. Martin belongs to the Masonic fraternity, 
holding membership in Toleration lodge of Fre- 
. tnont and also the Knights of Pythias lodge 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



185 



tliere. He alsn helon<js to tlie Modern Wood- 
men cani]i and lias l)een chancellor commander 
of the Knights of I'ythias fraternity. His pub- 
lic service has been characterized by unfalter- 
ing devotion to the general good and his re- 
election was a proof of his popularity and the 
confidence reposed in him by his f^ow 
townsmen. 



CHARLES M. PORTER. 

Cliarles M. i'cirter. at the head of the C. M. 
I'nrter Lumber dnipany of Oskaloosa. also 
treasurer of the Oskaloosa \\'ood Working 
Comjiany and president of the Oskaloosa 
Creamerx' Company, is a native son of Iowa 
and thmughout his business career has been im- 
Imed with the spirit of enterprise and progress 
which ha\e l)een the salient features in the 
rapid u])building of the middle west. His birth 
ocau'rcd in b>\\a Cit}-, in ^^(\^. his parents be- 
ing John W. and Louisa A. (Morsman) Por- 
ter, both of whom were natives of Ohio. The 
father was descended from Scotch-Tri.sh ances- 
tr\' and came tu this state before the Chicago, 
Rnck Island & Pacific Railroad was built. He 
and his father operated a stage line between 
Iowa Cit_\'. Cedar Rapids and .Marengo, con- 
ducting a business for a numljer of years or 
until the railroad reached Iowa City and thus 
rcndereil stage lra\-el un])rofital)le. John W. 
I'nrter then turned his attention to the lumber 
Inisiness. in whicii he continued up to the time 
of his death. I le was a man ni prominence and 
<if affairs, whu ]>nis])ered in his undertakings 
li\ reasnn nf the keen discernment and carelul 
management that he brought to bear upon all 
business transactions. Me was a man nt con- 
sideralile breadth of mind and view and did not 
narrnw his attention down to business interests 
alone, but laecame a public-spirited citizen and 
man of large enterprise, who co-operated in 
many movements for the general good. I'nth 



he and his wife were members of the Christian 
church, in which he served as an officer and in 
the work of w hich he took an active and helpful 
interest. In the Masonic fraternity he attained 
the thirty-second degree of the Scottish rite and 
in politics was a republican. Iletook an active in- 
terest in the Itjwa state fair, served as its presi- 
dent and did all in his power to promote agri- 
cultural development through this avenue, 
stimulating the pride and amliition of the 
farmer bv the exhibition of fine stock and farm 
products which were annually made. Dm-ing 
the Ci\'il war he helped raise a company at Iowa 
Cit_\- and being elected ca])tain went to the south 
with his command, but owing to the illness of 
his father he was com])elled to resign a few 
months later and return home to take charge of 
his lather's Inisiness. His death nccm-red in 
1882. when he was forty-seven years of age. and 
he is still survived by his wife, who is now liv- 
ing in Iowa City at the age of sixt\-two ye.ars. 
In the faniil\- of this worthv cou])le were six 
children : Charles M. ; George, who died at the 
age of two vears : Helen, the wife of .\. 11. 
Swett. a drv-go(.)ds merchant of Minnea])olis; 
Edgar K.. who is operating a stone-crusher 
plant and furnishing ballast for railroads at 
T'age. West \'irginia ; and two who died in in- 
fancy. 

Charles M. Porter, having attended the pub- 
lic schools, afterward liecame a student in the 
State University of Iowa, from whicli he was 
graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Sci- 
ence in the class of 1886. He then went to 
Kansas and worked for the Chicago Lumber 
Company as manager of its yard there for two 
years. In 1888 he came to Oskaloosa and pur- 
chased the II. C. Moore lumber-yard, whicli he 
is now conducting mider the name of the C. M. 
Porter Lumber Company. The business has 
assumed large proportions and his annual sales 
reach an extensive figure. He is thoroughly 
conversant with the lumber trade and ])laces 
upon the market all kinds of building materials. 



1 86 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUXTY. 



for which he finds a ready sale owing to his 
straiglitforward business methods and his earn- 
est desire to please his customers. He is treas- 
urer of the Oskaloosa Wood Working Com- 
pany and president of the Oskaloosa Creamery 
Company. 

In 1889 Charles ^I. Porter was married to 
IMiss Maud \'anFleet, who was born in Iowa 
City, Iowa, in 1868, a daughter of John R. and 
Ellen VanFIeet. Her father was a pio- 
neer resident of Iowa City and became a promi- 
nent man there, carrying on the banking busi- 
ness and also owning- and controlling large real- 
estate interests. His financial aliilitv was mani- 
fest in the splendid success which crowned his 
efforts. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Porter have been 
born two daughters and two sons : Hilda. John 
W.. Helen and Rex VanFIeet. 

The parents are members of the Christian 
church, in which Mr. Porter has held oftice and 
their devotion to the cause is manifest by active 
co-operation in the various societies and move- 
ments for the growth of the church and the ex- 
tension of its influence. For three years he 
served as president of the Young Men's Chris- 
tian Association at Oskaloosa and was holding 
that office when they erected their present 
building. He is a Knight Templar IMason and 
a worthy exemplar of the craft, a member of 
De Payens commandery. On the great politi- 
cal questions which divide the countr\- into two 
parties he is found on the side of the republican 
organization. In this age of the wi rld's his- 
tory when the annals teem with the records of 
conquest of mind over matter rather than oi 
man over man the history of the successful 
business man is always of interest and ]\Ir. Por- 
ter belongs to that class who have based their 
business principles upon the iiiles which govern 
strict and unswerving- integrity and indefati- 
gable energ\-. Personallyhe is genial and though 
his time is fully occupied by the details of his 
business interests he yet finds time to devote to 
those of his friends whose calls are purely of a 



social character. He is a thorough exemplifi- 
cation of the typical American business man 



and gentleman. 



ALFRED W. BCRDICK. 

Alfred W. Burdick. an architect of O.ska- 
loosa. whose proficiencx' in tlie line of his 
chosen iirofession has secured him a constaiUl}- 
growing clientage, was born in Brooklyn. Xew 
^'ork, in 1862. He is a son of Chester F. Bur- 
dick. who was born in \\'ashington count)-. 
Xew York, and came of Holland Dutcli an- 
cestry, the name having been originally spelled 
Von Burdyke. He was a Alethodist minister 
and for a number of vears was pastor of 
churches of that denomination in Alban)-. Xew 
York, and also in Troy. New York, while he 
was presiding elder of a district for several 
}-ears in those places. He was likewise located 
at different times at Pittsfield. Massachusetts, 
and Plattsburg. New York, and for a number 
of vears was the financial agent of the Troy 
Conference Academy at Poultney. \'erm<int. 
He was united in the holy bonds of matrimony 
to I\Iiss Jtilia Anna Pearsall. who was born in 
X'ew Brunswick. New Jersey, a daughter of 
Phineas C. and Catherine ("Morgan! Pearsall. 
of French and English descent. Her father 
was a near relative of Ex-Governor Theodore 
Randolph, of New Jersey. His business was 
that of a clothing merchant. His wife be- 
longed to the same family as General Morgan 
of Revolutionary fame. Like her husband, 
Airs. Chester F. Burdick was a devoted Chris- 
tian, holding membership in the Alethodist 
Episcopal chiuxh. He devoted nearly fifty 
vears of his life to the actix^e work of the min- 
istrv and became a leading divine of the Meth- 
odist denomination in New York. He was a 
man of scholarly attainments and of unfalter- 
insf zeal and his influence was of no restricted 




1 -^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



189 



order. He died in 1895, at the age of seventy- 
four years, while his wife now survives him. 
Hving in Oskaloosa at tlie age of sixty-four 
years. Tliey became the parents of a son and 
daugliter, the latter being Jessie Meredith, 
now the wife of the Rev. Jay W. Somerville, 
pastor of the Central Methodist Episcopal 
church of Oskaloosa, who is represented else- 
where in this work. 

Alfred W. Rurdick, who is liis sister's sen- 
ior, was a public-school student in AIIkiuv, 
New York, and afterward attended the acad- 
emy at Poultney, Vermont. Subsec|uently he 
spent a few years in Wall street, the great 
financial center of America, being connected 
with the banking and brokerage firm of Mon- 
roe & \\'yckofif. In the meantime he attended 
Columbia University of New ^'ork cit\-, where 
lie ]inrsued a course in sciences and also to some 
extent studied architecture. He was afterward 
in the employ of the Central Railroad Com- 
pany of New Jersey under the superintendent 
of motive power, acting as assistant chief clerk 
in charge of repairs and new work on passen- 
ger and freight cars. His health becoming 
impaired, he retired from active business life 
for a few years and then took up his abode in 
Burlington, Vermont, where lie opened an of- 
fice. He was also clerk of the board of educa- 
tion there. 

In June, 1901, lie came to Oskaloosa. where 
he took up a number of special studies in rela- 
tion to architecture in connection with a course 
in the Armour Institute of Technology in Chi- 
cago. In IQ03 he entered the office of Frank 
E. Wetherell, an architect, remaining with him 
until Mr. Wetherell removed to Des Moines, af- 
ter which Mr. Burdick continued the business 
under Mr. Wetherell's name for several months, 
but on the ist of June, 1905, he embarked in 
business on his own account, continuing in the 
same office, and here he has since remained 
with an increasing clientage and bright pros- 
])ects for the future. 



^Ir. Burdick is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, deeply interested in its work 
and its various activities, and he is now serv- 
ing as secretary of the Sunday-school, His po- 
litical views generally accord with the princi- 
ples of the republican party, but he casts an 
independent ballot. 



CHARLES B. WEST. 

Charles B. W'est, of Oskaloosa, was born in 
Jackson county, Illinois, June 11, 1848. His 
father, Ezekiel West, was one of those 
hardy pioneers who from their eastern homes 
.set out to conquer the wiklerness and 
tfi wrest from nature the wild lands 
that now constitute in i)art the magnifi- 
cent empire of the middle west. He came to 
Mahaska county when his son Charles was but 
a few months old, having made the journe}- in 
a wagon, after which he settled in Garfield 
township, where he became owner of one hun- 
dred and twenty acres of land now in possession 
of our subject. He was a pul)lic-spirited citi- 
zen and a loyal friend. It is recorded that once 
in the early settlement of this part of the state 
a grain famine prevailed, owing to the short- 
age of crops. Mr. ^^'est was more fortunate 
than most of the other settlers, having a good 
crop with considerable grain for the market. 
.\ number of speculators and some persons 
passing through the territoiy offered to pur- 
chase all of his marketable supply at a high fig- 
ure. "Not a dollar's worth will I .sell," replied 
Mr. West, "until my neighbors are supplied." 
This indicates the character of the man, for he 
always manifested a helpful and generous spirit. 
He died in 1866, honored and respected by all 
who knew him. His wife, who bore tlie maiden 
name of Susan Bateman. died in 1892. In the 
family, in addition to Charles, there was a son, 
Isaac Newton, who was a member of the Thir- 



I (JO 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ty-third Iowa Regiment and died in a hospital, 
at Little Rock, Arkansas, during the Civil war. 
'Jliere were also three daughters : ]\Irs. Sarah 
J. Else, the wife of J. J. Else, of Oskaloosa; 
Susan, also of Oskaloosa: and Alaiy. who died 
in 1876. 

Charles B. West was educated in the dis- 
trict schools and at Oskaloosa College until 
twent)--one years of age. After completing his 
education he hegan farming on the old home- 
stead where he remained until 1878, when he 
reniii\ed to Oskaloosa and engaged in the agri- 
cultural implement Inisiness, admitting- John 
Dusenberry to a partnership. Tliey continued 
in business successfully for fifteen years. Mr. 
\\'est in the meantime became the owner of 
farm property and now owns a splendid tract of 
land of three hundred acres, located partly in 
Garfield ami partly in Scott townships. On 
this tract he fattens large numbers of cattle, 
which he ships to the Chicago market and to 
the east, and his agricultural and stock-raising 
interests are bringing to him a gratifying finan- 
cial reward. 

In politics Mr. West is a stanch republican, 
believing firmly in the principles of the part}'. 
He is also a member of the Masonic fraternity 
in Oskaloosa. In 1878 occurred the marriage 
of Mr. W^est and Miss Beranda Dusenberr}-. 
a daughter of John and Christiana Dusenl)erry, 
of the well known Dusenberry family of Gar- 
field township. Unto this marriage have been 
born four children: Lena L., Clifford B., Fay 
W. and M''alter Guy. The daughters, Lena and 
Fay, are graduates of Penn College, the former 
having completed the course in 1902 and the 
latter in 1905. Guy also finished his education 
in Penn College and is now in business with 
his father. Of the young men of ]\Iahaska 
county it is safe to say that few of his age are 
better known to the public than Clifl^ord B. 
^\^est. He is a graduate of the State L^niver- 
sity. and in the fall of 1905 was nominated for 
the position of county clerk, winning the elec- 



tion by a large iuaj<jrity. ha\ing run several 
hundred \-otes ahead of his ticket. He is now 
the youngest county clerk in Iowa, and in fact, 
the youngest that has ever held the office in 
Mahaska county. The West family occupy a 
beautiful residence on ]\Iarket street and K 
a\-enue and, as all who know tiiem will testify, 
the members of the household are highly re- 
spected. ha\ing a host of warm friends in Oska- 
loosa and throughout Mahaska countv. 



ROBERT KISSICK, LL. B. 

Robert Kissick. lawyer, author, newspaper 
correspondent and literary critic, has since 
1865 resided in Oskaloosa and though formerly 
engaged in the practice of law is now devoting 
his entire time to his literary wijrk. He is a 
native of fiercer coimtv, Pennsylvania, born 
May 4. 1843, and is a son of Thomas and Mary 
Ann ( Lafferty) Kissick, the former a nati\'e of 
Ireland and the latter of Ohio. Thomas Kis- 
sick was bom in 1807 and crossed the Atlantic 
with his father's family at the age of si.xteen 
years, Ijecoming a resident of Pittsburg. By 
trade he was a molder. but through many years 
de\-oted his attention to general agricultural 
])ursuits. His death occurred in 1869 and his 
wife passed away in Iowa in the fall of i860, 
at the age of thirty-nine years. In their family 
were eight children, of whom the following are 
vet li\ing: Captain \\'illiam L. Kissick, of Os- 
kaloosa: Roliert: John L., who is living in Den- 
ver, Colorado: Florence, the wife of Dr. N. R. 
Hook, of Oskaloosa: Araminta, the widow of 
Re\'. \\'illiam Wilson and a resident of Ypsi- 
lanti. ^Michigan: and George L., of .Alliia. Iowa. 
Those deceased are: Lucetta J., who was the 
first wife of Dr. X. R. Hook: and James L., 
the youngest of the family. 

Robert Kissick was a youth of fifteen years 
when he came with- his father's family to Iowa, 



I'AS'l- A.Xl) PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



191 



an"i\-inii' at Oskalc^osa. April 7. 1859. the old 
lidiiK' being established in Oskaloosa tovvnshi]) 
ii|)tin a tarni five miles west of the citv of Oska- 
liiiisa. Ik' acc(|uircd a Cdnmion-sclKjol educa- 
tinn and was reared to farm life, assisting in 
the labors of held and meadow nntil after tiie 
oiilbreak of the Ci\il war. On the loth of Au- 
gust, i8Ci_', at the age of nineteen years, be of- 
fered his serxices to the go\crnmenl and became 
a member of Company C, Thirty-third Iowa In- 
f.antry. m which be was mustered in as a cor- 
poral. Shortly afterward he was promoted to 
'the rank of second sergemt and later became 
cnliir sergeant of the regiment at Helena, .\r- 
kansa-. in .\pril, ]X(\]. lie >er\e<l with the 
regiment in all its expeditions and campaigns 
until .March. 1864. With his command he 
took part in the Vick.sburg campaign, in what 
is kill iw 11 as the Yazoo Pass expedition, during 
i'"ebruai\\'. March and .\])ril, 1863. This ex- 
peditiiiu was jierhaj^s the most miicjue of any 
during the war or indeed of the world, going 
through the state of Mississippi li\' the wav of 
the Yazoo Pass, the Coldwater, Tallahatchie and 
Yazoo rivers to Fort Peml)erton, with a fleet 
of some tbirt}-ti\'e or fort\' gunljoats and steam- 
boats, traveling in all some se\'en hundred and 
fifty miles in going and returning. He also 
took ])art in the sex'eral campaigns against Lit- 
tle Ruck. .\rk;uisas, in .\ngust and Se])tember, 
1863, uniler Major (jcneral I-'red Steele, com- 
manding the Seventh .\rmy Corps, that city 
being captured Sei)teniber 10, 1863, where the 
regiment remained during the winter. On the 
28th (if March, 18^)4. at Little Rock, Mr. Kis- 
sick w;i.> promoted to the rank of first lieuten- 
ant and adjutant of the One LIundred and Thir- 
teenth Regiment of L'nited States Colored 
Troops, being at that time Init twenty years of 
age. He was commissioned by authority of 
Abraham Lincoln and continued to serve with 
that r.ank nntil the close of the war. 

When hostilities had ceased Mr. Kissick re- 
turned to Oskaloo.sa and liecame a student in 



Hull &• Piper's Cla.ssical and Xormal School 
in 1865. He was afterward principal of tlie 
high school iu Manchester. Iowa, in 1867-8, 
and has since been a resident of Oskaloosa. 
Having studied law under jirivate instruction, 
he matriculated in the law department of the 
Iowa State I'niversity, from which he was 
graduated in the class of 187J. lie then en- 
terefl upon the practice of his chosen profes- 
sion and was for many years a learned and able 
member of the Oskaloosa bar. but ten vears 
ago. on account of ill health, he retired from 
practice and since 1894 has given his attention 
almost entirely to literary work. 

His fir.st ]nil;lished work was "W Philoso- 
phical History of the Formation of the .Amer- 
ican Republic." the first edition of which has 
been exhausted, and a second work, "Models of 
.\merican Patriotism." is now in manuscript 
form. Something of the character of his first 
publication may be indicated by the following 
.statement of Senator James Harlan: "Your 
history has placed thepeo]jleof the wIkjIc cmintrv 
under the lasting obligations of gratitude." 
Profes.sor .\. L. Tidd, of Aurora Modern Col- 
lege, -\urora. Illinois, .says: "Your work has 
struck the true chord of historv. It is the very 
.spirit and essence of .\merican history and 
should lie read liy e\'ery citizen and future voter 
ol the republic. Alany have given statistics, 
but you have written history." Mr. Kissick 
is now preparing a hi.story of the Thirty-third 
Regiment of Iowa Volunteer Inf.antry in the 
war of the Rebellion. 1861-1865. ^^'''1 '"i '"' 
troduction on the causes and beginning of the 
war. He has also prepared an elaborate criti- 
cism on Lee's New School Histoiy of the 
L'nited States and Channing's Students' His- 
tory of the United States. He has written for 
leading papers of Des Moines, Chicago and 
Washington, D. C, and prepared and published 
a symposium on tariff revision in the fall of 
1905, which was noticed by the big dailies of 
the country. Being a stalwart rcjiublican, Mr. 



192 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Kissick is active in the work of the part}- and 
as a strong and forceful writer has made him- 
self felt along many questions of political dis- 
cussion for the good of the country. 

Mr. Kissick was married at Oskaloosa in 
November, 1868. to Miss :\Iary J. Pettitt. a 
daughter of David and Rel^ecca Pettitt. who 
came to Oskaloosa from Ohio, in 1864. They 
lost one child, Ralph W'., while those still liv- 
ing are as follows : Frank P., of Albia, Iowa, 
who served for six years in the Iowa National 
Guard, resigning as captain of Company F, 
Fifty-first Iowa Infantry, in 1897. Guy E.. who 
served in the Spanish-American war with the 
rank of lieutenant of Company F, Fifty-first 
Iowa Infantry, actix'ely serving some time in 
the Philippines. Before this he served about six 
years in the Iowa National Guard at Oskaloosa. 
Edwyne R., serxing as a private in the same 
company with his brother in the Philippines, 
died on board the United States steamer. Sen- 
ator, September 29, 1S99, in Nag-asaki harbor, 
Japan, when on the trip home, and was buried 
in Forest cemetery, at Oskaloosa. Norman J., 
is now second lieutenant in Company F, Fifty- 
fourth Regiment, Iowa National Guard, at Os- 
kaloosa. Mary Irene completes the family. The 
sons seem to have inherited their father's mili- 
tary spirit and have become active members 
of the nation's standing army of volunteers. 

Mr. Kissick is a member of Phil Kearney 
post. No. 40, G. A. R., of Oskaloosa, and was 
the second one chosen to the office of com- 
mander, serving for the year 1882, and is now 
the senior past post commander. For the past 
three years he has been adjutant. In politics a 
stalwart republican, his first vote was cast for 
Abraham Lincoln in 1864 while a soldier at 
Little Rock, and the same year he was com- 
missioned an officer by the President when but 
twenty years of age. While he was seeking the 
office of a member of the board of control of 
state institutions in Iowa, in 1900, there were 
many eminent gentlemen who gave him their 



endorsement. The Hon. Milton Remley said 
to him: "He is a gentleman of high charac- 
ter, learned, of general information and a high 
order of ability," while Judge Remley said of 
him: "I have been personally accpiainted with 
Robert Kissick for nearly thirty years and have 
known him as a student and a careful analyzer 
of causes and effects in affairs which afl'ect the 
condition of men." Hon. S. M. Clark said: 
"He is one of the men who has contributed to 
the large statesmanship of Iowa by his treat- 
ment of public questions." ]Many more equally 
favorable letters of commendation were writ- 
ten. The writings of Mr. Kissick show him to 
be a man of broad mind and scholarly attain- 
ment, who has carried his researches far into 
the history of the country, the purpose and 
aims of its people, their ambitions and accom- 
plishments. 



ALBERT COOPER. 



Albert Cooper, of Oskaloosa. who is engaged 
in the nursery business, meeting with good suc- 
cess, is a native of Ohio, the place of his birth 
being Columbiana county, and his natal year 
1839. He is a son of Evan and Man- U\[id- 
dleton) Cooper, both of whom were natives of 
Pennsylvania. The father was born in Lan- 
caster county in 1801, and came of English 
lineage. He was reared to the occupation of 
farming, which he chose as a life work, and he 
removed from Pennsylvania to the Buckeye 
state at an early day, residing there until 1854, 
when he came with his family to Iowa, settling 
in Keokuk county, where he purchased land and 
carried on general agricultural pursuits up to 
the time of his death, which occurred in 1885. 
He was a prosperous man, carefully conducting 
his business affairs so that success resulted. His 
religious faith was that of the Society of 
Friends, and his political belief was in accord 
with the whig principles until the organization 




QM^A^^ 




PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



195 



(if tlie new repul}lican parly, when he joined its 
ranks and ui)iin its ticket lie was called tn sev- 
eral kical offices. His wife sur\i\e(l him. dy- 
ing in i88t, at the age of seventy-fi\e years. 
TJke him, she was of English lineage and a 
member of the Society of Friends. In their fam- 
ily were eight children: William, who died 
in early manhood; Chalkley, who died when a 
young man; Martha, the wife of Benjamin I.. 
Bates, a farmer of Keokuk county; Mark, who 
died in infancy; Hinchman, a furniture mer- 
chant of Ara\da, Oregon; Albert; Ann, wb.o 
became the wife of David Holloway and died 
on the old homestead ; and Sarah, the deceased 
wife of Henry Bacon. 

Albert Cooper was reared to farm life with 
the advantages of a countrj'-school education. 
1 le taught for one term and since tliat time has 
given the greater ])art of his attention to the 
nunsery business. In 1898 he came to Oska- 
kidsa, where he established a nursery and has 
since successfully conducted it. He carries an 
excellent stock of nursery goods and his patrons 
ha\e found tiiat the trees and shrubs which he 
sells are in thrifty, hardy condition. He is always 
reliable as to price in all business transactions 
and has thus gained a growing trade. 

In 1862 Air. Cooper was united in marriage 
to Miss Sina Ellen Heald. w ho was born in Co- 
lumiiiana county, Ohio, July 21, 1844, a daugh- 
ter of .\bner and Sina Heald, Her father was 
a noted preacher of the Friends church, Mr. 
and Mrs. Cooj)er have six children : Ida, the 
wife of Alonzo Halstead, a farmer living near 
Grinnell, Iowa ; Fannie, the wife of John B, 
Baxter, a mechanic of Pasadena, California; 
Elsworth E., a farmer of Keokuk county, 
Iowa; May B., the wife of Smith Clendennon, 
who is employed as a stationary engineer by the 
Crescent Coal Company at White City, Iowa; 
Earl E., who is engaged in farming near Grin- 
nell; and Clyde G., deceased. 

At the time of the Civil war Mr. Cooper 
manifested his loyalty to the government by 
II 



enlisting for service in the Union Army at 
Sigourney in August, 1862, becoming a mem- 
]xr of Company H, Thirty-third Iowa Volun- 
teer Infantry, He served for three years, was 
in the Department of Arkansas and the De- 
partment of the Gulf and took part in a num- 
ber of important engagements. He attained 
the rank of second sergeant and was mustered 
out at Davenport in 1865, by order of the war 
department. He belongs to Phil Kearney post, 
G. A. R., of which he is now junior vice-com- 
mander. 

In politics Mr. Cooper votes with the repub- 
lican party, which stood loyally liy the Union 
in the dark days of the Civil war, and in the 
spring of 1906 he receivetl the nomination of 
his party for aklemian from the fifth ward, l)ut 
owing to his temperance principles, was de- 
feated by a small majoritx-, receiving one hun- 
dred and forty-five votes and his opponent one 
hundred and sixty-four. The issue was saloon 
or no saloon and the inclement weather 
had much to do with the result of the election. 
The ward is republican, and the cleanest in the 
city, and usually casts about five hundred votes. 
He is an active and prominent member of the 
Central Methodist Episcopal church, in which 
he has served as class-leader and took a leading 
part in the erection of the new house of worship, 
which cost twenty-two thousand dollars. He 
was succeeded in office bv his son. 



IRVING C. JOHNSON. 

Irving C. Johnson, member of the Oskaioosa 
bar and referee in bankruptcy since 1900, his 
jurisdiction extending over Mahaska, Wapello. 
Monroe. Keokuk and Washington counties, 
was l)orn in Oskaioosa in 1872, his father be- 
ing the distinguished Judge J. Kelly Johnson, 
who is mentioned on another page of this w-ork. 
The son pursued hispreliminary education in the 



196 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



public scliools, passing throug-li consecutive 
grades until he completed the high-school course 
l)y graduation in 1888. In the fall of the same 
}-ear he entered Penn College, where he com- 
pleted a classical course and won the degree of 
Bachelor of Arts upon his graduation in 1892. 
In the succeeding autumn he entered upon a 
post-graduate course in Haverford College near 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he was 
graduated in 1893. He next entered the law- 
office of his father under whose direction he 
pursuetl his reading, while later his preceptors 
were the members of the finn of Seevers & 
Seevers, of Oskaloosa. In May, 1895, he was 
admitted to the bar at Des Moines and entered 
upon the acti\-e practice of liis profession in 
June of the same year. He has continued a 
memlrer of the Oskaloosa bar with marked suc- 
cess. He has never aimed at signal momentary 
results but- by a thoughtful and careful a\-oid- 
ance of mistakes, at permanent achievements. 
He has succeeded in all respects which consti- 
tute success as an attorney-at-law and these re- 
sults have been attained by devotion to his pro- 
fession and close attention to his business. The 
outcome is not the result of chance but results 
from his native abilities properly cultivated and 
at all times he has made good use of his oppor- 
tunities. 

In 1899 ^I''- Johnson was married to Miss 
Mary Burnside wiio was born in Oskaloosa in 
1873 and is a daughter of William and Hannah 
Burnside, of this city. They now have two 
children: J. Kelly, born January 27, 1902; 
and Hannah, born June 22. 1905. The par- 
ents are members of the Presbyterian church 
and their social position is an en\-iahle one. Mr. 
Johnson is also a trustee of Penn College and 
of the Oskaloosa Young Men's Christian As- 
sociation and is deeply interested in the moral 
and intellectual as well as material progress of 
his native state. In politics he is a republican 
and has been referee in bankruptcy since 1900. 
He is a member of the Mahaska County Bar 



Association. In the walks of life where intelli- 
gence, honor and manliness are regarded for 
what they are worth lie has by the practice of 
these qualities attained an honorable position 
at the bar and in the community, and won the 
respect of all who know him. He began life 
with a definite purpose in view, worked faith- 
fully, honestly and with a will for its accom- 
lishnient and now enjoys a reputation that is 
by no means limited by the Ixnmdaries of his 
nati\'e citv. 



REV. FRANCIS PETER McMANUS. 

Rev, Francis Peter McManus, priest of St. 
Mary's Catholic church, at Oskaloosa, was born 
in Scott county, Iowa, in 1868, a son of James 
and Mar)- Ann (Gallagher) McManus. The 
father, now living in Davenport, Inwa, at the 
age of sixty-two years, followed merchandis- 
ing until 1890, when he \\as made a member of 
the police force of Davenport, to which city he 
had removed in T877. He is a member of the 
Catholic church and of the Ancient Order of 
Hibernians, and in his political allegiance is 
a democrat. His wife, who was born in Ohio, 
died in 1876, at the age of thirty-one years, also 
in the faith of the Catholic church. In the fam- 
ily were a daughter and two sons, but the 
former, Annie, is now deceased. John was lost 
in Havana harbor on the battleship Maine, on 
February 15, 1898. The body was recovered 
and was interred at Havana, but after a year 
the remains w-ere transferred to the Arlington 
National cemetery, at W^ashington, D. C. He 
was a fireman on the Maine and was twenty- 
eight years of age at the time he lost his life. 

Rev. McManus, the only surviving member 
of the father's family, attended the common 
schools in his early boyhood and also the pa- 
rochial schools in Davenport and other places, 
including Beargrove and Adair. He entered 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



197 



St. AnilH-ose CoUejje in 1SS3. ])ursuiiig therein 
a classical cmn'se, froin which he was gracki- 
aleil in iHSij. He next entered St. l-'rancis 
Seminarv. at W'ilwaukee. Wisconsin, from 
wliicli he was graduated in 1893, ''^''x' '^^ ^^'^^ 
ordained to the priesthood in June of the same, 
vear at 1 )a\eni)ort hy Bisliop Cosgrove. He 
was then assigned as a cm-ate at St. Ambrose 
church at Des Moines, where lie remained for 
aliout a year, after wliich he s])ent two and a 
lialt vears at P)rool<lyn, Iowa. He then went 
til ('olorado. wiiere lie remained for fifteen 
months for tlie lienefit of liis heaUh, at the end 
of wliich time lie was appointed priest of St 
'l'imotiiv"s cliurch at Cumberland, Iowa, where 
lie remained for six years and four months. In 
Xmemlier. .1904, he came to Oskaloosa and 
took charge of St. Mary's church. This has 
a membership of about one hundred and 
fifteen families and the church is in a pros- 
perous condition, its various societies being in 
good working order, while the membership is 
in hearty sympathy with its principles, giving 
to iiim earnest co-operation in his work for the 
material and spiritual needs of his parishioners. 
His political support is given to the democracy. 



JAMES B. BOLTOX. 

James !'.. I'.nltnii. president of the bar asso- 
ciation of .Mah;iska count\' and a resident of llie 
county since the spring of 1863, was l)orn in 
Knox county. Ohio, in 1839. His early edu- 
cational privileges were su])i)lemented by study 
in Mariinsliurg Acadenu'. of his iiatixe state, 
and for three years he was an assistant teacher 
in tint institution. Subsequently he attended 
Kenyon College in Ohio, pursuing his course 
there at the time of the outbreak of the Civil 
war. 

liis patriotic siiirit aroused, be i)iU aside his 
text-i:ooks and xolunteereil for service with 



the i'ourtli Ohio regiment, (ioing to Laurel 
Hill, X'irginia, he was there taken ill. and Ije- 
cau.se of this disatjility was discharged. The 
colonel of the regiment was President .Andrews 
of Kenyon College, who Ijecame ill about the 
same time that Mr. Bolton did and w^as taken 
home and died. In 1862 Mr. IjoUoii re-enlisted 
in Company A, I'j'ghty-fourth Ohio Infantry, 
under command of Captain JNIerriott and Colo- 
nel Savage. During his three-months' service 
he w as 011 dutv most of the time at Camp Deni- 
son, Cincinnati, and helped build a pontoon 
liridge across the ri\-er between tliat city and 
Covington, Kentucky. 

When discharged from the army Mr. Bolton 
returned to Ohio and in the spring of 1863 
came to ^^lahaska county, where he has since re- 
sided. For a number of years be engaged in 
teaching school, following the profession for 
nine terms in this county, previous to which 
lime he bad successfully taught in the countr}' 
.schools of Ohio, gixing liis attention t(j the 
profession in the winter months, while in the 
summer seasons he followed farming. In the 
summer of 1865 he purchased three yoke of 
oxen ami broke eighty acres of ])rairie near the 
i^unkard church, in tiie nortliern ])art of the 
county. He cultivated this until 1870, in which 
vear he remo\ed to the city of Oskaloosa and 
after reading law was admitted to the bar in 
Decemiier of that year. He has practiced liere 
continuouslv since and has a good clientage, 
connecting him with much important litigation, 
his standing at the bar being indicated In- his 
liberal practice and the uniform regard which 
is tendered him l)y his brethren of the legal 
fraternity. 

In the spring of 1865, '•'' this county, Mr. 
Bolton was married to Miss Ann McMains. 
a daughter of John McMains. and they be- 
came the parents of two children, but the 
daughter died ijefore the birth of the son. L. 
C. Bolton, who is now tiie manager of tlie Bol- 
ton-Hoover Coal Company. He is also a prac- 



198 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ticing lawyer, who was graduated from Cornell 
College, and lias practiced at this bar. For 
a number of years Mr. Bolton has been a Mason 
and has taken the degrees of the Knight Temp- 
lar commandery and of the Mystic Shrine. He 
is a charter member of the Elks lodge of Os- 
kaloosa and was the first exalted ruler here. 
During the long years of his residence in ^la- 
haska county he has ever directed his labors for 
the benefit of jniblic interests as well as for the 
development of a successful business career and 
he has made an honorable name for himself 
and a worthy place in the regard of his 
fellowmen. 



ROBERT W. DYE. 



Robert W. Dye. successfully carrying on gen- 
eral agricultural pursuits, owns and operates 
two hundred acres of land on sections 8 and 9. 
Harrison township. He has been a resident of 
Mahaska county since 1869, and is a native of 
Hampshire count}'. West Virginia, now Min- 
eral county, his natal day being September 5, 
1846. His parents were George R. and Rachel 
(Offett) D)-e, Ijoth of whom were natives of 
the Old Dominion. The son was reared to man- 
hood there, being fourteen years of age at the 
time of the outbreak of the Civil war. He came 
to Iowa in 1869, when a young man, making 
his way direct to Mahaska county, where he 
joined an older brother. He worked for a 
year for his brother, after which he operated 
rented land for four or five years. 

]Mr. Dye was married in this county, Febru- 
ary 9, 1873. to Miss Orlena A. Baughman, a 
native of Ohio, and a daughter of A. J. Baugh- 
man, who came with his family to Iowa in the 
fall of 185 1, settling in Mahaska county, so 
that Mrs. Dye was here reared. She completed 
her education in the schools of Oskaloosa, 
having successfully engaged in teaching for 



five years. After his marriage. Air. Dye en- 
gaged in farming north of Oskaloosa for a 
few years and then purchased where he now 
resides, becoming ot\ner of one hundred acres. 
He and his father-in-law together purchased 
two hundred acres. Mr. Dye located upon the 
property and began farming it. adding many 
improvements and placing the fields under a 
high state of cultivation. He later fenced and 
cross-fenced the place, thus dividing it into 
fields of convenient size, has laid many rods of 
tiling and remodeled the house which he oc- 
cupies. He built a new barn, has repaired one 
that was already standing upon the place, and 
has added many modern improvements. \Mien 
the property came into his jxissession it was in 
a somewhat dilipidated condition, but he has 
brought everything to a high state of improve- 
ment and is regarded as one of the substantial 
and leading agriculturists of the community. 
He has been a stock-raiser and breeder and this 
branch of his business has proved profitable. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Dye have been born three 
children: Gertrude, the wife of Thomas 
Ritchie, a farmer of Harrison township, by 
whom she has one son, Robert H. ; Edna F., 
the wife of I. A. Weaver, of Springfield. Illi- 
nois, by whom she has a daughter. Cleo Edith; 
and Mabel C, at home. 

Politically Mr. Dye is a prohibitionist, sup- 
porting the party because it embodies his views 
u[X)n the temperance question which he regards 
today as one of the most important issues be- 
fore the people. He has never sought office nor 
desired political preferment, save that he has 
served as a member of the school board. He 
belie^'es in the employment of good teachers 
and the adoption of progressive methods of in- 
struction, the cause of education finding in him 
a warm friend. He belongs to the Methodist 
Episcopal church and has served as trustee and 
steward. For thirty-seven years he has lived 
in the county, witnessing much of its develop- 
ment and progress. In 1886 he removed to 



,>■ ^ 



% 








^W 



^■9a ^, 



Vl/t^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



.203 



Oskaloosa. where he made liis lionie fur ahnut 
three years engaged in the patent riglu and im- 
])lement . husiness, Init witli tliis exception lie 
has always given liis attention to farming in- 
terests, lie now lias two good tenant houses 
upiMi his place and rents his land, lie is well 
known in Oskal(K)sa and the southern part of 
Mahaska cuuiil}' and in W'apello county as well 
aii^l is recognized as a man of good business 
ability atid of integrity and worth. His wife 
is a well educated, refined and intelligent lady, 
who has been a true helpmate to her husband. 
She manages lier houseliold affairs with great 
care and the neat and attractive appearance of 
her home greatly reflects credit ujion her super- 
vision. The family is much esteemed in the 
cnunt\' and the hospitalitv n\ the best homes of 
this part of the county is freely accorded to 
J\Ir. Dve and his familv. 



STU.VRT B. SHAXXOX. 

Stuart B. Siiannon, who is engaged in the 
furniture business in Xew Sharon, was born on 
the 16th of October. 184T, in the state of X'ew 
Tersev. llis father. David Shannon, was burn 
in Warren county, Xew Jersey, and in early 
life learned and followed the wagonmaker's 
trade, but eventually gave his attention to ag- 
ricultural ]nirsuits. He continued a resident 
of bis native county up to the time of his death, 
w hich occurred when he was seventy-nine years 
of age. He Iiad wedded Catherine Angle, who 
was born in New Jersey and died in Alpena, 
^[ichigan. at the age of se\enty-two years, 
while on a \isit to her son. Stuart B. Shannon 
was the fourth in order of birth in a family of 
ten children: Isaac, a wagonmaker. residing 
in Bav Citv, Michigan; Daniel, wiio died in 
Bav Citv; Eliza, tlie wife of Phil Albertson, 
who died in Xew Jersey in 1905: Stuart B. ; 
Emma, who is living in Warren county, Xew 
Tersev : John, a wagonmaker residing in Bay 



City, Michigan; George, who is engaged in the 
furniture business in Alpena, Michigan; 
Charles, residing in Newark, Xew Jersey ; 
Clarkson, who died in that city; and Louisa, 
who was the wife of William Cregg and died 
in Xewark, Xew Jersey. 

Stuart B. Sh.annon was reared upon his fa- 
ther's farm and attended the district schools. At 
the age of twenty years he entered business life 
as a clerk in a dry-goods store in Delaware, 
Xew Jersey, where he remained until after the 
outbreak of the Civil war. He then assisted 
in raising Company I, of the Eleventh Pennsyl- 
\ania Cavalry, and was to have been made sec- 
ond lieutenant. This was an independent regi- 
ment, which proceeded to Washington, and 
there Mr. Shannon was transferred and put 
in charge of a battery of light artillery, the 
command being attached to the Arnn' of the 
Potomac. He participated in McClellan's cam- 
jiaign, was in the seven-days' battle of the Wil- 
derness and was with Grant around Petersburg. 
He was at Newport News at the time of the 
great naval engagement between the Merrimac 
and Monitor, the first battle between the iron- 
clads, and witnessed this struggle with a field 
glass. At the battle of Black River Mr. Shan- 
non was injured by lieing thrown from a horse 
when his regiment was retreating, being sur- 
rounded on three sides by the rebels. The horse 
was shot and killed and in falling Mr. Shan- 
non was thrown on some stumps and severely 
injured. 

fie spent six days inside of the rebel lines 
but swore he would ne\'er go to a rebel prison. 
He later joined Grant's army while on Wilson's 
raid. He was honorably discharged by reason 
of the expiration of his term of enlistment at 
Bermuda, near Petersburg, \'irginia, after 
serving for three years ami sixty days. Twenty 
years after the close of the war he made appli- 
cation to the government for a pension and now 
recei\es ten dollars per month. 

When the war was over Mr. Shannon re- 
turned to New Jersey, where he was engaged 



204 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



in the furniture business for a year. He then 
went to Bay City, Michigan, and for two dec- 
ades was the leading furniture dealer and un- 
dertaker of that place. For ten years he occu- 
pied the only stone front building, and later 
he built a store of his own and also owned one 
of the finest brick residences there. He as- 
sisted in organizing and was the first president 
of the Michigan State Undertakers Associa- 
tion, and be was regarded as a most prominent 
anti influential as well as successful business 
man. 

In 1868 Mr. Shannon was married to Miss 
Hulda Titman, also a native of Warren county, 
New Jersey. They had traveled life's journev 
happily together for about eighteen years when 
Mrs. Shannon become ill with a cancer. He 
took her to New York for treatment but with- 
out avail and she died in 1886. While he was 
absent ]Mr. Shannon left his business in the 
hands of others with the result that it was not 
capably managed, and be lost nearly e\ervtbing 
he bad. He had worked hard and had with- 
stood the ill effect of the financial panic in which 
man}- nther business men had gone down. Be- 
cause of his losses he determined to make a 
start elsewhere and in 1887 went to Oskaloosa, 
"where he again embarked in business, but the 
competition in that city was too great for his 
small capital, and in i8qo he came to New Sha- 
ron. Here he purcha.sed a building, to which 
be has since built an addition, and has here 
successfull)- conducted a furniture store. He 
no longer does any undertaking, but has a g'ood 
trade in furniture and a well equipped estab- 
lishment. 

In 1888 Mr. Shannon was again married, bis 
second union being with Miss Abbie Shannon, 
who was born in Warren county. New Jersey, 
but though of the same name is not a relative. 
By the first marriage there was one child, a 
son, who is engaged in the music business at 
Kalamazoo, Michigan. 



In his political views Mr. Shannon has al- 
ways been an earnest republican but has neither 
sought nor desired office since coming to Iowa. 
He belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church 
and is a Knight Templar Mason, and belongs 
to H. C. Leighton post. No. 199, G. A. R., of 
New Sharon, of which he is a past commander. 
He has taken an active interest in the work of 
the post and maintains pleasant relations with 
bis old army comrades around its campfires. 



TOM MORRISH. 



Tom Morrisb, pcjstmaster of Beacon, was 
burn in Yorkshire, England, Februarv 15, 
1861, a son of Moses and Elizabeth Morrisb, 
both (if whom are living in Colorado City. 
Colorado. Mr. Morrisb of this re\-iew spent the 
first sixteen years of hislifein his native country 
and with bis ]:iarents came to .\merica in 1879, 
the famih" linnie being established in the Xew 
River region of West Virginia. He had pur- 
sued bis education in the schools of Leeds, Eng- 
land, and after residing in \\ est A'irginia for 
aljout three }-ears came to Beacon on the 2d of 
.\ugust, 1862. Here he was engaged in coal 
mining until the 16th of September, 1897, when 
be became postmaster of Beacon. He has since 
filled the office to the satisfaction of all con- 
cerned and in addition to managing the affairs 
of the position be also conducts a job printing- 
establishment and sells stationery and office sup- 
plies. He has matle for himself a creditable 
jilace in business circles in this village and en- 
jriys the confidence and good will of his fel- 
low townsmen. 

On the 28tb of June. 1886, Mr. Morrisb was 
united in marriage to Miss Emma Silveitborn, 
of Beacon, and their son. Roscoe, is now mail 
carrier on the Beacon route. No. 2. The younger 
.son, Harold, is at home. Mr. Morrish is con- 
nected with several fraternal organizations, of 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



205 



wliicli lie is a valued representative. 1 ie is now 
a i)ast master nf the Masonic lotlgc and is a 
past cliancellor of the Knij,dits of Pytliias lodge 
of Beacon. For several years he has lieen iden- 
tified with other orders as well and his life ex- 
eniplilies the l)encticient and helpful spirit which 
constitutes the basic elements of these frater- 
nities. In politics Mr. Morrish is an earnest 
.and unfaltering republican and in 1894 was 
elected a justice of the jjeace in East Garfield 
township. He served as secretaiy of the school 
board in 1895 and his public service has been 
characterized 1)\- unfalteringtidclit)- to dut\' and 
i)y capability in the discharge i<i c\ery task 
which has thus devolved uikhi liini. On the 
j6th of March. 1906, he was elected mayor of 
I'eacon and was installed .KpvW 2d for a term of 
two vears. 



KI".\'. J.W WlLBl'R S()M1:K\1!.LI':. 

Rev. Jay Wilbur Somerville. pastor of the 
Central Methodist Ejjiscopal church in Oska- 
Inosa. was Ixirn in Johnsburg. Warren county. 
.\'ew York. Octolier 12. 1860. He is de- 
scended from Irish ancestry, the famih' having 
been founded in .\merica by .Samuel .Somer- 
ville. the grandfather, who left Ireland at the 
time of the rebellitm of 1793 and came to the 
L'nited States, locating in Warren county. New 
York, where he purchased a tract of land, l^pon 
that farm he continued tn make his home for 
■-e\enty-eight years and there ilied in iiis one- 
hundredth year. It was upon that same farm 
that Samuen Somerville. Jr.. father of Rev. J. 
W. Somerville. was born, and there he. too. 
passed away after reaching the \er\ \eneral)le 
age of eighty-six years, his entire life being 
-pent upon the old home property. Both he 
and his father were farming people and the for- 
mer was a squire or country lawyer. The 
farm is still in possession of the Somerville 



family. Both the Somerville and the Noble 
families trace their ancestry back to the time of 
William the Concjueror. at which time their an- 
cestors removed from Normandy to the north 
of Ireland. Samuel S)mervil!e. Jr., was a man 
of affairs and his opinoins carried weight in 
matters of local importance. In jjolitics he was 
a whig and later a republican. He was called 
to till \-arious county offices and he also repre- 
sented his district in the general assembly of 
New York, being the first man sent to the state 
legislature by the republican ])arty. This was 
in 1857. The Somervilles were of the Metho- 
dist faith and the wife of the first Samuel 
Somer\ille was Sally Noble, who was con- 
verted under the teachings of John Wesley. 
Ilcr father. David Noble, was a local preacher 
in America, being contemporary with Philip 
Emhrs-. the first local Methodist minister in the 
L'nited States. Samuel Somervillle. Jr.. was a 
member of the Methodist church for'seventy- 
li\e years, took a most active and heli)ful in- 
terest in its work, longserved in official ])ositions 
therein and was a local minister. He married 
Miss Mar\- Ivlizabeth Waddle, who was I'.orn in 
Warren count v. New ^'ork. and represented 
one of the first five families settling there, her 
ancestors having come from England to the 
new world. She was a descendant of the cele- 
brated Rexford family of England. She held 
membership in the Methodist church and her 
earnest Christian character won her the esteem 
and lo\'e of those with whom she came in con- 
tact. Unto .Samuel and Mary }•.. Somerxilk- 
were born six children, nanielv : Jay Wilbur; 
Robert, who is game warden of northern New 
^'ork : Mar\- k'.lla. the wife of Simeon Herrick, 
a rcsi<lent farmer of Wea\ertown. New "N'ork ; 
Jennie, who is li\ing in .X'orth Creek. New 
\"ork ; I'-arl. a farmer residing on the old home- 
stead in Warren county. New York ; and Lee, a 
physician and surgeon living in the old Dr. 
Durant mansion, one of the handsome homes 
(jf North tYeek, New York. 



2o6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Rev. J. W. Somerville supplemented liis early 
educational privileges by preparation for college 
in Troy Conference Academy at Poultney, 
Vermont, and after four years' study was grad- 
uated in the class of 1886. He then entered 
Syracuse University and was graduated in 
1890 with the degree of Bachelor .of Arts and 
two years later the degree of Master of Arts 
was conferred upon him. Going to Hutchin- 
son, Kansas, he accepted the pastorate of the 
First Methodist Episcopal church there and re- 
mained for five years. He was ordained dea- 
con in 1891 by Bishop Merrill and ordained 
elder in 1893 by Bishop Hurst. On the expira- 
tion of the five years spent in Hutchinson he ac- 
cepted a call from the First Methodist Episco- 
pal church in Lawrence, Kansas, and while 
there he was graduated in law from the State 
University and was admitted to practice in the 
supreme court of Kansas. In 1899 he came to 
Oskaloosa as pastor of the Central Methodist 
Episcopal church and for seven years has la- 
borefl among the people of this city, the church 
under his guidance enjoying a period of sub- 
stantial and healthful growth and proving a 
beneficial influence in the community. 

On the 29th of April, 1890. the Rev. Somer- 
\ille was married to Miss Jessie Burdick, who 
was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 1867 
and is a daughter of the Rev. Chester F. Bur- 
dick, of the Troy (New York) conference. 
Three children bless this union : Earl, born in 
October, 1895 ; Mary, September 13, 1899: and 
Ralph, December 6. 1905. Like her husband, 
Mrs. Somerville is earnest and zealous in behalf 
of the work of the church and has ])een a most 
able assistant to him in his pastoral duties. 

In his political views Rev. Somerville is a re- 
publican, keeping informed upon the questions 
of the day because he regards it the duty as well 
as the privilege of ever}- American to under- 
stand the government of his country and to 
support the men who seem best qualified to up- 
hold it. His labors, however, have been directed 



most largely to his church work in its various 
departments. He is peculiarly gifted with the 
powers of organization and has therefore lieen 
especially successful in evangelistic work. He 
has great ability in raising money and has thus 
been enabled to clear a number of churches 
from large indebtedness. During his resi- 
dence in Oskaloosa he has raised $60,000 
and it is his intention in 1906 to wipe out the 
entire debt of the church. The house of wor- 
ship is one of the most substantia] church edi- 
fices of the state and is of beautiful archi- 
tectural design. It was erected at a cost of 
about $40,000. The membership of the church 
is about 900 and the various societies of the 
church are now in excellent working condition 
and are accomplishing great good. Regarded 
from the standpoint of length of residence here 
Rev. Somerville is the oldest pastor in the city. 
He has been president of the Associated Chari- 
ties of Oskaloosa for the past two years and has 
been very active in all movements in the city 
tending' toward its best welfare. Those inter- 
ests which are a matter of civic pride receive his 
endorsement and he co-operates earnestly, will- 
ingly and effectively in temperance work and in 
all charitable and benevolent movements which 
are kindred interests of the church. 



DANIEL RIEGEL. 



.\mong those interested in the development 
of the rich coal properties of this section of 
Iowa is numbered Daniel Riegel, of Oskaloosa, 
who as a self-made and enterprising business 
man well deserves mention in this volume. 
Born in Pennsylvania on the 25th of April, 
r853. lie is a son of Daniel and Elizabeth (Ba- 
lett) Riegel, also natives of the Keystone state 
where they spent their entire lives, the father 
passing away in 1863, at the age of forty-six 
■\'ears. In their familv were ten children b"" 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



209 



only four are now living : Daniel ; Sarah, the 
wife of Jonas Gumbert, of Pennsylvania ; John, 
of Pennsylvania; aiul Joseph, of Waverly, 
New York. 

Daniel Riegel was onl\- ten years of age at 
the time of his father's death. His educational 
privileges were limited and in early youth he 
worked on the home farm. In 1869, when 
sixteen years of age, he secured employment in 
the mines at New Philadelphia and in icSjo 
M'ent to Summit county. Ohio, where he was 
connected with mining interests for more than 
ten years. In 1882 he came to Oskaloosa. 
Iowa, and was employed at struidard mining 
for two years. He then engaged in business 
■on his own account. o])ening a retail coalvard 
at Oskaloosa and later in Danville, Illinois. 
Subsequently he came to Oskaloo.sa and es- 
tablished the No. I Riegel Coal Company in 
1898. The plant of the company was in oper- 
ation for five years and in 1903 mine .\o. _' 
•of the Riegel Coal Company was o])ened. It 
is erpiipped with the most modern machinery 
and is now being successfully operated. 

On the 20th of March. 1S73. Mr. Riegel 
Avas married to JNIiss Mary P. Carl, a daughter 
•of Samuel and Mary (Wadsworth) Carl, who 
Avere natives of Pennsylvania but li\ed fi>r a 
time in Ohio. The father followed the occu- 
pation of farming and died in 1874, at the age 
of sixty-two years, while his wife passed awa)' 
in 1853. ^^ the age of thirty years. I'nto Mr. 
and Mrs. Riegel have been born four child.rcn. 
Avho are yet living: Cora E.. the wife of Kd. 
.\dair. a resident of Oskaloosa: Effie J., the 
wife of S. PI. Hull, of Chicago: Lottie P.. and 
Pearl I-',, both at home. Those deceased are 
Clemmie J.. Bessie K. and WilJie M. 

Mr. Riegel is a man of domestic tastes, who 
finds his greatest happiness in the midst of his 
family and at his own fireside. Moreover he 
possesses a social, genial nature, fine personal 
appearance and has displayed in his life many 
admirable qualities, while in his business career 



he has won success through capable manage- 
ment and indefatigable energy. 



MOSES CHILDRESS, M. D. 

Dr. Moses Childress, practicing as a mem- 
ber of the firm of Hunter & Childress with of- 
fices at No. 125 North Market street, in Oska- 
loo.sa, was born in L^nionville, .Vppanoose 
county, Iowa, in 1870. His father. Moses 
Childress, Sr., was a native of eastern Ten- 
nessee, and came to Iowa in 1849, settling in 
Davis county, near Drakeville, where he se- 
cured land and followed the occupation of 
f.arming. He voted with the republican party 
and held membership in the Presbyterian 
church. PI is wife, who bore the maiden name 
of Celia Martin, was born in Lee county, Vir- 
ginia, and was a member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal clnn"ch. Mr. Childress died in 1886, at 
the age of eighty-two years, while his ,wife 
l^assed away in February, 1904, at the age of 
seventy-three years. 

Dr. Childress, their only child, was reared 
in L'nionville, Iowa, where he attended the com- 
mon and high schools. At the age of si.xteen 
years he went into a drug and jewelry store as 
a clerk and watchmaker, and at the age of nine- 
teen he bought out his employer, conducting the 
Inisiness for about ten vears in Unionville and 
other places. In the meantime he was devoting 
his leisure hours to reading medicine, and in 
T895 lie entered the Louisville (Kentucky) 
Medical College, where he received his di]doma 
in 1897. while in 1898 he was graduated from 
the Barnes Medical College at St. Louis. In 
the fall of the same year he took an addendum 
degree at the National (homeopathic) Medical 
College at Chicago. 

In the fall of i8c;8 Dr. Childress liegan the 
practice of medicine at Packwood, Iowa, where 
he remained for five years, meeting with good 



2IO 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



success. He then went to Chicago, where he 
pursued a post-graduate course and in 1902 
he came to Oskaloosa, where he practiced alone 
for a year. In 1903 he entered into partner- 
ship with Dr. Andrew J. Hunter under tlie 
firm style of Hunter & Childress with offices 
at No. 125 North Market street. In practice he 
has met his professional anticipations and has 
now a large patronage. He is also a stock- 
holder in the Farmers Savings Bank of Pack- 
W'Ood, Iowa. 

In 1892 Dr. Childress was married to Miss 
Lola Brown, who was born in Indiana in 1874, 
a daughter of Dallas AI. and Eliza (Gibson) 
Brown. The father was a farmer and local 
preacher of the Christian church. Dr. and 
Mrs. Childress ha\-e four children : Bernice, 
Pearl, J. Rex and XRay. Both are members of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, in whicii the 
Doctor is serving as steward and is also treas- 
urer of the Sunday-school. In his fraternal 
affiliation he is a Mason and politically is a 
repulilican. He belongs to the county and state 
medical associations and the Des Moines Val- 
ley Medical Society, also the American Medical 
Association, Entering upon the practice of his 
professiim with a sense of conscientious obliga- 
tion concerning the duties dexolving upon him, 
he has become a foremost physician in his 
adopted city. He is a man of deep research 
and a close student and his skill and ability are 
now widelv recognized, while the confidence of 
the public in his superiority as a physician and 
surgeon are manifest in his already extensive 
and growing practice. 



JOHN C. SCOLES. 



John C. Scoles. photographer of Oskaloosa, 
who has won the highest honors awarded by the 
Iowa State Photographers Associaticm, was 
Ixirn in Knoxxille. Iowa, in 1866, and in the 
paternal line comes of Irish ancestrv. Mis fa- 



ther, Curtis W. Scoles, was born in Ohio, and 
was a painter by trade. He removed from his 
nati\-e state to Iowa about 1856, settling in Keo- 
kuk, whence after two years he remo\ed to 
Knox\ille, where his death occurred in 1900, 
when he was in his sixtv-third vear. He was 
an Odd Fellow and also a member of the Grand 
Army of the Republic, Ijeing entitled to mem- 
bership in the latter liy reason of his active 
service in the Civil war. He enlisted in the 
Union armv in 1862, serving until the close 
of hostilities and was a member of Companv 
G, Eighteenth Iowa Volunteer Infantrv. ( )n 
one occasion he was disabled by a sunstroke 
which caused the loss of the sight of one eye. 
He served most of the time in .Arkansas and 
Missouri and was ever a loyal defender of the 
star and stripes. His political allegiance was 
always given to the republican party, which 
stood loyally by the Union in the darkest hour 
of our country's history. His wife, who Ijore 
the maiden name of Fannie Cracklick, was born 
in Indiana, was a member of the ]\Iethodist 
Episcopal church and died in Iowa in 188 1, at 
the age of forty years. In their family were 
five children: Albert H., a blacksmith resid- 
ing in Hamilton. Iowa; John C, of this re- 
\iew ; Louie, the wife of Charles Jenks, of 
Knoxville, Iowa ; and Hamilton and Keziah, 
both deceased. 

John C. Scoles began his education in the 
public schools of Knoxx'ille, and he learned 
photography there. In 1895 '""^ embarked in 
business on his own account at Dexter, Iowa, 
where be remained for seven years, after which 
he spent two years in Stuart. He then came 
to Oskaloosa and purchased the photograph gal- 
lery of George Gesman, the principal studio of 
the citv. He still continues in business here 
and is considered one of the best photograpbic 
artists in this part of the state. He is familiar 
with all modern processes and added to his 
thorough understanding of the mechanical work 
he also possesses much natiu^al artistic taste as 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



211 



seen in his judicious nse of lif^lils and shades 
andof posing. Hebelongs to the Photographers' 
Association of Iowa and lie has a collection of 
medals that evidences his proficiency in his pro- 
fession. 'I'hese were awarded by the Photog- 
raphers Assnciation of Iowa. There are four 
classes in which entries for conipetitiim can he 
made. Mr. Scoles won first a medal as a first 
|)rize in the fourth class in 1900: then a medal 
in the third class in icjOi : a medal in the second 
class in kjoj: and in k^o^ he took a medal as 
first prize in the second class, while in 1904 he 
took first prize in the first class. He is naturally 
and justly proud of these evidences of his su- 
])erioritv in the line of his chosen life work. 

In 1S93 Mr. Scoles was married to Miss 
Delia Battles, who was horn in Illinois in 1867. 
and is a daughter of C". P. and I'rances Battles, 
the former a caqjcnter by trade. Mr. and Mrs. 
Scoles have one child, Thelma, born in 1901. 
The parents are members of the Methodist 
Ei)i.scop:d church and Mr. Scoles is an Odd 
l-VUow and Modern Woodman, while politically 
he is a republican. Making gocwl use of his oj)- 
l^ortunities he has prospered from year to year 
and has conducted all business matters carefully 
and successfully, displaying in all his acts an 
a])titude for successful management. His gen- 
ial manner and unfailing courtesy add to his 
social i)opularit\- and have gained him manv 
warm friends. 



CHARLES V. HOFFMAXX. 

Charles \'. Hoffmann, a member of the Her- 
ald Publishing Com])any of Oskaloosa, was 
Ixirn in this city, "January 28, 1860. His 
talher, Philli]) Hoffmann, Sr., was a native of 
Germany and came to .\merica in 1853. He 
went from New Orleans to Cinciiniati, Ohio, 
and in 1855 came to Iowa, where he continued 
to follow the trades of cabinet-making and gla- 



zier, which he had learned in his nati\e land. 
His wife, who bore the maiden name of Ellen 
.\ddy, was a native of Ireland. 

Charles V. Hoffmann acqiured a public- 
school education in Oskaloosa and in 1877 be- 
came apprenticed to the printer's trade in news- 
pajjcr business, which he thoroughly mastered 
in all of its branches, gaining a practical know 1- 
edge of the work in the several departments. 
In 1S89 he was elected treasurer of Mahaska 
count\' and b\- re-election .served for two terms. 
In 1894 he turned his attenti(jn to the steam 
laundr\' business in connection with his brother 
Phillip and continued therein until December i. 

1896. when they sold out and together the_\- 
purchased from Colonel .\lbert W. and Pauline 
Swalm the (Oskaloosa Dail\- and W'eekl}- Her- 
ald, which tlie\' are still conducting, being asso- 
ciated in this enterprise with C. S. Walling and 
Margaret Hoffmann. The business was incor- 
porated in 1905 under the name of the Oska- 
lo(]sa Herald Companx'. The papers occu])\' a 
foremost position among the leading journals 
of Iowa and both daily and weekly have a large 
circulation which renders them an excellent ad- 
vertising medium and their patronage in that 
direction is extensixe and profitable. The ])a- 
])ers are edited in the interests of the re])ublican 
])arty and .Mr. Hoffmann of this re\icw has for 
a number of years been recognized as a leading" 
advocate of republican princijiles, strong in his 
support of the party. He was appointed post- 
master of Oskaloosa by President McKinley in 

1897, was re-appointed in 1901 and again in 
7905, .so that he is the present incumbent in the 
office, and the fact that he has received the en- 
dorsement of his fellow townsmen for three 
terms is ample evidence of his public-s])irited 
administration and his ])rompt and capable 
service. 

On the 20th of May, 1890, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Hoffmann and Miss (irace 
Seevers. a daughter of Hon. W. H. Seevers, of 
Oskaloosa. Their children are Gladys and 



2\2 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



(juilford. Both Mr. and Airs. Hoffmann have 
ahvays resided in this city and their circle of 
friends is an extensive one. while the htispitality 
of many of the best homes of Oskal(.iosa is cor- 
dially and freely extended to them. 



ELIJAH BUSBY. 

Elijah Busby, now living retired on section 
3, White Oak township, is one of the old set- 
tlers of Mahaska county, who for years was a 
])rosperous agriculturist and fur nearly two 
decades owned and operated a farm in Adams 
township. Later he removed to Monroe 
township and now makes his home in White 
Oak township. He dates his residence in the 
county from 1852. A native of Ohio, he was 
liorn in Carroll county, November 17, 1831. 
His father. John W. Busbv. was born in Har- 
rison county, Ohio, and was a son of John 
Busby, a native of Maryland, who became one 
of the first settlers of Harrison county, Ohio. 
The father, there born and reared, was mar- 
ried to Miss Anna Merryman. a nati\'e of 
Alaryland. They remo\ed to Carroll county. 
Ohio, where Mr. Busby opened up a new farm 
in the midst of the forest, developing a good 
property and there rearing his family. He 
died upon the old homestead there. sur\-ived 
b\- liis wife for a few vears. In the famil\- 
Avere the following children: Johnson, who 
same year: Abe; Elijah: Agnes: Elizabeth: 
John : Thomas, a soldier of the Civil war. now 
died in IQ05 : Jackson, who passed away in the 
deceased: Isaac: .\aron : Samuel, who died in 
infancy: Julia Ann: and Mary and Rachel, 
who died in infancy. 

Elijah Busby was reared to farm life in Car- 
roll county, Ohio, working in the fields and 
meadows through the summer months, while 
in the winter seasons he attended the public 
schools. In the spring of 1852 he came to 



Iowa, settling in Mahaska county, where he 
worked as a farm hand for several years, at 
first receiving only ten dollars ])er month. He 
was married in this county on the 30th of 
.\pril, 1857, to Miss Eliza Ann Bass, a sister 
of Robert Bass, who is mentioned elsewhere 
in this work. Airs. Busby was born in Bar- 
tholomew county, Indiana, and was brought to 
Iowa in her girlhood days. Following their 
marriage Air. Busby rented a tract of land for 
a few years, after which he entered eig'hty 
acres in Aladison county and also bought an 
adjoining tract of eighty acres. During the 
war he sold that property and in\ested in 
eighty acres of land in Adams township, on 
which he made his home for seventeen years, 
but his active farm labor was interrupted by 
his service in the Civil war. In the fall of 
1861 he enlisted in the L'nion army, joining- 
Company F. Fourth Iowa Cavalry, with which 
he \\ ent to Springfield, Alissouri. and later to 
Arkansas. He was first under fire at Cotton- 
plant and subsequently was in the engagement 
and afterward on duty at Vicksburg. He was 
captured at Bear Creek and. being sent to 
Lil)b}' prison, was there incarcerated until the 
fall of 1863, when he was paroled and went 
to Benton Barracks, St. Louis, Alissouri. He 
rejoined his regiment at Vicksburg and after 
re-enlisting as a veteran he was granted a fur- 
loug'h and returned home in the fall of 1863. 
He spent a month with his famil}-. during 
which time he sold his farm of one hundred 
and sixty acres in Aladison county and bought 
eig'hty acres in Adams township. On the ex- 
piration of his fiudongh lie returned to the 
arm.y and remained with his regiment until 
the close of the war. being mustered out at At- 
lanta and receiving' an honoraljle discharge at 
Davenport, Iowa, in July, 1865. He returned 
with a creditable military record, having ever 
been faithful and loyal to the cause which he 
espoused and doing active senice on various 
battle-fields. He was in ten skirmishes. 






^Jyy^p^uA /^yl^^ 




PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



215 



Mr. Busby resumed farming in Adams 
township, wliere he cultivated and improved 
liis land. Ik' erected good buildings there, 
cleared and broke about forty acres and fenced 
his place. As time passed he developed an ex- 
cellent property and there continued in active 
farming for seventeen years, when he sold out 
and bought a farm in Monroe township, com- 
prising nearly two hundred acres. This he 
also began to further iniprci\e and he erected 
there a good bam together with various out- 
buildings for the shelter of grain and stock. 
There was a good house upon the place and he 
divided the land into iields of convenient size 
by well kept fences. He lived for seventeen 
vears upon that ])roperty, after which he 
rented the jilace and rcnioxed to Rose Hill. 
where he purchased a tract of eight acres. He 
then repaired and added to the house and he 
now gives his attention to gardening and to 
keeping up his ])lace. which is very neat and 
thrifty in appearance. He started in Iowa 
with no capital, but possessed strong and de- 
termined purpose and upon that quality as a 
foundation builded his success. 

L'nto Mr. and Mrs. Rushy have been born 
si.x children, three sons and three daughters: 
William L., who is now engaged in the prac- 
tice of medicine in Delta. Iowa; John R., who 
is mentioned elsewhere in this work : Homer 
F.., a lawyer of Fort Dodge : .Mice, the wife of 
J. W. Thomas, a lawyer and real-estate dealer 
of Fort Dodge: Emma, the wife of Jared 
Brown, a resident farmer of Monroe town- 
ship, Mahaska county : and Lena, the wife of 
George \^^ VanXest. of Keokuk county. 

In his political \iews Mr. liusbv was a re- 
pubh'can for a long period but later gave his 
support to the Greenback party and is now a 
Roosevelt populist. He served as justice of 
the peace in Adams township and also town- 
ship trustee there and for many years has been 
a meinber of the .school board. He has fre- 
<|ucntly been a delegate to the conventions of 



his party antl is interested in righteous man- 
agement of county affairs along political lines. 
He belongs to the Grand Army post and his 
wife is a member of the Methodist church. 
Mr. Busby is one of the few remaining early 
settlers of Mahaska county and also of the vet- 
erans of the Civil war. He has led an active 
and honorable life crowned with successful ac- 
complishment and Mahaska county has bene- 
fitted hv his labors. He and his esteemed wife 
are now living in lujnorable retirement, enjoy- 
ing the rest that has been so well earned and 
richlv deserved. 



NORMAN R. HOOK, M. D. 

Dr. Norman R. Hook, physician and sur- 
geon of Oskaloosa. was born in Waynesburg, 
Pennsylvania, April zt,. 1842. His father. 
Morgan M. Hook, also a native of Waynes- 
Ijurg, was a .saddler by trade and in 1853 ^'^me 
to Iowa, at which time he located on a farm in 
l'!ast Garfield township, Mahaska county. He 
finally took up his abode in Oskaloosa, where 
he died at the age of seventy-three years. Op- 
posed to the institution of slavery, he advocated 
the principles of the aljolition party in early 
manhood and when the republican party was 
formed to prevent the further extension of 
sla\ery he joined its ranks. His wife, who 
bore the maiden name of Sarah Lappen, was 
born in Waynesburg and died at the age of 
seventy-four years. She was a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. 

Dr. Hook, the eldest in a family of nine chil- 
dren, remained upon the home farm tmtil sev- 
enteen years of age and was a student in the 
country schools. He then attended the old 
normal school in Oskaloosa until twenty years 
of age, when in response to his country's call 
for troops he enlisted in T862 for the Civil war. 
l)ecoming a member of Company C, Thirtx- 



;i6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



third Iowa Volunteer Infantry. He served for 
three years and was mustered out at Davenport 
on the loth of August, 1865. He was pro- 
moted from tlie ranks to sergeant, second lieu- 
tenant and assistant commissary of musters of 
tiie Third Division, Thirteenth Army Corps, 
and was in the campaign that resulted in the 
capture of Spanish Fort and Mobile. He spent 
a year in the hospital at St. Louis, being ill 
with pneumonia and was afterwards made 
steward of the hospital. He also participated 
in a number of important battles and skirmishes 
and on all occasions was found faithful to his 
duty, no matter what the character of the ser- 
vice, realizing that every task faithfully per- 
formed by the soldier contributed to the sum 
total of the success which crowned the Union 
arms. 

When the war was over Dr. Hook returned 
to Oskaloosa and, ha\'ing in the meantime re- 
solved to make the practice of medicine his life 
w(irk, he began reading in the office and 
under the direction of Dr. S. A. Rhinehart, 
who acted as his preceptor for two years. In 
fact he had spent one year in his office before 
enlisting. He afterward spent a vear as a 
student in the College of Physicians and Sur- 
geons at Keokuk. Iowa, and was licensed to 
practice in 1866, at which time he opened an 
office in P'remont, where he remained contin- 
uously until 1874, when he pursued a jjost- 
graduate course at Keokuk. He remained in 
Fremont until 1885, at which time he removed 
to Lincoln, Nebraska, where he spent si.\- 
years and then took up his abode in St. Louis, 
Missouri, where he remained for three vears. 
In 1894 he came to Oskaloosa. where he has 
now practiced continuously for twelve years. 

In 1866 Dr. Hook was married to Miss Lu- 
cetta J. Kissick. who was born in Pennsylvania, 
a daughter of Thomas and Mary Kissick. 
She died in 1873, at the age of twenty-seven 
years, leaving two children : Charles W'ilmer, 
who is now living in Oskaloosa: and Nellie Iv., 



who died at the age of eight years. In 1874 
Dr. Hook was again married, his second union 
being with Florence K. Kissick, a sister of his 
first wife and a native of Pennsvlvania. The\- 
had three children : Walter, who is now a clerk 
in Oskaloosa: \\'illiam T., employed in a 
grocery store ; and Pearl, who died in infancy. 
Dr. Hook holds membership relations with 
the Masonic fraternity and Modern Woodmen 
of America. He is a democrat in his political 
views and has been alderman from the second 
ward, while for two years he served as health 
officer. He has also been a member of the 
board of education for three years and gives 
helpful support to every measure for the general 
welfare. He als(5 served as a member of the 
board of education in Fremont and was 
senior warden in the Masonic lodge while living 
there. He was post commander of Hamilton 
Scott post at Fremont and a member of Farra- 
gut post at Lincoln, Nebraska. He was like- 
wise medical examiner for the Woodmen in 
Lincoln and has also been medical examiner 
for the Woodmen in Oskaloosa. He is a busy 
and successful practitioner. He is also an 
industrious and ambitious student, (ienial in 
disposition, unobtrusive and unassuming in 
manner, he is patient under adverse criticism 
and in his expressions concerning brother 
practitioners is friendh' and indulgent. 



WILLIAM H. CUNNINGHAM. 

\\'illiam H. Cuiuiingham, superintendent of 
the Forest cemetery of Oskaloosa, is a native of 
Prince Edward county, Ontario, born Decem- 
ber 10, 1846. and a son of Daniel and Charlotte 
(McDonald) Cunningham, who were likewise 
natives of Ontario and there remained until 
called to their final rest. In their family were 
three daughters and a son, who are yet living, 
namely : Hannah E, ; Phebe Jane, who is the 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



217 



widow ol William \'cniiilyea. a resident of Os- 
kaloosa : Sarah .\., the deceased wife of Dexter 
Mastnii : and William 1 1. 

In his home neighborhood William H. Cun- 
nmi^ham ac(|iiired his education and u])on the 
farm was reared, early becoming; familiar with 
the arduous duties of the fields. He arrived in 
Oskaloosa in 18^)3 and here learned the luarlile 
trade, which he followed for more than twenty 
vears. Durins.;' that long- period he was em- 
ployed at different times in Hamilton. Ontario. 
Cobleskill and Cox.sackie. New York, and 
Council BlufYs. Iowa, returninsy to Oskaloosa 
in 1S73. Here for twehe years he was in the 
emi)lo\- of 1". W. McCall and then went to 
Council Uluffs. where he remained for a short 
period, after which be returned to Oskaloosa 
and was with ^Ir. McCall until he became su- 
perintendent of Forest cemetcr)' on the T5th of 
Xo\-ember. 1R86. He still fills this ])osition 
and has done nuich for the imiiroxement of the 
cemetery grounds, working along economical 
lines that are very productive of excellent re- 
sults. This developed his latent powers for 
landscape gardening and he has greatly im- 
])roved and beautified the cemetery. 

Tn 1867 Mr. Cunningham was married to 
Miss Ruth A. (iarratt, a daughter of F. R. and 
Sarah M. Garratt. of Prince Edward count v. 
Ontario. She died I^farcb t. 1905. at the age of 
fifty-four years, leaving a husband and two 
sons. Ernest A. and Clarence F.. Ixnh of Oska- 
loosa. The former was married in 1893 ^" 
Mary J. Foster, a daughter of H. and Marv 
Foster, and their children are Meryl .\.. Wil- 
fred D.. Mil.hed C. and F. Arthur. Clarence 
F. Cunningham wedded Clara ^filler and their 
children arc Marie and Evert. 

Mr. Cunningham is a member of Tri Fu- 
minar lodge. No. 18. A. F. & A. M. : Hirrun 
chapter. No. 6, R. A. M., De Payens com- 
mander}-. No. 7, K. T. and the Nobles of the 
Mystic Shrine. He also belongs to the First 
Episcopal church and politically is a republican. 



He is a man cjf generous impulses, kindly traits 
of character, of fine personal qualifications and 
good judgment. In his present position he has 
given eminent satisfaction and he has won dur- 
ing the long years of his residence in Oskaloosa 
the respect and good will of all with whom he 
has come in contact. 



E. WEBB PHILLIPPF. 

F. Weill) Phillippe. who since 1892 has been 
engaged in tiie steam fitting and ])luniliing liusi- 
ness in Oskaloosa. doing much contract work, 
was born in Cedar township. Mahaska county. 
in 1870. His father, Greenleaf Phillippe, w-as 
born in Bartholomew* count)-. Indiana, and is 
of k'rench descent, the first representatives of 
the name in America having settled in North 
Carolina at an early period in the colonization 
of the new world. The paternal grandfather, 
George Phillippe, died when Greenleaf w-as 
only three years of age, and his wife, Mrs. 
.\gnes Phillippe, died during the infancy of 
her son. Coming from Indiana to this state in 
185 1, Greenleaf Phillippe settled in Cedar town- 
ship, Mahaska county. He made the trip here 
with his parents and bis father entered land 
from the government in 1832. a year after their 
arrival. Mr. Philli])]ie still resides upon the old 
homestead farm and is one of the worthy pio- 
neer residents of the community. He wedded 
Mary Jane W^hite, who was born in Indiana, 
and both are now fiftv-eight vears of age. They 
are respected and worthy Christian people, the 
former holding membership at one time in the 
Methodist church and the latter in the Baptist 
church. In their famil}- were four children. 
namel\- ; E. W'ebb; Asa G.. who is living upon a 
farm adjoining the old homestead ; Carrie -\.. 
the wife of H. B. Fellers, of Oskaloosa, Iowa: 
and Cecil, the wife of \\'illiam Dinsmore, a 
farmer of Cedar townsbiii. The parents now 



2l8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



make their home on the old homestead near 
Fremont, and are greatly esteemed by all who 
know them. In his political views Mr. Phil- 
lippe is a republican and has held various town- 
ship offices. 

In the maternal line E. Webb Phillippe of this 
review is also a representative of one of the 
honored pioneer families of the county, for his 
grandfather, John O. White, who was born in 
Dearborn county, Indiana, came to Iowa in 
i8.|9 and is now located at Fremont in Cedar 
township, where he entered land from the gov- 
ernment. Although now eighty-two years of 
age he is still a hale and hearty man. In early 
days he was well known as a stock shipper and 
he conducted the first store in Fremont and was 
the first postmaster there. He married Miss 
Elvira Hough, who was born in Shelby county, 
Indiana, and is living at the age of se\enty- 
eight years. They were married February 8, 
1844, and in their family were twelve children, 
nine of whom are yet living. They also have 
twenty-seven grandchildren. 

E. Webb Phillippe was reared upon the home 
farm until seventeen years of age and attended 
the country schools in his early youth, and later 
received his diploma from the old English Busi- 
ness College at Indianapolis, Indiana. He 
afterward learned the trade of steamfitting at 
Indianapolis, and upon his return to Oskaloosa 
in 1892 he engaged in the steam fitting and 
plumbing business, in which he has since con- 
tinued at No. 220 East High street. He has 
met with gratifying success, having done much 
contract as well as job work and his patronage 
is now extensive, making his business a profit- 
able one. 

In 1894 Mr. Phillippe was married to Miss 
Florence Lawson, a daughter of Joseph and 
Sarah Lawson and a native of Keokuk count}', 
Iowa, born in 1872. Her father was a plas- 
terer and contractor. 

With the exception of the brief period spent 
in Indiana, Mr. Phillippe has always resided in 



Alahaska county and has now won a gratif\ ing 
place in business' circles by reason of his excel- 
lent workmanship, his earnest desire to please; 
his patrons and his honorable dealing. He is a. 
young man of marked enterprise not onl_\' in 
business affairs but also in all matters relating 
to general progress, and it is with pleasure that 
we present to our readers this record uf his 
career. 



FRANCIS G. WELCH. 

Francis G. Welch, whose fine farm. Forest 
Home, is situated on section 25, Harrison 
township, built his present attractive residence 
in 1883, and has a well improved property, 
there being good buildings, an orchard and all 
the accessories found upon a model farm uf the 
twentieth century. At one time his landed pos- 
sessions were quite extensive, but he has di- 
vided with his children, retaining possession of 
one hundred acres of rich land. He is, how- 
ever, living retired, leaving the active work 
of the farm to cithers, while he is enjoying well 
earneil ease. ^Ir. Welch is one of the old settlers 
of Mahaska county, ha\ing resided here since 
i860. He was born in Harrison county, Ohio, 
-August 19, 1836, a son of John Welch, who 
was also Ixjrn and reared in Harrison countv, 
where he acquired his education. He was mar- 
ried there to Miss Margaret Gilmore, also a 
nati\-e of Ohio, and in order to provide for 
his family he operated a farm. Both he and 
his wife died in Harrison county. In their fam- 
ily were six children, all of whom reached adult 
age. 

Francis G. Welch was reared upon the old 
home farm and received a common-school edu- 
cation. When twenty-four years of age he 
drove a flock of eight hundred sheep through 
to Iowa and later made a second trip of this 
nature. Throughout his entire business career, 
he, too, has been identified with agricultural 





/T^ 




PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



221 



nn<l stock-raisinij interests, .iml has wmi ^rat- 
ifvinj^ success. 

I'Vancis G. Welcli was marrieil in Ohio, Sep- 
tember 13. 1866, t<T Miss Margaret Sinip.soii, 
a native of that .state, and a daughter of John 
and Margaret Simp-son. .Mr. Welch on coming 
to the west purchased one luindred and si.xty 
acres of land in 1 larri-son town.ship, Maliaska 
county, and furty-four acres of timber land 
near b\'. in W'aiJello county. He rebuilt the 
house and made a gcxxl farm there. Two chil- 
dren were born of that marriage: Lavernge 
and Omar S., both of whom are married, and 
are heads of families, li\ing upon land given 
them by their father. Mr. Welch lost his first 
wife in 1874, and in 1S76 married Elizalieth 
.Slemnunis, a native ni Ohio and a daughter of 
.Matthew Slemmons, who was likewi.se l«nn in 
the Buckeye state, and is now living in John- 
son county, Iowa. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Welch 
have been born three children : .\nna, now the 
wife of C. W. Kandell. of Harrison township, 
by whom she has two children, l-"rank and 
Charles; Slemmons, who is married and lives 
at home, his wife being Gladys Brown, a native 
nf Iowa and a d.aughter of .\ustin Brown, of 
Wai)ello ciiunt}': ;uid I'rank, who assists in 
carrying on the farm. 

In 1883 Mr. Welcii erected a gjod two-stt)ry 
residence, which he now occupies. He has also 
built substantial barns and outbuildings and has 
a good orchard upon his place. He raises high 
grades of .stock and his land is well tilled, ev- 
erything about his farm giving indication of 
his careful supervision. He has lived a life 
of industry and diligence and from the soil has 
gained a competence that n(}w enables him to 
live retired. He added to his original posses- 
sions until he became the owner of six hun- 
<lred acres of valuable land, which he has since 
divided with his children, retaining one hun- 
<lred acres in his fine farm. Forest Home. 

l'>oth Mr. and Mrs. Welch are members of 
the Presbyterian church at Kirkville. Po- 
12 



liticallv he is inde])endent. lie has been called 
to serve in se\eral public offices, being a mem- 
ber of the board of trustees and assessor and at 
all times he is a public- spirited man. who cham- 
pions every progressive movement for the bene- 
fit of his conntv. He is widely known in Ma- 
haska county and his life record is in many re- 
spects worthy of emulation, jjroving what can 
be accompli.shed through strong and unfalter- 
ing piu'pose and also standing in exemi)lifica- 
tion of the fact that prosperity and an iKjnored 
name can lie won simultaneouslv. 



JOHN W. TRWIX. 

Nature seems to ha\e intended that man 
should enjoy a season of rest in his later years. 
In }'outh he possesses the vigor and energy 
which bring him hope and promise and which 
enable him to put forth earnest effort and ef- 
fective labor in the business world. Later these 
same qualities are guided by more mature judg- 
ment and experience and therefore prove more 
resultant factors in business life, and then in 
the evening of one's days when one's powers 
are somewhat diminished the individual should 
have accumulated a competence enabling him 
to put aside the more arduous cares and respon- 
sibilities. Such has been the career of John W. 
Irwin, who is now living retired in New Sha- 
ron after many years' active connection with 
agricultural pursuits. 

He was born in Richland conntv, Ohio, Xo- 
\ember it, 1830. His father, Jared Irwin, was 
a native of Pennsylvania, born in 1802, while 
his death occurred in Richland county, Ohio, in 
1838, at the comparatively early age of thirty- 
six years. For several years he engaged in 
teaching school and at the time of his demise 
was clerk of the court of common pleas. He 
wedded Miss Mar}- Bund, a native of Richland 
county, Ohio, vk^ho died four years previous to 



222 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



her husband's death, and later Mr. Irwin mar- 
ried again. By the first union there were three 
children : John W. ; Jared, who went to Cali- 
fornia in 1850 and died there in 1864; and one 
who died in infancy. By the second marriage 
there was one child, Mary J., the wife of J. E. 
Ritter. who died in Mansfield. Ohio. 

John ^^^ Irwln was only four years old at the 
time of his mother's death and after four years 
his father passed away. A sister of his father 
was appointed guardian for him and his 
brother. He was sent to the common schools 
and later spent two years as a student in Ver- 
milion College, now an auxiliary of ^Vooster 
University in Ohio, pursuing there a classical 
course. At the age of eighteen years he en- 
tered business life as an apprentice at the 
printer's trade but not meeting with the success 
in that work that he had anticipated he decided 
to learn the jeweler's trade, at which he served 
a three-years' apprenticeship. He afterward 
worked in that line at different places to perfect 
his knowledge of the trade — a custom which 
was called "tramping" and which was common 
at that time with all trades people. In 1855 he 
arrived in Oskaloosa, Iowa, where he estab- 
lished a jewelry store where the courthouse 
now stands, and as it was the custom of the 
merchants to plant trees in front of their places 
of business Mr. Irwin did so and there is now 
a fine tree standing in the courthouse yard 
which w-as set out by him. 

While engaged in business in Oskaloosa Mr. 
Irwin was married, on the igtli of April, i860, 
to Miss Man,' E. Forby, who was born in Al- 
bany, New York, December 16, 1836, and was a 
daughter of George and Elizabeth (Heiny) 
Forby, the former a native of England and the 
latter of Albany, New York. In 1855 Mr. and 
Mrs. Forby came to Iowa, settling in Lincoln 
township, Poweshiek county, making their 
■home upon a farm until called to their final 
rest. After his marriage Mr. Irwin continued 



in the jewelry business until he enlisted for 
service in the army. He took his wife to her 
parents in Poweshiek county in September, 
1863, at Grinnell, Iowa, joined Company C of 
the Fourteenth Iowa Infantry as a private. He 
was with that regiment until the battle of 
Shiloh, when the members of the company be- 
came scattered and later Mr. Irwin did detached 
(lut\' until honorably discharged on the 13th of 
May, 1865. He was offered a commission but 
did not accept. He was never wounded nor 
taken prisoner but became ill with pneumonia 
during the service and his health was impaired 
through the hardships and rigors of the war, 
so that the country now grants him a pension 
of $12 per month, which is indeed but a slight 
remuneration for the sacrifice which he made 
for the Union cause. 

^Vhen the war was over Mr. Irwin located in 
Lincoln township. Poweshiek count}-, where he 
purchased eighty acres of w'ild land. He built 
the first dwelling on the farm and at once be- 
gan to turn the sod and in course of time har- 
rowed and planted his fields and eventually 
gathered good crops. He afterward bought 
one hundred and twenty acres additional 
and made his home continuously upon his 
farm until 1893. when lie removed to 
New Sharon, where he has since resided, 
having a beautiful home on West Market 
street. In all of his farm work lie was enter- 
prising and energetic and his careful manage- 
ment and keen discrimination in his business 
affairs brought him a gratifying competence 
that now enables him to live retired. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Irwin have been born five 
children, of whom four are living: Elizabeth, 
now the wife of James H. Allen, a resident of 
Union Mills ; Jared, who died at the age of 
seventeen years: William A., a hardware mer- 
chant of Red Oak, Iowa : George F., who is liv- 
ing in Pittsburg, Kansas ; and Gaylord, a resi- 
dent of Lincoln, Nebraska. With the ex- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



223 



ception of tlie last named all of the cliildren who 
liave reached mature years are nnw married and 
liave families. 

Hoth Mr. and Mrs. Irwin liold membership 
in the Presbyterian church and have a large cir- 
cle of warm friends in New Sharon and in the 
locality where they have so long- made their 
home. In politics he has always been a demo- 
crat, advocating free trade and at the same 
time being a believer in "sound money." He 
served on the school board and while living on 
the farm hlled the different township offices, 
discharging his duties with promptness and 
fidelity. He also served for four years and two 
months as postmaster of New: Sharon under 
(irover Cleveland, for one year was a member 
of the village council and has been secretary of 
the Mahaska Count\- .Agricultural .Association. 
He is a well [xjsted man, reading broadly, and 
he keeps in touch with the trend of modern 
thought and with the world's progress. His 
rest has been well earned and is richly deserved, 
and in the evening of his days he is now sur- 
rounded by many of the comforts and lu.xurics 
which go to make life worth the living. 



EDW.VRD PRICHETT. 

Edward Prichett, a veteran of the Spanish- 
American war. engaged in the practice of law 
in Oskaloosa, is a native of Tuscaloosa, .Ala- 
bama, born February 6. 1874, his parents being 
John and Caroline S. (Miller) Prichett, natives 
of Kentucky and of Tuscaloosa, .Alabama, re- 
spectively. The mother has now departed this 
life, but the father makes his home in I'nrt 
Madison, Iowa. 

Mr. Prichett of this review was reared in that 
city, having accompanied his parents on their 
removal to Fort Madison when he was a little 
lad of four summers. His preliminarv educa- 
tion was acquired in the public schools there 



and he afterw^ard attended the State Univer- 
sitv and the Iowa Collegiate School. He was 
graduated from the law department of the 
State University in June, 1899, ^"^ following 
his admission to the bar located for practice in 
Fort Madison, where he remained for several 
years, or until 1901, when he removed to Os- 
kaloosa, where he has since followed his chosen 
profession. Here he formed a partnership with 
J. G. Patterson under the firm style of Prichett 
& Patterson with offices in the Mahaska County 
Bank building. Later they removed to the Nea- 
gle block and the relationship was maintained 
until Mr. Prichett was appointed to the office of 
justice of the peace on the 20th of June, 1904, 
in which position he is now serving, and since 
his election to that office he has practiced alone. 

In the conduct of cases which come before 
him he has shown himself strictly fair and im- 
partial in his rulings and with a comprehensive 
knowledge of the law that Iiears upon the cases 
in question. 

In politics Mr. Prichett is a stalwart repub- 
lican and has been a delegate to nearly all the 
state conventions. He was associated at one 
time with the old Fort Madison Plaindealer and 
this brought him into touch with the people 
while he was serving as city editor. Frater- 
nally he is connected with the Masons and the 
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, in 
which he has been lecturing knight. He also 
belongs to the Alodern \\'oodmen camp and 
was escort for one year. 

He is a veteran of the Spanish-.American 
war, serving w^ith Company F, of the Fiftieth 
Iowa Volunteer Infantry. He was one of the 
volunteers, responding to the first call and re- 
mained with his regiment imtil mustered out 
November 30, 1898. This regiment w^as the 
first to leave the state of Iowa to enter the active 
service of the United States and during his 
connection therewith Mr. Prichett held the 
rank of quartermaster sergeant, and acting ser- 
geant major. 



2_'4 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Mr. Prichett was tlie first niemljer of his 
class in college to try a case in the supreme 
court, the case heing one which involved a con- 
stitutional question. In his law practice he has 
displayed thorough understanding of the prin- 
ciples of jurisprudence and his devotion to his 
clients' interests is proverbial. He is active in 
all political campaigns of the county and fre- 
quently addresses the people upon the para- 
mount questions and issues of the day. In ar- 
gument he is always logical and at the same 
time he is an entertaining and forceful speaker. 



WILLIAM OTIS NUGENT. 

William Otis Nugent, interested in manufac- 
turing enterprises in Oskaloosa, was born in 
Dayton, Washington county, Iowa, in 1863, 
a son of Dr. W. R. and Rhoda E. Nugent. He 
came to Oskaloosa with his parents in 1876, 
when a )outh of thirteen years and attended 
the graded and high schools of the cit\' and also 
Oskaloosa College. He learned telegraphy and 
became an operator of the Iowa Central Rail- 
road at Oskaloosa. Later he mastered the ma- 
chinist's trade at Marshalltown, Iowa, and then 
went upon the road as locomotive fireman on 
the Iowa Central, remaining in that capacity 
for two and a half years, when he was promoted 
to engineer and thus served for eight years. 
At the end of that time another promotion came 
to him, niaking him roundhouse foreman at 
Marshalltown. He retained that position and 
that of acting master mechanic of the railroad 
for four years, when he again became con- 
nected with the operative department as en- 
gineer on a passenger train for five years. Re- 
signing, he turned his attention to mining and 
the manufacturing business. In 1903 the 
Strouse locomotive stoker was patented. To 
promote, introduce and manufacture the ap- 
pliances a company was formed in 1904. capi- 



talized at twenty thousand dollars with the ful- 
lowing officers: W. H. Strouse. the inventor, 
as ])resitlent ; William O. Nugent, vice-presi- 
dent; and George A. Caffall, secretary and 
treasurer. In October 1905, the last named was 
killed (in the railroad. He had sold his stock 
in the company to J. C. Hanna, and following 
the death of Mr. Caffall J. E. ^Vhittaker as- 
sumed the duties as secretary and treasurer. The 
]M-omoters were W. H. Strouse, George A. Cat- 
fall, C. V. Johnson. J. E. \Vhittaker and \\\ O. 
Nugent, and the.se gentlemen organized the 
company. The machine has pro\-en of practical 
use and a brilliant future seems to be opening 
before the new concern. The machines are now- 
being manufactured in Oskaloosa, and in the 
near future this enterprise will form the nu- 
cleus nf a large industry. 

In Kjoo Mr. Nugent was married to Miss 
S. Avp Varner, who was born in Albia, Iowa, 
in 1882, a daughter of Joseph O. and Sarah 
Varner. Her father, a grocer of Albia, was 
an earlv settler of this state, coming from 
Ohio fift\- vears ago. Mr. Nugent belongs to- 
the Masonic fraternity in which he has attained 
the degrees of commandery and shrine. He is 
also a member of the Brotherhood of Locomo- 
ti\e Engineers. In politics he was a democrat 
until Governor Cummings became candidate 
for chief executive of the state. He has be- 
come interested in considerable real estate in 
Oskaloosa, now owning much valuable property 
and his prosperity in business is the result of 
well directed effort, untiring industry and ju- 
dicious iinestment. 



OSCAR C. McCURDY. 

Almost a century and a half ago George 
Washington said, "Farming is tlie most useful 
as well as the most honorable occupation of 
man," and the truth of this assertion has been 
abundantly verified throughout the passing 





iOlM^-^ulaJ^ 




l}L.'\.a, 




230 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



the rules which govern industry and unswerv- 
ing integrity and is found in all of his dealings 
to be reliable and energetic — qualities which 
have won him the trust of his fellowmen and 
ha\'e gained him success. 



JOHN P. HIATT. 

John P. Hiatt. one of the pioneers in the 
real-estate, loan and brokerage business in Os- 
kaloosa, in which he yet continues with a large 
clientage, was tarn in Henry county, Indiana, 
in 1842. His father, William Hiatt, was a 
native of Ohio. The ancestors came from 
Scotland to America at an early day and settled 
in Virginia. They were members of the Frienfis 
church. William Hiatt removed from Ohio 
to Indiana about 1830 and in early manhood 
his attention was given to cabinet-making, while 
in later years he followed fanning. He re- 
mained in Indiana until the fall of 1864, when 
he remo\-ed to Oskaloosa, where, retiring from 
active business life, he enjoyed a well earned 
rest until his death, which occurrred in 1884, 
when he was eighty years of age. He was a 
birthright memlier of the Friends church and 
his study of the political situation of the coun- 
trv led him tn give his earlv support to the 
whig partv, while later he joined the ranks of 
the republican party. He held minor township 
offices and was always interested in local ad- 
A'ancement and progress. He possessed more 
than ordinary literary taste and was a great 
lover of hooks, which kept him well informed 
concerning the literature of ancient and modern 
times as well as all subjects of general informa- 
tion. Industrious in his business affairs he 
prospered and eventually gained a competency. 
He married Martha Pressnall. who was born 
in North Carolina and was of Engli.sh ancestry. 
She, too, was a birthright member of the 
Friends church, and she died in that faith in 



1893, at the age of eighty-nine years. In the 
family of this worthy couple were nine chil- 
dren : Julia A., now deceased ; Abigail, the wife 
of Isaac F. Kenworthy, a retired farmer living 
at Whittier, California; Richard J., who died 
in 1900; Martha H., the wife of Valentine M. 
Farr, a gardener of Oskaloosa; Man,- M., the 
deceased wife of Truman Cooper, of San Jose, 
California, a minister of the Friends church; 
John P.; William P., deceased; Lydia J., the 
widow of Anderson McGrew and a resident 
of Manchester, Iowa; and Elizabeth E., de- 
ceased. 

John P. Hiatt. spending his boyhood davs 
in the usual manner of farm lads, worked in the 
fields through the summer months and attended 
the country schools in the winter seasons. He 
was also a student in the academy at Spiceland, 
Iowa, and he remained upon a farm in Madison 
township until 1879, having purchased land 
there. He engaged in its cultivation and im- 
provement until the year mentioned, when he 
came to Oskaloosa and opened a real-estate, 
loan and brokerage office. He has continued in 
the business to the present time and is prac- 
tically the pioneer in this line in Oskaloosa. 
He owns a farm of two hundred and sixty 
acres in Scott township, also eighty-six acres in 
Harrison township and a business block in Os- 
kaloosa. He likewise owns two residence prop- 
erties on north Third street in addition to his 
home residence and is now a man of wealth, 
having conducted a profitable business and at 
the same time increased his posssessions 
through judicious investments in real estate. 

In 1873 Mr. Hiatt was married to Miss Lou- 
rana E. Elliott, who was born in North Caro- 
lina in 1849, ''"tl is a daughter of Nathan and 
Mary A. Elliott. Her parents, who were of 
English descent, removed to Indiana about 
1854 and were farming people there. They 
were identified with the Friends church. Mr. 
and Mrs. Hiatt have one daughter. Anna, who 
is now attending Penn College in Oskaloosa, 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



231 



and the parents and daugliter .irc all meml)crs 
of the Friends church. Mr. lli.itt exercises 
his right of franchise in support of the men and 
measures of the rcpuiilican party and has held 
various town.ship offices, but has never been a 
politician in the sen.se of office seeking. Pos- 
sessing natural ability ' and developing his la- 
tent powers l)y use, his success in iiis business 
life since coming to Oskaloo.sa has been uniform 
;ind rapid. His close application and his ex- 
cellent management have brought him the de- 
gree t)f pr(jsperitv which he toda\' enjoys. 



HIRAM A. BEAL. 



Hiram A. Real, a retired farmer living in 
New Sharon, was born in Blackford count)-. 
Indiana. May 5, 1850, a son of Hiram and Je- 
rusha ( McDonald) Beal, both of whom were 
natives of Penns\lvania. born in 1873, the 
father on the 3d of July and the mother on the 
lOth of October. One of the great-grand- 
fathers of our subject of the name of Cope came 
from England with A\'illiam Penn and be- 
longed to a family ))rominent in the earlv his- 
tory of the Keystone state. A record of this 
family was prepared some years ago and 
printed. Hiram Beal was married in Ohio to 
Miss Jerusha McDonald and they removed 
from that state to Indiana. When their son 
Hiram was but two years old they became resi- 
dents of Henderson county. Illinois, where thev 
spent two years and in 1854 they arri\ed in Ma- 
haska county, Iowa, which was then a frontier 
district, much of the land still being in po.sses- 
sion of the government. Mr. Real, the father, 
t(K)k up 240 acres of land in I'rairie township 
and made considerable money liy Inning, im- 
proving and selling farms, ow-ning a number of 
different farms in various parts of the countv. 
At one time he traded for a stock of goods in 
Peoria and conducted a store for a .short time. 



He had the postof^ce in his house and was post- 
master for many years, there being n<j other 
office between his home and Oskaloosa at that 
time. His political views were in accord with 
the principles of democracy and he served as 
assessor and trustee of his townshi]) for several 
years. His religious faith was that of the 
Methodist Protestant church. In his family 
were seven children: Rachel, now the deceased 
wife of George W. Ackers, a resident of Adams 
township, this county ; Nicholas, who is living 
in I'rairie township; William, who died in New 
Sharon Init in the meantime liad lived in Ne- 
braska for many years; Sparks R., who is also 
living in Nebraska; Elma, the wife of Robert 
Mitchell, a resident of Madison township, this 
county; Naomi, the wife of James Fisher, of 
I'rairie townshii) ; and Hiram A., who com- 
pletes the family. 

Hiram A. Beal was reared nnfler the parental 
roof u])on the old homestead farm in Prairie 
township and is indebted to the ])ublic-school 
svstem for the educational privileges he 
recei\'ed. He was (piite \oung when brought to 
this count)- but he can remember many .inci- 
dents of interest concerning the early days. 
Although but four years of age at the tinie of 
the removal here he remembers drixing across 
the country from Illinois with teams. Tn those 
early days wild turkeys and deer were numer- 
ous and also snakes and wolves were in the 
coimt)- and it has been onlv a few vears ago 
since Mr. Beal saw- wolves here. Tn one suni- 
mer they killed ten snakes, the shortest of 
which was more than ten feet in length. There 
w-as no railroad at that tinie and the pioneers 
marketed their hogs at Keokuk. The buyer 
would drive the hogs across the county, mak- 
ing further jmrchases along the way and some- 
times would have as many as a thousand in a 
drove. The lumber for the first fratne house 
which Hiram Real. Sr., erected was hauled 
from Muscatine and oxen were used in breaking 
land. The pioneer women si)nn their own \-arn 



232 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and \vo\e their own cloth and tlie men wore 
homespun flannel shirts hoth winter and sum- 
mer. Matches were in use though were ver\- 
high in price and they had to be \ery saving of 
them and often the neighbors would borniw 
fire when out of matches. Kerosene was un- 
known and they made tallow candles and also 
frequently resorted to what was known as the 
"slut light." The first lamp that Mr. Beal of 
this review ever saw was in possession of an 
agent, who was not only selling the lamp but 
also a recipe for making a kind of oil. The 
nearest milling point was the Duncan mill in 
the vicinity of Oskaloosa and there the earlv 
settlers would take their grist to be ground. 
Great changes have come through the passing 
years yet there are many incidents of those 
early days that are remembered with pleasure. 
A warm spirit of hospitality abounded and the 
neighbors were always willing to help one an- 
other in their farm work or in building homes. 
Mr. Beal of this review continued with his 
parents until twenty-five years of age. at which 
time he was married to Laura Clements, who 
was born in Van Buren county, Iowa. Mav i, 
1858. He had previously purchased eightv 
acres of improved land and tlie young cnuple 
began their domestic life thereon but after one 
summer spent there Mr. Beal sold his propertv 
and bought a farm of one hundred acres. Dur- 
ing the first ten years of his married life he 
moved twelve times, buying and selling prop- 
erty and often making as much or more than he 
could have done by settling down and farnn'ug 
one place. About twenty years ago, however. 
he purchased a farm of one hundred and sixt-\' 
acres, partly lying in Richland township and 
partly in Prairie to\\nship. There he lived for 
seventeen years, developing an excellent farm 
which was very productive and well improved. 
Three years ago. however, he sold that prop- 
erty and took up his abode in New Sharon, pur- 
chasing the house of Jacob \\'atland on West 
Market street. Here he has since lived retired. 



enjoying a rest which is trul}- earned and richly 
deserved. Since taking up his abode in the 
town he has purchased two farms, one in Union 
township, and one in Prairie township, and he 
also owns twenty-two acres within the city 
limits. He bought one hundred and fifty-four 
acres in Prairie township and another tract of 
fifteen acres adjoining. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Beal have been born four 
children and the family circle yet remains un- 
broken liy the hand of death. These are Es- 
tella. now the wife of Ezra Gable, a resident 
farmer of Union township, by whom she has 
one child now eight years of age: Sparks R., 
who is living upon a farm in Union township, 
which he purchased from his father; Burt, who 
is living on his father's farm in Prairie town- 
ship; and Leslie, who resides on another of our 
subject's farms in Prairie township. 

Mr. Beal was formerly a democrat but now 
gives his political allegiance to the prohibition 
party, while he and his wife are members of the 
h'riends church. He is of rather reserved na- 
ture but of genuine personal worth and those 
who meet him socially entertain for him the 
warmest regard. He has gained many friends 
during his residence in the countv. which 
covers a period of more than a half centurv. 



JOHN ARNOLD. 

John .\rnold is the owner of a valual)le farm 
of two hundred and fifteen acres on section 15, 
Harrison township. His birth occurred in Ed- 
dy\-ille. Iowa. January 1. 1858, his father being 
Da\i(l Arnold, who is represented elsewhere in 
this \olume. Upon the old homestead farm in 
Harrison township, Mahaska county. John 
Arnold was reared, while his education was ac- 
quired in the common schools. He remained 
with his fatlier until his marriage, which was 
celebrated in Wapello county, November 7. 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



235 



1SS3. the lady nf his clioice Ijeing Miss I'Morence 
^assiiiifer, wlm was Irorn and reared in \Va- 
)ellii (.iiunty. completing her education in the 
ligii schciiil at Eddyville. Slie is a daugiiter of 
acnh Hassinger. a native of Germany, one of 
he early settlers of Iowa, who took np his 
bode in Wapello county in 1847. He was a 
imminent anfl well-to-do farmer, who reared 
lis famih- and spent his remaining davs in that 
(Uinty, his death oeeiuTing there in Mav, i8g8. 
-lis widow still surxives him and now makes 
ler home with her daughter. Mrs. Arnold. Mrs. 
iassinger is a native of Kentucky and in her 
naidenho<i(I was a Miss Morgan. Her girl- 
lood days were jias.sed in Iowa, so that she has 
low lieen a resident of this state for sixtv vern"s. 

I'dllowing his marriage Mr. .\rnold located 
n Harrison township, and in 1885, took up his 
bode at his present home, where he has erected 

good, neat two story dwelling and two good 
iarn>~. lie has also fenced his ]>lace and has 
bus dnided it intn fields of convenient size, 
le has also set (lut an orchard and has three 
lundred select fruit trees. He planted a pine 
;ro\e and other (irnamental trees, which add 
;re:itly to the value anti attractive appearance 
if liis place and his farm siiows everv evidence 
if careful supervision and practical methods. 
Into Mr. and Mrs. .\rniild has been Imrn a 
on, I^loyd H., a young man now at home. 
"he\' have also reared an adopted daughter, 
)oriitby Jeanette .\rnold, who liecame a mem- 
er of the household when Init four weeks old, 
ibe received as a ])rize at the Farmers Insti- 
Lite. January 16, 1906, a large, fine lamj), win- 
ling this in the oratorical contest. 

Piilitically I\lr. .\rnold is a stanch republican, 
ihii has voted with the party since casting his 
rst presidential ballot for General Garfield. He 
las never .sought or desired office, giving his 
ime to bis farm and business interests. He and 
is wife are members of the Methodist Episco- 
lal clnucb, and Mr. Arnold is one of the trus- 
ees. Thev ha\e both been residents of this 



])art nf the slate thnmgbout their entire lives 
and ba\e thus seen much of its growth and de- 
\elnpmeiit. Mr. .\rnold ha\-ing broken, cleared 
and developed considerable land, so that he has 
contributed to the general jirogress of the 
county. He is a successful farmer and business 
man, held in genuine esteem, and both he and 
bis wife have many friends who greatly enjoy 
the hospitality of their home. 



CH.\RLES S. W.\l,ldX(;. 

Charles S. Walling, one of the stockholders 
in the Oskaloosa Herald Company and manager 
of the paper since 1905. was Ijorn December 6, 
1868, in this city, his parents being Hemy and 
Mary J. Walling, the former a brick mason by 
trade. Educated in the public schools be passed 
through successive grades until be completed 
the high school course by graduation in the 
class of 1885, Two weeks later at the solicita- 
lion of the sui>erintendent and editor of the 
Herald be entered the oflice and has since lieen 
connected with the Herald. For ten years he 
had charge of the job department and was 
made advertising solicitor in i()02. He then 
purchased an interest in the business and be- 
came manager in 1905. The paper was incor- 
porated in that year and Mr. Walling serves as 
manager of the business department for both 
the weekly and daily editions. 

For five years Mr. Walling was a member of 
Company F, of the Third KegimetU of Towa 
National Guards, and resigned after having 
been elected cajitain from the position of first 
sergeant. In 1895 'le joined the Iowa Brigade 
Band and while connected therewith plaved 
several instruments. In igoo he was elected 
manager and has continued as such to the pres- 
ent time although he does not now plav with 
the band. Mr. Walling was married June 28. 
1894, in Oskaloosa, to Miss Marv Knight, who 



236 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



was born near this city. Her father was a sol- 
dier in the Thirty-third Iowa Regiment. In 
their family are three daughters and a son, 
Ivyl, Arthur, Meda and Josephine. 



MATTHEW DAWSOX GILCHRIST. 

Matthew Dawson Gilchrist, the organizer 
and the senior partner of the hardware house 
of the M. D. Gilchrist Company, is a native of 
Fayette county, Pennsylvania, bom in 1853 
and is of Scotch-Irish descent. His father. 
Matthew D. Gilchrist, was born in Fayette 
county, Pennsylvania, and was a farmer by oc- 
cupation, following that pursuit until after the 
outbreak of the Civil war, when, in 1862, he 
responded to the call for aid, enlisting at Oska- 
loosa, as a member of Company K, Thirty- 
third Iowa Infantry, with which he ser\ed until 
killed at the Ixittle of Helena, Arkansas, on the 
4th of July, 1863, when forty-five years of age. 
He had come to Iowa in 1856 and had settled 
in Oskaloosa. He was a member of the 
United Presbyterian church and was a sup- 
porter of the republican party. He married 
Parthenia McDonald, who was born in l<"ayette 
county, Pennsylvania, and was of Scotch line- 
age. She, too, held membership in the United 
Presbyterian church and her death occurred in 
1877, when she was fifty-seven years of age. 
Both she and her husband were held in the 
highest regard, possessing many excellent traits 
of heart and mind. In their family were ten 
children, six of whom reached adult age, 
namely: Alary P.; Malcolm M., who is edi- 
tor of the Sun-Times at Morgan Hill, Califor- 
nia : John, a dealer in granite and marble at 
Clarinda, Iowa; Parthenia K., the widow of C. 
J. Jackson, who was a farmer of Rose Hill, 
Iowa; Matthew D., of this review; and Harry 
C. who died in 1891. 

Matthew D. Gilchrist acquired his early edu- 
cation in the district schools of Spring Creek 



township, Mahaska county, and afterward be- 
came a public-school student in Oskaloosa, pur- 
suing his studies until he had mastered the 
high-school course. He afterward worked on a 
farm by the month for about five years, when, 
thinking that he might more readily attain suc- 
cess in a commercial life, he entered the gro- 
cery house of S. J. Dutton, of Oskaloosa, as a 
clerk, remaining in his employ for five years. 
On the expiration of that period he became a 
salesman in the dry-goods and clothing store of 
Boyer & Barnes, with whom he continued for 
five years. He afterward spent four years in 
the county treasurer's office as deputy under 
Captain J. H. Warren, after which he was 
called to the office of county treasurer by popu- 
lar suffrage, and filled the position for three 
terms or from 1884 until 1890. He then clerked 
in the hardware store of Paul & McPherrin and 
in 1893 he bought out the hardware business of 
Frank C. Lofland, since which time he has been 
connected with this line of trade. When he 
purchased the present establishment the firm 
name was F. C. Lofland & Company, Frank 
Huber having an interest in the business. Air. 
(iilchrist purchased the Lofland interest and the 
firm name is n.mv the AI. D. Gilchrist Company. 
.A. large and well selected line of both shelf and 
heavy hardware is carried, and a liberal patrmi- 
age is enjciyed, for the partners of the house 
command the continued support of the public, 
while the earnest desire of the proprietors to 
please their patrons insures a continuation of 
trade. 

In 1877 Air. Gilchrist was married to Aliss 
Laura P. Barr. who was born in Alahaska 
cnuntv, Iowa, in 1855, a daughter of Alfred 
and Alaria Barr. He was one of the pioneer 
farmers of the countv. coming from Indiana in 
1854 and .settling in .Adams township. He was 
originally, however, from Ohio. 

Air. Gilchrist exercises his right of franchise 
in support of the men and measures of the re- 
publican party and fraternally he is connected 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



237 



in his business career, which lias Ijcen marked 
hv earnest puqwse and close application. Each 
with the Masfjns. There is no element of cliance 
step has l)een carefully and thougiitfully mafle. 
From a humble position nf a fami hand lie has 
steadily worked his way upward, realizing that 
earnest purpose and indefatigable energy can 
overcome many difficulties and obstacles and 
will eventually win success. 



W'l 



lA.M LAFFERTY KISSICK. 



William I^afferty Kissick is a retired farmer 
of Oskaloosa. whose income is largely received 
from the coal interests which he owns. He 
was horn in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, on 
January 27, 1841, and is descended from Irish 
ancestry. His father. Thomas Kissick, was "born 
in Ireland. Marcii 8, 1807, and came to the 
United States when seventeen years of age with 
his parents. Robert and Sarah (Rankin) Kis- 
sick, and his three sisters, the family locating 
first in I'ittsburg, Pennsylvania. The grandfa- 
ther was a linen weaver antl farmer and Thomas 
Kissick foUoweil the same pursuit in Ireland. 
After coming to America he worked in a foun- 
dry at I'ittsburg, but as times became hard and 
many industries were shut down, he began 
work as a farm hand in Columbiana county. 
Ohio. Soon. howe\er, he returned to Pittsburg 
and later went to Mercer county, Pennsylvania, 
and bought a farm, and it was while residing 
there that he was married. His life was up- 
right and honorable, in consistent harmony w ith 
his professions as a member of, the Congrega- 
tional church. Strongly opposed to the institu- 
tion of slavery he became an abolitionist in ante- 
bellum days, and afterward joined the ranks of 
the new republican party, which was formed to 
prevent the further extension of slaver\-. He 
died September i, 1869, having lived to see the 
emancipation of the black race. His wife, who 



bore the maiden name of Mary Ann Lafiferty, 
was born in Pennsylvania, September 26, 1820, 
and was of Irish parentage. She, too, held mem- 
bership in the C-ongregationrd church and her 
death occurred Septemlicr 23, i8f)o. In the 
famil\- of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Kissick were 
eight children: William L. ; Robert; Lucetta 
Jane, the first wife of Dr. X. R. Hook, of Os- 
kaloosa: Araminta, the widow of William Wil- 
,son. who was a Congregational minister at Ton- 
ica. Illinois, and was lost in a snowstorm in. 
W'yoming about ten years ago; John L., a con- 
ductor, residing at Laramie. W3'oming; Flor- 
ence, the second wife of Dr. X. R. Hook, of 
Oskaloosa; George L., a merchant of Albia, 
Iowa; and James L., who died December i. 
1889. ;it the age of thirty years. 

\\'illiam L. Kissick w'as a public-school stu- 
dent in Pennsylvania and was reared upon a 
farm, where he remained until eighteen years 
of age. His parents renio\ed to Iowa in 1859. 
settling upon a farm in Garfield township. Ma- 
haska count}', where both died. He remained 
with them upon this farm until he had attained 
his majorit) . when he enlisted for ser\ice in the 
Civil war at Oskaloosa. becoming a member of 
Company C. Sixteenth Iowa \'olunteer Infan- 
try, lie served under General Grant at \'icks- 
burg. and under General Sherman, with whom 
he went on the celebrated march to the sea. He 
continued with the army for three years and 
eight months, and was mustered out at Louis- 
ville. Kentucky. July 19, 1865. He joined the 
regiment as a private and was successively pro- 
moted to the ranks of corporal, third sergeant. 
second lieutenant, first lieutenant and finally be- 
came captain of the company in which he en- 
listed. His first enlistment was for three years 
and on the expiration of that temi he veteran- 
ized on the 4th of January. 1864. at Vicksburg, 
Missi.ssippi. and in A])ril. of that year, was 
given a thirty-days" furlough. After spending- 
that time at home he returned to the front. The 
first engagement in which he participated was 



-\v^ 



PAST .\Xn PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUXTY. 



the battle nf SliiKili, April d and 7. 1862. fol- 
Inwed li\- luka, September 19. i86j, Corinth. 
October ,, ami 4. 1862, and the siege of \'icks- 
burg in May and June, 1863. He was in the 
Atlanta campaign under Sherman and w as cap- 
tured at the battle of Atlanta July 22. i8()4. and 
taken to Andersonville prison. Avhere Cajitnin 
Kissick remained in the stockade for two 
months but was exchanged in time to march 
with Sherman from .Atlanta to the sea, which 
inarch proved that the Confederacy was like an 
empty shell, the men having been drawn from 
the interior to defend the Ixirder. He suffered 
manv privations of southern prison life at An- 
dersonville and remembers that the last meal 
provided him there was of raw conuneal. After 
rejoining his regiment he had command of his 
compau}'. lie was twice struck by spent balls 
bin was not crippled. That he displayed meri- 
torious conduct upon the held was shown by the 
fact that he won promotion from time to time 
until he became captain of his company. 

When the war was over Captain Kissick re- 
tiuMied to Oskaloosa. where he engaged in the 
grocery business with E. W. Hull, an uncle, 
continuing in tiiat line of trade for two years. 
He then returned to farm life and finally ]iur- 
chased the homestead ])lace in Garfield town- 
ship, where he remained until 1903. when he 
sold the farm but reserved valuable coal rights. 
The coal is now being mined and grades high 
and from this Captain Kissiok receives a good 
income. The mine is being worked by the P>oI- 
ton-Hoover Coal Company, of O.skaloosa. 

On the 9th of August. 1865. Captain Kissick 
was married to Miss Mary E. Hook, who was 
born in Guernsey county, Ohio, and died Janu- 
ary 3. 1881. In the family were two children: 
Cora ]\[.. now the wife of O. R. Jones, a 
wealthv farmer and stock-raiser of Fairbury. 
Nebraska, liv whom she has seven children : and 
Lulu O.. who married W. R. Thomas, a farmer 
und stock-raiser who is hving in .\udubon 
countv. Iowa. Captain Kissick married his 



])resent wife. Sarah E. Kent. March (>, 1883. 
She was born in Noble county. Ohio, in 1832. 
and was a farmer's daughter. By this mar- 
riage there have been bom three children : Em- 
il\-. now a student in Penn College: Alary, who 
is engaged in teaching: and William Perry, at 
school. 

The parents are members of the Reformed 
cinuvh. and Captain Kissick belongs to the 
(irand .\rmy of the Republic, and gives his po- 
litical support to the republican party. He is 
now connected with no active business inter- 
ests but lias an excellent income from his C(ial 
mines. He made a splendid record as a soldier, 
and has been ecjually loyal in citizenship in 
times of peace. His business record, too, 
although marked by no startling events, has 
been characterized by the steady progress which 
exentually reaches the objecti\-e point, and he is 
now one of the men of affluence in the countv. 



THOMAS RRIGGS. 



New Sharon is an attractive ha\en to many 
retired fanners, who after long and close con- 
nection with agricultural interests are now en- 
joying well earned rest, having acc[uired 
through earnest and indefatigable labor the 
competence that enables theni to put aside fur- 
ther cares and spend the evening of life in hon- 
orable retirement. To this class belongs Mr. 
Briggs and his genuine personal worth and up- 
right life ha\-e made hiiu a reiiresentati\e citi- 
zen to his community. He was born in Bel- 
mont county. Ohio. February 4. 1837, a son of 
William and Jane (Romans) Briggs, the 
foriuer a native of Ohio and the latter of 
Pennsylvania. He is a great-grandson of Is- 
rael Shreeve. who was a colonel of the Revolu- 
tionar\- war. His maternal grandparents were 
from Holland and his paternal grandparents 
from Scotland. In Holland there is a fortune 




MR. AXI) MRS. 'I"ll( )M,\S P-RKiCS. 



FAST A.\D I'RESKXr OJ- MAHASKA COfXTV. 



^41 



of sixty million dollars to which Mr. Biiggs is 
ritjhtfiillv one of the heirs, but they lia\e never 
heeii able to prove their claim, and there is also 
an estate in Scotland, a portion of whicli slinulcl 
come into Iiis possession. William l'>ri.t,',<,'s and 
Jane Romans were married in Ohio and the lat- 
ter died in that state during the early boyhood 
(lavs (if her sun Thomas. The father afterward 
married again, his second wife t)eing Hannah 
Krew. wiio was born in \'irginia, and fdllow- 
ing her death he wedded Rachel Kirk. 1 le was 
a farmer by occupation and owned and occu- 
l)ied a farm in Belmont county, Ohio, where he 
made his home until 1868. when he disposed 
of his |)roperty there and came to Mahaska 
county. Here he purchased a farm in Uninn 
township, whereon he made his home until his 
death, which occurred when he was sixty-three 
years of age. In his family bom of his hr.st 
marriage there were four children : Mary, now 
the wife of Miflin Ong, living with her son in 
North Dakota ; Thomas, of this re\iew ; Evan, 
who resides on a farm in Prairie township; and 
Jordan, who died at the age of two years. One 
.son, Elwood R.. born of the second marriage, 
is living in Oberlin, Kansas. 

Thomas Briggs remained with his parents 
during the period of his minority, and in early 
life he attended a district school held in a log 
building, but later Ijecame a student in a clas- 
sical school, which was superior to the district 
school, for the members of the Society of 
Friends believed in gi\ing their children good 
educational privileges and provided them with 
a comfjetent teacher and a good school building. 
.\t the age of twenty-one years he went to work 
on a farm by the month, being thus employed 
for one season. Elis father then purchasetl more 
land, and Mr. Briggs of this review worked 
tiis father's land for a year. Tlie father then 
sold out and came to Iowa, while our subject 
continued to cultivate a rented farm for two 
years. In the meantime he sent money to his 
father to buy land for him and in 1871 he came 



to .Maha.ska county, settling on a tract of land 
(jf seventy acres, which the father had pre- 
viously purchased for him. This was but par- 
tiallv iin]>roved. There was a small log house 
uiJun it and a prairie stable, and he lived in 
the little log cabin home for several years. 

He then purchased another farm of eighty 
acres, upon which he built a good frame liarn 
and later a house. He now owns two hundred 
and forty acres of rich and productive land on 
sectiofis 28 and _'(j, L'nion township, and there 
were two good houses ujxin this farm, which 
are now occupied by his son and son-in-law. 
i-~or many years he carried on the work of the 
lields and annually gathered good crops, but in 
October, 1905, he left the farm and jiurchased 
a nice home in Xew Sharon, where he is now 
lixing retired. 

On the 3d of October, 1868, Mr. Briggs was 
married to Miss Margaret E. Spear, who was 
born in Guernsey county, Ohio, February 10, 
1S4J, her ])arents being John and Elizabeth 
(Meek) Spear. The father was born in Scot- 
land and died in Jefferson county, Ohio, at the 
age oi ninety-five years. He was a wheel- 
wright by trade, and always followed that pur- 
suit. His wife, a native of Ohio, died in Guern- 
sey county, that state, at the advanced age of 
eighty-five years. In their family were twelve 
children, five of whom are living, four being 
residents of Ohio. Unto him and Mrs. Briggs 
ha\-e been born eleven children: Estella J., the 
wife of G. \y. Baker, a railroad conductor, of 
California, by whom she has four children; Dil- 
win H.. a carpenter of Whittier, California, 
who married Dora Castor, of Iowa: Albert A., 
who is residing on his father's farm and he mai'- 
ried Sadie Branson, by whom he has three chil- 
dren; Carrie E., the wife of Rastus Shadley, 
who is working for her brother, Albert, and by 
whom she has one child; Eldon T., of Rudd. 
Iowa, who married Jessie Roundie and has one 
child ; Cora, who died of scarlet fever when ten 
years of age; Carl Lewis, a barber, of Chicago. 



-'4^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



who married Isa Graham and has one child; 
Mary Edith, the wife of W. F. Orr, living in 
Lacey, Mahaska county ; Clifford, who died at 
the age of five years; Hattie M. D., at home; 
and William, who died at the age of two years. 
Mr. Briggs has always been a stanch advo- 
cate of republican principles. He has held 
school offices but would accept no other posi- 
tions of a public nature. He is a brithright 
Friend, and both he and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Friends church, and are faithful 
Christian people and earnest students of the 
Bible. In former years he found one of his 
principal sources of recreation in hunting prai- 
rie chickens and often came in with ten at a 
time, while on one occasion he killed five at a 
single shot. Wolves were numerous in those 
days and there are still some in the woods to 
the north. Through many years he gave his 
attention largely to farm labor and his enter- 
prise and diligence brought him the success 
which enables him to live retired in the enjoy- 
ment of the fruits of his former toil. 



WILLIAM N. HOOVER. 

William N. Hoover was born in Jefferson 
county, Iowa, August 2, 1842, and died in Os- 
kaloosa, October 16, 1900, at which time the 
community mourned the loss of a representa- 
tive and valued citizen. He was of German de- 
scent and a son of Jonas and Mary Hoover, 
who came to Iowa at an early day in the de- 
velopment of this state, the father following the 
occupation of farming here. 

William N. Hoover obtained a common- 
school education and in his youth worked at 
farm labor. He also became a mechanic, pos- 
sessing much natural ingenuity and skill in that 
direction. He also engaged in prospecting for 
coal and as a promoter of the coal industrv of 
the state gained a very gratifying competence. 



About 1875 he established a distillery upon his 
farm and in connection with this operated a 
grist mill, conducting the business for some 
time, having the only distillery of the kind in 
Iowa. He possessed excellent business capacity 
and enterprise and won more than an ordinary 
measure of prosperity. 

On the nth of May, 1864, Mr. Hoover was 
married to Miss Mary J. Whittaker, who was 
born in Spring Creek township, this county, 
September 7, 1843, a daughter of Samuel L. 
Whittaker of McLean county, Illinois, who was 
of Scotch and German ancestry. Her father 
came to Iowa about 1840, settling in Mahaska 
county among the Indians. He took up a claim 
and became prosperous, devoting his attention 
to general agricultural pursuits until his death, 
which occurred in 1852, when he was but 
thirtv-seven years of age. He lived an honora- 
ble and upright life in consistent harmony with 
his professions as a member of the Christian 
church. He married Jane Parker, of Indiana, 
who was of Scotch and English descent and 
was also a member of the Christian church. 
They became the parents of six children, of 
whom Mrs. Hoover was th'e third in order of 
birth. The mother died in 1898, at the age of 
eighty years. LTnto Mr. and Mrs. Hoover 
were born two children. Perry H., the elder, 
born in 1865 and now following farming in 
Spring Creek township, married Mollie Rob- 
erts and has two children. Elsie B. and Alvin, 
aged respectively twelve and four years. 
Charles A.Hoover, born in 1867, is the younger 
son. The boys attended the country schools 
and also Penn College, after which they worked 
upon the home farm. 

Mr. Hoover continued actively in business up 
to the time of his death. He was highly es- 
teemed by his neighbors and friends and was a 
loving husband, a kind and indulgent father. In 
manner he was very unostentatious and unas- 
suming but yet he did benevolent acts and was 
generous to a fault, though he never cared to let 



PAST AND I'RKSENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



243 



liis left liand know what the right hand had 
«li>ne. He was a valued member of the Society 
of Friends and he leaned toward democracy. A 
gentleman of good personal appearance, he was 
\ cr\- energetic in his business affairs and what- 
c\er he undertook carried forward to success- 
ful completion. Mrs. Hoover is also a member 
of the Society of Friends and the sons have ;. 
liirthri.<,dit in the organization. 



ALBERTIS F. NORTON. 

Albertis P. Norton, owner and publisher of 
the Fremont Gazette, was born near Koszta. 
Iowa, .-\ugust 29, 1867. his parents being Ed- 
ward H. and Medora (Richardson) Norton, 
the latter a daughter of John M. Richardson, 
who is now living at the age of eighty-nine 
vears. Edward H. Norton was born in the 
state of New York in 18.1:5 ^"'' came to Iowa 
with his parents in 1852. His wife was born 
in the same state in 1847 ^"<^1 came to Iowa 
with her parents in 1853. Both have since 
been continuous residents of Iowa county, this 
state, and Mr. Norton has followed the occupa- 
tion of farming as a life work. When their son 
Albertis was but seven years of age they re- 
moved from the farm near Koszta to Marengo, 
Iowa, where Edward H. Norton entered the 
draying business, in which he continued until 
1898, when he had accumulated enough means 
to purchase a farm. He then invested in prop- 
erty and now resides in peace and contentment 
upon his farm alxiut four and a half miles 
south of Ladora and twelve miles from yia- 
rengo, the county seat of Iowa county. Unto 
him and his wife have been born four children. 
The eldest son. Theren L. Norton, died in 
Washington, D. C. in 1894. He was a printer 
by trade and was working in the government 
printing office at the time of his death. .Al- 
bertis P. is the second of the family. John .\. 



Norton is a carpenter of Marengo, Iowa, and 
Lettie Norton was married in 1904 to George P. 
Byrne, a resident of Genoa Bluff, this state. 

.\. P. Norton of this review pursued his edu- 
cation in the public schools of Marengo. Iowa, 
passing through the grannnar grades, but never 
entering the high school, as he put aside his 
text-books in order to help earn a living for the 
family. He was a boy of steady habits, willing 
to work, and when but twelve years of age he 
accepted a position as carder in tlie woolen mills 
of Scheuerman Brothers. This was in July, 
1879. He continued with that firm until after 
their removal to Des Moines. Iowa, in April, 
1882, going with them to that city, where he re- 
mained until the fall of the same year, when he 
returned to Marengo and spent the winter 
months in school. In the spring of 1883 he be- 
gan work in a grocery store, where he was em- 
ploved until the following October, when he 
gave up the position and again entered school, 
working nights, mornings and Saturdays in a 
printing ofifice, while on the other week days he 
pursued his studies. In the spring of 1884 he 
accepted a position with the Marengo Democrat 
and in June. 1885, was made foreman of that 
office, a position which he held until July i, 
1902. He then purchased the Fremont Gazette 
and has since conducted the paper, which under 
his management has grown in circulation and 
has been placed upon a paying basis, being now 
one of the official papers of Mahaska county. 
It is the only paper published in Fremont and 
is independent in politics. In his personal views. 
however. Mr. Norton is a stalward republican, 
adhering closely to the political faith of his 
forefathers, all of whom were ardent advocates 
of the principles embodied in the republican 
platform. 

Mr. Norton was married January 7. 1897. at 
the Episcopal parsonage in Iowa City. Iowa, to 
Miss Flora M. Wilson, whose father. D. H. 
Wilson, was a prominent attorney in Marengo, 
Iowa, and was also a veteran of the Civil war. 



244 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



At the time of lier marriage she was a stenog- 
rapher in her father's office. Her grandparents. 
Mr. and Mrs. Lewis F. \\'ilson, were among 
the first settlers of Iowa county, having located 
there in 1846. Lewis F. Wilson was one of 
the first commissioners of the county, helped to 
lay out the tow^n of Marengo and was closely 
associated with the work of public progress and 
development. He li\ed to be about ninety years 
of age. George Beardshear. the maternal 
grandfather of Mrs. Norton, was also an early 
settler of the county and aided in laying out the 
town of Marengo. Mr. and Mrs. Norton have 
but one child. Alarcia Leola Norton, who was 
born January 27. 1901. 

Mr. Norton, in the spring of i88g, joined 
Marengo lodge, No. 30, K. P.. was elected 
chancellor commander in July, 1890, and was 
chosen representative to the grand lodge in July, 
1891. He has since attended every session of 
that body as representative or member of some 
committee except the session of 1904. He 
withdrew from Marengo lodge in February. 
1905, and joined Fremont lodge. No. 417. 
K. P., at its institution and was made chancel- 
lor commander. At the expiration of the term. 
January i, 1906, he was elected keeper of the 
records and seal and while connected with Ma- 
rengo lodge he filled that office for ten years. 
He joined Eastern Star lodge, A. F. & A. M., 
and the Woodmen camp in Fremont in 1903. 
and he is a representative to the Knights of 
Pythias grand lodge for the session of 1906. 



JOHN CAMBRLA WILLL^MS. 

Hon. John Cambria Williams, attorney at 
law and mayor of Oskaloosa, whose personal 
popularity is shown by his re-election to his 
present position in a republican city, while he 
is a stalwart advocate of the democracy, has in 
his public life demonstrated a breadth of vision 



and a singleness of purpose that are above par- 
tisanship, while personal advancement is ever 
made subservient to the g-eneral good. His life 
record began in Naperville, Illinois, in 1851. 

His father, Robert Williams, born in Wales. 
came to the United States in 1850, settling in 
DuPage county, Illinois, while soon afterward 
he removed to McHenry county, making his 
liduie near Woodstock, where he purchased a 
farm, upon which he spent his remaining days, 
his death occurring in 1873, when he was 
seventy-eight years of age. He was a coninui- 
nicant of the Episcopal church and in his politi- 
cal views was a republican. He married Har- 
riet Parry, who was born in Wales in 1809 and 
died in 1868. They were married in Wales 
and like her liusband, Mrs. Williams was a 
devoted Episcopalian. Unto them were bona 
three children, but two died in the little ruck- 
ribljed country from whence the parents came 
to the new world. 

John C. W'illiams was a student in the com- 
mon schools of Illinois and was graduated 
from Penn College in 1877. He taught school 
for a time and was elected county superintend- 
ent of schools in 187/. filling the position for 
one term. He had come to Oskaloosa in 187J. 
and after devoting the succeeding eight years 
to educational work, he entered upon the study 
of law in 1880 in the office of Bolton & ^IcC(iy. 
with wh(~im he read for two years, being admit- 
ted to the bar in 1882. Prior to coming to 
Iowa he had engaged in the manufacture of 
cheese and in Oskaloosa he established the first 
cheese factory in Mahaska county, but after his 
admission to the bar he concentrated his ener- 
gies and efforts upon the practice of law and 
has since been a successful and able member of 
the Oskaloosa bar. He first entered into part- 
nership with Judge L. C. Blanchard, the rela- 
tionship continuing for two years, and for four 
years he was in partnership with W. R. Nelson, 
but for the past fifteen vears he has practiced 
alone. He prepared his cases with care and 




JOIIX C. WILLIAMS. 



PAST A-XD 1 'RESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



247 



precision, presents his cause with force, his de- 
dnctions following in logical se<|uence so that 
the trend of his reasoning is clear and he sel- 
dom fails to win the venlict desired. 

In 1878 Mr. Williams was married to Miss 
IJllian Boyce, who was Ixirn in Salem, Iowa, 
in 1859, a daughter of Titus and Lydia C. 
(Dorland) Boyce, the father one of the pioneer 
farmers of Menry county, Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. 
Williams had two daughters and a son but the 
.laughters, Bertha Harriett and I IcKmi Louise, 
are both deceased. The surviving child is \\ al- 
ter R. Both Mr. and Mrs. Williams are mem- 
bers of the Episcopal church and Mr. Williams 
belongs to the Masonic fraternity, the Benevo- 
lent and Protective Order of Elks and the 
Knights of Pythias lodge. In politics he is a 
democrat, earnest and stalwart in defense of 
the party :ind its principles. Various political 
honors have been conferred upon hiin and the 
duties therebv devolving upon him have been 
ably discharged, lie was county superintend- 
ent of schools for one term, city solicitor for 
three terms and is now serving for the second 
term as mayor of Oskaloosa, giving to the city 
a public-spirited, practical and progressive ad- 
ministration. He has made a close study of its 
needs and possibilities and has met the one and 
taken advantage of the other to promote the 
city's substantial development. He is also a 
member of the ])ublic library board and a 
member of the bornvl of the Commercial Club, 
which draws its meniljership from the best class 
of citizens of Oskaloosa. men who are banded 
together to advance the city's welfare along 
lines of general improvement. Twice he has 
received the nomination of his party for dis- 
trict judge and the fact that the republican ma- 
jority is normally from five to six thousand 
and that he was beaten the first time by only one 
hundred and twenty-eight votes and the second 
time by five hundred votes, thus running far 
ahead of his ticket, indicates his personal popu- 
larity and the esteem in which he is held in this 
13 



section of Iowa. He is interested in all those 
affairs which are a matter of civic pride and 
be stands for opposition to misrule in municipal 
government and embodies in his public w'ork a 
rare and happy combination of the idealist and 
the practical reformer. 



HENRY S. ROSECRANS. 

Henry S. Rosecrans, a representative of 
journalism in Oskaloosa and a factor in demo- 
cratic circles in Mahaska county, was born on a 
farm four miles northeast of W'ashington.Iowa, 
October 18. 1867. his parents being Henry and 
Elizabeth (Dickey) Rosecrans, both of whom 
were nati\es of Licking county, Ohio. The fa- 
ther was a farmer by occupation and in 1849 
came to Iowa, settling upon a tract of land of 
two hundred and ninety acres in Washington 
count\-. The same year he went to California 
and succeeded in getti»g some gold. Two years 
later he returned to Washington county, Iowa, 
and he afterward sold his farm and removed 
to Keokuk county, giving his attention to the 
milling business in Sigourney for eight years. 
He afterward carried on merchandising in 
Whatcheer during the latter part of his busi- 
ness career, and he died January 21, 1904. at 
the age of seventy-nine years. He was a brother 
of General W. S. Rosecrans of national mili- 
tary fame, and of Bishop S. H. Rosecrans, of 
Columbus, Ohio. 

Henry S. Rosecrans of this review^ was one 
of a family of four children, all of whom are 
living, the others being Menza, the wife of 
Richard Burke, of Oskaloo.sa ; A. D., who is 
living in Globe, .\rizona; and W. J., of Hock- 
ing, Iowa. 

Henry S. Rosecrans acquired his early edu- 
cation in the public schools of Keokuk, Iowa, 
and in the high school and academy at Wash- 
ington. He began learning the printer's trade 



348 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



in the office of the Sigourney Review, at Si- 
gourney, Iowa, of which W'. R. Holhngsworth 
was editor. He continued there for eight years 
and then went to Whatcheer, where he was 
connected with the mechanical department of 
the Reporter. In 1897 he came to Oskaloosa 
and took charge of the mechanical department 
of the Oskaloosa Times, with which he has 
since been connected, becoming editor and one 
of the proprietors on the ist of August, 1905, 
under the firm style of Lemley & Rosecrans, 
his partner being C. E. Lanley. The Times 
was established Ijy J. E. Seevers in 1885 and 
has always been a democratic paper, being the 
principal organ of the party in Alahaska county. 
Since coming under its present manager the 
Times has made substantial and gratifying ad- 
vancement and has been a leading and impor- 
tant factor in shaping the democratic policy in 
Mahaska county. 

On the nth of June, 1890, Mr. Rosecrans 
was married to Miss Grace M. Borland, a 
daughter of J. C. and Lydia (Hand) Borland, 
of Chicago. Fraternally he is connected with 
the ^lodern Woodmen of .\merica. Without 
special advantages in his youth his advancement 
in the newspaper field has come in recognition 
of his ability, fidelity and a thorough under- 
standing of the business, and while capably 
managing the financial interests of his paper 
he at the same time gives to the public a bright 
and entertaining journal devoted to the dissemi- 
nation of local and general news as well as to 
political principles and beliefs. 



WILLIAM BURNSIDE. 

William Bumside, of Oskaloosa, is president 
of the Hawkeye Lumber Company, owning and 
operating eighteen yards in the state. He is a 
native of Guernsey county, Ohio, born in 1842. 
His father. James Burnside, was the son of 



William and Margaret Burnside, who, emigrat- 
ing from Ireland, settled near Londonderry, 
Guernsey county, Ohio, where the father fol- 
lowed the occupation of farming. James Burn- 
side was given good school advantages and en- 
gaged in teaching for several years in his early 
manhood. In 1845 he moved with his family to 
Keokuk county, Iowa, going via the Ohio and 
Mississippi rivers to Keokuk, and the rest of 
the way overland by team. The family passed 
through the trials of the pioneers in this state, 
having to build their own log house after reach- 
ing their destination, and to split rails for all 
fencing that was done. The father died in the 
following February at the age of thirty-five, 
leaving the wife and four children, the eldest a 
girl of eight years. In the face of entreaties 
on the part of relatives to have her return to 
Ohio and her friends. Mrs. Burnside decided to 
take up the battle for existence and the raising 
of her family, single-handed in the new coun- 
tr\-. Enduring the most severe privations and 
hardships because of straitened financial cir- 
cumstances as well as the peculiar trials inci- 
flent to pioneer life, she succeeded not only in 
o-iving each of hei^ children a good common- 
school education, but in bringing them up 
along the very strict religious lines which had 
been followed by her Scotch-Irish ancestors. 
She was one of thirteen children of Robert 
Wilkin who was one of Ohio's Scotch-Irish 
pioneer farmers. She died in 1865. at the age 
of fifty-three. Her strong character and the 
heroic way in which she uncomplainingly met 
the task of raising her four small children in 
this new country, under such trying conditions, 
made a lasting iinpression on them, and had a 
verv large bearing on their lives. 

William Bumside attended the country 
schools of Keokuk and Washington counties, 
and also an academy in Washington, Iowa, and 
likewise pursued academic work in Monmouth, 
Illinois, attending the latter institution after the 
war. He also pursued a commercial course in 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



249 



Galesburg, Illinois, in 1868. At the age of 
twenty years he enlisted in Company A, Twen- 
tv-lifth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, August 20, 
1862. He served with that regiment until Jan- 
uary 23, 1864. when he was transferred to the 
Fifty-first United States Colored Infantry and 
was mustered out June 16. 1866, as first lieu- 
tenant at Baton Rouge. Louisiana. He was 
with Sherman's command until after the siege 
of Vicksburg ajid was continuously on active 
duty. When the war was over he returned to 
Washington, Iowa. 

in September. 1868, Mr. Burnside came to 
Oskaloosa and opened a real-estate, abstract 
and loan office, purchasing the only set of ab- 
stract books" in Mahaska county from Charles 
A. Croney. He rented from the county part of 
the recorder's office for seventeen years which 
was at that time in the rear room of the build- 
ing now ocaipied by the Alahaska County 
State Bank. In eight years he sold his abstract 
lx)oks. but continued in tiie real-estate business 
for some nine years more. On account of fail- 
ing health he engaged in raising stock and 
bought and shipped horses. In 1888 he turned 
his attention to the lumber business, purchasing 
the lumber yard of C. Taylor & Company, at 
Oskaloosa. In 189 1 he admitted his son, Ralph 
H., as a partner. In December, 1901, the busi- 
ness was incorporated as the Hawkeye Lumber 
Comjjany with William Burnside as presi- 
dent : Z. W. Hutchinson, of Muscatine, vice- 
president ; H. H. Hutchinson, of Osceola, sec- 
retary; H. S. Howard, of Oskaloosa. treasurer: 
and Ralph H. Burnside, general manager. 

On the 23d of December, 1868, William 
Burnside was married to Hannah A. Hender- 
son, who was burn in Ohio in July. 1846. and 
is a daughter of John A. and Elizabeth A. Hen- 
derson, who came to Iowa in 1854 and located 
in Washington. Mr. and Mrs. Burnside had 
eight children, of whom Ralph H.. the eldest, is 
represented elsewhere in this work. Charles H. 
is now assistant professor of mechanics and en- 



gineering in the University of Wisconsin at 
Madison. Mary Hortense is the wife of Irving 
C. Johnson, an attorney at Oskaloosa. Harry 
H. died in infancy. John H. is a traveling 
buyer for the Old Oregon Lumber Company at 
Seattle, Washington. Elizabeth H. is attend- 
ing the State University of Illinois at Urbana. 
Margaretta H. is a student in Penn College. 
Alice H. is studying music. All seven of the 
children are graduates of Oskaloosa high 
school. 

The family are members of the United Pres- 
byterian church. Mr. Burnside has been an el- 
der in the church for about thirty years and for 
twenty years was superintendent of the Sab- 
bath-school. The law of destiny accords to en- 
ergy, industry and ability, success, and the 
truth (if this is \erified in the life of Mr. Burn- 
side. In his business affairs he has shown wis- 
dom and perseverance. His life has been one 
inviting scrutiny and his career with its success 
ma_\- well serve to encourage others. 



JOHN M. PUGH. 

John M. Pugh, extensively and successfully 
engaged in the real-estate business in Oska- 
loosa. is a native of McLean county, Illinois, 
born on the 26th of March. 1837. his ]iarents 
being Samuel T. and Elizabeth (Mackintorf) 
Pugh, both of whom were natives of East Ten- 
nessee, and following their marriage they set- 
tled upon a farm in McLean county, Illinois, 
becoming pioneers of that locality, but soon 
afterward on account of illness they returned 
to their old home in Tennessee and there Mr. 
Pugh was drafted for service in the Confeder- 
ate army. He went to Vicksburg and for 
months was in the siege of that city and 
eventually starved to death there. His re- 
mains were afterward taken back to Tennessee 
for burial. His widow was left with five 



^;o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



children and she managed to keep her family 
together. She lived until 187 1, passing away 
at the age of thirty-six years. The sons and 
daughters of the household are : Minnie, now 
the wife of William Dobson, of Ulysses, Ne- 
braska; William D., residing in Peoria, Illinois ; 
John M., of Oskaloosa; Joseph E., who is liv- 
ing in Los Angeles, California ; and one who 
died at the age of twenty years. 

John ]M. Pugh had but limited opportunities 
for acquiring an education, for in early life he 
and his brother worked out and earned the 
money to educate' the younger members of the 
family. He has made his own way in life and 
deserves much credit for the success which has 
crowned his efforts. He was farming for twelve 
years near Delavan. Illinois, and then came to 
Mahaska county, making his way to Fremont, 
where in 1890 he bought a farm, residing 
thereon imtil 1898. The demand for farms in 
this part of the state was so great that he grad- 
ually merged his interests into the real-estate 
business. His neighbors from Illinois came until 
he had located nearly four hundred farms or 
homes for them. Henowgiveshisentire attention 
to the real-estate business, for five years being a 
member of the firm of Pugh Brothers, of Oska- 
loosa, his partner being J. E. Pugh, but since 
that time he has been alone in business. Within 
the last two years he has not only handled Iowa 
property but has also bought and sold land in 
Nortli Dakota and is one of the leading land 
dealers of jMahaska county. He has done much 
for the village of Fremont in the way of its up- 
building and improvement, having established 
elevators and other enterprises there. He may 
well be termed a promoter and one whose labors 
have been effective along the line of general 
progress as well as individual success. He re- 
moved to Oskaloosa in 1901, where he has a 
fine home. 

On the 8th of January, 1879, Mr. Pugh was 
married to Miss Mahala Vandeventer, a daugh- 
ter of the Rev. David Vandeventer, minister of 



the Presbyterian denomination. Five children 
have been- born of this marriage, but two died 
in infancy. Those living are: Percy J., who is 
now living on a farm in Cedar township belong- 
ing to his father; and Estella M. and Warren, 
both at home. 

Mr. Pugh is a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows and has filled all of the 
chairs in the local lodge. He is also connected 
with the Knights of Pythias and has been a 
delegate to its grand lodge and he belongs to 
the Woodmen of the World. Deprived in his 
youth of many of the advantages which many 
regard as essential to success in life he has nev- 
ertheless made rapid and substantial progress 
in the business world. A man must essentially - 
formulate and give shape to his own character 
and this Mr. Pugh has done, so directing his la- 
bors that he has won an honorable name as well 
as a competence. His work, too, has been of a 
character that has been of direct benefit to 
Alahaska county, proving a factor in bringing 
many families to the county and thus advanc- 
ing its growth and prosperity. 



EDWARD EDRIS. 



Edward Edris, living on section 17, Spring 
Creek township, is one of the prosperous farm- 
ers and dairymen of Mahaska county and owns 
a well improved and valuable tract of land of 
two hundred and eighty acres divided into two 
farms. He has lived in this county since 1854, 
and is therefore one of its old settlers. His- 
birth occurred in Bucks county, Pennsylvania, 
on the 5th of August, 1828. His paternal 
great-grandfather, John Henr}^ Edris, was of 
Arabian ancestry. His son, Andrew Edris 
was born in Bucks count}-, Pennsylvania, wherr 
occurred the birth of Henry Edris in 1801. The 
last named was reared in his native state ard 
was married in Bucks countv to Miss Mai-v M. 




EDWARD EDRIS. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASICA COUNTY, 



W'alluini. u native uf the eastern jiarl cit t!ie 
state, lie hillnwed farniinii' in I'.ueks county 
and there reared his family, and ,spent. his en- 
tire life, his death occurring" there ahout 1847, 
while his wife ])assed a\va_\' in ^'^44. 

I'Mw.ard i^dris was reared in the county of 
his nativity, upon the old homestead fann and 
acquired a common-school education, after 
which he attended a high school for a year. This 
wa~ an institution conducted under the aus- 
])ices of the Society of I'riends or Quakers. 
When a youn.g man he started westward to 
Ohio, and after lixing for a time in Montgom- 
ery count}-, that state, went t<i Ti])i)ecanoe 
count}-, Indiana. He learned the cooper's 
trade in Ohio and followed it also in Indiana. 
in 1S54 he made his wa}- to Oskaloosa, Iowa, 
where he carried on a cooper shoj) for ten years, 
when, determining- to devote his attention to 
agricultural i.)ursuits he jjurchasecl land and lo- 
cated on a farm, lie hegan here with sixty 
acres of land, which he at once commenced to 
in-iprove and cultivate. He later hought iiiore 
land from time to time, and now owns tw(j 
fa'rnis in Spring Creek township, which are 
well <leveloped properties. He has a large resi- 
<lence upon the home place, also a commodious 
harn and all other modern e(|uipments, and in 
connection with gei-ieral farn-iing he carries on 
dairying-, which Inisiness he has followed for 
thirty years, having good Guernsey and Jersey 
cattle and other high grade stock. 

Mr. Kdris was niarried first in Oskaloosa 
in October. 1855, to j\Iiss Mary Imus. a native 
of Ohio, who was reared in that state to the age 
of ten or twelve years, after which she removed 
to Illinois and subsequently came to Iowa. She 
was a daughter of Charles Imus, of English 
birth, who, after emigrating to the new world, 
lived at various places prior to coming to Ma- 
haska county, Iowa, Mrs. Edris died while on 
a visit to Ohio in October, 1889. Of the four 
sons born of tint marriage, three are now liv- 
ing, but Charles Henrv, who was married and 



became a tra\-eling salesman, died in 1903, at 
die age of forty-five years. Those who still 
survive are Perry I', a farmer and gardener, 
of Oskaloosa, who is married and has ten chil- 
dren: luKvard .\rthur, now of Colorado; and 
b'rank M., who is upon the home farm, which 
he cultivates in partnership with his father. He 
is a man of g"ood education and exei-iiplary 
habits, of strict integrity and genuii-ie personal 
worth. He was married in Neligh, Nebraska, 
in 1 90 1, to Carrie Nichol, a daughter of D. F. 
Nichol, a farmer residing in Mahaska county. 
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Frank Edris has been born 
a daughter, Florence. 

In 1903 at Grand Junction, Colorado, Ed- 
ward Edris was married to Anna Baker, a na- 
ti\-e of England, who resided in Ohio and w-as 
educated at Oberlin College in that state. She 
was a teacher in the south for five years and 
later engaged in missionary work for twenty- 
two years. She has been an active church 
worker throughout her entire life and has been 
e.\ceptionall\- successful in her educational la- 
bors for the intellectual and moral development 
of her fellowmen. 

Politically Mr. Edris is now a stalwart re- 
publican, but at one time voted with the denioc- 
racy. Locall}- be casts an independent ballot, 
but at state and national elections always advo- 
cates republican principles, and his son Frank 
is a supporter of the same i)arly. Mr. Edris 
has served in a nun-iber of local offices and in 
all community affairs is deeply interested, his 
loyalty being proven by his co-operation in 
measures for the general good. 



JAMES G. PATTERSON. 

James G. Patterson, who since 1901 has en- 
gaged in the practice of law iir Oskal(X)sa, was 
born in Jasper county, Iowa, August 6, 1871, a 
son of \\'ilh'ani J. and Elizabeth (Steel) Patter- 



254 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



son, both of whom were natives of Scotland. 
The year following their marriage they sought 
a home in the new world, settling in Ohio, 
whence they afterward came to Iowa. They 
lived for a few years upon a farm in this state 
and then returned to Ohio when their son 
James was only a few months old. In 1880, 
however, they took up their abode in Jasper 
county, this state, and in 1881 settled upon a 
farm in Mahaska county, where they resided 
for a long period,, being closely connected with 
the agricultural interests of the locality. Three 
years ago they came to Oskaloosa, where Mr. 
Patterson is now living retired in the enjoyment 
of a well earned rest. 

In the public schools James G. Patterson ac- 
quired his early education and was afterward 
graduated from the State University at Iowa 
City, completing the course in the College of 
Liberal Arts in 1899. He then determined upon 
the study of law in the same institution and 
was graduated from the law department in 
June, 1901, and was admitted to the bar in that 
)ear. Previous to this time he had read law 
with the firm of Bolton & Bolton and had also 
been a teacher in the public schools of Mahaska 
county. Following his graduation from the 
law course he entered upon practice in Oska- 
loosa, where he lias since remained and the busi- 
ness accorded his is a public recognition of 
the confidence reposed in his skill and ability in 
the handling of important litigated interests. 

^Ir. Patterson is a republican in his political 
\-iews and active in the local ranks of the party, 
putting forth earnest and effective effort in its 
liehalf. He belongs to the Masonic fraternity 
and is prominent and popular socially. He is a 
man conservative in his view, of sound judg- 
ment and recognized al)ility and although yet a 
young man his opinions have l^een a weighty 
element in molding public thought and action in 
this city. Possessed of laudable amljition for 
success — without which there is no advance- 
ment in business life — he is steadily progress- 



ing in his chosen field of labor and is already 
recognized as the peer of many of the strong 
and able members of the Oskaloosa bar. 



• PROFESSOR FRANK W. ELSE. 

Professor Frank W. Else, superintendent of 
the city schools of Oskaloosa since July, 1905, 
and well known in educational circles in Iowa, 
was born in Mahaska county, November 5, 
1871, a son of J. J. and Susanna ( Gearhart) 
Else, natives of Ohio and Kentucky respect- 
ively. The Else family come of Scotch-Irish 
origin but later generations of the family were 
residents of England, whence the first Ameri- 
can ancestor came to the new world. The name 
of Whittaker originated in England and in the 
maternal line Professor Else is descended from 
that ancestry. Prior to their marriage the par- 
ents of our subject became residents of Ma- 
haska county and following their marriage they 
took up their abode in Madison township, where 
Mr. Elsie has resided for more than a half cen- 
tury. His life has been devoted to general ag- 
ricultural pursuits but he is now living retired. 
In 1873 he was called upon to mourn the loss 
of his first wife, who died at the age of thirty- 
three years. He afterward married Mrs. Jen- 
nie Green. By the first marriage there were 
born six children, of whom five are living: 
William, a resident of Kansas ; Lewis, at home ; 
Cora, the wife of B. F. Shoemake, of Os- 
kaloosa ; Fred, of Madison township : and 
Frank W. 

In the public schools of Oskaloosa Professor 
Else began his higher education, passing 
through successive grades of the high school 
until he had completed the course with the class 
of 1891. After teaching school one year he at- 
tended Penn College, from which he was grad- 
uated in 1896 and then spent one year at Ha\'er- 
ford. Later be pursued a professional course 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



255 



in the State Normal School. Diiring his course 
in Penn College he was editor and manager of 
the college paper. In the meantime he had 
taken up the profession of teaching which he 
first followed in the district schools, while from 
1897 until 1899 he was principal of the Web- 
ster School in Oskaloosa. In the latter year he 
accepted the superintendency of the schools of 
Mount Pleasant, where he remained for six 
years, and in July, 1905, he was called to the 
superintendency of the city schools of Oska- 
loosa. 

In 1899 Professor Else was married to Aliss 
Mary Himes, a daughter of D. A. and Anna 
(Dixon) Himes, of this county. They have one 
child, Dorothy Anna. The parents are mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal church and are 
prominent socially. Professor Else belongs to 
the Masonic fraternity. He has great zeal and 
interest in his work and believes in maintaining 
a high standard of scholarship. He is con- 
stantly seeking out new methods for the im- 
provement of the schools that the work of public 
instruction shall be effective as a preparation 
for life's practical and responsible duties. He 
has become recognized as one of the strong and 
able educators of Iowa and under his guidance 
the schools of Oskaloosa are making substan- 
tial progress. 



JUDGE W. H. SEEVERS. 

^^'hen the history of Iowa and her public 
men shall ha\e been written Judge W. H. See- 
vers A\ill be numbered among her illustrious 
citizens, for be bad ;i distinguished career 
as a member of the bar and of tlie supreme 
court of the state. Following his retirement 
iron^ the office of chief justice of Imva lie re- 
sumed the practice of law in Oskaloosa. He 
was one of the pioneer residents of Mahaska 
county and was ])orn in Shenandoah 



county, Virginia, .-Xpril 8. 1822, a son 
of James and Rebecca (Wilkins) See- 
vers. In bis youth he resided in Freder- 
ick and afterward in Clarke county, Vir- 
ginia, where he entered upon the study of law. 
He came to Oskaloosa, June 22, 1844, and con- 
tinued a resident of this city to the time of his 
death. He pursued the study of law under the 
direction of Milton T. Peters and was admitted 
to the bar in the district court of Mahaska 
county in 1846. He at once entered upon the 
practice of his profession as a partner of Wil- 
liam T. Smith, which connection continued mi- 
til 1852. He was subsequently associated with 
his brother James under the firm name of Wil- 
liam H. & James A. Seevers and several years 
later M. T. Williams, now deceased, was ad- 
mitted to a partnership under the firm name of 
Seevers, Williams & Seevers. When James A. 
Seevers entered the United States service at the 
time of the Civil war the firm style of Seevers & 
Williams was adopted and several years later 
the partnership was dissolved, at which time 
Mr. Seevers became associated with M. E. 
Cutts, now deceased. This connection con- 
tinued until 1876. when Judge Seevers was 
elected to the supreme bench of Iowa. 

F<M- many years he had figured prominently 
in public life. He was elected to the general as- 
senibh- of Towa in 1847 and again in 1875. Init 
resigned during his second term in 1870 ujion 
his a])])ointment to the supreme bench of the 
state. He had been elected and scr\ed as 
county attorney in 1850 and 183 1 and in the 
spring of 1852 was chosen judge of the third 
judicial district of Iowa. He served upon the 
bench for four years and his record as a judge 
was in harmony with his record as a man and 
lawyer, distinguished by a masterful gras]) of 
ever\- jiroblem ])resented for solution and by 
strict and unswerxing devotion to duty. 
Called to the highest tribunal of the state, he 
served for thirteen years on the supreme bench 
of Iowa and during two years of that time was 



256 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



chief justice. His sen'ice on the bench was 
distinguished by the highest legal abihty. To 
wear the ermine worthily it is not enough that 
one possess legal acumen, is learned in the 
principles of jurisprudence, familiar with prec- _ 
edence and thoroughly honest. ?^Ianv men, 
even when acting uprightly, are wholly unable 
to divest themselves of prejudice and are un- 
consciously warped in their judgments by their 
own mental characteristics or educational pe- 
culiarities. This unconscious and variable 
disturbing force enters more or less into the 
judgments of all men, but in the ideal jurist 
this factor becomes so small as not to be dis- 
cernible in results and loses its potencv as a dis- 
turbing force. Judge See\'ers was exception- 
ally free from all judicial bias. His varied 
legal learning and wide experience in the courts, 
the patient care with which be ascertained all 
of the facts bearing upon every case which 
came before him, gave his decisions a soliditv 
and exhaustiveness for which iki members of 
the bar could take exception. 

Judge Seevers was prominentl\- identified 
with the educational interests of Oskaloosa and 
with various interests bearing directh- upon the 
welfare and progress of the city. He took an 
active part in the organization of the Iowa 
Central Railroad Company, served as a member 
of its board of directors for many years and 
was at one time vice-president. He was also 
a stockholder in the Mahaska County Savings 
Bank and in the Oskaloosa National Bank, act- 
ing as president of the latter for a number of 
years. He took an active interest in the devel- 
opment of the coal resources of the county and 
was a stockholder and director of two local 
companies formed for this purpose. 

Judge Seevers was married in Oskaloosa, 
February 20, 1849, to Caroline AI. Lee, a na- 
tive of Ohio, who died in 1903. By this mar- 
riage there were born seven children. Virginia 
E. became the wife of Henr}- L. Briggs and 
died in 1881, leaving a daughter. Carrie L. is 



the wife of James C. Fletcher, a I'eal-estate 
dealer of Chandler, Oklahoma, by whom she 
has two children. Harry W. was married May 
18, 1887, to Stella M. \\'ilson, a daughter of 
Rezin and Amelia (Baer) Wilson. His wife 
was born and reared in Oskaloosa and they 
have one child, Grace, now thirteen years of age. 
Grace Seevers is the wife of Charles V. Hoff- 
mann and has two children. Nell Seevers is the 
wife of William H. Kalbach, a hardware mer- 
chant of Oskaloosa, and has two children. Wil- 
liam H. Seevers is a merchant of Altus, Okla- 
homa, and has two children. All of the mem- 
bers of this family were born in Oskaloosa. 

After retiring from the supreme bench Judge 
Seevers resumed the practice of law in Oska- 
loosa. He continued to make his home in this 
city until his death, at which time the state 
mourned the loss of one of its representative 
and honored men. No man was ever more re- 
spected, ever more fully enjoyed the confidence 
of the people or more richly deserved the es- 
teem in which he was held. In his life time, the 
people of his state, recognizing his merit, re- 
joiced in his advancement and in the honors to 
which be attained and since his death they have 
cherished his memory. In his private life he 
was distinguished by all that marks the true 
gentleman and in his public career he displayed 
the profound legal w'isdom and the quiet dig- 
nity of an ideal follower of his calling. 



\\TLLIAM C. ANDERSON. 

^\'illianl C. Anderson is one of the extensive 
landowners of Mahaska county, his home fann 
comprising four hundred and thirty-six acres 
on section 23, Spring Creek township. Here 
in addition to tilling the soil he is engaged in 
raising and breeding stock, and his life record 
proves that success is not a matter of genius but 
is the outcome of clear judgment, experience 
and indefatigable energ}'. He is, moreover, en- 



diiSiL 




W. C. ANDERSON'S CHILDREN. 




MR. AXD MRS. W. C. .\XDERSOX. 



PAST AND PRESENT C)I' MAHASKA COL'XTY. 



261 



titled to representation in tiiis volume as one 
of the old settlers of the county, for he has 
made his iiome within its borders since the 4th 
of March. 1857, arriving here when a young 
man of about l\vcnt\-three years. 

Mr. .\nderson is a native of Ohio, having 
lieen Iwrn in Licking county on tlie 3d of April, 
1834. His father. William Anderson, was a 
nati\e of Maryland and was there reared and 
married. Miss Amelia .\. Perygo, who was also 
born in that state, becoming his wife. Mr. An- 
dcrsiin's first property consisted of two slaves 
iliat were given him and when he removed from 
Maryland to Ohio, these slaves accompanied 
him to the Pennsylvania line. In the latter 
state be gave them their freedom papers and a 
supply of clothing. Settling in Licking county, 
Ohii). he opened up a farm in the midst of the 
forest and there, surrounded liy the green 
Avudds. be tilled tlie soil, which he had first tn 
vlear and break. His remaining" days were 
l)assed upon the old homestead, and there he 
died in .\ugust, 1866, at the age of sixty-six 
years. His wife sur\'i\'ed him, passing away 
in 1868. 

\\ illiam C". Anderson sjjcnt the days of his 
boyhood and youth in Ohio, and is largely self- 
educated, having but limited privileges in his 
ynutb in that direction. When a young man 
be came westward to Iowa, settling in Malnska 
county in 1857. He afterward entered one bun- 
drL'(I and sixty acres of land in Page county, 
near Clarinda. and after bokling that property 
for a few years he snld it. In 1862 be fitted uj) 
an (ix team, and thus e(pii]>i)cd crossed tlie 
plains tn Idabii with a large train of about one 
hundred teams. He made his way to tlie gold 
mines of that district and spent one season in a 
search for the precinus metal, hi Sei)tember, of 
the same year, be Imugbt two horses, using 
one as a jKick horse, while he rode the other, 
and thus traveled home to Iowa, arriving in 
.Maliaska countv in Xcnember. 



On the 2_^(l (if December. 18^)3. Mr. .\nder- 
,son w;is united in marriage to Miss Rachel t . 
Rice. ;i nati\e (if Indiana, and a daughter of 
W. 11. H. Rice, who, coming from Indiana, 
became one of the first settlers of tliis ]);\rt of 
the .state, arriving in tlie fall of 1833. He 
bought land in Spring Creek townsbii), broke 
the prairie, built a house, and in the course of 
year.s developed a large farm of several bundred 
acres. He was one of the prominent and sub- 
stantial agriculturists of Mahaska county and 
assisted materially in its early development and 
improvement. Here he reared his family, and 
lie yet resides upon the old diome?tead farm at 
the very advanced age of ninety-three years. 
He and bis wife, who is a few years his junior, 
are numbered among the few remaining pio- 
neer settlers of Mahaska county. They are the 
parents of two sons and two daughters, who are 
all married and settled near them, and they also 
ha\-e grandchildren and great-grandchildren. 
Airs. Anderson was reared and educated in 'Sla.- 
baska county. After their marriage the young 
people w ent to Ohio on a wedding trip, arriving 
there on Xew Year's day of 1864. It was a 
fearfully cold day. the mercury dropping to 
fort\' degrees below zero. They remained in 
Ohio until June, and upon the return trip Mr. 
.\nderson brought with him a flock of sheep, a 
span of horses and a sliei)berd dog, driving the 
sheep across the country to Maha.ska county, 
where he arrived in August. He then settled 
upon a part of the farm which he yet owns and 
began the cultivation of the land, at the same 
lime engaging in the .shee]) industry. He fol- 
lowed that pursuit for two years, after which 
he sold his sheep and his dogs. He then liegan 
raising cattle and made a business of buying, 
feeding and fattening cattle, selling from one 
to three carloads each year, and also about the 
same number of hogs until the year 1898, since 
which time he has concentrated bis energies 
upon the cultivation of his land. Mr. .\nderson 



262 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



commenced here with one hundred and sixty 
acres, but as he prospered he added to his prop- 
erty from time to time and within tlie boun- 
daries of his farm now has four hundred and 
thirty-six acres. Upon the place he has built a 
substantial residence and has a good barn and 
other outbuildings. He also has two good 
dwelling houses beside his own home and two 
other barns upon the farm, so that there is 
ample accommodation afforded for tenants. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have been 
born five children who are yet living and they 
also lost one. Charles A., residing in Seattle, 
Washington, is an express messenger on the 
Great Northern Railroad. Lorena is the wife 
of William H. Zollars, a farmer of White Oak- 
township, by whom she has four children : 
Clay, Cecil and Dulcea, twins, and Lida. W. 
F. Anderson, who is married and carries on 
the home farm, has two children. Judson and 
Lloyd. H. \V. Anderson, who is in the city 
delivers' mail ser\ice in Oskaloosa, has four 
children : Carroll. Leslie. Wallace and Thelma. 
T. R. Anderson is at home. Alice died in 
Denver, Colorado, at the age of twenty-six 
years. 

Politically Mr. Anderson has always been a 
democrat since casting his first presidential 
ballot for James Buchanan in 1856. He has 
since voted for each nominee of the party at 
the head of the national ticket, but has never 
•sought or desired office for himself, preferring 
to give his attention to his farming jiurruits. 
His wife is a member of the First Presljy- 
terian church. Mr. Anderson has been a resi- 
dent lit the county since 1857. and his wife 
since 1853. 

He has watched the growth of Oskaloosa 
from a crossroads village to its present pro- 
portions when all of the advantages of citv life 
may be enjoyed. He has also helped to im- 
prove and make the county what it is today. He 
has been a hard-working and industrious man 
and he and his estimable wife have lab(M"e(l 



earnestly and long, enduring hardships and 
privations together. They have worked to- 
gether and as the years have passed their la- 
bors have been crowned with success. Here 
they have reared and educated their children, 
who are a credit to their name, and they are 
numbered among the worthy pioneer settlers of 
the county. Their home is noted for its hospi- 
tality and good cheer and their circle of friends, 
is very extensive and all wish that they may 
live long to enjoy the. fruits of their united la- 
bors. 



HERMAN C. HOMER. M. D. 

Dr. Herman C. Homer, physician and sur- 
geon, of Oskaloosa, is one of Iowa's native sons 
and the spirit of enterprise and progress which 
ha\'e been the dominant factors in the develop- 
ment of the middle west as exemplified in the 
lives of the people, is also manifest in the pro- 
fessional career of Dr. Homer, who. in a call- 
ing where ad\'ancement depends upon individ- 
ual merit, has made steady progress. He was born- 
in Black Hawk county. Iowa. July 2"], 1869, a 
son of Harlan P. Homer, a native of Cortland 
count}'. New York, who, in 1856, came to Iowa 
and has since been a resident of Black Hawk 
county. He occupies a position of distinctive 
prominence and influence there. His attention 
in business affairs has been given to general ag- 
ricultural pursuits, while politically he is. an 
earnest and influential republican, representing' 
his district in the state legislature in 1875-6. He 
has also served in a number of local ofiices, 
but has ne\er lieen a politician in the sense of 
office seeking, his preferment coming- to him 
unsolicited. 

Dr. Homer after attending the common 
schools became a student in the State Normal 
at Cedar B'alls and later in Harvey Business 
College at Waterloo. His medical education 
was ac(|uired in the College of Physicians and 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



263 



Surgeons at Cliicag-o, from which he was grad- 
uated in the class of 189S. He began practice 
in Horton, Bremer county, Iowa, where lie re- 
mained for two years, after which he did work 
in the Post Graduate College in Chicago and 
also in the Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat College 
in 1901. He afterward practiced in What- 
cheer, Iowa, for nine months coming thence to 
Oskaloosa, since which time he has been a 
member of the medical fraternity here. He be- 
longs to the Mahaska County Medical Society, 
the Iowa State Medical Association and the 
Des Moines Valley Medical Association, and 
thus keeps in touch with the onward progress 
of the profession as investigation, research and 
experiment are continually broadening knowl- 
edge and promoting skill and efficiency. He is 
examiner for the Phoenix Life Insurance Com- 
pany, of Hartford, Connecticut, the New York 
Life Insurance Company, the Central Life of 
Des Moines, Iowa, the Royal Union of Des 
Moines and the Mutual Pioneer Life Insurance 
Company of Da\'enport, Iowa. In addition he 
has a large private practice in medicine and 
surgery and his patronage is extensive for the 
treatment of the diseases of the eye, ear, nose 
and thmat. of which he has made a specialty. 

On the 3d of August, 1898, Dr. Homer was 
married to Miss E. Lillian Wilson, a daughter 
of W. A. Wilson, of Waterloo, Iowa. He is 
prominent fraternally, holding membership re- 
lations with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows, the Knights of Pythias, the Fraternal Or- 
der of Eagles, the Modern Brotherhood of 
America, the Modern Woodmen of .America, 
the Tribe of Ben-FIur, the Woodmen of the 
\\ nrld and the \\'oodmen's Circle. He is in 
thorougli sympathy with tlie beneficent and ;dso 
the insurance ])rinciples of these orders and he 
is popular both socially and professionally. His 
practice has increased along lines of substantial 
growth and he draws his business largely from 
the best class of Oskaloosa's citizens. He is. 
conscienti<:us in the performance of everv pro- 



fessional duty and his strict adherence to a 
high standard of professional ethics has won 
him the regard of his brethren of the medical 
fraternity. 



J. C. MASTELLER. 

J. C. Masteller, carrying on general farm- 
ing in Madison township, was born in North- 
umberland county, Pennsylvania, November 
_'6, 1842, his parents being Jacob and Ellen 
( Blaine) Masteller, the latter a cousin of tiie 
renowned statesman. James G. Blaine. The 
children of the family were George, who was 
taken a prisoner 1)y the Confederates in the 
Civil war and died at Annapolis, while hostil- 
ities were still in progress: James Curtis, who 
is living in Creston, Iowa; Elmer, a farmer, of 
IMadison township, but living in Oskaloosa; 
Richard, of Oskaloosa ; William, of Cass 
county. Iowa ; Mrs. Mary Anderson, who re- 
sides in Mattoon, Illinois; Mrs. Annie White, 
a resident of Harvey county, Kansas; IMrs. 
Carrie Smith, of Oskaloosa; and Jennie, de- 
ceased. The family came to Mahaska county 
in T855 and settled in Oskaloosa.' For some 
years they lived in Spring Creek township and 
then removed to Madison township, taking up 
their aliode u])on a farm on the New Sharon 
road in 1864. 

J. C. Masteller was a youth of about thirteen 
when he accompanied his parents on their re- 
moval to Iowa and was about twenty-two years 
of age when he took u]) his abode upon the farm 
w hich has since been his home. He was reared 
to agricultural jnusuits early becoming familiar 
with the duties antl laliors that fall to the lot of 
the agriculturist in connection with the work 
of tilling the soil and caring for the stock. His 
education was acquired in the public schools 
and throughout his entire life, since attaining 
manhtKjd, he has given his attention to general 



264- 



PAST AND PRESENT OE MAHASKA COUNTY. 



farming and stock-raising, having now a well 
im|3roved property which gives evidence of his 
careful cultivation and suiiervision in its neat 
and thrifty appearance. 

Air. Masteller was married in 1871 to Miss 
Sarah J. Farrell. a daughter of Benjamin and 
Elizabeth Farrell. They have a daughter, Kate, 
Avho is now the wife of R.' DV Humphrey, a 
resident farmer of Madison township, and three 
■children have been bom of this union: Clara, 
Cecil and Edith. 

In his political relations Mr. Masteller is a 
republican, having always supported the party 
since age gave to him the right of franchise, 
and for one term he has served as justice of the 
peace, being called to that office in 1893. He 
has been township trustee since 1894 and has 
been school director and rcjad supervisor. In 
community affairs he is interested, giving a 
public-spirited support to many measures for 
tiie general good, and in his farm work he is 
found to be a reliable, energetic and prosperous 
business man. 



D. A. HOFFMAN, M. D 

Dr. D. A. Hoffman, whose position in the 
ranks of the medical fraternity in Oskaloosa 
is among the foremost, was born in Jackson, 
Ohio, September 28, 1824, and although he has 
now passed the eight_\'-first milestone on life's 
journey he is still a factor in professional ranks 
here, his life having been one of great useful- 
ness and activity. His fatlier. Daniel Hoffman, 
was a native of Woodstock, Shenandoah coun- 
ty, Virginia, born January 18, 1790. He 
learned the gunsmith's trade under the direc- 
tion of his fatlier and with the family removed 
to Ross county, Ohio, in 1806. He .served as 
a private soldier in the war of 1812 and at its 
close went to Harper's Ferry, Virginia, where 
he worked for a short time in the armorv. In 



1814 he engaged in mercantile pursuits at Cir-. 
cleville. Ohio, and two years later removed to 
Jackson, that state, where lie made his home 
until his death in 1861. He held many impor- 
tant offices, serving, as county commissioner, as 
clerk of the courts and as a member of the Ohio 
legislature. He married JuHa James, who was 
born on. what is now called Neal's Island in the 
Ohio river between Marietta and Parkersburg, 
West Virginia, April 10, 1800. They were 
married in 1818 and theirs was a ^'erv happy 
union. Mrs. Hoffman died at Jackson, Ohio, 
in 1863. Her father, John James, removed 
from Connecticut to Ohio in 1787. si.\ months 
after the first settlement was made at Marietta 
by General Putnam. Daniel Hoffman was the 
father of six children, namel^■: Colonel John T- 
Hoffman, of Garnett. Kansas: Ripley C, a 
practicing attorney of Columbus, Ohio : David 
A., of this review; Charles B., who died in in- 
fancy: Cornelia V., the wife of J. L. Long, of 
Jackson, Ohio: and Daniel \A ., wlio practiced 
in Ottawa, Kansas, until bis health failed, when 
he went to Circleville, Ohio. He was a major 
in the Ohio Heavv Artillerv in the Civil war 
and he died in the Buckeye state, December 31, 
1875. The eldest son, John J. Hoffman, was 
captain of a company of infantry, enlisting for 
three months' service in the I'nion army. Later 
he re-enlisted and became lieutenant colonel in 
the Second Virginia Cavalr}'. 

Dr. Hoffman of this review attended the 
common schools of his native city until 1838, 
at which time he entered his father's store as a 
salesman, there remaining until the fall of 
184T. when be became a student in the Ohio 
L'^^niversity at Athens, where he remained for 
two years. Thinking that he would find pro- 
fessional life preferable he took up the study of 
medicine at home and in the fall of 1844 went 
to Athens, Ohio, where he continued his pre- 
liminary reading for a period of two years 
under the direction of Dr. William Blackstone. 
He attended lectures at Cleveland, Ohio, dur- 




DR. I). A. IK )Fl-'.MAN. 



PAST AX n PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



267 



ing tlie sessions of 1846-7 and 1847-8 and was 
graduated on tlie J4tli of February of the lat- 
ter year. Dr. Hoffman entered at once upon 
practice in Ohio, following his prufession in 
both Jackson and Logan. In May, 1861, he 
came to Oskaloosa, Iowa, where he has since 
engaged in acti\e practice. In April, 1883, his 
son was admitted to a partnership under the 
firm style of D. A. and R. C. Hoft'man. 

Dr. Hoffman was married November 16, 
184S, to Miss Emily Smith, of Logan, Hock- 
ing county, Ohio. The_v have four children : 
Edgar B., who is living on a farm about eight 
miles west of Oskaloosa ; John A., an attorney 
practicing in Great Falls, Montana ; Effie L., 
the widow of J. F. Rog-ers, who died in Kan- 
sas in August, 1883 ; and Ripley C, who is 
practicing with his father and is represented 
elsewhere in this work. 

Dr. Floffman has accumulated the finest pri- 
vate cabinet of curiosities in the way of col- 
lecting birds and minerals to be found in the 
state of Iowa. He likewise has a splendid li- 
brary of medical, scientific and miscellaneous 
works and is a man of broad research and gen- 
eral knowledge, his scholarly attainments being 
at once manifest in his face and in his conversa- 
tion. With a mind continually broadening to 
the influences of knowledge he is today one of 
the honored and representative citizens of Os- 
kaloosa. Dr. Hoffman is now in his eighty- 
second year, but old age need not suggest, as a 
matter of course, want of occupation or of in- 
terests. Indeed there is an old age which 
grows better anrl stronger with the passing- 
years both intellectually and spirtually and 
gives out of its rich stores of wisdom and ex- 
perience to others, and such has been the life 
of Dr. Hoffman. A member of the Masonic 
fraternity, he has been worshipful master of 
the blue lodge, high priest of the chapter and 
first eminent commander of the commandery 
at Oskaloosa, filling the last named position for 
five years. His identification with the Masons 



dates from 1S46 and with the Odd Fellows 
from 1847 and he is also a Knight of Pythias. 
He has had ample opportunity in his profes- 
sional career to exemplify the spirit of mutual 
helpfulness and brotherly kindness which con- 
stitute the basic elements of these orders. 



R. J. OLDHAM. 

R. J. Oldham, now living a retired hfe in 
Eddyville, was for years a prosperous and en- 
terprising farmer and stock-raiser of Mahaska 
county, and is still the owner of a valualile 
fann of five hundred acres in Harrison town- 
ship, which is well equipped with modern im- 
provements and is an excellent property. Mr. 
Oldham is a native son of the county, having 
been born in Harrison township, October 29, 
1857. His father, Abram B. Oldham, was 
a native of Shelby county, Indiana, born in 
1830. The father, Robert Oldham, was a na- 
tive of Kentucky and a son of Squire Oldham, 
one of the first settlers of that state. He later 
removed with his family to Indiana, and Robert 
Oldham was there reared to manhood. Fol- 
lowing his marriage he engaged in farming 
there on his own account and subsequently came 
to Iowa, settling in Mahaska county in 1848. 
He lx)Ught land in Harrison township and spent 
his last years here, taking an active and help- 
ful part in the substantial improvement and de- 
velopment of the county, which was a pioneer 
district at the time of his arrival. Much of the 
land was still unclaimed and uncultivated and 
the work of im])ro\ement had been scarcely 
begun. 

Abram B. Oldham came to Mahaska county 
with his father when a young man and re- 
mained under the parental roof until he had at- 
tained his majority. He assisted in the arduous 
task of developing a new farm amid pioneer 
environments and surroundings, and his labors 



268 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASK.\ COUXTY. 



were crowTied w"ith a measure of success be- 
cause he early became familiar with the best 
methods of caring for the fields and producing 
crops. He was married here in 1S55 to Miss 
Sarah White, a native of Warren countj", In- 
diana, and a daughter of Joseph AMiite, who 
was one of the first residents of the count}", 
arriving here in 1846. Abram B. Oldham lo- 
cated in Harrison towTiship and purchased a 
tract of land of fort\- acres, which he began to 
culti\-ate and improve. He bought more land 
from time to time and owTied eleven hundred 
and twent>" acres, constituting an excellent 
propert}" and making him one of the most ex- 
tensive landholders of the countA*. He was 
ver}" successful both in his general farming 
interests and stock-raising. He fed cattle for 
the market and his operations as a stock-dealer 
were an important source of income. Upon 
the farm he reared his family and spent his 
last years, his death occurring there July 24. 
1894. His wife siu^ives him and now resides 
in Edd}-\-ille. ^^'hen he passed away the ccm- 
munitA" mourned the loss of one of its \"alued 
and representative citizens, for his work in 
behalf of the coimt}" had been of a substantial 
and beneficial nature, and through his private 
interests he had also contributed to the general 
welfare. 

R. J. Oldham is one of a family of eight liv- 
ing children and the eldest son. He was reared 
upon the old home farm, no event of special 
importance occurring to var\- the routine of 
farm life for him in his boyhood days. He at- 
tended the common schools but is largely a self- 
educated man, and in the school of experience 
has learned many valuable lessons. He re- 
mained with his father until he had attained his 
majority- and then started out in life on his own 
account. ' He was married in Indiana, in Au- 
gust. 1893. to Miss Sarah B. INIoore. a native 
of that state, where she was reared and edu- 
cated. She is a daughter of Thomas B. Moore, 
of Ohio, and a cousin of R. \\". Moore, whose 



sketch appears elsewhere in this work. After 
his marriage Mr, Oldham ehgaged in farming 
on the old homestead for a time but later re- 
moved to Eddyville. where he engaged in mer- 
chandising. Three years were devoted to the 
sale of goods at that place, after which he 
traded his stock for land in Butler count}*, 
Kansas, — a place of eleven hundred and tweitj- 
acres. Following his father's death he took 
charge of the old home farm, continuing, how- 
ever, to make his home in Edd}"\-ille. He has 
since given his supervision to the farming 
interests, which are carried on with the assist- 
ance of hired help. He is also a stock-buyer 
and shipper, being one of the successful dealers 
in this part of the state. He operates quite 
successfully in live stock, feeding cattle and 
hogs, shipping a nimiber of carloads each year. 
He is likewise a stockholder in the Farmers Na- 
tional Bank of Oskaloosa. 

Mr. and Mrs. Oldham are the parents of two 
children. Man," and Tom. and the family is 
prominent in social circles. Politically Mr. 
Oldham is a republican where national issues 
are involved, but at local elections votes in- 
dependently. He believes in the employment 
of competent teachers, in the support of good 
schools, and his allegiance is a valued factor 
in the control of many public enterprises. His 
wife is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, takes an active part in its work and is 
also an interested worker and teacher in the 
Sunday-school. She is identified with various 
auxiliary" societies of the church and her labors 
in its behalf are effective and far-reaching. ^Ir. 
Oldham belongs to the blue lodge of Eddyville, 
to the Royal Arch chapter and to the com- 
manden.". and has filled various offices in the f ra- 
temit}", including that of master and representa- 
tive to the grand lodge of the state. He is 
well known in Oskaloosa. and in both Mahaska 
and \\"apello counties as a prosperous farmer 
and stock-dealer. He possesses excellent busi- 
ness abilitv". keen discrimination and unfalter- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



269 



iiig enterprise — qualities which form a safe 
foundation upon which to huild the superstruc- 
ture of success. He has been found rehable 
in all of his business undertakings as well as in 
the relations of public and private life, and he 
and his estimable wife enjoy the warm regard 
of a very extensive circle of friends. 



DR. WILLIAM MARION JARVIS. 

Dr. William Marion Jarvis, of Rose Hill, 
now eighty-one years of age, is living a retired 
life, but was for years a successful and capable 
jjractitioner of medicine and a business man of 
well known ability. When the work of im- 
provement and progress had scarcely been be- 
gun in Mahaska county he cast in his lot with 
its pioneer settlers, taking up his abode here in 
the spring of 1849. He is a native of Ken- 
tucky, having been born in Fleming county, 
February 16, 1825. His father, John Jarvis, 
was a native of Kentucky and was reared and 
married there, the lady of his choice being 
Elizabeth Cord, a native of the Blue Grass 
state. In the year 1822 the father removed to 
Parke county. Indiana, where he was well 
known as a business man, trader and farmer, 
and there he reared his family. In 1852 he 
came to Iowa, joining his son. Dr. Jarxis. in 
Mahaska county. 

The Doctor spent the days of his boyhood 
and youth in Parke county, had acquired his 
preliminary education in the public schools and, 
determining ujion the practice of medicine as a 
life work, had prepared for this calling by 
study in Terre Haute and in Waveland. Indi- 
ana. He was a student in the ofifice and under 
the direction of Dr. Pence, of Terre Haute and 
also assisted him in his practice. He likewise 
studied under Drs. Ballard and Russell, of 
Waveland. Indiana. He did not have the 
opportunity of carrying out his jilans of 



completing the college course, but through 
private reading and study he continually 
broadened his knowledge and promoted 
his efficiency as a practitioner. From 
l)v. Pence he learned effective methods of cur- 
ing tw^o diseases prevalent in pioneer commu- 
nities — fever and ague and peritonitis. The 
latter was very bad owing to the fact that the 
peojile lived in claim cabins and the breaking 
of the prairie sod produced malaria and caused 
ague. Even as late as the year 1905, Dr. Jarvis 
received assurance of his effective professional 
work in those pioneer days from a woman who 
said that her father after suffering from the 
ague for a year obtained remedies from the 
Doctor which completely cured him, so that he 
was never again ill from that complaint. He 
was also successful in his treatment of various 
other diseases. In connection with his practice 
he engaged in the drug business in Indiana and 
in 1849. when still a young man, he came to 
Iowa, locating in, White Oak township, Ma- 
haska county, at old Rose Hill, where he en- 
tered upon the practice of medicine, his patron- 
age coming to him from many miles around. 

Dr. Jarsns was married in this county. Octo- 
ber 30, 1849. to Miss Frances Maria Bolles. 
who was born in Montville, Connecticut, De- 
cember 15, 1826, a daughter of Reuben P. 
Bolles. The family were among the pioneer 
settlers of New England, coming to America 
from England about 1640. Reuben Bolles was 
reared in Connecticut and was married there to 
Frances Cornelia Baker, who was also de- 
scended from one of the early ])ioneer families 
of that state. Reuben Bolles. leaving New 
England, removed to New York and a year 
later went to Sandusky, Ohio, where he resided 
until 1827. He then drove across the country 
to Iowa, locating first in Louisa county, and in 
1844 coming to Mahaska county. 

Dr. Jarvis engaged in the dry-goods business 
at Rose Hill until 1849. when he and others 
formed a company and with a number of teams 



2/0 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COtJNTY. 



started westward for California. The Doctor 
continued in the dry-goods business there and 
also bought land and developed three farms, 
one of two hundred and forty acres and an- 
other of ninety acres. He also owned coal 
lands and operated in various active enterprises, 
helping to improve and upbuild the county. He 
was in active business until about 1894, when 
he puchased the property on which he now re- 
sides and has since rebuilt and remodeled the 
house, transforming it into a good residence. 
He has also planted an orchard which is just 
coming into bearing. 

Unto Dr. and ]Mrs. Jar\is were born the fol- 
lowing children. Julius, a business man resid- 
ing in Smith Center, Kansas, is married and has 
two children, Reuben P. and Charles. John 
P. is a telegraph operator living in Sedan, Kan- 
sas. Mrs. Jennie Jarvis Slocum, now a widow, 
is residing with her father and has three chil- 
dren, who were reared by their grandfather, 
Dr. Jarvis, and have now reached mature years. 
These are : Belina Slocum ; Mrs. Lois Slocum 
Wright, the wife of Dr. Wright, who is repre- 
sented elsewhere in this work; and Mamie, one 
of the teachers in the schools of Rose Hill. 
Fannie Jarvis is the wife of Herbert Cox, of 
Oskaloosa. 

Dr. Jarvis was originally an old-line whig 
and assisted in organizing the republican party, 
supporting its first presidential candidate, John 
C. Fremont. He has served as justice of the 
peace for nine or ten years, has filled the office 
of supervisor and organized the Rose Hill post- 
office, which was the second postoffice of the 
county. He acted as postmaster for many 
years and in every public position has dis- 
charged his duties with marked promptness and 
fidelity. He and his wife are members of the 
Cumberland Presbyterian church, which they 
joined soon after the organization of the 
church. Dr. Jarvis is one of the charter mem- 
bers of Oskaloosa lodge, I. O. O. F. Mrs. Jar- 
vis has always been deeply and helpfully inter- 



ested in the cause of temperance. She joined 
the Washingtonian Temperance Society in 1841 
in Louisa county, Iowa, when fifteen years of 
age, and has never taken a drop of alcholic 
liquor except as a medicine since that time and 
since joining the Women's Christian Temper- 
ance Union in 1885 she has not used alcoholic 
remedies even as a medicine. She was con- 
verted to Christ and joined the Cumberland 
Presbyterian church in 1857 at old Rose Hill 
schoolhouse and the following year Dr. Jarr 
vis also became a member of the church. Since 
that time they have been readers of their 
church paper, which was first published in St. 
Louis, Missouri, and is now published at Nash- 
ville, Tennessee. Mrs. Jarvis organized a 
Women's Christian Temperance Union at Rose 
Hill, February 5, 1885, and became a life mem- 
ber in 1895. She also belongs to the Rose Hill 
Alissionary Society vmder the auspices of the 
Methodist church. Dr. Jarvis is also deeply 
interested in many movements for the intellec- 
tual and moral progress of his community and 
no citizens of Rose Hill or this part of the 
county are held in higher respect than this 
worthy couple, who have now traveled far on 
life's journey. Dr. Jarvis having passed the 
eighty-first milestone. Their mutual love and 
confidence has increased as the years have gone 
by and theirs has been an ideal marriage 
relation. 



JAMES C. HANNA. 

James C. Hanna, possessing untiring energy 
and quick perceptive power that enables him 
to form his plans readily and execute them with 
dispatch, has since 1896 been a prominent rep- 
resentative of the productive industries of Os- 
kaloosa, being now president of the Hawkeye 
Overall Company. His business record has 
demonstrated the truth of the saving that sue- 




J. C. HANXA. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



''72> 



cess is not the result of genius but is the out- 
come of clear judgment and experience. A 
native of Des Moines county, he was born on 
the 12th of March, 1854. His paternal grand- 
father, James C. Hanna, came to Iowa to make 
a permanent location on the ist of September, 
1837. He had visited the state in 1836 and the 
following year removed to Iowa by wagon, 
bringing his money in a nail keg. The farm 
which he purchased has since been in possession 
of the family and has always been free from 
debt. It is now owned by James C. Hanna 
and his sisters and is a \aluable and well im- 
proved property. The grandfather prior to 
coming to Iowa had l)een engaged in merchan- 
dising in Union county. Indiana. He was a 
prominent and influential citizen of Des Moines 
county, esteemed for his genuine personal 
worth and admired for his business successes. 
He was killed by an ox dragging him down 
two years after he came to Iowa, being at that 
time forty-four years of age. His wife sur- 
vived him and died at the age of eiglity-four 
years. 

James L. Hanna. father of our suliject. was 
born in Indiana and after reaching adult age 
was married to Elizalieth Moore, a native of 
Virginia and a daughter of Francis Moore, 
who was born in County .Vntrim, Ireland, and 
on coming to .\merica .settled at JNIoundsville. 
A\'est Virginia. He became a resident of Des 
^loines county, Iowa, in 1837, improved a 
farm there, built a brick residence and success- 
fully carried on general- agricultural pursuits 
for a long period. He was a prominent and 
helpful member of the Methodist church and 
took an active part in settlement building and 
in the church work, doing all in his power to 
promote the cause of the denomination with 
which he was affiliated. His life was honorable 
and upright and he left behind him an untar- 
nished name. 

The marriage of James L. and Elizabeth 
(Moore) Hanna was celebrated in Iowa in 
14 



1S39, ha\ing settled in Des Moines county with 
their respective parents previous to that time. 
Mr. 1 lanna turned his attention to general ag- 
ricultural pursuits, entering eighty acres of 
land from the government. His labors resulted 
in the impro\-ement of a splendid farm and as 
his financial resources increased he extended 
the boundaries of his property until his aggre- 
gate possessions included six hunch'ed and forty 
acres of \'aluable land in Des ^loines county. 
He. too, was deeply interested in the intellec- 
tual and moral progress of the community and 
inil forth effective energy and efifort for the 
upbuilding of the church in his locality. He 
was likewise president of the school board, was 
township trustee and justice of the peace, while 
for a period of twenty-four years he served as 
postmaster of Parrish. Over the record of his 
official career there fell no shadow" of wrong 
or suspicion of evil, as at all times he was loyal 
to the trust reposed in liim. discharging his 
duties with ability of superior order. In the 
family were eight children and those yet living 
are as follows: Rebecca, now the wife of Isaac 
Philips. Avho is li\-ing on the old homestead 
farm; Franc, the wife of T. E. Rhodes, of New 
London, low-a ; James C, of this review; John 
M., of Kan.sas City; Sadie, the wife of Dr. 
Harry /faizer, of Burlington, Iowa; Elizabeth, 
the wife of W. P. Cleaver, of Oskaloosa; \V. 
B.. a physician at I\Iass, Michigan; and Mary 
E.. who became the wife of R. A. Alexander 
and died November 6, 1904. at the age of fifty- 
f<iur years. 

Mr. Hamia pursued his early education in 
the ])ublic schools and afterward attended the 
Denmark Academy at Denmark, Iowa, Howe's 
Academy at Mount Pleasant and the Iowa 
W'esleyan University. He was reared upon the 
home farm and after completing iiis education 
took up his abode on a farm in the home neigh- 
borhood in 1878, comprising one hundred acres 
of land from the government, on which his 
grandfather settled when he removed from 



■2/4 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Virginia to this state. For a numljer of years 
thereafter Mr. Hanna carried on g-eneral agri- 
cultural pursuits, cultivating and improving his 
farm until the 3d of March, 1891, when he 
sold that property and removed to Monmouth, 
Illinois. While living upon the farm he re- 
built the house, making it one of the best resi- 
dences in the neighborhood. He made several 
radical changes for the convenience of raising 
stock and carrying on his farm work and in 
his business there was very successful. While 
living upon the farm he also served as township 
trustee of Danville township. Des Moines coun- 
ty, was a school director and also president of 
the board. 

In ]\Iay. 1896, ]Mr. Hanna came to Oska- 
loosa and organized the Hanna Manufacturing 
Company, of which he became president. A 
plant was located in the old Simpson church 
building, where the business was conducted 
until 1901, when a new building was erected 
on First street, the business having outgrown 
the original capacity. On the ist of ]\Iarch. 
1905, they removed to the old Crookham mill 
property' and rebuilt the present building forty- 
four by one hundred and twenty feet and two 
stories in height with basement. They manu- 
facture working men's clothing, including 
overalls and engineers' jackets. The business 
was originally carried on under the name of 
the Davenport Garment Company, but today 
is known as the Hawkeye Overall Company. 
The plant is equipped with the latest improved 
machinery, including- two needle machines and 
a Reese button hole machine and altogether is 
one of the best ecjuipped factories in the west. 
The company was incorporated for thirty 
thousand dollars with a paid-up capital of fif- 
teen thousand dollars. Its product is sold in 
Texas, Oklahoma, Indian Territory, Kansas, 
Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois and is 
officered as follows : J. C. Hanna, president ; 
R. K. Davis, vice-president : and John A. 
Crookham, secretary and treasurer. 



On the 5th of February, 1878, Mr. Hanna 
was married to Miss Fanny E. Stanforth. of 
Cass county, Nebraska, who died October 15, 
1882, at the age of twenty-eight years, leaving 
two children, Jessie M. and J. Elbert. He was 
again married September i, 1886, his second 
union being with jMiss Sarah J. Findley, by 
wdiom he has one child, Mildred F., born Feb- 
ruary 12, 1894. 

Mr. Hanna belongs to the Modem Wood- 
men camp. He is a progressive citizen, .dis- 
tinctively a man of affairs and one. who has 
wielded a wide influence. Since coming to 
Oskaloosa his success has been uniform and 
rapid. Justice has ever been maintained in his 
relation to patrons and employes and those 
who are in his service know that promotion 
will come in recognition of capability and loy- 
alty. He has been watchful of all the details 
of his business and of all indications pointing 
toward prosperity and from the beginning has 
had an abiding- faith in the ultimate success of 
his enterprise. 



RALPH H. BURNSIDE. 

Ralph H. Burnside, of Oskaloosa, was born 
in that city in 1870 and was a student in the 
public schools until he had graduated from the 
high school in 1887. At the age of seventeen 
years he entered the employ of his father, driv- 
ing a team, and later he was made bookkeeper, 
acting in the latter capacity for a number of 
years, during which time he became familiar 
with the various offices of the business. In 189T 
he w-as admitted to a partnership and upon the 
incorporation of the concern under the name of 
the Hawkeye Lumber Company was made gen- 
eral manager. This company is now operating 
extensively in lumber in Iowa, having eighteen 
different yards. In December, 1905, the Hawk- 
eve Timber Company was organized and of this 



PAST Ax\D TRKSENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



275 



Ralph H. Burnside also became general man- 
ager. He has been for the past four years a di- 
rector in the Xorthwestern Retail Lnnibermen's 
Association and in January, 1906, was elected 
president of that association at its annual meet- 
ing held in ^linneapolis. 

In 1893 Ralph H. Burnside was married to 
Miss Clara Snowden, who was horn in Fair- 
mount. \\'est Virginia, in 1870, her parents be- 
ing James E. and Catherine (Davis) Snowden. 
Her father was a minister of the Congrega- 
tional church and in 1870 came to Oskaloosa, 
Iowa, as pastor of the first Congregational 
church here, while at the present time he is lo- 
cated at Cedar Falls, Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. 
Burnside have two children : Catherine, born in 
1895; and Robert Snowden, in October, 1899. 

The parents are memliers of the United Pres- 
byterian church, in which 'Mv. Burnside is 
sers'ing as treasurer and has also been superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school for several years. 
He takes a very active interest in church and 
kindred work and for five years was president 
of the Young IMen's Christian Association and 
has been one of its directors for fifteen years. 
He votes with the republican party l)ut is with- 
out aspiration for ofifice. 



RIPLEY c. hoff:\iax. M. D. 

Dr. Ripley C. Hoffman, successfully engaged 
in the practice of medicine and surgery in Oska- 
loosa. is a native of Hocking county, Ohio, born 
November 12, i860, and a son of Dr. D. A. 
and Emily (Smith) Hoffman, both natives of 
Ohio. The son acquired his education in the 
jnililic .schools of Oskaloosa. having been 
brought by his parents to this city when but 
eleven months old. Having mastered the ele- 
mentary branches of learning, he continued his 
studies in Penn College until he had reached the 
senior year. He then jiut aside his literary text- 



Ijooks in order to take up the study of medicine 
in 1880, matriculating in Jefferson Medical 
College at Philadeli)hia. I'cnnsylvania, from 
which lie was graduated in 1883 and with the 
exception of two years spent in Salt Lake City 
he has practiced continuously in Oskaloosa in 
partnership with his father. He was graduated 
from Jeft'erson College with lienors, and had 
the first hon(3rable mention at the graduating 
exercises as ranking member of the class. For 
the past two years he has been vice-president of 
the alumni association of the college. He is a 
general practitioner and keeps well informed in 
all departments of the science of medicine and 
surgery. His high standard of professional 
ethics has won him the esteem and regard of 
his brethren of the medical fraternity. He be- 
longs to the .\merican Medical Association, the 
Des Moines Valley and the ^lahaska County 
Medical Scxieties. He was a delegate to the 
Pan-American Medical Congress which met at 
Washington, D. C, in 1893. 

Fraternallv Dr. Hoffman is a prominent Ma- 
son and he also belongs to the Elks and Mod- 
ern Woodmen of .\merica. He is past com- 
mander of the Knights Templar commandery, 
which position he held for three years and he 
has lieen high priest of the chapter and illus- 
trious master of the council. He has likewise 
been treasurer of the grand council since its 
organization in 1900 and has been representa- 
tive to the grand council in Iowa from Oregon. 
He likewise belongs to the Mystic Shrine. He 
was made a ^lason in 1882 in Tri Luminar 
lodge. No. 18. A. F. & A. M., at Oskaloosa and 
has become one of its strong representatives, 
ranking high in Masonic circles. 

In June, 1892. Dr. Hoffman was married in 
Salt Lake City. Utah, to Miss Maud Crosby, a 
daughter of the late Judge Crosby, who died 
in California. Their children are Stuart S. 
and David R. Dr. Hoffman is a man of strong 
]3ersonality, of large physique and well pro- 
portioned and his jjhysical prowess stands him 



276 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



in good stead in his professional work, which 
is often of an arduous character, many de- 
mands being made upon him for his services. 
He has continually advanced in touch with the 
progress of the profession and is deeply inter- 
ested in all that tends to promote the efficiency 
of the physician. 



TRACY RIGGS. 



Tracy Riggs, a farmer and contractor. 
whose life exemplifies the term "dignity of la- 
bor," has through earnest purpose won suc- 
cess in the business interests which claim his 
time and attention. He was born in the vil- 
lage of Chardon near Cleveland, Ohio, on the 
6th of January. 1837. His father, Dwight 
Riggs, was a native of Connecticut, liorn ]\Iay 
12, 1807, and was married four times, his first 
union being with Susan Page, who died in Ohio. 
One child was born of that union, Sarah, who 
l^ecame the wife of Curtis Ives and was a resi- 
dent of ^^'apello county, Iowa, where her 
death occurred September 4. 1896. For his 
second wife Dsvight Riggs chose Clarissa 
JNIakepeace, who was born in New York, March 
9, 1818. By trade J\Ir. Riggs was a machinist 
and following his removal to Iowa in 1842 he 
located in Mount Pleasant, where he worked 
at the machinist's trade, giving considerable 
time to the task of setting up woolen mills for 
the purpose of carding wool. He also con- 
structed the first woolen mills in Quincy, Illi- 
nois. After living for a time in IMount Pleas- 
ant he removed to Des ]\Ioines county, Iowa, 
where he resided for a year and in 1852 he 
came to Mahaska county, settling at Union 
Mills, where he purchased and for twenty 
years operated the woolen, grist and carding 
mill at that place. This was one of the pio- 
neer industries of the state and for a distance 



of one hundred miles people brought wool to be 
carded by him. The wool was then made into 
yarn through the operation of a hand hinm 
and was woven into cloth. The mill which 
^Ir. Riggs owned was built in 1849, '^"<i 1"''^ 
connection with the industrial life of the state 
made him \ery widely known. He located in 
Iowa three years before its admission into the 
Union and in those early days the work of prog- 
ress and improvement seemed scarcely begim, 
for there were great stretches of prairie land 
and also timbered tracts that gave no indica- 
tion that a white man had ever visited them. 
Mr. Riggs of this review can remember going 
with his father to Agency when the Indians 
received their pav from the United States for 
the Iowa lands and has seen as many as three 
hundred red men at one time passing through 
]\Iount Pleasant. After operating his mill for 
a numljer of years Mr. Rig'gs purchased a farm 
in White Oak township, upon which he lived 
until the time of his death. His second wife, 
the mother of our subject, had passed away 
in Mount Pleasant on the 9th of October, 
1841. There were three children by that mar- 
riage, namely : Tracy, of this review ; Susan, 
who became the wife of Thomas \\'atson. of 
Stafford, Kansas, and died in the winter of 
1905-6: and Carrie, who married George 
\Ye\\s and died in Oskaloosa thirty-eight years 
ago. For his third wife Mr. Riggs chose Mary 
E. Crandall, liy whom he had two sons: Frank- 
lin, who was a soldier of the Civil war and died 
after its close ; and Albert, who died November 
6, 1898. The fourth wife of Mr. Riggs was 
]\Irs. ]\lary Bridges, who is still living in 
^^'rig■ht, Iowa. There were two children by 
that union : Hattie, now the wife of James 
Griggs, a resident of Cedar, Iowa : and Amy, 
the deceased wife of Carl W'endel, living in 
\\'hite Oak township. The father passed away 
in ^^'hite Oak township at the very venerable 
aee of eis:ht\'-one vears and thus the countv 
mourned the loss of one of its honored and rep- 





^' 


.1 





TRACY klCCS. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



279 



i-fscntatixc piuiicer men — one wln) liad eoutrib- 
utc'il in larsj;e measure to tlie early improvement 
of the state and who had aided in layin,q- broad 
and deep tlie foundation for tiie present pros- 
perity and upbuilding of Iowa. 

Tracv Riggs was a youth of only five years 
when brought by his father to this state. He 
continued with him until twenty-three years 
of age and assisted him in liis milling opera- 
tions and in the farm labor. When a young 
lad he entered the common schools and after- 
ward attended the high school at Mount Pleas- 
ant. Having mastered the milling business in 
])rinciple and detail during his boj-hood days, 
after leaving home he became proprietor of a 
mill at Lnion Mills, biwa, which lie owned and 
operated for twenty years. He then removed 
to a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in 
Pleasant Grove township. This was all raw- 
land, most of it being covered with timber and 
a log shanty constituted almost the entire im- 
provement on the place. ]\Ir. Riggs at once 
began its cultivation and development and in 
tiie course of a few years where once stood the 
tall forest trees were seen waving fields of 
grain, giving promise of rich and abundant 
harvests. As year after year passed he con- 
tinued the work of the farm, bringing his land 
under a very high state of cultivation and he 
continued to make his home thereon until about 
two years ago, when he removed to New 
Sharon. He also built and operated a saw^mill 
on his farm, continuing the work of manufac- 
turing lumber there ffM" several years. For 
twenty years he has been engaged in building 
bridges in Mahaska county, which he con- 
structs on contracts made with the board of su- 
pervisors. He formerly had contracts for Iniild- 
ing all of the C()unty Iiridges liut found that the 
amount of work ref|uired was too great for one 
man to handle and he is now bridge builder for 
the northern half of the county. Perhaps no 
man in the locality has greater appreciation of 
the value of the in\cntion of the telephone than 



has Mr. Riggs, for he finds that it saves him 
many long drives, enabling him to superin- 
tend from almost any point the work of bridge 
))uilding in its various stages. He has a pri- 
\ate wire from his residence in New Sharon to 
the central office at Union Mills and from that 
point there is a mutual telephone service all 
over the eastern part of the county. Mr. Riggs 
was one of the ])romoters of the enterprise and 
aided in the construction of the first line. He 
favors ever\' progressive movement that tends 
to prove of practical benefit along business, in- 
tellectual or moral lines, and he has wielded a 
wide influence, being- pre-eminently a man of 
affairs. He still gives personal sujjervision to 
the bridge-building and does considerable work 
himself. He owns three good farms, compris- 
ing nearly two hundred acres of land, and his 
jiroperty interests are the visible evidence of a 
life of well directed energy and thrift. 

On the I.St of July, i860, Mr. Riggs was 
marriefl to Miss Phoebe C. Carver, wdio was 
born in Terre Haute. Indiana, May 24, 1842, 
a daughter of Pleasant and Mahala (Boden- 
hamer) Carver, tlie former born at Elizabeth- 
town. Kentucky, May 10, 181 9, and the latter 
in North Carolina, November 29, 1814. They 
came to Mahaska county, Iowa, in 1849, set- 
tling at Union ]\Tills, where their remaining 
days were passed. Air. Carver (le])arting this 
life September t6, 190T, while his wife died 
at the age of forty-four years. For a long 
period he conducted a grocery store and was 
jxistmaster of Union Mills during the period 
of the Civil war. He also purchased a farm, 
upon which he made his home for some time, 
and he continued an active factor in business 
life until aliout five years prior to his death, 
when he lost his eyesight. In his family were 
four children, namely : Mrs. Phoebe C. Riggs; 
Jerel, who is living in Oskaloosa : Mrs. Eliza- 
beth \\'ymere, a resident of Colorado; and Wil- 
liam, who died in Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1905. 
After losins: his first wife Air. Carver was 



28o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



again married, his second union being with 
Rachel Graham, who died at Union }ilills, Feb-, 
ruary 21, 1905. By that marriage there were 
born seven children, all of whom are living. 
The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Riggs has been 
blessed with nine children but three died in in- 
fancy. Those still living are : Addie, the wife 
of Newton Darling, a resident of Union town- 
ship: Horace E., who is living on a part of the 
old home farm; Howard A., who makes his 
home on a farm of his own in Pleasant Grove 
township : Oscar O., a resident of Barnes City, 
Iowa; Walter H., a farmer of Pleasant Grove 
township; and Lucy, the wife of James Lem- 
mon, also of Barnes City. 

Two years ago 'Sh. Riggs removed to New 
Sharon, where he purchased a nice home, 
which he has painted and remodeled and con- 
verted it into a comfortable and attractive resi- 
dence. In politics ]Mr. Riggs has always been 
a strong republican and for thirty years was a 
member of the township board of Pleasant 
Grove township. He belongs to the ^lasonic 
fraternity, with which he has affiliated for a 
number of years. Both Mr. and 'Mrs. Riggs 
are enjoving good health and they have a 
pleasant antl comfortable home, while by all 
who know them they are held in highest re- 
spect. Both are representatives of prominent 
old families connected with the county from 
pioneer times and they can well remember the 
early da\-s when rattlesnakes and wolves were 
numerous and when various evidences of fron- 
tier life were to be seen. Their fathers used 
the tiint and steel before matches were invented 
and candles were used Ijefore kerosene was 
placed upon the market. All of the clothing 
was homespun and the settlers were denied 
man}- of the comforts which are now deemed 
essential to life. yir. Riggs rejoices in the 
changes which have occurred and has kept in 
touch with the trend of modern progress and 
improvement. He is a gentleman of genial 
disposition and pleasant manner and is an en- 



tertaining, companionable gentleman, whose 
reminiscences of pioneer life are most inter- 



JAY G. ROBERTS, M. D. 

Dr. Jay G. Roberts, who in the ]iractice of 
his profession is making a specialty of dis- 
eases of the eye. ear, nose and throat, was liorn 
in Iroquois county, Illinois, on the 9th of Au- 
gust, 1874, a son of Sidney O. and Martha J. 
(Ramsey) Roberts, natives of \'ermont and 
Illinois respectively. The father is a direct 
descendant of Roger Williams and his mother, 
who bore the maiden name of Louise Dyer, 
was a direct descendant of Mary Dyer, who 
was hanged on Boston Common for her belief 
in the religion of the Friends or Quakers. 
Sidney O. Roberts became a captain in the 
Civil war, serving for four years as a member 
of the Ninth Illinois Cavaln,-, his rank coming 
to him in recognition of meritorious conduct 
on the field of battle. After the war he went 
to Illinois, recognizing the value of the 
prairie land, from which he developed a rich 
and productive farm, whereon he also carried 
on stock-raising. For many years his atten- 
tion was given to agricultural pursuits, but 
about eight years ago he retired from active 
life with a very desirable competency and died 
April 16, 1905, at the age of sixty-four years. 
His widow still survives him. In their family 
were two sons and a daughter : Jay G. : Kay 
C. who is living in Kankakee, Illimjis : and 
Grace, also a resident of Kankakee. 

Dr. Roberts accjuired his early education in 
the public schools of his native town and after- 
ward attended Greer College at Hoopeston, 
Illinois, while subsequently he became a student 
in the department of pharmacy of the Northern 
Indiana Normal School at X^alparaiso, from 
which he won his degree of Ph. G. He like- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



281 



wise attended Rush .Me(IicaR"i>lle£i:e, tlie medical 
departnieiit nf tlie L'nivcrsity of Chicago, and 
was gra(hiated with the class of 1899. He took 
post-graduate work in the Chicago Eye, Ear, 
Nose and Tln-nat College and hefore his grad- 
uatiiiii from Rush Medical he entered upon 
active jjractice in Chicago in 1898, having taken 
the state hoard examination in that year In 
1899 he located in 1 Listings, Neliraska. whence 
he returned to Chicago in 1903, and in 1904 he 
came to Oskaloosa, where he has since 
practiced. While in Hastings, although he 
engaged in general practice, he also devoted 
special attention to mental and nervous diseases 
and occupied the chair in the section of nervous 
and mental diseases in the Nebraska State 
Medical Society. He is the author of a numlier 
of valuable articles on different medical sub- 
jects including "Neurasthenia." which was read 
before the Nebraska State Medical Society. 
May 8. 1901. lie is also the author nf a 
])aper called "Autointo.xication in Relation to 
Mental and Xerx'ous Diseases," which was ])uh- 
lished in the American .Medicine nt I'hila- 
delphia and in the Philadelphia Medical Jour- 
nal. He also read a i)aper before the Nebraska 
PInrmaceutical Society entitled "The Relation 
nf I'harinacy tn the Medical Profession." His 
writings have_ been received with favor, show- 
ing original investigation and deep thought, 
and their \-alue has l^een recognizetl by the 
medical fraternity. He belongs to the Mahaska 
Medical Society, the h)wa State Medical So- 
ciety and the .American Medical Association. 
Since coming to Oskaloosa be has devoted his 
attention exclusi\'el\' to the eve, car, nose and 
throat, and in the line of his sjiecialty has met 
with constantly growing success viewed from 
both a professional and financial standpoint. 

In 1902. Dr. Roljerts was married to Miss 
Louise Carnehan, of Hastings. Nebraska, and 
they have one son, Ciilbert J. They bold an en- 
\iable position in social circles of the citv, 
having already won many warm friends here. 



while the hospitalitx' of their own home is 
greatly enjo\-ed by those who know them be- 
cause of its undisputed sincerity and warm 
heartedness. Dr. Roberts belongs to the Ma- 
sonic fraternity, but his attenion has been 
chiefly gi\en to his professional duties, which 
are discharged with a sen.se of con.scientious ob- 
ligation. He ever keeps before him a high 
standard of perfection which he is continually 
striving to reach and, broadening his knowl- 
edge by research and investigation, he has been 
enabled to perform valual)le service for his 
fellowmen in the line of his specialty. 



JOHN H. PERRY. 

John H. I'erry, who for forty-one years has 
l)een engaged in the printing business in Oska- 
loosa, has in tlie course of an active career kept 
in touch with modern methods, for development 
lias been as marked in the "art preservative" 
as in any line of business or professional activ- 
ity. He has foiuid in the work-a-day world in- 
centive for earnest and persistent effort and 
upon the sure foundation of indefatigable labor 
has huilded liis success. Born in Zanesville, 
Ohio, on the 20th of February, 1848, he is 
a grandson of William Perry, who was born in 
Maryland and served as a soldier in the war of 
18 1 2. He came to Oskaloosa, Towa, in i860, 
and in this county as well as in former years 
followed the occuiiation of farming. He died 
in 1873, when eighty-five years of age. He 
had se\en daughters and three sons, of whom 
the living are : \\illiam. of Chicago; and Emily, 
who is the widow of Henry Walker, also of that 
city. 

Leroy S. and Sarah (Josselyn) Perry were 
natives of Ohio and the latter was a daughter 
of .\mbrose Josselyn, who was a sailor on the 
high seas, making trips lietween New York and 
luudpean ports. He died in Zanesville, Ohio, 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



in 1870. at tlie age of eighty years, while his 
widow, who in her maidenhood was ^Miss 
Adams, survived him for four years. Air. and 
Mrs. Leroy Perr)" continued residents of Ohio 
until their son John was seven years of age, 
when in 1855, they removed to Oskaloosa, 
where the father followed the painter's trade. 
He died July 25, 1874, at the age of fifty-two 
years, while his widow, yet surviving him, 
makes her home in Seattle, W'ashington. In their 
family were eight children: John H. ; A. M., a 
resident of San Francisco. California; C. INI., of 
Oskaloosa; Ida AI.. the wife of John Keating, of 
Seattle, W'ashington ; Mary, the wife of A. L. 
Kelsall, of Seattle: F. L., of the same city: and 
two who died in infancv. 

John H. Perry acquired a limited education, 
for at an early age he entered business life. He 
learned the printer's trade and in 1865 entered 
the Herald oflfice at Oskaloosa, remaining there 
for twenty years. In 1895 ^^^ established his 
■present printing business and for forty-one 
years he has been connected with the trade in 
this city. He is thoroughly conversant with the 
work in every department and is now enjoying 
a large trade as a job printer, turning out ex- 
cellent work. His political allegiance is given 
to the republican party and in iSgg^ he was 
elected city assessor on the citizens' ticket for a 
term of four years and in the spring of 1905 
was re-elected to that office on the republican 
ticket, so that he is the present incumbent, his 
re-election coming to him in recognition of his 
capable service during his first term. 

On the loth of June, 1885, Mr. Perry was 
married to Miss Jennie Rinard. a daughter of 
Henry and Sarah Rinard, natives of Indiana, 
and their children are : Leighton R. and John 
Walter. In 1871 Mr. Perry was made a mem- 
ber of Tri Luminar lodge. A. F. & A. M., and 
he has also taken the degrees of the Royal Arch 
chapter and of the Knights Templar comman- 
derv. He is recognized as a reliable business 



man of Oskaloosa and a strong element in his 
success is that fact that he has continuously 
persevered in the department of labor in which 
he embarked as a young tradesman, thus gain- 
ing a thorough knowledge of the business in 
e\-ery department together with a proficiency 
which conies from long experience. 



ROBERT BASS. 



Robert Bass, a prosperous farmer and fruit- 
grower, of White Oak township, his property 
being on section 10 not far from the village 
of Rose Hill, is numbered among the worthy 
and honored pioneer settlers of Iowa. He 
came to the state in 1843 '^"fl since 1845 has 
li\-ed in Mahaska county. Few residents have 
longer \xen witnesses of the development and 
progress of the county and at all times he has 
taken an active and helpful part in the work 
of advancement. 

}ilr. Bass was born in Boone, Kentucky, May 
9, 1827. His father, William L. Bass, first 
opened his eyes to the light of day in the same 
state in 1802, representing one of the oldest 
families there. He was reared and married in 
his native locality. Miss ^Margaret Roberts be- 
coming his wife. Her birth occurred in Ken- 
tucky in 1803. Air. Bass followed farming in 
that state and subsequently removed to Barthol- 
omew county, Indiana, where he opened up a 
tract of land, transforming it from a wild C(in- 
dition into one of rich fertility and productive- 
ness. In 1843 he came to Iowa with his fam- 
ily, settling in Van Buren county, and after two 
or three years he arrived in Alahaska county 
in 1845. Here he entered one hundred and 
sixty acres of land from the government and 
developed a farm in Union township, spending 
his remaining days thereon, his death occurring 
in 1885. while his wife passed away in 1883. 
Both were more than eightv vears of age at the 







CU^L^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



285 



lime of their demise. Tliey liad long been 
worthy and honored pioneer residents of tlic 
county and as such certainly deserve mention in 
tliis \olume. 

Rohert Bass was the eldest of the family of 
six sons and three daughters, all of whom 
reached mature years and three sons and three 
daughters arc yet living. He came to Iowa 
when a voung man of seventeen years and re- 
mained with his parents until he had attained 
his majority. He worked by the month as a 
farm hand for several years, first recei\ing ten 
dollars per month and later an increa.sed wage. 
Saving liis earnings, he was eventually enabled 
to i:)urchase forty acres of land near Oskaloosa, 
and later he traded that pro])erty for two hun- 
<lred acres of raw land in Adams township. 
])aying thereon a difference of one hundred and 
twenty dollars. This he at once began to 
break, placing the fields under cultivation, 
and <as the years passed liy he carried on his 
farming operations with success. Choosing a 
companion antl helpmate for life's journey, he 
was married in ]\Iahaska county in 1863 to 
Miss Mary Ann Rol:)erts. He continued farm- 
ing thereafter for some years, or until his wife 
died, leaving two children. He had made a 
good farm, had fenced the place and built a 
comfortable dwelling and good barns. Event- 
ually, however, he sold that property and 
liought a farm of eight hundred acres in Mon- 
roe township. Although in one tract this is 
practical!}- three farms with three sets of 
buildings thereon. 

On the 4th of July. 1X63. .Mr. Bass was mar- 
ried tin- >ccond time, when Miss Martha J. Al- 
good became his wife. She was 1)orn in Mont- 
gomery county, Indiana, and is a daughter of 
John 11. Aigood, one of the early settlers of 
Iowa, arri\-ing in this state about 1847. Unto 
Mr. and Mrs. Bass have been born seven chil- 
dren and 'if this number six are yet living. By 
the first marriage there was a daughter and son : 
Rosa, now the wife of W. E. Stringer, of ]\[on- 



roe county; and J. A. liass, a farmer, of Pratt 
county, Kansas, who owns twelve hundred acres 
of land and is extensively engaged in raising 
stock. The children of the present marriage 
are: Mary B., the wife of W. E. Moore, a 
farmer, of Adams township, Mahaska county; 
Charles, who carries on farming in the same 
township; I'rank, also living in Adams town- 
ship; Nellie, who died at the age of ten months; 
R. \\'., who is engagefl in the drug business in 
Mnnon:i county; .\gnes, the wife of Frank 
Bacon, a resident farmer, of Adams township; 
and Paul T., ^\•ho folluws farming in ]\lonroe 
tounsiiip. 

Mr. Bass has given to each of his children 
eight}' acres of land, thus enabling them to start 
well in life. He was one of the organizers and 
stockholders of the Rose Hill Savings Bank, 
and is now its president. In 1902 he purchased 
a small farm near Rose Hill, where he now re- 
sides, and since locating here he has planted a 
nice orchard and much small fruit. He has 
repaired the Iniildings and improved the place 
and gives his time to keeping it in good condi- 
tion and also to the cultivation of fruit. In 
former years he was very extensively engaged 
in farming and his laliors brought to him a 
gratifying financial reward that enabled him to 
provide liberally for his children and now en- 
al)lcs him largely to live retired, but he has a 
nature to which indolence ;ui(l idleness are ut- 
terly foreign and he could not content himself 
without some business interest. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bass are members of the ^letii- 
odist Episcopal church in which he is serving 
as one of the officers, and they take a very ac- 
tive interest in church and Sunday-school work. 
In politics Mr. Bass has been a life-long demo- 
crat since casting his first presidential vote for 
I'ranklin Pierce in 1S52. He was elected and 
ser\'ed as justice of the peace, filling the office 
for several terms. He has also been township 
treasurer and for about twenty-five years has 
been a memlier of the school board. He has 



286 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



served as a delegate to county and state con- 
ventions and he is never remiss in the duties of 
citizenship, but on the contrary is ever alert to 
public interests, doing all in his power for gen- 
eral progress. For sixty-one years he has lived 
in IMahaska county and has therefore been a 
witness of almost its entire growth and develop- 
ment. He has seen it opened up and improved 
as the white men have reclaimed the district for 
the uses of civilization and he has borne his full 
part in advancing the onward movement. 



GEORGE H. CARLON. 

George H. Carlon, one of the leading rep- 
resentatives of business interests in Oskaloosa, 
where he is engaged in contracting and build- 
ing, also in the manufacture of paving and 
building cement and in the execution of con- 
tracts for the building of cement sidewalks and 
curbing, was born in jMercer county, Pennsyl- 
vania, Julv 20, 1850. The Carlon ancestors 
came to America from the north of Ireland, 
Robert Carlon, the grandfather of our subject, 
and three of his brothers crossing the Atlantic 
to the new world in colonial days. One of the 
number served in the Revolutionary war but 
later they became separated and nearly all 
trace of the family is lost. The White family 
is of Scotch descent and representatives of the 
name are now in Mercer county, Pennsylvania. 
George H. Carlon is a son of B. F. and Zene- 
bia (White) Carlon, both of whom were na- 
tives of Pennsylvania. The mother died when 
her son George was four years of age and the 
father with his famil\- afterward removed to 
Monmouth, Illinois, where two years later he 
was married to Elizabeth Stubbs. He was a 
mechanic and builder and worked in various 
parts of tlie United States. His death oc- 
curred in 1902, when he was seventy years of 



After attending the public schools in Mon- 
mouth, Illinois, George H. Carlon continued 
his studies in the ^Monmouth high school, and 
in early life he learned the trade of a machinist 
and engineer. He began as a builder in Mon- 
mouth and afterward followed that pursuit in 
Bloomington, Nebraska. In 188 1 he came to 
Oskaloosa, where he continued his work as a 
builder and contractor. Here in 1884 he also 
began the manufacture of paving and building 
cement and has done a large business in paving 
the streets of Oskaloosa and other cities. He 
has also erected many buildings from cement 
blocks and up to the year 1906 he has contracts 
for building fifty miles of sidewalk in Oska- 
loosa alone and over twenty miles of curbing. 
He operates a cement block plant in Oskaloosa 
and as a manufacturer and contractor is doing 
an extensi\e and profitable business, his being 
one of tlie leading productive industries of the 
city. 

On the 17th of r\Iarch, 1S74, occurred the 
marriage of ^Ir. Carlon and Miss Sarah Mar- 
garet Sweger, a daughter of Samuel Sweger, of 
Kirkwood, Illinois, who was a contractor and 
builder and died January 30, 1906, at the age 
of eight)--two years. Unto Mr. and !^Irs. Car- 
lon have been born six children : Charles H., 
of Oskaloosa : Harry F.. also of this city: Alin- 
nie, who died at the age of thirteen years ; 
Trixie, who died at the age of four years : and 
Bessie F. and Nina R., both at home. 

Mr. Carlon is a member of the Central !Meth- 
odist Episcopal church. He belongs to Tri 
Luminar lodge No. 18, A. F. & .\. '\L. having 
been made a Mason in November, 1873. He 
also holds membership with Hiram chapter. No. 
6, R. A. M.. and is a member of the Mystic 
Shrine. He belongs to-the lodge and uniformed 
rank of the Knights of Pythias, has filled all 
of the chairs in the former and is a member of 
Commercial lodge. No. 128, I. O. O. F. A re- 
publican where national questions and issues are 
involved, he votes independent locally. He has 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



287 



prnspcrcd in liis business affairs and nmv has 
a pleasant liome and a i)rofitable, productive 
industry and as tlie years iiave gone by his life 
record has demonstrated the force and value of 
untiring effort, keen business disccrnnient and 
of true worth uf character. 



• JOHX L. SANDERS. 

Jnhn L. Sanders, who is engaged in selling 
monuments for an Oskaloosa firm and makes 
his home in New Sharon, was born in Orange 
county, Indiana, on the 6th of December, 1845, 
his parents being Aaron and Nancy (Hollo- 
well ) Sanders, Ixitb of wlumi were natives of 
North Carolina, the former born October 4, 
181 1, and the latter July 7, 1818. They were 
reared in the Old North state, where they mar- 
ried, after which they removed to Indiana, tak- 
ing u]) their abode upon a farm in Orange coun- 
ty, where the death of Mrs. Sanders occurred 
June 26, 1855. In 1857 Mr. Sanders removed 
from Indiana to Marion county, Illinois, where 
he carried on general agricultural pursuits un- 
til his life's lal)ors were ended in death in No- 
vember, 1881, when he was seventy years of 
age. He was born and reared in the south and 
was a stanch democrat, his sympathies being 
with the Confederacy during the Ci\il war liut 
after the war he canie to see plainly that the re- 
sult was all f(ir the best. In the family were 
nine children ; Jonathan, who died on a farm 
in Marion county, Illinois, when forty-four 
years of age; Elwood, who was married and 
had a family and who die<l during the Civil 
war while serving as a member of Company H, 
Eightieth Illinois Infantry; Henry, who was 
also a member of the same company and died 
in l-'ebruary, 1905, at his home in Marion 
county, Illinois; Nancy and My ram, who died 
in childhood ; Robert, who was a memlier of the 
Forty-ninth Illinois Infantrv in the Civil war 



and died at the age of forty-nine years; John 
L., the seventh in order of birth; William, who 
is living on the old homestead; and Aaron, 
w ho died at the age of eighteen months. 

John L. Sanders remained at home until 
after the outbreak of the Civil war. He was 
not old enough to enlist without his father's 
consent, being only fifteen years of age when 
the strife was begun. At two different times 
he tried to join the Union army but his father 
forced him to return home. On the 15th of 
December, 1863. however, just after he 
reached the age of eighteen years, he succeeded 
in joining Company E, Sixty-second Regiment 
of Illinois Infantry, under Captain L. L. Hum- 
phrey and continued with that command until 
honorably discharged for disability at Fort 
Gilison in the Indian Territory on the 30th of 
January, 1866. He was with the company in 
all of its service until he became ill in the win- 
ter of 1865-66 and for four weeks he was in 
the hospital before being sent home. He still 
suffers from the effects of his army service and 
the g'overnment now grants him a pension of 
fourteen dollars ]jer month. He made a credit- 
able military record and his undaunted patriot- 
ism was shown by the several attempts which he 
made to join the army, as well as by his service 
upon the field of battle. He now- has his dis- 
charge papers framed together with pictures 
of himself and his officers. 

\\'hen the war was over 'Sir. Sanders re- 
turned to his father's home in Marion county. 
Illinois, where he worked for three years on the 
farm. He was then married on the 23d of 
May. 1869, to Miss Ellen Ouaintance, who was 
Ixirn in C)hio, .\pril 26, 1848, a daughter of 
Joseph K. and Phoebe (Brewer) Ouaintance. 
also nati\-cs of the Buckeye state, the father's 
birth having occurred .\pril 25. 18 12, and the 
mother's on the 24th of August, 1815. They 
came to Mahaska county in 1853, settling on a 
farm south of New Sharon. Later Mr. Ouain- 
tance sold that property and renio\-cd to Illinois 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and it was while living there that his daughter 
Ellen formed the acquaintance of Mr. Sanders, 
to whom she gave her hand in marriage. On 
the 6th of September. 1869. Mr. and Mrs. San- 
ders, accompanied by her parents, started for 
New Sharon, driving across the country with 
teams and arriving at their destination on the 
1st of October. There was but one railroad in 
the county at that time and the nearest station 
was Beacon south of Oskalposa on the Des 
Moines Valley Railroad. Mr. and Mrs. Ouain- 
tance continued to reside in New Sharon until 
death, the former passing away January 28, 
1871, and the latter dying at the home of Mr. 
and ]\Irs. Sanders in New Sharon in i8g6. 

After coming to this county Mr. Sanders de- 
voted his time and energies to farming for a 
number of years or until 1881, when he re- 
moved to the village of New Sharon and bought 
two lots, upon which he erected a residence. He 
then engaged in carpenter work, which he fol- 
lowed mitil a few years ago and since he has 
abandoned building operations he has been en- 
gaged in selling monuments for an Oskaloosa 
firm. About a year ago he sold his original 
home in New Sharon and ijurchased a residence 
nearer the center of the town. 

Unto him and his wife have been born se\en 
children: Laura, now the wife of William 
Briggs, living on a farm near New Sharon and 
by whom she has four children, Eva, Harry, 
Clara and Paul; Marion L., a graduate of the 
New Sharon schools and for one year a student 
in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, who is a Methodist 
minister at the south end of Puget Sound in 
Washington: Emma, who is teaching her eighth 
term in the primary department of the public 
schools of New Sharon: and Myrtle and Edna, 
Avho are teleplione operators in New Sharon. 
The second and third members of the family 
died in infancv. 

In politics J\lr. Sanders has always been an 
earnest republican. He served for one term on 
the school board, for four vears as street com- 



missioner and has been village assessor, and 1 
was urged to accept the nomination for tl 
city council but declined. He is a commission 
appointed to handle the soldiers' relief fund ai 
he belongs to H. C. Leighton post, No. 199. ( 
A. R., in which he has held every office, no 
serving as chaplain. He also belongs to tl 
Masonic fraternit}', and both he and his wi 
are members of the Methodist Episcop 
church, their connection therewith antedatir 
that of any other of its members, for all ha- 
Ijeen called to their reward or removed els 
where, who were affiliated with the church 
the time they came to New Sharon. Mr. Sa 
ders is a well informed man, who has been 
great reader, and he has kept in touch with tl 
trend of modern thought. . He has not ; 
enemy in the world to his knowledge and 
\\<inld be difficult to understand how any 01 
could feel enmity toward him, because of h 
g'enial nature, his kind disposition and his co: 
sideration for others. He has always been 
robust man until of late years and when he e 
tered the army at the age of eighteen years 1 
weighed two hundred and two pounds, t 
has watched much of the county's growth ai 
development, for there were only nine or t( 
houses in New Sharon when he arrived he 
and there was no railroad in the village a 
though the Iowa Central was built soon afte 
His wife remembers the wolves and deer whic 
were in the county when her parents first can 
here in 1855. Both are held in the highest e 
teem, their friends being almost co-extensii 
with the circle of their acquaintances. 



LEWIS U. TOWNS. 



Lewis M. Towns, residing on section i. 
Spring Creek township, is one of the substanti 
farmers and stock-raisers of the county, h 
farm comprising two hundred and twenty-tw 




MR. AX I) MRS. I.. M. Ti )\\ XS. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



291 



acres of laml wliicli is valuable and productive. 
A resident of the county since 1858, he is well 
known within its borders. He was born in 
Harrison county, Missouri, Dccenil)er 23, 1857, 
and is a son of Levi Towns, wiiose birth oc- 
curred in Stark ctninty, Ohio, in 1830. The 
g'rand father, Israel Towns, was an early set- 
tler of Ohio and Le\i Towns was reared in 
Stark county, where he remained until he went 
to Misscjuri in early manhood. He settled in 
Harrison county, where he engaged in teaching 
for several years. 1 le was married in Missouri 
to Miss Raciiel Connor, a native of that state 
and they remained residentsof Missouri for sev- 
eral years thereafter. In 1857 they came to 
Iowa, settling in Mahaska county, where Mr. 
Towns secured a farm, then a tract (jf raw land. 
He had traded land in ^Missouri for one hundred 
and iwcnt}- acres here and with characteristic 
energy he began to clear and break the land, 
upon which he built a log house, beginning life 
in true pioneer style. For several years he lived 
in that cabin home, but afterward erected a 
substantial and modern frame dwelling. He 
also built two good barns and bought land from 
time to time thus extending the Ijoundaries of 
the place until the farm now comprises two hun- 
ilren and twenty-two acres, all of which has 
been placed under the plow, save a tract of forty 
acres of timber. Upon this farm Mr. Towns 
lost his wife in 1867. He is now residing with 
his son, Lewis, at the age of seventy-six years. 
He filled the office of township trustee for two 
nr three terms, and was interested in all mat- 
ters of general progress and improvement. 

Lewis M. Towns is one of a family of four 
sons and three daughters, six of whom are yet 
living. He remained upon the farm with his 
father, receiving good educational privileges 
and has always resided upon the old homestead 
since coming to the county. No event of spe- 
cial importance occurred to vary the routine of 
farm life for him in his youth, luit he has ever 
manifested a spirit of loyal and progressive cit- 



izenship and of trustworthiness in business that 
makes bis record a creditalile one and worthy 
of emulation. 

( )n the i()th of October, 1884, in Spring- 
Creek township, Mr. Towns was married to 
Miss Maggie Martin, who was born in Penn- 
sylvania and was reared in this state from girl- 
hood days, being but eighteen months old when 
brought to Iowa by her father, W. S. IMartin, 
who removed from Pennsylvania to Mahaska 
county and became a farmer of Spring Creek 
township, .\fter his marriage ^Iv. Towns op- 
erated the home farm for a few years and then 
located on a tract of land in Monroe township, 
where he purchased one hundred and thirty 
acres of land. There be lived for ten years, 
carrying on general agricultural pursuits and 
further improving the property. He tiled the 
place and added modern equipments. Later, 
however, he purchased the old home farm and 
has built to and remodeled the house. He has 
also tiled the land and he uses the latest im- 
]M-oved machinery in carrying on the work of 
the fields. This is a w'ell developed farm prop- 
erty and in connection with the cultivation of 
cro])s he also engages in raising and feeding 
stock, fattening a carload or two of stock for 
the market each year besides a large number of 
hogs. 

L^nto Mr. and ]\Irs. Towns ba\e been born 
three sons and two daughters : Blanch and 
Beulah, twins, who are at home; Truman A.; 
Homer M. ; and Paul C. Politically Mr. 
Towns is a stanch republican where national is- 
sues are involved, but at local elections, wdiere 
only the capability of a candidate is to be con- 
sidered, he casts an independent ballot. He has 
never desired or sought office but gives his time 
to his business. He has, however, served on 
the school board. Both he and his wife, are 
members of the Oskaloosa United Presbyterian 
church and enjoy the wami esteem of all that 
class of citizens who have due regard for all 
that is upright and honorable in life. Brought 



jg> 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



to the county when only a year old, Mr. Towns 
has since resided within its borders, and has 
long I)een accounted one of its progressive and 
prospernus farmers. 



:\IRS. A]\IELIA S. (BAER) WILSON. 

I\Irs. .\melia S. ( Baer) \\'ilson is one of the 
oldest citizens of Mahaska count}' in years of 
continuous connection with tliis section of the 
state, having for more than six decades been a 
resident of Iowa. She now makes her home 
with her daughter. ^Irs. Harrv ^^ . Scc\ers. in 
Oskaloosa. She was born in Rockville. Indiana. 
September 17, 1841, and is a daughter of 
George and Elizabeth Baer, who in 1844 re- 
moved from the Hoosier state to Iowa, settling 
in Oskaloosa. It was the pioneer period in the 
history of the county when the work of im- 
]irn\-ement ami dexelopment seemed scarcelv 
begun. ~S\v. Baer did considerable trading in 
furs with the Indians and because of his promi- 
nence in business life the\- called him the chief 
of the town. They wmild ride into Oskaloosa 
in great numbers and camp on the hill near the 
present site of Dr. Leener's home. At that time 
there was quite a grove of crab apple and plum 
trees on the hill. The Indians would make their 
way to the home of Mr. Baer and stack their 
guns — a method which they used to show that 
their ^■isit was a ]icaceful one. ,\t night they 
would hold a war dance in the okl courthouse. 
After trading and begging around for several 
days they would all go for their gims and ride 
away yelling and shooting their arrows into 
the air, frightening the children half to death 
and causing not a little terror to some of the 
older people. After a few years had passed, 
however, one seldom saw an Indian in the town. 

Amid such surroundings Amelia S. Baer 
spent her girlhood days and in the fall of 1858 
she gave her hand in marriage to Rezin ^^"ilson. 



the wedding ceremony being performed bv the 
Rev. \\'. F. Cowles. Her husband was a mem- 
ber of the firm of Dixon & Wilson, saddlers of 
Oskaloosa. Unto this marriage were born four 
children: George \\'.. who is now living in 
Clinton. Iowa; Harry R.. deceased; Stella M., 
the wife of Harry W. Seevers. a real-estate 
dealer of Oskaloosa; and Lena E., the wife of 
Leslie E. Dewey, who are residents of this 
city. Since the death of her husband, in July, 
1891, Mrs. \\'ilson has made her home with her 
daughter, Mrs. Harry Seevers, at No. 836 East 
High avenue in Oskaloosa. Almost sixty-three 
years have passed since she came to this county 
and her mintl forms a c<innecting link between 
the primiti\-e past and the progressive present, 
while upon memory's wall hangs many pictures 
of those early days with their pioneer experi- 
ences and frontier environments. 



THOMAS C. BEACH. 

Thomas C. Beach, a retired farmer li\'ing in 
Oskaloosa, is a nati\'e of Illinois, his birth hav- 
ing occurred in Jacksonville. Januan,- 11, 1832. 
His parents were Caleb and Mary Ann (Hew- 
ett) Beach, the former born in Newark, New 
Jersey, in 1803, and the latter in New York 
city, in 1807. Mrs. Beach was the daughter of 
English parents, who first located in New York 
city and finall\- removed to Lexington, Ken- 
tucky. Her father was the Rev. John M. 
Hewett, a Baptist minister. Her mother was a 
member of the Christian church and became 
one of the first representatives of that ilenomi- 
nation. having had the distinction of being 
baptized by Alexander Campbell, the founder 
of the church. Caleb Beach remo\ed from New 
Jersey to Lexington, Kentucky, where he re- 
sided for five years, during- which time he was 
married. He afterward came to Illinois, set- 
tling in Tacksonxille, ^^'here his remaining davs 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



293 



were passed. lie was a carriage-maker by 
trade and always followed that pursuit in order 
to ])n)vide for his family. His death occurred 
ill iS,^S. when he was only thirty-three years of 
age. His wife long sur\ived him and died 
about ]<S<jo. In their family were five children : 
Eliza (;.. Augustus H. and Middleton H., all 
deceased: Thomas C. of this review, and Rob- 
ert I'., who is an attorney at law, practicing in 
Oakland, California, .\fter losing her first 
husband .Mrs. Beach became the wife of Joseph 
Cam])bell and they had six children, namely: 
Susan M.. who has passed awa\' ; Sally F., the 
wife of John Allen, a minister of the Christian 
chinch at Spokane. Washington: Emma C, 
the widow of John M. Ewing and a resident of 
Jacksoiuille. Illinois: Ella, Johanna rmd ]\lar}- 
Belle, all deceased. 

Thomas C. Beach attended the district 
schools of Illinois and was reared on a farm 
after reaching the age of ten }ears. He came 
to Iowa in 1853, settling in Richland townshii), 
AFabaska county. He was then twenty-one 
years of age. The occupation to which he had 
been reared he determined to make his life 
work .and he here purchased and entered land, 
u]K)n which be remaineil for thirteen years, 
transforming it into a good farm. He next 
Iwught a farm four and a half miles northwest 
of Oskaloosa in what is now Garfield township, 
residing tiiereon until 1902 when he retired to 
the county seat, where he now resides in the 
enjoyment of a well earned rest. Tn his farm 
work be w;is alwa\'s practical and bis laliors 
brought his fields under a high state of cultiva- 
tion and enabled him to gather therefrom rich 
harvests. 

On April 17, 1853, Mr. lieach w;is married 
to JMiss Martha Campbell, who was born in 
Scott county, Illinois, June 3, 1833, and died 
February 3, 1904. She was a daughter of Jo- 
seph and Sophia (Kennedy) Camplieli. Her 
father was a cabinet-maker and later a farmer. 
Mrs. Beach belonged to the Christian church 



and was a most estima])le 



having the 



warm regard of many friends. By lier mar- 
riage she had .become the mother of five chil- 
dren : Mark W., a farmer living in Spring 
Creek townsbijj. this county ; Luke L., deceased ; 
Thomas C, living on the old homestead farm; 
Josei)h C. who resides in Spring Creek town- 
shi]): and .Mar_\- E., at home. 

Air. Beach, wlio was made a Mason about 
i860, has attained high rank in the order and 
is a member of the Mystic Shrine. He has long 
been recognized as an active member of the re- 
publican party, whose opinions carry weight 
in its local councils, while his labors in its be- 
half have been effective and far reaching. He 
was justice of the peace for six years and was 
a member of the fifteenth general assembly. 
After an interval of a number of years he was 
again called to that office, representing Ma- 
haska county in tlie twenty-fourth general as- 
sembly. He was interested iir much construc- 
ti\'e legislation and each ([uestion which came 
up for settlement recei\ed bis earnest consider- 
ation, while his support of every measure for 
which he voted was that of a public-spirited 
citizen who places the welfare of the common- 
wealth before partisan measures and the gen- 
eral s;ood before self-advancement. 



CHARLES LLOYD BARNHOUSE. 

Charles Lloyd Barnhouse, who in 1888 be- 
gan publishing music for liaiids and orchestras 
and lias since continued the business, having 
for fifteen years been located in Oskaloosa, 
where his trade has been increasing from year 
to year, was born in Grafton, West Virginia, in 
^S6^. His father, George R. Barnhouse. was a 
native of Marion county. West \'irginia. and 
was a railroad machinist or lilacksmith in the 
railroad shops. He came of German descent 
and displayed many of the sterling characteris- 
tics of his ancestors from the fatherland. Dur- 



294 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ing the Civil war he was in the government em- 
ploy as a farrier and blacksmith. At one time 
he lived in Illinois, but afterward returned to 
West Virginia. Subsequently, however, he 
again went to Illinois, settling in Aurora, where 
he was employed in the railroad shops up to the 
time of his death, which occurred in 1901. when 
he was fifty-seven years of age. He had mem- 
bership in the Methodist Protestant church and 
was an ardent republican, unfaltering in his 
support of the principles of the party. He mar- 
ried Harriet S. Davis, who was also born in 
Marion county, West Virginia, and who is now 
living in Oskaloosa at the age of fifty-seven 
years. She, too, is a member of the Methodist 
Prostestant church. In their family were two 
sons and two daughters : Charles Lloyd ; Lillie 
C, now deceased; Daisy C, the wife of John 
W. Tibbs; and Herbert W., a music printer 
residing in Oskaloosa. 

Charles L. Barnhouse pursued his early edu- 
cation in the schools of Grafton, West Vir- 
ginia, and early manifested much musical taste 
and talent. He became an expert cornet player 
and went upon the road with a theatrical com- 
pany, being thus engaged for about three years. 
He afterward had charge of the band at Mount 
Pleasant, Iowa, for three years and at Burling- 
ton, Iowa, for one year. In 1891 he came 
to Oskaloosa and took charge of the Iowa 
Brigade Band, of which he was leader for fif- 
teen years. In the meantime, in 1888, he had 
begim publishing music for bands, orchestras 
and miscellaneous musical organizations. He 
entered upon this work at Mount Pleasant and 
continued in the business in Burlington and Os- 
k'aloosa. He now has a well equipped printing 
plant and is conducting a successful business, 
which is increasing from year to year. His 
musical publications are in demand in all parts 
of the world and he has a large trade through- 
out the United States and Canada. His own 
compositions and his arrangements of music 
are for bands and orchestras. 



In 1886 Mr. Barnhouse was married to Miss 
Josephine B. Scott, who was born in Pennsyl- 
vania in 1868 and was a daughter of J. H. and 
Mary E. (Hare) Scott. In the family are 
four children: Jamie M., Lloyd, Dorothy and 
Irene. The parents are members of the Con- 
gregational church and Mr. Barnhouse belongs 
to the Masonic, Knights of Pythias and Elks 
lodges. He is serving as a member of the board 
of trustees of his church and is interested in 
its progress and also in the work of the differ- 
ent fraternal organizations with which he is 
connected. In politics he is a republican. His 
thorough understanding of the art of music and 
his lo\-e therefor combined with native talent 
has enabled him to give to the world many 
interesting productions of this character and his 
business both as a composer and publisher is 
proving profitable and gratifying. 



GEORGE H. RAAISAY. 

George H. Ramsay, of Oskaloosa, engaged 
in the development of rich coal fields of 'Sla- 
haska county, is a native of the north of Eng- 
land, his birth having occurred in County Dur- 
ham on the 29th of December. 1844. his par- 
ents being AN'illiam and Ann (Heckels) Ram- 
sav. who were also natives of England. The 
paternal grandfather. William Ramsay, was a 
coal miner, who spent his entire life in his na- 
tive country. The maternal grandfather, Rich- 
ard Heckels, was manager of mines in England. 
William Ramsay, Jr., father of our subject, 
was also manager of a mine and died when his 
son George was but eight years of age, he hav- 
ing at that time reached the age of forty-five 
vears. Following the death of her husband 
I\Irs. Ramsay came to the Ignited States with 
her familv of seven children, making her way 
to Illinois in 1863, at which time George H. 
Ramsav was eighteen years of age. The fam- 




CF.ORC.E II. RAMSAY 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



297 



ily home was established in Morris, Ilhnois, 
and tlie mother's death occurred in Streator, 
tlial state, in 1875. when she was fifty-eight 
years of age. Only two of the children are 
now living, namely, George H. and John, both 
residents ox Oskaloosa. The others were: 
\\'illi;un T., who was a manager of mines in 
Oskaloosa; Richard, a mine manager of Brace- 
ville, Illinois; Joseph, who was a coal operator 
of Des Moines; Margaret, the deceased wife of 
]\ichard Waters, of Davenport, Iowa: and 
Mary Ann, the deceased wife of Xewick Long- 
staif, of Oskaloosa. 

Mr. Ramsay of this review largely ac(|uire(l 
his edncation in in'ght schools. Like the nth- 
ers of the family, through several generations, 
his life work has been largely in connection 
with the de\-clopment of the coal fields. He be- 
gan work in tiie nn'nes when unly ten years of 
age, being thus employed in England until he 
came to America with his mother at the age 
of eighteen years. He spent four years in Mor- 
ris. Illinois, after which he removed to Pekin, 
later to Coal Valley, subsequently to Streator 
and afterward to Braidwood, being engaged in 
coal mining at those various places. He next 
came to Iowa and spent five years in Monroe 
county as manager of mining interests at Albia, 
Iowa, acting as assistant superintendent under 
Mr. W'hiteman in the Excelsior mines. He 
continued with that company for sixteen years, 
when, in 1893, '""^ began business for himself, 
opening mines at Beacon. Iowa, under the 
name of the Garfield Coal Company. He has 
since operated at Evans, Iowa, opening differ- 
ent mines, which have proved successful. Mr. 
Ramsay is still the active manager of the busi- 
ness and is associated in the conduct of the 
mines with his two sons. William C. and John 
H. His mining ventures have proved very 
profitable and are now bringing him a large 
measure of success. 

In December, 1868, Mr. Ramsay was united 
in marriage to Miss Mary A. Caswell, a daugh- 
15 



ter of Robert Caswell, of Coal Valley, Illinois, 
and their children are: William C. and John 
II.. both of Oskaloosa; Ann, the wife of Frank 
Ewing, of this city; Elizabeth; Estella; Marga- 
ret ; Dorothea ; Clara ; Robert ; and Roy. 

Mr. Ramsay has for thirty-four years been 
a member of the Ancient Order of United 
Workmen, having become a member in Braid- 
wood, Illinois. He is a man of generous im- 
]>ulses. in whom the poor and needy find a 
friend and all those who are worthy of assist- 
ance. He does not believe in indiscriminate 
giving which fosters idleness or vagrancy but 
is quick to notice a faithful service on the part 
of an employe and to reward it as opportunity 
(liters. He is spoken of as a good substantial 
citizen and he has led a life worthy the respect 
and esteem which are uniformly accorded him. 
He may well be called a self-made man and in 
this country where labor is unhampered by caste 
or class he has steadily worked his way upward, 
enjoying the advantages which come through 
earnest, persistent effort and the success which 
is ever the reward of diligence when guided by 
sound judgment. 



LUCIUS RANDALL ROSEBROOK. 

Lucius Randall Rosebrook, who in 1894 be- 
came a resident of Oskaloosa, where he is now 
engaged in the coal trade, was born in Lancas- 
ter, New Hampshire, March 7, 1848, His fa- 
ther. Lucius Mitchell Rosebrook, was a son of 
Eleazer Rosebrook, who served as a captain in 
Whitcomb's Rangers in the Revolutionary war 
and rendered valuable aid to the cause of inde- 
]5endence. The family was founded in New 
Hampshire in 1687 and the ancestors were 
e'ther of Irish or Norman French blood. 
Through many generations representatives of 
the name remained in the old granite state, con- 
tributing to its material, intellectual and moral 



298 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



progress. Lucius M. Rosebrook erected the 
first house ever buih on the summit of Mount 
Washington, the famous White Mountain re- 
sort, while his wife was the first woman to ever 
cook a meal there. He also had charge of the 
construction work of the railway between Bos- 
ton and Worcester, Massachusetts, which was 
the first railway line built in the United States. 
His wife, who bore the maiden name of Mary 
Perkins, was also a representative of an old 
New England pioneer family, and her grand- 
father was a soldier of the Continental Army 
and fought in the battle of Bunker Hill. Unto 
Mr. and Mrs. Lucius M. Rosebrook were born 
the following named sons and daughters : Free- 
man D., who is in the L^nited States mail serv- 
ice and makes his liome in Chicago; Lucius R. : 
Mary, the wife of Charles Ackert, of Dixon, 
Illinois; Anda L., the wife of Matthew Ackert, 
also a resident of Dixon, Illinois; Hettie E., 
the wife of A. A. Williams, who is living in 
Manson, Iowa; and Emma J., the wife of J. F. 
Holly, of Lorimor, Iowa. 

Lucius R. Rosebrook spent the first six years 
of his life in the state of his nativity and in 
1854 accompanied his parents on their removal 
to Dixon. Illinois, where he was reared and 
educated. He came to Iowa in 1879. settling 
first in Marion county, where he engaged in the 
grain business. He afterward turned his atten- 
tion to the coal trade in 1882 and in 1885 re- 
moved from Marion county to Ottumwa. Iowa, 
and in 1894 came to Mahaska county, since 
which time he has lived in Oskaloosa and has 
here continued in the coal trade, having now 
a large and profitable business, which he has 
secured by reason of his earnest desire to please 
his patrons, his straightforward dealing and 
his reasonable prices. 

Mr. Rosebrook was married. October 25. 
1869, to Miss Fannie L. Smith, of Harmon, 
IlHnois, and their children are Lillie B., Edith 
M., Jessie M., Fay S., May J., Grace L.. Harry 
H., Pearl H., Freeman D. and Frank S. For 



his second wife ]\Ir. Rosebrook chose Mary A. 
Mechem, of Dixon, Illinois. 

Mr. Rosebrook has considerable talent as an 
amateur carver and sculptor. He cut with a 
jjocket knife out of Indian pipestone in relief an 
allegorical entitled "A Square Deal," represent- 
ing capital and labor. It is a remarkable work, 
in which the figures of capital and labor are held 
in scales in equilibrium. He began this work 
fourteen years ago and recentl}- he has added 
the liusts of President Roosevelt and Governor 
Cummings to the group, which is unique in de- 
sign and interesting to the highest degree. He 
has certainly displayed exceptional talent in the 
art of wood carving and sculpture, his work at- 
tracting much more than local notice and dis- 
play high artistic taste. In his business 
life he has manifested the strong purpose and 
indefatigable energy which always attain re- 
sults and he is now conducting a good business 
in his adopted city. He was made a ]\Iason in 
Warren county and has since attained to the 
Knight Templar degree, being a member of 
De Pavens commanderv. 



JOHN P. WHITE. 

John P. White, president of district No. 13, 
of the United Mine Workers of America, resid- 
ing in Oskaloosa, was born in Coal A^alley, 
Rock Island county, Illinois, February 28, 
1870. His father, Joseph White, was born in 
Ireland and about 1855 crossed the Atlantic 
to the United States, locating in Rock Island 
county, where he was in the railroad employ. 
He was a member of the Catholic church and 
he voted with the democracy. He married 
Catherine Burns, also born in Ireland. His 
death occurred in 1873, when he was fifty-five 
years of age and he is still survived by his 
widow, who has reached the age of seventy-six 
vears and makes her home with her son John. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



299 



She. too. is a communicant of tiie Catholic 
cliurch. In tlieir family were seven children: 
.Marv, now deceased; James B., a coal miner 
li\iiig in Appanoose county. Towa; Thomas 
T.. a mechanic at Pekay, Iowa; Anna, who 
is twin sister of Thomas and the wife of 
lames D. Martin, a farmer of Monroe county, 
inwa; Joseph, who lost his life in the coal 
mines in Lucas county, Iowa, at the age of 
nineteen years ; Mary Ellen, the wife of John J. 
Brown, a miner at White City, Mahaska coun- 
ty; and John P. 

In the public schools of his native town John 
P. White began his education, which was con- 
tinued in the schools at Lucas, Iowa. He went 
into the coal mines at the age of fifteen years 
at that point and remained at Lucas until 1899, 
going to Oskaloosa the following year to make 
his home, having been elected to the office of 
secretary and treasurer of the L^^nited Mine 
\\'(.)rkers of America, district No. 13, in Au- 
gust. i88g. .Early in his connection with min- 
ing interests he had come to realize the neces- 
sity of the miners being banded together for 
mutual protection and for the adv'ancement of 
their interests, for wealthy owners had every 
opportunity, if unscrupuk)us. to exercise op- 
])ressi\e measures. He liecame an active mem- 
ber in the United Mine Workers of America 
and has since been identified therewith. In 1904 
he was elected president of district No. 13, and 
has his headquarters at No. 105 High street 
west. This district covers the state of Iowa 
and alst) Putnam county, Missouri. His field 
of work is therefore a large one and of more 
than ordinary importance. He has been a most 
active and earnest worker in the order and is a 
man of fine presence, who is largely self-edu- 
cated and self-made but who has made steady 
advancement throughout his entire life both in 
the lines of business success and of mental im- 
provement. He is an organizer of marked abil- 
ity and has the quality that attracts friends 
from all classes. 



In 189 1 Mr. White was married to Miss Ida 
Berthold. who was born in Burlington, Iowa, in 
1872, a daughter of Gottlieb and Anna Ber- 
thold, the father of tookkeeper for the White 
Breast Fuel Company. Mr. and Mrs. White 
have five children : Thomas, Paul, Marie, 
Gladys and Mildred, all of whom are now liv- 
ing with the exception of Gladys. The parents 
are members of the Catholic church and ^Ir. 
White is a stalwart democrat in his political 
views and affiliation. He belongs to the For- 
esters of America as well as to the organization 
in which he has taken such an active and promi- 
nent part until his worth and ability have won 
recognition in his election to the presidency of 
the district. 



WILLIAM BULLERS. 

William Bullers, proprietor of a photographic 
studio in Oskaloosa. is a native of Port Carbon. 
Pennsylvania, born December 31, 1855. His 
parents. John and Jane (Ferguson) Bullers, 
are natives of England and Nova Scotia respec- 
tively and largely spent their married life in 
Pennsylvania, although the father passed his 
boyhood days in New Jersey, having come with 
his mother to this country when two years of 
age. He was a coal miner and during his resi- 
dence in the Keystone state largely made his 
home in Schuylkill county but later in life came 
to Iowa, settling in Whatcheer. where he died 
in 1883. at the age of fifty-two years. His 
widow is yet living. In their family w^ere six 
children, of whom the five surviving are: Ann, 
the wife of Thomas Walls, of Oskaloosa ; Sa- 
rah J., the wife of Charles Bacon, of Mahaska 
county; Mary, the wife of James Cochran, of 
Garfield township, Mahaska county; Samuel, 
of Hamilton, Iowa ; and William. One son, 
John, died at the age of sixteen years. 

William Bullers received but a limited edu- 
cation and when onlv seven years of age started 



300 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



out to earn his own living by picking slate in 
the coal breaker, after which he had only the 
advantages of a night school. He continued to 
work in the mines in different capacities and 
when twenty-one years of age came to Iowa, 
arriving at Delta on the 29th of April. 1877. 
He was employed in the mines at W'hatcheer 
for three years and at the end of that time be- 
gan photographic work on a small scale. ' He 
remained at \Miatcheer and eventually was 
conducting a regular photographic gallery. In 
1893 he removed to Oskaloosa, locating on 
High street west, and on the 26th of Septem- 
ber, 1896, came to his present location on Mar- 
ket street, since which time he has done an ex- 
cellent business in photography, being thor- 
oughly familiar with all of the latest processes 
of design and finish. He has made a study of 
outdoor work and has attained a high degree of 
proficiency in this department of photographic 
art, having a keen, personal appreciation of 
light and color and form, so that he has pro- 
duced excellent results. 

On the 22d of June, 1882, Mr. Bullers was 
married to Miss Mary L. Gruber, a native of 
Ohio, living in Whatcheer, Iowa, at the time of 
their marriage. They have four children, Wil- 
liam G., Pern- F., John L., and Thomas C. 
They lia\-e gained many friends during the pe- 
riod of their residence in Oskaloosa, where they 
are now widelv and fa\-(>rab]v known. 



AMLLIAM W. EBY. 



William A\'. Eby, filling the office of county 
treasurer, in which position he has served con- 
tinuously since 1899, discharging his duties 
with a promptness and fidelity that has led to 
his re-election, was born in Richland county, 
Ohio, in July, 1842. His parents were Jack- 
son and Barbara Eby, both of whom were na- 
tives of Pennsylvania. The father's birth oc- 



curred in the year 181 5 and the mother first 
opened her eyes to the light of day in Decem- 
ber, 1 82 1. In early life Jackson Eby learned 
the miller's trade, which he followed for a 
number of years and in 1832 lie left Pennsyl- 
vania for Ohio, where in 1837 he purchased a 
farm. The following-year he built a flour and 
saw mill on that place and was there engaged 
in the manufacture of lumber and flour in ad- 
dition to tilling the soil and improving his 
fields. 

William W. Eby began his education in the 
public schools of Richland county, Ohio, but 
put aside his text-books when quite young, for 
he was only se\'enteen years of age when he 
left the schoolroom in order to enter the mili- 
tar_v service of his country. He joined the 
army at the age of eighteen in October. 1861, 
becoming a member of the boys in blue of 
Company C, Sixty-fourth Regiment of Ohio 
Volunteers. This was an infantry command 
and he was on active duty with his company 
until he was wounded in battle on the 31st of 
December, 1862. In March, 1863, because of 
his injuries, he received an honorable dis- 
charge. 

Returning" to his ln^nie William W. Fby re- 
sumed work upon his father's farm and was 
thus employed until September, 1868. He was 
an only son and much of the labor of the farm 
devolved upon him. His early privileges were 
quite limited, but in later years he has made 
the most of his opportunities and in the school 
of experience has learned many valuable les- 
sons, while through his earnest labor and per- 
severance he has won a comfortable compe- 
tence. His training at farm labor was not 
meager and he early became familiar with the 
best methods of caring for the fields and culti- 
vating the crops. 

In November, 1865, he sought and won a 
companion and helpmate for life's joumev. be- 
ing united in marriage to Catherine T. Richie. 
He took his bride to the home farm and was 




w. w. F.r.Y. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



303 



enga.tj'ed in j^-eneral anricultural jjiirsuits until 
iS()S. when l)ecause of ill liealtli, caused by 
liis army service, lie was forced to abandon 
that work. - Removing to Noble county, Indi- 
ana, he there engaged in the lumber business, 
conducting liis yanl for thirteen years with ex- 
cellent success. At length, however, he sold 
out there and in the spring of 1882 came to 
low.i, where he has since made his home. He 
located in Oskaloosa and worked at the car- 
l)enter"s trade until January, 1890. In that 
year he accepted a position in the courthouse, 
being under Charles V. HofTniann, who was 
then county treasurer. He filled a clerical po- 
sition in the office until 1893. He afterward 
ser\'ed for four )-ears under ^Mitchell \\'ilson, 
filling the position from 1894 until 1898. In 
1899 he was elected to the office of treasurer 
and his previous experience as deputy well 
(fualified him for the discharge of the duties of 
this position. He has been in office continu- 
ously since, now serving for the third term, 
his re-election coming to him in recognition of 
his ability and loyalty to the trust reposed in 
him. He is a stalwart repulilican. having al- 
waA's stanchly supported the party which was 
the defense of the Union during the dark days 
of the Civil war and which has alwavs been 
the ])art}- of reforiu, progress and improve- 
ment. 

.\ mrni of strong domestic tastes, Mr. Ebv is 
devoted to his home and family and finds his 
greatest delight at his own fireside. When not 
busy with the duties of his ])osition he may us- 
ually be found in his own home. L'nto him 
and his wife has been born but one child, Edith 
Eby, who is now the wife of H. E. Runyon. 
They were married in t888, are now residents 
of Des Moines, Tow a. and have three children : 
Enna, Leta and Tola Runyon. The father is 
manager of the C. C. Prountry Grocer Com- 
l)any at Des 'Moines. 

Mr. Eby maintains pleasant relations with 
his old armv comrades through his member- 



ship in the Grand Army (jf the Republic, be- 
longing t(j the i)ost at Oskaloosa, which he 
joined in the winter of 1883. In 1903 he be- 
came a memljer of the !iIasonic fraternity. He 
has for forty years been a devoted member of 
the Presbyterian church and during thirty 
years of this time has been one of its office 
holders, acting for a long period as ruling 
elder. His life has been honorable and uj)- 
right, characterized by devotion to public and 
private duty and as a citizen he is today as 
loyal to his country as when he followed the 
stars and stripes upon the battle-fields of the 
soutli. 



HON. A. J. JEWELL. 

Hon. .\. J. Jewell, who is ])roprietor of the 
Elmwood farm, a well known and valuable 
property of one hundred acres, is numbered 
among the old citizens of the county, having 
lived in this jiart of the state since the fall 
of 1855. He is now successfully engaged in 
agricultural pursuits and is also an active fac- 
tor in public life. At one time he represented 
his district in the state legislature and has on 
various occasions been a valued factor in sup- 
jjort of progressive, public movements. 

Mr. Jewell was born in Ohio, February 14, 
1830, and is a son of Stephen Jewell, a native 
of Penn.sylvania and a son of Jonathan Jewell, 
who was born in New Jersey. The paternal 
grandfather was a Revolutionary soldier for 
seven years and the Jewell family comes of 
English ancestry, having been established in 
New Jersey at an early period in the coloniza- 
tion of the new world. Jonathan Jewell removed 
from New Jersey to Pennsylvania and after- 
w.ard became one of the early settlers of Lick- 
ing county, Ohio, taking up his alxade in the 
midst of the forest, where he cleared and de- 
\eloped a farm. Stephen Jewell was married 



304 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



in Pennsylvania to Elizabeth Martin, a native 
of the Keystone state. Mr. Jewell was a farmer 
of Ohio and tiiere reared his family, spending 
his life there, his death occurring about 1868. 
His wife had died some years before and he 
was married a second time. • 

A. J. Jewell was reared in Licking comity. 
He was given good school advantages, attend- 
ing common schools and afterward Martins- 
burg College. He learned the carpenter's 
and joiner's trade in early life and afterward 
carried on business as a contractor and builder 
for three years. Ambitious and energetic to 
win success he accordingly embraced evei-y op- 
portunity for honorable advancement. 

Mr. Jewell was married near Martinsburg, 
Ohio, in 1855, to Miss Jane Wilson, a native 
of Licking county and a daughter of Robert 
Wilson. Following their marriage they re- 
moved to Iowa, settling in Oskaloosa, where 
Mr. Jewell was connected with building opera- 
tions for a time. His first contract was for 
the building of a barn for Dan Nelson in the 
winter of 1855-56. He continued in business 
as a contractor and builder for several years 
but eventually bought a farm near Oskaloosa, 
locating thereon and began the improvement 
and development of the land, at the same time 
carrying on building pursuits. While living 
upon that farm he lost his first wife. Later 
he sold the property and purchased where he 
now resides. He fenced the place, erected a 
good dwelling and barn and has brought the 
farm under a high state of cultivation. In 
i860 he returned to Ohio and resided there for 
two and a half years, during which time he vol- 
unteered to serve with others in the protection 
of Cincinnati, which was threatened by an in- 
vasion of the rebels. His company was called 
the Scjuirrel Hunters and numbered some 
twenty thousand men. They were in the serv- 
ice for about a month and were then discharged. 
Later Mr. Jewell returned to his farm in Ma- 
haska county and has since given his attention 



to general agricultural pursuits. He has one 
hundred acres of rich and productive land, sit- 
uated on section 22, Spring Creek township, 
known as the Elmwood farm. Here in connec- 
tion with his son, P. J. Jewell, he is engaged 
in the raising and breeding of stock and botli 
are men of good business ability, who are meet- 
ing with success in their undertakings. 

By his first marriage Mr. Jewell had one 
son, Charles Jewell, who is married and re- 
sides in L^tica, Ohio, where he is engaged in 
the hardware business. For his second wife A. 
J. Jewell chose Maria Williamson, who was 
born in Ohio but was reared in Iowa. Her 
death occurred upon the home farm in Spring 
Creek township, October 22, 1896. By this 
marriage there were two children who reached 
adult age. Pliny A. Jewell, who was married in 
Mahaska county in 1884 to Etta Mitchell, who 
was born and reared here and is now engaged 
in farming and stock-raising with his father. 
The daughter, Ada, became the wife of W. L. 
Campbell and died, leaving one son. On the 
1st of March, 1898, Mr. Jewell was married to 
Nellie Kennedy, a native of Lee county, Iowa, 
and a daughter of Josiah Kennedy, one of the 
early settlers of the state. He married Julia 
Ann Scott, the first white child born in Scott 
county, Illinois. 

Politically Mr. Jewell was reared a democrat 
and cast his first presidential ballot for Frank- 
lin Pierce in 1852. His next vote, however, 
supported John C. Fremont, the first republican 
candidate in 1856, and he voted for each nomi- 
nee at the head of the republican ticket since 
that time, being in hearty sympathy with the 
principles and policy of the party. He has been 
called to various local offices and in 1889 he was 
elected representative from his district to the 
state legislature, serving in the house for one 
term, during which time he was a member of 
numerous important committees, discharging 
the duties of his position with credit and dis- 
tinction. He was at one time a member of the 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



305 



L'uilcil Presbyterian church, but nuw Ijclongs 
to the Methodist Episcopal churcli. One of the 
well known men of Mahaska county, he has 
resided here for a half century, and has aided 
materially in its upbuilding and progress. He 
is regarded as one of the public-spirited men 
and lias wielded a wide influence, his efforts 
ever standing for right, progress and improve- 
ment. His wife is a lady of cultured and re- 
lined tastes and gives excellent supervision to 
her attractive home. Mr. Jewell has now passed 
the seventy-fifth milestone on life's journey and 
at all times has commanded the respect and es- 
teem of his fellowmen and is today accounted 
one of the representatixe citizens of his 
communitv. 



EDWIX PERRY. 



Edwin Perry, secretary of district No. 13, 
United Mine Workers of America and also 
president of the board of education in Oska- 
loosa, to which position he was elected by the 
largest vote ever given to a candidate for the 
office, is a native son of Wales. He was born 
on the 17th of November, 1854, his parents 
being Robert and Elizabeth (Roberts) Perry, 
the former a native of England and the latter of 
Wales. The father was a coal miner and died 
in i860 at the age of thirty-two years. The 
mother came to the United States with her 
three children in 1869 and her death occurred 
in i'ennsylvania in 1875. when she was forty- 
two years of age. Both Mr. and iMrs. Perry 
were members of the \\'elsh Presbyterian 
church. Of their children George and Man- are 
now deceased, leaving lulwin Perry the only 
surviving rejircscntative of that marriage. 
After the death of her first husband Mrs. Perry 
married again, becoming the wife of John 
Hughes, a coal miner, and unto them were born 



seven children: Ed T., Jesse, Mary E.. Robert, 
Llewellyn W'., one who died in infancy and 
Sarah. 

In early boyhood Edwin Perry attended the 
common schools of the little rock-ribbed coun- 
try in which he was born, but when onl}- ten 
years of age he went into the coal mines of 
W'ales and in i86g he came to the United 
States Avith his mother, settling in Shenandoah, 
Pennsyhania, where he entered the anthracite 
mines, being thus employed for seven years. 
In 1876 he came to Oskaloosa and for some 
time his principal occupation was coal mining. 
He was, however, for five years in the employ 
of the Oskaloosa Gas and Electric Light Com- 
pany as foreman of the ]jlant and secretary and 
superintendent of the company. He then re- 
turned to the mines and was identified w'ith 
the work until 1902, when he became an officer 
of district No. 13, L'nited Mine Workers of 
America. He was chosen vice-president of 
the organization and in the fall of the same 
year was elected president, w bile at this writ- 
ing he is secretary and treasurer, having filled 
the last named position since April i. 1904. 

In 1877 Mr. Perry was married to Miss 
Anna A. Rouse, who was born in Allegheny 
county. Pennsylvania, in 1861, and was a 
daughter of George and Mary Ann (Casey) 
Rouse, the father a brick mason by trade. Mr. 
and ]Mrs. Perry have become the parents of 
seven children: Nellie, now the wife oi Jay 
Minard, a farmer living near New Sharon, 
Iowa: Jessie R., the wife of Albert Meadows, 
a coal operator at Ottumwa, Iowa: Wilfred H. 
and Edwin, both deceased: Ethel, employed by 
the Home Telephone Company in Oskaloosa ; 
Lyle. a student in school ; and Gwendolyn. 
Mrs. Perry belongs to the church of the Latter 
Dav Saints. I\Ir. Perry is identified with the 
Knights of Pythias and the Foresters of Amer- 
ica. In politics he is a rc])ublican and is influen- 
tial and active in the local ranks of the party. 
He lias been clerk of Oskaloosa township and 



3o6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



has served on the Oskaloosa school board for 
three years, acting as president of the board 
during the last year. He had the distinction of 
receiving the largest vote ever cast for a candi- 
date for a city office in Oskaloosa, for out of 
about fourteen hundred votes he received twelve 
hundred,' a fact which indicates his personal 
popularity as well as the confidence displayed 
in his powers to work effectively and earnestly 
for the school interests of the city. 



DAVID KISOR. 



Davitl Kisor, deceased, was for many years 
a respected and valued resident of Mahaska 
cuunty. wliere he followed agricultural pursuits. 
He was born in Knox county. Ohio, July 2. 
1822, his parents being John and Elizabeth 
(Bolton) Kisor, who were natives of Virgniia 
and were of German descent. David Kisor spent 
his youth upon the old home farm in Ohio and 
received but limited educational privileges, for 
the schools were in a primitive condition and 
his aid was needed in the farm work. He was 
married June 6, 1850, to Miss Margaret Brad- 
dock, who was born in Knox county. Ohio. 
July 22. 1828. and was a daughter of William 
and Nancy A. (Gathers) Braddock, both of 
whom were natives of Virginia. 

In the fall of 1850 Mr. Kisor and his wife 
came to Mahaska county, driving across the 
country with teams from Ohio, twenty-six days 
being spent in accomplishing the trip. They 
passed the first winter in their little cabin where 
coal banks are now located. In February, 1851, 
Mr. Kisor purchased a claim of one hundred 
and sixty acres and traded eighty acres of it 
for the eighty acres in what became his old 
homestead. It' was upon this farm that he made 
his home until his death and his widow has 
lived here continuously for about fifty-five 
years. The farm was covered with a brush 



thicket when he took possession of it and a 
log cabin had been built, while about three hun- 
dred rails had been cut on the farm. They lived 
in the log house until 1857, when a small frame 
house was built and is still standing. Mr. 
Kisor afterward added to his first eighty acres, 
increasing his landed possessions from time to 
time as his financial resources increased until 
he was the owner of five hundred and eighty- 
six acres. He was always a hard worker and 
his death was undoubtedly hastened by the close 
and unremitting attention which he gave to 
his business. 

About 1894 Mr. Kisor was striken with 
paralvsis and for five years, four mondis and 
thirteen days lay helpless, his wife caring for 
him all this time until he passed away on the 
13th of June, 1899. He had been a kind and 
affectionate husband and father, was conscien- 
tious and honorable in all his dealings and was 
a very religious man, who for many years held 
membership in the Ghristian church and was 
most faithful to its teachings. In the early days 
he was a whig. After he became converted he 
joined the church and never voted again. He 
thought \\ar a great wrong and would not help 
elect a man who had the power to declare war. 
He took no interest therefore in politics aside 
from \-oting at school elections. 

:Mr. and Mrs. Kisor were the parents of five 
children, of whom four are living, Dwight ^^I. 
having died at the age of four years. Martha 
E is '"the widow of Porter Hedge and resides 
at Lincoln. Nebraska. Sylvesta Bell is the 
wife of Oliver Hedge and resides near Oska- 
loosa. Melissa Adell is the wife of J. G. Cord- 
ner, living in Lincoln, Nebraska. Zona ^lay 
is the wife of George W. Cassidy, who is liv- 
ing two and a half miles southeast of Oska- 
loosa. Mrs. Kisor is a bright and intelligent 
lady, who, though well advanced in years, still 
li\-es upon the home farm, renting her land but 
keeping the dwelling which was built by her 
husband, for no place else seems so much like 




MK. A\l) MRS. |)A\ II) Kis( 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



309 



111 line. Slie relates in an interesting nianner 
nianv experiences of the hardships, privations, 
ln';ils and iilcasiircs of pioneer life. Once dnr- 
ing the high water when the mill could not be 
operated for two weeks their only food was 
I, read made from cornmeal grated on a piece 
of tin. the crirn being Imiled to make it soft 
eiiiiugh to grate. They had but little when 
tliev came to Iowa, and all that they possess 
came thrniigh hard wnrk and economy, and as 
the _\-ears passed by they prospered and became 
uwners of a \-aluable farm property, which is 
still owned by Mrs. Kisor. She now has two 
hundred and sixtv-six acres. 



T.VMES \V. TROY. 

James W. Troy, following farming on sec- 
tion _'. White Oak town.ship, not far from the 
villige iif Rose Hill, isone of the extensive land- 
owners iif the county, his farm comprising five 
hundred and eleven acres of very productive 
and \alual)le land. He was born in Garfield 
townshi]:). this county, August 10, 1855, and 
is a son of Charles R. Troy, a native of Ohio, 
who came to Iowa in 1843. He was born in 
Clermont county, Ohio, November 26, 1824, 
a son of Benjamin and Nancy (Robinson) 
Tro_\-. The grandfather died in 1832 in Mor- 
gan county. Illinois, and the grandmother 
jKissed away in Garfield township, Mahaska 
county, in 1871, at the age of sixty-eight years. 

Charles R. Troy owned one hundred and 
twenty acres of land, his half of the original 
entry. He was married April it, 1851, to 
Amanda Lighter, a daughter of Andrew and 
Nancy Lighter. As stated, he arrived in Iowa 
in 1843, being one of the first settlers of Ma- 
liaska county. His wife was a native of Ken- 
tucky and she, too, became one of the pioneer 
settlers of this county, coming here with her 
parents. Mr. Troy had entered one hundred 



and sixty acres of land in connection with his 
brothers Abraham and Daniel, and on selling 
that property they each made another entry of 
eighty acres three miles north of O.skaloosa, 
west of the Pella road. L'pon that property 
Charles R. Troy made his home and reared 
his family, living there for forty-two years. 
About 1887 he sold the farm and took up his 
abode upon the place where his son now resides. 
He had lived there exactly twelve years, when, 
on the 28th of April, 1903, he passed away at 
the age of eighty years. His widow still sur- 
vives him and yet resides upon the farm with 
six sons and a daughter, James W. being the 
only one married. 

Under the paternal roof James \\'. Troy 
spent his toyhood days, antl in the common 
schools acquired his education. He assisted 
his father in carrying on the work of the home 
place in early life, and has always been associ- 
ated with his brothers in their business affairs. 
They own the farm together, and "Sir. Troy 
has added to his possessions from time to time 
until he now owns five hundred and eleven 
acres. He has put good buildings upon his 
place, including a barn, corn cribs and hay 
sheds. He has also added a windpump to his 
other improvements, and he has the latest ma- 
chinery to facilitate the work of the fields. In 
addition to raising the cereals best adapted to 
soil and climate he raises some full-blooded 
Duroc Jersey and Chester White hogs and 
Aberdeen Angus cattle. All his breeding stock 
is registered or else eligible. He frequently at- 
tends the state fairs in order to sell stock, but 
has never been an exhibitor for the sake of 
premiums. His fine herd is known as the 
White Oak herd and he is regarded as one of 
the leading stock-breeders of this part of the 
state. 

On the 23d of :March, 1898, James W. Troy 
was united in marriage to Miss Vena E. How- 
ell, a native of Alahaska county and a daugh- 
ter of Levi Howell. Her father is a native of 



310 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Illinois and settled in this state at an early day. 
He and his wife are still living, dieir home 
being in ^^"hite Oak township, south of Rose 
Hill. Mr. and Mrs. Troy have become the par- 
ents of one child, a son. \\'alter L., now seven 
years of age. The parent? attended the Chris- 
tian church at Rose Hill and Mr. Troy was a 
member of the Odd Fellows lodge, of Oska- 
loosa, and when he came to Rose Hill organized 
the new lodge, since which time he has passed 
through all of the chairs. He is also a mem- 
ber of Rose Hill camp. 'M. W. A. Politically he 
is a stanch republican, always supporting tlie 
men and measures of tlie party. He has sened 
as clerk of \Miite Oak township for six years, 
but otlaerwise has never sought or held ofhce. 
preferring to concentrate his energies upon his 
business affairs, in which he has met with ex- 
cellent success. He is today one of the promi- 
nent and representative farmers of the commu- 
nity and is a worthy representative of an hon- 
ored, pioneer family. 



THEODORE KENT SMITH. 

Theodore Kent Smith, whose sterling integ- 
rity and genuine personal wortli made him a 
valued citizen of Oskaloosa, where for many 
\'ears he was extensively and successfully en- 
gaged in the jewelrv" business, was bom June 
13, 1826, in Schuyler Falls, \\'ashing- 
ton county. New York. His fadier, Her- 
man Smith, was a miller by occupa- 
tion and served in the Revolutionary' war on 
Lake Champlain with the rank of lieutenant. 
He married Lucy Beckwith. Following the re- 
moval of tlie family to Plattsburg. New York, 
Theodore K. Smith there spent his boyhood 
days, and mastered the common branches of 
English learning but left school at the age o.f 
fourteen years to enter business life. His fa- 
ther had met widi financial reverses and it was 



necessani- diat the son should aid in his own 
support. He had been reared in a good Chris- 
tian family of tlie Methodist faith, and lessons 
of industry, integrity- and sobriet}- were early 
instilled into his mind. For four years he was 
connected with die jewelry- business in Fort 
Ann, New York, and afterward removed to 
Northfield, \'^emiont, where he continued in the 
same line of trade. While li\ing in tlie former 
city he was married to Sarah Slocum and unto 
them was born a son. E. A. Smith, who is now 
living in N^ew' Sharon, Iowa. The wife and 
mother died in Fort Ann, New York, and in 
1853 Mr. Smith was married to ^liss Clara L. 
Beckwith, of St. Louis, ^lissouri. He con- 
tinued a resident of Vermont for four years 
and then removed to St. Louis, ^Missouri, where 
he spent one year. He afterward passed two 
years in Hannibal, • Missouri, and two years 
in Macon CitA\ Missouri, and on the 21st of 
May, 1 86 1, arrived in Oskaloosa, where he es- 
tablished a jewelr}- store. In 1870 he erected 
a two ston.- brick building on First avenue 
West, known as the T. K. Smith Jeweln,' 
House, and tlie same year he purchased and re- 
built a commodious and comfortable residence 
on Third avenue East, where he lived until his 
death. He was known as one of the foremost 
jewelers in the state of Iowa, drawing an ex- 
tensive patronage from all sections of ilahaska 
and adjoining counties. He was thoroughly 
reliable in all of his business dealings and he 
carried a large and well selected line of goods, 
so that he was able to meet the varied tastes of 
the general public. 

By the second marriage of Mr. Smith diere 
were seven children added to the household. His 
second wife was a daughter of a ilethodist 
minister, and was educated in a Cadiolic con- 
vent in St. Louis, Missouri. She was mar- 
ried at die age of eighteen years, and by this 
union were boni the following named children : 
Addie and George Smith, both now deceased: 
Herbert F. ; Daisy L., the wife of L. H. Green- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



3" 



\v(io(I. of 'I'opeka. Kansas; Mrs. Clara L. 
lloarno, llie widow of William I*". Hearne; 
ami Louis E. Smith, of Oskaloosa. 

In his political aftiliation Mr. Smith was a 
stanch reinihlican and held the office of council- 
man fnim the third ward, hut was not active in 
politics as an office seeker, jM-eferring to con- 
centrate his energies upon his business affairs 
which were capably and profitably conducted. 
He was a man of quiet tastes and habits, never 
seeking prominence socially or politically. He 
had, however, a large circle of wami personal 
friends. He possessed a generous disposition and 
was a man of large heart, kindly disposition 
and genuine worth and his \\x)vd was as good as 
his bond. He died March 2, 1893, at his home 
ill Oskaloosa, at the age of sixty-six years, 
eight months and nineteen days, after a resi- 
dence of almost a third of a century in this 
citv. 



DA\'ID ARNOLD.- 



David Arnold, residing on section 15, Harri- 
son township, is one of the few remaining old 
settlers of this part of the state, dating his 
residence in Iowa from 1834, while since 1862 
he has made his home in Mahaska county. He 
was liorn in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, Sep- 
tember 22. 1832. His father, Solomon Arn- 
old, was a natixe of Washington countv, Penn- 
sylvania, and a son of David Arnold, w'ho re- 
moved to Ohio with his family when his son 
Solomon was a lad of fifteen years. There the 
latter was reared and in Jefferson county, Ohio, 
he was married to Miss Barbara Stonebroke, a 
daughter of Jacob Stonebroke, a native of 
Pennsylvania, who lived to the very venerable 
age of one hundred and two years. Solomon 
.\rnold was a farmer of Tuscarawas county, 
and upon the farm which he there developed 
and im])r()ved he also reared his family. By 
trade he was a carpenter and joiner, hut during 



much of his life his attention was given to ag- 
ricultural pursuits and upon the old homestead 
in Ohio he passed away. 

David Arnold spent the days of his boyhood 
ami youth upon his father's farm in Ohio and 
when a young man came to Iowa, arriving in 
this state in 1854. He was married in Eddy- 
ville to Miss Eliza Steel, who was born in 
Pennsylvania and was reared in Pittsburg. In 
Eddyville he was connected with a packing 
business and also the operation of a saw mill, 
and while still conducting business interests 
at that ix)int, he made his home for a time in 
Mahaska county. He later located where he 
now resides on section 15, Harrison township, 
purchasing here forty acres of raw land, which 
he cleared and deveIoi)e(l. transforming a wild 
tract into productive fields. He is an enter- 
prising business man and has carried forward 
the work of improvement to the best of his abil- 
ity. He lived first in a log house, but later 
erected a good, neat frame residence in 1875. 
A year or two later he built a good barn and he 
now has a valuable and well improved farm of 
eighty acres. 

In 189 1 Mr. Arnold was called upon to 
mourn the loss of his wife, who died in No- 
vember, of that year. There were three chil- 
dren of that marriage. John, the oldest, is 
mentioned elsewhere in this w-ork. Eli D., liv- 
ing with his father, married Laura Nedefes- 
ser, who was born and reared in Mahaska 
county, a daughter of John R. Nedefesser, a 
native of Germany and one of the early settlers 
of this county. He and his wife died when 
Mrs. Arnold was a child. Three children have 
been born unto Eli D. Arnold : Eva, the wife 
of Ben Newman ; Louis E. ; and David E. 
]\Iary J. Arnold, the daughter of David Arnold, 
is the wife of John Fox, a substantial farmer of 
Harrison township. 

Politically Mr. Arnold has been a life-long 
republican, supporting the party since its or- 
ganization. He was elected and served as town- 



312 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ship trustee and has also been road supervisor 
for eight or nine years, and school trustee. He 
and his son and his wife are members of the 
]\Iethodist Episcopal church. For fifty years 
]\Ir. Arnold has been a resident of the county 
and has heljjed to improve and make it what it 
is today. His life has always been character- 
ized by unfaltering industry and perseverance 
and in all his business relations he has been 
thoroughlv reliable and trustworthv. 



S. V. REYNOLDS. 



S. V. Reynolds is serving for the second 
term as mayor of New Sharon and in his ad- 
ministration is displaying the same spirit of 
reform and progress and of opposition to mis- 
rule in public affairs that has been manifested 
by such well known political reformers as Folk, 
of Missouri, Lafollett, of Wisconsin, Fagin, 
the mayor of Jersey City, and others. His 
business interests are those of a real-estate 
dealer and attorney-at-law and in his profession 
he has won distinction, while in his land opera- 
tions he has met with very gratifying success. 
Mr. Reynolds is a native son of Iowa, his birth 
having occurred in Poweshiek county, on the 
2 1 St of July, 1867. His parents were Alford 
and Marian (McDonald) Reynolds. The fa- 
ther, who was bom in Tennessee, March 29, 
1823, was a son of Joseph Reynolds, a native 
of England and a farmer by occupation. Al- 
ford Reynolds was reared upon a farm in Ten- 
nessee to the age of eleven years, when, in 
company with his parents, he removed to In- 
diana, where he was married in 1844. He came 
to Iowa in 1846, accompanied by his wife and 
one child. They located in Keokuk county and 
two years later removed to Poweshiek county, 
where he died in 1895, although in the mean- 
time he spent some years in Mahaska county, 
being a minister of the Christian church at 



Peoria, where he preached from 1880 until 
1889. He became identified with that denomi- 
nation as a preacher at the age of twenty-two 
years and throughout his entire life continued 
in the active work of the ministry and also car- 
ried on farming. Following the period of his 
residence in Mahaska county he returned to 
Poweshiek countv and was instrumental in 
building the West Liberty church, doing all of 
the carpenter work himself and raising the 
funds to meet other expenses in connection 
therewith. Mr. Reynolds of this review still 
aids in support of the church, which is about 
three and a half miles east of Searsboro. Rev. 
Alford Reynolds was married to Miss A'larian 
McDonald, who was bom in Kentucky, Febru- 
ary 24, 1823, a daughter of Hemy and Ann 
(Hopkins) McDonald, the former of Irish and 
the latter of Scotch descent. Her father served 
as a soldier in the war of 181 2 and was wound- 
ed at the battle of the Thames, while serving 
with a Kentucky regiment under Colonel Dud- 
ley. Mr. Reynolds of this review is the young- 
est in a family of ten children. His father was 
a very able man and a great debater and took 
a most active and helpful part in establishing 
the Christian church upon the western frontier 
of Iowa. His energy and upright life won him 
the respect, confidence and good will of all with 
whom he was associated and he passed away 
March 12, 1895. at the age of seventy-two 
years, his memory remaining as a blessed bene- 
diction to all who knew him. 

S. V. Reynolds spent his boyhood days upon 
the home farm and after attending the district 
schools spent one year as a student in Oska- 
loosa College and one year in Penn College. 
He taught school for thirty-three terms in Ma- 
haska county, after which he devoted one year 
to the real-estate business. Later he became a 
student in Iowa College of Law, a department 
of Drake University at Des Moines, from 
which he was graduated on the 17th of May, 
1899, having completed a regular two years' 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



o':> 



course in five ninntlis. Lucating at New Sliar- 
oii on the ()th of June, 1899, he opened an of- 
fice for tlie practice of law and for the real- 
estate business and has since devoted his atten- 
tion to operating in land and to his profession. 
During the first year of his connection with 
Ijusiness interests here he sold land to the value 
of three hundred thousand dollars. He has 
since been in partnership with L. H. Sherman 
in the real-estate business under the firm style 
of Sherman & Reynolds, engaged in buying 
and selling lands in Canada. Minnesota and 
Xorth Dakota and they also handle from 
twehe to fourteen hundred acres of land in Ma- 
haska county each year. .\t one time they had 
twenty-eight hundred acres in this county. Mr. 
Reynolds has also made substantial advance- 
ment at the bar and in 1903 formed a partner- 
ship with J- C. Heitsman in order that he might 
have sonie one share his business cares, which 
were growing too arduous. Their law library 
is worth three thousand dollars and is one of 
the best in this part of the state and they have 
a large and distincti\ely representatixe clien- 
tage, being retained as counsel for the defense 
or prosecution in almost every important case 
that comes up in the district. 

Mr. Reynolds was married August 11, 1889, 
to Aliss Emma ATcCutchen, who was born 
October 16, 1869, in Richland township, Ma- 
haska county, and is a daughter of Jonathan 
and Maria McCutchen, the former a native of 
Ohio 'and the latter of New York. Her father 
came to Iowa in 1856. locating in Oskaloosa, 
where he engaged in merchandising, while later 
he conducted a mercantile enterprise in Peoria, 
while his last years were devoted to farming. 
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds have been born 
two children: Clemmie Marian, born March 
28, 1893: and Cato S., April 11, 1900. 

Mr. Reynolds has long been recognized as a 
leader in democracy in this district and was the 
candidate on the party ticket for representa- 
tive in 1895. He ran far ahead of his ticket 



although he was defeated, and in 1900 he was 
candidate for county attorney. In 1904 he was 
elected on the citizens' ticket as mayor of New 
Sharon and was re-elected in 1906. Too much 
can not be said in praise of his public service. 
The affairs of the city had been managed in an 
incompetent manner and when he took charge 
he brought to his duties not only good business 
capacity and enterprise but also a spirit of loy- 
alty and an opposition to anything like misrule 
in jniblic affairs. He has placed the city upon 
a business administration and has instituted 
many modern reforms and improvements. Dur- 
ing his incumbency the electric light plant has 
been instituted and all of the income of the of- 
fice has been turned over to the city, there be- 
ing no graft in connection with the manage- 
ment of the affairs now. In 1906 there were 
three hundred and thirty votes cast and Mr. 
Rexnolds received a majority of forty-one. 
thus running ninety votes ahead of his ticket. 
He was the only one on the ticket elected. Mr. 
Reynolds is a strong man, strong in his capa- 
bility and force, strong in his honor and good 
name, strong in his allegiance to all that he be- 
lieves to be right in public or private life. He 
has done much for New Sharon and is justly 
accounted, without invidious distinction, the 
foremost citizen of the town. 



BURROWS W. CHEW. 

I'urrows W. Chew, a retired merchant of 
Oskaloosa, has through well directed and earn- 
est effort in former years become possessed of 
a competency that now enaliles him to live re- 
tired. It is no unusual thing in this land where 
opixirtunity is unhampered by caste or class 
for the young man of strong purpose and laud- 
able ambitif)n to work his way upward, and it 
is the record which the American citizen holds 
in greatest honor, yir. Chew was torn in Glou- 



!l6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF iL\HASK.\ COUNTY. 



cester count\-, New Jersey, in 1824. His father, 
Elisha D. Chew, also a native of that state, 
was of Enghsh descent. The great-grandfa- 
ther and others of the Chew family, then resi- 
dents of Germantown, Pennsylvania, were sol- 
diers of the Re^-ohItionar^- war. Elisha Chew 
became a farmer by occupation and removed 
from New Jersey to Oskaloosa in 1845. He en- 
tered a tract of land from the government of five 
hundred and and twent}" acres northwest of town 
and became identified with the agricultural de- 
velopment of the communit}". A prominent 
member of the Methodist Episcopal church, he 
was also a preacher of that demonination, and 
his influence in behalf of the church and of 
moral development was of no restricted order. 
His political support was given to the repub- 
hcan part)'. He married Miss Elizabeth Heri- 
tage, also a native of Xew Jersey, but of Swed- 
ish descent. Her death occurred in 1874, when 
she was eight}-one years of age, while Rev. 
Elisha D. Chew died in 1880, at the age of eigh- 
t\--six years. They were the parents of six chil- 
dren: Asa. EUjah, Ann, James and Sarah, aU 
now deceased: and Burrows \V., of this re- 
view. Of this number, James was a Methodist 
minister. 

Burrows W. Chew spent his boyhood days in 
the usual manner of farm lads. He went to school 
during the fall and winter months and after 
putting aside his text-books learned the ma- 
chinist's trade in Gloucester, Xew Jersey, fol- 
lowing that pursuit in the east for eight years. 
In 1853 he came to Oskaloosa, Iowa, where he 
resinned work at his trade, and in 1863 he 
turned his attention to merchandising, which he 
conducted for one year. He next entered the 
marble business in partnership with H. A. 
Smith, with whom he was connected for a year, 
after which he followed blacksmithing and the 
machinist's trade for thirt\"-five years.' In 
1883 he went to Texas, where for about twelve 
years he conducted a hardware store, after 
which he returned to Oskaloosa. About ten 



years ago he retired from active business pur- 
suits and has since rested in the enjo}"ment of 
the fruits of his former toil. 

In 1846 Mr. Chew was married to Miss 
Susan S. Rheiner, who was bom in Philadel- 
phia in 1823 and died in 1863. By this union 
there were six children : Emma C. : Albion R,, 
a hardware merchant residing in Texas: Mel- 
vina il., the deceased wife of John Lyons; El- 
vira W., the deceased wife of [Marion Hoops: 
Frank W. ; and \\"illiam Granville, also de- 
ceased. In 1867 Mr. Chew was again married, 
his second tmion being with iliss Sarah Jane 
Wright, who was bom in Ohio and died in 
1869, at the age of thirty-six years. Mr. Chew 
is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church 
and his political support is given to the re- 
publican part}". 



.\. D. XORRIS. 



A. D. Xorris. living on section 14, Spring 
Creek township, gives his time and energies to 
agricultural pursuits. He owns a well im- 
proved farm of one hundred acres, and is a 
native son of the county, having been bom in 
Garfield township, Mahaska coimt\-. May 3. 
1861. He is a son of Shadrach Norris, men- 
tioned elsewhere in this work, and is the eldest 
of five children. He was reared in this count\- 
and educated in the common schools, remaining 
with his father until the latter removed to 
Oskaloosa, and during that period aiding his 
father in all departments of the farm work. 

On the 27th of December, 1899, ^Nlr. X'orris 
was married to !Miss Emma W'asson. a native 
of W'est Virginia and a daughter of S, B. Was- 
son. who removed from West Virginia to Iowa 
about 1865. locating in INIahaska count}-. He 
was a substantial farmer of Spring Creek 
township, and is mentioned elsewhere in this 
work. [Mrs. .X'orris was reared and educated 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



317 



liere, and prior to her marriage successfully 
engaged in teaching. After her marriage she 
began her domestic life uixin a farm, where she 
niiw resides. Mr. and Mrs. Norris are rearing 
a In IV. Russell Bridges, now five years of age. 
Mr. Xorris has fenced and repaired his place 
and now has a valualile and well imjirovetl 
property, on which he raises various cereals 
and also feeds and fattens stock for the market. 
His business is well managed, and his efforts 
are capably directed. 

r^ilitically Air. Norris is a stanch democrat 
but without aspiration for office. He has served 
as trustee of Black Oak township, and as a 
member of the school board but otherwise has 
neither snught nor desired political preferment. 
He has always lived in this county, and the 
fact that many of his stanchest friends are 
those who have known him from his boyhood 
days to the present is an indication that his 
Hfe has been all that is exemplary of the public- 
spirited citizen, whose life is actuated by com- 
menclalilc rules of conduct and manly principles. 



LOUIS E. SAIITH. 



Louis E. Smith is a jeweler of Oskaloosa, 
whose business has increased eightfold since 
he purcha.sed the establishment of which he is 
now proprietor. ^Such a record is certainly 
an indication of splendid business capacity and 
enterprise, and Air. Smith is regarded as a 
N'alued addition to commercial circles in his na- 
tive city. He was born in Oskaloosa, Novem- 
ber 8, 1874, a son of Theodore K. and Clara 
( Beckwith) Smith, who are mentioried on an- 
other page of this work. He pursued his edu- 
cation in the public schools until he had com- 
pleted the high-school course by graduation 
with the class of 1892, He then entered Penn 
College and subsequently was graduated from 
the Chicago Opthalmic College, He was then 



employed in his lather's store as a jeweler. His 
first business venture, however, was at selling 
newspapers, whicii occupied his attention be- 
tween the ages of ten and eighteen years outside 
of school hours. In 1892 the father's health 
failed, followed ])y his death in 1893. During 
the period <jf his illness Louis E. Smith, as- 
sociated with his sister. Airs. Clara Hearne, 
carried on the jewelry business in Oskaloosa, 
and in 1900 Air. Smith purchased the store, 
which he has since conducted and enlarged, his 
Inisiness having grown eightfold since he as- 
sumed the management. In 1902 he established 
a Ijranch store at Albia, Iowa, which he con- 
ducted for some time and then sold out at a 
gratifying profit in January, 1906. The ex- 
tent and x'olume of his Ijusiness is somewhat 
indicated by the fact that he employs four 
watch-makers and three opticians and his stock 
has been largely increased in all lines, especially 
in the department of gold and silverware. He 
is watch inspector for the Iowa Central, Rock 
Island and ^^'abash Railroads. In 1904 he re- 
moved his business from 120 First avenue 
West, to his present location on the west side 
of the public square, where he has tripled his 
space to accommodate his extensive stock that 
is demanded by his constantly growing 
patronage. 

On the 14th of April, T904, Air. Smith was 
married to Miss Alardia Waggoner, of St. 
Louis, Missouri, a daughter of Sol E. Wag- 
goner, president of the Citizens Lisurance Com- 
pany of Alissouri, and a prominent man, who 
was one of the managers of the W^orld's Fair. 
Air. Smith belongs to the Alasonic fraternity, 
holding member.ship in Hiram chaiiter. No. 6, 
R. A. AI., and De Payens commandry. No. 6, 
K. T.. in which he has filled all of the chairs, 
and in the Alystic Shrine. He is likewise a 
member of the Elks lodge and the Towa State 
Association of Opticians, the American Associ- 
ation of Opticians and the Iowa Retail Jew- 
elers Association, and is one of the three com- 



3i8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



posing the membership committee of the last 
named association. He belongs to the Congre- 
gational church, and to the Young Men's 
Christian Association and is vice-president and 
a member of the board of directors of the Com- 
mercial Club, at Oskaloosa. These various 
membership relations indicate the character of 
the man, showing his recognition of his obliga- 
tions to his fellowmen and his city as well as 
to his individual interests. He commands uni- 
form esteem and well merits the high position 
which is accorded him through the consensus 
of public opinion. 



JUDGE J. A. L. CROOKHAM. 

Judge J. A. L. Crookham, pioneer, lawyer, 
banker, statesman and philanthropist, was a 
son of George L. and Sarah (Lake) Crookham 
and was born in Jackson county, Ohio. His 
paternal grandfather was, at the time of the 
Revolutionary war, taken prisoner and held for 
about eight months on the Western Reserve in 
Ohio and forty years later, when the Indian 
lands were put on the market, he returned to 
that country, bought the land and located on 
the same spot where he had been held as a 
prisoner, spending his remaining days there. 
He was a blacksmith by trade and made arms 
for General Washington during the Revolu- 
tionary war. 

George L. Crookham was born in October, 
1779, and died in Jackson county, Ohio, Febru- 
ary 28, 1857. In early life he was a salt manu- 
facturer at the Scioto Salt Works in partner- 
ship with Asa Lake and they were among the 
first to engage in that business in Ohio. In 
early life he learned the blacksmith's trade of 
his father, but when seventeen years of age 
abandoned it, his taste being in another direc- 
tion, and turned his attention to mathematics, 
in which he excelled. He was also a great 
reader and student and invariably spent eight 



hours per day in his study, whicli was a small 
log house built of jack-oak logs, which he called 
his Jack-oak College. Here he taught his chil- 
dren and here was his library of valuable books 
and a large number of valuable manuscripts 
which were afterward burned because of his 
extreme views on the questions of temperance 
and slavery. He was an old federal wdiig and 
assisted many a colored man to gain his free- 
dom, his home being on the underground rail- 
road (jf that day and his own son, Jefferson G.. 
at one time dro\'e a team that carried a load of 
these unfortunate people farther north. Mr. 
Crookham was a well read lawyer and physi- 
cian and although he knew almost nothing 
about tlie workings of his large farm and never 
had anything to do with his e.xtensive herds of 
cattle, he knew all about the bugs, insects and 
reptiles on the place and his scientific attain- 
ments were of a superior order. He was presi- 
dent of the first temperance society ever org-an- 
ized in Jackson county, where he lived, and was 
one of the most prominent abolitionists there, 
writing many articles for the newspapers on 
these topics. He married Sarah Lake, who 
was a native of Boone's Lick, Kentucky. She 
was liorn in September, 1779, and died in Jack- 
son county, Ohio, January 9, 1852. Her fa- 
ther, Daniel Lake, was a compeer of Daniel 
Boone and also a Revolutionary soldier. He 
was taken prisoner at the battle of Long Island 
when seventeen years of age and was given to 
the Indians by the English and carried out to 
the ^^'estern Reserve in Ohio. He was liked 
and adopted by the chief and being sent out 
hunting, he escaped after about a year's cap- 
tivity, walking all the way back to his old home. 
In 1820, or forty years later, he took a claim 
where the Indian wigwam was, and the spring 
out of which he drank when in captivity was 
on his land. He died on this claim in 1843. 

His daughter Sarah became the wife of 
George L. Crookham and they were the par- 
ents of sixteen children : Horatio, who died at 




^71 Oi lr4t^-irfHr- 



jCrXln^-r^ 





f^v/ 



/L^t^-lJ 




PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



323 



the age of t\vent\-t\vo years, was at that time 
superinteiulent of construction on the Ohio & 
Erie canal ; Martha, the widow of J. W. Hanna, 
died in Missouri in 1905 ; Euclid married Sam- 
uel Montgomery but both are now deceased; 
Horace, a farmer, died in Marion county, Iowa, 
November 18, 1881 ; James died on his farm in 
Virginia; Vashti. who passed away April 9, 
1894, was the widow of Abner Lewis, who died 
in Memphis, Tennessee, during the war; John 
A. L. is the next of the famil}-; ]\Iilton, a 
wealthy farmer of Mahaska county, is de- 
ceased; Lawrence is a resident farmer of Pick- 
away county, Ohio ; Norval died at the age of 
six years; Oliver C, Emily G. and Louisa are 
all now deceased; Jefferson G. was in partner- 
ship with the Judge in the profession of law ; 
and Sarah L. and Amarillas C. are deceased. 

Judge Crookham was reared on the home 
farm in Jackson county, Ohio, until he lacked 
two months of his majorit)-, when he went to 
Kanawha and took a contract for and cut forty 
thousand hooppoles. He also entered one hun- 
dred and sixty acres of land in Jackson county, 
at one dollar and a quarter per acre. He then 
boated one summer on the Kanawha river, 
after which he removed to Darwin. Illinois, 
where he taught school for three years, reading 
law during the time under the direction of 
Judge Harlan. Thence he went in charge of a 
cargo of produce to New Orleans and on his 
return stopped near Helena, Arkansas, and 
read law with Judge McKee. He then re- 
turned to Illinois, sold his land and started to 
Oskaloosa in August, 1845, making the trip on 
hoi'seback. He bought two lots in this city but 
remainetl here only a short time because of the 
fever and ague that he contracted. He returned 
to Illinois to a point above Burlington, where 
he taught school for twelve months and con- 
tinued his study of the law under C. M. Harris 
and Cyrus Walker. Returning again to Iowa 
he was admitted to the bar in Lee county and 
practiced his profession there until August, 
16 



1847, when he again came to Oskaloosa and 
engaged in the practice of law, most of the 
time alone. He formed a partnership with 
Hon. James Rhinehart, which continued for 
several years and one partnership with Hon. 
H. W. Gleason, which association continued 
about seven years. He at once entered into the 
immediate life of the people and the community 
and became widely known on account of his 
activity and his endless zeal in the pursuit of 
his work. It was natural that in the early or- 
ganization of the county the first judgeship 
should fall to his shoulders, where it rested 
most worthily for a term of four years, from 
1851 until 1855. 

The Judge perhaps defended more criminal 
cases than any other lawyer in Iowa. It was 
his rule to defend and never to prosecute a case 
and fortunate indeed was the law-breaker who 
secured his services. His practice in this re- 
gard covered a large amount of territory and 
he was employed in important cases over the 
entire state. A law\-er of great caution, he 
prepared his cases with a great deal of care 
and was untiring in the production of the 
necessary evidence to sustain, his theory of a 
case. On March 26, 1855, Judge Crookham 
was appointed commissioner by Governor 
Grimes to re-locate the state capital of Iowa, 
and it was he who drove the corner stake that 
located the site and this in accordance with the 
requirement that the capital should be within 
a certain radius of the forks of the Coon and 
Des Moines rivers. The Judge was a man of 
inestimable worth to the community and Ma- 
haska county and the city of Oskaloosa owes 
much to his effort and enterprise. There was 
never a public enterprise that was not sanc- 
tioned and assisted by him. Many are the 
stories that might be related of the liberality 
and generosity of the man. He was a keen- 
sighted business man and yet dared to risk 
much upon his judgment as to the future of the 
country. He prospered in his business enter- 



324 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



prises and died possessed of tliousands of acres 
of land in Mahaska county and different states. 
He organized and was the president of the 
Mahaska County State Bank from its hegin- 
ning until liis failing health compelled him to 
resign. He prospered in his extensive stock- 
raising interests upon his farms and in his 
flouring-mill husiness, and while he thus ad- 
vanced, others were also assisted and the city 
of Oskaloosa above all felt the sustaining force 
of the support of this man. It was largely 
due to his efforts that Oskaloosa College came 
to this city and he gave thousands of dollars 
toward its support only to see it, in his old age, 
taken by unprincipled men after being en- 
joined by the courts, to another city. Penn 
College was also encouraged by him and knew 
his assistance. There was no worthy cause in 
the city that did not feel the force of his mate- 
rial aid. In procuring the location of the Iowa 
Central Railroad through this county he spent 
two years raising subscriptions and obtaining 
the right of way, for which he received no 
compensation, besides which he donated twenty- 
five-hundred dollars in aid of the enterprise. In 
securing the Des Moines Valley Railroad he 
paid a six-hundred-dollar subscription, besides 
spending a great deal of time, and was also 
largely instrumental in securing the Chicago, 
Rock Island & Pacific Railroad through this 
city, giving liberally of his means and time. In 
fact there is scarcely an enterprise in the county 
which he did not promote both by his means 
and influence. 

Judge Crookham was never an office seeker 
and though recognized as one of the most as- 
tute politicians in this part of the state and al- 
ways an enthusiast for the success of the repub- 
lican party, yet he never sought the honor of 
office at the hands of his friends. He repre- 
sented the house in the state senate in the 
sessions of 1864 and 1867 and took an active 
part in formulating a great amount of valuable 
legislation during his term. The original bill 



granting aid to the families of soldiers who 
were in the army was introduced by him but 
the bill as passed only allowed one-half the 
amount asked for in the original draft. He 
also introduced a bill to extend the elective 
franchise to all the colored men who enlisted in 
ser\'ice from Iowa and who had received hon- 
orable discharges. At the session of 1867 he 
introduced a bill amending the constitution of 
the state by striking out the word "white," 
which amendment was adopted by the people 
and made Iowa the first state in the Union to 
grant that pri\'ilege to the colored race. He 
served as chairman on the committee on banks 
and banking in the senate and was the most 
prominent member of the judiciary committee. 
The Judge was twice married, first to Elizabeth 
Delashmutt, a native of Virginia, who was 
reared in Iowa. She was of French descent on 
the paternal side and English on the maternal. 
Of this union there were two children, both 
living: William, who resides in Oskaloosa and 
is an attorney but is not practicing on account 
of ill health ; and Euclid, who is now a teacher 
in the San Francisco high school. The Judge's 
second marriage was solemnized with Anna 
Clarissa Carter, a native of Pennsylvania, who 
was reared in Ohio until years of maturity and 
came with her parents to this county in 1851. 
Here her father and mother died at an ad- 
vanced ag-e. Miss Carter at the time of her 
marriage was a successful teacher in this coun- 
ty and some of the most prominent citizens of 
Mahaska county were her pupils. To this 
union there were born three children: Sara 
Crookham Davis, the wife of Rufus K. Davis; 
Joseph H. Crookham, a prominent stock-raiser 
and farmer, living on a large farm near Leigh- 
ton ; and John A. Crookham, now president and 
general manager and also principal owner of 
the Hawkeye Overall Company, This factory 
is built upon the site of the old South Spring 
mill, in which Judge Crookham was interested 
for more than fiftv vears. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



325 



In April. 1897. Judg-e Crookham suffered a 
stroke of paralysis, from which he never en- 
tirely recovered and on the 2d of May, 1901, 
after four years of patient, uncomplaining suf- 
fering, he quietly passed away at the age of 
eighty-three years, six months and three days. 
He was the last of a galaxy of great men who 
were intimate professional associates, includ- 
ing Jutlge Loughridge, Judge W. H. Seevers, 
Micajah T. Williams, George Eastburn, John 
R. Xeedham, General Samuel A. Rice, M. E. 
Cutts, A. N. Cassady and others. 



JAMES A. STUART. 

James A. Stuart, living on section 4. White 
Oak township, owns and controls a valuable 
farm of one hundred and eighty-five acres and 
is classed \\ith the representative and prosper- 
ous farmers of his community. He has been a 
resident of this county since 1852. and is there- 
fore one of its pioneer settlers, having for more 
than a half centurv witnessed its growth and 
aided in its development, neglecting no duty 
of citizenship. He is a native of Ohio, his liirth 
having occurred in Logan county, November 
20. 183 1. His father. James Stuart, was also 
born and reared in Ohio and was there married 
to Miss Elizabeth Hanger, a native of Virginia, 
and a daughter of John Hanger, who was like- 
wise born in the Old Domininn, settling in Lo- 
gan county, Ohio, at an early day. James 
Stuart. Sr.. was a son of Thomas Stuart, a 
pioneer oi the Buckeye state, dating his resi- 
dence from the early days when the Indians con- 
stituted a large part of its population. In Lo- 
gan county James Stuart, Sr., followed the oc- 
cupation of farming and reared his family of 
ten children. He lived to the age of sixty-six 
years, while his wife passed away at tlie age of 
seventy-five years. In his business he pros- 
pered as the years went by and built one of the 
fine farm homes of his adopted state. 



James A. Stuart was the eldest son of his fa- 
ther's family, and was reared upon the old home 
farm, attending the common schools, while in 
the summer months he assisted in the work of 
the fields, early becoming familiar with all the 
duties and labors that fall to the lot of the 
agriculturist. When he was twenty years of 
age he came to Iowa and bought land, and the 
next year he took up his abode upon this prop- 
erty. He first invested in one hundred and 
sixty acres of land, which now constitutes the 
old homestead farm. 

Mr. Stuart was married in Logan county, 
Ohio, in July. 1852, to Miss Vincinia Hawley, 
but they were soon separated by death, ]\Irs. 
Stuart passing away on the 25th of April, 1853- 
On coming to Iowa Mr. Stuart began to farm 
and improve his ]u'operty and built therein a 
cabin home. In the second year thereafter, in 
the spring of 1854, he was married to Miss 
Mary Jane Harris, a native of Keokuk county, 
Iowa, and unto them have lieen torn six chil- 
dren, of whom three are living, the eldest be- 
ing Elizabeth, the widow of .\rthur Goodspeed, 
who died March 15, 1906; Cora, of O.skaloosa; 
and Emma, the wife of L. S. Gable, of White 
Oak township. The mother of these children 
passed away and Mr. Stuart was afterward 
married again, at which time IMary Feaster 
became his wife. .She is a native of 
Iowa and a daughter of Hezekiah Feaster, 
who was born in Indiana. This union was 
blessed with three children, but two died in in- 
fancy. Lewis lieing the only one now surviving. 
Since the death of his third wife Mr. 
Stuart has made his home with his son Lewis, 
who lives upon the old home farm. 

On coming to this county, Mr. Stuart reso- 
lutely began the work of developing and im- 
proving the property and from time to time he 
bought more land until he owned two hundred 
and eighty acres all of which is well improved 
and valuable. He also built a good two-story 
house in 1870, has good barns upon his place 



326 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and substantial outbuildings, and altogether the 
fami is a valuable one equipped with modern 
equipments. He has deeded to his son Lewis 
ninety-five acres of the old homestead, and he 
makes his home with this son. Lewis Stuart 
was married February 27, 1896, to Miss Stella 
Moore, a native of Mahaska county, Iowa, and 
a daughter of Harvey Moore, of White Oak 
township. They have one child, Eva. 

Mr. Stuart is one of the oldest and most 
prominent farmers and residents of White 
Oak township. He is now in his seventy-fifth 
year and has led a life of activity and useful- 
ness, in which his earnest labor has been 
crowned with prosperity. He is a Master Ma- 
son, belonging to the blue lodge at Rose Hill and 
politically he has been a lifelong republican. He 
espoused the cause of the party when it was 
somewhat unpopular to do so, and he cast his 
first presidential ballot for John C. Fremont, 
since which time he has supported each presi- 
dential nominee at the head of the ticket. He 
was for two years on the county board of com- 
missioners, now called the board of supervisors, 
but he has never soughtnor cared for ot^ce, pre- 
ferring to give his time and attention to his 
business interests. Great changes have occurred 
since he came to this county, pioneer condi- 
tions have given way before an advancing civil- 
ization. The little cabin home has been replaced 
by a substantial farm residence, crude machin- 
ery of the early days has been supplanted by 
the improved farm implements of the present 
and in all the work of progress Mr. Stuart has 
been interested and has kept in touch with the 
trend of modern events. 



MRS. SARAH COOK. 

Mrs. Sarah Cook, of Cedar township, is 
numbered among the few remaining old settlers 
of Alahaska county, dating her residence here 
from June, 1853. A native of Lidiana, she was 



born in Tippecanoe county, near Lafayette, on 
the 15th of December, 1834. Her father was 
Benjamin Eastburn, a native of Pennsylvania, 
whence he i"emoved to Ohio and was there mar- 
ried in Highland county to Miss Elizabeth 
Haigh, whose birth occurred in Washington, 
D. C. Her father, Job Haigh, was a native of 
England. Li early life he became a mechanic 
and worked on the capitol building in the city 
of Washington. Subsequently he removed to 
Ohio, where he resided for several years and 
afterward took up his abode in Tippecanoe 
count}^, Indiana. Benjamin Eastburn became 
a farmer of Indiana, where he carried on gen- 
eral agricultural pursuits for a number of years 
and in 1853 came to Iowa, settling' in Cedar 
township, Mahaska county. Here he pur- 
chased land, becoming the owner of six hun- 
dred acres, which he cultivated and improved, 
transforming the property into a good farm. 
For a long period he was numbered among the 
prosperous and enterprising agriculturists of 
his township and upon the old homestead he 
reared his family and spent his last years, his 
death occurring- on the 20tia of March, 1873. 
His wife sur\ived him for some time and 
passed away on the 24th of March, 1882. Mrs. 
Cook is one of a family of four sons and three 
daughters, of whom two sons and the daughters 
are yet li\ing. Her brother, Job Eastburn. 
was a well known stock-buyer and shipper of 
Mahaska county for many years and a partner 
in that business with Philip Akerman until the 
death of the latter. Mr. Eastburn has now for 
a number of years been a prominent live stock 
commission merchant of Chicago. The other 
li\-ing brother is Minor Eastburn, of Hillsboro, 
Iowa. Her sister, Mrs. E. J. Stockton, has re- 
sided upon the same farm for over a half cen- 
tury. The other sister, Mrs. Hattie Davis, is 
living in Mississippi. 

Mrs. Cook spent the first eighteen years of 
her life in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and 
with her father came to Iowa in 1853. Here 



./^BT w!9^ 





PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



329 



she ji'a\-e her hand in marria.i;'e on the 3d of 
A])ri!. 1854. to Dr. S. S. Cook, whu was also a 
native of Indiana, bom near Richmond, in 
whicli locah'ty he was reared and edncated. 
Following the coni|iIetioii of his public-school 
com-se he took up the study of medicine and as 
a young physician came to Iowa, entering upon 
the i)ractice of liis ])rofession in Keokuk county, 
where he remained fnr ten years. He then came 
to Mahaska county. In 1863 he enlisted in re- 
sponse to the country's call for aid, joining the 
armv as a surgeon, in which capacity he ren- 
dered \-aluable ser\'ice to his regiment until his 
death on the 15th of January, 1864. He was 
a prominent and well known physician in this 
part of the state, his ability winning him high 
rank, while his professional service was of in- 
estimable \alue to his patients. He was a mem- 
ber of the ^lasonic fraternity, taking the de- 
grees of the blue lodge, and his life was in 
many ways exemplary, winning for him the re- 
s|)ect, confidence and goftd will of those with 
whom he came in contact. 

After her husliand's enlistment for the war 
Mrs. Cook returned to her father and resided 
with him for a number of years. At the death 
of Dr. Cook she was left a widow with three 
children. The eldest, Albert N., reached ma- 
ture years, was married, began farming and 
carried on agricultural pursuits until his death, 
October 27, 1870. , Rose, the only daughter, 
who was a teacher in Harrison and Cedar 
townships before her marriage, is now the wife 
of Dr. Bear, of Des iMoines, Iowa. The 
younger son is S. S. Cook, who is represented 
elsewhere in this work. After the sons were 
old enough to operate a farm Mrs. Cook pur- 
chased a tract of land of forty acres adjoining 
Fremont, whereon she now resides, her .sons 
beginning the task of cultivating and improv- 
ing the fields. At a later day she purchased 
forty acres additional and now owns a valuable 
farm of eighty acres just north of tlie corpora- 
tion limits of Fremont. She has added to and 



rebuilt the house and now has a good, neat, 
frame residence. There are also substantial out- 
buildings upon the place for the shelter of grain 
and stock and in the management of her prop- 
erty Mrs. Cook has displayed excellent business 
ability and enterprise. She is a member of the 
Baptist church, to which her daughter-in-law, 
Mrs. S. S. Cook, also belongs. Mrs. Cook has 
resided in Iowa for fifty-three years, either in 
Mahaska or Keokuk counties and has therefore 
been a witness of much of its growth and de- 
velo]Mnent. She has seen the founding of towns, 
which have gmwn into thriving cities, has 
watched the transformation of wild land into 
productive farms and has been interested in all 
that has been accomplished in the way of gen- 
eral progress. In social circles she has won 
many warm friends and she is greatly esteemed 
and beloved throughout the community in 
which she has now long rhade her home. 



ROBERT T. NEWELL. 

Robert T. Newell has been an influential 
factor in public life as well as in business cir- 
cles in Mahaska county for many years, and 
is present mayor of Fremont, where he has re- 
sided for nearly a third of "a century. He is 
numliered among the few remaining settlers of 
the state, having for seventy years resided 
within the borders of Iowa, taking up his 
abode here on the 3d of July, 1836, when Iowa 
was still under territorial government. His 
life record liegan in Barren county, Kentucky, 
on the 25th of Februan*', 1832. His father, 
William Newell, was a native of the same 
county, born in 1805, while the grandfather, 
Robert Newell, was torn in Virginia, whence 
he removed to Kentucky about 1780. The 
Newell family is of Welsh ancestrj- and was es- 
tablished in Virginia at an early period in the 
colonization of the new world. William New- 



330 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ell was reared in Kentucky and was married 
there to Miss Mary Ann Goodall, who was bom 
in that state March 19, 181 1. Mr. Newell was 
a farmer by occupation and in 1834 removed 
to Illinois, and after eighteen months came 
to Iowa in 1836. He settled in Van Buren 
county and his death occurred the same year. 
Iowa was still a under territorial government 
and was largely a wild and unimproved re- 
gion, the homes of the settlers being widely 
scattered while Indians were found more nu- 
merous in the state than white men. His wife 
long survi\ed him and reared their family of 
children, of whom Robert is the eldest. The 
others are: Nancy C. the wife of W. W. 
Whitkake, of California; and ]\Irs. Ann E. 
Johnston, a widow residing in Alount Zion, 
Van Buren county, Iowa. 

Robert T. Newell was reared in Van Buren 
county amid the wild scenes of pioneer life 
and is almost wholly a self-educated man. He 
never attended school for a day save in one of 
the primiti\e log schoolhouses of that early pe- 
riod. There was not a pane of glass in the 
building, the windows being made of greased 
paper and the methods of instruction were al- 
most equally primitive. He was reared to farm 
life and \\hen still a youth learned the trade of 
a carpenter and joiner, in which he served a 
three years" apprenticeship, receiving only 
ninety dollars during that period in compensa- 
tion for his services. He was afterward em- 
ployed as a journeyman for about three years 
in Van Buren and Jefferson counties and was 
thus closely associated with the early develop- 
ment and improvement of the state. 

Mr. Newell was married in Van Buren 
county, Iowa, March i, 1853, to Miss Polly 
Ann Lynn. He continued to make his home in 
Van Buren county until 1853 and then went to 
Jefferson county, where he li\'ed a year. He 
afterward established his home in \\'apello 
county, where he also resided for about a year, 
devoting his attention to teaching there. He 



afterward went to Keokuk county and was a 
teacher in three different counties. His first 
term of school was taught in Illinois. He also 
engaged in business as a contractor and builder 
in Keokuk county and thus became closely as- 
sociated with the material development and up- 
building of that locality. In response to the 
country's call at the time of the Civil war he 
enlisted on the 19th of August, 1861, joining 
the First Iowa Cavalry. He went south and 
was promoted from tire ranks, becoming first 
lieutenant and regimental commissary. He was 
mostly engaged in scouting duty in northern 
.Arkansas and Texas, and at three dift'erent 
times was ill in the hospital. When he veteran- 
ized he was accorded a thirty days' furlough, 
and after rejoining his regiment he ser\'ed until 
the clo=e of the war, being mustered out in 
Te.xas and honorably discharged on the 19th 
of March, 1866. 

Returning to Keokuk. Mr. Newell remained 
a resident of that part of the state until 1874, 
when he removed to Fremont. Here he opened 
a shop and continued in business as a contractor 
and builder, employing from five to ten men. 
The field of his operations extended over three 
counties — Keokuk, Wapello and Mahaska. He 
continued in that line of business for sixteen 
years and there are many substantial buildings 
in the three coimties, including farm resi- 
dences, schoolhouses and churches that stand 
as monmnents to his skill and ability. He con- 
tributed in substantial measure to the improve- 
ment of Fremont, not only in the line of his 
chosen pursuit Ijut also as a private citizen, co- 
operating in many progressive measures. 

In 1868 Mr. Newell lost his first wife, who 
died near Martinsburg on the i8th of Decem- 
ber, of that year. There were six children by 
that union, of whom four died in infancy. Wil- 
lard F., who became a railroad man. died on 
March 11, 1904, at the age of fift)' years. The 
only surviving child of that marriage is Mollie, 
now the wife of Albert Brier, of Fairfield, 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



331 



](i\va. On tlic 2j{\\ of September, 1870, in l'~re- 
iiKint. Mr. Xcwell was niarried to Miss Nancy 
Cannon, who was born and reared in Pennsyl- 
vania, a daughter of James F. Cannon, who re- 
moved to Iowa from the Keystone state. Tiiis 
nninii was Ijlessed with three children, of whom 
two sons are living: James C, who is married 
and liolds a good position in Fremont ; and 
Edwin H.. who is a painter and decorator by 
trade and resides at home. 

Squire Newell, as he is usually called, has 
been a lifelong democrat, casting his first vote 
for James Buchanan in 1856. He ser\'ed as 
township assessor of Keokuk county, as justice 
of the peace of Wapello county and also as 
township clerk. He is now justice of tiie 
peace in Fremont and the present mayor of the 
town, and has been notary for a number of 
years. He has acted as a delegate to county 
and state conventions, and in the discharge of 
his duties has shown unflinching loyalty to the 
public good. At the present time he is giving 
Fremont a business-like, practical, yet progres- 
sive administration, favoring all measures of 
progress and improvement that promise to be 
of direct and immediate serviceableness. Mr. 
Newell is a Mason, holding memi)ership in the 
blue lodge of Fremont, in which he has filled 
all of the chairs. He is a past master of the 
blue lodge at IMartinsburg and also in Fremont 
and at one time was identified with the Royal 
Arch chapter. He belongs to the Eastern Star 
lodge, of whicii his wife is a charter meml)er, 
and since its institution she has served as its 
treasurer. Both Mr. and Mrs. Newell belong 
to the Presbyterian cliurch. in which he is 
serving as treasurer and in the work of which 
they take an active and iielpful interest. His 
life has been one of continuous activity, in 
which has Ijeen accorded due recognition of 
labor and now with a comfortable competence 
acquired through earnest effort he is enjoying 
well merited rest from liusiness cares, but is 
giving his time and attention largely to the 



pubhc service. His worth is recognized by 
his fellow townsmen, form whom he has won 
warm and lasting friendship. 



WTLiJAM c. Mcdowell. 

William C. ^IcDowell, one of the acti\-e and 
prosperous farmers of Cedar township, living 
on section 15, where he owns one hundred and 
sixty acres of good land within a mile of Fre- 
mont, is a native of Pennsylvania, born in 
Franklin county on the 29th of July, 1861. He 
is a son of Matthew V. McDowell, who was 
also a native of Franklin county, and was there 
reared and married. Miss Margaret Hall be- 
coming his wife. He remo\-ed from Pennsyl- 
vania to Illinois about 1857, settling in Taze- 
well county, where he oj^ened up and improved 
a farm. Subsequently he returned on a visit 
to his birthplace in Pennsylvania, but he reared 
his famil)^ and spent his last days in Illinois, 
where he died in 1892, while his wife passed 
away in January, 1895. 

William C. McDowell was the eldest in a 
family of four sons and three daughters. One 
son. James T., is deceased, but William, 
John D. and Robert R. are living. The sisters 
are Mary V., who passed away in February, 
1905, and Jane N. and Louisa, who are residing 
in Tazewell county. Illinois. 

William C. JNIcDowell largely spent his boy- 
hood days upon the old home farm in Tazewell 
county, where he acquired good common-school 
ad\-antages. He remained with his father until 
he came to Iowa when a _\-oung man in the 
spring of 1892. Here he purchased a farm, 
which he began to improve, living thereon for 
a year, after which he sold that property and 
spent the four succeeding years in Fremont, 
where he was engaged in buying good stock. In 
1897 'i*^ i)urchased his present property, an im- 
])ro\ed farm of one hundred and sixty acres 



35^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



on section 15. Cedar township. It is tiled and 
fenced, and here, in addition to cnltivating his 
crops, he also raises and feeds stock. He is a 
good business man, reliable and enterprising and 
his labors are being attended with success. 

On the 1 2th of January. 1897. in Fremont, 
Mr. [McDowell was married to Miss Nellie Mc- 
Clain.'who was born and reared in this county. 
There are four children of this marriage, Had- 
ley v., Robert S., Florence J. and Bertha L. 

Politically Mr. McDowell is a stanch repub- 
lican but without aspiration for office. He be- 
longs to the Presbyterian church, while his wife 
is a member of the Methodist church. He is 
identified with the Knights of Pythias frater- 
nity at Fremont, and both are held in high es- 
teem in the community \\'here for fourteen years 
Air. AIcDowell has made his home, while his 
wife has spent her entire life in this county. 
He is regarded as one of the prosperous and 
progressive farmers of his township, and is 
now thoroughly identified with the interests of 
the county, being recognized as one of its pub- 
lic-spirited citizens. 



ALBERT J. AUGUSTINE. 

Albert J. Augustine, who is engaged in real- 
estate speculations wherein his keen business 
discernment has enabled him to make judicious 
and profitable investments, was born in Cali- 
fornia in the year 1858, and is of Gennan line- 
age. His father. Albert Augustine, born in 
Germany, came to the United States with his 
parents, Air. and Mrs. Alichael Augustine, about 
,1830, the family home being established in 
Pennsylvania, where they resided for about five 
years, the father devoting his energies to farm- 
ing upon a tract of land which he had pur- 
chased there. About 1835 he removed Avith his 
familv to Washington county, Iowa, and thus 
settled upon the frontier, entering a tract of 



land from the government and carrying on 
farm work until he became a prosperous citizen 
of his adopted state. 

Albert Augustine, the son, was reared to 
manhood amid the wild scenes and environ- 
ments of frontier life in ^^'ashington county 
and attended school there, while in the summer 
months he assisted in the arduous task of de- 
veloping a new farm. About 1842 he came to 
Mahaska county, settling upon a farm a mile 
and a half west of Oskaloosa, Avhere he carried 
on general agricultural pursuits until after the 
discovery of gold in California, when, with the 
hope of rapidly realizing a fortune on the Pa- 
cific coast, he started, in 1849. accompanied by 
his wife and two children, with a party travel- 
ing with a wagon train of several wagons. 
They left Mahaska county in May, 1849, start- 
ing on their way to the gold fields, and after 
se\'en long and weary months of travel across 
the sandv stretches and through the mountain 
passes of the west they were gladdened by the 
sight of the green fields of California. They 
had remarkable experiences, owing to the In- 
dians, to climatic conditions and to privations 
incident to travel across the plains in those 
davs. Indians stole their cattle and otherwise 
harrassed them, but in December, 1849, they 
reached Sacramento. Mr. Augustine was at 
that time practically penniless, but in six months 
had accumulated seven thousand dollars, which 
he invested in town property. The town, how- 
e\-er, after enjoving a season of booming, col- 
lapsed and left him again without money. He 
finally established a store in a mining camp and 
his wife was the only woman in the camp of 
fi\-e hundred souls. He remained there for about 
eighteen months and in 1852 returned by way 
of the water route to Oskaloosa. In 1856 he 
again took his family across the continent with 
a Avagon train of ninety wagons, of which he 
was captain, making the overland journey to 
Oregon and thence proceeding southward to 
California, where he once more went into the 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



335 



mines. He iXMiiaincd there tintil iSrn, durint^ 
which time he accumulated aliout twelve thou- 
sand dollars. He then .settled in Washington 
county, Iowa, where he purchased a farm, mak- 
ing his home thereon until 1867, when he sold 
that proi)erty and removed to Missouri, where 
he purchased l:uid. on which he lived ior a year, 
lie then returned tn Mahaska county and pur- 
chased a farm in Monroe township, near Rose 
Hill, living thereon until 1894, in which year he 
retired to Rose Hill, his deatli occurring there 
in 1896, when he had reached the age of sev- 
enty-two. Although he met reverses, obstacles 
and difficulties at different times, he was a man 
of good business ability and eventually w-on 
prosperity. He was a member of the Christian 
church for thirty years, served as one of its 
elders and was held in high esteem. His fra- 
ternal relations were with the Masonic lodge, 
and he voted with the republican party. 

His wife, who in her girlhood was Dorothy 
]\Ieyer. was born in Germany, in 1828. and died 
in June, 1904. She came to the United States 
in her girlhood days with her parents, Mr. and 
Mrs. William Meyer, who settled upon a farm 
in Pennsylvania, when that section of the state 
was still largely unimprii\-ed. They afterward 
came to Mahaska county, Iowa, taking up their 
abode about a mile and a half west of Oska- 
loosa, where the father secured claims, entering 
land until he owned one thousand acres at one 
time. He became one of the extensive and 
])ros]jerous farmers of the county and remained 
upon the old homestead property up to the time 
of his death, whicli occurred in 1856. His 
daughter, ^Irs. .Augustine, was a member of 
the Baptist church and was a remarkable lady, 
whose many good qualities of heart and mind 
endeared her to those with whom she came in 
contact. By her marriage she had thirteen chil- 
dren, eight (if whom reached adult years, 
namely: Mary Jane, the wife nf R. T. Spates, a 
farmer of Monroe township : Daniel, a retired 
farmer living at Rose Hill, Iowa; Michael G., 



who has retired fmm farm life and resides in 
Delta, Iowa; Albert J., of this review; Frank 
T., who died in 1892; John FL, a real-estate 
broker of Oskaloosa; Dora M., living at Rose 
Hill; and Jennie V.. who died in 1894. 

.\lbert J. Augustine, born in California dur- 
ing the temporary residence of his parents in 
that state, was largely reared in Monroe town- 
shi]), Mahaska county, where he spent his youth 
up(jn a farm and attended school through the 
winter seasons. He remained upon a farm until 
1890, when, retiring from agricultural pur- 
suits, he removed to Rose Hill and there en- 
gaged in merchandising and dealing in live 
stock, making his home at that place for six 
vears. In 1896 he came to Oskaloosa, where 
he now resides and continued to deal in live 
stock until 1901, since wdiich time he has been 
speculating in real estate and has handled con- 
siderable valualilc i)roperty, his sales therefore 
brineine him a sond financial return, so that 
he is now numbered among the capitalists of 
his city. 

In November, 1880, Mr. Augustine was mar- 
ried to Miss Ellen Moore, who was born in 
White Oak township, Mahaska county, in i860, 
a (laughter of William and .\deline Moore. The 
father was a pioneer farmer of Mahaska county, 
who died in 1886, at the age of seventy-two 
vears. while his wife passed away ui 1903, at 
the \ery advanced age of eighty-seven years. 
Mr. and Mrs. Augustine have become the par- 
ents of five children: Dorothy Adeline, a 
teacher in the Grant school, in Oskaloosa; Jo- 
sephine ]\I., who is bill clerk in the wholesale 
hardware store of Huber & Kalbach; Marjie 
L., who is empkwed in the Central book store; 
Gniver, who died at the age of seven years; 
and .\rtbur L. 

Mr. and Mrs. Augustine hold membership 
in the Christian church, and his name is also on 
the membership rolls of the Alasonic and Elks 
lodges. He is recognized as one of the leaders 
in democratic circles in Mahaska county and 



336 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



was mayor of Rose Hill and a school director 
of Alonroe township, while at the present writ- 
ing he is serving for the third term as council- 
man from the fourth ward in Oskaloosa. In 
the field of political life and business activity he 
has won distinction antl is today numljered 
among the leading, influential and honored resi- 
dents of Mahaska county where he has steadily 
worked his way upward until, having long since 
left the ranks of the many, he stands among the 
successful men of the county. 



JOHN R. JAMISON. 

John R. Jamison, one of the active and pro- 
gressive farmers and sheep-raisers of !^Iahaska 
county, owns and operates a neat and valualile 
farm of two hundred acres within three miles 
of Oskaloosa. It is situated on sections 28 and 
29, Spring Creek township, and here he con- 
ducts his business along progressive lines of 
farming, so that his success is well merited. He 
has been a resident of ^Mahaska county since 
1858 and was born in Canada near the city of 
Toronto, February 13, 1832. His parents were 
Andrew and Mary Jane Jamison, natives of 
Ireland, who in 1824 removed to Canada. Af- 
ter remaining there for a short time they went 
t(T Harrison countv, Ohio, about 1835, and in 
that locality John R. Jamison was reared, as- 
sisting his father in farm work. He also at- 
tended the common schools, but the advantages 
of education were very meagre as compared 
with the methods of instruction at the present 
time. 

John R. Jamison remaineil at home until his 
twenty-fifth year, when he rented land and 
began fanning on his own account. As a com- 
panion and helpmate for life's journey, he chose 
Miss Sarah Welling, to whom he was married 
on the 14th of August, 1S56, a daughter of 
lohn Welling, a native of Ohio. ^Ir. Jamison 



farmed in that state for two years after his mar- 
riage. He then invested his savings in sheep 
and in connection with Mr. John Milliken pur- 
chased six hundred ewe sheep, which he drove 
across the country to Iowa, making his way to 
Prairie township, this county. There they 
camped and corraled their sheep and later Mrs. 
Jamison joined her husband tiiere, making the 
journey by rail to Iowa. He engaged exclu- 
sively in the sheep business for eight years, 
meeting with success, and when the govern- 
ment compelled him to give up his prairie graz- 
ing, he purchased one hundred and fifteen acres 
of hnd, which is now a part of the home place, 
in Spring Creek township, Mahaska county. 
Here he has continued in sheep-raising in con- 
nection with general farming, and has enlarged 
the boundaries of his place by an additional pur- 
chase of eightv acres. He has improved his 
land, bringing it under a state of rich fertility 
and he has added to the house and built good 
barns and outbuildings until he now has a neat 
and attractive home as well as a valuable farm. 
He still continues in the slieep industry and 
has done much for improvement in breeding. 
He now raises only registered grades of the im- 
pro\-ed .\merican Merino sheep, and his efforts 
in this direction have been of material benefit to 
the county, doing much to improve the grade 
of sheep raised and thus advance the price. 

Unto ^Ir. and Mrs. Jamison have been bom 
ten children, of whom six are now living. They 
lost three in infancy, while James C. passed 
away at the age of seventeen years. Those who 
still survive are: Jessie, at home; Fred, who is 
married and lives in Nodaway county. Missouri: 
John, who is married and makes his home in 
Bellville, Republic county, Kansas: Dane, who 
operates the farm for his father, although liv- 
ing in a separate house, and who married Luna 
Cruzen, a daughter of Harvey Cruzen, of this 
township, bv whom he has seven ciiildren. Ha- 
zel, Bert, Frank, James, Marie, ]^Iajorie and 
Clarence : Bert, the next member of the father's 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



337 



fainilv. is married ami Ii\cs in Oskaloosa ; Sa- 
die, a yiiung lail}' at iionie. 

Mrs. Jamison and her family attenil anil are 
members of the l^irst Presbyterian church of 
Oskaloosa. Politically Mr. Jamison is a life- 
Inntj republican and cast his first vote for John 
C l-'remont, since which time he has supported 
each nominee of the republican party. He has 
jjeen a school director and treasurer for some 
years, but has never sought for office nor cared 
for notoriety, preferring to give his time to his 
home and liusiness. He has witnessed much of 
the upbuilding of Mahaska county and its de- 
velo])ment along lines of modern improvement 
until there is no trace left of pioneer conditions, 
but on the contrary every evidence of an ad- 
vanced cix'ilization is here seen. 



SOLOAION BROWN. 



Solomon Brown, an active, energetic and 
successful farmer living on section lo. White 
Oak township, where he owns and operates one 
hundred and fifty-nine acres of arable land, was 
born upon this farm September 26, 1855 — ^ 
fact which indicates that he is a representative 
of one oi the pioneer families of the county. 
His father, Jonathan Brown, was a native of 
Mnrgan county, Ohio, and was reared in 'Sla.- 
rion county, that state, where he resided until 
after he had attained his majority. He was 
there married to Miss Elizabeth Reed in 1852. 
'1 he lady was a native of Delaware and a 
daughter of Job Reed, who was likewise born 
in Delaware, whence he removed with his fam- 
ily to Marion county, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. 
Jonathan Brown followed farming in Ohio and 
in the second year after their marriage came to 
b>\\a, where he purchased one hundred and 
nineteen acres of land and also entered from 
the government forty acres more. It was en- 
tirely wild and unimproved and he at once be- 



gan to clear and culti\ate the place. He had 
to perf(jrm the anluous task of breaking the 
sod and prejiaring the land for cultivation, but 
in the course of time he had transformed the 
tract into richly cultivated fields. He built 
thereon a good house and barn, also substan- 
tial outbuildings and developed a neat and valu- 
able property, being recognized as one of the 
enteqjrising agriculturists of the community. 
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Brown were born nine 
children, of whom three died in infancy. The 
eldest is Nancy, the wife of T. J. Shipley, a 
resident of Keokuk county. Iowa. Solomon 
is the next of the family. J. L. is living in 
Rose Hill, where he is conducting a hardware 
store. Alice is the wife of C. I. Ellis. Sarah 
is the w'ife of C. L. Vanlaninghan, a popular 
merchant of Rose Hill. William is at home. The 
father of this family departed this life in 1885, 
at the age of fifty-seven years. The mother, 
however, is still living in her seventy-fifth year 
and makes her home with her sons, Solomon 
and William. 

Upon the old homestead farm Solomon 
Brown was reared and in the public schools of 
the neighborhood acquired his education. In 
his youth he aided in the work of the fields and 
since his father's death he has operated the farm 
upon which he has always lived with the excep- 
tion of a period of two years from 1898 until 
1900, when he resided in Oskaloosa, filling the 
nffice of tleputy sheriff. He has a well kept 
farm and raises some stock. He also keeps 
high bred Plymoudi Rock chickens and the 
breeding of those fowls adds not a little to his 
income. In all of his business interests he is ac- 
tive and enterprising, and his labors are attended 
with a measure of success w'hich shows that his 
work is of a practical nature. He attends the 
^[ethodist Episcojial church of which his 
mother is a member. His political allegiance 
is given to the democracy, and while never 
seeking office, he supports the men and meas- 
ures of the ]5arty. The only positions he has 



338 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ever filled are those of deputy sheriff and con- 
stable, acting in the latter capacity in White 
Oak township for seven years. He finds ample 
incentive for the exercise of his talents and en- 
ergies in his business affairs and has come to 
be recognized as one of the substantial farmers 
of the county. 



RICHARD W. MOORE. 

Richard W. Moore is one of the prosperous 
farmers of Mahaska county, owning five hun- 
dred acres of valuable land in his farm in Har- 
rison township, and in addition to the tilling 
of the soil he is also extensively and success- 
fully engaged in raising- cattle, heavy draft 
horses and fine mules. His residence is situated 
in the town of Cedar, where he also conducts a 
lumber yard and he is one of the organizers and 
a director of the Farmers National Bank of 
Oskaloosa, so that his business interests are va- 
ried and extensive. 

]\Ir. Moore is a native of Indiana, his birth 
having occurred in Warren county in 1842. 
His father, John F. Moore, was born in Ohio 
and was of Scotch-Irish descent. He, too, was 
a farmer by occupation and with his father re- 
moved from the Buckeye state to Indiana. In 
1843 he came to what is now Mahaska county, 
Iowa, and entered a tract of land in Harrison 
township, where he lived up to the time of his 
death. He transformed his claim from a wild 
and unimproved district into one of rich fertili- 
ty, being a thoroughly progressive farmer and 
man of good business ability. He engaged 
largely in the raising of cattle and sheep, keep- 
ing a number of thoroughbreds and in his busi- 
ness undertakings he prospered, becoming 
the owner of considerable property. He 
wedded Mary E. Maddox, who was born 
in Ohio and was of English lineage, 
her grandparents having come from Eng- 



land to America, while her father, Fred 
Maddox, emigrated from his native coun- 
try of Newfoundland to the United States: 
Both Mr. and Mrs. Moore were members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, in which he served 
as a steward and trustee. His political alle- 
giance was given to the republican party and he 
held various township offices. He died in 1888, 
at the age of seventy-two years, and his wife 
passed away in 1893, at the age of seventy- 
five years. They were the parents of 'eleven 
children. 

Richard W. Moore, the second in order of 
birth, was reared upon the home farm and at- 
tended the "Swayback" school — a little log 
school near his father's home. He was reared 
to the.occupation of farming and has made that 
pursuit his life work. He began farming on 
his own accoimt in Harrison township and yet 
owns fi\-e hundred acres of \'ery rich and pro- 
ductive land. Here he raises considerable stock, 
including heavy draft horses and fine mules. 
The fami is improved with modern equipments 
and everything about theplace indicates the care- 
ful supen-ision ofaprogressiveowner. Hemakes 
his home, however, in the village of Cedar and 
there conducts a lumber yard. He joined with 
other men of affluence in establishing the 
Farmers National Bank at Oskaloosa and has 
since been one of its directors. His business 
capacity is broad and his judgment sound and 
accurate and in his various interests he has 
carefully directed his labors so as to win suc- 
cess. Mr. Moore built and moved into his 
hiinie on the prairie (now Cedar) in the sum- 
mer of 1868. During the fall he and his neigh- 
bors began to build a church, which was com- 
pleted in 1869 and was called "Cedar Chapel." 
The Methodist society was organized at the 
home of Mr. Moore in 1869 by the Rev. D. C. 
Smith, and had five charter members. 

In February, 1864, when a young man of 
twenty-one years, Mr. Moore enlisted for serv- 
ice in the Civil war, joining Company B of the 





X 



1 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



341 



Tliirty-sixth Iowa Volunteer Infantry at Ot- 
tunnva. He was taken prisoner at the battle of 
J\larks Mills. Arkansas, and was incarcerated 
for ten months, the date of his capture being 
April 25, 1864. He was afterward exchanged 
and rejoined his regiment and was mustered 
out at Davenport, Iowa, in September, 1865. 
He participated in a number of important en- 
gagements and is now a member of Phil 
Kearney post, G. A. R., at Oskaloosa. 

It was not long after his return from the war 
that ^Ir. Moore was married in 1866 to Miss 
Mary E. Cole, who was born in Ohio in 1842 
and is a daughter of Samuel and Sarah (Ross) 
Cole, the father a farmer by occupation and a 
local minister of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. Her mother, Sarah Ross Cole, was 
born in Harrison county, Ohio. Pier parents 
came to Iowa in 1848, settling in Harrison 
township. Both are now deceased. Her par- 
ents, though well-to-do, were noted more for 
their intelligence and piety than for wealth. 
Before her marriage, Mrs. Moore was a teacher 
in \\'apello county. Since then her home has 
been her realm. Her delight is in the church, 
the missionary society, Sabbath school and her 
household duties as well. Mr. Moore, while 
away at his work so much, is satisfied that all 
is well at home, for "his heart doth safely trust 
in her." Unto Mr. and Mrs. Moore have been 
born fi\e children : Hila V., who became the 
wife of George E. Steele, a farmer, and died 
leaving two children, .Viva and Elsie; Charles 
C, who (lied at the age of three years; John, 
who died in infancy; Harriet Belle, the wife of 
Oliver Votaw, a farmer of Cedar township, by 
whom she has one child, Vesta; and Prank P., 
who lives with his father but is now in South 
Dakota. The parents are consistent and faith- 
ful members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
in which Mr. Moore has been a trustee and 
steward for thirty-five years. His political 
views are in accord with republican principles 
and he has sensed as tow-nship clerk and trustee, 



while at the present writing, in 1906, he is serv- 
ing for the second year as supervisor. He has 
also been a member of the township board of 
elections for twenty years. In 1873, i-"ider 
President Grant's administration, he was ap- 
pointed postmaster of Cedar and held the office 
for one term. During President Arthur's ad- 
ministrati(jn he was re-appointed and served 
for another term. Mr. Moore is pre-eminently 
a busy man, watchful of opportunities and in 
his utilization of the advantages which have 
come to him he lias persistently and ener- 
getically worked his way upward, his business 
career being at all times as commendable as it 
is successful. 



■ SHADRACH NORRIS. 

Shadrach Norris, of Oskaloosa, was born 
in Holmes county, Ohio, July 7, 1832, a son 
of Levi and Margaret (Hockenberry) Norris, 
natives of New York and Ohio respectively. 
When a young man the father went to Ohio, 
where he followed farming. He was a member 
of the German Reformed church. 

.Shadrach Norris was educated in a log 
schoolhouse and reared on the home farm. In 
1854 he began farming with a brother-in-law, 
operating one hundred and sixty acres for two 
years. In the spring of 1856 he located five 
miles west of Oskaloosa in what was then Os- 
kaloosa township, but is now Garfield township, 
Mahaska county. He had traveled westward 
with Abraham Griff ee, with whom he made his 
home for three years. After Mr. Griffee re- 
nio\ed to Oskaloosa he remained on the fann 
for two years. He then rented his father-in- 
law's farm for one year, after w'hich he went 
to Denver, Colorado, -making the trip 
with a train of three ox-teams. Af- 
ter traveling si.x weeks, carrving a load 
of si.x thousand pounds of flour, corn 



342 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and supplies on each of the three wagons, they 
reached their destination but found the Indians 
Avere so numerous that it was necessar}* to 
watch closely for fear of attack. In Colorado 
they sold their supplies and Mr. Norris then 
returned to his family, consisting of his wife 
and two children, Alfred and Frank. The 
others of the party were his father-in-law. Peter 
Blanz, and wife, and brother-in-law, Peter 
Blanz, Jr. The party reached Mahaska county 
in the fall of 1864 and Mr. Norris bought one 
hundred acres in Scott township in connection 
with his father-in-law. operating the farm for 
seven years. Eight years later he traded his 
farm for two hundred and eight acres of land in 
Black Oak township, which he owned twenty- 
one years, transforming it from a wild condi- 
tion into one of rich fertility. He also built a 
large house and barn there, but in 1893 sold the 
property and in January, of that year, bought 
the Lewis Hillary farm of one hundred and 
seventy-two acres, in Spring Creek township. 
In March of the same year he bought a farm 
on the Iowa City road, in Spring Creek town- 
ship, of one hundred and eleven acres and op- 
erated the two properties with the assistance of 
his four sons. .-Mfred D.. John F.. Lewis F. 
and Peter L.. but eventually sold tlie one hun- 
dred and eleven acres to Peter L. Xorris. In 
June. 1 90 1, he took up his abode in Oskaloosa 
and has since lived retired. However, he 
bought twenty acres of land in Spring Creek 
township, and in the spring of 1906 built a 
residence in which he makes his home. He has 
been a large stock-raiser, making a specialty of 
horses, cattle and hogs. For several years he 
served as trustee of Black Oak township, and 
is a member of the school board, and he belongs 
to the German Reformed church. 

In June, i860, Mr. Xorris was married to 
Barbara Blanz. a daughter of Peter and Cath- 
erine (Shier) Blanz, natives of Germany, who 
came to America when their daughter was only 
eleven years of age, remo\-ing from Ohio to 



Iowa a few years later. Mr. and ^Irs. Norris 
have five children: Alfred D., John F., Lewis 
F. and Peter L., all fanners of Spring Creek 
township: and Barbara Ella, the wife of WW- 
liam S. Cruzen, of Madison township. 



MANOAH HEDGE. 



Interested in community affairs to the extent 
of acti\e, hearty and helpful co-operation in 
many mo\-einents for the general good, ]\Ia- 
noah Hedge is numbered among the valued citi- 
zens of Oskaloosa. The Hedge family is of 
English lineage and was established in Virginia 
at an early day. Aaron Hedge, the grandfather 
of our subject, became a pioneer schoool teacher 
of Ohio, and spent much of his active life in 
Guernsey count}-, that state. He was not only 
connected with the progress of the community, 
but did what he could for its moral develop- 
ment as an active and consistent member of the 
church. He died when about seventy years of 
age. 

His son, George ]\I. Hedge, was born in 
Guernsey county, Ohio, and was there married 
to IMiss Belinda Atkinson, also a representative 
of an old Virginian family. Her father. Rob- 
ert Atkinson, was a farmer and spent most of 
his life in Ohio, being a pioneer settler in 
Guernsey county. Mr. and Mrs. George M. 
Hedge resided for twenty-six years in Co- 
shocton county. Ohio, and in 1865 re- 
mo\ed with their family to Eddyville. 
Iowa, where he engaged in the nursery 
business until 1872. He then removed to 
Oskaloosa. where he lived retired, having be- 
come somewhat of an invalid from a stroke of 
paralysis. He, however, owned a small fruit 
farm soudi of the city and confined his atten- 
tion entirely to its supervision. He was a man 
of quiet and unpretentious habits: never wav- 
ered on public questions: and never intruded his 
opinions upon those who did not seek to know 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



343 



them. Majorities meant notliin.c^ to liim in de- 
ciiling wliat ground lie sliould take. It is a 
piea.-ant memory to his taniii\- tiiat his char- 
acter and ju(Jgincnt were sucli as to cause 
Iiim to be cliosen sexeral times as a peacemaker 
in an adjoining neighborhood where there were 
grevious differences to be settled. Both he and 
iiis wife were lifelong members of the Chris- 
tian church. His death occurred in 1888, when 
lie was seventy-two years of age, and his wife 
passed away in 189.^, at the age of seventy- 
eight years. She was gifted as a sweet singer, 
and was dearly loved by her family and friends 
for her beautiful life. Unto Mr. and Mrs. 
Hedge were born cle\en children, three of 
whom died in infancy. Five are yet living: 
Sarah, the wife of O. A. Mulvane, of New- 
man, Illinois : Manoah, the fifth in order of 
birth; Isabelle. the wife of Richard Charles, of 
Prairie City. Iowa; Oliver P., of Spring Creek 
township; and Violet, the wife of E. H. Cal- 
kins, of St. Louis, Missouri. Anderson, Aa- 
ron and Porter all served in the Civil war, and 
now slee]5 in soldiers' graves. 

Manoah Hedge was born in Ci.ishocton 
ccninty. Ohio. June 22. 1S46. While in Eddv- 
ville, Iowa, he attended the high school and 
later became a student n Oskaloosa College. He 
was reared to farm life and began teaching in 
the winter of 1866 in Wapello county, Iowa, 
having charge of a district school with an en- 
rollment of seventy-six pupils. He continued 
teaching in the countr\' schools for some years 
and in the meantime devoted much of his leis- 
ure hours to study. He became principal of 
the schools at Beacon. Mahaska county, in 1878, 
and was afterward principal of the schools at 
Prairie City, Iowa, for twd years, and for the 
fourth ward schools of OskalcKisa for two years. 
In 1886 he was elected county superintendent 
of schools in Mahaska county, lilling the posi- 
tion for four years, or two terms. On retir- 
ing from the office of connt\- superintendent 
in 1890, he became a partner in a book store 



in Oskaloosa under the firm name of Johnson 
& Hedge, which afterward became Hedge 
Brothers. He was associated in the conduct of 
this enterprise until 190J, when he sold out 
and turned his attention to the wall paper busi- 
ness, in which he has since continued. 

Not alone in business line has Mr. Hedge 
contributed to general prosperity and progress 
but has assisted in the development of the 
county along many lines beneficial to the people 
at large. He has for a number of years been 
])resident of the Mahaska County Sunday- 
School Association and was a member of the 
lioard of the State Sunday-School Association 
for several years. He has licen active in tem- 
perance wiirk and in temperance reform 
generally. During all these years he has 
been a student, continually liroadening his 
knowledge by reading, investigatiim and 
thought. Since 1865 he has been a mem- 
ber of the Christian church and for more than 
twenty years has been one of its elders. He 
was one of the original members of the board of 
the Young Men's Christian .\ssociation in Os- 
kaloosa. and acted in that capacit)' until the ele- 
gant building for young men was completed. 
He has written more or less for local papers 
and educational journals and during the four 
years which he served as county superintendent 
edited an educational column in the Oskaloosa 
Weekly Herald. 

On the 2 1 St of February, 1877, Air. Hedge 
was united in marriage to Miss Laura Skaggs, 
of Chillicothe, Missouri, who died in Septem- 
ber. 1892. at the age of forty-two years. Their 
children were: Violet, at home; Edna, who died 
in infancy; and Laura, the wife of Harry E. 
CanuDn. of Fremont, Iowa. On the 19th of 
December, 1900, Mr. Hedge was married to 
Anna Brolliar. a daughter of Lafayette Brol- 
liar, (if Richland, Iowa. They have one child. 
Hazel, now four years of age. 

Mr. Hedge has alwa}'s had a most profound 
admiration for the pioneers of the west and the 



344 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



work which tliey did in reclaiming the wild 
region and developing it into a rich common- 
wealth snpplied with all modern equipments 
and improvements. This interest led to his com- 
pilation of material which has gradually grown 
until he felt the importance of compiling an ac- 
curate work, setting forth the events beginning 
with the pioneer days of Mahaska county and 
covering a period of more than half a century 
down to the present year of progress. This ma- 
terial is to be found in systematized form 
within the covers of this volume and will re- 
main as a permanent record not only for the 
present but for the future generations, its value 
increasing as the years go by. 



CARRY A. EASTBURN. 

Carry A. Eastburn, living on section ii, Ce- 
dar township, who follows the occupation of 
farming, owns a valuable propertj' of two hun- 
dred and fifteen acres. He is one of the native 
sons of the county, having been born February 
6, 1856, upon the farm where he yet makes his 
home. He is a son of Captain Sanford East- 
burn, a native of Indiana and a grandson of 
Benjamin Eastburn, a native of Ohio. San- 
ford Eastburn was reared in the state of his 
nativity and in 1851 came west to Iowa. He 
was married here to Nancy Ferguson, a native 
of Indiana and a daughter of John Ferguson, 
who was also born in that state and became one 
of the early settlers of Mahaska county. After 
his marriage Mr. Eastburn began farming on 
his own account and improved and fenced a 
place, built a good house and carried on the 
work of cultivating his land for some time. It 
was subsequent to his marriage that he enlisted 
for service in the Civil war, becoming a mem- 
ber of Company K, Thirty-third Iowa Volun- 
teer Infantry, with which he served for three 
years. At the end of that time he was pro- 



moted to the captaincy of another company, 
with which he continued throughout the re- 
mainder of the war and was then honorably 
discharged. He was a true and loyal soldier 
and made a creditable military record, winning- 
promotion in recognition of gallant and merito- 
rious service. He died in 1891, at the age of 
fifty-eight years, while his wife passed away in 
October, 1903, at the age of sixty-six years. 
They were the parents of si.x children, of whom 
fi\'e are now living. 

Carry A. Eastburn, the eldest, was reared 
upon the home farm and assisted in carrying 
on the work of the fields. His educational priv- 
ileges were those afforded by the common 
schools, wherein he pursued his studies during 
the fall and winter months while with the com- 
ing spring he took his place in the fields to aid 
in the work of plowing, planting and harvest- 
ing. He also spent two years in the Baptist 
College at Pella, Iowa. At the age of twenty- 
one he took up his abode upon a farm in Ma- 
haska county and aided in its development and 
improvement for some time but eventually sold 
that property. He afterward purchased one 
hundred and thirty-two acres of the old home- 
stead farm, which had been entered by his 
grandfather and upon this place has lived con- 
tinuously since 1891. He afterward added to 
it a tract of thirty-five acres and subsequently 
made an additional purchase of seventy acres, 
so that the farm now comprises altogether two 
hundred and fifteen acres of land, which is rich 
and productive. He has built a good barn and 
other outbuildings and has a well kept and 
valuable property, which is conveniently and 
pleasantly located about a mile from Fremont, 
so that the advantages of town life are easily 
accessible. 

Mr. Eastburn was married November 18, 
1882, to Miss Florence White, a native of this 
county and a daughter of John O. White, a 
native of Indiana, who came to Iowa in 1848 
and settled upon a farm near the Sanford East- 




MRS.C.A.EASTF"^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



349 



Inirn property. Mr. and Mrs. White are still 
livini;^ and now reside in l'"remont. Unto Air. 
and Mrs. Eastburn were born five children, 
one of whom died in infancy. The eldest liv- 
ing is Nancy Opal, the wife of Roy Garrett, of 
Cedar township, by whom she has one child ; 
h'red Raymond, who attends school and assists 
in carrying on the home farm ; Belle Marie and 
-Mary Manilla, both of whom are in school. 
The parents attend the Christian church, of 
which ]\Irs. Eastburn is a member. 

Mr. Eastburn belongs to the Masonic frater- 
nity, has held various offices in the lodge, his 
membership being now with the lodge at Fre- 
mont, of which he is worthy exemplar, being in 
hearty sympathy with the teachings and tenets 
of the craft. He is also a member of the Inde- 
])endent Order of Odd Fellows, has served 
through its chairs and is past grand.- He like- 
wise belongs to the Knights of Pythias frater- 
nity of Fremont and he and his wife are con- 
nected with the Eastern Star and the Rebekahs. 
Politically Mr. Eastburn is a stalwart repub- 
lican, unfaltering in his advocacy of the princi- 
ples of the party, for he believes that it em- 
bodies the best ideas of good govenuuent. He 
has never sought or desired office, however, 
])referring to concentrate his energies upon his 
business affairs and both as a farmer and stock- 
raiser is meeting with a creditable and desirable 
measure of success. Tlie fact that many of his 
stanchest friends are numbered among those 
who have known him frrmi his boyhood days 
to the present is an indication that his life has 
been an honorable and straigfhtforward one. 



BRUCE JARVIS. 

Bruce Jar\is, a veteran of the Civil war and 
a i)rominent pioneer settler of Alahaska county, 
(levi)tes his time and energies to general agri- 
cultural pursuits, living on section 14, White 
Oak township, where he has two hundred and 
17 



thirty-five acres of land. He has lived in tliis 
county since 1854 and the years have wrought 
a mar\-elous change here as the wild prairie has 
been transformed into rich and productive fields 
w ith here and there good farm houses, while in 
the villages e\ery mark of modem improve- 
ment along industrial and commercial lines 
is also found. He was born in Parke county, 
Indiana, June 25, 1843, ^ son of John Jarvis, 
a native of Maryland. The father removed 
from his native state to Kentucky and subse- 
t|uently to Indiana. He was married in Ken- 
tucky to Miss Elizabeth Cord, a native of that 
state, as was her father. Following his mar- 
riage he went to Indiana, where he lived for 
several years and then came west with his fam- 
ily in 1854. He entered land and bought 
claims in White Oak township, owning there 
about three hundred acres. His attention was 
closely gi\-en to agricultural pursuits up to the 
time of his death, which occurred in 1865, 
while his wife passed away in 1862. In the 
family were thirteen children. 

Bruce Jar\is came to Iowa with his parents, 
was reared upon the home farm and acquired 
a common-school education. When a young 
man he worked out by the month as a farm hand 
and when eighteen years of age, his spirit of 
patriotism being aroused, he enlisted at Oska- 
loosa as a defender of the Union, becoming a 
member of Company C, Seventh low^a Infan- 
try of Volunteers, under Major McMullen. The 
regiment rendezvoused at Burlington and was 
encamped there for some time. The troops 
afterward proceeded southw-ard to St. Louis, 
going to Benton Barracks, where they w-ere sta- 
tioned for some time, and later continued on 
their way to Iron Mountain, Missouri. They 
were at Cape Girardeau, and from that place 
went to Bird's Point, opposite Cairo, Illinois. 
The first battle was fought at Belmont, where 
a large percentage of the company to w-hich Mr. 
Jar\is belonged were cither killed or wounded, 
so that the regiment had to return to St. Louis 



550 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



to recruit. Later they returned to Kentucky and 
participated in the battles of Fort Henry and 
Fort Donelson and in the engagements at Cor- 
inth and Shiloh. They afterward proceeded to 
Pulaski, Tennessee, under General Dodge, and 
were with Sherman on the celebrated march to 
the sea. Mr. Jarvis was relieved from duty at 
Atlanta. Georgia, returned to Chattanooga and 
was mustered out August 17, 1864. He was 
in the battle of Atlanta when General McPher- 
son was killed on the 22d of July. He was 
wounded on one occasion and was twice in the 
hospital with pneumonia. He participated in a 
number of important engagements, and his val- 
orous service made his military record a most 
creditable one. 

After returning home in 1865 Mr. Jaiwis 
began farming, renting land for two years, and 
in 1867 he purchased where he now resides. It 
was all covered with brush and he had to clear 
this away before he could plow the land and 
improA'e the place. All of the work here has 
been done by him. He first purchased one hun- 
dred and sixty acres, and he has since built a 
good two-story house and two good barns and 
outbuildings. He now has a A^aluable farm 
equipped with all modern accessories and con- 
veniences. He bought land from time to time, 
becoming the owner of two hundred and thirty- 
five acres, constituting one of the valuable farm 
properties of the locality. 

On the 7th of December, 1868, was cele- 
brated the marriage of Mr. Jarvis and Miss 
Dell Jackson, a native of Iowa, and a daughter 
of Colvin Jackson, of Rose Hill. They have 
become the parents of five children, of whom 
one died in infancy, while four are still living, 
Fred was graduated from Iowa State University 
with the degree of Doctor of Medicine, and is 
now successfuly engaged in practice in Delta, 
Iowa, where he is very widely and favorably 
known. He married Irene Parsons, a native of 
Iowa City. Jannie is the wife of Elmer James, 
of Rose Hill. He is a rural mail deliverer, 



while his wife is engaged in teaching school at 
Rose Hill, a profession which she has followed 
for eight years at that place and in the county 
for twelve years. Blanch is the wife of Fletcher 
Bump, a farmer of White Oak township, and 
they have one child, Mer\'in, seven j'ears of age, 
who is attending the Rose Hill school. Dwight, 
the youngest, is a student in a medical college 
at Iowa City, from which he will graduate in 
June, 1906, at the age of twenty-four years. 
In order to provide for his family, Mr. 
Jarvis has always followed the occupation of 
farming, and he raises stock, feeding all his 
grain. His business interests have been well 
managed and he is recognized as a practical 
and progressive man, whose labors are a re- 
sultant factor in winning success. The family 
attend the Christian church, of which Airs. 
Jarvis and the children are members. Mr. 
Jarvis belongs to the Grand Army post at Rose 
Hill, and in politics he is a stalwart republican, 
never missing a presidential election since cast- 
ing his first ballot for Abraham Lincoln. He 
has served as township trustee and as school 
trustee, and the cause of education finds in him 
a warm and stalwart friend. In matters of 
citizenship he is as true and loyal as when he 
followed the old flag upon- southern battle-fields. 



P. L. NORRIS. 



P. L. Norris, living on section 15, Spring 
Creek township, is an active and energetic man, 
now giving his attention to general farming 
and stock-raising. He owns and operates a 
farm of one hundred and eleven acres, and the 
place is neat and thrifty in appearance, indicat- 
ing his careful super\'ision. He was born in 
Scott township, this county, April 26, 1867, 
and is a son of Shadrach Norris, whose history 
appears elsewhere in this work. LTpon the old 
home farm he was reared and was educated in 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



351 



tlie Black Oak and Scott Center schools. He re- 
mained with his father until he had attained 
his majority and was married in Spring Creek 
townsliip on tlie 22d of November, 1899, to 
I\Iiss Melissa B. Wasson, a daughter of S. B. 
W'asson, who is living on section 15, Spring 
Creek township. He was born and reared in 
county Antrim, Ireland, and when a young man 
came to the new world in 1853. He settled first 
in \\'ashington county, Pennsylvania, where 
he worked on a farm for five or six years. In 
that state, in 1856, he married Grace McBur- 
ney. He afterward removed to what is now 
known as Brue. West Virginia, where he fol- 
lowed farming for two years, living there at the 
time of the Civil war. In 1865 he came to 
Iinva, being in Oskaloosa on the 9th of April, 
1865, when Richmond surrendered. He later 
iiought a farm and located in Spring Creek 
township and subsequently took up his abode 
where he now resides. He has built a good 
house here, has fenced his land and has car- 
ried on the work of improving his farm. Unto 
Mr. and Mrs. W'asson were liorn the fol- 
lowing: Mary, formerly a teacher; James, of 
Montana: Emma, now Mrs. A. D. Norris: 
Samuel B., of Colorado; John, of the state of 
Washington; William B.. carrying on the 
home farm; Melis.sa. the wife of P. L. Xorris; 
and Elizabeth, who died in 1886. 

After his marriage, P. L. Norris located 
where he now resides and after renting the land 
for two years he purchased it. He has since 
further improved the property, Iniilding here 
a neat residence and has fair outbuildings. The 
fields are well fenced and he is farming along 
modem progressive lines, annually harvesting 
good crops, while at the same time he raises 
full blooded Percheron horses and shorthorn 
cattle, and makes a specialty of feeding and fat- 
tening hogs. 

Politically Mr. Norris is an earnes,t demo- 
crat where national issues are involved, but at 
local elections votes independently. He has 



always been a resident of Mahaska county and 
has therefore witnessed much of its growth and 
development. He is well known in Oskaloosa 
and other parts of the county and his genuine 
personal worth as well as his business integrity 
makes him a man whom to know is to esteem 
and honor. 



FRED R. BECK. 



Fred R. Beck, one of the young and active 
business men of Fremont, where for three 
}'ears he has been engaged in the lumber and 
grain trade, was born near this town, in Wa- 
pello county, at Island Center, ]\Iay 28. 1880. 
His father. George W. Beck, Avas a native of 
Ohio, and a son of David Beck, who removed 
from Ohio to Iowa in 1849, becoming one of 
the first settlers of Wapello county. There 
George W. Beck was reared to manhood and 
was married in this part of the state. He set- 
tled on a farm in Mahaska county, where he 
carried on general farming for several years 
liut later sold the property and took up his 
abode in Wapello county, where he owned and 
operated a farm for some time. Afterward he 
settled in Fremont, where he turned his atten- 
tion to the grain trade. He was an active busi- 
ness man for many years and carefully and 
successfully conducted his varied interests, but 
is now living retired. In his family were four 
children : Jesse, who is engaged in the news- 
paper business at Centeiwille ; Burton, agent for 
the Oregon & Northern Railroad Company, at 
Tacoma, Washington; Fred R.. of this review; 
and Arthur, at home. 

Fred R. Beck was reared in Fremont and 
pursued his education in the public schools, fol- 
lowed by a three years' perparatory course in 
Penn College, at Oakaloosa, and a course in 
W'esleyan University, at Mt. Pleasant, where 
he entered the scientific department. He was 
graduated from that institution in the class of 



35^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



1903. After completing his course in college, 
he returned home and took charge of the lum- 
ber business of the Rand Lumber Company 
and also the grain trade with his father. He is 
an active, enterprising and successful young 
business man, who has thoroughly acquainted 
himself with the lines of commercial activity 
with which he is now connected. He handles 
a considerable volume of business annually and 
is wide awake, alert and enterprising. 

Mr. Beck is a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, belonging to Fremont lodge, in which 
he is now sending as junior warden, and he is 
also connected with the Eastern Star. He be- 
longs to the Phi Delta Theta. a college frater- 
nity, and also to the Knights of Pythias lodge, 
of Fremont, and the Modern Woodmen. His 
religious faith is indicated by his membership 
in the Methodist Episcopal church. He is a 
young man of e.xamplary habits and good busi- 
ness ability, diligent and progressive, and is a 
public-spirited citizen. 



GEORGE W. AKERMAN. 

George W. Akerman resides in Fremont, 
where for sixteen years he has been engaged in 
the real-estate business. No history of this 
part of the county would be complete without 
mention of the Akerman family, for through 
more than a half century representatives of the 
name have been closely associated with busi- 
ness activity and development here. They have 
always stood for good citizenship, for public 
progress and business activity, and in an analy- 
zation of the life record of George W. Akerman 
it will be found that he is a worthy scion of his 
race. He was born in Fremont, August 19, 
1862. 

His father, Philip Akerman, was a native of 
Bavaria, Germany, being born there January 



20, 1829, and emigrated to this country with 
his parents in 1833, settling near Hamilton, 
Ohio, where young Philip grew to manhood. 
On November 8, 1850, he was married to Miss 
Johanna Frederica Goehring, who was also a 
native of Bavaria, Germany, and in the year 
following came to Mahaska county, Iowa, and 
settled at Fremont. Mr. Akerman at once iden- 
tified himself with mercantile and agricultural 
interests in the county, eventually becoming one 
of its most extensive landowners. Although 
he came to America a poor boy he accumulated 
and owned several hundred acres of land and 
was an extensive dealer, feeder and shipper of 
stock, in which enterprise he was for a num- 
ber of years associated with J. H. Eastburn and 
John O. White as partners. The former is now 
a prominent and well known stock commission 
merchant of Chicago, and the latter is now re- 
tired from acti\-e business and resides in Fre- 
mont. These gentlemen were among the heav- 
iest feeders and shippers of stock in this part 
of the state and in an early day handled im- 
mense numbers of western and southern cat- 
tle, which they fed and fattened in IMahaska 
county. The most cordial and friendly rela- 
tions existed between the partners in addition 
to their business dealings. Each enjoyed the 
most implicit confidence and esteem of the 
other and thev were associated in business for 
a number of years with mutual pleasure and 
profit. 

Miss Johanna Frederica Goehring was born 
in Bavaria, Germany, December 9, 1825, and 
came to this country in 1848. She settled near 
Hamilton, Ohio, and was married, as stated 
abo\'e, to Philip Akerman, in 1850. To them 
were born six children, five of whom are now 
living. Harmon Akerman was born April 4, 
1854, married Ollie McClain and five children 
were born to them — Earl H., John L. and Fred 
C. being the sur\'iving ones, two having died in 
infancy. Emma C. Akerman was born Decem- 
ber 20, 1858, and married L. A. Springer. Two 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



355 



cliildrcii were licni to thciii. Walter A., and 
Alim I-'., tlic latter dying- Deceniher 23. 1894, 
aeed six vears. one month and eleven davs. 
George W. Akerman was born August 19, 
1862. (See sketch elsewhere.) .\lbert M. .\ker- 
man was horn September 19, 1864, and mar- 
ried Clara Dinsmore, a daughter of Dr. D. C. 
Dinsniore, of Kirk\ille. b>\\a. Two children 
were born to them — Philip C. and Harry D. 
He tlied September 27, 1895, aged thirty-one 
years and eight days, and was interred in Albia 
cemetery. At the time nf bis death he was the 
manager of the Hiteman Supply Comjiany 
store, at Hiteman, Iowa. Maggie AI. Aker- 
man was born .August 13, 1866. and married 
C. X. Neil. Lettie r>. Akcrman was born 
March 6. 1868, and married S. E. Heinzman. 
To tliem were born two children — Philip Ward 
and Jack E. .Mrs. Phili]) .\kerman. the 
mother, died at her home in Fremont on Feb- 
ruary 14, 1892. aged sixty-six years, two 
months and five days. Philip .Akerman. the fa- 
ther, died on b'eliruary 2j. 1895, aged sixty-six 
years, one month and seven days. 

George W. .\kerman was reared upcju the 
home farm and he and his brothers became his 
fatlier's assistants in carrying on the work of 
the home place and in managing his stock busi- 
ness. .\fter arriving at mature years he en- 
gaged in the livery and horse business in Fre- 
mont antl also operated in real estate on a small 
scale. Subsequently, however, he sold his liv- 
ery barn and turned his attention to the hard- 
ware and implement business, at the same time 
continuing as a real-estate dealer. After two 
years he sold his store and has since given his 
time and attention to his real-estate operations, 
being associated in this work for several years 
witli J. M. Pugh. In 1904 he opened a real- 
estate office in New Sharon and placed it in 
charge of C. C. Caves and C. V . Dinsmore, and 
at the same time entered into partnership rela- 
tions with C. L, Dean & Brother, in the con- 
duct of a real-estate office in Hedrick. He is 



operating" in Fremont and he now* handles a 
large annual business in lands in Mahaska, Wa- 
l)ello and adjoining counties and various states. 
In 1905 be negotiated realty transfers to the 
value of over six hundred thousand dollars, 
this including the sale of both town and coun- 
try property. Air. .Akerman owns large landed 
interests adjoining I'^rcniont and is also owner 
of several well improved farms in Mahaska 
county, and has assisted to develop and make 
b'remont what it is today. In 1903 he built a 
good two-story business lilock, in which his 
office is located. He has also erected one of the 
finest residences of the town. In addition to 
his real-estate operations he is a stockholder 
in the .Slate Bank of Fremont, one of the solid 
financial institutions of Mahaska county. 

Mr. Akerman was married in Fremont, No 
vemljcr 24, 1892, to Miss Rita J. Sigafoos. and 
to them were born three children : Izah Louise 
was born December 21, 1895, and died Decem- 
ber 23, 1895; David Lincoln was born May 
26, 1897: and I'airy May, August 24, 1899. 

Rita J. .Sigafoos was born in Brooklyn, 
Iowa, March 4, 1867. Her father, Dr. Rus- 
sell Bigelow Sigafoos, was bom in Holmes 
county, Ohio, .\pril 16, 1830, where he was 
reared and educated. There he studied medi- 
cine and engaged in the practice of his profes- 
sion for a time but emigrated to Iowa in an 
early day. settling at Brooklyn, where he con- 
tinued in the practice of medicine. He was 
married on September 10, 1862, at Brooklyn, 
to Miss Cynthia Louisa Drake, who was bi^rn 
in Holmes county, Ohio, May 9, 1836. and died 
February 9, 1874. To them were born two 
daughters — Rita J., as mentioned above, ami 
Fairv Ma\fiel(l, who first saw the light of day 
on March 4, 1865. The family came to Ma- 
haska county in .April, 1877, and settled in Fre- 
mont, where the Doctor continued the practice 
of medicine until his death, which occurred on 
Januaiy 2-,. 1897. He was one of the pioneer 
physicians of the state and was recognized as 



355 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



I! 



an able representative of the medical fraternity. 
He ser\'ed one year in the war of the rebellion 
in Company H, Twenty-eighth Iowa Infantry, 
and was lieutenant of his company. Fairj' May- 
field Sigafoos was married to T. N. Doolittle 
on September 5, 1890, and they have one child, 
Alfred Bigelow Doolittle. 

Mrs. Akerman was reared and educated in 
Mahaska county and became one of its teachers, 
following that profession for several years prior 
to her marriage. 

Mr. Akerman is a lifelong democrat but has 
never sought nor desired office. He did serve, 
however, as a member of the town council and 
served one term as township trustee, and has 
frequently been a delegate to numerous county 
conventions. He belongs to the Knights of 
Pythias and Woodmen of the World lodges in 
Fremont, and has a very extensive circle of 
friends. He has been a resident of the county 
throughout his entire life and has therefore 
witnessed much of its growth and development 
as it has emerged from frontier conditions to 
take on the improvements and evidences of an 
advanced civilization. He is pre-eminently pub- 
lic spirited and his co-operation can be counted 
upon to further the public welfare. He is well 
known throughout the state as a man of strict 
business integrity, thoroughly reliable and 
trustworthy and his life record proves that suc- 
cess and an honored name may be won simul- 
taneouslv. 



DANIEL K. UNSICKER. 

Daniel K. Unsicker. who is one of the promi- 
nent business men and representative farmers of 
Mahaska county, has been successfully engaged 
in the grain and lumber trade at Wright since 
1898. He is one of the more recent arrivals in 
Mahaska county, having become a resident here 
in 1896 but during this period has demonstrated 



his right to rank with its representative citizens 
and merchants. He was born in Tazewell 
county, Illinois, March 9, 1857, '^"'^^ ^^ the 
name indicates, is of Gennan lineage. His fa- 
ther, John Unsicker, was a native of Germany 
and became one of the pioneers of Tazewell 
county, where he located in 1849. He opened 
up a large farm there and became a prosper- 
bus agriculturist and stock-breeder, dealing in 
pure-blooded shorthorn cattle, Poland China 
hogs and Norman horses. He raised his fam- 
ily upon the old farm and there he spent the 
greater portion of a useful and well directed 
life, passing away in October, 1887. 

Daniel K. Unsicker remained upon the home 
farm with his father until he reached his ma- 
jority and during the period of his youth re- 
ceived good educational advantages at the vil- 
lage school and in the Evergreen City Business 
College, at Bloomington, Illinois, where he 
completed a course of study that well qualified 
him for the practical and responsible duties of 
a business career. He was graduated from that 
institution in the class of 1880, and afterward 
became a partner of his father as a breeder and 
dealer in pure-blooded shorthorn cattle, Poland 
China hogs and Norman horses. They suc- 
ceeded in building up a large and profitable 
business, the extent of their operations making 
tiiem well known as stock-dea:lers in Illinois. 

D. K. Unsicker was married in the spring of 
1886 to Miss Lizzie Zimmennan, a native of 
Ohio, who was reared and educated in that state 
and a daughter of Squire Zimmerman, who was 
a prominent Ohio farmer. Mrs. Unsicker has 
indeed been a faithful companion and helpmate 
to her husband on life's journey, sharing with 
him in the joys and sorrows, the adversity and 
prosperity which checker the careers of all. 
They have become the parents of three children, 
Vesta B., Carl C. and Helen M., all under the 
parental roof. 

Following his marriage Mr. Unsicker rented 
a tract of land which he farmed for two years 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



357 



anil then 1>ought a farm in Livingston county, 
Illini)is. where he located, there carrying on 
general agricultural pursuits in connection with 
the hreeiling and sale of stock. He lived upon 
that place for eight years, at the end of which 
time he sold the property for almost double 
what he had originally jiaid for it. Coming to 
Iowa he made a prospecting tour over the state, 
spending about two months in selecting a loca- 
tion. He bought a farm of four hundred and 
ninety acres near Wright, in Spring Creek 
township, Mahaska county. Here he located 
and liegan the further improvement of the 
property. He is a progressive agriculturist, 
successful in his farming operations and in his 
stock business. From time to time he has added 
to his property until his farm now embraces 
nearly one thousand acres. He erected an at- 
tractive residence, good barns and outbuildings, 
has fenced his place and has added to the pro- 
ductiveness of the soil by tiling, having thirty- 
six miles of tiling upon this farm. It is one of 
the best drained farms in the state, and in sev- 
eral ways Mr. Unsicker has been equally re- 
sourceful and enterprising in improving and 
developing his property. In 1896, prior to re- 
mo\-ing to Iowa, he entered into partnership 
with E. Kennell under the firm name of D. K. 
Unsicker & Company, grain merchants. He 
then established elevators and began business 
in connection with the grain trade at Fremont, 
Butler and Wright. He bought and shipped 
large C[uantities of grain and carried on a pros- 
per! lus business. In igoi he sold his interests 
in the Fremont and Butler grain business and 
1)ought out the interest of his partner in the 
Wright elevator and the business at this point. 
Here he has continued as a grain merchant and 
in 1905 he formed a partnership with Mr. 
Knudson in the lumber business, since which 
time they have carried a full line of lumber 
and building materials, and are now numbered 
among the progressive and prominent business 
n-ien of the countv. Mr. Unsicker removed from 



the farm to Wright and erected here a neat and 
substantial residence. He leases the farm for 
grain-raising, and has a good tenant upon the 
property. 

Politically Mr. Unsicker has been a lifelong 
democrat but without aspiration for ofifice. He 
has, however, served in various local positions 
of trust and honor, to which he has been called 
by his fellow townsmen, and in 1901 he was 
nominated by his party for candidate for the 
legislature. He made the race, and at the elec- 
tion carried the full party strength. He is a 
successful financier and Inisiness man, of ready 
recognition of opportunities, of keen enter- 
prise and sound discrimination, and he has so 
directed his labors and energies that prosper- 
ity has followed his efforts and he stands today 
among the most prominent and successful land- 
owners and grain and lumber merchants of 
Mahaska county. 



OLIVER SAMUEL ELLIS. 

Oliver Samuel Ellis, closely connected with 
many corporate interests of Oskaloosa has be- 
cnme one of the valued factors in business cir- 
cles here, for he belongs to that class of repre- 
sentative men whose activity, enterprise and 
adaptability enable them to produce results and 
add to the general prosperity as well as to indi- 
vidual success. He was born in Mount Pleas- 
ant, Iowa. April 14, 1865. His father, Fernan- 
das Ellis, a native of Ohio, was of Scotch and 
German ancestry and in early life studied pho- 
tography. About i860 he came to Iowa, set- 
tling in Mount Pleasant, and in 1S66 removed 
to Oskaloosa. He married Harriet J. Thomp- 
son, a native of Pennsylvania. 

He was a member of the Presbyterian church 
and was an exemplary follower of the Ma- 
sonic fraternity, while his political allegiance 
was given to the republican party. He died in 



358 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



i86: 



ihen thirty-two years of aee and later 



Mrs. Ellis became the \yife of Samuel D. 
Knowlton. now deceased, who was a farmei; 
and at one time a business man in Oskaloosa. 
In his last years he liyed retired in New Sharon, 
his death occurring there. Mrs. Knowlton, 
ho\^•e^■er, \'et resides in New Sharon, and is 
sixty-two years of age. By her first marriage 
she had two sons, the younger being Walter 
F. Ellis, who is manager of the Sioux City 
Iron Works, at Sioux City, Iowa. 

Oliyer S. Ellis is indebted to the public- 
school system of Oskaloosa for the educational 
privileges which he enjoyed in his youth. He 
was brought to this city when only about a 
year old and - attended the primaiy, grammar 
and high schools, thus becoming well cjualified 
for the practical duties of a business career. 
At the age of fourteen years he entered the 
wholesale grocery house of Wright & Spencer, 
now the H. L. Spencer Company, as office boy 
and gradually won promotion which came to 
him in recognition of his capability, untiring 
devotion to the firm and his unremitting dili- 
gence. He was made successively shipping 
clerk, house salesman and traveling salesman 
and in the early part of 1900 became general 
manager for the H. L. Spencer Company, 
wholesale grocers, which is his present con- 
nection with the house. He has iDeen identified 
continuously with this commercial enterprise 
since entering business life, and no higher testi- 
monial of capability could be given than this 
fact. He has, however, extended his efforts to 
other lines, becoming financially interested in 
various important business concerns which con- 
tribute to the commercial and industrial activity 
of Oskaloosa. He has for ten years been treas- 
urer of the Green & Bentley Drug Company, 
wholesale and retail dealers in drugs. For sev- 
eral years he was president of the Lost Creek 
Coal Company, of which he is now director 
and he is a director in the Rex Fuel Company 



of Durfee, Iowa, and has an interest in the 
National Grocery Company, of Chicago, which 
owns and controls thirteen different houses. He 
is likewise a director in the Western Grocery 
Company, owning and operating six different 
places of business, and he has various other 
commercial and mining interests. 

In 1887 Mr. Ellis was united in marriage 
to Miss Edith Parkhurst. who was born in 
Mahaska county, near New Sharon, in 1867 
and is a daughter of Henry C. and Matilda 
( Fox) Parkhurst, the father a retired farmer 
now living in Oskaloosa. Mr. Ellis is a valued 
member of various societies, belonging to the 
Masonic fraternity, in which he has attained the 
Knight Templar degree, and also to the Elks 
lodge. He votes with the repulilican party. He 
and his wife occupy a beautiful home at the 
end of Second avenue. East, called Old Orchard 
Place, and its hospitality is one of its most 
pleasing and attractive features, making it the 
center of a cultured society circle. Honored 
and respected by all, there is no man who oc- 
cupies a more enviable position in business cir- 
cles than does Oliver Samuel Ellis, who has 
spent almost his entire life in this city and 
whose pmminence is not alone the result of his 
success but also has come by reason of the 
straightforward business methods that he has 
ever followed. He has l^een watchful of op- 
portunities and in matters of business judgment 
is rarely at fault, so that he has made judicious 
investments that have returned a gratifying 
income. 



SAMUEL HESS. 



Samuel Hess, owning and operating a farm 
of three hundred acres on section 17, Richland 
township, was born in West Virginia, August 
10, 1833. His parents, Jacob and Elizabeth 
(Dawson) Hess, were natives of the Old Do- 




.Mk. AXI) MRS. SA.\lfl-:L HESS. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



361 



miniiin. and when tlieir son was only six weeks 
old they removed to Urinipai.s^n county, Ohio, 
wliere the father purchased a farm and made 
his liome until his death, which occurred in 
]8_^8. when he was fifty years of age. His wife 
Innj;- >ur\i\ed him. passing- away at the age of 
eighty-ti\c years. In their family were seven 
children, of whom Samuel is the youngest. The 
record is as follows: George, who married and 
tlied in Ohio; John X.. who died in Ohio about 
four years ago: Jacoh, who died in Utah about 
six years ago : Susan, who became the wife of 
Thomas Middleton 'and died in Ohio; ^lar- 
garet, who married Joseph Swisher and died 
in Oliio; and Ellen, who became the wife of 
Jefferson Bertner and passed away in the Buck- 
eye state. ' 

Samuel Hess, the youngest and the only one 
now li\ing, was but fi\'e years of age when his 
father died. He made his home with bis 
mother until the age of fifteen years, when he 
went to work on a farm by the month. He bad 
but \ery limited education, anrl from an early 
age was dependent u])on his own resources and 
worked earnestly and jiersistently to gain a 
start in life. He was employed at farm labor 
until his marriage, which was celebrated Sep- 
tember 15. 1859. Miss Elizabeth Swisher be- 
coming his wife. She w'as born in Champaign 
county, Ohio, June 14, 1841. and is a daughter 
of Joseph Swisher. Samuel Hess and O. G. 
Hess, although not related, married sisters. Soon 
after their marriage Samuel Hess and his wife, 
accompanied by Joseph Swisher and his fam- 
ily, started for Mahaska county. Mr. Hess 
had three horses and some harness, a bed and 
some bedding, which comprised his entire 
worldly possessions. .-Vfter arri\'ing in Rich- 
land township. Mahaska county, they remained 
for eleven days with a Mr. Milledge. an uncle 
of Mrs. Hess, at the end of which time Mr. 
Swisher purchased land, a part of which Mr. 
Hess rented. His first purchase of land com- 
pri.sed eighty acres on section 17. Richland 
township. About twenty acres had been broken 



which, tfigetber with an old log house, con- 
stituted the entire improvement. 1 le soon after- 
ward bought eighty acres adjoining the original 
tract from his father-in-law. This was par- 
tially broken and there was a small frame house 
upon it containing three rooms and a shed 
kitchen. There was little plastering and they 
often found in the morning that all li(|uids in 
their house had been frozen over night. The 
furnishings of their house comjirised two beds,. 
a three-legged stool and one chair until they 
Could ha\c chairs made at Peoria. Iowa. There 
was an old thatched roof stable upon the place. 
It seemed that the work of improvement had 
scarcely been begun. Mr. and Mrs. Hess ex- 
I)erienced hard times if anybody did. and yet 
there was much pleasure and enjoyment in their 
work knowing that they were developing a 
good farm. Botli worked earnestly, untiringly 
and indefatigably as the years went by. and 
thev liave certainly earned and deserved the rest 
which they are now enjoying. Today Mr. 
Hess owns three bundred acres of as good land 
as can be found in the state of Iowa, and in the 
midst of his farm stands a comfortable and com- 
modious frame residence. There are also three 
large barns upon the place and good fences, 
eightv acres being enclosed within woven wire, 
hog-tight fences. He uses the latest improved 
machinery in carr)-ing on the farm work, and 
has principally raised corn and hay, all of which 
he feeds to his stock. Their early experiences 
were not unlike those that fall to the lot of all 
pioneer settlers. They were poor people and bad 
to manage as best they could, but their enter- 
prise and labor has brought to them very grati- 
fving success, and they are now numbered 
among the substantial citizens of the commu- 
nity. In tiie early days the house was lighted 
by grease lamps and heated by an open fire- 
place, yet they had a .stove with which they 
did their cooking. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Hess have been born 
seven children: John N., who died when but 



362 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



twenty-three muntlis old; George, who was 
born June 7. 1862, and has resided for a time in 
Nebraska, but is now upon the home farm; 
Alonzo, who was born in 1864 and died at the 
age of seven years; Harrison, who was born 
September 27, 1866, and is now Hving in the 
state of Washington ; Edward, who was born 
October 14, 1868, and married Janette Len- 
hart, Hving in Ma.dison county, Iowa; Cyrus, 
who was born October 10, 1870, and married 
Tena Harris, their home being on eighty acres 
of land belonging to his father; and William, 
who was born July 11, 1874, and is still at home. 
The youngest son manages the place and works 
the land for his father, devoting his attention 
to general farming and making a specialty of 
the raising of Jersey red hogs and black polled 
cattle. Mr. and Mrs. Hess are very hospitable 
people, and Mrs. Hess has proven a most esti- 
mable helpmate and companion to her husband, 
largely assisting him in his work by her care- 
ful and able management of the household 
affairs. She belongs to the Christian church. 
Mr. Hess gives his political support to the 
democracy, but has never sought nor desired of- 
fice, preferring to concentrate his energies upon 
his business affairs, which have been capably 
directed, so that now he possesses a handsome 
competence. No longer does he find it neces- 
sary to live economically and frugally as in pio- 
neer days, for his labor has brought him a good 
financial reward, and he is today the owner of 
one of the fine farms of Richland township. 



FRANCIS HANMER LORING. 

Francis Hanmer Loring, engaged in the 
real-estate and abstract business in Oskaloosa, 
is a representative citizen and a veteran of the 
Civil war, whose life record has at all times 
been characterized by high ideals and manly 
principles. He was born in Centre Belpre, 



Washington county, Ohio, July 9, 1832. His 
father, Oliver Rice, also a native of Centre 
Belpre, was born January 20, 1790. The 
grandfather, Daniel Loring, removed from 
Sudbury, Massachusetts, to Marietta, Ohio, 
where he arrived on the ist of January, 1789, 
with the second party that followed the advent 
of General William Putnam, who opened the 
northwest territory, penetrating into that re- 
gion in the preceding year. Daniel Loring set- 
tled at Centre Belpre, where he secured land by 
allotment, after which he gave his attention to 
general farming. He was also justice of the 
peace, a position of considerable honor and 
prominence in those days. The farm which he 
developed was the birthplace and home of his 
son Oliver and it was there that Daniel Loring 
died in 1823. He was a revolutionary soldier 
and a pensioner of the war. 

Oliver Rice Loring, father of our subject, 
was a farmer by occupation. Under the old 
system of judicial procedure in Ohio he sat on 
the common pleas bench for fifteen years. In 
connection with five others he organized the 
First Universalist church at Centre Belpre, this 
being the first organization of that denomina- 
tion west of the Alleghany mountains. He was 
a stanch supporter of the church, ever active in 
its work and doing all in his power to promote 
the moral development of his community. He 
enlisted for service in the war of 1812, but was 
in no active battles. His political support was 
given to the whig party and he strongly en- 
dorsed the principles advocated by Henrj^ Clay. 
Distinctively a man of affairs, he wielded a 
wide influence in the community where he re- 
sided and his support was given to every move- 
ment for the general good. He did everything 
in his power to advance intellectual and moral 
improvement and to uphold the legal and polit- 
ical status of his community and his eft'orts 
were of direct and permanent benefit. He mar- 
ried Miss Frances Howe and unto them were 
born three children : Daniel ^^^arren, who was 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



363 



bom ill i8_'i and died in iSijS; Lucy R. ; and 
Jesse D. Daniel W., bom in Belpre, came to 
Iowa in 1851 and in Marcii, 1853, wedded 
Mary K. Soule, of Marietta, Ohio. In the 
same year tiiey came to Oskaloosa, where Dan- 
iel W. Loring followed merchandising until his 
death. All of his children are now deceased 
with the exception of one son. Frank, who is 
a merchant at Sac City. Iowa. The daughter 
became the wife of Rev. Martin L. Edwards, a 
Universalist minister. They lived at Mount 
Pleasant, Iowa, where her death occurred in 
1870, when she was forty-six years of age. 
Jesse D. Loring was bom in 1826, became a 
resident of Oskaloosa in 1853, followed mer- 
chandising here and died in 1871. After losing 
his first wife Oliver R. Loring married Miss 
Orinda Howe, a very distant relative of his 
first wife. She was born in Poultney, Ver- 
mont, January 20, 1799. and died in April, 
1889, at the very advanced age of ninety years. 
Oliver Rice Loring, her husband, died in the 
year 1873, at the age of eighty-four years. 
She was a daughter of Peter Howe, who re- 
moved to Washington county, Ohio, in 1803 
and .settled on the ^luskingum river at Rain- 
bow, four miles above Marietta. He, too, 
served with the patriot army in the Revolution- 
ary war. He was a member of the celebrated 
Howe family which numbered many loyalists 
or tories and also many distinguished patriots. 
Peter Howe was a farmer and he reared a large 
family, including Mrs. Orinda Loring. The 
daughter was a member of the Universalist 
church and a most estimable lady. By her mar- 
riage she became the mother of nine children, 
of whom five died in childhood. The others 
are: Francis H.. of this review; Delia M., the 
wife of Edward Morris, a minister of the Uni- 
versalist church living on the old homestead at 
Centre Belpre, Ohio; Eletha, who became the 
wife of Augustus \V^ Ford, who removed to 
Logan County, Iowa, in 1863, and tliere fol- 
lowed l)anking, his wife dying a short time 



after their arrival in this state; and Corwin, 
who joined the Forty-seventh Iowa Infantry 
during the Civil war, becoming a member of 
Company C at Oskaloosa in 1864. He died in 
the service of camp fever at Helena, Arkansas, 
when twenty-three years of age. 

Francis H. Loring pursued his education in 
the common schools of Belpre, Ohio, and in 
the Liberal Institute at Marietta, Ohio. He 
taught school for five terms and remained upon 
the old home farm, assisting in its cultivation 
and development, until the 26th of July, 1862, 
when he also responded to the call for aid, en- 
listing at Belpre, Ohio, as a member of Com- 
pany G, Ninety-second Ohio Volunteer Infan- 
try. He was mustered out at Camp Chase, Co- 
lumbus, Ohio, June 25. 1865, after nearly three 
years of active field service. He was first with 
the Army of West Virginia, but during most 
of the time was with the Army of the Cumber- 
land and he participated in the engagements of 
Resaca, Dalton, Kenesaw Mountain and At- 
lanta, and was with Sherman on the famous 
march to the sea. The last battle of importance 
in which he participated was at Bentonville, 
North Carolina. He was very fortunate in 
that he was never wounded nor captured nor 
was he reported off duty during a single 'day 
of his three years' service. Soon after entering 
the army he was commissioned captain of his 
company and during the last year of the service 
was on detached duty, being in command of a 
l)attalion of four companies in the Eleventh 
Ohio Infantry. He received his commission as 
major by brevet after the close of the war. 

When the country no longer needed his serv- 
ices Major Loring returned to his old home in 
Ohio and in August,' 1865, came to Iowa, set- 
tling in Oskaloosa, where he embarked in mer- 
chandising, in which he continued until 1885. 
He then engaged in the life insurance business 
until 1898 and during that time made his resi- 
dence in Waterloo for four years. Returning 
to Oskaloosa, the Cowan, Hambleton & Loring 



564 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Company, aljstract and real-estate dealers, was 
organized, and Mr. Loring has since been one 
of the partners. They have a large clientage 
and their business has assumed extensive and 
profitable proportions. 

On the 24th of January, 1863, Mr. Loring 
was married to Miss Delia N. Armstrong, who 
was born in Columbiana county, Ohio, in 1839, 
but at the time of her marriage was living in 
Belpre. Ohio. She was a daughter of James 
Armstrong, a railroad contractor and a pioneer 
of Columbiana, who was also a steamboat oper- 
ator. For about thirty years Major and Mrs. 
Loring traveled life's journey together and 
Avere then separated by the death of the wife on 
the 31st of August. 1893. Five children had 
been born unto them: Elizabeth M., who died 
in 1896, at the age of thirty years; Charles M., 
who was born in 1869 and is assistant treasurer 
(jf the J. I. Case Plow Company at Racine, 
Wisconsin; Caroline A., living in Dallas, Tex- 
as; Mabel H.. the wife of Archibald E. Powell, 
a route agent for the Wells-Fargo Express 
Company, stationed at Colorado Springs, Colo- 
rado, by whom she has one child, Francis L., 
now four years of age; and James Warren, 
dispatcher in the office of the Cedar Rapids & 
Iowa City Interurban Railroad, in Cedar Rap- 
ids, Iowa. Mrs. Loring was a member of the 
Congregational church and was a most estima- 
ble lady, devoted to her family and her friends, 
so that her death was the occasion of deep and 
•\vide-spread regret. 

Mr. Loring is a member of the ^lasonic fra- 
ternity and belongs to Phil Kearney post, No. 
40, G. A. R., of Oskaloosa, of which he was 
one of the first commanders. He has been 
grand treasurer of the grand lodge of Masons, 
grand high priest of the grand chapter, R. A. 
]M., and was grand commander of the Ivnights 
Templar of Iowa. His position in the Masonic 
circles in the state is thus indicated, for he has 
been honored with high and important offices. 
His political allegiance is given to the repub- 



lican part}-, but he is without aspiration for of- 
fice. In no duty of citizenship, however, is he 
remiss, for he has a public-spirited interest in 
the general welfare and does all in his power as 
a private citizen for the welfare of his county, 
state and nation. 



CHARLES D. RANDELL. 

Charles D. Randell, respected and honored 
in the comniunitv where he resides, is classed 
with the representative citizens and a life of 
well directed activity and thrift has been 
crowned with success, making him a prosper- 
ous farmer of the county. He now owns a neat 
and well improved farm of three hundred and 
twenty acres and everything about his place is 
kept in gootl condition. He also has forty 
acres in Wright, where he resides. He has 
made his home in Mahaska county since the 
fall in 1867 and is a native of Ohio, having- 
been born in Gallipolis, Gallia county, .\ugust 
13, 1845. His father, Augustus Randell, was 
also a native of that county, born August 17, 
1823. The grandfather, Richard Randell, was 
a native of Massachusetts and was of Scotch 
descent, the family having been founded in 
America in Colonial days. On leaving the old 
Bay state in 1798, Richard Randell removed to 
Ohio, settling in Gallia county, where he opened 
up a farm in the midst of the wilderness. The 
district in which he located was a forest region 
and there he hewed out a farm, clearing- away 
the timber in order to place the land under the 
plow. ■ He was married to Miss Lucy Sprague 
in 1822. Upon the old family homestead there 
Augustus Randell was reared early assisting 
his father in the arduous task of developing 
new land, while in the public schools he ac- 
quired his education. He was married there, 
September 28, 1844, to Miss Rebecca Jane 
Mitcliell, a native of Pennsvlvania, born in 




r7^^ /^^c^/^^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



367 



Annslrong county. Following his marriage 
Mr. Randell cngageil in farming in Gallia coun- 
ty anil there reared his family. In 1852 he 
left fnr Illinois, driving three horses to a 
wagon, and settled in Hancock county, where 
lie joined an uncle who had been living there 
since 1850. His father also subsequently re- 
moved to Illinois, .\ugustns Randell opened 
up a farm in Hancock county and there reared 
his family, giving his remaining days to gen- 
eral agricultin-al pursuits. He died in Bowen, 
November 17, 1895. at an advanced age, while 
his wife passed away in February, 1882. They 
were worthy people, respected and esteemed by 
all who knew them and Mr. Randell led a very 
busy and useful life crowned with a gratifying 
measure of success, which made him one of the 
substantial farmers of his community. 

Charles D. Randell, the oldest of a family of 
si.x sons and three daughters, all oi whom grew 
to mature years, while at the present time all of 
the sons and one of the daughters are yet liv- 
ing. His boyhood and youth were passed in 
Hanciick count)', Illinois, upon the old home 
farm, for he was a young lad at the time of the 
removal of his parents to that place. He was 
educated in the public schools and during the 
periods of vacation he worked in the fields, thus 
gaining ]jractical knowledge of the best meth- 
otls of tilling the soil and producing crops. In 
1865 he w'ent to Kansas, where he hired out to 
drive an ox-team through to the mountains. 
He spent the winter of 1865-6 at Central City. 
Colorado, and the following summer was in 
Boulder Valley. In the fall of 1866 he re- 
turned to Illinois with team and wagon but 
walked most of the way. On again reaching 
Hancock county he operated his father's farm 
until coming to IMahaska county later in the 
same year. Here he purchased forty acres of 
land which was raw and unimproved and for 
which he paid nine dollars per acre. He broke 
this with horse teams and as he prospered in his 
undertakings he later purchased more land 



from time to time and now has about five hun- 
dred acres of good Mahaska county land, his 
fields being rich and productive. Upon the 
farm he has erected a neat frame residence, also 
good barns and outbuildings and the place is 
likewise well fenced and tiled. There is a bear- 
ing orchard and a grove, together with many 
ornamental trees around the home, which add 
to the \-alue and attractive appearance of the 
place. He has many walnut and elm trees and 
the young trees which he planted years ago 
have grown to splendid size and are an attrac- 
ti\e feature of the farm. Altogether the place 
is neat and thrifty in appearance and the prop- 
erty is a monument to the labor and enterprise 
of the owner. 

On the 22d of December, 1870, Mr. Randell 
was united in marriage to Miss Sarah C. 
Moore, a daughter of John F. and Mary (Ma- 
dox) Moore, living near Kirkville, Iowa, and 
a sister of R. W. Moore, who is represented 
elsewhere in this work. Unto Mr. and Mrs. 
Randell have been bom two sons and six 
daughters: Seth A., a prominent farmer of 
Harrison township, who owns two hundred 
acres of well improved land; C. W., also a 
farmer of Harrison township, who has a well 
improved property there: ]\Iar}-, the wife of 
David Gwin, who ow^ns two hundred acres of 
good land in Harrison township ; Clara A., 
the wife of W. A. McBurney, who is operating 
her father's farm together w^ith his own farm 
adjoining: Florence, the wife of C. N. Mc- 
Bimiey, a resident of Harrison township; Es- 
ther, Estella and Belle at home. For many 
years Air. Randell continued the active opera- 
tion of his farm and in connection w'ith the till- 
ing of the soil w'as formerh^ engaged in raising 
and breeding stock, feeding from one to four 
carloads of fat cattle annually. Leaving the 
farm in 1905 he w'ent to Nebraska and visited 
different parts of that state, also Kansas, and 
Denver, Colorado Springs and Salida, Colo- 
rado, spending three or four months in the west 



368 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and g-aining an intimate and accurate knowl- 
edge of that section of the country. Since his 
return he has made his home in Wright, where 
lie has erected a neat residence. 

PoHtically Mr. RandeU has been a lifelong 
republican, casting his hrst ballot for General 
U. S. Grant in 1868, and has since voted for 
each presidential nominee of the party but has 
been without political aspiration for himself, 
although he has been elected and served in nu- 
merous township offices, called to these posi- 
tions by his fellow citizens who recognize his 
worth and ability. It is needless to say that his 
duties have been discharged with promptness 
and fidelity and he has frequently served as a 
delegate to numerous conventions. His wife 
is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church 
and takes a most active part in the work of the 
church and the Sunday-school and the daugh- 
ters are teachers in the Sunday-school. Mr. 
Randell is a charter member of Wright lodge, 
I. O. O. F., and he and his wife and daughters 
are connected with the Order of Rebekah. He 
is one of Mahaska county's successful farmers 
and has helped to impro\'e and make the county 
what it is today. Here he is well known as a 
careful business man, who has by his own labor 
and enterprise accumulated a valuable property, 
including a large farm and good home in 
Wright. He is today one of the substantial 
citizens of the county and his history shows 
what may be accomplished by earnest purpose 
and indefatigable effort. He has won not only 
success but also an honored name. 



SETH A. RANDELL. 

Seth A. Randell, the eldest son of Charles D. 
and Sarah C. (Moore) Randell, was born in 
Cedar township, October 6, 1871, and acquired 
his early education in the country schools near 
his boyhood home, later attending Penn Col- 



lege and the Oskaloosa Business College. On 
the igth of February, 1S95, he was united in 
marriage to Miss Elizabeth Hoover, a daugh- 
ter of David and Angeline Hoover. Her fa- 
ther died May 8, 1883. Unto Mr. and Mrs. 
Randell have been born four children, namely: 
George D., Pearl, Anna and Clara. 

After his marriage Mr. Randell was engaged 
in farming near Bowen, Hancock county, Illi- 
nois, for two years, and on his return to Ma- 
haska county at the end of that time he pur- 
chased the Ed Carpenter farm one mile west of 
Wright, where he now resides, owning and 
operating two hundred and twelve acres of 
good land. In connection with general farm- 
ing he is quite extensively engaged in stock- 
raising, annually feeding from three to four 
carloads of stock, and he is today numbered 
amijug the most promising young men of Har- 
rison township. 



H. H. GLASSCOCK. 



H. H. Glasscock, living on section 3, Spring 
Creek township, gives his attention to general 
farming and stock-raising, his landed posses- 
sions embracing nearly three hundred acres, 
upon which are four sets of good farm build- 
ings and other modern improvements. He has 
lived in the county since 1877, being a young 
man of twenty years when he arrived here. His 
birth occurred in Union county, Ohio, January 
■7, 1857. His father, Joseph Glasscock, was 
born in Virginia and was there reared. He was 
twice married, the first time in Virginia and the 
second time in Ohio, on which occasion he 
wedded Shady Stratton, a native of the Buck- 
eye state. For a niunber of years Mr. Glass- 
cock continued farming in Ohio, but in the fall 
of 1867 removed to Missouri and located in 
Johnson county, where he carried on farming 
for ten vears. He then sold out there and re- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



369 



moved tn Mahaska county, settling in Oska- 
loosa, whei-c lie was engaged in tlie livery busi- 
ness for a sliort time. Later he located on a 
farm north of town, and he died in this county 
on the 13th of February, 1892. His wife 
passed away in December, 1886. 

H. H. Glasscock was largely reared in John- 
son county, Missouri, and is practically a self- 
educated as well as a self-made man. He was 
engaged in herding sheep for his father in 
Johnson county, and after coming to Iowa he 
worked for one year by the month, while later 
he rented land and engaged in farming on his 
own account. Then, wishing a companion and 
helpmate for life's journey, lie was married in 
Oskaloosa on the loth of April, 1879, to Miss 
Delpha .V. Hoo\-er, who was born and reared 
here, and was a daughter of James Floover, one 
of the early settlers of Maha.ska county from 
Indiana. In the fall after their marriage the 
young couple removed to the farm whereon 
they now reside. Only a small part of the place 
had been cleared, while a little frame building 
had lieen erected. Mr. Glasscock began to 
further clear and develop the place, and his la- 
bors soon wrought considerable transformation 
in its appearance. He at first had only fifty 
acres of land. This he fenced and cleared, 
placing the fields under the plow and as he 
prospered in his undertakings he purchased 
more land from time to time. He has since re- 
built and remodeled the house, has also put up 
two good barns, has planted an orchard, has 
divided the place into fields of convenient size 
by well kept fences, has a windmill for pump- 
ing water and has other modern equipments. In 
fact, his is a well improved property, indicat- 
ing the progressive yet practical spirit of the 
owner, who in connection with the tilling of the 
soil also raises and feeds stock, fattening a car- 
load of cattle and also a load of hogs annuallv 
for the market. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Glasscock has been born 
one child, ^vlaud. now the wife of D. M. Rod- 



gers, a substantial farmer of Spring Creek 
township, b_\' whom she has two children, Ber- 
nice Josephine and Mary Rodgers. Politically 
Mr. Glasscock has jjeen a lifelong republican, 
l)ut has never been an aspirant for office, pre- 
ferring to concentrate his energies upon his 
business affairs. He is, however, interested in 
seeing good men in office, and he is a believer 
in good schools and teachers. He has served 
on the school board for ten years, and the cause 
of education finds in him a warm friend. His 
wife was reared in the Friends church and, 
like her husliand, is highh- esteemed bv all who 
know her. Mr. Glasscock has worked earnestly 
and«persistently year after year in his efiforts to 
establish a home and farm and his work has 
been rewarded in the acquirement of a gratify- 
ing competence. 



WTLLIA^I A. MOORE. 

The farming interests of White Oak town- 
ship find a worthy representative in William A. 
Moore, living on section 17. Activity and thrift 
are crowning points in his business career and 
his well directed efl:'orts have made him the 
owner of a valuable farm of one hundred and 
sixty-five acres, which in its neat and well 
kept appearance indicates his careful supervis- 
ion and practical methods. More than a half 
century has passed since he came to the county, 
for the year of his arrival was 1855. He was 
born in Boone county, Indiana, November 16, 
1834, a son of ^^'ilson F. Moore, a native of 
Kentucky, who when a youth was taken by his 
parents to Indiana. There he was reared, as- 
sisting his father in clearing and improving 
a timber farm. He was educated in the common 
schools and received practical training in ail 
departments of agricultural labor. His par- 
ents were Laban and Nancy Moore, who also 
came to Iowa and occupied a farm near Cedar. 



370 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Mrs. Nancy Moore died April i, 1906, at the 
very venerable age of ninety-six years. 

Wilson Moore was married in Indiana to 
Miss Fannie Perkins, a native of that state and 
a daughter of Robert Perkins, who went to 
Indiana from Kentucky when a young man. 
There he owned and improved a farm and five 
years after his marriage he came to Iowa. 
There were eight children torn of this union, 
all of whom reached maturity. Wilson Moore 
purchased eighty acres of land upon his arrival 
in this state, built a dwelling thereon and began 
to clear and cultivate his farm. As he pros- 
pered in his undertakings he invested his capi- 
tal in more land, from time to time, until he 
became the owner of a good farm property, but 
he now lives in Rose Hill. In i885 he lost 
his first wife, since which time he has married 
asfain and now maintains his residence in the 



village. 



William A. Moore was reared upon the old 
home farm which he assisted his father to clear 
and improve, giving him the benefit of his serv- 
ices until he was twenty-one years of age. He 
had only common-school advantages, but in the 
school of experience has learned many valu- 
able lessons that have made him a successful 
business man. He was married December 30, 
1876, to Miss Jennie Smock, a native of Wa- 
pello county, Iowa, and a daughter of Archi- 
bald Smock, who was born in Indiana, whence 
he came to Iowa in early manhood, settling in 
Wapello county. After their marriage Mr. and 
Mrs. William Moore located on the home farm 
liut lived in a liouse separate from the father's 
home. He then assisted his father in carrying 
on the work of the fields, and for five years 
rented land from his father, after which he pur- 
chased forty acres of the tract. He later bought 
more land from time to time as his financial re- 
sources permitted until he now has a valuable 
farm of one hundred and sixty-five acres. The 
soil is rich and productive and returns good 
crops, so that he annually harvests good crops 
of corn, wheat and other grains. In 1904 he 



jjuilt an attractive two-story residence, and he 
has also built a good barn and outbuildings and 
has the place well fenced. It is one of the most 
attractive farms in White Oak township 
equipped with all modern accessories and im- 
provements. Air. Moore raises good grades of 
stock, principally Durham cattle. He has also 
raised a good many mules and feeds both cattle 
and hogs. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Moore have been born 
four children, all of whom are yet living. Hat- 
tie, the eldest, is a teacher in the schools of 
Pleasant Grove. She has devoted five years to 
this work and is very capable and successful. 
William W., living at home, has, however, en- 
gaged in farming on his own account for the 
last three years. Orin E., also at home, assists in 
operating the farm. Eva Pearl is yet under the 
parental roof. Mr. and Mrs. Moore attend the 
Union church at \Miite Oak. but both are mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal church. He 
belongs to the ^Masonic fraternity and is a Ma- 
son of Rose Hill lodge, while his wife is con- 
nected with the Eastern Star. His political 
allegiance is given to the democracy, and he 
ne\-er falters in his support of the party. He 
has served as township constable for sixteen 
vears. justice of the peace for two terms and 
school director for twenty-fi\'e years, and ever\ 
movement for the benefit and welfare of the 
county receives his endorsement. He is ac- 
tive and energetic in business, and at all times 
thoroughly reliable and the qualities of his man- 
hood are such as in every land and clime awaken 
regard and respect. 



MEEKER BIGGS. 



Meeker Biggs, deceased, was one of the pio- 
neer settlers of Mahaska county and a man 
whose example is in many respects worthy 
of emulation, for he displayed marked 




.MRS. AIEEKKR i;i(,(iS. 




.\ii:f.ker biggs. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



375 



strength of character in liis efforts to over- 
come the difficulties and obstacles in his 
path and work his way upward to a po- 
sition of affluence. He was born in Knox 
county, Ohio. January 6, 1828, anil died upon 
the old home farm in Union township, this 
county, August 11, 1902, being then more than 
seventy-four years of age. His parents were 
llarred and Elizabeth (Hard) Biggs, both of 
whom were natives of Pennsylvania. His boy- 
hood days were spent upon his father's farm in 
Knox county and he acquired a district-school 
education but his advantages in youth were 
rather meager. On the 3d of May, 1852, he 
married !Miss Margaret Ann Beers, who was 
born in Morrow county, Ohio, May 18, 1832, 
a daughter of Byron and Elizabeth (Pitney) 
Beers, both of whom were natives of New Jer- 
sey and spent their last days in the Buckeye 
state, the father's death occurring when he 
was eighty-four years of age, while the mother 
passed away at the age of eighty years. 

On the loth of September, 1853, Mr. Biggs 
and his wife started for Iowa, making the jour- 
ney across the country with teams. They were 
four weeks upon the way, lacking four days. 
A cousin of Mr. Biggs desired to come west 
and drove one of the teams in order to pay for 
his board and a chance to ride, and Mr. and 
]\Irs. Biggs rode in a buggy. Reaching Ma- 
haska county Mr. Biggs purchased three hun- 
dred and twenty acres of land from Judge 
Seevers, of Oskaloosa, which has since been 
the family home. Only a small part of this had 
been improved, most of it being covered with 
timber. A double log house had been built, in 
which they lived for a few years, when Mr. 
Biggs erected a frame residence, hauling the 
lumber from Iowa City. He traded ten oak 
rails for ten walnut rails because they could 
be worked up easier. From these he made a 
bedstead, table and other furniture. He made 
a cupboard which was fastened to the wall and 
was in use for a number of years. Mrs. Biggs 
18 



says those were the happiest days of her life, 
for though there were privations to be borne 
incident to the settlement of a frontier and 
they worked hard and lived plain they had no 
such troubles as came to them in after years. 
Their cash capital when they arrived in this 
county consisted of twelve hundred dollars. 
At one time they lost si.x hundred dollars but 
they did not allow this to worry them. Mr. 
Biggs never gave a mortgage on his place, be- 
ing determined to have a home free froin debt. 
The labors of the husband in the fields and the 
careful management of the wife in the home 
were the means which won them success and as 
the years passed by they became possessed of a 
gratifying competence. 

In his political affiliations Mr. Biggs was a 
democrat. He was very reticent, talking little, 
but was a deep thinker and kept well informed 
on all the questions and issues of the day. He 
served as treasurer of his school district but 
would accept no other office. He was a de- 
vout Christian, holding membership in the 
Christian church and was held in the highest 
esteem by all who knew him. During the last 
five years of his life he was a great sufferer. 
Several years ago Mrs. Biggs met wnth an ac- 
cident which has made her a cripple and for 
ninety-se\-en days she lay in bed. Now, how- 
ever, she is able to get around the house by the 
aid of a cane. She is a woman of great deter- 
mination and excellent business ability and at 
her husband's death became the executrix of 
the estate and thus saved several hundred dol- 
lars by settling up the business herself. For 
fifty-three years she has lived upon this farm. 
Friends have advised her to sell and remove to 
town but she prefers the old home while able 
to stay here. She owns two hundred and five 
acres of good land, worth one hundred dollars 
per acre, and she now rents the land but occu- 
pies the old home, having a lady companion 
with her. Her only child, Iowa America, be- 
came the wife of Charles Brooks and died at 



376 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



the age of twenty-two years. Mrs. Biggs has 
never used a pair of glasses and today can 
thread a needle almost as well as she ever could 
although she feels that her eyesight has been 
failing in the last six months. She relates 
many interesting incidents of the experiences of 
the early days and is one of the worthy pioneer 
women whose life is closely interwoven with 
the history of the county and within its borders 
she has a very wide circle of friends. 



W. A. HOOVER. 



W. A. Hoover, devoting his time and ener- 
gies to general agricultural pursuits on section 
4, Spring Creek township, is one of the pros- 
perous farmers and prominent stock-breeders 
of the county, dealing in pure blood Chester 
White hogs. His farm is an attractive prop- 
erty, forming one ()f the pleasing features of 
the landscape. It comprises two hundred and 
thirty-eight acres of well improved and valu- 
alale land, and in his work of cultivating it 
Mr. Hoover displays an enterprising spirit, 
which enables him to overcome all difficulties 
and obstacles in his path. He was born in this 
township, March 7. 1855. His father, James 
M. Hoover, was a native of Indiana and a son 
of Jonas Hoover, who came to Iowa from In- 
diana, being one of the first settlers in Ma- 
haska county. He is said to have built the 
first log house in Oskaloosa and at all events 
he was closely associated with the pioneer 
movement that resulted in laying die founda- 
tion for the present progress and upbuilding 
of the city. He was a shoemaker by trade and 
also a tanner and currier and before coming 
to Oskaloosa conducted a tanyard at Pleasant 
Plains. 

James M. Hoover, fadier of our subject came 
with his father to Mahaska county and was 
here reared amid the wild scenes of frontier 



life. He was also married here to Miss Eunice 
Cox, a- native of Indiana, in which state her 
girlhood days were passed. He settled on a 
farm in Spring Creek township, where he en- 
tered one hundred and sixty acres of prairie 
land. He broke, fenced and improved the 
place, transforming the wild tract into produc- 
tive fields and as his crops brought to him a 
good return he added to his land from time to 
time, owning several hundred acres. Subse- 
quently he went to Kansas with a daughter and 
became ill. There he died September 5, 1885. 
His wife survived him for several years, pass- 
ing away August 29, 1890. 

Mr. Hoover was the only son and had but 
one sister, Delpha A., now the wife of H. H. 
Glasscock, who is mentioned on another page 
of this work. \\'. A. Hoo\-er was reared in 
Spring Creek township and is indebted to the 
common-school system for the educational 
privileges he enjoved save that he has learned 
many valuable lessons in the school of ex- 
perience. In his youth he broke the virgin 
soil and he has also broke and cleared three 
timbered farms, cutting away the trees, grub- 
l)ing out the stumps and clearing away the 
Ijrush, so that the breaking plow might make 
unimpeded progress in turning the furrows in 
the fields. As a companion and helpmate for 
life's journey he chose Miss Susan Ballenger, 
to whom he was married in Spring Creek town- 
ship (in the gth of December, 1880. She is a 
nati\e of .\dams township, Mahaska county, 
and a daughter of Jeremiah Ballenger, a native 
of Illinois, who was born September 21, 1826, 
and was reared in that state, after which he 
came to Iowa in early manhood, settling in 
Maliaska county about 1856. He was married 
here to Miss Christena Starlin. a native of 
Ohio, and their daughter, Mrs. Hoover, was 
reared in Mahaska county. Mr. and Mrs. 
Hoover began their domestic life upon the farm 
where he now resides. He began here with 
one huniired acres of land which he had to clear 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



377 



of stumps, but as fast as possible he transformed 
the place into fields of rich productiveness. He 
later lii>u.L;ht more land from time to time and 
upon his farm has erected a good nent residence, 
three sulistantial barns and outbuildings. He 
has fenced and cross fenced his jjlace and now 
lias a valuable property, harvesting golden 
grain as a reward for his earnest and persistent 
labor in cultivating the fields. In 1880 he be- 
gan the breeding of Chester White hogs, in 
which he has since dealt, and has built up a 
very extensive business. In 1904 he won 
twenty-three premiums at the St. Louis Ex- 
position and in 1905 he won twelve premiums 
and the championship at the Iowa State Fair, 
a fact which indicates that he is one of the 
prominent breeders of Chester White hogs in 
the country, his stock being of the highest grade. 
He has also carried ot¥ a large number of pre- 
miums at the Illinois State Fair, and has a repu- 
tation that has made him known throughout the 
United States and Canada as a breeder and 
dealer in pure-blooded Chester White hogs. He 
received at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition 
at St. Louis a diploma — the only one given — 
for the best Chester White sow of any age, such 
diploma being awarded to no other exhibitor. 
Mr. Hoover receives orders and ships his hogs 
to all states of the Union, and is widely known 
as a most reliable and enterprising business 
man, whose ability and energy have won him 
success, while his honesty has become proverbial 
with all who fleal with him. His place is re- 
garded as head(|uarters for breeders who want 
to olitain the best grades of Chester White 
swine. He makes a business of exhibiting stock 
at the leading fairs, a custom which he has fol- 
lowed for years. 

L'nto Mr. and Mrs. Lloover have been liorn 
tliree daughters: Fannie B., Delpha .\. and 
Zella C, all of whom are attending school. 
Tlie parents and two children in 1890 went 
west, spending one winter in Salem. Oregon. 
Mr. Hoover has traveled ciuitc extensivelv 



throughout the country, visiting a number of 
states and most of the leading cities in the 
Union. Politically he is independent. He was 
reared in the faith of the Friends church. Pioth 
he and his wife have spent their entire lives 
in this county, and he has helped to improve 
and make it what it is today, for in all matters 
of citizenship he co-operates along lines of gen- 
eral progress and improvement, withholding his 
support from no movement which he believes 
will be of public lienefit. 



HORACE CROOKHAM. 

Horace Crookham. living on section 29, 
Spring Creek township, is one of the native . 
sons of Mahaska county, born in Prairie town- 
ship, March 3, 1854. His father, Milton 
Crookham, a native of Ohio, became one of 
the early settlers of Mahaska county. He was 
married, January 17, 1847, to Mary Bunn, a 
native of Jackson county, Ohio, born !\Iarch 
29, 1829, and a daughter of Peter Bunn. In 
1848 Mr. Crookham came to Iowa and entered 
four hundred acres of government land. Event- 
ually he owned twenty-five hundred acres, be- 
coming one of the richest farmers of the county. 
He made judicious investments in real estate 
and was watchful of all business opportunities 
pointing to success, and by his careful pur- 
chases an<l well directed business affairs he 
gained a splendid measure of prosperity. 

Horace Crookham was one of a family of 
twelve children, of whom three are now living. 
He was the fifth in order of birth, and was 
reared ujxm the home farm, receiving a com- 
mon-school education. He remained with his 
parents until his marriage on the iSth of De- 
cember, 1879. Miss Emma Lindly. a native of 
Pennsylvania, becoming his wife. Her father, 
P>. 1". Lindly, settled in Mahaska county, .\fter 
his marriage Mr. Crookham began fanning for 



■3/8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



his father on land in Richland township, where 
he remained for thirteen years. He then came 
to Spring Creek township, where he had pre- 
•\-ionsly purchased one hundred acres, upon 
which lie now resides, the farm being conven- 
iently situated about two and a half miles from 
Oskaloosa. Here he has made substantial im- 
provements, and has added to the dwelling and 
has built a barn at a cost of one thousand dol- 
lars. His father died in 1891, and his mother 
the year previous. ]\Ir. Crookham was one of 
four heirs. 

Politically Mr. Crookham is independent, 
casting his ballot for candidates whom he re- 
gards as best ciualified for office rather than 
for party. He served for one term as justice 
of the peace, has also been school trustee and 
was treasurer of Richland township. 



W. J. WILLHOIT. 

\\ . J. W'illhoit, who carries on g'eneral farm- 
ing and also engages in the breeding and rais- 
ing of pure blooded shorthorn cattle, is con- 
ducting his business interests on a tract of land 
of one hundred and ten acres on sections 6 and 
7, Spring Creek township. It is situated with- 
in a mile and a half of Oskaloosa and is one of 
the oldest and best improved farms of the 
county. In addition to this property Mr. Will- 
hoit also owns a farm of two hundred and 
seventy-four acres lying in Spring Creek and 
Adams townships. He is one of the pioneer 
settlers of the county, dating his residence here 
from 185 1 and he has a very wide and favor- 
able acquaintance among the old settlers and 
also many friends among the more recent ar- 
rivals. 

Mr. Willhoit is a native of Kentucky, born 
October 25, 1849. His father, James M. \Vill- 
hoit, was a native of Virginia, born October 
24, 1819. The family is of German ancestry, 



three brothers having come to America and set- 
tled in the state of New York, while later they 
removed to Virginia. James M. Willhoit was 
reared in the Old Dominion and when a young 
man removed to Kentucky. He was married 
in Owens county, that state, to Miss Harriet 
Stringfellow, a native of Kentucky, born in 
Owens county, February 6, 1823, a daughter 
of Henry Stringfellow, a native of the Blue 
Grass state. In the year 1851 James 'SL. W'ill- 
hoit came to Mahaska county, Iowa, casting in 
his lot among the pioneer settlers who reclaimed 
this region for the use of the white race. He 
bought land in Adams township, located there- 
on and began opening up a farm, but was not 
long permitted to enjoy his new home, his 
death occurring on the 6th of April, 1854. His 
wife, surviving him, reared her family upon the 
old homestead farm, doing a mother's full duty 
toward her children. She passed away July 4, 
1898, amid the deep regret of many friends as 
well as her immediate family. She had seven 
children, four sons and three daughters, of 
whom four are now living. John H. Willhoit, 
brother of our subject, owns and operates the 
old homestead in Adams township. The surviv- 
ing sisters are: Mrs. Mary E. Bass, a widow, 
lives in Monroe township and owns the old home 
property, which once belonged to her maternal 
grandfather: and Mrs. Maranda Parr, also a 
resident of Monroe township. 

W. J. Willhoit spent his youth upon the 
home farm and a common-school education was 
supplemented by study in Penn College. In his 
youth he assisted in the farm work as oppor- 
tunity offered and his age and strength in- 
creased. He remained with his mother until 
twenty-four years of age and for a few years 
carried on the work of the home property. On 
the 22d of January, 1880, however, he made 
preparations for having- a home of his own by 
his marriage to Miss Josephine Wymore, who 
was born in this county, March 7, 1861, and 
was here reared and educated. She is a daugh- 





OklL^^J/L^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



381 



tcr (if F. M. and .Matilda ( I'arr) Wyinore. 
Ilcr fatlier was one of tlie first settlers of this 
localitw coming to Iowa from Indiana. 

I'"ollowing his marriage Mr. Willhoit located 
on a small farm in Spring Creek township, 
where he carried on general agricultural pur- 
suits, cultivating and improving his land there 
until l8g8. That he prospered in his under- 
takings is indicated by the fact that he added to 
his original holdings from time to time until 
he now owns nearly eight hundred acres of 
land. He also placed upon his farm the most 
modern and superior improvements, develop- 
ing a splendid property. In 1901 he purchased 
one hundred and ten acres, where he now re- 
sides and he has since added to and remodeled 
the house and now has a good residence. He 
has also built^ two barns, has fenced and tiled 
the place and has carried on farming along pro- 
gressive lines, so that he has a good home 
propertv here, lacking in ncme of the equip- 
ments of a model farm. In addition to tilling 
the fields he is breeding and dealing in pure- 
blooded shorthorns and Scotch top cattle, hav- 
ing a herd of fifty head. He has a Scotch bull, 
Victor, at the head of his herd, and is well 
known as a breeder of fine cattle. He makes 
exhibits at various county fairs and has won 
tnimerous premiums. He has gained (luite a 
wide reputation as a breeder and dealer in 
shorthorn cattle and has done much to improve 
the grade of stock raised, thereby contributing 
to the general prosperity of the commutiity. 
He is also one of the heavy stockholders in the 
I'rankel State Bank at Oskaloosa and through 
his actix'e business career he has made consecu- 
tive advancement, each year seeing an increase 
in his property. 

He is especially deserving of mention be- 
cause of what he has done in connection with 
the development of corn. He is the originator 
of the Willhoit corn and may well be termed 
the Luther Burbank in the line of improving 
this cereal. He has been working on this corn 



for forty years and has won numerous prizes 
on it as heavy and light cob. He has averaged 
for the last forty years fifty bushels of corn to 
the acre. The crop in 1904 averaged one hun- 
dred bushels to the acre and in 1905 sixty bush- 
els, the decrease in the latter year being due to 
the severe windstorms. He has sold seed corn 
throughout the corn states. His aim has been 
to reduce the weight of the cob and in this way 
he has accomplished a great work. His efforts 
ha\-e been worth thousands of dollars to Ma- 
haska county as well as being a source of much 
individual profit. It takes from ninety to one 
hundretl and ten days for the Willhoit corn to 
mature and there is no better corn on the mar- 
ket. All his place is tiled and Mr. Willhoit 
was a pioneer in this work in his township, 
being the first to thus drain his farm. 

Unto i\Ir. and Mrs. Willhoit have been born 
seven children : Clytie, born December 10, 
1 88 J. who was educated at Penn College and is 
now a successful teacher; Harry, born July 18, 
1884, a student in Christian College; Clara. 
born April 4, 1886, and Nell, born May 24, 
18SS. who are students in Penn College and 
will complete the course there in the class of 
1906: Glenn, bom June 5. 1891. attending the 
home school ; Charles, born October 5, 1895, 
and Gale Lucile, born February 9, 1900, also 
with their parents. 

Politically Mr. Willhoit is a democrat where 
national issues are involved and has serv'ed as 
a delegate to the county, congressional and 
state con\'entions of his party. He belongs to 
Commercial lodge. No. 128. I. O. O. F.. of 
O.skaloosa, in which he has filled all of the 
chairs and is a past grand. His life has been 
one of untiring activity and he is one of the 
prosperous and up-to-date farmers and stock- 
breeders of Mahaska county. He possesses 
sound business judgment and carries forward 
to successful completion whatever he under- 
takes. He is recognized as a man of genuine 
worth, reliable in business and in citizenship, 



382 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



so that those who know him tender him warm 
and sincere regard. [Moreover he is truly a self- 
made man, who deserves much credit for his 
success and has every reason to be proud of 
what he has accomplished. He has worked ' 
along practical lines, constantly looking for op- 
portunities for advancement, and has made 
splendid progress along lines of honorable ac- 
tivity, resulting in success. 



E. H. FERGUSON. 



E. H. Ferguson, who has spent his entire 
life in Mahaska county, is living on section 2^. 
Cedar township, and gives his time and energies 
to general agricultural pursuits and stock-rais- 
ing. He owns and cultivates three hundred 
and twenty acres of well improved land and in 
all of his work is practical and enterprising. 
He is a son of the Rev. John Ferguson, a na- 
tive of Indiana, who was born in Union county 
in 1813. He is well known as "Uncle John," 
a term indicative of the love and esteem in 
which he is unifomily held. He was a pioneer 
minister of the Baptist church of Iowa, and set- 
tled in Cedar township, Mahaska county, about 
1846 or 1847. Here he opened up a new 
farm and reared his family, spending his re- 
maining days upon this place, his death occur- 
ring on the 7th of November, 1900. He was 
a most active worker in the Baptist church, de- 
voted to its welfare and upbuilding and he 
taught both by precept and example the prin- 
ciples of righteous living. He was three times 
married, first in Indiana to ]\Iargaret Mc- 
Cewen, who died in Mahaska county. There 
were eight children b}- that marriage, of whom 
four are yet living. In Jefferson township, 
Davis county, Iowa. Re\-. Ferguson wedded 
Miss Rebecca Hughes, a native of Pennsyl- 
vania, where she was reared and educated, and 
E. H. Ferguson of this review is the only child 



of that marriage. The mother died here in 
Cedar township in 1872, and Mr. Ferguson 
afterward wedded Amanda Knott, who survives 
her husband. There is one son of that marriage. 

E. H. Ferguson was reared upon the old 
farm homestead and acquired his education in 
the common schools. He remained with his fa- 
ther and assisted in carrying on the work of the 
farm until twenty-six years of age, when he 
went to Cass count)-, where he followed farm- 
ing for two or three years. He then returned 
to the old homestead and his entire life has been 
devoted to general agricultural pursuits. 

Mr. Ferguson was married in Monroe town- 
ship, this county, on the 3d of April, 1884, to 
Miss ■Martha Roberts, who was reared and edu- 
cated here, her father being H. F. Roberts, one 
of the early settlers, who came to Iowa from 
Kentucky, and is now living in Oskaloosa. Fol- 
lowing their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson 
located about two and a half miles west of Fre- 
mont, where he owned one hundred and eight- 
een acres of land. He there engaged in farm- 
ing and further improving the property, tle- 
veloping a good place, upon which he lived until 
1889, when he sold that and bought two hun- 
dred and scA'en acres, where he now resides on 
section 2;^, Cedar township. He at once began 
the further development of this farm, has re- 
built and remodeled the house, has also built 
outbuildings, has placed two thousand rods of 
tiling on the fami, has fenced the fields and 
otherwise carried on the work of development 
and improvement. He has made a business of 
raising and feeding stock for the market and 
fattens hogs, sheep and cattle, making quite ex- 
tensive annual shipments. He has purchased 
more land from time to time until he now owns 
three hundred and twenty acres. He is a stock- 
holder in the Farmers National Bank of Oska- 
loosa. His farming interests are carefully con- 
ducted and his practical efforts in all his busi- 
ness affairs have won for him gratifving meas- 
ures of success. Unto him and his wife have 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



383 



I)een hdrii tour children: Karl E.. Henry Cur- 
tis and Jolm Carl, twins, and Mary l\. Idie 
(laiiglUer is teacfiing in tiie country schools. 

Politically Mr. I*'erguson was always a dem- 
ocrat until 1904. when he cast his presidential 
ballot for Roosevelt. He lias never been an 
office seeker, preferring to give his attention to 
his business affairs. He and his wife and 
daugiiter are members of the Baptist church, of 
Fremont, and Mr. Ferguson is a Master Ma- 
son, belonging to Fremont lodge, A. F. & A. M. 
His entire life has been spent in this county, 
and thus for almost a half century he has wit- 
nessed the changes which have occurred, the de- 
\'e!opment that has been achieved and the prog- 
ress that has been made. He has seen the 
virgin soil transformed into the very product- 
ive farms and has helped to make two of the 
good farms of the county. He has a wide and 
favorable accpiaintance, the circle of his friends 
being almost co-extensive with the number of 
people who knew him. 



J. A. kINEHART. 



J. A. Rinehart, li\ing on section 12, Lincoln 
township, is one of the prosperous farmers oi 
the county and owns eighty-eight acres of valu- 
al)le land within five miles of Oskaloosa. He 
also has a neat home and five acres of land just 
nortii of the corporation limits of the city, tie 
dates his residence in the state and county from 
April 7, 1877. A native of Ohio, he was born 
in Tuscarawas county, ]\Iarch 24, 1839. His 
father, David Rinehart, was a native of Penn- 
sylvania and went to Ohio with iiis mother. He 
was reared in Tuscarawas county and was mar- 
ried there to Mary A. Kain, a native of Penn- 
sylvania. Mr. Rinehart was a blacksmith by 
trade and followed that pursuit for some years. 
In tlie fall of 1850 he removed to Indiana, lo- 
cating in Wells county, wiiere he took up his 



aljode upon a tract of land which he cleared and 
improved, transforming it into a good farm. 
Tiiere he reared his family and spent his last 
days, carrying on agricultural pursuits during 
the greater part of his life. His w'ife died in 
Wells ccjunty in July, 1882, and he survived 
her until the 21st of December, 1883, when he, 
too, passed away. In the family were five sons 
and a daughter, of whom four sons reached 
adult age and all are yet living. Of this num- 
ber John and Daniel are residents of Bluffton, 
Indiana, and Joe is living in Huntington, 
Indiana. 

J. A. Rinehart was reared to manhood in 
Wells county, Indiana, his youth being divided 
i)etween play, work and duties of the school- 
room. He was a young man of about twenty- 
tliree years when, on the 6th of August, 1862, 
aroused by a spirit of patriotism, he responded 
to the country's call for troops, enlisting as a 
member of Company H, Se\-enty-fifth Indiana 
\'olunteer Infantry. He went south, the regi- 
ment being attached to the Amiy of the Cum- 
berland and later to the Army of the Tennessee. 
He was first under fire at Chickamauga and he 
afterward participated in numerous other im- 
portant engagements, including the battles of 
Missionaiy Ridge, Resaca, Cassville, Jones- 
boro. Peach Tree Creek, Chattanooga and Ken- 
esaw Mountain. He was in the Atlanta cam- 
paign with the Fourteenth .\rmy Corps, and in 
addition to those already mentioned, he partici- 
pated in a number of lesser engagements, his 
last l)attle being at Smithville. Becoming ill, 
he was left at Bowling Green and later sent to 
the hospital at L<)uis\ille. Kentucky, where he 
suffered from tyjihoid fever. Subsequently lie 
rejoined the regiment at Murfreesboro and 
served until tlie close of the war, when he was 
mustered out and honorably discharged in June, 
1865. Mr. Rinehart was a brave and loyal 
.soldier, never faltering in tlie performance of 
any military duty and returned home with a 
most creditable record. 



384 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Following the close of the war Mr. Rinehart 
resumed farming. He was married in Wells 
county on the 26th of Januaiy, 1868, to Miss 
Nancy Jane Newhouse, who was born in Rush 
county. Indiana, and was reared and educated 
in Wells county. She was- a daughter of Wil- 
liam Xewliouse. a native of Virginia and a 
granddaughter of John Newhouse, who re- 
moved from the Old Dominion to Indiana with 
his family in pioneer times. In that state the 
father of Mrs. Rinehart was reared, being a 
child at the time of his arrival in Indiana. His 
}-outh was passed in Rush county and there lie 
married Sarah Sparks, a native of that state and 
a daughter of Joshua Sparks. He followed 
farming in Rush county and afterward in Wells 
county. Indiana, and it was there that Mrs. 
Rinehart was reared and educated. She became 
a teacher, successfully following that profes- 
sion prior to her marriage. Following that im- 
portant event in their lives the young couple 
located upon a new farm in the midst of the 
forest in Wells county and there Mr. Rine- 
hart cleared about thirty acres of land, on which 
he built a house. He continued the work of 
improving the property and lived there for nine 
years, on the expiration of which period he sold 
out and removed to ^Mahaska county, Iowa. 
This was in the spring of 1877. He located on 
a farm in Garfield township and has since 
owned it. Everything about his place is kept 
in good condition. He has repaired the build- 
ings, and erected a new residence on the place. 
He continued active farming there for twenty 
vears, and then rented the place, while he re- 
moved to a five-acre tract of land near the city, 
which he bought. He built thereon a neat 
home and is now enjoying a well earned rest, 
having retired from active business cares. He 
is also a stockholder in the Farmers National 
Bank, at Oskaloosa. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Rinehart have been born 
no children, Ijut they have adopted, reared and 
educated two boys, Charles V. and George H. 



Rinehart, both of whom came to them about six 
years of age. The latter enlisted in response 
to President jNIcKinley's call for volunteers for 
the Spanish- American war, and joined the Fif- 
ty-first Regiment of Iowa troops. With that 
command lie went to Manila and served until 
the close of the war, after which he returned 
with his regiment, but his health was impaired. 
He is a plumber by trade and he married Pearl 
Downs, by whom he has a son, J. Allen Rine- 
hart. He makes his home in Marshalltown, 
while Charles V. is also married and resides 
in Oskaloosa. 

Mr. and Mrs. Rinehart are members of the 
Christian church, Mr. Rinehart serving as one 
of its officials. He takes an active part in 
church work and contributes generously to its 
support. He also belongs to the Grand Army 
post. Politically he is independent, supporting 
the best men regardless of party. He believes in 
temperance principles and has strong prohibi- 
tion tendencies. He is equally favorable to 
good schools and believes in the employment of 
competent teachers. As a member of the school 
toard for many years, he has put forth his ef- 
forts in that direction with effective results. He 
is one of the few remaining veterans of the 
Civil war, and in all duties of citizenship has 
been as true and loyal to his country as when 
he followed the old flag on southern battle- 
fields. He has been an active and useful citizen 
of Mahaska county, has aided in its develop- 
ment, and has lived an upright, honorable life. 
He and his estimable wife are active church 
workers and are much esteemed in Oskaloosa 
and throughout the county. 



GEORGE B. APPEL. 

George B. Appel, whose farming interests 
are represented by a fine tract of land of two 
hundred and forty-five acres well improved 
with modern equipments, was born in Richland 




GEOKGK I'.. Al'I'ICI. AM) FA^^llLY. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



387 



tiiwnship, .M;iliaska county, April 24, 1866. 
1 1 is father. I'eter Appcl. was a native of (ler- 
niany. born ]\Iarch 5, 1837. and died upon tlie 
oiil homestead farm in Ricliland township, Jan- 
uary 27, 1903. He was only seven years of age 
when hroug-ht to America and he lived near 
l.ewisburg, Ohio, with a sister. He was reared 
in that locality and attended school and at the 
ag'e of about twenty years he came to Iowa, 
w here he \\(jrked for one season in the employ 
of .\.lanson Ridpath, an early settler. He then 
returned to Ohio, but the following year again 
came to Mahaska county, where he made a per- 
manent location. He was married in this coun- 
ty to Miss Margaret Bacon, who was born in 
\\'hite county, Indiana, June 6, 1836. and is a 
slaughter of Ira Bacon, who was l)orn in Mas- 
sachusetts and died in Richland township, Ma- 
haska county, at the age of sixty-six years. 
His wife, Mrs. Mary Bacon, was a native of 
Ohio and died in Richland township, at the 
age of seventy-eight years. They came to Ma- 
haska county in 1852 and secured a claim of 
g'overnment land, ultimately becoming owners 
of five hundred acres in Richland township. 
I\Ir. Bacon at first built a little log cal)in, in 
which the family lived in true pioneer style, but 
later he erected a more commodious and mod- 
•ern residence upon his farm and there continued 
to make his home until his death. Peter .\ppel, 
carrying on farming pursuits in this county, 
purchased one hundred and seventy-five acres 
of land which is now owned by his son, George 
B. Appel. This was an unimproved farm, but 
Peter Appel built thereon all of the present 
buildings, including a fine two-story frame resi- 
<lence, which is well painted and is tastefully 
furnished. There are good bams and out- 
buildings upon the place and Mr. Appel was 
widely recognized as an enterprising and ener- 
getic agriculturist. In politics he was a repub- 
lican and was prominent in local affairs, exer- 
cising considerable influence in local councils 
of his party. He was county supervisor for 



one term and held all the minor township of- 
fices. He held membership in the Methodist 
Episcopal church, in the work of which he took 
an active and helpful interest. He was also for 
years a prominent Mason, joining Tri Luminar 
Indge in Oskaloosa. His life was honorable 
and upright and all who knew him esteemed 
him for his genuine personal worth. His 
widow still survives and now makes her home 
w ith Mr. and Mrs. John Ashton, of Richland 
township, the latter being- her daughter. In 
the family were four children: Ira D., who 
died in infancy; Alartha E., the deceased wife 
of John I. Lundy; George B., of this review; 
and ^lary M., who was born in 1871 and is the 
wife of John Ashton. 

George B. Appel has always made his home 
in Richland township upon the farm where he 
now resides. He was reared to agricultural 
pursuits, early becoming familiar with the du- 
ties and labors that fall to the lot of the agricul- 
turist. He was married in 1888 to Miss Lillie 
L. Rice, a daughter of William Rice, of Rich- 
land township. She died in 1889, leaving one 
son, ]\lcrril L., who at the age of sixteen years 
is attending the public schools. On the 30th of 
August. 1893, Air. Appel wedded Miss Alary 
E. Sheehy. who was born in Richland town- 
ship, .\pril JT:,, 1872, and is a daughter of 
Miles Sheehy, who was born in Ireland, and is 
now a retired farmer residing in Pella, Iowa. 
Her mother, who liore the maiden name of 
Sarah E. Chase, is now deceased. Unto Mr. 
and Mrs. Appel has been born a son. Karl C, 
now eleven years of age. 

Mr. .\ppel is today the owner of a valuable 
farm of two hundred and forty-five acres, which 
he is keeping under a high state of cultivation, 
utilizing it to the best advantage. He is quite 
extensively engaged in feeding cattle and hogs 
and he buys grain to feed. He is a thoroughly 
up-to-date farmer, active and enterprising in 
all that he does and his labors are being at- 
tended with a gratifying measure of success. In 



388 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



his political \-iews Mr. Appel is an earnest 
democrat, supporting the party since William 
Jennings Bryan was presidential candidate, prior 
to which time he had been a republican. He 
has served as assessor for one term, as township 
clerk for eight years, as school director and as 
president of the school board. He belongs to 
Central lodge, No. 388, A. F. & A. M., of Pe- 
oria, of which he is now secretary, and he is 
likewise a member of Peoria lodge. No. 501, 
I. O. O. F. He has filled all of the chairs in 
both lodges and is a valued and worthy repre- 
sentative of the organizations. Mr. Appel has 
spent his entire life in Mahaska county, and the 
fact that many of his stanchest friends are 
those who have known him from his boyhood 
days to the present time is an indication that his 
life has been an upright and honorable one. He 
has always followed farming and stands today 
among the representative agriculturists of this 
part of the state. 



WILLIAM G. McCURDY. 

William G. McCurdy owns and occupies a 
comfortable home on section 17, White Oak 
township, and is one of the wide awake and en- 
terprising farmers of his locality. His prop- 
erty comprises three hundred and twenty-four 
acres of rich and productive land, and the farm 
is well equipped with all modern conveniences. 
He is a native son of Iowa, having been born 
on the fami where he now resides, about a 
mile west of his present residence, on August 
10, 1864. He is a son of Jonathan and Sarah 
McCurdy and a brother of Oscar McCurdy, 
who is represented elsewhere in this work. He 
was reared upon the old homestead farm and is 
indebted to the public-school system of the lo- 
cality for the educational privileges he enjoved. 
From the time of early spring planting until 
the crops were har\-ested in the late autumn he 



assisted in the work of the fields and he re- 
mained at home until after his father's death, 
which occurred in January. 1886. He then 
built his present residence upon his share of 
the estate, having inherited ninety acres. He 
has since bought more land from time to time 
until he has three hundred acres where he now 
resides. He has erected here a good dwelling 
and suljstantial bam, has put up a windmill antl 
has cleared twenty acres of land of the brush 
and stumps. Nearly the entire farm is now 
under a high state of cultivation and he also 
raises a good grade of stock and buys and ships 
stock. He raises pure-blooded Buff Orphington 
poultry, having a large flock of those fine 
chickens. His place is well fenced and he has 
three hundred acres under cultivation, annually 
harxesting therefrom good crops. In all of his 
work he is systematic and energetic, making 
his labors count for the most possible and his 
work is attended with a gratifying measure of 
success. 

Mr. McCurdy was married on the 25th of 
November, 1885, to Miss Addie Witt, a native 
of Iowa, and a daughter of Michael Witt who 
was born in Indiana. ' Coming to Iowa about 
1859, he settled in White Oak township, Ma- 
haska county, and here his remaining days were 
passed. When called to his final rest his re- 
mains were interred in White Oak cemetery. 
Mrs. Witt still survives her husband and now 
li\-es with her sons in White Oak. Mr. and 
Mrs. McCurdy are the parents of si.x children, 
all of whom are yet under the parental roof, 
namely : Warren O., Clarence E., Ah-ah R., 
Lena M. and Earl W. and Pearl F., twins. The 
parents and children attend the Methodist Epis- 
copal church at White Oak, of which the father 
and mother are members. Politically Mr. Mc- 
Curdy is an earnest republican, being in thor- 
ough sympathy with the principles and policy 
of the party and upon its ticket he has been 
chosen to sex'eral local offices. He has served 
as township trustee for nine years and was 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



389 



justice of the peace fur two years. His farm 
is well fenced and shows the supervision of a 
master hand in the completeness of its build- 
ings and improvements. While manifesting a 
spirit of lofty patriotism and devotion to the 
general good at all times, his chief attention is 
given to his fami labor, and he is classed with 
the representative agriculturists of his native 
County. 



RICHARD BARROWMAN. 

Richard Barrowman, living on section 4, 
Spring Creek township, is a substantial farmer 
and also part owner in a coal mine which is 
being operated and which is situated on the old 
Barrowman homestead. Thirty-seven years have 
passed since he became a resident of this 
county, being at that time a young lad of six 
years. He is a native of Wisconsin, his birth 
having occnrretl near S]rarta on the 3d of Sep- 
tember, 1862. His father, William Barrow- 
man, was a nati\-e of Scotland and was reared 
to manhood in his native country, where he 
married Miss Agnes Kinnon, also l»rn there. 
Mr. Barrowman was a coal miner of Scotland 
for a number of years. He then emigrated to 
the new world, locating" first in Pennsylvania, 
while later he became a resident of Kentucky. 
He aftenvard spent a short time in different 
states and in 1857 settled uixin a farm in Wis- 
consin, where he resided for ten years. In 
1867 he removed to low^a. taking up his abode 
in Mahaska county, and in 1868 he bought a 
farm in Spring Creek township, upon which 
coal had been discovered. He opened ui) the 
coal bank and with the aid of his sons began 
to operate it. Later he purchased another farm 
upon which he continued to make his home un- 
til his death, which occurred at the age of sev- 
enty-five years, carrying on general agricultural 
pursuits and also developing the coal resources 
of the farm. In his familv were three sons 



and four daughters, of wlmm one daughter is 
now deceased. One brother, William, is in 
Colorado and a sister, Agnes, is the w'ife of ]\I. 
J. Kly, a resident of California. Mary is the 
\vife of J. H. Smith, of Spring Creek town- 
ship, and Elizabeth is the w ife of David Oak- 
ley, a partner of Richard Barrowman in the 
coal business. 

Under the i)arental roof Richard Barrow- 
man spent the days of his childhood and youth, 
acquiring a good public-school education and 
recei\ing practical training in business methods 
under the direction of his father. His present 
partnershi]j with Mr. Oakley was formed in 
1 90 1 and they are now operating the coal bank 
which is being profitably conducted. Mr. Oak- 
ley owns and carries on the farm on which the 
coal mine is located and Mr. Barrowman owns 
a neat and well- improved tract of land of fifty- 
two acres adjoining Mr. Oakley's property. 

In Oskaloosa. on the 2d of April, 1903, Mr. 
Barrowman was married to Miss Emma Stan- 
ley, a daughter of Charles Stanley, one of the 
pioneer settlers of Mahaska county. Mr. and 
Mrs. Barrow-man have three children : Charles 
W., Mary B. and Nellie M. Politically Air. 
Barrowman has been a lifelong republican but 
has never sought nor desired ot^ce, giving his 
time and attention to his farm and other busi- 
ness interests. He is well known in Oskaloosa 
as a man of integrity and worth, possessing 
good business ability and having the confidence 
of the community. 



ALONZO CORNS. 



.Mduzo Corns, one of the active and indus- 
trious farmers of Monroe townshi]), who owns 
and cultivates a good farm of one hundred acres 
on section 31. is a native son oi Iowa and the 
spirit of enterprise and progress which has 
donimated the west and led to its rapid up- 



390 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



building and development is manifest in him. 
He was born in Muscatine county, March 31, 
1845, and has resided in Mahaska county since 
1857. His father, William Corns, was a na- 
tive of Ohio and became a resident of Musca- 
tine county in 1838, being among the early set- 
tlers of the state. He was married in Ohio to 
Miss Phoebe Adeline Bagley, who was also 
born in the Buckeye state and was one of the 
first white women to cross the Mississippi river. 
They bought land in Muscatine county, secur- 
ing three hundred and twenty acres from the 
government and there the father carried on 
farming until his death, which occurred in 
1847. His wife long sui-vived him, passing 
away March 13, 1893, at an advanced age. Af- 
ter the death of her first husband she married 
JMarcus Kirkpatrick, a native of Ohio, who was 
then residing in Cedar county,- Iowa. 

Alonzo Corns was the youngest of a family 
of" five children, four of whom reached ma- 
ture years. Upon the home fami Mr. Corns 
spent his boyhood and youth, acquiring his edu- 
cation in the common schools: He was eight- 
een years of age when his spirit of patriotism 
was aroused by the continued attempt of the 
south to overthrow the Union, and he joined the 
army as a member of Company H, Forty-sev- 
enth Regiment of Iowa Volunteers at Sigour- 
ney. With his company he went to Davenport 
and later to Helena, Arkansas, being stationed 
, there most of the time during his service. He 
took part in no battle and returned to Daven- 
port, November 30, 1864, on which date he 
was honorably discharged. Following his mili- 
tary experience he rented land and thus engaged 
in farming for several years, after which he 
worked out, being engaged in teaming in Os- 
kaloosa for three years. 

On the 6th of March, 1873, Mr. Corns was 
united in marriage to Miss Mary Jane Ellis, 
a native of Ohio, and a daughter of Reuben 
Ellis, who came to Mahaska county in 1869. 
In 1884 Mr. Corns purchased his present farm 



comprising one hundred acres on section 31, 
Monroe township. He has since carried on the 
work of improvement, has built a good barn 
and other outbuildings, and has entirely en- 
closed his place with woven wire fencing. He 
has built good outbuildings and has cleared ten 
acres from the brush. He raises good grades 
of stock and has a valuable place, the fields 
yielding him rich harvests annually. 

Mr. and Mrs. Corns became the parents of 
four children, but lost three, William, Etta and 
Harry. The surviving daughter is Clara, now 
the wife of Walter Whitaker, a farmer of 
.\dams township and they have one child, Har- 
old. Mr. and Mrs. Corns attend the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Rose Hill, of which the 
latter is a member. Mr. Corns belongs to .Rose 
Hill lodge of Masons, in which he has filled 
all of the chairs and was master for two years. 
Both he and his wife are members of the East- 
ern Star. Politically he is a stalwart republican, 
having always supported the party since cast- 
ing his first presidential vote for U. S. Grant. 
He has served as township trustee for four 
years, and has been a member of the school 
board for a number of years. 

He is respected for his business reliability, 
and for the creditable record \\-hich he made as 
a soldier and in public office. Whatever suc- 
cess he has achieved is attributable to his own 
efforts, for he had no special advantages in early 
life, and started out for himself empty-handed. 



ALBERT F. N. HAMBLETON. 

Albert F. N. Hambleton is probably equally 
well known by reason of his success in business 
and his allegiance to those qualities which work 
for nobler manhood and higher ideals. He was 
born in Forest Home. Poweshiek county, Iowa, 
September 4, 1857. His father, Levi Hamble- 
ton, was born near New Lisbon, Columbiana 
county, Ohio, and married Ann Hanna, an 




A. [•. X. HAMBLETON. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



393 



auiil III' Marcus A. 1 laiina. ami nf Irish ances- 
tr\-. l^epresentatives of the family emigrated 
from the Emerald isle to Virginia and a Hanna 
was the first white child born in Lynchburg, 
that state, the mother being the niece of Presi- 
dent Madison's wife, who came over with Wil- 
liam Penn's second colony. The father of our 
subject was an own cousin of the Ohio sena- 
tor. Mr. Haml)leton, however, came of Eng- 
lish lineage and the family was established in 
America by ancestors who settled in Chester 
county. Pennsylvania, whence the grandfather, 
Benjamin Hambleton. removed to Ohio, set- 
tling in Ccilumbiana county. There he erected 
flouring mills and was closely identified with 
the industrial development in that part of the 
state. 

When seventeen years of age Levi Hamble- 
ton ran a storeboat down the Mississippi river, 
and at times drove horses over the Alleghany 
niount:iins to Pliiladeli)hia, and was engaged in 
mercantile business in Columbiana and Stark 
counties. Jn 1854 he came to Iowa and enteretl 
land in Poweshiek county. There he laid out 
and platted the tnwn of Forest Home, bringing 
his mechanics from Ohio. He built lirick kilns, 
cut timljers and built a large residence and store 
building, and it was in diat duelling that Al- 
bert P'. N. Hamlileton was Ijorn. After two 
years the store was destroyed by fire and the 
father then turned his attention to general farm- 
ing and stock-raising, but because the railroad 
was not built through the district in which he 
lived antl wishing to enjoy the advantages of 
railroad communication with other parts of the 
country he came to Oskaloosa in 1871. and here 
again embarked in merchandising, opening a 
store at the northwest corner of the square, 
where he continued until heagain suffered heavy 
losses by fire in January, 1874. Immediately 
afterward be re-opened his store on the south- 
east corner of the square, where he remained 
for four years, when he sold out. In connec- 
tion with John \\'. Woodv and W. P. Hellings 



he then organized the Central Iowa Loan & 
'i'rust Company and subsequently, in connection 
with William R. Cowan, he purchased the busi- 
ness and the firm of Cowan & Hambleton was 
organized. Theyalsoaddedasetofabstract tooks. 
Just ])ricjr to the father's death Albert F. N. 
Hambleton succeeded him in business, and the 
firm is- now known as the Cowan, Hambleton 
& Loring Company, doing an abstract', real- 
estate, loan and insurance business with offices in 
the Xugent block. Levi Hambleton was a very 
energetic man, of excellent business ability, 
quick to recognize and utilize an opportunity, 
knowing that the i)rcsent and not the future 
held bis chances fcjr advancement. He was one 
of the founders of Penn College and was a 
member of the board of directors and also treas- 
urer of the institution. He held membersbii) in 
the Society of Friends, and politically was an 
ardent republican. He maintained a high stand- 
ard of lising and entertained high ideals, yet 
withal, he was intensely practical in everything 
which he did. His death occurred in Oskaloosa 
in 1899, in the seventy-nindi year of his age, 
and it came as a personal blow to many of Os- 
kaloosa's citizens, for he had a very wide circle 
of friends here, and all who knew aught of his 
history or his life admired and respected him 
f(jr what he bad accomplished, and for the 
methods which he had followed. 

In early manhood Levi Hambleton wedded 
^lary Hall, who was born in Columbiana 
county, Ohio, and died April 27, 1900. in her 
seventy-ninth year. Her great-grandfather was 
Judge Edward Warner Heston, of Philadel- 
phia, a colonel of the Revolutionary war and 
a man likewise prominent in civic life. Her fa- 
ther was Edward H. Hall, who remo\-ed from 
Philadel])hia to Ohio at an early day in the de- 
velopment of the latter state and there engaged 
in farming. He wedded Jane Paxson, who was 
born near Philadelphia. The Hall family is of 
English and W^elsh lineage, and j\Ir. Hamble- 
ton of this review now has in his possession a 



394 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



piece of chinaware that was brought from 
Wales by his ancestors, and has been in the fam- 
ily for over two hundred years. He also has 
a book in which is depicted the ancestral castle 
of one Patrick Hannay. in Galway, Ireland, an 
ancestor of his father, and the photographs of 
his great-grandfathers on both sides copied 
from oil portraits. Mrs. Hambleton, mother 
of our subject, was also a member of the So- 
ciety of Friends and pursued her education in 
Westown Boarding School, one of the schools 
of the sect near Philadelphia. By her marriage 
she became the mother of four children : Peonda 
E., who died at the age of two years; William 
G., who passed away in Oskaloosa at the age 
of twenty-two years; John T., who is engaged 
in the real-estate and abstract business in Des 
Moines ; and Albert F. N. 

In taking up the personal history of the 
last mentioned we present to our readers the 
record of one who is widely known in this citv. 
He acquired his education in the common 
schools of Poweshiek county and in the graded 
and high schools of Oskaloosa. He also reached 
the sophomore year in Penn College. As a boy 
he \\orked on the farm, driving mules and 
oxen and turning the furrows in many a field at 
the time of early sowing and planting. After 
leaxing school he kept books and clerked in his 
father's store for three years, and then engaged 
in business on his own account as a dealer in 
merchandise, grain and live stock with his 
brother, John T. Hambleton, at Springville, Linn 
county, the firm name being Hambleton Broth- 
ers. Albert F. N. Hambleton sold his interest 
in 1885 a"*^! allied himself with the firm with 
which he is now connected, becoming his fa- 
ther's successor in the abstract, real-estate, loan 
and insurance business as a member of the 
Cowan, Hambleton & Loring Company. This 
firm has a very extensive clientage, each depart- 
ment of the business having become a paying 
one. the memters of the firm being thoroughly 
informed concerning all departments of work. 



In 1879 Mr. Hambleton was married to S. 
Josepha Roberts, who was born in Morrow 
county. Ohio, in 1858, a daughter of Dr. Reu- 
ben L. and Elvira (Lewis) Roberts, the latter 
of the "Darlington Clan" of English-Scotch 
ancestry. They have had two children : Alma 
R.. who was born in 1890; and William Ross, 
who died in infancy in 1892. 

Both Mr. and Mrs. Hambleton are members 
of the Society of Friends. He has not confined 
his attention exclusively to business affairs but 
has extended his S3'mpathies and co-operation 
to \arious movements of a public nature re- 
sulting beneficially for the city and county. He 
has been secretary of the board of directors of 
Penn College since 1889 and is still one of the 
members of the board and its present treasurer. 
In ]X)litics he is an earnest republican, having 
been a delegate to state and district conventions 
for many years, and various local offices have 
been conferred upon him. He was first chosen 
clerk of the village of Springville and secretary 
of its school board. He was a member of. the 
3ilahaska county board of supervisors from 
1900 to 1903 and was chairman of the board 
in 1902. In the fall of 1903 he was elected to 
represent Mahaska county in the thirtieth gen- 
eral assembly and is now a member of the thir- 
ty-first assembly of the state. In the law-mak- 
ing body of the commonwealth he is giving 
earnest attention to the various questions which 
come up for consideration and is prompted in 
his course liy a devotion to the general good 
Avhich is above question, being chairman of 
the ]\Iines and Mining Committee, a member of 
the judiciary and other very important com- 
mittees. During his term as supervisor he had 
supervision of the new county jail and was 
also instrumental in promoting the jail project. 
Mr. Hambleton was the first president of 
the Young Men's Christian Association in Os- 
kaloosa and has been both secretary and treas- 
urer of the County Sunday-school Association. 
He was elected president of the Iowa State 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



395 



Sundav-scliool Associatit)n in 1904. and re- 
elected in 1905 and was sent as a delegate to the 
intcrnatinnal o invention in Toronto in 1905, 
and represented Iowa on the nominating com- 
mittee. He has been a trustee of the Iowa 
Yearly Meeting of Friends and was sent as a 
delegate to the Five Years Meeting of the So- 
ciety of Friends held at Indianapolis in 
190J, and was there appointed to the legisla- 
ti\-e committee of the l)od_\- and was also a mem- 
ber of the finance committee, and one of its 
original trustees in incorporation. It will 
thus be seen that his interest in those things 
which ten<! to dex'elop man's better nature, to 
place before him high ideals and ennobling rules 
of conduct have recei\ed not only the endorse- 
ment but also the co-operation of Mr. Hamble- 
tnn. whose efforts have been of a most tangible 
character, resulting beneficially for the cause 
which he represents. At the same time he is a 
typical business man of the west, alert and en- 
terprising, watchful of opportunities and yet in 
no instance has he allowed his legitimate desire 
for success to overstep the boundaries of the 
privileges and rights of others. He has pros- 
pered because of close application and untiring 
energy and has won an honored name by rea- 
son of his business integrity and his devotion 
to all that is just, right, true and beautiful in 
life. 



PHILIP GRACE. 



Philip Grace, living on section 33. Monroe 
township, is numbered among the ])nl.ilic men of 
the county and s now serving on the board of 
supervisors. His worth and progressive citi- 
zenship is of value in the community and his 
efforts in behalf of the general welfare ha\e 
been effective and far-reaching. He has made 
his home in the county since 1865, and is now 
farming a neat, productive tract of land of two 



hundred and forty acres. He was born in Ken- 
dall county. Illinois, November 13, 1843, ^ 
.son of James and Cecelia ( Hollinshead) Grace, 
the former a native of Ireland, whence he emi- 
grated to New York and afterward to Illinois, 
where he engaged in farming. He was mar- 
ried in the latter state to Miss Hollinshead. a 
native of New York, and in 1864 the family re- 
moved to Iowa, settling in Mahaska county. 
There were eight children, who were reared in 
this state. 

Philip Grace is the eldest of the family and 
spent the days of his boyhood and youth upon 
the h(ime farm, attending the common schools 
and aiding in the labors of the fields. He was 
eighteen years of age when he enlisted in behalf 
of the Union cause, becoming a member of 
Company K. One Hundred and Twenty-sev- 
enth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. The regi- 
ment rendezvoused at Chicago and thaice went 
to Memphis, Tennessee, its first battle being at 
Chickasaw Bluff.s, Mississippi. From there 
the command proceeded to Arkansas Post, and 
afterward participated in the siege of Vicks- 
burg and the battle of Champion Hills. Mr. 
Grace was wounded at Vicksburg on the 19th 
of ^lay, 1863. and was so seriously injured that 
for six months he lay in the hospital. He then 
rejoined his regiment at ^ Big Shanty, Georgia, 
on the 1 6th of June. 1864. and two days later 
he participated in the charge at Little Kenesaw 
Mountain, where several officers of the brigade 
were either killed or wounded. Later he took 
part in the battle of Atlanta on the 22(1 of July, 
1864. and on that date was captured and sent 
to Andersonville prison, where he remained for 
ninety-two days, knowing all of the hardships 
and horrors of diat southern prison pen. At 
length he was exchanged at Jonesboro. Georgia, 
and with his old company went with Sherman 
cm the celebrated march to the sea. Later the 
regiment went to \Vashington and was mus- 
tered out, after which he returned to Chicago, 
where he was honorably discharged in June, 



396 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



1865. He was a brave soldier although but a 
boy when he enlisted and is familiar with all 
of the hardships, privations and dangers meted 
out to those who defended the Union. 

After his return to the north Mr. Grace 
spent a few days in Kendall county, Illinois, 
at his childhood's home, and then came to Iowa, 
joining his father's family, who in 1864 had 
removed to this state. For fourteen years he 
engaged in the operation of a rented farm and 
then purchased sixty-two acres on North river, 
where he built a good home and further im- 
proved his farm. 

In November, 1870, Mr. Grace was united 
in marriage to Miss Sarah L. Wymore, a na- 
tive of ;\Iahaska county and a daughter of Wil- 
liam ^^'ymore, who was boni in Indiana, and 
came to this county at an early day, settling 
upon the farm where Mr. Grace now resides. 
After a time Mr. Grace sold his sixty-two acres 
of land and ]Mrs. Grace inherited a portion of 
her father's fann, and Mr. Grace purchased 
the remainder from the odier heirs. Since that 
time he has added eighty acres and now has a 
splendid property of two hundred and forty 
acres. He has placed many excellent improve- 
ments upon the farm, has cleared and fenced 
the land and has his fields under a high state 
of cultivation. He has also dug a deep well, 
furnishing an abundant supply of water, has 
erected good buildings and has cleared seventy 
acres from the brush. E\erything about his 
place in well kept, showing his careful super- 
vision and practical methods and he is regarded 
as one of the successful farmers of his county. 

Mr. ■ Grace has lost his first wife. There 
were eight children by that marriage, six of 
whom are now li\'ing : James W., a resident of 
Hastings, Oklahoma; Fred, who resides in 
Adams township; John, in ^^ladison township; 
Theresa Aelene, the wnfe of George Kirk, of 
Madison township ; and Elam and Henr)% who 
are carr\-ing on the home farm. For his sec- 
ond wife Mr. Grace chose IMiss Ella McCloud. 



a native of Ohio, and a daughter of Albert 
McCloud, who is still living in this county. 
Six children have been bom of the second mar- 
riage, but the eldest, Herbin, died at the age 
of four years, and ]\Iary passed away a year 
later. The others are Maggie, Madge and Maud, 
twins, and Emory. 

Mr. and Mrs. Grace attend the Union church 
and Mr. Grace is a member of the Grand Army 
post at Rose Hill. He is likewise connected 
with the Odd Fellows lodge at that place and 
he and his wife are members of the Rebekah 
lodge, while his sons Elam and John, are like- 
wise connected with the Odd Fellows lodge. Po- 
liticallv ]Mr. Grace is a strong republican, hav- 
ing supported the party since attaining" his ma- 
joritv. He has served in some township of- 
fices, the duties of which he has discharged in 
a capable maimer, and in Januar}-, 1906, he 
was appointed to fill a vacancy on the board of 
supen-isors. so that he is the present incumbent 
in the office. In all matters of citizenship he is 
as loyal as when he followed the old flag upon 
the southern battle-fields and he belongs to that 
class of citizens who uphold the political, legal 
and moral status of the communitv. 



H. FRANK HARBOUR. 

H. Frank Harbour, a prominent mason and 
contractor of Beacon, well deserving of repre- 
sentation in this volume by reason of his per- 
sonal worth and the fact that he is connected 
with one of the prominent and esteemed fami7 
lies of the county, was bom in Oskaloosa, 
March 25, 1853, which indicates a connection 
of the family with this part of the state from 
pioneer times. His father, Richard R. Har- 
bour, was a native of Patrick county, \"irginia, 
and came to Iowa soon after INIahaska county 
was thrown open for settlement. He was a 
mason and bricklayer b_\- trade and he manu- 



■p 




^F>ii 











II. V. ilARi;( )L'R. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



399 



factured the first brick ever made in Oskali)osa 
and erected tlie first brick buikling of the city. 
He did tlie masonry work for the Iowa Central 
Railroad and Ic ir the Union Pacific Railroad in 
this town and was prominent and active in in- 
dnstrial attairs, contribnting in large measure 
to the substantial improvement of this city. He 
was at one time editor and proprietor of the 
Oskaloosa Times, and was an active factor in 
political circles. His fellow townsmen, recog- 
nizing his worth and ability and his fitness for 
leadershii), called him to represent his district 
in the lower house of the legislature and after- 
ward in the state senate. He went west during 
the mining e.xcitement in i860 and while liv- 
ing in Colorado was elected a member of the 
territorial legislature. .\t the time of the Civil 
war he espoused the cause of the Union and 
joined Company A, Second Colorado Regi- 
ment, which was raised in Summit county. He 
was chosen to the captaincy of the company and 
his valor and meritorious conduct on the field 
of battle led to his promotion to the rank of 
colonel. A splendid painting in water colors 
in his uniform of colonel is now in possession 
of his son. PI. Frank Harbour, and is a picture 
of which the son has ex'erj^ reason to be proud. 
He died in April, 1888, and a life of usefulness 
and honor was thus terminated — a life that had 
been of benefit to his fellowmen aking many 
lines of progress and improvement. His wife 
bore the maiden name of Mary C. Roop and 
was a native of Ohio. She still survives her 
husband and is now living in Oskaloosa. The 
sons of the family are: Benton S., a resident of 
Oskaloosa: J. L., of Boston, Massachusetts, 
lecturer and author, who was for seventeen 
years associate editor of the Youth's Compan- 
ion, the leading ju\enile journal of the coun- 
try; Benjamin A., who is a mason and con- 
tractor living in Los Angeles, California, and 
who was prominent in labor circles in Colorado 
and the west. He was elected to the Utah leg- 
islature but resigned and volunteered for serv- 
19 



ice in the Philippines. He was wounded in the 
first engagement with the insurgents and was 
for four months in the army hospital in the 
Philippines and for four months in the military 
hos])ita] at San Francisco. The daughters of 
the family are: Mrs. lona Virginia Woodbury, 
the wife of A. J. \\'oodbury, of Denver, Colo- 
rado; Mary Frances, the wife of A. A. Whitte- 
more, of Ogden, Utah; Nellie, the wife of A. 
E. Sciple, a newspaper man of Council Bluffs 
connected with the Iowa Register. 

H. Frank Harbour, the other member of the 
family, is indebted to the district-school system 
of Mahaska county for the educational privi- 
leges he enjoyed. He continued his studies 
until twenty years of age, when he began learn- 
ing the trade of brick-laying and masonry. He 
has erected many of the buildings of Oskaloosa 
and in conjunction with his brother, Benjamin, 
did the masonry work on the Rock Island de- 
pot, also the old power house plant and the 
building occu])ied by the Huber-Kalbach 
Company. He built the McMillen block and 
has also done considerable work in this county, 
Grinnell, Eddyville and Albia. He had charge 
oi the masonry work on the Central Methodist 
Episcopal church in Oskaloosa and was in 
charge of the masonry work on the Carnegie 
library building erected in the county seat. In 
1889 he went to Denver. Colorado, where he 
remained until 1893. 

]\Ir. Harbour has been married twice. On 
the 23d of December, 1875, he wedded Mary S. 
Pugh. and unto them were born two children : 
^lyrtle M., now the wife of Herman Harris, of 
Garfield township, living about five miles west 
of Oskaloosa, and who was a successful teacher 
in the district schools prior to her marriage; 
and Ralph Frederick, who is associated with 
his father in contract work and who married 
Miss Cora \\'oodward. The first wife of Mr. 
Harbour passed away November 21, 1893, •t'"^' 
on the 15th of March, 1895, he wedded Mrs. 
Ella Carson, the widow of Isaac Carson, of 



400 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Albia. By her former marriage she had three 
children : Walter, Henrietta and Ethel. 

In politics Mr. Harbour is a democrat. He 
was elected assessor for two terms and for one 
term served as township clerk. He has frequent- 
ly been sent as a delegate to the county conven- 
tions and is one of the stalwart advocates of 
democracy in this locality. Mrs. Harbour and 
the family are members of the Presbyterian 
church. The family residence is pleasantly lo- 
cated about a lialf mile southwest of the vil- 
lage of Beacon in Garfield township and is an 
attractive country home, justly celebrated for 
its wann-hearted and cordial hospitality. Mr. 
Harbour made by hand all the brick used in 
the construction of the fine home which he oc- 
cupies at present, surrounded by fifty-five acres 
of good land. He has been a prominent fac- 
tor of business interests in his native county for 
many vears and a large number of substantial 
structures stand as monuments to his enter- 
prise, skill and ability in the line of his chosen 
occupation. 



ALEXANDER L. SMITH. 

Alexander L. Smith owns and operates a 
good farm on section 12, Efnion township. He 
was born in Jefferson county. New York, July 
2, 1837, and is a son of Alexander L. and Re- 
becca (Carroll) Smith. The mother died in 
New York when her son Alexantler was only 
seven or eight years of age. The father was 
born in New Jersey, and was three times mar- 
ried, his last wife lieing Sarah A. Raymond, 
who died at Monmnuth. Illinois, at the very ad- 
vanced age of ninety-seven years. His death 
occurred at die home of his son, L. M. Smidi, 
in Union township, -when he was eighty-fi\e 
years of age. When only a lad he ran away 
from home and became a sailor on the Atlantic 
and during the war of 18 12 he was captain on 



the United States frigate. Congress. He was 
on the ocean for fourteen years and made voy- 
ages to various ports. On one trip he vis- 
ited I'alestine. He was a man of good edu- 
cation, whose knowledge was greatly broadened 
by travel and experience and he could speak 
several different languages. After leaving the 
east he settled upon a tract of five acres in Jef- 
ferson county. New York, and there engaged 
in gardening. In 1854 he went to Illinois and 
was a gardener in the town of Burwick, near 
Monmouth. Later he was employed somewhat 
in the capacity of a janitor at the college in 
Abingdon, Illinois. When he became quite old 
he made his home with his son Lafayette in Un- 
ion township, and spent his last days in Ma- 
haska county. He had seven children, all born 
of the first marriage but only three are now 
living: Lafayette M.. of Union township; 
Eugene E.. who is living near Barnes City, 
this state; and Alexander L. 

In his father's home Alexander L. Smidi 
spent the days of his boyhood and youth and at- 
tended the district schools. In early life he 
learned and followed the blacksmith's trade for 
a time and in May, 1861, he responded, to the 
country's call for volunteers, enlisting at Mon- 
mouth, Illinois. The troops were sent to Bur- 
lington, Iowa, and he was attached to the Eirst 
Iowa Batteiy as a private. He then went to 
St. Louis, Missouri, and afterward to the front. 
About the time of the battle of Pea Ridge, Ar- 
kansas, he became ill \\ith fever and was sent 
home on a furlough, and before he was able 
to rejoin his command, orders were issued by 
General C. Helleck, granting a discharge to all 
not able for active service. Thus ]vlr. Smith 
was mustered out of service in the latter part of 
the summer of 1862. 

Subsequently he came to Iowa and was em- 
ployed at farm labor by the month, spending 
two years in the service of J. J. Klinker. With 
the capital acquired through his industry and 
economy he then purchased forty acres of land. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



40 r 



on \vhich he has since made his home, .\bout 
five acres had been cleared and a Httle log- house 
had been built. He has since extended the 
boundaries of his farm by purchase of an addi- 
tional forty acres and has built two frame 
houses on the farm, also good barns and other 
modern equipments. 

In 1865 .Mr. .Smith was married to Miss 
Mar_\' Jane Klinker. w ho died a few years later, 
and in 1872 he wedded Rebecca Barnes, who 
was born in Illinois, March 11, 1849. They 
have one son, Clayton Roy, who married Miss 
Myrtle Jones and to them has been born a son. 
Herman L. They reside upon the old home 
farm in one of the houses Iniiit Ijy Mr. .Smith 
and the snn now operates the land, his father 
having lieen totally blind for the past eleven 
years, the result of tlie effect of fever con- 
tracted while in the armw He n(_)w receives a 
pension of one hundred dollars per month, to 
which he is justly entitled. In his political 
affiliation lie is a democrat, and both he and his 
wife are members of the Ba]:)tist church. His 
life has lieen a busy and useful one. and al- 
though his history contains no exciting chap- 
ters, it has been characterized by faithfulness in 
citizenship, honesty in business and reliability 
in all I'elations. 



H.\RMOX .\KKRM.\X. 

Harmon Akcrman is one of the active and 
leading business men of l-'remont. where he is 
engaged in buying and shipj^ing stock, giving 
his attention to the business here for the past 
eleven years. He was bom upon the old family 
homestead in Mahaska county, .\pril 4, 1854. 
His entire life has been ])assed in bremont and 
he is today the only resident of the \illage who 
has li\ed here through fifty-two consecutive 
years. His father, Philip .\kerman. was a na- 



tive of (iermany, being hjrn in Bavaria in 
1829. On coming to the new world he settled 
first in Ohio and was there married to Johanna 
I'rederica (ioehring, also a native of Germany. 
In the year 1851 he removed westward with his 
wife and settled in Fremont, Iowa. A black- 
smith by trade, he opened and conducted a shop 
here for several years, after which he traded 
the shop and business for a general store. He 
afterward engaged in buying land and gave his 
attention to farming, stock-raising and dealing 
in li\-e stock. He owned a farm partly within 
and partly without the corporation limits of 
Fremont, and, making judicious investments 
in propert}', ultimately became the owner of 
nearly one thousand acres. He was one of the 
largest stock feeders and shippers in this pan 
of Iowa and was engaged in the business here 
for a number of years. The extent and im- 
portance of his business interests made him one 
of the leading and prosperous citizens of the 
county, where he continued to make his home 
until his death, which occurred in Fremont. 
J'eliruary 27, 1895. His wife ])assed away 
February 14, 1892. 

Harmon Akerman is the eldest in a family of 
three sons and three daughters, the others being 
as follows : Emma, the wife of L. A. Springer, 
of Fremont; George W'., a prominent real-es- 
tate dealer of Fremont, who is mentioned else- 
where in this work; Albert, who managed the 
Hiteman Supply Company store and who mar- 
ried Clara, a daughter of Dr. D. C. Dinsmore. 
of Kirkville. Iowa, and whose death occurred 
September 27, 1893; Maggie, the wife of C, 
X. Xeil, of Fremont: and- Lettic. the wife of 
S. K. Heinzman. of Oskaloosa. 

Harmon Akcrman was reared (Ml the old 
homestead and pursued his education in the 
schools of I'remont and of Ottumwa. He af- 
terward resided with his father and assisted in 
carrving on the home farm until his father's 
death, after which he conducted business along 
similar lines on hi-; own ;iccount buying and 



402 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



shipping stock and also feeding to some extent. 
His fatlier built the residence upon the old 
homestead which is now occupied by the subject 
of this review. He is an excellent judge of 
stock, so that he makes judicious purchases and 
profitable sales and is numbered among the lead- 
ing representatives of this business in Ma- 
haska county. 

Mr. Akerman was married in Fremont May 
6, 1886, to Miss Ollie McClain, who was born 
November 18, 1864, and reared in this county. 
She is a consistent member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church and a regular attendant upon 
its services. Five children have been born of 
this union, of whom three sons sundve : Earl 
H., November 29. 1886; John L., August 
4, 1888; and Fred C, August 8, 1894. Mrs. 
Akerman's father, Samuel McClain, was 
born September 2, 1830, in Harrison coun- 
ty, Ohio, where he grew to manhood and 
on December 9, 1852, was married to Jane 
English, who was born in the same county, 
February 11, 1835. He with his family moved 
to Mahaska county, Iowa, in 1855, and in 1864 
located on a farm near Fremont on which he 
lived until his death, which occurred Januar}^ 
II, 1 901. To them were born nine children, 
five sons and four daughters, six of whom are 
still living as follows : Agnes, the wife of H. 
H. Gearhart, of Ashland, Oregon ; Seward J., 
who married Lilly, daughter of William Dins- 
more, of Fremont; Ollie, wife of the subject of 
this sketch; Nova, wife of Charles Wilson, of 
Wright, Iowa; Asa W., wdio married Rhoda, 
daughter of J. O. White, of Fremont; Nellie, 
wife of W. C. McDowell, of Fremont. The 
deceased children are: Joseph N., who died 
October 9, 1855, aged two years; Jennison, who 
died May 12, 1870, aged three months; and 
Wade, who died July i, 1881, aged nineteen 
years, seven months and twenty days. Mrs. 
McClain is still living and is past seventy-one 
years old. ' She and her husband were of Irish 
descent. 



Mr. Akerman is well known in Fremont, 
Oskaloosa and Ottumwa, and, indeed, through- 
out Mahaska and Wapello counties, and he 
has the confidence and esteem of the entire 
community, being recognized as a public-spir- 
ited citizen as well as a prosperous business 
man. He has been found reliable in all of his 
dealings, while his co-operation can be counted 
upon to further progressive public measures, 
and in his social relations he manifests a kindly 
and considerate spirit which has gained for 
him manv warm friends. 



E. HERBERT OWENS. 

E. Herbert Owens, filling the office of county 
surveyor, was born in Rockwell City, Iowa, in 
1879 and now makes his home in Oskaloosa. 
His parents were James and Nancy (Terrell) 
Owens, the former a native of Wisconsin and 
the latter of Iowa. They now reside in Law- 
rence, Kansas, Mr. Owens having reached the 
age of sixty-seven years, while his wife is fifty- 
se\'en years of age. They are sincere and de- 
voted members of the Christian church and 
Mr. Owens is a retired fanner, who after many 
years of active connection with agricultural in- 
terests is now enjoying a well earned rest. In 
the family were four children : Alpha, who is 
now in the Crerar Library in Chicago ; E. Her- 
bert, of this review ; Fred, who is professor of 
mathematics in the Northwestern University in 
Chicago : and Celia, who is in school. 

E. Herbert Owens was a student in the high 
school at Lake City, Iowa, and in the Kansas 
University at Lawrence, from which he was 
graduated in the class of 1901. He taught for 
a vear in Arkansas City, Kansas, being teacher 
of mathematics in the high school, after which 
he became professor of mathematics and sur- 
vevor in Penn College at Oskaloosa. He then 
took up civil engineering and in 1903 was ap- 




E. H. UA\"ENS. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



405 



pointed to fill ri wicaiicy in the office of county 
survevor. in the fall of the same year he was 
elected to the position which he has since iinn- 
orably and capably filled. 

In igoi Air. Owens was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Edmondson. who was liorn in C"o\- 
ington, Kentucky, in ^S^'t) and is a daughter of 
lames and Mary Edmondson, now living' re- 
tired. Mr. and Mrs. Owens have two daugh- 
ters. P;'.ulinc and Marian. Mr. Owens belongs 
to the l-'irst Presbyterian church and his wife 
to the United Presbyterian church and in poli- 
tics he is a republican. He has erected an at- 
tractive cottage on North Tenth street, where he 
and his wife are now living and the hospitalit}' 
of their pleasant home is greatly enjoyed by 
their manv friends. 



PROFESSOR JAMES P. DODDS. 

James P. Dodds, seiwing for the fourth term 
as county superintendent of schools of Ma- 
haska count}-, was born in Crawford county, 
Ohio. His father, John Dodds, was born in 
Penns}d\ania and comes of Irish ancestry. The 
paternal grandfather, James Dodds, came from 
Ireland to the United States at an early day. 
John Dodds arrived in Iowa about 1861, locat- 
ing in Oskaloosa, where lie spent the winter and 
in the spring Ixjught a farm in Adams town- 
ship, where he carried on general agricultural 
pursuits until 1880. In the meantime, having 
acquired a handsome competence tliat made him 
a man of affluence, he then retired from active 
business life and once more took up his abode 
in Oskalcxisa, where he is now living in his 
eighty-si.\th year. He attends the Methodist 
Episcopal ciiurch and has membership rela- 
tions with the Masonic fraternity, while in his 
political views he is a republican. His worth 
and ability lieing recognized by his party and 
his fellow citizens, he was called to represent 



iiis district in the general assembly to fill a va- 
cancy, lie also held township offices and his 
intlucnce has l)een a potent factor for good and 
])rogress in the community. He was in early 
life a teacher, following that profession for a 
number of years and some of his children were 
among his pupils at different times. A man of 
excellent business ability, his agricultural in- 
terests were so capably controlled that he ac- 
cumulated over five hundred acres of land. He 
married Miss Letta Bobo, who was born in Vin- 
ton. Ohio, and died in April, 1896, in her sev- 
entieth year. She was of a French and German 
lineage anil a daughter of Ezekiel Bobo, who 
was a farmer. Both he and his wife died in 
Ohio. Air. and Airs. John Dodds became the 
parents of eight children, as follows : James 
P. : William E., a practicing physician of Rich- 
land, Iowa; Sarah E., the wife of Paul Chaney, 
a merchant, dealing in electrical goods in Kan- 
sas City, AIis.souri ; Esther Virginia, the wife 
of Joseph Larimer, an engineer of the Iowa 
Central Railroad, making his home in Oska- 
loosa ; John C. who is employed by the Santa 
Fe Railroad Company at Omaha, Nebraska; 
Mary F., living in Oskaloosa; Carrie L., the 
widow of Herbert Gamble, at one time superin- 
tendent of the Oskaloosa \\'ater Works, his fa- 
ther having built the plant ; and Lida L., who is 
head stenographer of a prominent stock broker 
in New York cit}-. 

James P. Dodds was reared upon a farm and 
attended the district schools, after which he en- 
tered the Iowa Wesleyan University in 1875, 
pursuing the work of a scientific course for one 
term. Later he spent two years in Oskaloosa 
College and was graduated from the State 
Normal School in June. 1888. with the degree 
of Bachek)r of Science. In the meantime he 
had engaged in teaching and after devoting 
some time to educational work in the country 
schools he became a teacher in the graded 
schools of Richland. Iowa, spending one year 
as principal there. He ne.xt became principal 



4o6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



of tlie scliools at Farniingtun. Iowa, and in 
1885 was made principal of the liigh school at 
Sigourney, where he remained for two years. 
He afterward entered the State Normal School 
and in 1888-89 was superintendent of schools 
at Brooklyn. Iowa. There he gave such good 
satisfaction that he was offered the position for 
another year, but he received a more advanta- 
geous offer from Sigourney. the people desir- 
ing that he become superintendent of schools 
nf that place. He accepted and under his 
guidance the schools made satisfactory and ra- 
pid progress during the four years of his incum- 
bency in office. In 1893 he resigned and pur- 
chased the Horton Head Light, a newspaper at 
Horton, Kansas, which he published for a year, 
when he sold out and returned to Oskaloosa, 
emljarking in the grocery business, in which he 
c(jntinued for a year. He then sold his store 
anil in 1896-7 was superintendent of schools 
at Grundy Center, Iowa. On the expiration 
of that period he came again to Oskaloosa and 
was elected principal of the fifth ward school. 
acting in that capacity for a little more than a 
year. In 1900 he was elected county superin- 
tendent of schools and is now serving the fourth 
term in that position. Under his guidance the 
standard of the schools has been raised and 
their proficiency augmented. 

In 1884. Professor Dodds was married to 
Miss Clara Simpson, who was torn in Sigour- 
ney. Iowa, a daughter of Judge and Ezekiel S. 
and Ellen ( McCann) Sampson, the latter of 
English and Irish ancestry. Judge Sampson 
was one of the able men of his day. He sat 
upon the bench in the sixth judicial district for 
twelve years, being one of the strong and ca- 
pable members of the bar, who have left the im- 
press of their individuality upon the judicial 
history of the state. He also represented the 
sixth district in congress for three terms and 
was an actix'e working member of the house, 
being deeply interested in many of its construct- 
ive measures. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Dodds have 



lieen born two sons : James Harold, who was 
born December 7. 1S90. in Sigourney; and Ed- 
win Clair, born in Sigourney, January 17, 1893. 
]\Ir. and Mrs. Dodds are members of the 
First Presbyterian church, in which he has 
ser\-ed as elder. He is now one of the church 
trustees and is teacher of the Bible class in the 
Sunday-school. He is a republican in his po- 
litical views and has been an earnest student of 
the great cjuestions affecting the welfare of state 
and nation. He holds a teacher's state life di- 
ploma and is one of the organizers, a director 
and the secretary nf the Oskaloosa Chautauqua 
Association. He is also the author of a note- 
book for teachers' institutes. His labors in be- 
half of public education have been far-reaching 
and beneficial, making him one of the best 
known educators in Iowa. He is a gentleman 
of liroad humanitarian principles and high 
scholarly attainments and moreover is imbued 
with a spirit of sympathy that has won him 
the respect and confidence of his fellowmen. 



CHARLES -MILLER. 



Charles ^Miller is the owner of one of the most 
beautiful country homes of Poweshiek county 
and this part of Iowa. It is situated on section 
32. Sugar Creek township, and here he took up 
his abode about twehe years ago, up to which 
time he had resided in Mahaska county, so that he 
is widely known in the latter county, and in 
fact, throughout this part of the state. He was 
born in Logan county. Ohio, February 26, 
1 84 1, a son of George and Sarah (Brown) 
Miller, the former born in Maryland in 1794, 
and the latter in Virginia in 1804. They were 
married in Ohio and the father there followed 
cabinet-making, carpentering and other mechan- 
ical pursuits. He came to loAva in 1857, pur- 
chasing one hundred and twenty acres of land 
in Prairie township. r\Iahaska county. It was 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



407 



tlien a wild and unimproved tract, a little log 
cabin constituting the only building upon it. 
For a year the family lived in that pioneer 
home, at the end of which time Mr. Miller 
added a frame addition, and i\]Kin that farm 
he continued to reside until called to his final 
rest at the very advanced age of ninety years. 
His wife also passed away in Mahaska county 
when si.xty years of age. Tn their family were 
seven children, five sons and two daughters, of 
whom Charles is the youngest. One of his 
brothers. George Miller, is living in Perry. 
Kansas, while Samuel resides at Rich Hill. Mis- 
souri. The others ha\'e departed this life. 

Charles Miller acquired but a limited edu- 
cation in the schools of his native state, and 
when si.xteen years of age came to Iowa with 
his parents. From that time on he worked as 
a farm hand by the month, and after he was 
eighteen vears of age his wages, which had 
hithertn lieen given to his father, were retained 
by him for his own use. When twenty years of 
age he took charge of his father's farm and after- 
ward cared for his ]:)arents throughout the re- 
mainder of their days. Mr. Miller'sfirst purchase 
of land in addition to the old home property was 
a tract of forty acres. His entire life has been 
devoted to agricultural jiursuits. and lie has pur- 
chased land from time to time, now owning 
nearly four thousand acres in ^lahaska and 
Poweshiek counties, lieing therefore one of the 
most extensive landowners of the state. His 
investments ha\e been judiciously made and his 
propertv interests are today very \aluable. He 
resided in Mahaska county until about twelve 
years ago. when he remo\ed to his present farm 
on section 7,2. Sugar Creek township, Powe- 
shiek county, just a half mile across the ]\Ia- 
haska comity line. Here he erected a palatial 
home, costing more than five thousand dol- 
lars. It is one of the finest country residences 
in this part of the state, built in pleasing style 
of architecture, while its furnishings are all that 
wealth can secure and refined taste suggest. Mr. 



-Miller has always been an extensive stock feeder 
and in years past bought as high as one hundred 
lliousand bushels of corn annually to feed his 
stock. Fie has shipped at times whole train 
loads of cattle and hogs, and though he is not 
carrying on the business cjuite as extensively as 
formerly, he still buys corn and feeds cattle on 
a large .scale. He likewise owns two elevators 
at Taintor. a mile and a quarter from his hoiue, 
where he has enormous corn cribs for storing 
com. He is interested in several other enter- 
prises, being a dealer in lumljer and agricultural 
implements in Taintor and a ])artner in various 
firms for the buying and selling of stock. In 
fact the e.xtent and importance of his business 
enterprises make him one of the leading repre- 
seiitati\'es of commercial and agricultural in- 
terests in this part of Iowa and his labors have 
been so well directed as to gain for him a po- 
sition of prominence among the substantial 
citizens of the state. 

In 1864 Mr. Aliller was united in marriage 
to Miss ^lartha Beal, a daughter of William 
Pieal. one of the early residents of Mahaska 
county. She died in 1872, leaving a son and a 
daughter: Porter R., who is married and lives 
in the Indian Territory, where he is engaged 
ill stock-raising: and luta. the wife of ,\. B. 
Hull, a farmer and merchant of Taintcir. Mr. 
^filler was again married in 1873. his second 
union being with Delia JNIoore, a daughter of 
George Moore, one of the early settlers of Iowa, 
who li\-ed for many years in Mahaska county. 
By the second marriage there have been five 
chiklren, and the family circle yet remains un- 
lirokeu Ijy the hand of death. The record is as 
follows: Ernest G.. who married Grace Stan- 
ley and lives on a farm in Poweshiek county; 
Loto C. the wife of Charles Linstead, who re- 
sides near Taintor on one of her father's farms; 
C. T., who married Miss Steen and resides 
upon the old homestead farm in Mahaska 
countv; Fern, who is with her parents; and 
Adt'lla. who is attending school in Oskaloosa. 



4o8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Mr. Miller lias witnessed great changes in 
the county and in business conditions in Iowa. 
He made his first shipments of hogs to Chicago 
in 1 86 1, sending nine hogs which sold at a 
dollar and a half per hundred and brought him 
thirty-seven dollars. In the early days he en- 
gaged to drive hogs to Ottumwa, receiving 
forty cents per day for the work. He went 
without his dinner and he had no overcoat nor 
overshoes. Though he has accumulated a vast 
amount of property he can look back to the days 
when his possessions were extremely limited 
and he has met re^-erses and obstacles in his 
path. }-et has o\-ercome these by determined and 
earnest purpose. He has never been known to 
take advantage of the necessities of his fellow- 
men in any business transaction, but through 
tlie legitimate channels of trade and investment 
has won gratifying and admirable success. 
His mind goes back to the days when hotises 
were illuminated in the most primitive man- 
ner, a rag stuck in a pan of grease serving to 
hght the room. Later candles were in use and 
then came kerosene lamps, which \\'ere thought 
to be a wonderful imjM-ovement upon the for- 
mer methods of illumination. Today he has a 
beautiful home of his own designing with hard- 
\\'ood finish tliroughout and heated with hot 
water. One of the most attracti\'e features 
is the large open fireplace in the sitting room, 
making a most cheery picture in winter days. 
Mr. ^.filler has traveled quite extensively and 
on one occasion went back to the old home in 
Ohio. There looking over the old farm, he 
came to the conclusion that his father had 
done well to raise and support a family there. 
In politics Mr. Miller has always been a demo- 
crat, yet does not consider himself bound by 
party ties and when he thinks the best interests 
of community, county or countrv' demand his 
support of a repuljlican candidate he does not 
hesitate to scratch his party ticket. Several 
years ago lie was a candidate for state repre- 
sentative on the democratic ticket and his per- 



sonal popularity and the confidence reposed in 
him by his fellow townsmen is indicated by 
the fact that he ran eight hundred votes ahead 
of the ticket. He has never aspired to office, 
Ijut has held minor township positions. He is 
spoken of in terms of good will and friendship 
l)y man}- who know him and he has a very wide 
and favorable accjuaintance in Mahaska county 
as ^\•ell as in Poweshiek county, his home be- 
ing near the division line. His life has indeed 
been well spent, and he certainly deserves the 
success which has crowned his undertakings. 



W ILLIAM H. illXARD. 

\\'illiam PI. Minard. li\-ing on section 33, 
Spring Creek township, devotes his time and 
energ'ies to farming, his place comprising forty 
acres of good land. He is a native of Ohio, 
ha^•ing been bom in Erie county on the i ith of, 
August, 1852. His father, Frederick A. Min- 
ard. was a native of Connecticut, but settled in 
Ohio in early life and there followed the occu- 
pation of farming. There William was reared 
upon the homestead fann, assisting his father in 
the operation of the land and enjoying the ad- 
vantages of the common schools. In 1872 the 
father, with his family of four children, re- 
moved to Nebraska, then regarded as the Em- 
pire state of the west, and settled in Merrick 
count)-, where he bought one hundred and sixty 
acres of land. His wife bore the maiden name 
of Sarah N. Cobb, and was a daughter of 
Raliih Cobb and a native of the Empire state. 

Following the removal of the family to Ne- 
braska \\'illiam H. Minard remained at home 
for three years, after which he rented land and 
began farming on his own account. As a com- 
panion and helpmate for life's journey he chose 
I\Iiss Jennie Sliter. to whom he was niarried 
March 10, 1877, She is a native of Indiana 
and a daughter of Henn' Sliter, who was born 




.MR. AXJJ MKS. W. II. .M1.\-\R1). 



TAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



411 



in New ^'n^k Inil later removed to Indiana, 
and afterward became a resident of Merrick 
county, Nebraska, in which locahty his daugh- 
ter formed the acquaintance of WilHam Min- 
ard. to whom she afterward gave her hand in 
marriage. The young couple lived upon a 
rented farm for some years and thai with the 
capital saved from his earnings Mr. Minard 
purchased eighty acres of his father's place. 
Subse(|uently he sold that property and bought 
a liver}- stable in Central City, Nebraska, con- 
ducting it for two years, on the expiration of 
which time he sold nut. He then moved west- 
ward to Perkins cnunty, Nebraska, where he 
homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres of 
land and began to improve a farm. He there 
built a house and fenced eighty acres of the 
land, dug a deep well and put in a w ind ])ump. 
.\s time passed by his labors resulted in the de- 
velopment of a good farm, upon which the fam- 
ily li\e<l for four years, when the drought and 
grasshoppers caused the destruction of crops, 
and as there was no income, in consequence Mr. 
Minard was compelled to sacrifice his home 
there, selling out at a liig loss because of the 
impmvements which he had placed on the prop- 
erty. With his family he then started eastward, 
not knciwing where he would settle until he 
reached the fertile and well watered prairies of 
^lahaska county. Being .so well pleased with 
the appearance of this locality and its prospects 
he here determined to start in life anew. He 
had brought with him what household efifects 
he could carry, also some cattle and young 
colts. The latter became so footsore that Mr. 
IMinanl had to have boots made of old leather 
to protect their feet. It was in 1890 that, trav- 
eling in emigrant style, Mr. Minard reached 
I\rahaska county. He determined to remain 
licre and rented a farm near Oskaloosa, where 
he engaged in the dairy business for eleven 
years. He next spent five seasons on a farm 
near New Sharon, and at the end of that time 
removed to his present farm on section 33, 



.Spring Creek township, liuying forty acres of 
imprii\ed land, on which was a good house, 
barn and outbuildings, the place being pleas- 
antlv located within three miles of Oskaloosa. 
Here he has since carried on general farming 
and whatex'cr success he has achieved is at- 
trilnitable entirely to his own efforts, his prop- 
erty being the visible evidence '<f his life of 
energ}- and thrift. 

Cnto Mr. and ■Mrs. Minard have been born 
se\en children, of whom five are yet living, 
while Edith May died in Nebraska at the age 
of one year, and one other was killed by a train 
on the Rock Island Railroad at the age of four- 
teen months. The eldest living is Jay S., who is 
m;u-ried and resides in New Sharon: Mabel, at 
home; Raymond, who assists in carrying on the 
farm; William and Nellie, also at home. Both 
Mr. and Mrs. Minard are members of the Bap- 
tist church, of Oskaloosa, and have been identi- 
fied with the denomination for twenty-fiveyears. 
Politically he is a good republican, always sup- 
porting the men and measures of the party, and 
he keeps well infomied on the questions and 
issues of the day. Although he has met with 
re\-erses and obstacles, he has persevered in his 
business career and as the years have gone by 
has worked so earnestly and indefatigably that 
now he is in possession of a comfortable home 
and is earning a good living. 



REV. JAMES D. GUTHRIE. 

Rev. James D. Guthrie, a man of remarkable 
character and superior mental attainments, who 
in his life work has displayed great strength of 
purpose and has won success where many 
others wiiuld have met failure because of a lack 
of advantages, is today known as one of the 
strong and able ministers of the Christian 
church and as a business man of capability, suc- 
cessfullv connected with coal mining operations 



41 -' 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



in this section of Iowa. He was born in Wells 
county, Indiana, September 19, 1840, a son of 
James and Nancy (Com) Guthrie. Of the 
sons of the family two died in childhood, while 
Faulkner was drowned in the north fork of the 
Platte river when on his way to California in 
185 1, and Leroy was killed in the battle of Shi- 
loh in the Civil war. Harvey, who went to Cal- 
ifornia in an early day, died in the west, leaving 
Rev. Guthrie the only surviving son of 
the family. His sisters are as follows: Annie, 
the wife of John Harvey, who afterward mar- 
ried Solomon Frye, of Jasper county, and is 
ncnv deceased: .Vlexia, the wife of J. M. \\'il- 
liams, of Jasper county: Eveline, deceased wife 
of Francis Hughes, of Jasper county : Clarissa, 
the deceased wife of Preston Cowman, of Cla- 
rion county, Iowa; Melissa, the wife of William 
Blankenship. now of Tipton, California ; and 
Permelia, the wife of (leorge Gilbert, of Jef- 
ferson county, Iowa, who is deceased. 

Rev. ( iuthrie came with his parents to Iowa 
when but three and a half years old, the family 
settling in JeiTerson count)-, and on the 5th of 
March, 1845, I'ley took up their abode in Jas- 
per county, near the town of Monroe. James 
D. Guthrie never saw a school until he was 
al)(jut twelve years of age, when he was per- 
mitted to attend for three months, and when 
eighteen years of age three months more, but 
otherwise had no educational advantages in his 
},'outli. In the school of experience, however, 
he learned many valuable lessons and his ambi- 
tion became stimulated for further intellectual 
development and prowess. Nothwithstanding 
his early lack of o])piirtunities he has made 
steady progress in every w'alk of life with which 
he has become connected. He remained upon 
the farm until 1869, when he rciuoved to Oska- 
loosa, and in the fall of 1870 entered Oskaloosa 
College at the age of thirty years when, as he 
declares, he "did not know an adjective from a 
noun." He attended college until 1876, when 
he received two diploiuas; He won the degree 



of Bachelor of Arts and received a .diploma 
from the classical biblical department. 

During the first two years which he spent in 
college he did much evangelical work and his 
naturally strong mentality, his magnetism and 
his forcefulness won for him a wide reputation 
as a pulpit orator. He was enabled to sway 
his audiences by the power of his logical reason- 
ing and emotion, and he won scores of converts 
to the church. Much speaking, howe\'er. in- 
jured his throat and for five years he was 
obliged to discontinue his work in the ministry. 

During this period Dr. Guthrie became in- 
terested in coal mining and about 1875 joined 
his brother-in-law, R. T. C. Lord, in developing 
coal fields west of Oskaloosa College, but the 
following year, 1876, sold his interest to his 
partner. In 1878 he won the degree of Master 
of Arts at Oskaloosa College. The previous 
vear, 1877, he began business as a coal operator 
on his own account on the land on which he yet 
resides south of Third avenue, on the Oskaloosa 
and Knoxville highway. In this business he 
has met with splendid success, developing die 
coal fields along modern lines and finding a ready 
sale for his product, so that his income Iiecame 
large and gratifying. A man of resourceful 
business ability, he has the power to group and 
co-ordinate, which has made him a man of af- 
fairs. In 1882 he began the manufacture of 
Ijrick, building his own kiln and continuing in 
the business for several years, but he finally 
aliandoned that industrial concern. He is still 
a coal operator, however, and in this connec- 
tion has conducted a profitable business. 

Never for an instant has Rev. Guthrie ceased 
to grow intellectually and he has wrested from 
die hands of fate the opportunities which he 
was denied in early years. In 1896 he entered 
Penn College, where he ])ursued a post-gradu- 
ate course in chemistry, anatonn- and histology, 
until 1899. He pursued this course preparatory 
to entering Rush Medical College, of Chicago, 
and was given a special certificate fn^ni his 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



413 



icaclier anil the prt'sideni nt' IVmiii (.'(ilk-tie. euli)- 
ojiziiif^ liis extraordinary mental ixiwcrs and the 
faeility with which he mastered the hranches of 
study that claimed his attention. In the fol- 
low iiig year he entered Rush Medical Collejje, 
.of Chicago, where he engaged in the pursuit of 
a regular course. 

Rev. Guthrie was married Octolier 30. 1839. 
to .Miss Catherine Da\-is, a daughter of Wil- 
liam S. and Xancy ( Zumwalt) Davis, and a 
graduate of the hihlical department of Oska- 
loosa College, winning her degree in 1875. one 
year hefore her husband's graduation. Their 
children are: Alice M.. the wife of Solon 1). 
Stuart, now of Springview, Nebraska: and 
Leonard (luthrie, of Hartline, Washington. 

In his political \iews Mr. Cuthrie was for- 
merly an advocate of the greenback party and 
was nominated on that ticket for the position 
of state senator. He lias served as master of 
Tri Luminal" lodge, A. [■". & .\. M.. in which he 
was senior deacon for seven years and as lec- 
turer of the lodge, displaying marked oratorical 
po^Ncr. 1 le is a most fluent, earnest and enter- 
taining speaker and has conducted evangelistic 
meetings in several counties in Towa, always 
leaving" a deep impress upon the minds of his 
auditors, .\lthough holding no regular charge 
now, Mr. Ciuthrie is one of the best known niin- 
isters of the Christian clunxh in the state. He 
is a nian of broad mind, liberal views and wifle 
charity, tolerant nf the opinions of others and 
\et holding firmly to those ideas which he iie- 
lieves are the correct interpretation of the Bible, 
lie ofticiates at more funerals and ])erforms 
more marriage ceremonies than any other cler- 
gyman in Mahaska county. Wherever he 
preaches or lectures there is sure to be a large 
audience, including many of the cultured men 
and pmmineut citizens of Iowa. He lives at 
Xo. 1432 West Third avenue, in O.skaloosa, 
and is one of its most ])rominent citizens. It 
would be ahuost tautological in this connection 
to elaborate on his strength of character, his 



strong determination and laudable ambition, for 
these ha\"e been shadowed tVirth between the 
lines of this review. Like the pioneer he has 
toiled and hoped and realized, and like the 
builder and organizer has broadened the field 
of ]"iis activities with the passing years. More- 
o\"er, he has found time to cultivate character- 
istics subtler than those of adventure or com- 
mercialism and while he has won success in his 
Ijusiness career he has never been unn"iindful of 
the higher and holier duties of life. 



ALLEX F.M'LKXlvR. 

.Mien Faulkner, who was a respected and 
worthy resident of Mahaska county, was born 
in Greene county. Ohio. February 20. 1843, 
and died .\])ril i, 1894. His grandparents were 
Thomas and ^lary ( ^IcGuire) Faulkner. The 
fonner was born in Virginia, Xo\"eml.!er 8, 
1787, and was married .August 7, 1834. He 
died .\]:iril if), 1871, and his wife p:isscd away 
July 5, 1873, at the age of eight}"-thi"ee years. 
He was born and reared in the Society of 
Friends, l)ut was disowned by the church be- 
cause he married outside of the faith. He then 
embraced the f;iith of the Christian church and 
was one of its main supporters in Ohio. 

His parents were Jonathan and Elizaljeth 
(Stephens) I-'aulkner. the former born in \'ir- 
ginia, March 27, 1812. and the latter in Ohio, 
January 15, 1809. The mother died July 8, 
1857, and after her death Mr. l'"aulkner was 
married to Elizabeth Hardsock, who also died 
in Ohio. His third wife was Kate Carter, whom 
he wedded in Ohio, and who is still living in 
that state, to w'lich she returned after the death 
of Mr. h'aulkner in Xew" Sharon. He was a 
well-to-do man and purcha.se<l land in Iowa 
several years before he came to this state to take 
up his ab.ode. In 1875 he removed to Mahaska 
count\-. where he owned three hundred and 



414 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



twenty acres of land in Union township. His 
attention was given to the further development 
and improvement of the property for a few 
years, after which he retired to New Sharon, 
where he passed away. In his family were six 
children: Warren, who was born May 15, 
1835, and is now living in Grinnell, Iowa; 
Thomas, born October 16, 1839; Allen, of this 
review; Reece, who was born October 22, 1844, 
and died SeptemlDer 19, 1846; Liicinda Ann, 
who was born January 12, 1848; and Sallie 
Mary, born March 11, 1850. 

Allen Faulkner was educated in the common 
schools of Ohio, where he lived with his par- 
ents until he had reached man's estate. He then 
came to Iowa to look after land belonging to 
his father. On the 30th of May, 1872, he was 
married to Miss Mary V. Taylor, who was 
born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, Novem- 
ber 21. 1853, a daughter of Alexander and 
Sarah (Burns) Taylor. The father was born 
in Pennsylvania, December 13, 1824, and the 
mother in the Keystone state, March 29, 1831. 
They came to Iowa in 1858, settling in Keo- 
kuk county, and later removed to Kansas, but 
afterward returned to Jasper county, Iowa, 
where 'Sir. Taylor made his home until he re- 
tired from active business life and went to live 
in New Sharon. There he died in 187 1 and 
Mrs. Taylor now makes her home with Mrs. 
Faulkner. In the family were six children : 
James B., who is living in Wichita, Kansas; 
Mrs. Faulkner; George E., who is a resident 
of Linnville, Iowa; John, who resides in York, 
Nebraska; Elmer E., who makes his home in 
Grinnell. Iowa: and Delia, the wife of Charles 
Rogers, a resident of Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

After his marriage Mr. Faulkner lived in 
Poweshiek county, Iowa, for four years, then 
came with his family to the farm of his father 
in Union township. Mahaska county. This 
was an improved tract of land of three hun- 
dred and twenty acres of which he eventually 
became the owner. He built here a large frame 



house and barn and was one of the successful 
and leading agriculturists of that community, 
carrying on his work in practical manner and 
with due regard to system. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Faulkner were born five 
children: Ora V., who was born September 8, 
1873, died at the age of nineteen years. Lor- 
ing H.. born October 3, 1875, married Miss 
Lillian Fisher .and is living on a fami adjoining 
the home place. Elmer L. G., born February 5, 
1878, married Miss Grace Sarver. and resides 
upon the home farm in Union township ; Ta\-- 
lor, born December 23, 1887. married Agnes 
}iIcDowell and lives upon the home farm. Leiia, 
born April 10, 1893, is with her mother. 

Air. Faulkner was a republican but not an 
aspirant for office and never held any public 
position sa\-e that of school officer. He belonged 
to the Methodist Episcopal church, in which 
he was an active and earnest worker and his 
life was that of a sincere Christian man. He 
enjoyed the confidence and good will of all who 
knew him and his death was deeph^ regretted, 
when, in 1894, he was called to his final rest. 
His widow still occupies the home farm and the 
family is one highly respected in the com- 
nnmitv. 



ROBERT THOMAS. 



Robert Thomas, living on a farm near New 
Sharon, has led a very busy and active life. 
There is an old Japanese adage that opportu- 
nit}- is hard to find and easy to lose, and, realiz- 
ing the truth of this, Mr. Thomas has im- 
pro\'ed every chance that has come to him for 
the upbuilding of his fortunes and is today one 
of the substantial residents of the community 
in which he resides. He was born in Harrison 
county, Ohio, October 5, 1834, a son of Isaac 
and Annie (Ladd) Thomas. The paternal 
grandparents were Peter and Mary (Thomp- 




ROBERT TIIO^IAS. 



I'AST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



417 



son) Thomas, both of whom were natives of 
North Carolina, wliile the maternal grandpar- 
ents were Robert and Mary (Terrell) Ladd. 

Isaac Thomas w'as born in Ohio, June i, 
1813, and became a farmer by occupation. He 
w as also one of the first sheep-breeders of Har- 
rison omnty. Ohio, and as the years passed by 
he prosi)ered in his business undertakings and 
became the owner of one of the finest farms 
in his county. He was also a director in three 
banks anrl was a prosperous, jirominent and in- 
Ihiential business man and citizen. His early 
])olilical sui)port was given to the Freesoil 
party, and his home was a station on the famous 
"underground railroad." Following the death 
of his first wife, he married a Mrs. Gibbons and 
removed to Mount Pleasant, Ohio, w'here his 
last days were passed. Unto Isaac and Annie 
(Ladd) Thomas were born eleven children, 
namely : Roliert : Joseph, who died at the age 
of twenty-seven years; Peter L., w'ho died in 
Oskaloosa, Iowa; Israel, who died in Ohio in 
the spring of 1905 ; Mrs. Martha Ann Cope, 
who resides in Ohio; Mrs. Mary Jones, a widow 
hving in Michigan; Mrs. Edna Bronson, a resi- 
dent of Ohio; Lucy, the deceased W'ife of Abra- 
ham Branson: Oliver, of Mount Pleasant, 
Ohio; Mrs. Anna Lupton, of Mount Pleasant, 
Ohio; and Mrs. Sarah Woodard, of Barns- 
ville, Ohio. The parents were very strict ad- 
herents of the Society of Friends, or Quakers. 

Robert Th(5mas, the eldest of tlie family, be- 
gan his education in a log schoolhouse and 
therein mastered the comnron branches of learn- 
ing, while later he became a student in a Friends 
school at Richmond, Indiana, but was obliged 
to leave school on account of becoming ill with 
the measles. For three years he and his brother 
conducted the old home farm. He then started 
west, driving across the country, and he earned 
from three to five dollars per day repairing 
wooden pumps. In 1S62 he received a diploma 
from the Scntt County (Iowa) Agricultural 
-Association for the best wooden pump displayed 



at the fair held in Davenport. He afterward 
made his way to Benton county, Iowa, and pur- 
chasetl one hundred and sixty acres of land 
from Benjamin Cope. He held that land for 
eight years, and then sold it for sixteen hun- 
dred dollars, which was double the price that he 
paid for it. For a time he resided in Spring- 
dale, Cedar county, Iowa, and there he engaged 
in selling pumps and also in shearing sheep for 
about a year. Later he returned to Ohio, being 
upon the road on the memoraljle cold New 
Year's day of 1864. .-\fterward he drove again 
■ across the country to Iowa, bringing some colts 
with him. and located near \'inton, in I'enton 
county, where he lived for five or six years. He 
then sold out and in 1870 came to IMahaska 
county. 

Here ]\Ir. Thomas purchased one hundred 
and sixty acres of land on section 36, Prairie 
township, where he now resides. One crop had 
been taken from about one hundred acres of the 
land. There were, however, no buildings or 
fences upon the place and not a tree on the farm. 
Mr.Thomas has since erected a large frame res- 
idence, two big barns and other buildings and 
there are now beautiful pine trees in front of 
his house fifty feet high, which Mr. Thomas set 
out when they were only five feet high. The 
splendid appearance of the place is due to his 
earnest and untiring labor and the farm is a 
monument to his energy and perseverance. He 
has always been interested in raising and breed- 
ing sheep, which he has carried on extensively 
and is still interested in the sheep industry, al- 
though not to as great extent as in former 
years. Mr. Thomas has been in the dairy busi- 
ness for seven years and delivered butter in 
Oskaloosa for a long time, and has made and 
sold five thousand dollars' worth, keeping a 
thoroughbred Jersey herd for this purpose. 

Mr. Thomas w-as married on the ist of Oc- 
tober, 1867, to Miss Deborah Ladd, who was 
born in Harrison county, Ohio, and died in 
1870, at the age of thirty-seven years. On the 



4i8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



1st of January. 1873. he married Ruth T. 
Green, who was bom in Harrison county, Ohio, 
and died in 1891. In 1893 he wedded Mrs. 
Jane Stewart Pickrell. who was bom in Car- 
roll. Ohio. February 3. 1853. In his political 
Aiews Mr. Thomas has always been a repub- 
lican where national issues are invohed. but at 
local elections is inclined to cast an independent 
ballot. He has ser\ed as padmiaster and for 
vears was count}- sheep inspector, but has never 
sought nor desired office. He is a member of 
the State and County Wool Growers Associa- 
tion, botli of which he helped to organize, and 
has been secretar\- of the latter. His life has 
been one of acti\ity crowned with success and 
his force of character and genuine worth have 
been manifest in an upright life and in the at- 
tainment of prosperity in business interests. He 
has a wide and favorable acquaintance in this 
coimtv. where he has long been accounted one 
of the valued representatives of fanning and 
sheep-raising interests. 



OLIVER P. HEDGE. 



Oliver P. Hedge is numbered among the 
prosperous farmers of Spring Creek township. 
He was born May i. 1853, in Coshocton coun- 
ty-, Ohio, a son of George 'SI. and Belinda 
Hedge, whose parents were among the pioneers 
of Guernsey county, tliat state, having remo\ed 
from Virginia in the ver}- early settlement of 
Ohio. Aaron Hedge, the grandfather, was 
for v€ars a school teacher in the community 
and a soldier in the war of 18 12. Oliver P. 
Hedge was eight years old when the war of the 
Rebellion broke out and during its progress he 
made a daily trip to the postoffice to bring the 
neighborhood mail. He had three brodiers in 
the Union army, Anderson, Aaron and Porter, 
all of whom have passed away, their deaths be- 
ing hastened by severe army service. Eight 



children composed tlie family circle on the old 
Ohio fann. "They grew in beauty side by 
side, they filled their home widi glee." Five 
of the number are yet living: ^Irs. O. A. Mul- 
vane. of Newman, Illinois ; ilanoah Hedge, of 
Oskaloosa: ilrs. Richard Charles, of Prairie 
City. Iowa; Oliver P. Hedge, our subject; and 
^Irs. E. H. Calkins, of St. Louis, ilissouri. 
The first break in tlie home circle came when 
Lincoln called for troops to put down the re- 
bellion. 

After coming to Edd}-\ille. Iowa, with the 
family in 1865, Oliver P. Hedge attended the 
schools of that place for seven years. The 
home of the family since 1872 has been in Os- 
kaloosa. Here Mr. Hedge worked on die farm, 
taught school and attended Oskaloosa College: 
later was in the grocery and implement busi- 
ness ; and ran a flour and feed store for a num- 
ber of years. From 1891 until 1899 he was 
in partnership with his brother Malioah in the 
book and stationery business under the finn 
name of Hedge Brothers. In the latter year he 
purchased a farm two and a half miles north- 
east of Oskaloosa. which has since been the 
family home. 

On the 2d of April. 1884. Mr. Hedge was 
united in marriage to ]^IissS. Annabelle Kisor.a 
daughter of David and Margaret Kisor, of Un- 
ion township, who Avere among die pioneers of 
:\Iahaska county. At the time of their mar- 
riage Mrs. Hedge was a teacher in the pulilic 
schools of Oskaloosa. where she taught for four 
vears. having received her education at Oska- 
loosa College. To tlieni have been bom a fani- 
ilv of nine children, all of whom are living: 
Homer H.: Hassel A.: Harrison K. : Helene 
Belle: Horace P. and Hattie Lucile. twins; 
Hilda May: Russell H. : and Olivia Prudence. 
Thev are all willing workers and have some 
definite farm work to do. They strike the visi- 
tor as being a houseful of intelligent, good na- 
tured youngsters, the oldest being now past 
twentv-one. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



419 



Bntli Mr. anil Mrs. I ledge joined the Chris- 
tain church wiien tliev were nineteen years of 
age. .\s wiiuld lie exi)ected from a well or- 
dered home all ot their children who are of 
sufficient age arc memhers of that church, and 
Mr. Hedge is an elder in the Christian congre- 
gation in Oskaloosa. 



WILLIAM MICKLE. 

\^'illiam ^licklc. who follows farming on 
section 5. Pleasant (jrove town.ship, and is 
numhered among the honored veterans of the 
Civil war. was horn in Otsego count\'. New 
York. Decemher 28, 1834. His parents, Chris- 
tian and Dehorah (Burnside) Mickle, were na- 
tives of the Empire state, and died upon a farm 
in Otsego count\- many years ago. In the fam- 
ily were nine children, but only three are now 
living, namely: William, of this review; Ira, 
a resident of Harrison county, Iowa; and Mrs. 
Ann Eliza I-'inch. who is living in Boulder, 
Colorado. 

W illiam Alickle was the youngest in the fam- 
ily and in his youth attended the common 
schools, hut had no educational privileges af- 
ter he was thirteen years of age. As his elder 
hrothers had married and left home he was 
ohliged to assist in the work of the farm and 
remained at home until nineteen years of age, 
when he began work as a farm hand by the 
month. He was thus employed until after the 
(Hithreak of the Civil war. when he enlisted in 
response to his country's call, being enrolled 
at Lawrence, Otsego county. New- York, on 
the 6th of September. 1862, as a private of 
Company H, One Hundred and Fifty-second 
New "N'ork \'olunteer Infantry. The regiment 
went to Washington. 1). C. and thence to the 
seat of war. \\'hilc in camp at Fort Marcy on 
the Potomac. William Mickle was helping earn*' 
a flat rock to put under a sto\e when he fell and 



sustained a fracture in the hip socket. He was 
then .sent to a hospital and later was transferred 
to the Veteran Reserve Corps, being stationed 
at Chestnut Hill. Pennsylvania. It was while 
there that the general order was issued that all 
soldiers not able to join their regiments should 
be discharged and in consequence Mr. }ilickle 
was mustered out of service and returned home. 
He was never in any battle but fared worse 
than he might ha\e done ]vm\ he taken part in 
the active fighting. 

Mr. .Mickle was married on the 30th of June, 
[853. in Chenango county to Miss Amanda P. 
Carr. who was born in that county. May 9. 
1835. a daughter of Green H. and Sally 
( Priest) Carr, both of whom were natives of 
the Empire state and died there at an advanced 
age. In their family were eleven children and 
with one exception all are yet living, but Rich- 
ard Carr is the only one now residing in Iowa, 
with the exception of Mrs. Mickle, his home 
being at Barnes City. Unto Mr. and Mi's. 
Mickle have been Ijorn two daughters : Eva 
Marie, the wife of .\ndrew M. W\more, who 
is living in Virginia: and Mary D., the wife of 
H. W. Tolles. a resident of L'nion township. 

.Mr. .Mickle started for Iowa in September, 
1865. traveling b)' rail to Brookton and by hack 
to Montezuma, and soon afterward he pur- 
chased the forty acres of land whereon he has 
since resided, .\bout fn'e acres had been broken 
at that time, while a little frame house had been 
built. There was a fence around what had been 
plowed but the remainder of the land was un- 
fenced. Mr. Mickle has since erected a com- 
fortable frame residence and has his farm all 
under cultivation. He has lived here for more 
than forty years and has continuously carried 
on the work of improving his land and culti- 
vating the fields. In his political views he has 
always been a democrat yet does not consider 
himself bound by party ties, and in fact, voted 
for William ]\IcKinley and Theodore Roose- 
velt. He has sen-ed as justice of the peace for 



420 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



two years and has been road supervisor for 
about twelve years. There were only two 
houses between his home and Montezuma when 
he came to his present farm antl he has seen the 
wild prairie converted into highly cultivated 
tracts of land in the midst of which are beauti- 
ful country homes. Both he and his wife are 
well preserved for people of their age and are 
an interesting couple who for more than four 
decades have resided in this county. Mr. Mickle 
now receives a pension of twenty-four dollars 
per month from the government because of the 
injury he sustained while a member of the 
army. The same loyal spirit which promoted 
his enlistment has always been manifest in his 
citizenship and he has given his influence to the 
various movements for the public good which 
have had an effect upon the welfare and up- 
building of this county. He has been found 
reliable and trustworthy in business, and he 
commands the respect of all who know him. 



JOHN D. BYERS. 



John D. Byers, who throughout the greater 
period of his business career has been identified 
with building operations in Oskaloosa, where 
he now makes his home, was bom in Green- 
ville, Mercer county. Pennsylvania, April i, 
1850. His father, James M. Byers, went with 
his family to Washington, Iowa, in 1852 and 
there remained for a year, after which he came 
to Oskaloosa in 1853. He was a mason and 
contractor, who built some of the largest build- 
ings in Oskaloosa, including the old city hall 
and the old jail. He also built the old Presby- 
terian church, now the Baptist church, which 
was erected in 1854. He had tlie contract for 
the erection of the Benjamin Roop residence, 
now a famous landmark in Oskaloosa, and he 
did considerable work all over the county for 
the farmers and also built the distillery at Bea- 



con. His fidelity to the terms of a contract 
and the excellent workmanship executed under 
his direction secured him a liberal patronage. 
He served as county coroner for several years 
and was a captain of the Home Guards during 
the Civil war, doing much to suppress local vio- 
lence in those stormy days. He died July 24, 
1898, and thus the county lost one of its val- 
ued and representative pioneer residents. His 
widow, who bore the maiden name of Hannah 
E. McVicker, is still living in Oskaloosa. The 
sons and daughters of the family are as fol- 
lows : S. H. Marshall Byers, who for twenty 
years was United States consul in Switzerland 
and is miw living in Des Moines, is the author 
of "Sherman's March to the Sea," "Iowa in 
War Times," "Twenty Years in Europe," 
"Happy Isles" and other works. James W. 
Byers is a veteran of the Civil war. Dr. Henry 
V. Byers is living in Newton, Iowa. Charles 
H. is a civil engineer near Seattle, Washing- 
ton, who for twelve years has been in the em- 
ploye of the Gould Railroad system. Frank S. 
died in infancy. Sarah B. became the wife of 
J. B. Adlon, of Oskaloosa, and died in the lat- 
er '70s. Anna is the wife of Samuel 
Moreland, of White Rock, Kansas, and died in 
the fall of 1905. Lydia J. is the wife of John 
Moore, of Jefiferson township, this county. 
Clara E. is the wife of D. B. Lyon, a real-estate 
dealer of Los Angeles, California. Arminta B. 
is the wife of Richard FIull, of Garfield town- 
ship. iVIary E. died in childhood. Alice M. died 
in infancy. Kate R., who was a professor of 
scientific cooking, died in Waterbury, Connect- 
icut, in 1904. 

John D. Byers, whose name introduces this 
record, was educated in the district schools and 
also pursued a course of study in the commer- 
cial department of Oskaloosa College under 
Professor Givens. He left school when twen- 
ty-five years of age and began contracting and 
building on his own account. He has followed 
building operations since 1869, in which year 




joiix n. ^.^•ERs. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



423 



he began to learn the trade and he has worked 
on various pubhc builcHngs in the county seat. 
He was a superintendent of the construction 
of the Central Methodist Episcopal church and 
also the Carnegie library and many other im- 
portant buildings are evidences of his skill and 
abilitv. His business has reached extensive and 
profitable proportions and his labors have been 
an element in the improvement .and adornment 
of the city. 

Mr. Byers was married on Christmas day 
of 1878 to ]\Iiss Margaret S. Robertson, a 
daughter of David and Fannie Robertson, of 
Oskaloosa. Their children are Ernest R., 
Harry, Edwin, John David, Margaret and 
Francis I\Iason. The last named died in in- 
fancy and the eldest son is now in Los An- 
geles, California. The mother departed this 
life October 4. 1905, and the funeral services 
were held in the Presbyterian church. Mr. 
Byers was formerly an Odd Fellow. In poli- 
tics he is a republican and for twenty-seven 
years he has been an elder in the First Presby- 
terian church, of which he is a most devoted 
and faithful member. His labors in behalf oi 
the church have been of an effective and bene- 
ficial nature and his motives have ever been 
such as would bear close investigation and 
scrutiny, fur he has based his business princi- 
l^les and actions upon the rules which govern 
strict and unswerving integritv and industrv. 



PHIXEAS WELLS PHILLIPS. 

Phineas \\'ells Phillips, deceased, was born 
in Virginia, January 11, 1830, and died in 
Prairie township, Mahaska county, Iowa, Jan- 
uary 25, 1887, a life of usefulness and activity 
crowned by successful accomplishment being 
thus ended. He was a son of Holdridge and 
Sarah (Ryan) Phillips. The father was born 
in Virginia and the mother in Ohio and Hol- 
20 



dridge Phillips removed from the Old Domin- 
ion to Ohio, where he spent his remaining 
days upon a farm. In his family were five 
children, namely : Phineas W. ; Cyrus, now liv- 
ing in Oklahoma ; Adam and Eve, twins, the 
former now deceased, while the latter is living 
in Ohio; and Mathias. 

Phineas \\\ Phillips was a student in the 
common schools of Ohio, where he was reared 
upon a farm, remaining with his parents until 
his marriage, on the loth of October, 1850, 
Miss Ellen Williams becoming his wife. She 
was born in Ross county, Ohio, September 30, 
1830, and yet resides upon the old homestead 
farm in Prairie township, Mahaska county. 
Her father, John W'illiams, was born in Mary- 
land, Alarch 7, 1794, and died in Prairie town- 
ship, this county, on the 5th of December, 
1863. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
Christiana McGuire, was boni in Ohio, Janu- 
ary 30, 1801, and spent her last days in the 
home of her daughter, Mrs. Phillips, there 
passing away October 21, 1887. In the family 
(if Mr. and Mrs. W'illiams were seven children, 
but Mrs. Phillips is the only one now living. 
The parents came to the west with their family 
and took up their abode upon a farm in Prairie 
township, Mahaska county, where they lived 
for many years. At the time of their removal 
from Ohio, Mr. and Mrs. Phillips also came, 
this being in the year 1855. Traveling across 
Illinois, their wagons became stuck in the mud 
and tliey had to employ farmers to pull them 
out with ox teams. They were almost discour- 
aged, yet they would not turn back. On reach- 
ing Mahaska county, Mr. Phillips rented a 
house near Oskaloosa and began teaming and 
following any other employment that be could 
get to do. After spending the summer there 
he started northward to find a more favorable 
location where he could make a better living. 
.As he and his wife thus traveled by wagon they 
woidd stop on the way and the various settlers, 
after the hospitable manner of the times, would 



424 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



allow them to cook meals upon their stoves. 
They spent the winter of 1855-6 in a log house 
at Granville, Mahaska county. The structure 
was so poor, however, that it did little to ex- 
clude the storms and they could shovel snow 
out of their upstairs rooms down to the first 
floor and then out of the door. 

In the spring of 1856 Mr. Phillips purchased 
fort)' acres of land where his widow now re- 
sides. It was all wild prairie. There were 
logs upon the place but no house had been built, 
and Mr. Phillips, after rolling the logs into a 
small shanty, began the task of clearing and 
cultivating the fields. The bed was made by 
poles stuck in holes bored into the logs in the 
side of the shanty and then covered with clap- 
boards. They had an old drop-leaf table and 
a little chair which they brought with them 
from Ohio and tliis chair Mrs. Phillips still has 
in her possession. Mr. Phillips did some team- 
ing' in Burlington and Keokuk, and made a he- 
roic struggle to get a start in life here, but ill 
luck seemed to attend him in many directions. 
At different times he lost his horse, and as he 
had no shelter for the cow, she died. Mrs. 
Phillips did work of all kinds for the neighbors, 
taking meat and flour in payment. They lived 
in a log house until 1862, when they built a 
frame addition to their cabin home and later 
they tore down the log structure and put up a 
more commodious frame residence. In those 
early days there were few fences on the prairie 
and one night the neighbor's cattle came to the 
Phillips farm and ate up the grease which Mrs. 
Phillips had prepared to make soft soap. In 
those early days they. made their own tallow 
candles and Mrs. Phillips also made clothes for 
herself, husband and children. No expense 
was incurred that could be avoided. They 
li\'ed very frugally and economically until the 
land was paid for and when their financial re- 
sources somewhat increased they bought more 
land, adding to the property from time to time 
until at his death Mr. Phillips was the owner of 



a \aluable tract of four hundred acres which 
was divided among the children, Mrs. Phillips 
having one hundred acres of the old home- 
stead. She is a very well preserved lady, en- 
joying good health for one of her years and 
she manages her own affairs, a daughter living 
with her, while a son, who resides in a separate 
house, works her land for her. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Phillips were born seven 
children, all of whom surs'ive. John C, born 
October 3, 185 1, and now operating his moth- 
er's farm, married Cora Sawyer and has three 
children. Mary A., born November 20, 1853, 
is now living in Nebraska, where she is en- 
gaged in dressmaking. She married Jerome 
Smith but has obtained a legal separation from 
him. Cornelius, born June 30, 1855, married 
Martha Frederick, has six children and owns 
and occupies forty acres of the old homestead. 
Ja.sper H., born September 23, 1858, married 
Retta Heinsman, lives upon a farm in Prairie 
township and has two children. Sarah A., 
born October 31, 1862, is living with her 
mother. Charles \V., born October 23, 1867, 
married Lou Heinsman and resides upon a 
farm near New Sharon, ^^'illiam E., born 
July 14, 1870, i-narried Vira Shroyer and owns 
and occupies a part of the old home place. 

Mr. Phillips was an earnest republican and 
served as supervisor of his township for eight- 
een years, while for several years he acted as 
justice of the peace and was known as Squire 
PhilliiDS. All of his political duties were faith- 
fully and promptly discharged. He was active 
in politics and his fellow townsmen, recogniz- 
ing his worth and ability, called him to a num- 
ber of positions of local honor and trust. He 
was a very earnest worker and his indefatigable 
industry and laudable ambition made him suc- 
cessful. He was a temperate man, who enter- 
tained high moral principles, but he never be- 
lieved that to be good one must be long faced 
and serious. On the contrary he was jovial 
and genial and shed around him much of the 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



425 



sunsliine of life. In the year 1868 he kept a 
diarv wliere lie recorded tlie weatlier coiKhtions 
and tlie doings of each day and it is a noticeable 
fact that each Sunday he attended church and 
Sunday-school if the weather would permit. 
His death occurred very suddenly, being taken 
by paralysis, from which he suffered at one 
o'clock in the afternoon, while at seven o'clock 
in the same evening he had passed away, the 
attack being brought on by overstudy and hard 
work. His life was indeed a busy and useful 
one and is in many respects well worthy of 
emulation. Mrs. Phillips belongs to the Meth- 
odist church. She is a well posted lady and is 
a good conversationalist. She was to her hus- 
band a must faithful companion and helpmate 
on life's journey and assisted him in acquiring 
his property. She now has a comfortable home, 
good barns and sheds and well kept fences upon 
her ])lace, yet residing upon the old homestead 
where she and her husband located so many 
vears ago. 



C. T. TRIPLETT. 



C. J. Triplett. who has prospered in his farm- 
ing and stock-raising oj^erations owns and con- 
trols one hundred and sixty acres of land on 
section 22, Cedar township. This farm is lo- 
cated about two and a half miles from Fremont 
and is a well im])ro\-ed property, indicating in 
its neat and thrifty appearance the careful su- 
pervisinn and painstaking efforts of the owner, 
will I dates his residence in the cnunty from 
1862. He was born in Warren county, Illi- 
nois, near Monmouth, April u. 1857. and is 
a son nf Miirtimcr Triplett, and a brother of 
.M. 1". Triplett, whose .sketch appears elsewhere 
in this work. Fie came to Iowa with his par- 
ents in 1858 and the family home was estab- 
lished in Mahaska county in 1862, so that he 
was reared in Cedar townshi]). being but fi\e 



years of age when brought here by his parents. 
His education was acquired in the common 
schools and lie remained with his father during 
the period of his ynuth. He then began work- 
ing on a farm and afterward owned a half in- 
terest in a threshing machine in connection 
with his brother. This they operated during 
the threshing season for about twelve years 
in Mahaska and adjoining counties. 

^Ir. Triplett was married in Keokuk county 
on the I ith of April, 1888, to Miss Jennie ]Mar- 
tin, who was born in Iowa, but was reared in 
Keokuk county and is a daughter of Heniy 
Martin, one of the early settlers of Iowa, who 
resided for a long period in Keokuk county. 
Following his marriage Mr. Triplett located 
upon the farm where he now resides, securing 
eighty acres of land which had been partially 
broken and improved. He built upon this 
place a small house and began to farm die land, 
transforming the place into well developed and 
productive fields. He afterward bought eighty 
acres adjoining the homestead which he fenced 
and tiled and he erected hereon a good residence 
and also a tenant house. He has likewise built 
barns and outbuildings, has planted fruit trees 
and made the fanu what it is today a valuable 
and producti\'e property. In all his work he has 
been progressive, following methods that are 
practical and resultant and as the years have 
gone by he has made for himself a place among 
the substantial agriculturists of the community. 
He has herdefl sheep and cattle over the i)rairies 
that are now rich with fields of grain, with here 
aufl there substantial homes and other buildings 
that show that the work of the farmer is being 
successfully carried on. 

Until Mr. and Mrs. Triplett have been born 
four children who are yet living, but they lost 
their first born, Joseph, who died at the age of 
ten years and also one that died in infancy. The 
others are: Howard H., Mary Rena, Jessie 
Rcta and lames Herbert. 



426 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Politically Mr. Triplett has been a lifelong 
republican, and cast his first ballot for James 
A. Garfield, since which time he has supported 
each presidential nominee at the head of the 
ticket. He has never sought nor desired office 
for himself, preferring to concentrate his ener- 
gies upon his business affairs. He belongs to 
the Baptist cliurch, while his wife is a mem- 
ber of the Christian church, both having mem- 
bership relations in Fremont. He is well known 
as a pioneer settler of the county and has been 
an interested witness of its growth and develop- 
ment through many years, bearing his full 
share in the work that has transformed the 
county from a wild region into its present ad- 
vanced state of improvement. 



CAPTAIN A. J. COM STOCK. 

In every great crisis that has confronted this 
republic since that historic day when the rifles 
of the "embattled farmers" at Concord and 
Lexington rang the death knell of foreign op- 
pression and ushered into existence a new-born 
nation, men have been eager and willing to re- 
spond to their country's call and sacrifice their 
blood and treasure in her defense. Of this type 
displaying loyalty, patriotism and fidelity Cap- 
tain i\ndrew Jackson Comstock, of Spring 
Creek township, is a worthy representative. He 
was born in Butler county, Ohio, October 31, 
1828. His father, James Comstock, was a na- 
tive of Connecticut, born in 1793. He settled 
in Butler county, Ohio, when Cincinnati was 
but a small town of log cabins, and became a 
well known trader in his section. He also con- 
ducted a distillery near Cincinnati. On one oc- 
casion he loaded a flatboat with pork and 
whiskey and floated it down the Ohio and Mis- 
sissippi rivers to New Orleans, where he re- 
loaded it with merchandise and thus with a 
keelboat returned to Cincinnati, it requiring 
nine months to make the trip. He was a strong 



Jacksonian democrat and on that party ticket 
was elected to congress from Ohio in 1827. 
It was in honor of Andrew Jackson, the hero 
of the battle of New Orleans, that the subject 
of this review was named. He came with his 
family to Iowa about 1842, settling in Jefferson 
county and the following year removed to Ma- 
haska county, locating on the farm which is 
now owned and occupied by Captain Comstock, 
about four miles from Oskaloosa. 

Captain Comstock was a youth of fourteen 
years wiien he came to Mahaska county in the 
summer of 1842 with his father and brother, 
Loring S. There were also several others in 
tlie party and they camped out by the big spring 
on the Gilibs farm and gave to the creek which 
flowed therefrom the name of Spring creek. 
In that locality they hunted for several days 
and while hunting farther to the northwest they 
gave its present name to Panther creek. While 
engaged in hunting the party killed three deer, 
fifteen or twenty turkeys and a great quantity 
of smaller game including prairie chickens, 
pheasants and squirrels. They also chopped 
down bee trees and secured thirty-three gallons 
of strained honey. On the trip they did not see 
any Ixiftaloes. elk or bears, but the following 
year a bear was killed on Panther creek. The 
family, taking up their abode in IMahaska coun- 
ty, experienced the usual hardships and priva- 
tions of pioneer life in founding a home m a 
region remote from civilization. The nearest 
mill was about ninety miles away, at Bonaparte, 
and it required about four weeks to make the 
trip to and from the mill. There the settlers 
had to take their turns in having their grist 
ground and on one occasion Captain Comstock 
i-emembers of waiting his turn for twelve days. 
He aided in the arduous task of clearing and 
cultivating new land and throughout his active 
business life has been identified with financial 
interests in this county but his agricultural la- 
bors have twice been interrupted by military 
service in behalf of his country. 




A. J. O ).MS'r( )CK. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



429 



He enlisted in early manhood as a soldier of 
tlie Mexican war and was one of those who 
fortunately escaped wounds and death from 
disease, there being' mily abnul a third of the 
entire company to which he belonged who re- 
turned to the north. Captain Com.stock after- 
ward gave his attention to agricultural pursuits 
until the inauguration of the Civil war, when, 
in res])onse to President Lincoln's second call, 
he donned the blue uniform of the nation and 
having recruited a company was mustered in 
as captain of Company C, Thirty-third Iowa 
Infantry. In the engagement which occurred 
at Jenkin's Ferry he sustained a gunshot 
wound and was left upon the field of battle with 
a solitary comrade, Reuben Cooms, a private 
of his company, who was detailed to look after 
the wants of the wounded captain, whom it 
was expected could ne\er survive. xA few 
later they fell into the hands of the enemy and 
were taken to Camden, Arkansas. Captain 
Comstock was afterward removed to Little 
Rock anil was later parolled and tlischarged for 
disabilities, after \vhich he returned to his farm 
in Mahaska county. His military career was 
distinguished by many brilliant and daring 
deeds. On the morning of July 4, 1863. the 
Union and Confederate armies were lying in 
close proximitv to each other at Helena. Ar- 
kansas. Captain Comstock saw what he be- 
lieved io 1)6 a chance to take some prisoners. 
He called for volunteers and eighteen men re- 
si)onded. Of this number Captain Comstock 
knows of but one man who is now living. 
Alonzo Church, of Madison township, who was 
one of the first men to step forward. They 
fomied a skirmish line and stealing around to 
the rear of the Confederates, Captain Com- 
stock commanded them to surrender, telling 
them that they could not escape. In response 
the Confederates opened fire and again Captain 
Comstock ordered them to surrender, where- 
upon f)ne of their ofiRcers raised his hands, and 
ordered his men to lay down their arms. Cap- 



tain Comstock captured two liundred and ten 
Confederates, nine officers' swords and six re- 
volvers. One of the latter, a fine Smith & 
Wesson, is still in his possession, which he 
cherishes as a trophy of the exploit. His al- 
most wreckless courage was again demon- 
strated at Camden, Arkansas. Price's artillery 
was playing upon tiie Union advance. General 
Steel ordered Cajjtain Comstock to form a skir- 
mish line at six hundred yards in advance of 
the enemy. Seeing his command much ex- 
posed to the Confederate fire. Captain Com- 
stock gave a command "double quick," and ad- 
\-anced three hundred yards still farther ahead. 
The Confederates, mistaking his action for a 
charge of the whole division, hastily withdrew 
their guns and retreated. At this moment Ma- 
jor John F. Lacey, now congressman from 
Iowa, rode up to Captain Comstock and said, 
"General Steele wants to know if you intend to 
take General Price's guns with your skirmish 
line," and ordered him to fall back until dusk 
and hold the line until morning. 

When the Civil war was ended Captain Com- 
stock again took up the work of the farm, in 
which he continued actively engaged until his 
seventy-fifth year, when he turned over the work 
of the farm to others. He is now seventy-seven 
years of age and is a jovial, genial man, w'ho 
takes a delight in gardening and the raising of 
poultrv. He is making a specialty of raising 
Brown Leghorns and has for this purpose a 
six-hundred-dollar hen house and up-to-date in- 
cubators and brooders. 

Captain Comstock has been married twice. 
On the 1 8th of April, 1850, he wedded Ade- 
laide Binns, a daughter of Thomas and Chris- 
tina Binns, who was born in Wakefield, Eng- 
land. November 17. 1830. Their children were: 
James T. ; .\lfred Byron: Victoria Adelaide, 
who died September 20, 1857; Andrew Jack- 
son, who died in November, 1903; Victoria 
Iowa: and Ella May. On the 17th of July, 
1879, Captain Comstock was married in Oska- 



430 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



loosa to Mrs. M. Green, nee ]\Ierrill, and to 
them were bom the following children : Nellie 
M. ; Rose A., who died July 2;^. 1899: Harlen 
L. ; and Annie B. 

Captain Comstock has always been very fond 
of hunting and while on a visit to his sons in 
California about two years ago he spent much 
of his time in the enjoyment of the chase, even 
though he had passed the Psalmist's three 
score years and ten. On one occasion he 
brought back with him the skins of a lynx, 
five wildcats, seven wolves and one badger, 
which he still preserves as trophies. On an- 
other occasion he had the unicjue distinction of 
killing eighteen quails with one shot. He has 
at his home interesting relics and souvenirs, 
including a gun which is over two hundred 
years old and which was used by his great- 
grandfather against the Indians and brought 
by his father from Connecticut to Indiana. 
Among his most cherished possessions is an 
old photograph of Chapultepec Castle, where 
he guarded some prisoners belonging to Santa 
Anna's army during the Mexican war. Cap- 
tain Comstock is now in his seventy-eighth 
year but is still quite a well preserved man and 
his mind is stored with many interesting inci- 
dents and reminiscences of the early days and 
of his military life. Few have longer resided 
in this part of Iowa than he, his residence here 
covering more than si.xty-three years, and no 
man is more justly entitled to representation in 
this volume. He is respected by all who know 
him and is among the worthy and honored 
citizens of the countv. 



JOSEPH G. OPPENHEIMER. 

Joseph G. Oppenheimer, deceased, whose 
name is largely synonymous with business de- 
velopment, progress and commercial prosper- 
ity in Oskaloosa, was bom in Cincinnati, Ohio, 



Decemljer 14, 1851, and was of German lineage, 
his parents having come to America from Ba- 
varia. The father was a merchant and for 
years carried on a mercantile trade on the Ohio 
ri\er. His son Joseph acquired his education 
in the public schools of Cincinnati and entered 
business life as a clerk in a store there. He 
was employed in different capacities and gradu- 
ally worked his way upward. At length he be- 
came associated with Samuel Stern, of Rock- 
ford, Illinois, and it was but a step further to 
his business connection with Oskaloosa, for he 
came to this city in 1884 to open the Golden 
Eagle clothing and men's furnishing goods 
house and continued to act as its manager tmtil 
1895, at which time the partnership of Oppen- 
heimer & Ettinger was formed, the junior 
partner being Felix Ettinger, then of Phila- 
delphia, Pennsylvania, but now of Eau Claire, 
Wisconsin. They purchased the Golden Eagle, 
conducting it successfully until 1900, when Mr. 
Oppenheimer's health failed and the Oppen- 
heimer-Beeson-Morse Company was incorpo- 
rated, Mr. Etting-er retiring at that time. Per- 
haps no better account of Mr. Oppenheimer's 
connection with commercial interests can be 
given than by quoting from a local paper, 
which, at the time of his death said: "It was 
about 1884, or twenty years ago, that the de- 
ceased came to Oskaloosa from Rockford, Illi- 
nois, and with Sam Stern opened a clothing 
house on the west side of the park. The time 
was ripe for just such a business house to en- 
ter the field. The mines to the south of Oska- 
loosa were in their prime and a large and grow- 
ing trade was centering in Oskaloosa. The 
Golden Eagle revolutionized business methods 
in this city. ^Ir. Oppenheimer, who was the 
resident member of the firm was not long in 
recognizing the opportunities that lay before 
him. His start in the business was somewhat 
sensational. The advertisements of the busi- 
ness were spread far and wide, clothing prices 
were practically cut in two and the new busi- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



431 



ness house Iiad more tliaii it could hamlle in the 
original quarters. The house during the course 
of its prosperity nioxed from place to place, 
seeking large and hetter cjuarters until today 
its home is line as a palace. Mr. Oi)i)enhcimer 
in moving into a remodeled clouhle room that 
stood upon the location of the present home 
of the house ga\e to Oskaloosa its first 
'opening." He had revolutionized advertising 
and husiness methods in the city and he now 
gave Oskaloosa merchants another new idea 
that is followed to this day. 

"The above is indicative of the man's energy 
and activity in all lines. The gentleman had 
been in the city hut a few months until he gave 
evidence of his interest in the welfare of the 
city as well as in his own business. He was 
never content with present conditions and cir- 
cumstances but always looked forward to bet- 
ter things and greater conditions. His ability 
as a leader and his executive force came to be 
recognized by the citizens and Air. Oppenhei- 
mer .soon occupied a high place in the estimation 
of all people." 

In 1877 occurred the marriage of Joseph G. 
Oppenheimer and Miss Re1)ecca Lipman, who 
was bom in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania, in 
1859. a daughter of Louis and Sarah Lipman. 
Her father was a ship chandler and fitted out 
shipping expediticjns, while later he was en- 
gaged in theatrical enterprises. Mr. Oppen- 
heimer was a prominent member of the Knights 
of Pythias fraternity and in 1886 he was grand 
sachem for Iowa of the Order of Red Men. He 
voted the republican ticket but was without as- 
piration for office for himself. The cause of 
education found in him a stalwart friend and 
from time to time he contributed toward the 
supi)ort of Penn College. He was constantly 
animated by a public sjjiril that was manifest in 
his earnest and helpful work for the upbuiUling 
of a greater city. He believed firmly in the fu- 
ture of Oskaloosa and its bright prospects and 
was continually working for public improve- 



ment. He was one of the organizers of the Os- 
kaloosa Commercial Club and for five years 
served as its president. He was very chari- 
table and one of his notew(jrthv benefactions 
was the placing of an iron star to mark each 
grave in the Oskaloosa cemetery of a \-eteran 
of the Civil war, a custom which he kept up un- 
til the time of his death. Whatever tended for 
Oskaloosa's betterment received his endorse- 
ment and his co-o]3eration and he could always 
be counted upon to further movements for the 
general good. Lie might well be termed one 
of the founders of the city for he was the pro- 
moter of many of its leading business interests. 
His connection with any undertaking insured 
a prosperous outcome of the same, for it was 
in his nature to carry forward to successful 
completion whatever he was associated with. 
He won for himself an en\-iable reputation as a 
careful business man and in his dealings was 
known for his prompt and honorable methods, 
A\hich won him the deserved and untounded 
confidence of his fellowmen. He died June 19, 
1905, at the age of fifty-three years, si.x months 
and five days. Illness came to him in the midst 
of a very busy and successful career and after 
about a year he passed away, but there re- 
mains to him a monument in the improved busi- 
ness conditions and advanced public interests 
of Oskaloosa as well as in the friaidship and 
regard cherished for him by the many friends 
whom he made in this city. The outgrowth 
of his business industry is The Oppenheimer- 
Beeson-Morse Company, recently incorporated, 
with Mr. .\rlhur Op])enheimer, the only son, 
as president, and the widow, Mrs. Oppenheimer, 
as .secretary, the other ofiicers being: Mr. Joe 
Beeson. of Kansas City, Missouri, vice presi- 
dent; and Mr. F. L. Morse, of Rochester, New 
\'ork, treasurer. This concern is one of the best 
established in southern Iowa, owning and oper- 
ating four large businesses, namely : the Gol- 
den Eagle, at Oskaloosa ; the Golden Eagle, at 
Albia; The Circle Shoe Company, at Albia; 



43- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



and tlie Garfield Suppl_v Company, at Evans. 
An institution of this size Ijuilt np by the most 
sohd and conservative methods in die hands of 
young men trained along the lines laid down 
by its founders promises a permanent and 
growing memorial to his sagacity and business 



mtegnty. 



WILLIAM T. WEHRLE. 

William T. Wehrle, who is carrying on gen- 
eral farming in Richland townsliip. was bom 
in Granville, Mahaska county, March 7, i860, 
and is a son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Blattner) 
\\'ehrle, both of whom were natives of Swit- 
zerland, the former born November 4. i8i9,and 
the latter April 21, 1835. The father was a 
blacksmith by trade and about 1854. leaving the 
land of the Alps, made his way across the briny 
deep to the United States and on to Oska- 
loosa, Iowa. There he worked at his trade for 
two years, after which he purchased a shop at 
Granville. It was about that time that Eliza- 
beth Blattner arri\-ed in Mahaska county, hav- 
ing come direct from Switzerland, and they 
were married in Granville, October 16, 1856. 
For several years thereafter ]\Ir. Wehrle con- 
tinued to follow his trade, and when his labors 
had brought to him sufficient capital he invested 
in land, becoming owner, in 1862, of one hun- 
dred and eleven and a half acres of new and un- 
improved land near Granville. Two years later 
he removed to the farm upon which he and his 
wife spent their remaining days. He built the 
first house on this farm and cultivated the land, 
transforming it from a raw tract into one of 
rich fertility and productiveness. Mr. Wehrle 
passed away September 23, 1883, when about 
sixty-four years of age, while his wife died 
June II, 1894. In the family were the follow- 
ing children : Mary, the wife of T. J. Cleven- 
ger, of Lamore, Missouri; William T., of this 



re\-iew; John, who is teaching school in Rich- 
land township; Arnold ^\^, who married Ida 
Taylor and is living in Grinned, Iowa; Lillie, 
the wife of Frank Byram, of Chariton, Lucas 
county. Iowa; Warner S., who married Zella 
Awtrv, and is living on the old jiome farm; 
Ada, the wife of Walter Jones, who makes his 
home in Kansas City, Missouri ; Ella, the wife 
of Charles Shroyer, who is living in Rose Hill, 
Iowa ; and one who died in infancy. 

^ViIliam T. Wehrle was educated in the 
schools of Granville, and remained at home with 
his parents until twenty-one years of age. He 
afterward engaged in farming for a year in this 
county and then ^vent to Spink county. South 
Dakota, where he took up a claim and followed 
farming until 1890. He then gave up his claim 
and returned to Mahaska county. Here on the 
1 2th of November, 189 1, he was married to 
Miss Laura Wassom, who was born August 9, 
1863, upon the farm which they now make their 
home. She is a daughter of Moses and Eliza- 
beth (Woodside) Wassom, both of whom were 
nati\-es of Tennessee, the fonner born May 7, 
181 7, and the latter March 10, 182 1. They 
were married in Illinois, whei-e they lived for 
a short time, and in 1843 they came to Ma- 
haska county, being among its first settlers. 
All the indications of pioneer life then existed 
here, and they aided in subduing the wild coun- 
try and extending the frontier. ?\Ir. \Vassom 
first located in ]\Iadison township, living on the 
ri\-er for about three years. In 1846 he took up 
a claim of one hundred and sixty acres and 
built a house, making his home there until his 
death. As time passed by and his financial re- 
sources increased he added to his property un- 
til he owned two hundred and forty-five acres 
of land. He was a prominent character in the 
early history of Richland township and Ma- 
haska county and did much to shape public 
policy and also for the direct improvement of 
the locality. His political allegiance was given 
to the democracy and he served as justice of 




MR. AXIJ .MRS. W . 'I". W laiRLE. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



435 



the peace, as school director and as township 
trustee. He was very active in local political 
circles and his opinions carried weight in the 
councils of his [larty in township and county. 
He died upon the home farm, June 22, 1891, 
and his wife passed away on the 22d of June, 
i8()_'. In their family were eight children but 
onh' two are now living: ^Monroe, who was 
the second in order of birtii and married j\Iary 
AMlliams. their home being in Blackwell, Okla- 
homa; and Mrs. Laura A. Wehrle, who was the 
sixth in order of birth. The others were : Cy- 
rus, who died at the age of nineteen years ; Wil- 
liam, who married Belle Foster and lived upon 
a part of the old home ])lace until the time of 
his death at the age of forty-four years; Mary, 
who died at the age of seventeen; Sophronia, 
who died at the age of eighteen; and two who 
died in infancy. 

At the time of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
\\ehrle took up their abode upon the farm 
which has since been their home. They now 
ha\e one hundred and twenty-five acres of good 
land which is rich and productive. There is a 
substantial residence and good barns upon the 
])lace, all of which were built by Mr. Wassom. 
'Sir. Wehrle keeps e\'erything about the farm in 
good condition of repair and carries forward the 
work of improvement along progressive lines. 
His fields are highly cultivated and he annually 
harvests good crops. He is considered one of 
the prosperous farmers of Richland township, 
and in addition to the home place, he has an- 
other farm of eighty-three acres in the town- 
shi]), which he rents. He is a stockholder in 
the recently organized Farmers Bank at 
Oskaloosa. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Wehrle have been born 
three children : Icie, a daughter, thirteen years 
of age; \'erner and Birch, who, like their sister, 
are attending .school. Mrs. Wehrle is an active 
and devoted member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church and, although not a member, j\Ir. 
\\ ehrle attends its services and contributes to 



its support. He votes the democratic ticket on 
questions of state and national importance but 
at local elections casts an independent ballot. He 
displays many of the sterling characteristics of 
his Swiss ancestry — the undaunted purpose, the 
resolution and industry, together with a cour- 
age of conviction which has ever been a salient 
trait of the Swiss character. His entire life 
has been passed in Maha.ska county and he is 
known as a representative citizen here. 



GEORGE S. ENGLE. 

George S. Engle, who follows farming in 
Richland township, his farm lying on sections 
16, 20 and 21, was born in Champaign county, 
Ohio, October 17, 1851. His parents were 
James and Elizabeth (Swisher) Engle, both of 
whom were natives of Washington county, 
Pennsylvania, the former born January 12, 
1S12. and the latter November 16, 1810. The 
parents died upon the farm which is now oc- 
cupied by George S. Engle, both passing away 
in 1894, the father on the 28th of August and 
the mother on the 27th of November. They 
were married in 1833 ^I'^d the same year re- 
mo\-ed from Penns}-lvania to Ohio, where 
James Engle purchased three hundred arces of 
land. There he developed a farm and made his 
home until 1868, when he came to Mahaska 
county, Iowa. Here he purchased four hun- 
dred and forty acres of partially improved land, 
on which was a fair frame house and good barn, 
the former having been built at a early period 
in the development of the county. It was 
constructed of solid timbers hewed by hand and 
the weather boarding was of walnut. Mr. 
Engle added some to the house and to the barn, 
put up other buildings and also built fences. He 
piuxhased more land from time to time as his 
financial resources increased and eventually be- 
came the owner of si.x hundred acres, making 



436 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



him one of the substantial farmers and property 
holders of the community. He voted wirii the 
democracy, but took no active part in politics 
other than this. He was a Universalist in reli- 
gious faith, while his wife was a member of the 
Presbyterian church. In their family were five 
children: Ruth Ann, who was born May 15, 
1838, and died February 20. 1844; Susan, who 
was born January 26, 1841, and is the wife of 
C. B. Shields, a resident of Platte county, Ne- 
braska; Adelia. who was born December i, 
1843, and died July 31, 1850: Jane, who was 
born August 8, 1847, and died September 2, 
1851; and George S., of this review. 

Reared and educated in Ohio, George S. 
Engle was a student in the common schools and 
in his boyhood days assisted his father in the 
operation of the home farm. He always lived 
with his parents, aiding in the fann work, and 
on his father's death he came into possession of 
three hundred and ninety-two acres of the old 
homestead, which constitutes a valuable prop- 
erty. He was married in 1875 to Miss Sabra 
Koontz, whQ was born December 13, 1852, a 
daughter of Israel and Martha (Snyder) 
Koontz. The father was bora in Pennsylvania, 
March 16, 1817, and died in this county in 
1895, at the age of seventy-eight years. The 
mother's birth occurred in Switzerland, and she 
passed away in Richland township at the age 
of seventy-one years. Mr. Koontz was a black- 
smith Ijy trade and came to Mahaska county 
in 1863, locating in Peoria, where he followed 
blacksmithing for alxnit six years. He then re- 
moved to Pella, Iowa, and afterward to Kan- 
sas, but subsequently returned to Peoria, where 
his death occurred. In the family were eight 
children, of whom four are yet living. Frances 
is the wife of Byron Tattle, a resident of Kan- 
sas. George Washington, who enlisted at Pe- 
oria, Iowa, and became commissar\^ sergeant of 
his regiment, died of measles while serving in 
the Union army. Martha Cordelia is the de- 
ceased wife of Milton Lundv, who was a resi- 



dent of Richland township. Mrs. Sarah Isa- 
belle Boston resides in Kansas. Persis died at 
the age of eight years. Sabra, twin sister of 
Persis, is the wife of the subject of this review. 
Eva Josephine and Iva Jane were twins, and the 
former is now living in Missouri and the latter 
is deceased. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Engle have 
been born three children : Martha E., born 
July 29, 1877, married Wilbur Hart, has three 
children and lives upon the old home farm. 
James Israel, born June 25, 1879, and now liv- 
ing upon the home farm but in a separate house 
from his parents, married Anna Baty, and has 
two children. Blanche, born March 4, 1884, 
is the wife of Rodney Jackson, who resides 
upon a farm in Richland township. 

Mr. Engle and his son work the farm to- 
gether. They have a traction engine and com- 
plete threshing outfit, corn shredder and wood- 
saw, and do considerable work after the hai^vest 
season is over on the farm. Mr. Engle owns 
good horses and has a Clydesdale stallion four 
years old. Both Mr. and Mrs. Engle are hos- 
pitable people, generous with all that they have 
in the entertainment of their friends. Mrs. 
Engle belongs to the Methodist Episcopal 
church and Mr. Engle also attends its services. 
In politics he is a republican and has served 
as school director, but would hold no other 
ofifice. 



JOHN H. WARNER. 

John H. Warner, living on section 20, Cedar 
township, is one of the early settlers of INIa- 
haska county, who, since the 5th of October, 
1854, has been an interested observer of the 
events which go to make up its histoiw. He was 
born in Washington county, Mar^-land, July 
30. 1829. His fatlier, John Warner, was also 
a native of the same county and a son of John 
Warner, Sr. The great-grandfather of our sub- 
ject was a pioneer resident of Maryland and 







^:\^y)^jLK^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



437 



was of German ancestry. John Warner, Jr., 
was reared in tlie state of his nativity and was 
married tliere to Miss Mary Cooi<, also a native 
(if .Mar_\-land. T.y trade lie was a stone-cutter 
and followed that pursuit for a number of years. 
He reared his family in ^larvland and Penn- 
sylvania, and afterward removed to Ohio, where 
he resided for eig'ht years. Still later he joined 
his son in Iowa, in 1853, spending his last 
years in this state. In the family were five chil- 
dren, and two daughters are still living. 

Jiilin 11. Warner, the only son, was reared 
to manhood in Madison county, Ohio. He is a 
self-educated man, having few advantages in 
his youth for the ac(|uirement of an education 
or for improvement along other lines. \\'hile 
living in Madison county he was married on the 
i_'th of August, 1849, to Miss Mary .\lder, 
a natixe of that county, where her girlhood and 
youth were passed. Her father was Jonathan 
.Mder, who was captured by the Indians when a 
lad of eight years living in West Virginia, 
which was then a frontier district. He was 
taken to Aladison county, Ohio, and remained 
with the red men as a prisoner for twenty-four 
years. At length he made his escape and be- 
came a resident nf Ohio. 

i'ollowing his marriage Mr. Warner pur- 
chased land and located in Madison county, 
Ohio, where he carried on general agricultural 
l)ursuits until 1834. when he reuKived westward 
to Iowa, settling in Mahaska county. Here he 
operated a rented farm for two years and dur- 
ing that time he purchased eighty acres where 
he miw resides, locating on this place in April, 
1837. There were few improvements upon it. 
Ihc land was largely raw prairie and Mr. War- 
ner Ijroke the snd, fenced the place and tilled the 
fields. He used ox-teams in his farm work dur- 
ing the first few years. Later he bought more 
land from time to time until he had become the 
owner of twn hundred and eighl\- acres in the 
home fami. He has since, however, disposed of 
a ]3ortion of this although he yet owns two 



hundred acres in the home place and twenty 
acres elsewhere. He built an attractive frame 
residence, also a large barn and sheds, and set 
out an orchard of five hundred trees, which 
has borne good fruit for a numlier of years. 
He now has a young orchard, which is coming 
into bearing. He has made a business of rais- 
ing stock for a numlier of years, his specialty 
being sheep, but he also fattens about one hun- 
dred head of hogs each year for the market and 
two carloads of cattle. When Mr. and Mrs. 
Warner were married they were in vers- lim- 
ited financial circumstances, but through their 
earnest and indefatigable labor they have be- 
come possessed of a comfortable competency 
and are now numbered among the substantial 
residents of this county. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. \\'arner have been born 
eight children, all of whom are yet living, 
namely : Amanda, at home ; Henry, a farmer 
of the state of Washington living near SiK>kane; 
Sarah, the wife of C. W. Moore, a resident 
farmer of Harrison township; Jasper, a farmer 
of Cedar township; Alma, the wife of Arthur 
E, Brown, of Wapello county, Iowa ; Laura, at 
home; Lincoln, a mechanic at Cedar; and Nel- 
lie, the wife of La Vemge Welch, a resident 
farmer of Cedar township. 

When age gave to ]\Ir. Warner the right of 
franchise he cast his first presidential ballot in 
1852 for General Scott and in 1856 voted for 
the first presidential nominee of the new repub- 
lican part}', John C. Fremont. He has since 
supported each of the standard bearers of that 
party, being a most earnest and stalwart repub- 
lican. He sen'ed for one term as supervisor of 
his township and filled the office of trustee for 
several years. He is a friend of the schools and 
served for eleven years on the school board, do- 
ing effective service in behalf of impro\ement 
in the cause of public education here. He and 
his wife and family are members of the Friends 
church, although in foriuer years they were 
identified with the Methodist F-i^iscopal church. 



438 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



!Mr. \Varner has been a resident of the county 
for fifty-two years and his labors have been an 
element in its substantial impro\'enient along 
the lines of agricultural development. He was 
drafted for service in the Civil war but hired 
a substitute. He has always been a strictly 
temperate man, never using liquor nor tobacco 
and has ever stood for high principles and for 
upright life. His ^\•hole career has been char- 
acterized by a devotion to the public good and 
his influence has ever been on the side of prog- 
ress, reform and inii)ro\-ement. He has helped 
people to live better lives and has himself been 
an industrious, frugal and honest man, who, 
through his own lalaors, has accumulated a large 
and valuable property. He is today in pos- 
session of a good home, and is one of the sub- 
stantial agriculturists of Cedar township, where 
he is well known and highly esteemed for his 
many virtues and good works. 



WILLIAM H. KEATING. 

The subject of this sketch, an attorney and 
abstractor, who is well informed in all branches 
of the law and with a large clientage in both 
departments of his business, is a native of Bos- 
ton, Massachusetts, his parents being William 
and Mary L. (Crawford) Keating, the former 
a native of Ireland and the latter of Nova 
Scotia, Canada. In the spring of 1863, he re- 
moved with his parents from the city of his 
nativity and settled near the northeast corner 
of Poweshiek county, Iowa. Here was spent 
almost the entire married life of his parents, 
who are both laid to rest in the cemetery near 
their home. His parents were among the pio- 
neers of that district, which was uncultivated, 
except here and there at great distances could 
be seen the log cabin or small house and prairie 
stables with thatched roof of the home-seekers 
of that earlv da-\'. The familv consisted of six 



children: Mary L., who died in infancy, W. H., 
of this review, George J. and John E., both de- 
ceased, Charles A., who is a practicing osteo- 
path, of Des Moines; and Sarah J., who is the 
wife of William Nitsch, of Marshalltown, 
Iowa. 

Mr. Keating of this review entered the dis- 
trict schools at the usual age, but being the 
oldest child, he was compelled to assist in the 
cultivation of the farm, so that after ten years 
of age he could attend school only during the 
winter terms. His parents' financial condition 
was such that they could not give him a course 
in college and he was forced to procure his edu- 
cation by his individual efforts, he having re- 
mained at home until the spring of 1884 and 
pursued his studies when the day's work was 
over by the aid of the open fireplace, tallow 
candle and later by kerosene lamp, until the 
year 1884, at which time he had mastered all 
the branches of learning taught in the public 
schools, a complete course of the English clas- 
sics, the higher mathematics and literature. 
He entered the law department of Drake Uni- 
versity, at Des Moines, Iowa, in the spring of 
1884, graduating in June, 1885, with honors, 
and was admitted to the practice of his pro- 
fession with his class in May, 1886. Four 
years later, in 1890, he came to Oskaloosa, 
where he has since made his home. He is well 
versed in all branches of the law and his devo- 
tion to his clients' interest is proverbial. He 
has the professional patronage of many of the 
leading citizens of Oskaloosa and Mahaska 
county. 

On November 30, 1892, Mr. Keating was 
married to Miss Christine Monteith, a daugh- 
ter of Thomas and Christine Monteith, of Al- 
bany, Oregon. They now have one child, 
Charlotte. In his home life he is a devoted 
husband and an indulgent father, and in relig- 
ion, a Presbyterian. He has a kind word for 
every one, believing that a true life is the help- 
ing of others to pluck out the thorns and plant 




W. If. KEATING. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



441 



a flower, tliat its beauty and fragrance may 
soothe the trials and sweeten life's pathway 
wherever it can be done. 

Mr. Keating is prominent in local affairs, be- 
ing much interested in city impro\'einent and 
municipal reform. In politics he is a democrat, 
and fraternally is connected with the Masons, 
Eastern Star. Woodmen of the World and 
Court of Honor. 

At the outbreak of the Spanish-American 
war he was captain of Company F of the Fifty- 
first Regiment of Iowa Infantry and did active 
duty witlT the United States forces for nine- 
teen months, ten of which were in the ]'hilip- 
pines, and of the seventeen engagements in 
which the regiment took part, he partici])ated 
in sixteen without recei\ing an injury or 
wiiund. On August 9, 1899, during the ad- 
vance of the American forces on Tarlac, Luzon 
island, he was ordered by General McArthur 
to protect the right flank of the army and to 
hold the Philippine forces in check where the 
latter were heavily entrenched in front of the 
town of ^Mexico. For this purpose, in addition 
to his own company, there were assigned to 
him Company K, of the Iowa regiment, and a 
battery of six guns from the Sixth United 
States Artillery. The insurgent forces num- 
bered over four hundred, heavily entrenched, 
while the Americans were compelled to fight in 
an open field and numbered only eightv men. 
So successfully was this order performed that 
General McArthur in person complimented 
Captain Keating and conferred upon him the 
command of the town of San Fernando, in 
which had been established the hospitals for the 
sick and the base of supplies for the forces in 
the field north of Malolos. 

W hile returning to .\merica on the steamer 
"Senator," tlie vessel encountered a fierce gale 
off the coast of Jai)aii. which compelled the 
closing down of all her maciiinery and hatch- 
ways, and being cast adrift for about twenty 
hours. The storm carried away a part of the 



rigging and a lifeboat from the vessel which 
hajJiKMied to drift near a passenger steamer 
which had left Japan a few days subsequent to 
the departure (jf the "Senator" and arrived at 
San Francisco, California, some days prior to 
the "Senator." So that when the subject of 
this re\iew arrived at San Francisco, he was 
astonished to leani that the vessel and all on 
board had been reported lost. 

As a citizen. Mr. Keating is public spirited, 
as manifested by his active and able service in 
connection with various movements for the 
])ublic good. By earnest eft'ort, close applica- 
tion, and the exercise of his native talents, he 
has won a prominent position at the Oskaloosa 
bar and has the entire respect and confidence of 
his professional brethren. 



JAMES L. NELSON. 



l-'ew citizens are better or more favorably 
known throughout Mahaska county than James 
L. Nelson, who was bom in Madison countv, 
Indiana, February 13. 1848, his parents being 
Arbuckle and Jane (Greenlee) Nelson, natives 
of West Virginia and the former a farmer bv 
occupation. The sons of the family are Mar- 
shall, John M., French L., Clarke G. and James 
L. Nelson, and the daughters are Mrs. ^Martha 
Vallers, of Illinois: Mrs. Mzrj E. :Miskimins, 
of Center\ille, Iowa; Mrs. Mary Jane Chap- 
man, of Hmneston, Iowa; Mrs. Elizabeth Mc- 
Cutcheon, of Leon, Iowa; and Mrs. Fanny Se- 
doris, of De Witt, Iowa. 

James L. Nelson in 1854 accompanied his 
father's family on their removal to Wayne 
county, Iowa, where he became familiar with 
farm labor, being trained to the work of tlie 
fields. He took up his alxide in Mahaska 
county in 1883, and has since been a resident 
of Oskaloosa. He was engaged in the real- 
estate business for a number of years but since 



442 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



1893 has devoted his tinle exclusively to the fire 
insurance business, in which he has a large 
clientage, representing the American Fire In- 
surance Company, of Newark, New Jersey; 
the British Assurance Company, of Toronto, 
Canada; the Hawkeye Company, of Des 
Moines ; the Capital Company, of Des Moines ; 
and the State Insurance Company, of Des 
Moines. 

Mr. Nelson is a diligent and enterprising busi- 
ness man, and yet finds time for other interests 
in life, which tend to promote the social and in- 
tellectual nature. He belongs to the ^Modern 
Woodmen camp and votes with the republican 
party. In his home he has always been devoted 
to the welfare of his family and for many years 
he and his wife traveled life's journey happily 
together, but at length were separated in death. 
On the 2 1st of January. 1866. he married Har- 
riet Agnes Clark, a native of Cambridge, 
Guernsey county, Ohio, who was born May 8, 
1844, and spent her girlhood days in New- 
comerstown, Ohio. About 1862 she and her 
mother removed to \\^ayne county, Iowa, and 
in 1866 she gave her hand in marriage to Mr. 
Nelson. Unto them were born the following 
named : Mrs. Arizona Williams, who is liv- 
ing in Pasadena, California; Mrs. Fannie 
Amelia Wisdom, of Escondido, California; and 
]\Irs. Ella Estie Briggs, of Des Moines. The 
Avife and mother was called to her final rest 
February 24, 1906, after they had traveled life's 
journey together for over forty years. Upon 
the removal of the family to Oskaloosa she 
transferred her membership from the Cambria 
Baptist church to the Baptist church of this 
city, of which she remained a most de\'oted and 
consistent member until her death. The funeral 
services were conducted by her pastor. Rev. A. 
M. Duboc and F. M. Whitcomb. She was a 
lady of most earnest Christian character in 
act as well as word, and was belo\'ed and 
mourned by all who knew her. She had been 
long a patient sufferer and after being told 



that she could not recover from her illness she 
penned the following stanzas on her deathbed : 

"The hours and the days must be shortened 
By the hand of the Master, I know ; 

The time of suffering lightened 
That we may endure the blow. 

It came so heavily on us 

\\'ith the surgeon's final decree 
That they never could relieve us 

From the disease that came to stay. 

There the Master hastens this way 

To have a care for his own; 
And now I am hearing him say 

'My love to My children is known.' 

'Nor will I afflict them more 

Than the least are able to bear, 
But with the afflictions will show 

Unto them My loving care.' 

Now He is walking by my side, 

I can almost see His face. 
And whatever may lietide. 

Sufficient will be His grace. 

He is my shepherd, too. 

And beside the still water leads, 
And the green pastures through, 

Supplying all of my needs. 

When the valley of the shadow of death 

I reach by my trembling feet, 
He will breathe in my soul a breath 

That will make the victory complete. 

\Mien our tears have been blotted up. 
Our sufferings are all complete, 

Antl Ave have drained our earthly cup 
Of all its bitter and its sweet. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



443 



Our Saviour will say, "It will do, 
]\Iy cliiki, you are free at last, 

And the g'ates are wide open for you ; 
Earth's last milestone is jxissed.' 

Then when we reach our home. 
When our sorrows all are passed, 

We will wait for our friends to come 
And rejoice with us at last. 

(TO MY HUSBAND.) 

We ha\e juurneyed long together, 
Dear husband, you and I ; 

But soon the bond must sever, 
And one of us must die. 

And one of us must tany here, 

Perhaps to walk alone. 
No wife to love and cheer. 

And make a welcome home. 

Flowers have not been strewn 

All the way we come, 
And man\- times the thorns 

Ha\e hushed a joyful song. 

Troubles came our way 

That were so hard to bear; 

Clouds would o'ercast the day. 
We had hoped to lie so clear. 

I will be with you, dear. 

When the river you must cross ; 

My child, keep up your cheer; 
For you there is no loss. 

Just draw away your hand 

From your hush;uid's bv vour side 
And close to me stand 

Until the waters do divide. 

There, give me your hand, my dear, 

And we will enter in. 
You see there is no fear 

Where I before have been. 



Now trust them all to me — 

Your children, husband, all. 
1 will their Saviour he. 

And will never let them fall. 

Now lift your eyes to me. 

Put your arms around me so, 
And the waters you will see 

Can never yon overflow. 

There, the sting of death is past, 
The waves just touch your feet; 

You are homeward bound at last. 
Your conquest all complete. 

Berea\-enients, too, were ours. 
When friends were called away, 

And we could only scatter flowers 
O'er the poor returning clay. 

Yet step by step we climbed 

The first hillside of life 
Or little did we mind 

The roughness of die strife. 

For we \\ere strong and young. 

Life's vigor coursing swift; ■ 
Om- lo\e was wondrous strong. 

As a most gracious gift. 

Time flew with rapid strides. 

Our children grew apace. 
Oh ! with what loving pride 

We watched eacn budding grace. 

When years s])ed on and on 

Through their childhood and maidenhood, 
Until they, too, were gone — 

And alone again we stood. 

On the summit of the hill, 

Just ready to descend. 
Yet God was with us still. 

As He will be to the end. 



444 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



We've been walking hand in hand 
A'down the natural grade 

Until at last we stand 

Within the vallev's shade. 



The valley of the shadow 
Of death we plainly see, 

And perhaps before the morrow 
The call will come to me." 



W. W. WINDER. 



A\'. \\'. ^^'inder, a veteran of the Civil war 
and a retired barljer of New Sharon, was born 
in Ross county. Ohio. December 4. 1836. his 
parents being James and Elizabeth (Albright) 
Winder. The father was bom in Ross county, 
Ohio, and the mother's birth occurred in Wy- 
oming county. New York. James Winder de- 
voted his attention to farming in the Buckeve 
state and in 1852 came with his family to Ma- 
haska county, Iowa, settling on a farm of 
seventy-one acres of land north of Oskaloosa. 
This tract had been partially improved and he 
made his home there until 1857, further culti- 
vating and developing his land. He then sold 
the farm and removed to New Sharon, pur- 
chasing seventy acres adjoining the tract 
which had just been platted for the city. In 
the meantime he had worked at the carpenter's 
trade, while his sons performed the active 
work of the farm. The second house ever 
erected in what is now New Sharon was built 
by James Winder and his sons in the spring of 
1857. The town had been surveyed in July. 
1856, and the land was owned by the firm of 
Culbertson & Reno, of Iowa City. The first 
store was conducted by James W'inder in the 
house which he built and which stood on the 
southwest corner of Main and Second streets. 
He opened the store in the summer of 1857. 
carrying a line of general merchandise. The 



building was sixteen by forty feet, one story in 
height and was used as a dwelling as well as a 
store. It was afterward enlarged until the 
dimensions were thirty-six by forty feet and 
a second story was added. In the year 1857 
the postoffice was also established and Mr. 
Winder was appointed the first postmaster, fill- 
ing that position for seven years and receiving 
at the end of that time twenty-one dollars for 
his services. The mail was carried by W. W. 
Winder each Saturday from Oskaloosa at 
thirty-five cents a trip. During the winter he 
made his way over the broad prairies, some- 
times covered with deep snow and by the time 
he paid his passage on the ferry at South Skunk 
river he had but a few pennies left and fre- 
quently he obtained not more than one letter. 
The nearest milling point was Union Mills, 
five miles east of New Sharon. No roads had 
been laid out at that time and the few farms 
that had been claimed were un fenced save that 
occasionally there had been a little pen made 
for the cow. In every direction there was a 
wide stretch of wild and uncultivated prairie 
covered with the native grasses often growing 
almost to the height of a man's head. \\'olves 
were plentiful in those days and even as late as 
the time in which Mr. A\'inder was married 
they were howling in this district, showing that 
the work of improvement and development 
even then lay largely in the future. 

James Winder was for many years a \'alued 
citizen of Mahaska county and at his death, 
which occurred when he was seventy years of 
age, New Sharon lost one of its worthy citi- 
zens and honored pioneer men. His wife sur- 
vived him for some time and passed away in 
New Sharon at the age of eighty-five years. 
Both were members of the society of Friends, 
or Quakers, and in his political views 'Sir. \\'in- 
der was an earnest republican but aside from 
serving as postmaster never held any other 
office. In his family were eight children, of 
^^■hom one died when young. The others are: 




W. W. WIXDER 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



447 



^^'. \\'., (if this review; Francis A., who is now 
livinij' in Xew Sharon : Xancy A., the wife of 
lared Rocl<well, a resident of Los Angeles, Cal- 
ifornia; Hope, deceased; Joseph, who is living 
in Newberry, Oregon ; Charlotte T., the wife of 
(i. G. Strong, a resident of Prairie township; 
and Abner J., who resides at Fresno, California. 

W. W. Winder remained at home until 
twenty-seven years of age. He attended the 
common schools of Ohio and also to some ex- 
tent after coming to Iowa. There are few 
men who ha\'e a more intimate knowledge of 
pioneer conditions in Mahaska county than he, 
for he was an active participant in many events 
which have led to the substantial improvement 
of the county as it has been reclaimed from a 
wild district for the uses of the white race. On 
the I "til of September, 1861. he put aside all 
personal and business considerations in order 
to respond to his country's call, enlisting at 
Oskaloosa as a member of Company H, Eighth 
Towa Infantry. He was in no important en- 
gagements and was sent home on a furlough 
just prior to the battle of Pittsburg Landing. 
When he returned to the front he found that 
the Eighth regiment had been captured and its 
members were in southern prisons. Having 
been ill for several months Mr. Winder was 
honorably discharged on account of disability 
at Pittsburg Landing in the spring of 1862. 
He has always suffered from the efifects of ex- 
posure and hardshi])s while serving at the front 
and is now. given a pension of seventeen dollars 
per month. 

After returning to Xew Sharon ^Ir. Winder 
conducted his father's farm for one year. In 
i8r)4 lie made a trip to Ohio on a visit and. 
deciding to remain there, spent three years in 
that state, working at painting and also as a 
barber and photographer. In 1867 he returned 
to New Sharon and in 1871 opened the first 
barber shop in this place. .-Xs the people were 
not accustomed to patronizing a barber it re- 
quired some time for him to work up a trade, 
21 



for previously the men of the locality had done 
their own shaving. He persevered, however, 
and in the course of time secured a good busi- 
ness, in which he continued for a quarter of a 
century. 

Mr. Winder was married Januar)- 6, 1870, 
to Miss Deborah Sharp, who was born in Co- 
lumbiana county, Ohio, on the 5th of Septem- 
ber, 1839, and is a daughter of Isaac and Lydia 
(Middleton) Sharp, the former a native of 
New Jersey and the latter of Ohio. Isaac 
Sharp was a farmer and shoemaker, working 
at the bench in the winter months and on the 
farm during the summer seasons. After a 
while he became a resident of Keokuk county, 
Iowa, where he made his home until the death 
of his wife, suljsequent to which time he came 
to New Sharon and lived with his children until 
his demise. In his family were eleven children, 
of whom six are now living. Mr. and Mrs. Win- 
der became the parents of six children, but five 
of the number died in infancy. The surviving 
son, A. C. Winder, born August 28. 1872, re- 
sides ne.xt door to his father's home. He mar- 
ried Mattie Bradbury and has two children, 
Mark B. and Pauline. Having learned the 
barber's trade with his father, he is conducting 
the business since the retirement of Mr. 
X\'in(ler. 

More than thirty years ago Mr. Winder 
erected the house w'hicli he now occupies on 
land belonging to his fatlier. Later the tract 
was divided into town lots and he still retains 
the ownership of three of these. He also gave 
one lot to his son and assisted him in building 
his home. He likewise erected a brick store 
building, which he still owns and in which his 
son is carrving on business. Mr. \\'inder was 
reared in the faith of the society of Friends, or 
Quakers, but lie and his two brothers w-ere dis- 
owned by that organization because they joined 
the Masonic fraternity. He has always been a 
rei)ublican in his political views, casting his first 
ballot for Abraham Lincohi. Although he has 



448 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASIC\ COUNTY. 



never consented to hold office he has ever been 
loyal to the party and at all times he is a man 
true to his honest convictions. Both he and 
Mrs. \^"inder are numbered among the worthy 
pioneer people of the county and in a history- 
devoted to the lives of those who have taken an 
active and helpful part in the work of progress 
and improvement here they certainly desene 
prominent mention. 



i DEXXIS E. WHITEHILL. 

Dennis E. Whitehill is the owner of a good 
farm of two hundred and thirty-five acres, four 
miles from X'ew Sharon. A native of Illinois, 
he was bom in ^Nlillersburg. Mercer counts-, on 
the 8th of May. 1867, his parents being Thomas 
and Marj' G. CMcCollum) Whitehill. The fa- 
ther was bom in Guernsey count}-. Ohio, a son 
of Thomas Whitehill. who was bom and mar- 
ried in Scotland. The father spent his youth in 
the state of his nativit\- and taught school for 
several j-ears in Ohio and later in Illinois. He 
lived in the latter state until 1875, when he 
came to Iowa, settling in Harrison township, 
Mahaska county, where he engaged in farming, 
cultivating rented land. In 1880 he removed 
to Union township and with the money which 
he had acquired through his own industry and 
economy purchased one hundred and sixty acres 
of land upon which he resided until 1901, care- 
fully and successfully conducting his farming 
operations until that year, when he removed to 
X*ew Sharon, where he is now living a retired 
life. He has been a supporter of the republican 
party since age gave to him the right of fran- 
chise and he has held the position of supen-isor 
and other township offices. Both he and his wife 
members of the Presbyterian church and are 
people of the highest respectabilit}-. They have 
four children and the family circle yet remains 
unbroken bv the hand of death. These are: 



Dennis E. : Myrtie. living in Chicago : Everett 
E., who resides on a farm in Adams township, 
this count)- : and Gretta, the wife of G. B. Xash, 
who resides on a farm in Adams township. 

Dennis E. Whitehill was eight years of age 
when his father came to this count\- and was 
educated in die countr\- schools. He worked 
upon the home farm until seventeen years of 
age. after which he engaged in teaching school 
for five years, being a capable educator, whose 
abilitv- in the schoolroom was widely acknowl- 
adged. In September. 1891. he married Miss 
^linnie Bell Knowlton, who was born in Oska- 
loosa. June 27. 1866, and is a daughter of 
Samuel Knowlton. whose birth occurred in 
Maine, August 28. 1822. his parents being 
Samuel and Olive Knowlton, both of whom 
were natives of England. Samuel Knowlton. 
Jr.. was a soap manufacturer in Cincinnati, 
Ohio, for many years and in 1864 came to Ma- 
haska county, continuing in the same business 
in Oskaloosa. A few years later he purchased 
six hundred and forty acres of land in Union 
township and made his home thereon until he 
retired from active business life, taking up his 
abode in X'ew Sharon in 189 1. He was a ver^- 
successful man, his business interests bringing 
him a handsome competence. His first wife 
was Julia A. Hadley. who was bom March 4, 
1827. and whom he married September 17, 
1845. They had twelve children, namely : Ol- 
ive Ann. who was born October 31. 1846. and 
is tlie wife of W. H. Xeedliani; Sherman, who 
was born May 3, 1848, and died in infancy; 
Simon, who was born May 16, 1849, ^^d is de- 
ceased: Mar}- Thornton, who was born Feb- 
ruar\- 24. 185 1; Charles H.. bom May 18. 
1853 ; Mrs. Emily 'SI. Gritman, who was born 
May 18. 1855; Edwin S., who was bom 'Sla.y 
18, 1857, now deceased: ^Irs. Anna Christ- 
man, born ^lay 17, 1859: Mrs. Martha Web- 
ster, who was bom June 9, 186 1, also deceased: 
Julia Ellen, who was bom January- 2. 1864. and 
is die wife of O. B. X'oel; Minnie Bell, now 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



449 



Mrs. W'hitehill; and Mrs. Cora M. Styles, born 
Xoveniber lo, 1869. On the 14th of Decem- 
ber. 1882, Mr. Knowlton was married to Har- 
riet J. EHis. now living in New Sharon. In his 
])olitical views he was an earnest republican un- 
til 1885, when the tariff question caused him to 
give his allegiance to the democracy. He held 
membership with the Masonic fraternity and 
the Odd Fellows lodge and in early life he was 
identified with the Society of Friends or Quak- 
ers, but five \ears prior to his death became a 
Presbyterian. He passed away in New Sha- 
ron. May 10. 1899. He was for many years 
a prominent and valued citizen of the county, 
conducting important business interests, so that 
he contributed to the general prosperity of this 
part of the state. 

Unto ^Ir. and Mrs. W'hitehill have been born 
two sons: Dwight E.. born July 7. 1893; ^"^ 
Roy S., May 9. 1896. The home farm com- 
prises two hundred and thirty-five acres of land 
four miles from New Sharon and is a part ot 
the Knowlton estate. In the house where they 
now reside Mr. and Mrs. Whitehill were mar- 
ried and he has since carried on farming. ha\- 
ing placed the land under a high state of culti- 
\'ation and added to the place many modern im- 
provements. In politics he is an earnest repub- 
lican and has served as township clerk. He 
and his wife hold membership in the Presby- 
terian church, in which he is serving as an elder, 
and they are prominent and influential people 
of the community with a circle of friends al- 
most co-extensive with the circle of their ac- 
quaintance. 



FRANK THURMAN NASH. 

I'rank Tluirman Nash, a member of the Os- 
kaloosa bar and a public-spirited citizen, who is 
serving on the public library board and is giving 
tangible support to many other interests which 



are a matter of civic pride and progress, was 
born in Adams township, Mahaska county, De- 
cember I, 1869. His father, John Nash, is 
a native of Sussex county, England, and is 
now living in Oskaloosa at the venerable age of 
seventy-nine years. He came to the United 
States in 1842 with his parents, John and 
Sarah Nash, who settled first in New York and 
then removed to Wisconsin, while later thev" re- 
sided in Ohio, making their home in Newark, 
that state, until 1854, when they arrived in Ma- 
haska county, Iowa, in 1880, taking up their 
abode in what is now Madison township, where 
John Nash, Jr, purchased a tract of land. He 
lived there for but a short time, however, and 
removed to Adams township, where he pur- 
chased a farm, residing thereon until he retired 
from business life and took up his abode in 
Oskaloosa in 1886. Throughout his entire 
business career his attention was given to gen- 
eral agricultural pursuits and he prospered in 
that undertaking, investing more and more 
largely in real estate as the years went by until 
at one time he owned a thousand acres of valu- 
able farming land in Iowa. In politics he has 
long been an earnest democrat and held some 
township offices. He was one of the organizers 
of the ]Mahaska County State Bank and is still 
one of its stockholders and directors. He mar- 
ried Martha J. McKinney. who was born in 
Newark. Ohio, and was a daughter of Joseph 
and Elizabeth ( Hopper) McKinney. Her fa- 
ther was a farmer and became a pioneer set- 
tler of his section of Ohio. Mrs. Nash was an 
earnest Christian woman, holding membership 
in the Lutheran church and her death occurred 
in Oskaloosa in 1890, when .she was fifty-two 
years of age. By her marriage she had become 
the mother of three children : Ella M., now de- 
ceased ; Frank T., of this review ; and Cora E., 
the wife of Xenophon H. Hollar, of McGuffey, 
Ohio, where he is engaged in real-estate deal- 
ing. The father has been married three times, 
his first union having been with Mary J. Col- 



450 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



ville, by whom he had three children : John ]., 
who has passed away; Sarah J., the wife of 
Wesley S. Ruby, a resident farmer of Adams 
township; and George C, a retired farmer liv- 
ing in Oskaloosa. The present wife of John 
Nash bore the maiden name of Nancy Koontz. 

Frank T. Nash was reared as a farm boy 
until seventeen years of age and attended the 
district schools of Adams township. When he 
was a youth of seventeen his parents removed to 
Oskaloosa in order to give their children bet- 
ter educational advantages and he entered Penn 
College, where he completed a preparatory 
course and then pursued a classical course. 
He is an alumnus of that institution of the 
class of 1893. Following his graduation he 
made a visit to the World's Columbian 
Exposition in Chicago and also visited various 
Canadian and eastern points. Following his 
return home he entered the office of Judge L. C. 
Blanchard, with whom he read law for a year, 
after which he went to Ann Arl^or, where he 
entered a class in the law department of the 
Michigan University, being graduated there- 
from with the degree of Bachelor of Law in 
1895. He was at once admitted to the Iowa bar 
and began the practice of his profession, open- 
ing an office in the Evans block where he has 
since remained, .\lthough one of the younger 
members of the Mahaska count}- bar, his years 
have not seemed to impede his progress, and he 
stands among the successful few. With a na- 
ture that could never be content with medi- 
ocrity he has applied himself untiringly to the 
duties of the profession and has gained success 
both as counselor and advocate. He owns a 
farm in Adams township and this adds to his 
income. 

On the 1 6th of June, 1897, Mr. Nash was 
married to Miss Lura E. Wright, who was 
bom in Oskaloosa, August 26, 1872, her par- 
ents being Alexander and Mary C. Wright. 
Her father, a carpenter by occupation, came 
to Oskaloosa in the '70s. Mr. and Mrs. Nash 



have two children : John A., born November 
9, 1898 ; and Martha C, born September 8, 
1902. Mrs. Nash is a member of the First 
Presbyterian church, and Mr. Nash belongs to 
the Masonic lodge and Modern Woodmen 
camp of Oskaloosa. He votes with the demo- 
cratic party and keeps well informed on the 
questions and issues of the day. so that he is 
able to support his political position by intelli- 
gent argument. He belongs to the ^lahaska 
County and the State Bar Associations, and in 
community affairs his interest is that of a pub- 
lic-spirited citizen. He is now serving on the 
public libraiy board of Oskaloosa and his co- 
operation may be counted upon as a sure fac- 
tor to further progressive movements. As a 
citizen he is honorable, prompt and true to ev- 
ery engagement, and as a man he has the honor 
and esteem of all classes. 



DANIEL T. ROGERS. 

Daniel T. Rogers, who is living on section 
29. L'nion township, is a native of Lenawee 
county, Michigan, born October 13, 1840, his 
parents being Ansel and Louisa (Raymond) 
Rogers, the father born in Massachusetts in 
181 1 and the mother in New York in the same 
year. The father became one of the early set- 
tlers of Michigan, making his way to that state 
when it was largely covered with unbroken for- 
ests. . His wife died in Lenawee county when 
thirty-nine years of age. He continued his resi- 
dence in Michigan until about 1853, when he 
came to Iowa, settling near Decorah in Winne- 
shiek county. He there bought one hundred 
and sixty acres of land and for several years 
lived upon and improved this farm. Later he 
engaged in the manufacture of lumber, owning 
and operating a sawmill and at one time his 
holdings embraced nine hundred acres of land. 
Subsequently he spent three years in Kansas, 




MR. AXD MRS. I). T. K( XIKRS. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



453 



wliere lie also conducted a sawmill and on leav- 
int^- that state he returned to Ohio and after- 
ward went to Michig'an and to Indiana. He 
was not \ery successful in his farming opera- 
tions hut always made money when he engaged 
in the sawmill business. He was a good me- 
chanic and was em])loyed as foretnan of the 
construclidu nf the Paisin \'alley Railroad in 
.Michigan. subse(|uent to his return to that 
state, after living in Iowa and Kansas. His last 
\ears were spent in Indiana and he was just 
getting started in a good mill when his life's la- 
Imrs were ended in death. For his second wife 
he chose Mrs. Grizell, a widow, whose name in 
her maidenhood w^as Benedict and who died in 
Michigan. His third wife was Priscilla Grizell, 
a sister-in-law of his second wife. Bv the first 
marriage there were five children : .Silas, who 
tiled in Oskaloosa i:i 1905; Nathan, who is liv- 
ing in Portland, Oregon ; Daniel T. ; Alonzo, 
wiio died in the state of Washington about 
three years ago; and Sarah T., the wife of 
I'^rank Farnum, of Ohio. 

Daniel T. Rogers was educated in the com- 
mon schools of Michigan, Iowa and Kansas. 
A teacher by the name of Holloway came with 
the family to Iowa and held a school in his owm 
h(ime. Schools at that time in this state and in 
Kansas were held on the subscription plan, fur 
it Vvas the early jjioneer period when the 
wnrk of development along material and 
intellectual lines had scarcely been begun. 
^Ir. Rogers was married in 1863 to Miss 
Lucy Jane Cobb, who was born Novem- 
l)er _'6. 1 84 1, and is a daughter of An- 
salom and Ann (Copic) Cobb, both of whom 
were natives of Ohio, the former bom in 1799. 
The mother died in the Buckeye state, at the 
age of forty years, and the father died in New 
Sharon, Iowa, at the age of seventy-eight years. 
He was married four times. Mr. and Mrs. 
Rogers li\-ed in Crawford county, Iowa, for 
one year with his father and afterward re- 
moved to Columbiana county, Ohio, living with 



Mrs. Rogers' parents for six months. In 1864 
they came to Maha.ska county. Iowa, together 
with the Cobb family, and I\Ir. Rogers pur- 
chased forty acres of land, where he still re- 
sides. Of this farm, about fourteen acres had 
been broken and upon the place was a little 
frame dwelling and a prairie stable. The town 
of New Sharon contained but si.x frame houses 
and there was not a single house between the 
village and Mr. Rogers' farm. The postoffice 
in New Sharon was in the home of Porter 
Stanton and the mail was kept in an old shoe 
bo.x in which pige<jn holes had been made. Mr. 
Rogers began his farin work in an energetic 
manner and is now- the owner of one hundred 
and twenty acres of land, having purchased 
forty acres adjoining the original tract and an- 
other forty acres just across the road. He has 
upon the ])lace a good frame residence and sub- 
stantial barn and other buildings and all of the 
trees upon the farm w'ere planted by him. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Rogers have been born 
seven children : Grace Ella, the wife of Robert 
Walthall, who is now living near Iowa Falls; 
Dora L., the wdfe of Addison Ball, who is liv- 
ing in Whittier, California ; Mary, the wife of 
Se\er Knudson, whose home is in Waterloo, 
Towa; Ansalom C, of Holland, }ilinnesota: 
Willie, who died at the age of five years; Milo 
.\., who is living in North Dakota; and Lydia, 
at home. 

Mr. Rogers was a republican and is now a 
prohibitionist. He and his family are birth- 
right members of the Society of Friends and 
are active in the work of the church, last year 
giving twenty per cent of their income to the 
cause of Christianity. Both Mr. and Mrs. 
Rogers are yet enjoying good health. They 
have prospered in their undertakings and have 
a comfortable competence for their remaining 
days. Mr. Rogers is assisted in his work by 
an adopted son, Trager. who is now seventeen 
years of age and who has been with them for 
several vears. He is a vouth of verv excellent 



454 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



habits. ne\er using tobacco nor liquor, and his 
upright life is undoubtedly largely due to the 
example of his foster parents. 



L. H. SHERMAN. 



In every community there are a number of 
men who stand foremost in business circles. 
capable of formulating and executing plans and 
carrying forward to successful completion 
whatever they undertake. Such a man is L. H. 
Sherman, whose business ability is recognized 
and whose capacity for successful manageipent 
is evidenced by his control of the Citizens Bank 
of New Sharon, of which he is now the presi- 
dent. He was born in Jasper county. Iowa, 
April 22, 1863, a son of Thomas and Peninah 
(Sparks) Sherman. The father was a native 
of Massachusetts. The mother was a daughter 
of John R. Sparks, who built the first mill in 
Jasper county. The parents removed to Jas- 
per county in 1854 and there Thomas Sher- 
man engaged in general farming. Both he and 
his wife still reside upon a farm in that locality. 
In their family were eight children, of whom 
L. H. Sherman is the fourth in order of birth. 
In the district schools he acquired his early 
education, while later he spent five terms as a 
student in Iowa College. Returning to the 
farm he was engaged in the work of field and 
meadow until twenty-six years of age, his fa- 
ther having given him a tract of land and he 
began farming on his own account. Thinking, 
however, to find other pursuits more congenial 
he put aside the work of tilling the soil and 
when a young man of twenty-six years em- 
barked in merchandising at Sully, Jasper coun- 
ty. In 1889 he organized the Bank of Sully, 
of which he is still president, and there he con- 
tinued until 1898, when he came to New 
Sharon and organized the Citizens Bank here, 
becoming its cashier. He has since built a 



large brick block, one of the finest business 
structures in town, known as the Sherman 
Block. The bank was formerly located in the 
Reynolds Building, now occupied by S. V. 
Reynolds, but built by Mr. Sherman, but has 
been removed to the Sherman Block, where it 
is now housed in attractive quarters. At the 
present writing Mr. Sherman is president of 
the bank, and C. F. Griffey, cashier. They do 
a general banking business and also have large 
safety deposit vaults. The institution has be- 
come one of the strong financial concerns of 
this part of the county, for the business relia- 
bility of the stockholders is well known and the 
methods of operation carried on in the bank 
are such as to commend the institution to the 
confidence and support of the general public. 

In December, 1886, Mr. Sherman was mar- 
ried to Miss Amy J. Smith, a native of Jasper 
county, Iowa, and unto them have been born 
three daughters, Edna, Ada and Helen, all at. 
home. . Their residence on North ]\Iain street 
is one of the finest in the city. The parents are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal church 
and Mr. Sherman votes with the republican 
party, being in hearty sympathy with its prin- 
ciples yet has never been a candidate for office. 
In his business life he is very energetic and the 
consensus of public opinion is not divided con- 
cerning his position in commercial and finan- 
cial circles, for he is accorded a place among 
the foremost. 



JOHN D. YEOMAN. 

The spirit of agricultural enterprise and 
progress is exemplified by John D. Yeoman, 
who follows farming on section 2, Cedar town- 
ship, where he owns a valuable tract of land of 
one hundred and twehe acres, his home having 
been in this county since 1866. He was born 
in Lorain county, Ohio, March 30, 1859. His 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



455 



father, Richard ^'en^lan, was a native of Eng- 
land and on cnniing lo America settled in Ohio, 
making his luime in Lorain connty. He was 
married in Ohio to Miss Fannie C. Axtel, a 
native of Ohio, where her father had located at 
an early da}'. Mr. Yeoman devoted his time 
and energies to agricultnral pursuits in the 
|]uckeye state until 1866, when he S(.ild his 
prnpertx" there and removed with his family to 
Iowa. L'nto him and his wife had been born 
nine children, of whom seven came with their 
])arents to this state. On arriving here Mr. 
Yeoman purchased the tract of land upon which 
his son John now resides and began to cultivate 
and improve a farm. He luiilt here a good 
house and substantial barns and outbuildings 
and made many modem improvements, de\elop- 
ing a farm of one hundred and twel\'e acres. 
It was upon the old homestead property here 
that John D. Yeoman was reared to manhood. 
He assisted in the work of the fields from the 
time of early spring planting until crops were 
har\-ested in the late autumn and during the 
winter months he attended the public schools. 
To his father he g"ave the Ijenefit of his services 
until he had attained his majority and at the 
age of twenty-one years he went to what was 
then the territory of W'ashington, where he re- 
mained for a year herding cattle. He afterward 
came back to Iowa and settled ujwn the old 
home place purchasing the interest of the other 
heirs in the property. His father had died in 
1884, in his seventy-eighth year, while his 
mother sur\-i\es and is now se\-enty-se\'en years 
I if age. She is in good health and makes her 
home with her son John. After coming into 
possession of the home ])roperty through pur- 
cha.se, John D. Yeoman resolutely took up the 
task of further improvement here and has 
erected a good residence of a story and a half, 
together with substantial barns and outbuild- 
ings. He had to clear over one hundred acres 
of the land and his farm in its present ad- 
vanced condition of improvement and develop- 



ment is the visible evidence of his life of thrift 
and industry. 

Mr. Yeoman was married on the 2d of July, 
i88j, to Miss Mary J. Jones, a native of In- 
diana, and a daugiiter of Re\-. J. \V. Jones, who 
was born in that state and came to Iowa at an 
early day, casting in his lot with the early set- 
tlers, who were subjugating the wilderness and 
extending the frontier. He is still living and 
now makes his hoiue in Hedrick, Iowa. Mr. 
and Mrs. Yeoman had ten children, of wdiom 
two died in infancy and one, Elden D., at the 
age of three years. The others are : Nina Mabel, 
the wife of L. C. Moore, a business man of 
Chicago; Jessie, Floyd R., Harold J., Fannie 
C, Charlie and Rheinold, all living at home and 
attending school. The parents are members of 
the United Brethren Baptist church but attend 
the ^lethodist Episcopal church at Fremont as 
there is no Baptist church at that place. IMr. 
Yeoman is a member of the Odd Fellows So- 
ciey at Fremont. In politics he is a stalwart 
repuljlican, but without aspiration for office. He 
has, however, served on the school board for 
eighteen years and the cause of education finds 
in him a stalwart friend. His business interests 
are carefull}- conducted and in all his dealings 
he is straightforward and reliable. He not only 
tills the soil but also raises good stock of va- 
rious kinds and his business in both its branches 
is bringing to him a very goo<l living. 



FILMORE GARNER. 

Filmore Garner, who is engaged in the im- 
plement business in New Sharon, where he is 
also dealing in hardware, windmills, wagons, 
buggies, mowers. 1:)inders and corn planters, 
possesses a spirit of enterprise and determina- 
tion that has led to success in his commercial 
as well as agricultural ventures. He was born 
near Grafton, West Virginia, on the i6th of 



456 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



October, 1856, a son of John and Nancy (Fort- 
ney) Garner, who were also natives of that 
place. In 1857 the father removed with his 
family to Bloomfield, Iowa, where he lived un- 
til 1863. when he came to Mahaska county, 
here purchasing eighty acres of land in Prairie 
township. He then turned his attention to farm- 
ing, which, in fact, was his life work, and in 
which pursuit he won a very gratifying meas- 
ure of success. He resided upon his farm con- 
tinuously until his death, which occurred about 
twenty years ago, when he was sixty-five years 
of age. His wife survived him and died at 
Rose Hill, Mahaska county, at the age of sev- 
enty-seven years. In their family were six chil- 
dren, of whom Filmore is the youngest, the 
others being: Priscilla. the deceased wife of 
John ]\Iiller, a resident of Jasper county, Iowa; 
Isaac, a shipper of live stock in New Sharon ; 
Samuel, who is living in Nebraska ; Mollie, 
now Mrs. Billick, living near Oskaloosa, Iowa; 
and Eliza, who died at the age of sixteen years. 

Filmore Gamer made his home with his par- 
ents until the time of his marriage and during 
that period attended the public schools, acquir- 
ing a fair English education. He was only a 
few months old when brought by his father to 
Iowa and here he was reared to fann life. .Vt 
the age of twenty-nine years he was married in 
1885 to Miss Eliza Higgason, who was born in 
Illinois, but lived in Mahaska county since 
1875. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Garner have been 
born seven children and the family circle yet re- 
mains unbroken. These are Homer, Lena, 
Harry. Ray, Ernest. Lillie and Gale, all at 
home \\ith their parents. 

At the time of his marriage Mr. Garner be- 
gan farming on his own account and for seven- 
teen years was a successful stock-feeder, an- 
nually feeding a large number of stock, for 
which he found a ready sale on the market. He 
was practical in all that he did and his fields 
were richly cultivated. He carried on farm- 
ing until about five years ago, when, in 190 1, 



he came to New Sharon and purchased an in- 
terest in an implement business, becoming a 
partner of his cousin, J. A. Garner, who had 
been conducting the business for three years. 
This association was maintained for two years, 
at the end of which time Filmore Garner pur- 
chased his cousin's interest and has since been 
alone. He now handles farm implements, heavy 
hardware, windmills, wagons, buggies, mowers, 
binders and corn planters, and he does a busi- 
ness amounting to about twenty thousand dol- 
lars per year, which is double the amount of 
business that \\'as transacted when he became a 
partner in the firm four years ago. He is a 
veiy energetic man, alert and enterprising, ac- 
complishing all that he undertakes and through 
his well directed labors he has built up an ex- 
tensive trade. In his business methods he is 
strictly reliable and his earnest desire to please 
his patrons combined with his indefatigable 
energ\- constitutes the secret of his success. He 
has alwaj's been a believer in the principles of 
the republican party and votes with that organ- 
ization on national questions but at local elec- 
tions he frequently casts an independent bal- 
lot. He affiliates with no fraternal organiza- 
tion although he is not opposed to them but his 
business interests make heavy demands upon his 
time and attention and he has put forth every 
efl^ort in his power to provide a comfortable liv- 
ing for his famih' and to lay up for them a 
goodly estate. 



ALLEN BROTHERS. 



Allen Brothers are proprietors of the Allen- 
dale stock farm and well known stock-raisers 
of this section of Iowa. Their father, Abner 
Allen, was born in Bethlehem. Litchfield county, 
Connecticut, February 16, 1819. His parents, 
James and Clarissa (Way) Allen, had a family 




ABXKR ALLRX. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



459 



of six children, three of whom reached adult 
age. Aliner .\llen was the eldest and was rcarccl 
upon a farm, lie had more than the ordinary 
school prixileges ;uid at the age of seventeen 
rears hegan teaching, which profession he fol- 
lowed for three terms. On attaining his ma- 
jority he started for the west, and after a brief 
stay in C'le\eland, Ohio, went to Stark county, 
Ohiii. where he was engaged in general mer- 
chandising for five years. In 1846 he returned 
to Connecticut, where he was married to Miss 
Hannah Hayes and in the town of Bethlehem 
he engaged in general merchandising, remaining 
there until the death of his wife in 1848. The 
following year, attracted liy the discoveries on 
the Pacific coast, he made his way to the gold- 
fields of California by the isthmus route and fol- 
lowed mining in this state for two years. He 
Avas \ery successful in a financial way and re- 
turned home by way of the Nicaragua route. 
In 185 1 he married Miss Betsey Ann Hayes, a 
sister of his first wife, and in 1854 he came to 
Mahaska county, Iowa, establishing a mercan- 
tile enterprise in Oskaloosa under the firm name 
of Perkins & Allen. After a year he sold out 
and turned his attention to the queensware busi- 
ness, in which he continued until 1858. In i860 
he traded city property for a farm near Bea- 
con, in the vicinity of Oskaloosa, and opened 
a coal mine, which he operated until 1865. In 
that year he returned to Connecticut and was 
engaged in farming for six years. He then 
went to Colorado for his wife's health, and was 
connected with the harness trade at Canon City 
for five years. In 1877 he returned to Ma- 
haska county, where he engaged in farming on 
eight hundred acres of land, which had pre- 
viously come into his possession. He made his 
home upon this place until August 22, 1901, 
when his life's labors were ended in death. His 
second wife, who was l)orn in Connecticut, on 
January 3, 1830, is still living and now makes 
her home with a daughter in New Milford, 
Connecticut. 



Aimer Allen was a very successful -business 
man in all his undertakings. Nothing is imix)s- 
siljle of accomplishment to him who has the will 
to dare and to do, and allows no thought of 
failure to enter his mind; and the word fail had 
no part in Mr. Allen's vocabulary. He pos- 
sessed sound judgment and moreover was in- 
dustrious and energetic. He was richly en- 
dowed in tho.=e sterling qualities which make an 
honored citizen, and all who knew him re- 
spected him for his genuine worth. In poli- 
tics he was a democrat, and though often solic- 
ited to accept public office he never consented 
to do so, preferring to concentrate his attention 
upon his business affairs, in which be met with 
signal prosperity. He held membership in the 
Episcopal church and his life was actuated by 
high and honorable motives. He represented 
an old New England family and bis son is now 
in possession of genealogy of the Allings (Al- 
iens), of New Haven, Connecticut, from 1639 
to the present time. In the father's family 
were three children, all of whom are now liv- 
ing: Minnie C, the wife of Charles B. Bots- 
ford. who resides in New ]\Iilford, Connecticut; 
and James H. and George G., of this review. 

James H. Allen was born in Oskaloosa, Sep- 
tember 14. 1855, was educated in the city 
schools and in a select school in New Haven, 
Connecticut, where he spent one winter. He 
always lived with his parents, and in his youth 
learned the harness-maker's trade in Canon 
City, Colorado, where he worked for his father 
for four years. On the nth of December, 
T889. be was married to ]\Iiss Elizabeth Irwin, 
who was born in Beacon, Iowa, September 22, 
1863, and is a daughter of J. W. Irwin, a .sketch 
of whom appears elsewhere in this work. James 
H. -Allen returned to the home farm in Mahaska 
county in 1877 '1''"^ operated the land and also 
carried on the farm after his father's death, 
when, with his brother, George G.. he came into 
possession of this property. Unto him and his 
wife have been bom two children: Irwin A., 



460 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



born ]May 6, 1891 ; and Walter H., born June 
13, 1895. Both are bright young men at home 
and ' the elder is attending the New Sharon 
schools. 

George G. Allen has never married and lives 
on. the home farm with his brother. They own 
four hundred acres of good land with good 
buildings, and in fact, have a splendidly de- 
\-eloped property. They have a registered herd 
of Aberdeen Angus polled cattle which they 
raise for breeding purposes, and in this busi- 
ness are meeting with splendid success. They 
also carry on general farming and annually 
produce good crops as a reward for the care 
and labor the>- bestow on the fields. 

In politics James H. Allen is a democrat and 
has held the office of school treasurer. His 
fraternal relations are with the Masons. His 
wife is a member of the Presbyterian church of 
New Sharon but both attend the Christian 
church at Union Mills. The firm of Allen 
Brothers is a very reliable and prominent one 
in the county, and the Allendale stock fami is 
widely famed because of the fine Aberdeen 
Angus cattle here raised. 



M. F. TRIPLETT. 



On a farm on section 23, Cedar township, 
lives M. F. Triplett, who is one of the diligent 
and prosperous agriculturists of this section. 
He owns and operates a farm of three hundred 
and twenty-six acres of well improved and val- 
uable land, adjoining the corporation limits of 
Fremont, and he is classed with the pioneer 
farmers of Mahaska county, having been 
brought to Iowa by his father in his childhood 
days in 1857. He is a native of Ohio, bis birth 
having occurred in Noble county, that state, 
February 16, 1852. His father, Mortimer T. 
Triplett, is now a hale and hearty old man of 
ninety-four years. He was born in Virginia, 



in 1813, and was a son of James Triplett, also 
a native of the Old Dominion. The grandfa- 
ther was a teacher, following that profession 
both in Virginia and Ohio for a period of 
forty-eight years. He was not out of the school- 
room for six months at any one time. He re- 
moved from the Old Dominion to Ohio in 181 5, 
locating in what is now Noble county, where he 
reared his family and spent the last years of his 
life. Mortimer Triplett there resided during- 
the period of his boyhood and youth and was 
married in that state to Miss Nancy Montgom- 
ery, a native of Pennsylvania but was reared, 
however, in Ohio. Mortimer Triplett was a 
farmer of Noble county for a number of years 
and afterward removed to Illinois, where he 
spent two years, coming to Iowa in 1859. Here 
he cast in his lot with the early settlers and 
innxbased thirteen hundred acres of land. In 
1 861 he took up his abode in Mahaska county^ 
and bought a farm upon which he engaged in 
general agricultural pursuits, rearing his fam- 
ily here. His wife passed away December 25, 
1899, and Mr. Triplett has since resided with 
his son, M. F. Triplett of this review. Although 
he is now ninety-four years of age, he is still 
an active man and can mount and ride any 
horse on the farm. He has carried on farming- 
operations on an extensive scale and as a pio- 
neer settler has contributed in substantial de- 
gree to the improvement and development of 
this part of the state. 

M. F. Triplett was reared to manhood in Ma- 
haska county and remained with his father, as- 
sisting him in carrying on the home farm until 
twenty-three years of age when he started out 
in life on his own account, purchasing eighty 
acres of land in 1875. This tract is still a part 
of his home place, which he at once began to 
cultivate and improve. His two sisters kept 
house for him for a number of years. He 
worked persistently and earnestly in his efforts 
to improve his farm and bought more land 
from time to time until he is now the owner of 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



461 



a valuable i^roperty of tliree hundred and twen- 
ty-six acres. Upon this place he has erected a 
good substantial residence, also barns and out- 
buildings antl has contributed to the product- 
iveness of the land thnjugh tiling the lields. He 
has likewise fenced the place and has planted 
fruit and ornamental trees. He has a good ten- 
ant house near his residence and in his barns 
and sheds are the latest imi)njve(l agricultural 
implements for carrying on the farm work. In 
connection with the tilling of the soil he makes 
a business of raising high grade stock, includ- 
ing horses, cattle and swine, and he also feeds 
and fattens a large number of hogs for the 
market each year. He is also a stockholder in 
the b'remont State Bank. 

Air. Triplett was married in Fremont, Octo- 
ber 19, 1884. to Miss Ruth Doolittle, who was 
born and reared in Mahaska county and was 
a teacher in Fremont and Wapello. For sev- 
eral years prior, to her marriage she success- 
fully engaged in teaching. Her father was 
"Scjuire" B. M. Doolittle, who was one of the 
pioneers of Mahaska county and owned and 
operated a farm adjoining that upon which Mr. 
Tri])lett resides. There are two sons by this 
marriage : C. C. Triplett, who is now a junior 
in \\'a])ello College, Marion county ; and Har- 
old A. 

In his political views Mr. Triplett has been 
a lifelong republican. His father was originally 
an old-line whig and later became identified 
with the republican party upon its organiza- 
tion. Mr. Triplett of this review was elected 
and served for two years as township assessor 
and has been interested in many movements, 
jxjlitical and otherwise for the good of the 
community. He believes in good schools and 
during a service on the school board covering 
a numlier of years he put forth effective effort 
for the iniprovement of the educational facili- 
ties of his district. He has also sen-ed as a 
delegate to numerous county conventions of his 
party and is well known in local republican 



ranks. Both he and his wife are members of 
the Fremont Baptist church. Mr. Triplett holds 
office in the church, being one of the trustees 
and also a deacon. He has been a resident of 
this part of Mahaska county throughout al- 
most his entire life and the story of its growth 
and development is not a matter of history to 
him Init of actual experience. In the early 
da\-s he drove five and seven yoke of oxen to 
a breaking plow in order to turn the virgin sod. 
He has helped to make and impro\e the county 
and has rejoiced in its advancement as the dis- 
trict has been reclaimed for the uses of the 
white race and has been made to bloom and 
blossom as the rose. He started out in life on 
his own account a poor man with ver\- limited 
capital, but through his own labor and diligence 
combined with good business ability and the 
assistance of his estimable wife who has indeed 
been a helpmate to him he has accumulated a 
large and valuable property. He is well known 
in Oskaloosa and Mahaska county as a man of 
broad integrity and has the confidence and good 
will of the community. 



WILLIAM G. HILLIS. M. D. 

Dr. William G. Hillis, engaged in the prac- 
tice of medicine at Union Mills, was born in 
Jackson county, Indiana, December 27, 1851. 
a son of Dr. David B. Hillis, who was a son of 
Governor Da\id Hillis, of that state, born in 
Indiana and who died in Keokuk at the age of 
sixty-four years. The father was a graduate 
of the Missouri Medical College at St. Louis, 
and practiced his profession for a number of 
years in Indiana. In 1859 he came to Iowa 
and engaged in the dry goods business at 
Bloomfield. Remoxing to Keokuk, Iowa, in 
i860, at which place he enlisted for service in 
the Civil war, being appointed by Governor 
Kirkwood lieutenant-colonel of the Seventeenth 



462 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Iowa Volunteer Infantry. During the service 
be was promoted to the rank of colonel of the 
regiment and later was brevetted brigadier gen- 
eral. Following the war he returned to Keo- 
kuk. Iowa, where he resumed the practice of 
medicine, gaining distinction as an able repre- 
sentati\-e of the profession. For several years 
he was professor of theory and practice in the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons and thus 
became well known as an educator. His political 
allegiance was g-iven to the republican party, 
with which he was prominently identified. He 
was recognized as one of its leaders in this 
state and was, at one time, spoken of for the 
position of lieutenant governor. He frequently 
made campaign addresses in various parts of 
the state and was a stanch and stalwart advo- 
cate of the party principles. A g'entleman of 
strong- intellectuality and of marked natural 
and acquired ability, he occupied an enviable 
position in his profession and in political cir- 
cles as well. His religious faith was that' of 
the old school Presbyterian church. His first 
wife, who bore the maiden name of Laura 
Kisor, was born in Indiana and died in Keokuk 
at the age of forty-seven years. They were 
the parents of four children, of whom Dr. Hil- 
lis of this review is the only one now living. 
His yomiger brother, Oscar B. Hillis, studied 
law and was admitted to the bar but never 
practiced. At the time of his death he was 
serving as clerk of the United States circuit 
and district courts at Omaha, Nebraska, hav- 
ing been appointed by Judge George W. Mc- 
Crary. For his second wife Dr. David B. 
Hillis married Mrs. Charles Phelps, a widow, 
who is now living in Keokuk, Iowa. 

Dr. Hillis of this review acquired his early 
education in the schools of Keokuk and deter- 
mining upon the practice of medicine as a life 
work he completed a course and was graduated 
from the Keokuk College of Physicians and 
Surgeons with the class of 1875. After re- 
ceiving his diploma he located at Beacon, Ma- 



haska county, where he practiced for two years. 
He then returned to Keokuk, where he was 
associated in i^ractice with his father for several 
years, subsequent to which time he removed to 
Mount Hamill, Iowa, where he continued in 
practice for four years. Later he spent one 
winter with a surveying party in northern Min- 
nesota, having acquired considerable knowl- 
edge serving in the United States engineer's 
office at Keokuk at the time the canal was built 
there. In 1897 he located at Union Mills, 
where he has since remained, devoting his time 
and energies to medical and surgical practice 
\\ith good success, having comprehensive 
knowledge of the principles of the science of 
medicine, while at all times he is correct in the 
adaptation of his knowledge. In politics he is 
a republican and although he has been solicited 
to accept public office he has always declined. 



REV. ^^1LLIAM PEARSON SOPHER. 

Rev. William Pearson Sopher, living on sec- 
tion 28, Spring Creek township, is one of the 
substantial fanners and stock-raisers, his prop- 
erty embracing one hundred and eighteen acres 
of rich and productive land. He is one of Ma- 
haska county's native sons, his birth having oc- 
curred in Spring Creek township, March 24, 
1852. The Sopher family is of Scotch-Irish 
lineage and was established in Virginia at an 
early period in the colonization of the new 
world. The paternal great-grandfather, Joseph 
Sopher. was a soldier of the Revolutionary 
war. The grandfather, who also bore the name 
of Joseph, was born in Loudoun county, Vir- 
ginia. His son, \\'illiam Kenworthy Sopher, 
father of our subject, was born in ^^'ashington 
county, Pennsylvania. April 8, 181 7, and was 
reared in that state. In 1834 he removed west- 
ward, locating in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, 
where he was married in 1837 to Miss Agnes 





-MR. AXIJ ^FRS. W. p. SUPHER. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



465 



Hockett. He followed farming in Tippecanoe 
and Jefferson counties for a few years, and in 
1844 he removed to Iowa, making a permanent 
location in Spring Creek township, Mahaska 
county, in 1847. Here he opened up a new 
farm of one iunnU'ed and forty-seven acres of 
timber land, wiiich he cleared of trees, brush 
and stumps, placing the soil under a high state 
of culti\'ation and making a good home in the 
midst of what was then the wilderness of Iowa. 
He exentually sold his first farm and located in 
1882 upon the farm where Rev. Sopher now re- 
sides. There he built a good residence and 
spent Iiis last years, his death occurring in De- 
cember, 1892. His wife had passed away two 
years previous. In their family were five chil- 
dren : Abijah, a resident fanner of Spring 
Creek township ; Phebe, who died at the age of 
twentv-si.x years; Moses H.. who was married 
and reared a large family but is now deceased ; 
Rev. \Villiam Pearson Sopher, of this review ; 
and Rev. Joseph Sopher, of Oskaloosa. 

Born in Spring Creek township. Rev. Wil- 
liam P. Sopher was educated in the common 
schools and in the old Penn Academy. Through 
the summer months he worked at farm laljor, 
remaining with his father vintil after he had at- 
tained his majority. He was married in this 
township October 10. 1870, to Miss Anna M. 
Coul.son, a daughter of Dr. David Coulson, a 
dentist of Oskaloosa, where he practiced for 
ten or twelve years, after which he removed to 
Oregon, where he died in December, 1897. Mrs. 
Sopher was born in Salem, Henry county, 
Iowa, but was reared and educated in Ma- 
haska county. Following their marriage the 
young couple began their domestic life upon 
the farm which he yet owns, but at first he had 
but sixty acres of land. He possesses natural 
mechanical ability and erected a residence there, 
lie helped to break the sod with three yoke of 
oxen and later he built a barn and other mod- 
ern improvements. After the death of his 
mother he bought his father's place and located 



u])on the tract adjoining, his present home. He 
has since fenced the place, has made many re- 
pairs and improvements and has set out a large 
orchard containing fifteen hundred trees which 
are just coming into bearing and include a great 
variety of fruit. 

For some years his son has carried on the 
active work of the farm although Mr. Sopher 
gives to it his per.sonal supervision. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Sopher have been born 
six children : Mamie, now the wife of Charles 
Hoover, a farmer of Spring Creek township; 
Jesse L., a farmer who is married and resides 
in Audrain county, Missouri ; Elma Emma, a 
student in the home schools; and Hattie, Bertha 
and Nettie Pearl, all of whom are deceased. 

Mr. and Mrs. Sopher were reared in the 
Friends church, and Rev. Sopher was ordained 
a minister of that denomination about 1878 and 
for fifteen years has devoted his time to the 
ministry in and to the various departments of 
church work. He has three times visited Kan- 
sas, has also visited various churches of Iowa 
and has held regular services at Bloomfield 
]-"riends church for the past fifteen years. He 
has been a supporter of the prohibition party 
since 1888, and has served as a delegate to the 
state and national conventions, taking a verv 
active and interested part in its work. He and 
his daughter were both delegates to the last 
convention at Indianapolis, Indiana. In 1894, 
with his wife and daughter, he went to Oregon, 
visiting a number of the churches of the So- 
ciety of Friends of that state, and Mrs. Sopher 
and the daughter visited the Lewis and Clark 
Exposition, at Portland, in 1905, also places 
of scenic interest in the Rocky Mountains and 
along the Pacific coast. Mr. Sopher and his 
family have tra\eled extensively both east and 
west, visiting a number of the leading cities 
of the country. He is well known in Oskaloosa 
and throughout the state of Iowa because of his 
active, influential and effective work in behalf 
of the church of his clioice. He is likewise 



466 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



recognized as one of its strong ministers in 
other states and he and his family are much es- 
teemed in tlie community where they reside. 



S. S. COOK. 



S. S. Cook, living on section 1 1, Cedar town- 
ship, is engaged in general farming and stock- 
raising- upon what is known as the old homestead 
farm adjoining Fremont. He is a native son 
of Iowa, his birth having occurred in Keokuk 
county, on the 7th of December. 1862. His 
father was Dr. S. S. Cook, a pioneer physician 
of this state, who located in Keokuk county 
and practiced there for several years. In 1863, 
however, in response to the country's call he 
joined the army as surgeon and thus served 
until his death, which occurred on the 15th of 
January, 1864. His widow, Mrs. Sarah Cook, 
is one of the estimable pioneer women of the 
county and is mentioned elsewhere in this work. 

S. S. Cook came with his mother to ]\Iahaska 
county at the time of the father's enlistment in 
the anny and soon afterward they located on a 
farm where they now reside, he and his elder 
brother. Albert N. Cook, working the place 
for their mother. Here the subject of this re- 
\'iew was reared to manhood and his education 
was acquired in the schools of Fremont. He 
early became familiar with all the duties and 
labors incident to the cultivation, development 
and improvement of the fields and that he is a 
practical and enterprising farmer is shown by 
the splendid appearance of the place at the pres- 
ent time. In 1883 he was united in marriage 
to Miss Minnie Bryan, a native of Iowa, who 
was born in Madison township. Unto this un- 
ion have been born five children : Alfred, who 
assists in canwing on the home farm ; Clara, 
Lucy. Harry and Ronald S. 

Mr. Cook has had charge of and carried on 
the home farm for se\-enteen vears and in con- 



nection with the tilling of the soil he has made 
a specialty of raising, feeding and fattening 
hogs for the market. He is now a breeder of 
pure Chester White hogs and has some fine 
specimens of this breed. For the past three 
years he has also acted as rural mail carrier. In 
his political views he is a stanch and earnest 
republican, but has never cared nor sought for 
office, giving his time and attention to his farm- 
ing and business interests, save that he is now 
acting as mail carrier. He is also a member of 
the school board, the cause of education receiv- 
ing his hearty endorsement, while his co-opera- 
tion is given to any movement for the benefit 
of the schools. He belongs to Fremont lodge, 
I. O. O. F.. in which he has filled all of the 
chairs and is now a past grand. He is also 
a member and one of the officers of Fremont 
lodge of the Knights of Pythias, and is now 
serving as vice chancellor. He likewise be- 
longs to the Woodmen of the World, in which 
he is council commander. A gentleman of ex- 
emplary habits and upright character and 
worth, he commands the trust and good will of 
his fellowmen and has many warm friends in 
the circle of a wide acquaintance. 



WILLIAM G. JONES. 

\\'illiam G. Jones, a prominent memljer of 
the Oskaloosa bar and state senator from this 
district entered upon the practice of law in Feb- 
ruary. 1885. His rise has been rapid since he 
entered upon his novitiate, for his position to- 
day is that of a recognized leader in the ranks 
of the legal fraternity in this part of the state. 
He was born in what is now Garfield township, 
Mahaska county, on the 226. of October. 1861. 

His father. John G. Jones, was born in 
^Vales and came to the L^nited States about 
1830, at which time he settled in Pennsylvania. 
He was a poor boy and eagerly embraced ev- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



467 



erv opportunity to earn an lionest living. In 
1852 he went to California and for a short 
time was employed in gold mines. He then 
came to Mahaska county and with the money lie 
had saved in the west he made a partial pay- 
ment on a tract of land of one hundred acres in 
(iarfield township, which he cultivated and im- 
])rove(l. He retained the ownership of this 
farm for ahout forty years hut spent fifteen 
vears of that ti;ne in a mercantile Inisiness in 
Beacon. Eventually he sold his store in 1875, 
and removed to Colorado, where he superin- 
tended a coal mine for ahout eight years. On 
the expiration of that period he returned to 
Beacon, where he lived for a time, and also 
resided for a while in Oskaloosa, making his 
home in the latter city from 1887 until 1894, 
during a part of which period he was president 
of the old Farmers & Traders Bank. His ac- 
tivity and ahility made him a prominent factor 
in commercial and financial circles and he also 
hecame recognized as a local leader in the 
ranks of the repuhlican party. He served at 
one time as a meniher of the hoard of super- 
visors. Fraternally he was connected with the 
Masons and the Odd Fellows, and he held mem- 
bership in the Welsh Congregational church. 
He occupied a prominent position in the regard 
of neighbors and friends and his life was at all 
times characterized by fidelity to duty and to 
high princijiles. In his business affairs he pros- 
])ered and in connection with a syndicate he- 
canie the owner of several thousand acres of 
land in Colorado. He married Margaret G. 
Jones, a native of Wales, who came to the 
United States in her maidenhood and located 
in Pennsylvania. She is a member of the Bap- 
tist church and is now living in San Jose, Cali- 
fornia, at the age of seventy-two years, but Mr. 
Jones j)assed away in 1897. ^t the age of sixty- 
nine years. In their family were tlie following 
children : Sarali .\.. who is the wife of 
Thomas Ingels, a ranchman of California; 
Elizabeth, the wife of Dr. Joseph Bevan, a 



physician, who was prominent in his profession 
and died in Oskaloosa several years ago; Wil- 
liam G., of this review ; Emma, the w ife of John 
Parry, fire commissioner of San Francisco; 
Winifred, the wife of Frank Perry, a grocer 
of Spokane, Washington; John T., a clothier 
of Kansas City, Missouri ; and one who died in 
infancy. 

William G. Jones was reared upon his fa- 
ther's farm. His birth occurred in a double 
log cabin upon the old homestead, which had 
been purchased by his father when he located 
in Garfield township. The son attended the 
district schools and continued his studies in the 
school of Beacon, being graduated from the 
high school there and also from Oskaloosa Col- 
lege in the class of 1882. Determining upon 
the practice of law as a life work, he entered the 
law department of the Iowa State University 
in 1883 and completed the course by gradua- 
tion in 1884. He entered uix)n the practice of 
his profession in February, 1885, ^"^ has since 
been an able member of the Oskaloosa bar. His 
efiui]:)ment was unsually good and his success 
therefore came soon. He possesses those quali- 
ties, natural and acquired, whicli are indis- 
pensable to the lawyer. His mind is analytical, 
logical and inductive, and he has, moreover, a 
ready capacity for hard work. He brought to 
the starting point of his career an excellent 
presence, an earnest, dignified manner and 
marked strength of character, combined with a 
thorough grasp of the law and ability to apply 
its principles accurately. 

In December. 1890, Mr. Jones was married 
to Miss Jennie L. Wcxsd, who was born in Dela- 
ware county, Iowa, in 1863, and is a daughter 
of Hiram D. Wood. Her father was a pioneer 
farmer of Delaware county and is now engaged 
in merchandising. Mr. and Mrs. Jones have one 
child. Byril M.. born in 1895. Mr. Jones is a 
member of the Knights of Pythias fraternity 
and of the Order of Foresters. In politics he is 
a republican and for one term served as city 



468 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



solicitor of Oskaloosa. He has made a close 
and earnest study of the political issues and 
questions of the day and his fitness for leader- 
ship has led to his selection to positions of 
honor and responsihility. He represented the 
county in the twenty-eightli and twenty-ninth 
general assemblies, and in the fall of 1903 was 
elected state senator, in which capacity he is 
now serving. He has been interested in much 
constructive legislation and has furthered many 
measures introduced into the house and senate 
for the welfare of his constituents and of the 
state at large. His practice has not been re- 
stricted to any one branch of tlie profession and 
his experience in tlie trial of difficult law cases 
and the brilliant record of results attained leave 
no room for questions of his ability. He ac- 
tively interests himself in public affairs and 
participates earnestly in any effort to propa- 
gate a soirit of patriotism and of loyalty to 
American institutions and wherever there is a 
public-spirited attempt to drive corruption or 
other unworthiness out of public office he is 
to be found working with the leaders of the 
movement. 



H. J. VAIL. 



H. J. Vail, postmaster of New Sharon and 
editor of the New Sharon Star, was born in 
Belmont county, Ohio, November 22, 1845, ^ 
son of John and Abigail (Edgerton) Vail, both 
of whom were natives of Belmont county, Ohio. 
The fatlier was always a farmer and lived upon 
a farm in Ohio until 1864, when he removed to 
Keokuk county. Iowa, where he purchased a 
tract of land of one hundred and sixty acres, 
devoting a number of years to its care and 
cultivation. He made his home thereon until 
his death, which occurred in 1S91, when he was 
seventy-eight years of age. He was a Friend. 
or Quaker, in his religious faith, and in ante- 



bellum days was a strong abolitionist, his 
home being a station on the famous "under- 
ground railroad." In his family were fourteen 
children, of whom three died in infancy, while 
ele\en reached years of maturity and lived to 
attend the golden wedding of their parents in 
1887. Eight of the number are now living. 

H. J. Vail of this review is the only one who 
resides in ^lahaska county. His parents were 
in limited financial circumstances and because 
of tlie large number of children dependent upon 
them for support H. J. Vail left home and at 
the age of twelve years began earning his own 
living by working as a farm hand. He never 
attended school for more than three months 
after that time but in the school of experience 
has learned manv valuable lessons and in the 
printing office, which has been termed- the 
"poor man's college," he has greatly broadened 
his knowledge. In 1862 he went to Philadel- 
phia, where for two years he operated a sta- 
tionarv engine. In 1864 he came to Iowa and 
piuxhased seventy acres of land in Keokuk 
county on which some improvements had been 
made. He further improved this property and 
e\'cntually he improved and sold four farms, 
making his first real start in business life in 
til is wav. In September. 1891, he went to \Y\\- 
toii Junction, Iowa, and purchased the ^^'i]tc)n 
Chronicle. He had always wanted to engage 
in newspaper business but had never seen any 
t^•pe or been in a newspaper office, but he pur- 
chased the paper and conducted it iov two 
years. In January, 1873, he sold out for 
double what he paid for the plant and paper 
and at that time came to New Sharon, where he 
established the New Sharon Star, the first issue 
api^earing on the 22d of January, 1873. He 
continued this until April 22. 1885, when he 
sold out to his brother David and went to live 
in California for the benefit of his daughter's 
health. In 1886 he established the Pasadena 
Star and the following year began the publica- 
tion of the Pasadena Daily Star, which he 




H. T. VAIL. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



471 



coiicluctcil until 1890, wlicn he sold both papers 
and afterward gave his attention to the pul^lica- 
tion of the Daily Press at Santa Anna for one 
year. In 1896 he returned to New Sharon ami 
in 1901 he jjurchased the Xew Sharon Star 
frcni R. .\. Nicholson, who had owned the of- 
lice aijiiut two years, and has since conducted 
tlie paper. 

Mr. Vail served as postmaster under Presi- 
dents Grant and Hayes, and in 1903 was ap- 
])(iinted to the same otfice by President Roose- 
velt and is nnw acting in that capacity. He 
filled the ofrice of mayor in 1874, but did not 
like the irksome duties and retired from the 
iiftice nil the e.xpiration of his term. He was 
niiniinated ioy representati\'e from this district 
Init declined the honor, and has been promi- 
nently spoken of as a senatorial candidate, and 
yet he has never been a politician in the sense of 
oflice seeking, practically aspiring to no office 
sa\-e tliat of postmaster. In 1880 he purchased 
the first imported horses brought to this section, 
buying I'ercheron, Xorman and Clydesdale 
horses, and conducted breeding stables for three 
or four years. J^Ir. Vail is prominent and well 
known in fraternal circles. He became a Ma- 
son in Keokuk county in 1868 and organized 
the Masonic lodge here in 1874, serving as 
master for several terms of what is now known 
as Mahaska lodge. No. 376. A. F. & .\. M. 
He is again filling the position of master, hav- 
ing been elected in Decemlier, 1905. He is also 
a Royal Arch IMason and Knight Templar, be- 
coming a member of the lodge and cha])ter in 
Oskaloosa. but now holding membership with 
the order in Los .\ngeles, California. He l^e- 
came a member of the Odd Fellows lodge in 
1874 and holds membership relations with the 
Iowa Legion of fionor and the American 
Brotherhood. 

In 1866 Mr. \^ail wedded Miss Sarah T. Ol)- 
linger. a native of Ohio, and mUo them have 
been born two children. \V. L. and Lillian, but 
the latter died in California at the age of eleven 



years. The former, now a resident of the 
American Colon}' in the city of Mexico, was 
for twelve years in the newspaper business 
there, but is now engaged in the land and min- 
ing business. He marrietl a wealthy Mexican 
lady and they have one daughter, Lucretia. In 
1897 ^I''- ^''''' of t'l'^ re\iew was again mar- 
ried, his second union being with Miss Estella 
E. Younkin. a native of Washington county, 
Iowa. 

in 1879 Mr. Vail gathered material and 
published a history of Prairie township, Ma- 
haska county, a pamphlet of over one hundred 
pages, which does credit to the author. He 
has made the New Sharon Star an interesting 
journal, typical of the best newspa])er work of 
the present da\' and as a public oi'ficer he has 
likewise made a creditable record. 



LUKE JAMES. 

Luke James, who carries on general farming . 
on section 25. L^nion town.ship, was born near 
Richmond, Kentucky, January 29, 1842. He 
is a son of John James, a native of the Key- 
stone state, who died during the earl}' child- 
hood of his son Luke. The mother, who bore 
the maiden name of Martha West, was also a 
native of Kentucky and died in that state before 
the removal of the family to Iowa. After los- 
ing his first wife the father married again and 
in 1853 brought his family to Iowa, settling 
near Montezuma in Poweshiek county. He 
purchased a farm in that portion of the state 
but died before taking possession of it. 

Luke James is now the only surviving mem- 
ber of a family of five children. At his father's 
death the family was broken up and he was 
bound out to a farmer, with whom he remained 
until twenty-one years of age. Thus he was 
reared to agricultural pursuits. In 1861 he 
came to Mahaska county and through the fol- 



472 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



lowing year was employed on a farm by Dr. 
Fry. He afterward went to live near Fremont 
in this county, where he rented a farm, con- 
tinuing to cultivate rented land in that neigh- 
borhood and elsewhere in the county for about 
fifteen years. Thirty years ago he purchased 
eighty acres of land, where he now resides in 
Union township. The land was partially broken 
with few fences and few improvements upon 
the place save a small frame house. Here 
Mr. James has resided continuously since. The 
farm is now well fenced and divided into fields 
of convenient size. He has enlarged and re- 
modeled the house, and built a good barn and 
has added other modern equipments. He has 
also purchased eighty acres more in the town- 
ship a half mile east of his present home, upon 
which was a good residence and he has also 
built a large barn. He now rents this eighty- 
acre tract. 

In November. 1862, Mr. James was married 
to Miss Sarah Cummins, a native of Illinois, 
who died upon the old homestead farm in 
Union township, August 12, 1904, at the age 
of sixty-five years. She had been to her hus- 
band a faithful companion and helpmate on 
life's journey but for several years prior to her 
demise was in poor health. Four children had 
been born of this marriage: Frank, who died 
at the age of twelve years; Florence, now the 
wife of John Marion, a resident of Pleasant 
Grove township, Mahaska county; William, 
who is employed in Nebraska ; and Leona, who 
became the wife of Ed Rhine and died in New 
Sharon at the age of twenty-eight years. Mrs. 
James was a member of the Methodist Episco- 
pal church, to which Mr. James also belongs. 
He is independent in politics with tendencies 
toward the republican party. He has served 
as school director for two terms and is inter- 
ested in the welfare and progress of the county 
but does not care for political office. He recalls 
many interesting experiences of the early days. 
He started out in life empty-handed and for 



many years he and his wife ate from a home 
made table and kept their food supplies in a 
home made cupboard. In j86i he took coal 
in a wheelbarrow from the mines. IMany men 
of family did the .same thing in order to get 
fuel and keep their family from freezing, for 
times were hard and the winter was a severe 
one. In those days wild game was plentiful 
and it was about that period that a gray wolf 
was killed in the neighborhood that had given 
much trouble to the settlers by inroads upon 
their farmyards. The animal was a large tim- 
ber wolf but was so old that the fur had become 
gray. Wolves frequently killed the sheep and 
calves and on a few occasions were known to 
take two-year-old cattle. Mr. James well re- 
members the old-time grease lamps that were in 
use and the steel and flint and piece of punk 
that were used to make the fire. His educa- 
tional privileges were limited, for he attended 
school in an old log building with puncheon 
floor and slab seats, where the teaching was 
primitive, instruction being given in only a few 
of the minor branches of study. He never had 
a ready made suit of clothes until he was 
eighteen years of age. all being home made up 
to this time. As the years have passed by, 
however, he has worked earnestly and persist- 
ently and is now in possession of a valuable 
farm property and a comfortable competence. 
He now rents his farm, having a family on the 
place where he lives and ocaipies a part of the 
house. 



FREDERICK BLATTNER. 

Frederick Blattner, who for many years has 
been identified with manufacturing interests in 
Oskaloosa, was born in this city June 22, 1861. 
His father, Charles F. Blattner, was a native of 
Germany, born in Biron on the River Rhine, 
March 6, 1829. He came to the United States 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



473 



aliout 1849, locatint4- in Cincinnati. Ohio, where 
lie was engaged in tlie butchering business. 
After some time there spent he removed to 
Xenia, Oliio. where lie conducted a meat mar- 
ket for about three years. In ]\Iarch, 1855, he 
came to Oskaloosa, Iowa, wliere he engaged in 
the butchering and pork-packing business, bis 
])ackiiig house being the old building afterward 
known as Johnson's foundry and machine shop 
on South First street. He conducted the enter- 
prise alone until 1856, when he added a stock 
of groceries and admitted Mr. Rodgers to a 
partnership. Tliey carried on business in an old 
building that stood on Market street on the west 
side of the square, where the Smith jewelry 
store is now located. In 1857 ^Ir. Blattner 
formed a partnership with Lewis Greutz and 
David Newbrand and built a brewery on the 
corner of C avenue and L street, calling the 
new enterprise the Oskaloosa Brewery. It was 
successful from the start and was probably the 
first brewing plant in the state. The meat and 
jx^rk-packing business was also continued until 
1859. In i860 Lewis Greutz died and ^Ir. 
Blattner purchased his interest in the brewery, 
at which time the firm name of Blattner & New- 
brand was then assumed, the senior partner 
continued actively in Inisiness u]) tn the time of 
his death. The brewery was then continued 
under the management of a nephew. Charles 
Blattner, ]\Ir. Newbrand retaining his interest 
in the business until his death in June, 1877. 
Charles Blattner remained as manager until the 
passage of the prohibition law, after which, in 
the fall of 1888. the concern had to close its 
doors. In the meantime, in 1881, the firm of 
Blattner & Newbrand embarked in the whole- 
sale and retail ice business, continuing under 
the same management until the death of 
Charles Blattner on the 21st of April. 189 1. In 
that year the management was placed in the 
hands of Frederick Blattner of this review by 
the purchase of the original proprietors, and he 
continued the business from the spring of 1891 
until the fall of 1893, when he purchased the 



interest of Mrs. David Newbrand. The business 
was then conducted under the style of the Blatt- 
ner Ice Company until .\ugust, 1894, when 
Frederick Blattner purchased the interest of 
his mother and also the undivided interest of his 
sisters and brothers, which made him sole pro- 
prietor of the ice business. In the meantime 
the firm had been acting as agents for the Ann- 
heuser-Busch Brewing Company of St. Louis, 
which agency Mr. Blattner continued under the 
mulct law of the state. On the ist of Decem- 
ber. 1903. he discontinued the ice business, 
turning it over for a consideration in stock to 
the Oskaloosa Artificial Ice & Cold Storage 
Company. 

Charles F. Blattner, father of our subject, 
was a public-spirited and enterprising citizen, 
who enjoyed the thorough respect of his neigh- 
bors and many friends and the confidence of the 
business community, for in all of his dealings 
he w^as thoroughly reliable and straightforward. 
He held membership with the Independent Or- 
der of Odd Fellows, becoming a charter mem- 
ber of Mahaska lodge. His political allegiance 
was given to the democracy. He was married 
in Cincinnati to Elizabeth Miller, who was 
born in Biron, Germany, and came to the 
United States with her parents when ten years 
of age, the family home being established in 
Cincinnati. She has a brother yet living in 
Ohio and one in Kentucky but the death of Mrs. 
Blattner occurred on the 23d of x\ugust, 1895, 
when she was sixty-nine years of age. By her 
. marriage she had become the mother of six 
children : Louisa, now the wife of Charles 
Blattner. and a resident of Oskaloosa; Caroline, 
the wife of Edward Parks, who is living retired 
in this city; Laura, the widow of Thomas ^^'. 
Dougherty, who was a blacksmith: Mary, w'ho 
died in infancy; Frederick: and Charles H., 
who was a railroad man and died in July, 1905, 
at the age of forty-two years. 

Frederick Blattner attended the common 
schools and Oskaloosa College and after put- 
ting aside his text-books became coniiected with 



474 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



his present business, receiving practical train- 
ing under the direction of his cousin, Charles 
Blattner. As the above record indicates he be- 
came thoroughly acquainted with the trade both 
in the line of manufacture and sales and event- 
ually was chosen .manager of the business and 
gradually became sole possessor of the stock of 
the Blattner Ice Company, which, however, he 
sold, becoming a stockholder in the Oskaloosa 
Artificial Ice & Cold Storage Company. 

In 1888 Mr. Blattner was married to Miss 
Margaret J. Cavanaugh, who was born in Ot- 
tumwa, Iowa, in 1866, a daughter of Martin 
and Anna Cavanaugh. Her father was a stone- 
mason by trade and operated a quarry. Mr. and 
Mrs. Blattner now have one child, Anna 
Helene, born December 31, 1897. The mother 
is a member of the Catholic church. ^Ir. Blatt- 
ner is an Odd Fellow, having been identified 
with the lodge from the age of twenty-one 
years, and he has filled nearly all of the chairs 
of the uniformed rank. He likewise is connected 
with the Elks and the Order of Eagles. In poli- 
tics he is a democrat and has represented the 
fifth ward in the city council. The family name 
has long been closely and intimately associated 
with business enterprises and manufacturing in- 
terests in Oskaloosa and success has attended 
untiring efforts, so that the family have become 
substantial citizens of Mahaska countv. 



JOHN R. HOOVER. 

John R. Hoover, living on section 27, Spring 
Creek to\vnship, is the owner of one of the neat 
and \aluable farms of the county, comprising 
two hundred and fifteen acres of good land. 
He is classed, with the prominent agriculturists 
and stock-raisers of his community and is num- 
bered among the native sons of this county, his 
birth having occurred in Spring Creek town- 



ship on the 24th of May, 1859. He is a son of 
Samuel Hoover, a native of Indiana, and a 
grandson of Jonas Hoover, who was born in 
North Carolina, June 13, 1802, and died at the 
age of ninety-three years. He came to Ala- 
haska county in pioneer days, arriving here in 
1840, and assisted in building the first log 
cabin erected in Oskaloosa. He wedded Mary 
Newby, of North Carolina. 

Samuel Hoover came from Indiana to Iowa 
with his parents when a youth of eight years 
and was practically reared in Mahaska county 
amid the wild scenes and environments of pio- 
neer life. He spent his youth upon the home 
farm and attended the common schools of the 
neighborhood. He was married here to Miss 
Sarah Howard, a native of Vermilion county, 
Illinois, and a daughter of John Howard, who- 
was born in Kentucky and removed to Illinois 
when seventeen years of age. He had studied 
for the ministry and engaged in preaching the 
gospel in both Illinois and Iowa, advocating 
the doctrine of the Society of Friends. For 
some years he made his home in ]\Iahaska 
county and his influence was a potent factor in 
the moral development of his community. Fol- 
lowing their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Samuel 
Hoover settled in Spring Creek township, 
where at one time he owned nine hundred acres 
of valuable land, making extensive and judi- 
cious investments in real estate as his financial 
resources increased. His death occurred in the 
year 1900, and his widow is still living on the 
old home farm with her son Ernest at the age 
of sixty-nine years. Mr. and Mrs. Samuel 
Hoover became the parents of eleven children, 
of whom five died in infancy, while Edward 
died at the age of thirty years. Five of the 
number are still living. 

lohn R. Hoover, the eldest, remained at 
home until twenty-one years of age but was 
married when twenty years of age, the wed- 
ding- ceremony being performed on the 3d of 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



477 



Ma\-. 1S79. when Miss Ella Chew became his 
wife. Slie was bom in this county and is a 
<laui;lUcr of Elijah and Sarah (Myler) Chew. 
Her father was horn at Carpenter's Landing, 
Xew \'ork. March 22, 1812, a son of Elisha 
Chew, while her mother's birth occurred ii: 
Terre Haute, Indiana, on the ist of February, 
1820. The father was reared in his native 
state and from there removed to Indiana, later 
jjecomin.y- a resident of Illinois. In the '40s he 
came tn Iowa, arriving here when Oskaloosa 
contained but two log houses, and he located 
two miles north of the city in Lincoln township, 
where he owned and operated a farm of one 
hundred acres. He died Jul}- 13, 1890, liaving 
survived his wife for only one week as her 
death occurred on the 6th. of July. 1890. Of 
the nine children born to them five died in in- 
fancy. The others are : ^Irs. Mattie Hedden 
and Mrs. Anna Elliott, both residents of Os- 
kaloosa ; ]Mrs. Flora Parks, of Des Moines: 
and ^Irs. Ella Hoover, wife of our subject. 
By a former marriage ^Ir. Chew had one son, 
who is still living. Frank, a resident of Oska- 
loosa. 

I'^ollowing his marriage Mr. Hoover engaged 
in farming on his own account, having received 
from his father eighty acres of land as had the 
other members of the family. L^pon that tract 
he built a house and resided for a number of 
\ears but his residence was destroyed by fire 
and he then sold that property and purchased 
his present farm on section 27, Spring Creek 
townshi]). Here he has since built a good two 
story residence, also a substantial barn and 
otiier outbuildings necessary for the shelter of 
grain and stock. He has today a comfortable 
home and valuable property, and in connection 
with the tilling of the soil he raises some fine 
stock, making a specialty of Poland China hogs 
and keeping good registered animals. He is 
also engaged in the raising of fancy poultry 
and has four different varieties which are also 
registered. In all his work he has been practi- 



cal, has carefully watched results and has 
adopted those methods which lead to success. 

On the 3d of May, 1904, Mr. and Mrs. 
Hoover celebrated their silver wedding. I'nto 
them ha\e been born nine children, of whom 
one died in infancy. Lennie. now living on the 
I lid homestead, married Eva Greenway. a na- 
tive of Mahaska county and a daugliter of 
William Greenway. They have one child, My- 
ron. Earl, the second member of the family, 
lives upon a farm adjoining the home property. 
He married Iva Reed, a native of Illinois and 
a daughter of Bert Reed, and they have one 
child, Helen. Lura is the wife of James Evans, 
of Oskaloosa. Harokl and Erma are at home. 
Paul and Pauline, twins, and John Samuel are 
yet under the parental roof. 

The parents are members of the Society of 
Friends and its teachings find exemplification in 
their honorable, upright lives. Politically Mr. 
Hoover is an ardent republican and is deeply 
interested in all that pertains to the county's 
progress and improvement. He has made a 
creditable record in business circles by reason 
of his integrity and his success, and he well de- 
serves mention among the representative men 
of his native countv. 



FRANK BROWN. 



Frank T'rown, li\ing on section 21, Cedar 
townshi]), where he carries on general farm- 
ing and stock-raising, was born in this town- 
ship, October 23, 1862, and is a son of George 
\\^ Brown, whose birth occurred in Knox 
county, Ohio, February 22, 1820. The father 
was reared in the state of his nativity and 
there learned and followed the shoemaker's 
trade. He was married in Ohio to Miss Mary 
J. Dunmire, also a native of Knox county, and 
in 1854 they removed from the Buckeye state 
to Iowa, settling in Fremont, where Mr. Brown 



4/8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



opened a shoe shop and carried on his trade. He 
continued in business there up to the time of his 
demise, wliich occurred in 1883. He also 
bought and owned a farm at Fremont and be- 
came one of the substantial residents of the 
community, his success resulting entirely from 
his own well directed efiforts and enterprise. His 
wife survives him and now resides in Fremont. 

Frank Brown was reared in Fremont and as- 
sisted in carn-ing on the old home farm until 
eighteen years of age. He learned the car- 
penter's trade in early life under the direction 
of Captain Newell, and afterward carried on 
business along that line for several years. He 
also farmed and broke prairie and herded sheep 
on the prairies, driving his flock across the land 
that he now owns when it was entirely unim- 
proved, not a furrow having been turned 
thereon. As the years have gone by, however, 
he has prospered in his undertakings and he 
now owns and cultivates a valuable farm of two 
hundred acres, which is equipped with modern 
conveniences. 

Mr. Brown was married in Fremont, No- 
vember 10, 1886, to Miss Morna C. Shaw, a 
native of this county, who was reared and edu- 
cated in Oskaloosa and is a daughter of Amer- 
ica Shaw, one of the early settlers of Mary- 
land. Following his marriage ^Ir. Brown lo- 
cated at Beacon, where he rented a farm for a 
year, after which he remo\'ed to Putnam county, 
Missouri, where he raised one crop upon a 
rented farm. He then returned to Cedar town- 
ship, Mahaska county, and purchased a place 
of eighty acres, going in debt for this. There 
he followed farming for ten years, within which 
time he cleared the place of all indebtedness 
and extended its Ijoundaries until he had one 
hundred and twenty acres. In 1899 he sold that 
property and bought one hundred and sixty 
acres, where he now resides. He located upon 
this place, has fenced it, tiled it and made im- 
provements. He has also bought forty acres 
more and now has an extensive and well de- 



\'eloped farm. He has here a good house, barns 
and outbuildings, the latest improved farm ma- 
chinerv- and in connection with the tilling of the 
soil he raises and feeds stock, fattening for the 
market. He makes a specialty of raising hogs. 
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Brown have been born 
eight children, Ollie, Bernice, Forest L., Efifie, 
Floyd D., Georgia, Doris and Howard. In his 
political views Mr. Brown has been a lifelong 
democrat, casting his first presidential ballot 
for Grover Cle\eland. He has served on the 
the school board and the cause of education 
finds in him a warm and helpful friend but 
otherwise he has held no public office. His 
wife is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church of Fremont. j\Ir. Brown has always 
li\ed in this county save for the brief period 
spent in Missouri, and his creditable position 
in agricultural -circles is due to his close appli- 
cation and persistency of purpose. He is well 
known in Fremont and Oskaloosa and through- 
out Alahaska county as a thrifty, diligent and 
prosperous farmer and a man of genuine pub- 
lic spirit. Both he and his wife have many 
friends and have displayed many sterling traits 
of character which insure them a continuance 
of the warm regard that is given them. 



JOHN SIEBEL. 

John Siebel, deceased, was classed among the 
citizens of worth of Oskaloosa, for his activity 
in business life promoted its industrial and com- 
mercial interests, while his co-operation in 
many public movements was of direct benefit 
in the line of good citizenship and in upholding 
the political and legal status of the community. 
Moreover, in his social relations he manifested 
various pleasing traits of character that won 
him warm friendships and kindly regard. His 
life record began in Reg Berz Duesseldorf, 
Germanv, in 1822, and in his vouth he worked 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



479 



u])on liis father's fanu and atlcnded the pubhc 
schools until sixteen years of age, after which 
he served an apprenticeship with a cabinet- 
maker. He spent tln-ee 3-ears in an arcliitect's of- 
fice in Cologne and then passed an examination 
in Duesseldorf, gaining him a master builder's 
diploma. In accordance with tiie laws of the 
land he served for two years in the Prussian 
army, but "the land of the free" attracted him, 
and that he might benefit by its broader oppor- 
tunities he came to America in 1849, making 
his way at once to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 
where he spent one year. He afterward passed 
three years in an architect's office in St. Louis, 
Missouri, and in 185 1 went to Bentonsport, 
Iowa, where he was identified with milling in- 
terests for a number of years. 

The year 1868 witnessed the arri\-al of Mr. 
Siebel in Oskaloosa. where he coutinueil to 
make his home until his death. Here he became 
connected witli llouring and woolen mills under 
the firm style of Siebel & Esgen, The busi- 
ness gradually developed along safe and sub- 
stantial lines, and in 1892 ^Ir. Siebel became 
sole ])rci])rieti)r and continued the enterprise un- 
der the firm style of Siebel & Company up to 
time of his demise. His milling interests con- 
stantly grew in volume and importance and not 
I inly returned him an excellent income but also 
furnished employment to many workmen and 
thus added to the general prosperity of the 
city. His worth as a business man became 
widely recognized and he was chosen president 
of the I'armers iS; Traders Bank. In business 
affairs his judgment was sound and reliable and 
his enterprise was of that character which 
brooks no obstacles that can be overcome by 
determined and honorable effort. 

Mr. Siel;el passed away in 1900, at the age 
of seventy-seven years. His widow and two 
daughters, Mrs. 1". C. Lofland and .Mrs. E. C. 
Smith, still reside in Oskaloosa. Mr. Siebel 
lield various positions of honor and trust dur- 
ing his residence in the city and served on the 



school board and as a member of the city coun- 
cil, and was a tangible factor in public prog- 
ress, giving hearty co-operation to eveiy move- 
ment which he deemed would prove of public 
benefit. He based his business principles and 
actions upon the rules which govern strict and 
unswerving integrity and unfaltering industry. 
He became a representative of a high type of 
-American manhood and chivalry, and was truly 
sincere in his love for the stars and stripes and 
for the great principles which proved the foun- 
dation stone of our American government. 



W. W. WT^IGHT. 



W. W. Wright, living on section 6, Cedar 
township, who is familiarly called "Squire" by 
his numerous friends, is one of the old settlers 
of Mahaska county, having located in Cedar 
township in 1864. For years he has been classed 
with the prosperous farmers of the locality and 
owns a well improved tract of land adjoining 
the village of W^right. A native of Ohio, he 
was born in Highland county on the 20th of 
March. 1838. His father, Joseph P. Wright, 
was born in Kentucky in 1804 and the grand- 
father, Alexander Wright, was a native of Ire- 
land. Coming to the new world he settled in 
Virginia at an early day and afterward re- 
moved to Kentuck}-. whence in !8o(') he went 
with his family to Ohio, so that Joseph P. 
Wright was reared in the Buckeye state. There 
he married Catherine Barrett, a native of Ohio, 
and tlie}' began their domestic life upon a farm 
in Highland county, where they lived for sev- 
eral years. In 1864 I\lr. Wright removed with 
his family to Iowa, locating in Cedar township, 
Mahaska county, his farm being on section 6. 
There he lived continuously until 1892, when 
he S(jld that property and removed to Russell, 
he and his wife spending their last days with a 
daughter. }ilrs. Johnson. 'i"he father died in 



48o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



1894 and had he hved twenty days longer he 
would have been ninety years of age. His wife 
survived him for about a year and a half, pass- 
ing away in 1895, ^t which time her remains 
were laid to rest by the side of her husband 
in Russell cemetery. In the family of this 
worthy couple were five sons and five daugh- 
ters, all of whom reached mature years and 
three sons and four daughters are yet living. 
W. W. Wrightt was reared to manhood in 
Hig'hland county, Ohio, and pursued a com- 
mon-school education, after which he attended 
the Lebanon (Ohio) Normal School. Subse- 
C|uently he engaged in teaching in Highland 
county, following that pKofession for a num- 
ber of years. He was married there Decem- 
ber 12, 1862, to Miss Lizzie Higgins, a native 
of Highland county.' in which locality she was 
reared and educated. Li 1864 W". \V. Wright 
joined his father and the family in ]\Iahaska 
county and he purchased the land which he still 
owns. After a residence here of only six weeks 
he was called upon to mourn the loss of his 
wife. Concentrating his energies upon his busi- 
ness affairs, he broke the virgin soil with ox- 
teams, erected buildings and carried on the 
work of the farm for a number of years. Li 
connection with the tilling of the soil Mr. 
Wright has engaged in raising good stock. 
Li liis farm work he has been thoroughly pro- 
gressive and the admiraljle results he has 
achieved are due entirely to his close applica- 
tion, earnest purpose and capable management. 
By his first marriage Mr. Wright had one 
son, George M. Wright, who is a farmer of 
Cedar township. On the 14th of August, 1866, 
Mr. Wrig'ht was married in Knoxville, Iowa, 
■ to Miss Sadie M. McKown, who was born, 
reared and educated in Pennsylvania, a daugh- 
ter of James McKown, of Elizabeth, Pennsyl- 
vania. Mrs. Wright is a lady of good educa- 
tion and was a teacher in Knoxville prior to her 
marriage. Five children have Iieen bom of this 
union : Minnie V., the wife of D. I. Allsup, who 



is carrying on the Wright farm; Mattie J., the 
wife of A. L. Rice, a resident farmer of Spring 
Creek township : W. Howard, also a farmer of 
Spring Creek township : Grace, the wife of 
Walter Gray, a resident agriculturist of the 
same township; and Gail, who is a well edu- 
cated young lady and is engaged in teaching. 

Politically Mr. Wright has been a lifelong 
republican, casting his first vote for Abraham 
Lincoln in i860. He has taken an active in- 
terest in local politics and for twenty years has 
served as justice of the peace of Cedar town- 
ship, his service being continuous in that office 
save for a Ijrief interval of one year. The 
cause of education finds in him a warm and 
stalwart friend and for thirty years he has been 
a member of the school board, serving as its 
secretary. He has been a delegate to state and 
county conventions of his party and does all 
in his power to further the welfare of the coun- 
tv along political, material, intellectual and 
moral lines. Both he and his wife are devoted 
members of the United Presbyterian church in 
^Vright, in which he is serving as an elder and 
Mrs. Wright is an active worker in Ijoth church 
and Sunday-school. For years Mr. Wright has 
been recognized as one of the prominent men 
of the county because of the active and helpful 
aid which he has given in measures relating to 
tlie general welfare and progress. He is a man 
of tried integrity and worth and has the confi- 
dence of the entire community, while he and his 
estimable wife are greatly respected by all who 
know them. 



WILLIAM E. EVANS. 

William E. Evans, deceased, was a success- 
ful business man of Mahaska county, who, 
starting out in life empty-handed, wor.ked his 
way steadily upward and for many years was 
identified with coal-mining operations and also 




W I I.LI \M I'.. I'AAXS. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



483 



became one of tlie large landowners of the 
county. Moreover, he was strictly reliable in 
all of liis dealings and his life record ser\'ed as 
an example well worthy of emulation. I le was 
born in North Wales in 1827 and died in New 
.Share in, November 10, igoi, when about sev- 
enty- fi>ur years of age. His ]3arents were E\'an 
anil I'~lizabeth Evans, lioth natives of Wales, in 
whicii country the 'father died, but the mother 
afterward came to the United States and her 
last days were passed in Union township, her 
son having returned to Wales, bringing her to 
Mahaska county. 

Mr. Evans received little or no educational 
])rivileges and in his early youth he worked in 
tiie mines in Wales. In 1849 he came to Amer- 
ica and worked in the coal mines in Pennsyl- 
vania. While emi)]oye<l in that way in Fayette 
ccmity. Pennsylvania, he met and married Miss 
Mary Jones, the wedding being celelirated in 
Brownsville. She was born in South Wales, 
October 31, 1824. a daughter of William and 
Mary ( Harris) Jones, the former a native of 
Wales and the latter of England. When their 
daughter Mary was but two years old they 
crossed the Atlantic to the new world rnid Mr, 
Jones was emploved in the mines in Pennsvl- 
\'ania and Maryland, .\bout the time that Mrs. 
Evans was married her mother died and her 
father then went to California, where be spent 
six years but afterward returned and, settling 
in Iowa, was married again there. Later be en- 
gaged in mining in Mahaska county and his 
death occurred in New Sharon. Mrs. Evans 
was an only child, but her husband was one of a 
famil\- of twelve children and had a sister, 
Mary, the wife of Thomas Davis, who was 
rlrowned in the Johnstown flood. 

The marriage of ]\lr. and Mrs. Evans was 
celebrated in 1857 and immediately afterward 
they came to Iowa, settling first at Fairfield, 
where they resided for about a year. They 
then came to ]\[ahaska county and he engaged 
in mining in Union township. For several 
years he leased and operated the Pilgrim mine 



and later he purchased land and conducted what 
is known as the Evans coal bank for many 
years. .\t one time he owned eleven hundred 
acres of land in this county, for as his financial 
resources increased he made judicious invest- 
ment in real estate until he owned eleven liun- 
dred acres of fine land in this countv and de- 
rived therefrom a splendid income. He pos- 
sessed excellent business judgment and unfal- 
tering enterprise and, moreover, he was thor- 
oughly honest and straightforward in all of his 
business transactions, making a record which 
any man might be ])rou(l to possess. About 
twenty years ago be retired and purchased a 
home in New Sharon, where he lived until 
called to his final rest. His widow still makes 
her home upon the farm just outside the city 
limits, ba\ing' here ninety-seven acres of land, 
which is operated by her son. 

Unto Air. and Mrs. Evans were born ten chil- 
dren, nine of whom are now living, the second. 
Mary Ann, who was born April 14. 1858. hav- 
ing died at the age of three years. The others 
are: William, who was liom April 15, 1857. 
and is now married and resides upon a fami 
near New Sharon: Elizabeth E., who was born 
A]iril T, :86i, and is the wife of William F. 
Williams, a resident of Union townshi]); Mary 
Ann. \\ho was born July 19. 1862. and is the 
wife of E. F. Williams, also of Union town- 
ship: Delilah, who was born February 10, 1865. 
and is the wife of J. H. Kemp, of the state of 
W;ishington : h'llen Jane, who was born May 7. 
1867. and is the wife of Andrew Hardesty, of 
Union township: Grace Belle, who was born 
October 10, 1870, and is the wife of Allen 
W'heeler. of Union townshi]): Harrv P., who 
was born February 9. 1872: Evan D.. who was 
born September 21. 1874. and is married and 
lives with his mother: and Parena Marie, who 
was born March 17. 1877. and is the wife of 
Charles Woodward. 

Mr. Evans was a member of the church of 
England but after coming to America never 
joined any church. He was. however, an hon- 



484 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



est and upright man, who exemplified in his Hfe 
straightforward principles. Although denied 
all educational privileges he possessed keen 
business discernment and no one could fool him 
on a load of coal nor what it amounted to. He 
was very quick to figm-e anything in his head. 
He did much to educate people to use coal and 
save their timber, which they afterward learned 
was to.their advantage. In politics he was a re- 
publican but took no active part in the work of 
the party. All that he enjoyed in life was ob- 
tained through his own efforts and his success 
was indeed creditable, showing what can be ac- 
complished through indefatigable energ\' when 
guided by sound judgment and strong deter- 
mination. 



RUFUS K. DAVIS. 



Rufus K. -Davis, cashier of the Farmers Na- 
tional Bank of Oskaloosa, was born in Monroe 
township, near Indianapolis, in Mahaska coun- 
ty, March 24, 1870, a son of Rufus K. and 
Jennie (Simmers) Davis. The father, living 
on section 15, Spring Creek township, is a 
pioneer settler of the county, having lived here 
since 1867. He was born in Belmont county, 
Ohio, February 28, 183 1, a son of Ichabod 
Davis, who was bom in Mary-land but went 
to Ohio in early manhood. In Maryland he 
was married to Mary Ann Pool, a daughter of 
John Pool, of the same state. Ichabod Davis, 
removing to Ohio, made his home in Belmont 
county and there reared a family of five chil- 
dren. He died there in comparatively early 
manhood, while his wife, lonsf sun-ivina' him, 
reached the age of sixty-four years. 

Rufus K. Davis, Sr.. was the third in the fa- 
ther's family and aided in the support of the' 
mother and children after the father's death. He 
worked by the month on a fann and later cul- 



tivated land in Ohio. He was married there in 
November, 1866, to Miss Jennie Simmers, a 
native of that state and a daughter of Daniel 
Simmers. Soon after their marriage Mr. and 
Mrs. Davis removed to Iowa, settling in Mon- 
roe township, Mahaska county, \\-here for sev- 
eral years Mr. Davis operated rented land and 
then with the money which he had saved from 
his earnings purchased fifty-six acres which he 
began to clear and improve. He built a good 
house and barn, making his home there for fif- 
teen years. He later bought eighty acres more 
and had a valuable farm. Subsequently he sold 
that property and purchased one hundred and 
seventy-three acres, five miles south of the old 
home. There he lived for six years, when he 
again disposed of his farm and bought a small 
tract of land in Keokuk county, where he lived 
for five years. He next bought eighty acres 
which he now operates on section 15, Spring 
Creek township. Mr. and Mrs. Davis are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal church of 
Oskaloosa and Mr. Davis is a stanch republican, 
having always supported the party since its or- 
ganization. His first presidential ballot was 
cast for General Winfield Scott. 

Rufus K. Davis, Jr., spent his early life on the 
home farm and was educated in the public 
schools of his native town and of Oskaloosa, 
where he also pursued a business course. He- 
aided in the farm work until twenty-five years 
of age, when he left home and has since resided 
in the county seat. During the winter of 1895 
he was appointed deputy clerk under L. M. 
Hadley, clerk of the district court. This po- 
sition he filled until 1899, when without being 
a candidate, he was nominated and elected clerk 
of the district court on the republican ticket, a 
position which he filled for six years, retiring 
from the office on the ist of January, 1905. 

Becoming an active factor in business life, 
Mr. Davis has figured prominently in industrial 
and commercial circles in Oskaloosa. He was 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



48 = 



one i)f tlie organizers uf tlie llawkeye Overall 
Company, captalized at thirty thousand dol- 
lars and at the present time is secretary and 
treasurer of the company. In the fall and win- 
ter of 1905-6 he assisted in the organization of 
the Farmers National Bank of Oskaloosa, cap- 
italized at one hundred thousand dollars, and 
cnmposetl of one hundrcil and fifty of the best 
men in the count}-, whose landed holdings rep- 
resent more than three million dollars. The offi- 
cers are: W. 1. Beans, president; W. H. Pike, 
vice-president; R. K. Davis, cashier; while the 
directors in addition to the officers are: W. H. 
Springer, R. W. Moore, George S. Prine, 
Charles \'ictor, A. L. Fox, Paul Synhorst, J. 
S. Whitmore and T. J. Wilson. 

On the 23d of November, 1899, 'Sir. Davis 
was married to Sara Crookham, a daughter of 
the late Judge J. A. L. Crookham, of Oska- 
loosa, and they have one daughter, Euclid Cla- 
rissa. Mr. Davis belongs to the Masonic fra- 
ternity, the Benevolent and Protective Order of 
Elks, the Modern Woodmen of .-Vmerica, the 
Improved Order of Red Men and the Inde- 
])cndent Order of Odd Fellpws. He is a self- 
made man, active in business and in the progress 
and development of Oskaloosa, who has made a 
creditable record in office and has become 
equally well known as a factor in business cir- 
cles in the city. 



ROBERT H. DICKSON. 

Roljert H. Dickson, living on section 30, 
Monroe township, is one of the few remaining 
■\-eterans of the Civil war who, when the Union 
became imperiled, put' aside all business and 
personal considerations in order to respond to 
the country's call and aid in defending the old 
flag. He has for many years been identified 
with agricultural interests in Mahaska county 
and is now the owner of an excellent farm of 



one hundred and thirty acres. Few have longer 
resided in this county than he, for he dates his 
residence here from 1843. -f^'^ birth occurred 
in Sangamon count}', Illinois, July 12,. 1843, 
and he \\-as only three months old at the time of 
his parents' removal to Iowa. His father, Na- 
than C. Dickson, was Ijorn in Sangamon 
county, Illinois, where he was reared and fol- 
lowed farming. He was married there to 
Nancy .\. Crowder, a native of Kentucky and a 
daughter of Matthew T. Crowder, who was born 
in Virginia. For si.x years after their marriage 
Mr. and ]\Irs. Nathan Dickson resided in Illinois 
and thence came to Iowa in 1843. He secured a 
claim from the government, comprising one 
hundred and sixty acres of land in Monroe 
township, which he improved but one hundred 
and twenty acres were afterward taken from 
him, so that he retained only forty acres of the 
original tract. He later l^ought more land 
and eventually sold out and went to Cali- 
fornia, where he remained for three years, after 
which he returned to Iowa and purchased the 
farm upon which Robert H. Dickson now re- 
sides. Here he built a good residence and de- 
\eloped a good farm. He had to clear much 
of the land, but in course of years he placed it 
under cultivation and his farm became a valu- 
able property. Unto iiim and his wife were born 
six children, all of whom readied adult age. 
The father at the time of the Civil war enlisted 
for service in Company J, of the Thirty-third 
Liwa Infantry, and died of fever at Brownville, 
Arkansas, while serving with the Union army. 
Robert H. Dickson spent his boyhood and 
youth upon the old homestead, acquiring a com- 
mon-school education and through the periods 
of vacation working in the fields. He, too, 
became a soldier, enlisting in his eighteenth 
}ear as a member of the lo\vi\ Volunteer In- 
fantry, at Oskalotisa. The regiment rendez- 
voused at Keokuk and joined General Grant's 
forces at Shiloh. Mr. Dickson participated in 
the battle at that place and also in the engage- 



486 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



inents at Hollow Springs, Vicksburg, Cham- 
pion Ridge and the march to the sea under Gen- 
eral Sherman. He likewise took part in the en- 
gagement at Peach Tree Creek under ^Ic- 
Pherson. He was in the hospital at Ouincy, Il- 
linois, with fever for three months, liut he was 
never captured and at the close of the war was 
mustered out at Louisville, Kentucky, and hon- 
orably discharged at Burlington, Iowa. 

When his military serA'ice was over !Mr. 
Dickson took up his abode upon his mother's 
farm and was married September 28, 1865, to 
Miss Ella Bolton, a native of this county and a 
daughter of Abraham Bolton, who was born 
in Englanil, whence he emigrated to New York. 
He afterward lived in Illinois and subsequently 
in Iowa, but both he and his wife are now de- 
ceased. After his marriage Mr. Dickson rented 
land for two years and then purchased a tract 
of forty acres, which he afterward sold. He 
then again rented for two years, on the expira- 
tion of which period he bought eighty acres 
in White Oak township. After disposing of 
that property he returned and purchased the in- 
terest of the other heirs in the old homestead. 
Avhereon he has since resided. He had to clear 
much of the land and has fenced and impro\-ed 
the place, building here two good barns and a 
tenant house. Also there are Ixiildings for the 
shelter of grain and stock. He has altogether 
a model farm, its fields being hig-hly cultivated, 
while the latest improved machinery aids him 
in his work. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Dickson have been born 
five children but Joseph T. died at the age of 
thirty-seven years and Brace A. when three 
years old. The oldest surviving member of the 
family is Dora, the wife of Charles Bass, a 
farmer of Monroe township living upon the 
the place adjoining her father's. Frankie is 
the wife of Charles Mateer. of Oskaloosa, and 
Rella is at home. Mr. and Mrs. Dickson at- 
tend the Methodist Episcopal church at Rose 
Hill, of wliich ]\Irs. Dickson is a member. He 



lielongs to the Grand Army post and to the Odd 
Fellows lodge at Rose Hill. His political views 
accord with republican principles, and he has 
\-oted for eacii presidential nominee of the party 
since casting his first ballot for Abraham Lin- 
coln. He has served as a member of the town- 
ship board and as school director and is a gen- 
tleman who at all times is worthy of the trust 
and confidence reposed in him. An active, busi- 
ness career has made him one of the substantial 
citizens of his community and investigation into 
the methods that he has followed and the policy 
whicli has guided his actions serves to add to 
the lustre of his good name. 



ABSALOM RYAN. 



Absalom Ryan, a representative of farming 
interests in Richland township, his home being 
on section 9, was born in West Virginia, De- 
cember II, 1830. His paternal grandfather was 
a native of Ireland and on crossing the Atlantic 
to the new world settled in \\'est Virginia be- 
fore the United States had any control over 
the land there. He became the owner of a tract 
of land of aljout four hundred acres and lived 
upon the frontier, sharing in all of the experi- 
ences, dangers and hardships of pioneer life. In 
those early days the trees were blazed with a 
tomahawk by the settlers in order to indicate 
the boundaries of their land. The grandmother 
of our subject was a native of Germany. 

Felix Ryan, the father of Absalom Ryan, 
was born in ^^'est Virginia, and after attaining 
his majority wedded Lea Frush, who was also 
born in that state. Coming to Iowa in 1853, 
they made their home in Mahaska county, 
where Felix Ryan died in 1854. at the age of 
forty-nine years. His wife long survived him 
and died October 13. 1892. at the. age of eighty- 
six vears. 




AIR. A\D MRS. .\i;SAI.O.\r RYAX. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



489 



Tlie old liomestead property of the father 
was the 1)irthplace of our subject, who resided 
thorciin until he reached the age of twenty-one 
years. He well remembers the old log school- 
In luse of the neighborhood with its slab 
1)ciiches. puncheon floor and large fireplace. It 
w as in that ])riniiti\e structure that he pursued 
his education. School was conducted on the 
subscription plan, the parents having to pay a 
certain sum for the privilege of sending their 
children to the .school. Air. Ryan's educational 
pri\ileges, however, were very limited. His 
father was a great horse fancier and when Ab- 
salom Ryan was twenty-one years of age his 
father gave him a stallion and for about a year 
and a half he took care of this horse. While he 
made his home upon his father's farm he often 
went as far as thirty miles with this horse. On 
the iJth of July, 1853, in company with two 
bn)thers, John and James, he started westward 
with fi\'e head of horses. They rode horseback 
all the wa_\' fmin their did home in \\ est Vir- 
ginia to Alahaska county, Iowa, and on the 
wa)' visited relatives in Ohio, Indiana and in 
\'an Lhuxn county, this state. It was a long 
tri]) but there were many pleasant incidents 
connected therewith. Today, although seventy- 
five years of age, Mr. Ryan can mount and ride 
a horse as well as many men of half his years. 
They arrived in Mahaska county on the i8th of 
Sei)tember. Mr. Ryan had an uncle in Obit) 
who possessed a land warrant for eighty acres 
which had been gi\en him in recognition of his 
services in the war of 1812. Mr. Ryan pur- 
chased this warrant and on reaching Mahaska 
county .secured with it a claim of eighty acres 
on section 9, Kichl;uid township. He afterward 
purchased forty acres of go\ernment land on 
section 16, of the .same township, at a dollar 
and a quarter per acre. There was a log house 
and a frame house on the claim when he en- 
tered if, but not knowing where the road was 
to be — for at that time no highway had been 
laid out — they lived in the frame house where 



it stood until the road had been made and then 
removed it to a more favorable location on the 
farm. The tract of land upon which Mr. Ryan 
took up his abode was in tlie midst of the for- 
est, for he was accustomed to timber land. and 
wanted to get that kind. The grove was five 
miles long and three miles wide. With charac- 
teristic energy he began the development and 
improvement of his farm and as the years have 
gone by he has added to his possessions until 
he now owns three hundred acres of valuable 
farming land, about one hundred acres- of 
which he has cleared from the timber. He 
never missed having good crops and has always 
raised plent}- of grain for bread stuffs. He 
never had to endure the hardships that fall to 
the lot of many pioneers, for he w as always in 
good circumstances. A lover of horses, he has 
owned and sold many fine animals. In connec- 
tion with general farming- he makes a specialty 
of raising and feeding hogs, which he finds to 
be more profitable than cattle. The year fol- 
lowing his arrival his parents joined him in 
Mahaska county and continued to make their 
home with him until they were called to their 
final rest. In their family were ele\'en chil- 
dren : Washington S., now living in Nebraska; 
Absalom, of this review ; Christian, who resides 
in Oregon ; James, who died in Richland town- 
ship: John, living in Newton. Iowa; Samuel, of 
Nebraska; Jehu, also of Nebraska; Elizabeth, 
the wife of Samuel Stalnaker, of Nebraska ; 
Sarah, the deceased w'ife of Abel Proutty, of 
Neljraska; Elsie, the wife of John Baker, also 
of Nebraska; and I\Iaria, the wife of Len Her, 
of the same state. 

On the 30th of September, i860, Absalom 
Ryan was united in marriage to Miss Comfort 
Allen, who was born in Ohio. October 11, 1834, 
a daughter of Jonathan .Mien, who was a na- 
tive of New York and removed to Ohio with 
his parents when two years of age. He came to 
Iowa in 1847 and for a number of years en- 
gaged in farming in Richland township, after 



490 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



which he began tlie operation of a sawmill in 
Jasper county, where his death occurred in 
1856. His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
Roanna Tolburt, was born in West Virginia, 
and died in Richland township, January 7, 
1853. ^Irs. Ryan was the third in order of 
birth in a family of seven children and she has 
two brothers yet living: Daniel, who resides in 
Custer county, Nebraska; and Wilson, living 
in Decatur county, Iowa. Unto Mr. and Mrs. 
Ryan have been born nine children : Elam, who 
owns a good farm in Richland township and 
makes his home with his parents; Frank, who 
married ]\Iiss ^Martha Sheeslev and is living on 
a farm in Richland township ; Thomas and 
Absalom, at home ; John, who is preparing for 
the practice of medicine as a student in Penn 
College in Oskaloosa; Flora, the wife of Ed 
Sheesley, of Richland township ; Ida. deceased, 
who was the first wife of Ed Sheesley : Rachel 
at home; and Celia Ann, deceased. 

In 1894 ^Ir. Ryan Inhlt a large, two-story 
frame residence which he and his family now 
occupy. He has also built large barns and nu- 
merous outbuildings for the shelter of grain 
and stock. He has a good orchard upon the 
place and well kept fences, together with the 
latest improved machinery and altogether he 
has a model farm. For several years, how- 
ever, he has done little actual work upon the 
farm himself but gives his supervision to its 
cultivation and management. He owns in ad- 
dition to this property one hundred and sixty 
acres of land in Nebraska, where he and his 
wife often visit, a number of their children liv- 
ing in that state. Ivlr. Ryan enjoys good health 
for one of his years, but his wife recently has 
beer^ in poor health, having suffered a stroke of 
paralysis. Both are valued members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Ryan is a 
democrat in his political views and has served 
as road supervisor and school director but 
would accept no other offices. He has done 
much to make good roads in this part of the 



county, helped lay out the first roads, and de- 
serves much credit for his work in this connec- 
tion. He has never used tobacco nor liquor in 
any form, living an upright, honorable life, and 
is spoken of as a "fine man." He is well liked 
by everybody and his home is a hospitable one. 
He is fond of reading and his table is covered 
with papers and books, showing that he keeps 
in touch with the current events and the trend 
of modern thought. 



A. J. HARTER. 

A. J. Harter is numbered among the early 
settlers of Mahaska county, dating his residence 
in the county from 1848 and in the state from 
1847. Great have been the changes which have 
occurred during this time and since attaining 
his majority Mr. Harter has borne his part 
in the task of transfonning wild and unbroken 
prairie land into productive farms. He owns 
one hundred and sixty acres of well improved 
and valuable land on the south line of ]\Iahaska 
county on sections t,^ and 34, Cedar township, 
and his attention is given to the tilling of the 
soil and to the raising and feeding of stock. 
He was born in Licking county, Ohio, July 20, 
1843. His father. James Harter, was a native 
of Pennsylvania, and is of Gennan lineage. The 
grandfather, Jonathan Harter, removed from 
the Keystone state to Ohio with his family, be- 
coming one of the early settlers of Licking 
county, and there James Harter was reared and 
educated. In the same county he was married 
to Polly Ann Abrams, who was born in Ohio 
and following their marriage he devoted his 
time and energies to general agricultural pur- 
suits in Licking county for several years. In 
1847, however, he sought a home in Iowa, 
spending the first year in Jefferson county and 
in 1848, came to Mahaska county, where he en- 
tered from the government a tract of land of one 



I'AST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



491 



hundred and sixty acres of land in Cedar town- 
sliip. It was entirely wild and uncultivated, 
hut his lahors were soon manifest in the plowed 
lands and the oood harvests, for he broke the 
.sod and course of time planted and cultivated 
his fields, which brought forth rich crops. Upon 
this farm lie reared his family and spent his 
last years, passing away on the old homestead, 
after surviving his wife for several years. 

.\. J. Ilarter is one of a family of seven chil- 
(li-en. all of whom reached adult age, while five 
are yet living. His youth was spent upon the 
did homestead, to which he was taken by his fa- 
ther when only four years old. As his age and 
strength permitted he assisted in carrying on 
the work of the farm, following the plow and 
aiding in planting and harvesting through the 
spring and summer months, while in the winter 
seasons he mastered the branches of learning 
taught in the district schools. In 1869 he left 
home and went to Colorado, spending three 
years on a ranch in that state, but in 1872 re- 
turned to Mahaska county. 

On the 26th of December, of the same year, 
.Mr. Harter was married to Catherine Di.xon, 
who was born in Keokuk county, Iowa, and is 
a daughter of John Harrison and Catherine 
(AVall) Dixon. The former died while serv- 
ing his country in the Civil war and Mrs. Dixon 
passed away during the earlv girlhood of her 
daughter. Mrs. Harter, who was largely reared 
in Decatur county, Iowa, and in Missouri. Fol- 
lowing their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Harter lo- 
cated on a farm in Cedar township, commencing 
with forty acres of land which he developed 
and cultivated. Prospering in his undertakings 
he added to the place and lived thereon for seven 
years, when he sold that property and pur- 
chased ^^■here he now resides, or rather buying 
at first sixty acres. Here he bought sixty 
acres more and subsequently forty acres, and he 
now has one hundred and sixty acres all in one 
body. He has built a good house and barn and 
other outbuildings and has the place all fenced 



and tiled and with his farming he raises and 
feeds stock, devoting his attention mostly to 
horses and mules. 

Mr. and Mrs. Harter have become the parents 
of four children : E. Elsworth, who is carry- 
ing on the home farm ; Evalena Dell and Leslie 
A., both at home; and Minnie May, who died 
October 2. 1899, ;it the age of twenty-three 
years. 

Mr. Harter exercises his right of franchise 
in support of the men and measures of the de- 
mocracy, voting with the party since casting 
his first presidential ballot for George B. Mc- 
Clellan in 1864. He has since voted for each 
standard-bearer of the party since that time. He 
has served as school trustee, school director and 
road supervisor. He is a Master Mason, hav- 
ing been a member of Fremont lodge since 
1874, and his son Elsworth is a member of the 
Odd Fellows lodge and Modern Woodmen at 
Kirkville. Mr. Harter has spent almost his 
entire life in this county. In the early days he 
drove seven yoke of oxen to a breaking plow in 
order to turn the sod on the prairies. He has 
lielped to develop and improve four farms, has 
led a useful life and. is an esteeined citizen, who 
has displayed many sterling qualities and de- 
serves the confidence and esteem of tlie com- 
munitv. 



GEORGE H. BARBOUR. 

(leorge H. Barboiu-, who for twentv vears 
has been engaged in the lumber business in New 
Sharon, was bom in Reinersville, Morgan 
county, Ohio, .\ugust 18, 1833, a son of John 
A\'ilson and Jane (Macklem) Barbour, the for- 
mer born in Pennsylvania in 1814 and the latter 
in Delaware in 18 18. The father was a farmer 
by occupation and spent a number of years in 
Ohio, where he owned and operated a tract of 
land until 1854. That year witnessed his ar- 



492 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



rival in Washington county, Iowa, where he 
purchased one hundred and seventy acres of 
land. It had been entered from the g-overnment 
some years before but was still unimproved 
when it came into possession of Mr. Barbour, 
who began its cultivation and improvement and 
later added to it a tract of forty acres, which 
was improved. He made his home thereon un- 
til his death, which occurred in 1877, while 
his wife passed away in W^ashington, Iowa, in 
1890. In their family were three children, of 
whom George H. is the second in order of birth 
and the only one now living. His elder brother, 
John William, a carpenter by trade, died in 
Washington county, Iowa, in 1886, leaving a 
wife and children. Ann Elizabeth died in 
Washington county, in 1883. 

Following the father's death the mother and 
her daughter remo\'ed to the city of Washing- 
ton, while George H. Barbour remained upon 
the home farm, which he conducted until 1880. 
He then engaged in the lumber business at 
Ainsworth, Iowa, where he remained for a 
year and in June, 1882, he established a lum- 
ber business at Sully and also conducted a lum- 
bervard at Lynnville and Killduff, in Jasper 
county, being connected with those interests for 
three years. In 1884 and 1885 he was engaged 
in the lumber business at Oskaloosa, and in 
March, 1886. he removed to New Sharon, 
where for twenty years he has conducted his 
yard. Until a year ago he also conducted an ele- 
vator and purchased and shipped grain, but gives 
his attention now only to the lumber trade, 
being the senior partner of the firm of Barbour 
& Younkin, the latter being his brother-in-law. 
- They handle a large line of lumber of all kinds 
together with building materials and they are 
also interested in a lumber business at Gilman 
and at Barnes City. Their trade in all three 
places is extensive and their annual sales return 
to them a gratifying income. The yard is lo- 
cated near the railroad thus furnishing excel- 
lent shipping facilities and the busine.;s has been 



carried on here since its establishment more 
than twenty years ago. 

In 1880 Mr. Barbour was united in marriage 
to Miss Ida Younkin, and unto them have been 
born five daughters, Laura, Florence, Edna, 
Edith and Gladys. The family circle yet re- 
mains unbroken bv the hand of death, and all 
are yet under the parental roof. 

In his political views Mr. Barbour has been a 
stalwart republican since age gave to him the 
right of franchise. He has served as a mem- 
ber of the city council and on the school board, 
and is the advocate of all measures which ha\'e 
their rise in the demands for public improve- 
ment and progress. He and his family hold 
memliership in the Methodist Episcopal church 
and he is a Mason, having taken the degrees of 
the blue lodge of New Sharon, the chapter and 
commandery at Oskaloosa and the Mystic 
Shrine at Davenport. Both he and his wife are 
c(.innected with the Order of the Eastern Star 
and in social relations have occupied an envi- 
able position, enjoying the warm regard of 
many friends. Since starting out in life on his 
ijwn account after the death of his father, Mr. 
Barbour has made continuous progress, care- 
fully considering each step and then advancing 
in the path that leads to substantial prosperity. 



SAMUEL BARTLEY SINCLAIR. 

The industrial life of Oskaloosa finds a wor- 
thy representative in Samuel Bartley Sinclair, 
who is conducting a general contracting busi- 
ness and also owns and operates a planing mill. 
To his position of prominence in business cir- 
cles he has attained through strong determina- 
tion, capability and laudable ambition and he 
belongs to that class of representative Amer- 
ican citizens who wliile promoting individual 
success also contribute tn the general welfare. 
He was born in ^^'as]^ington county, Pennsyl- 




s. r.. si.\i;[,AiR. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



495 



A-ania. in 1862. His father, Samuel Sinclair, 
was born in Loudoun county, Virginia, and was 
a wheelwright by trade. Prior to the Civil war 
lie removed to Washington county, Pennsyl- 
vania, and at the outbreak of strife between the 
north and south he enlisted for service with the 
Twentv-third Pennsylvania Volunteer Cavalry, 
with which he continued for two years. He 
was then mustered out at Cumberland, West 
\"iri;inia. with the rank of first sergeant. Re- 
turning" to his home in Pennsylvania he re- 
sumed the pursuits of civil life and became a 
coal operator. On leaving the Keystone state, 
he went to Alansfield. Ohio, in 1866, and there 
conducted a mill for fi\-e years, or until 1871, 
when he came to ^Mahaska county. Iowa, set- 
tling in S])ring Creek township, on a farm, 
where he resided until 1876, when he removed 
to Oskaloosa, where his death occurred. He 
passed away in 1890, at the ripe old age of 
eiglit}-three years. Many good qualities had 
won for him the esteem and respect of his fel- 
low townsmen and he left behind him an un- 
tarnished name. He held membership with the 
Grand Army of the Republic and was a repub- 
lican in his political views. His interest in 
his country and her welfare was deep and sin- 
cere and was manifest not only by his active 
service on southern battle-fields but also by 
generous co-operation in many movements for 
local progress. His wife, who bore the maiden 
name of Sarah Bartley, was born in Washing- 
ton county, Pennsyhania. and is now living in 
Oskaloosa at the advanced age of eighty-two 
years. She is a member of the United Presby- 
terian church and is living an earnest Christian 
life. Tn tJie family were four children: Flor- 
ence, deceased ; Samuel P.. ; Adeline, the wife of 
Martin Vittun, foreman of the Oskaloosa 
\\'ood-\\'orking Company; and William, who 
operates a sawmill and owns a timber claim in 
]\Iontana. 

No event of special importance occurred tn 
vary the routine of farm life for Samuel P>. 
23 



Sinclair in his boyhood days. In the summer 
months various tasks of field and meadow were 
assigned to him and in the fall he entered the 
district school, while later he became a high- 
school student in Oskaloosa. His education 
completed, he began learning the carpenter's 
trade and also that of wood-turning and gradu- 
ally advancing in proficiency he won promo- 
tions that eventually made him manager of the 
Oskaloosa planing mill, which position he capa- 
bly occupied for several years or until he began 
Inisiness on his own account in 1889. He has 
since engaged in general contracting, in which 
he has been very successful and in addition he 
has a large planing mill equipped with modem 
machinery, wherein he manufactures show- 
cases, modern store fronts, store fi.xtures, etc. 
Pie makes jilans and estimates for all kinds of 
buildings and receives oft'ers for the construc- 
tion of these. The planing mill and ofiices are 
situated on South C street between First and 
Second avenues, and his residence is at No. 316 
First avenue West. Tn his keen business dis- 
cernment and unflagging industry are found 
the secret of his success, which has gradually 
advanced him far on the high road to pros- 
perity. 

In the fall of 1886 Mr. Sinclair was married 
to Miss Cora May Hait, who was born in Os- 
kaloosa, Iowa, in 1867, and is a daughter of 
William and Eliza Jane Hait, the former one 
of the pioneer blacksmiths of Oskaloosa. Mr. 
and ]\Irs. Sinclair have one child, Virgil O., 
who was bom in i88g and is attending the 
high school. Mrs. Sinclair is a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Sinclair be- 
longs to the Modern W^oodmen camji. the In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows, being a trus- 
tee of the local lodge, the Improved Order of 
Red IMen and the Fraternal Order of Eagles. 
In politics he is a stanch republican and has 
served for two terms in the city council from 
the second ward, which is a democratic section 
of the citv. His election therefore is a testi- 



496 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



monial of his personal popularity and the con- 
fidence reposed in him by those among whom 
he lives and who are best qualified to judge of 
his ability and trustworthiness. He has made 
a creditable record as a business man, faith- 
fully meeting every obligation and dealing hon- 
orably with all, and as the years have gone by 
he has won both an honored name and a com- 
fortable competence. 



CHARLES J. BURTON, Ph. B. 

Charles J. Burton, who has won a position of 
prominence in educational circles and was the 
founder and is the president of the Iowa Chris- 
tian College and Oskaloosa Normal & Business 
College, was born May 8, 1856, in Murray, 
Kentucky. He was a student successively in 
the common schools of his native town, in 
Murray Institute and Hiram College, at Hiram, 
Ohio, being graduated from the last named in 
1889. Since leaving college his life has been 
devoted to teaching and he has won prestige as 
a representative of the profession and has in- 
augurated a new work in the line of Christian 
instruction as well as in preparation for the 
practical and responsible duties of a business 
career. Oskaloosa College was incorporated 
in 1856 and has since graduated a large num- 
ber of students, many of whom are filling im- 
portant positions in life. In 1902 Professor 
Burton opened up a new work here with a new 
management, while new articles of incorpora- 
tion were secured in July of that year. The 
institution was called the Iowa Christian Col- 
lege and Oskaloosa Normal & Business Col- 
lege and has three distinct departments: The 
College of the Bible, the Oskaloosa Normal 
College and the Oskaloosa Business College. 
It is not under the auspices of any denomina- 
tion, but is rather evangelical in character and 
was organized to meet the great and growing 



demands of the masses of young men and 
women for special training. It is intended to 
meet the needs of strong minds that desire a 
more literary and practical education. While 
the colleg-e does not impart denominational in- 
struction it is strictly Christian in character. 
The methods of work are practical, being 
founded upon the conditions of the business 
world and the requirements thereof. To meet 
the demands of thousands of ambitious men 
and women unable to attend college in person 
the management have arranged various non- 
resident courses and have a large enrollment in 
every state, also in Canada, England, Scotland. 
Holland, India, Japan, Australia, Porto Rico 
and South Africa. The institution has a corps of 
eleven instructors and Professor Burton fills 
the chair of sacred literature, Hebrew and the 
Bible. The school is meeting the want in con- 
ditions of life today and already has had almost 
phenomenal success. 



ORVILLE R. SHA^^' 



Orxille R. Shaw, who is conducting a gen- 
eral store in Taintor, was born in Butler 
county, Iowa, January 7, 1861, and is a son of 
Robert W. and Olive D. (Morrison) Shaw. 
The father was born in New York, and in 1846 
remi)\-e(l with his family to Butler county, Iowa, 
where he followed the occupation of farming. 
In 1869 he went to Minnesota and subsequently 
to Wisconsin. Later he became a resident of 
Illinois, and his last days were spent in Kansas, 
his death occurring near Topeka, that state, 
about twenty years ago. His wife died in But- 
ler county, Iowa, when their son Orville was 
only two years of age. 

The little boy was then taken to his grand- 
parents' home. At the age of sixteen years he 
went to work on a farm for Gardner Lunt at 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



497 



ten (liillars per month and afterward suppnrted 
liis grandparents. Tlie grand fatlier died a year 
later, hut he continued to care tor his grand- 
mother until she, too, passed away. His edu- 
cation was acquired in the district schools and 
in the village school of Linnville, Iowa, and a 
liheral education, largely acquired thnnigh his 
own elYorts, enahled him to secure a teacher's 
certificate, and he engaged in teaching for nine 
winter terms, while in the summer months he 
was employed in a store in Peoria, Iowa. He 
also engaged in driving a grocery wagon 
through tlie country for four years in the em- 
]iloy of a grocery merchant at Peoria, and thus 
he eagerly availed himself of every opportu- 
nity for gaining a start in business life. 

On the 1 8th of November. 1885, Mr. Shaw 
was married to ]\Iiss C}'nthia H. Lindsley, wiio 
was born in Marion county. Iowa. July 24, 
1859, and is a daughter of Theodore and Ma- 
tilda (Knowles) Lindsley. The father is now 
deceased, hut the mother makes her home with 
her son in Peoria, Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Shaw 
have one son, Cyril J., horn April 11, 1888. 

It was seventeen years ago that Mr. Shaw 
became a merchant of Taintor, opening a stock 
of groceries, dry goods, clothing and hardware 
under the firm name of Shaw & Rliine. After 
eighteen months he purchased his partner's in- 
terest. I-'or six and a half years he had no 
partner, then eight years was a partner of Grant 
Garner, but since March, 1905, has conducted 
the business alone, having again purchased his 
])artner"s interest. He is now proprietor of a 
well equipped general store, carn-ing a large 
line of groceries, dry goods, clothing and hard- 
ware, lie enjoys a good trade, which is con- 
stantly increasing. Only a few weeks ago. how- 
ever, he had his store entered by burglars, the 
safe was blown ojjen and forty-five dollars in 
cash was taken. This was tiie third l)urglarly 
of the place in three years. Nothwithstanding 
such obstacles ami disadvantages, however, he 
has persevered in his work and is now conduct- 



ing a prosperous business. He owns both his 
store building and his residence. 

In his political views Mr. Shaw is a repub- 
lican, and since the nth of May, 1895, has 
been postmaster of Taintor. Both he and his 
wife are valued and esteemed members of the 
Christian church. He started cjut in life a poor 
boy and was in debt thirty dollars when twenty- 
one years of age. He supjxirted his grandpar- 
ents, but by earnest labor and close attention to 
business he has made a success as the years have 
gone by and is now carefully directing his busi- 
ness interests with the result that he is winning 
a gratifying measure of prosperity in the con- 
fluct of his store in Taintor. 



REV. JOHN \MLLI.\M JONES. 

Rew John William Jones, pastor of St. James" 
Protestant Episcopal church of Oskaloosa, was 
Iiorn in Texas, July 25, 1876. His father, the 
Re\-. v. W. Jones, was a native of Prince Ed- 
ward county. Virginia, where the old ancestral 
homestead still stands. He has given his life to 
the work of the ministry and is now pastor of 
Grace church at Lyons. North Clinton, Iowa. 
He married Rosabelle Deason, a native of 
Texas, and in addition to John \V. the mem- 
bers of the family are: Monroe Gordon, Lloyd 
Deason, Thomas \\'a!ker and Robert Stafford 
Jones, and the daughter, Claremont Richie 
Jones. 

Rev. John W. Jones completed his more spe- 
cifically literan,' education by graduation from 
Roanoke College in Virginia in the class of 
1897. ^'°^ o"s ys^f '^^ taught school in Nash- 
ville, Tennessee, after which he pursued a two 
years' divinity course at the University of the 
South, at Chewalla, Tennessee. He traveled 
for one }'ear in Great Britain and on the conti- 
nent in 1904. returning to the United States 
bv wav of Canada. 



498 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Rev. Jones was ordained a deacon of the 
Episcopal church by Bishop Kinsohng, of 
Texas, in All Saints' chapel at Austin, of that 
state, in October, 1900. He has been rector of 
All Saints' chapel and afterward went to San 
Antonio, Texas, as assistant rector of St. 
Mark's church. Later he removed to Califor- 
nia to accept a position on the San Francisco 
Cathedral staff of missions, being located at 
Point Richmond, and in September, 1905, ac- 
cepted the call from St. James' Protestant Epis- 
copal churcli in Oskaloosa, wliere he has since 
been located. 

Rev. Jones was married on the 4th of .Au- 
gust, 1903, to Miss Mary Tupper, of Wawona, 
in the Yosemite in California, a daughter of 
Judge \V. D. and Isabel (Carnahan) Tupper. 
They have two children, Rosa Isabel and John 
Star. Rev. Jones is a man of liberal views, of 
unaffected personality and is popular with all 
who know him. 



ANDREW J. BARTLETT. . 

After many years of active and honorable 
connection with agricultural interests in Ma- 
haska county Andrew J. Bartlett is now living 
retired in New Sharon. He was born in Mc- 
Arthurtown, Ohio, August 11, 1837, a son of 
Amos and Mary E. (Girard) Bartlett, the 
former born in Virginia in 181 1 and tlie latter 
in Ohio in 18 18. They were married in the 
Buckeye state and in 1844 came to Mahaska 
county, first locating in Oskaloosa, at which 
time there were but seven log shanties in the 
place, one little store and not a room larger 
than twelve by fourteen feet in the town. It 
was the days of primitive, pioneer development 
and Mr. Bartlett became a factor in the early 
growth and progress of the county. In the 
spring of 1845 he removed to Richland town- 
ship, where he took up a government claim of 



one hundred and sixty acres, about half of 
which was covered with timber. There he 
built a log house and for many years made his 
home upon that farm. In 1848 he was called 
upon to mourn the loss of his first wife and 
later he married Susan Rupe, who was born in 
Ohio. He reared his children upon the old 
home place in Richland township and for many 
years devoted his time and energies to agricul- 
tural pursuits but later retired and removed to 
Pella, Marion county, where he died, passing- 
away at the age of sixty-three years, while his 
second wife survived him for about ten years. 
In politics he was a stanch advocate of demo- 
cratic principles but he had no aspiration for 
office and the only position of a political nature 
which he ever filled was that of justice of the 
peace. In 1847 lie cast the only democratic 
vote in Richland township, while six votes were 
cast for the candidates of the whig party. This 
indicates the limited population of the town- 
ship at that time and also the state of develop- 
ment and improvement to which the county had 
attained at that early day. By the father's 
first marriage there were seven children : Mary 
E, the deceased wife of Allen Godbey, who 
lived in Prairie township; Augusta, who died 
at the age of six years; Andrew J., of this re- 
\ie\v; Amos, who is living in Poweshiek coun- 
ty; George, a resident of Adams county, this 
state; Marion, who, died in Mount Pleasant, 
Iowa ; and Jasper, who died at the age of 
twenty years. By the second marriage there 
were two children : William, who is now living 
in Nebraska ; and Jerry, deceased. 

Andrew J. Bartlett remained at home until 
twenty years of age. There were few schools 
in the county in those days and the methods of 
instruction were very primitive as compared 
with the excellent school facilities now offered 
in the county. Mr. Bartlett had not more than 
three months' schooling in all his life, but in 
the school of experience has learned many valu- 
able lessons and by reading and observation 




-MR. AXD MRS. A. J. BARTLETT. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



501 



lias oreativ broadened his knowledge. He has 
iiianv vivid recollections of the early days be- 
fore modem civilization had wrought a trans- 
formation in pioneer conditions and environ- 
ments. I-'or many }ears the family used o.x- 
tcams, breaking the prairie, and o.xen \vere also 
hitched to the wagon in which the family rode 
to church. Mr. Bartlett has iiad many a race 
with a team of oxen. Boards would be thrown 
across the wagon to serve as seats and as the 
team would bound along the children would 
bounce ofi the seat to the bottom of the wagon. 
ilr. Bartlett hauled goods from Keokuk to 
Oskaloosa before any railroad had been built. 
His mother used to card wool by hand and they 
<li(l all of their own weaving and spinning, Mrs. 
Andrew J. Bartlett now having blankets in her 
house which she wove herself in early woman- 
hood. Cotton cloth at that time brought very 
high prices but the family raised their own 
sheep and could use woolen cloth which they 
spun and wove themselves when there was no 
money to purchase cotton cloth. There were 
many happy years in which the people enjoyed 
the hospitality of each other's homes. Mr. 
Bartlett says it seems they were more social in 
those days for they all depended upon each 
other for help and for entertainment. The 
mother never saw a sewing machine nor a cook 
stove, for all of her cooking was done over the 
open fireplace, great iron kettles hanging from 
the crane. To handle their hay they used a 
wooden fork, cut in the woods, and there was 
little farm machinery, most of the work being 
done by hand. All this has long since changed, 
and in his farm work Mr. Bartlett kept abreast 
with modern improvement and progress. 

Mr. Bartlett started out in life on his own 
account by renting land and in 1857 he took 
u]) a claim in Kansas but not liking the country 
there he returned in 1859 and has since resided 
contiiuiously in Mahaska county. He had been 
married on the nth of November, 1855, to 
Miss Jane Mitchell, who was born in Indiana 



October 9, 1832, a daughter of Jacob and Mary 
(Scott) Mitchell, both of whom were natives 
of Ohio, whence they came to Mahaska county 
in 185 1 and here engaged in farming. The fa- 
ther at one time owned five hundred and ninety 
acres of valuable land. Both he and his wife 
continued to make their home in Madison 
township until called to their final rest. 

In i860, following his return from Kansas, 
Mr. Bartlett purchased si.xty-five acres of land 
from liis father-in-law. There was a log house 
upon the place but only seven acres of the land 
had been broken and the remainder was covered 
with timber. After a short time he sold this 
property and removed to Jasper county and 
purchased a farm, remaining thereon until 
1882, when he bought a farm of one hundred 
and sixty acres in Prairie township. This was 
all new land, which Mr. Bartlett broke, turn- 
ing the first furrows in the fields and eventually 
planting the seed that in due course of time 
brought bounteous harvests. He also built a 
good frame house, planted evergreen trees and 
made a nice home. He added forty acres to 
the original purchase, making in all two hun- 
dred acres. He has since given each of his 
children a tract of land but he retains in his 
own name a farm of one hundred and twent}'' 
acres. On account of failing health he and his 
wife removed to New Sharon about 1903 and 
the farm is now rented. They own a nice home 
in the village together with four acres of land. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett have been bom 
a daughter and son: Ella, now the wife of 
William Young, who resides in New Sharon 
but owns a good farm in Prairie township ; and 
Clarence, who married a cousin, Jerusha 
Mitchell, and owns and occupies a farm of 
three hundred and twenty acres in Madison 
township. He has three children, Grace, Wal- 
ter and Alta. In politics Mr. Bartlett has al- 
ways been a democrat but has never held any 
office. He and his wife celebrated their golden 
wedding in November, 1905, having for a half 



502 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



centur}^ traveled life's journey together, shar- 
ing with each other its joys and sorrows, its 
adversity and prosperity, and now they are 
enjoying the comforts of life in a pleasant home 
amid many friends. They are numbered 
among the early settlers of the county and as 
such certainlv deserve mention in this volume. 



ORIN FLEMING. 



Orin Fleming is one of the pioneer residents 
of Mahaska county and now lives on section 15, 
Prairie township. Few citizens are more fa- 
miliar with the history of this county when it 
was a frontier district and he relates many in- 
teresting incidents of those early days and the 
methods of living at that time. He was born in 
Wood county. West Virginia, December 17, 
1843, ^"d is a son of Robert Fleming, who is 
mentioned on another page of this work. The 
father was born in Harrison county, \\'est Vir- 
ginia. September 3, 181 1. and died upon the 
home farm in Richland township, June 28, 
1894. In early manhood he started for Indi- 
ana, but on reaching Wood county. West Vir- 
ginia, about one hundred miles from his home, 
remained there to teach school. While there 
he married Amy Maddox and after farming for 
a time in West Virginia started, in IMarch, 
1852, for Iowa, traveling by way of the Ohio 
and Mississippi rivers to Keokuk, where they 
were met by Amos Bartlett, wirii whom Mr. 
Fleming had arranged to move their effects. 
They stopped first at Primrose, Iowa, and after 
several months came on to Mahaska county, 
reaching Oskaloosa on the second day of their 
tra\'el and just before dark crossed South Skunk 
river. It was two o'clock at night when they 
reached the cabin of Amos Bartlett. The prairie 
was on fire that night, making it as light as 
day. \\'ith their family and the men who had 
hauled their goods from Primrose there was a 



company of twenty-fi\-e persons to breakfast 
at the Bartlett home the next morning. Rob- 
ert Fleming had a sack of flour and some pork, 
which they had brought with them. They set 
up a cook stove out of doors and did their cook- 
ing on it. For a number of years the fam- 
ily shared in die usual hardships and privations 
of pioneer life. 

Orin Fleming had but little education except 
what he gathered from reading and observa- 
tion. In ^^'est \Trginia he attended school for 
only three terms, his father being the teacher 
during two terms. After coming to Iowa he 
went to school but little for he was soon old 
eudugh t(.) split rails, chop wood, build fences 
and work upon the home farm and aid in the 
support of the family. He made his home with 
his parents until twenty-one years of age, when 
in company with two other men he made a trip 
to the west, where he drove a team through 
^Missouri and then went into Colorado as far 
as Cayote, which was then the terminus of the 
Union Pacific Railroad. They started in 1866 
and were gone for nearly two years. ]Mr. 
Fleming left with two hundred dollars and re- 
turned witli four hundreil dollars. They lost 
o\-er one thousand dollars, however, by selling 
some buffalo hides to a man in Colorado, who 
took them to St. Louis and never came back 
with the money. They had often sold to him 
before and in all business transactions he had 
seemed honest and reliable, so they did not hesi- 
tate to trust him on this occasion. On the trip 
they killed between three and four hundred 
buffaloes, also a large number of wolves and 
geese and ducks without number, so that their 
table was frequently supplied with fresh game. 
'Sir. I-Hemiug kept a diaiy or expense account 
while on the trip and some of the items are in- 
teresting, showing the condition of prices at 
that time : "One hundred and fifty bushels of 
corn at two dollars and a half per bushel ; boots 
twelve dollars per pair: one sack flour ten dol- 
lars." The Union Pacific was under course of 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



503 



construction while Mr. Fleming was in the west 
and the workmen were guarded by soldiers 
from Hayes City to ])rotect them from the 
Indians. 

On his return from the frontier Mr. Mcm- 
ing went to work on a farm by the month. His 
father had gi\cn him forty acres of land and he 
purchased another forty acres, on which he 
built a frame house, there making his home for 
two years after bis marriage. His was a stren- 
uous life, for he worked untiringly in his efforts 
to get a start and develop his farm. He bought 
trees at one dollar per hundred feet of lum- 
Ijer in the tree and paid one dollar jier hun- 
dred to have it sawed into ten and twelve foot 
lumber. He cut the trees, hauled them to the 
mill and got out the posts, and he laiilt a five- 
board fence and thus enclosed his fortv-acre 
farm. In 1874, however, he sold that property 
lying in Richland township and purchased 
eighty acres on section 15, Prairie township, 
where he now resides. This had been broken 
and was enclosed with a pole fence. There was 
a plank house, si.xteen by twenty-two feet, upon 
the place and a prairie stable with thatched roof. 
Mr. Fleming remodeled the house and lived in 
it until about twelve years ago, when he built a 
large scjuare frame residence which is one of the 
commodious and pleasant homes o{ the town- 
ship. He also built a frame bam, sheds and 
other buildings, has good fences and the house 
is well painted. He also owns eighty acres a 
half mile west of where he now resides together 
with forty acres in Richland township and five 
acres of woodland in Poweshiek county. His 
land is all under a good state of cultivation, but 
there are no buildings upon anv of the tracts 
save that upon which he resides, as the re- 
mainder of his land is used simi)ly for the 
production of crops. 

On the 31st of March, 1869, Mr. Fleming 
was married to Miss Elizabeth Anna Evans, 
who was bom in West \'irginia, .\pril 19, 
1847. ^'t1 'lied bebruary i, 1906. The par- 



ents were Hugh and Sarah .\nn Evans antl the 
family was an early one in the county. Unto 
Mr. and Mrs. I'leming were born eight chil- 
dren, of whom si.K ai^e living: Ackley R., who 
was born January 15. 1870, married Emma 
Johnson and is living in Portland, Oregon; 
Oris Clark, born March 3, 1872, married Mat- 
tie \\'atland, and resides in Barton county, Mis- 
souri ; .\nna, born in 1875, became the wife of 
William 1-". Kindig and died in New Sharon, 
December 4 ,1903; Irena, born October 18, 

1880. died at the age of three years, eleven 
months and two da\'s; Jessie M., born I\Iay 10, 

1 88 1, is the wife of Thomas Edgar Lewis, a 
resident of New Sharon ; Grover C, born May 
21, 1884, is at home; Laura E., born March 3, 
1888, is also at home; Inez M., born May 3, 
1892, completes the family. 

Mr. Fleming has always been a democrat and 
has served as school director and road supervi- 
sor but has ne\-er been a politician in the sense 
of office seeking. He is a good citizen, honor- 
able in all his dealings and is a well informed 
man. He represents one of the old and promi- 
nent pioneer families of the county. ha\-ing for 
more than a half century resided within its 
liorders and from actual experience can relate 
incidents of pioneer life which show the rapid 
and marvelous changes that have occurred as 
the county has been reclaimed for the puqiose of 
civilization and improvement. 



RICHARD H. TODD, .M. D. 

Dr. Richard H. Todd, engaged in the prac- 
tice of medicine and surgery in New Sharon, 
was born in Carroll county. Mis.souri, August 
7. i860. His father, John T(Kld. was a native 
of Kentucky and died in Denver, Colorado, in 
February, 1905, at the venerable age of eighty 
years. He bad served as a soldier of the Civil 
war. enlisting from Missouri and soon after 



504 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



the close of hostilities he removed to IlHnois. 
He followed farming and stock-raising, carry- 
ing on business along those lines throughout 
his entire life. He wedded Miss Mary Elder, 
also a native of Kentucky, who is no.w living 
at Carthage, Illinois, at the age of eighty-three 
years. In their family were eight children, six 
of whom yet survive. 

Dr. Todd, the only representative of the fam- 
ily in Iowa, lived upon the old homestead farm 
until nineteen years of age, after which he pur- 
sued a literary course in the college at Abing- 
don, Illinois. He afterward took up the study 
of medicine in the Kentucky School of Medi- 
cine at Louisville and was graduated there in 
1887. He also has a diploma from the Medical 
Laboratorj'' of Chemistry and Microscopy at 
Louisville and one from the Surgical Labora- 
tory of Operations and Bandaging of the same 
city. He entered upon the practice of his chosen 
profession in Donnellson, Iowa, in 1887, there 
remaining until seven years ago, when he came 
to New Sharon, where he purchased a stock of 
drugs. He conducted the business for two years 
and then sold out, since which time he has given 
undivided attention to his practice. He has a 
liberal patronage and in the faithful perform- 
ance of each day's duty he finds encouragement 
and inspiration for the work of the succeeding 
day. He maintains a high standard of pro- 
fessional ethics so that he enjoys the unqualified 
regard of his brethren of the medical fraternity, 
while the consensus of opinion regarding his 
capability is most favorable. 

On the loth of December, 1885, Dr. Todd 
was married to Miss Laura A. Powel, who was 
born in Ohio, July 3, i860. They now have two 
sons, Ray H. and Fred E. The former, eight- 
een years of age, is a graduate of the New 
Sharon high school and is now pursing a course 
in electrical engineering under the direction of 
a correspondence school. He is also working 
at the electric light plant in New Sharon for 
practical experience and is thus earning money 



to pay his tuition in school. The younger son, 
Fred, -sixteen years of age, will complete the 
high-school course at New Sharon in 1906. 
In his political views Dr. Todd is a republican 
but without aspiration for office. He is a 
member of the Knights of Pythias fraternity 
at Donnellson and of the Benevolent and Pro- 
tecti\e Order of Elks at Oskaloosa. With a 
conscientious understanding of the obligations 
that devolve upon him in connection with his 
life work he has so directed his efforts as to 
win success and his social and professional 
prominence are equally creditable. 



HENRY OLIVER CONAWAY. M. D. 

Dr. Henry Oliver Conaway, devoting his at- 
tention to office practice, chronic diseases, de- 
formities and diseases of the eye and ear, has 
come into public recognition as one of the able 
and distinguished members of the medical fra- 
ternity of Iowa. He was born in Harrison coun- 
t}-, near Scio, Ohio, on the 27th of January', 
1848, a son of Aaron and Dorcas (Busby) 
Conaway, who were also natives of Ohio. 

A memorial written by Dr. Conaway of his 
father contains the following: "Aaron Cona- 
way, born in Harrison county, Ohio, in 1807, 
was the son of Michael Conaway, a L^nited 
States soldier of the war of 18 12 fame and one 
of the pioneer settlers of eastern Ohio. He was 
a brother of Charles, the first Methodist Epis- 
copal minister to ever ride a circuit and preach 
a INIethodist sermon in the state of Ohio. 
The}' were born in Maryland of Scotch-Irish 
parentage. 

"Aaron Conaway's birth was in that memor- 
able year when Robert Fulton built and success- 
fully sailed the 'Clermont' up the Hudson 
river — the first steamboat — in the year 1807, 
a date far more memorable than anv battle 




)R. 11. O. COXAWAV. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



507 



«ver fought on earth. In 1812 Aaron Cona- 
way's first notable act was performed when he 
accompanied his father one day's journey 
through the wilderness, the father ami S(jn rid- 
ing an old white mare on the journey to the 
war of 1812 with Great Britain. The next 
morning Michael placed little Aaron on the 
mare, kissing him gDod-bye. enjoining upon 
him tti be a good boy and mind his mother till 
he would return, and telling the little son not 
til fear that the faithful mare would take him 
home safe from the wildcats of the woods. 

"His early life was spent on a farm and 
teaching school until his marriage to Dorcas 
Busby in 1832. The result of their union was 
fourteen children, six of whom are still living : 
iMichael, a farmer, who lived near the old 
homestead and is deceased; Dr. John B., of 
York, N^ebraska, ex-member of the Nebraska 
house of representatives ; Mrs. R. M. Welch, 
wife of J- ^^^ ^^'elch, of Archer. Ohio; Dr. H, 
Oliver; Dr. A. B., of Marshalltown, ex-state 
senator of Iowa ; Mrs. C. B. Burrier. of the 
old homestead, a loving daughter and sister, 
the example of purity, vigilance, fidelity and 
constancy, following almost constantly the 
trembling footsteps of her aged father for al- 
most fifty years, her loving kindness being a 
continual balm until the last hour. If to honor 
one's father and mother would in fact make 
our days long on earth, she should live long 
and prosper in the peaceful tranquility of a life 
well spent, and titles of nobility well earned. 
for it has been written 'Once I was young, now 
I am old, yet have I never seen the righteous 
forsaken nor their seed begging for bread.' 

"Moses Conaway. One Hundred and Twen- 
ty-sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, was killed 
at the battle of Fisher's Hill, Virginia, Septem- 
ber 22. 1863. aged twenty-two years. George 
Alexander was killed at Dennison. Ohio, De- 
cember 17, 1873. Mrs. .-\gnes B., wife of W. 
B. \\>lch, of Cadiz. Ohio, deceased. Susan, 
deceased. Martha, deceased. Mary Jane, de- 



ceased. Enoch, deceased. Aaron Marion, de- 
ceased. All of whom died in sickness. 

"During the great American rebellion Aaron 
gave four of his s(jns, besides raising all the 
men and means in his power, to prosecute the 
war on the part of the government. He held 
different offices of trust in the county in which 
he resided, was land appraiser, county commis- 
sioner, justice of the peace for over forty years 
and in all that time never had one of his de- 
cisions reversed by a higher court. He lived 
and died within two miles of where he was 
born, a patient, consistent and conscientious 
Christian gentleman, whose whole life was 
sunshine and shadow ; a contented disposition 
being to him a continuous feast. He was ad- 
mired, revered and respected by his family and 
all who knew him. His last days were full of 
peace and pleasantness to him and a hallelujah 
to his famil_^^ He was the last one of a noble 
family of consistent Christian people. He was 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
and at the head of every temperance move- 
ment. He died March it. i8g6. at the age of 
eighty-nine years." 

At the time of his mother's death, which oc- 
ctuM-ed January 20, 1901, Dr. Conaway wrote 
to the sister who had long cared for them, "I 
remember her as the ever faithful mother who 
never slept until every little back was tucked in. 
Then if a neighbor knocked on the door with 
a message for help she was ready to light the 
candle in the old tin lantern and with staff in 
hand, travel as a messenger of mercy to the re- 
lief of suffering humanity or to the scene of 
flistress, through the dark alone. I remember 
her in the shadow of her first real grief, when 
the tocsin of war sounded and her boys of 
whom she was so proud volunteered and went 
to the Army of Freedom. I can see her knit- 
ting by the old 'fat lamp' and the 'shell-bark' 
fire mingling her tears with the stitches, mak- 
ing mittens and socks for the soldiers in rags 
in the Blue Ridge mountains in Virginia and 



So8 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Kentucky, while her noble husband drove his 
team from house to house, asking for clothes 
and blankets to cover and protect from the 
bleak winter those noble lads who had gone at 
their country's call to do and to die for the eter- 
nal right. Yes, God bless her noble woman- 
hood, she gave her boys and her husband to 
die on the field of battle ; and then when Gen- 
eral Morgan came through Ohio on his mem- 
orable raid she planted me (a little boy that 
soon went to sleep — with the old squirrel rifle) 
to guard one door, while she stood through 
the midnight hours and until the day yawned, 
at the other door, with her eyes on the children 
who were asleep and with the ax froiu the 
wood-pile firmly grasped, ready if need be, to 
sell her life for her home, her children and her 
country. But the silver cord is loosened and 
the golden bowl is bniken. 

'There is no veh-et so soft as a mother's lap. 
There is no rose so sweet as a mother's clieek. 
No music as sweet as a mother's voice. 

And while the soul retains the power 
To think upon each faded year. 
In every bright or shadowed hour 
The heart shall hold the mother dear.' " 

Dr. Conaway, whose name introduces this 
record, acquired his preliminary education in 
the public schools of Scio, Ohio, and was grad- 
uated from the Oakdale Normal School in the 
class of 1872. He is an alumnus of the Eclec- 
tic Medical Institute of Cincinnati, Ohio, of 
the class of 1875. and following his graduation 
he located for practice at Deep Ri\-er, Iowa, 
where he remained until 1882, when he ac- 
cepted a chair of professor in Drake Univer- 
sity at Des ]\Ioines, Iowa, becoming professor 
of human anatomy, in which position he con- 
tinued until 1886, proving a capable educator 
who elucidated the complex subjects and im- 
parted clearly and readily the knowledge that he 



had accj[uired. Hewas at the same time engaged 
in the private practice of medicine. In 1886 
he located in Columbus, Ohio, and after the 
death of his father and mijther returned to Ma- 
haska county, Iowa, settling in New Sharon, 
where he remained until 1892. In that year he 
went to Hot Springs, Arkansas, where he 
spent two years, and following his return to 
Iowa he practiced for a few months in Iowa 
City, In the fall of 1904 he came to Oska- 
li:)osa, where, opening an office, he has since 
devoted his attention to chronic diseases, de- 
formities, diseases of the eye and ear and to 
general office practice. In 1905 he was elected 
county physician and is still filling the ofifice. 

On the 1 6th of INIay, 1873, Dr. Conaway was 
married to Frances Sarah Hoover, of Parkers- 
burg, \\'est Virginia. Their children are : Jo- 
sie, the wife of Jesse Rodgers, of IMontezuma, 
Iowa; Clement A., of Deep River, Iowa: and 
George, at home. Mrs. Conaway is also a 
graduate in medicine, having completed her 
course in the medical department of Drake Uni- 
versity, and she practices in conjunction with 
her husband. Both Dr. Conaway and his wife 
are deep and earnest students of the professicin, 
]iracticing along scientific lines and keeping in 
touch with the trend of modern thought in sci- 
entific development. 



T. C. AUBERTSON. 



J. C. Albertson has won the success which 
follows earnest application and honorable ef- 
fort and is now li^•ing on section 26, Cedar 
township, where he owns three hundred and 
twenty acres of land, constituting a valuable 
farm. Here in addition to tilling the soil he 
raises stock and his business is carefully con- 
ducted, resulting in success. He is a native 
son of Iowa, his birth having occurred in Jones 
county, ]\Iay 19, 1859. His father, John .\1- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



509 



l>ertson, was a native of Ohio, whence lie re- 
moved to IlHnois in early manliood, hving in 
Peoria county. He was afterward married 
there to ]\Iartlia Young. He followed farming 
in IlHnois for a number of years and in 1857 
came to Iowa, settling in Jones county, where 
lie resided for a few years, wiien he returned 
with his family to Illinois, again taking up his 
abode in Peoria county. About 1862 he en- 
listed for ser\ice in the Union amiy, and for 
two years was in the south. He died at Mem- 
phis, Tennessee, during the period of the war 
and was buried there. His wife suiwived him 
for a number of years. 

In 1870 J. C. Albertson, with his mother and 
other members of the family, returned to Iowa, 
settling in Wapello county .near the farm on 
which he yet resides. He remained with his 
motlier until he had attained his majority and 
the common schools afforded him his educa- 
tional privileges. He was married in Cedar 
township, ]Mahaska county, February 17, 1886, 
to ]Miss Etta Van Buskirk, who was born 
in Tu.scarawas county, Ohio, and was reared 
in Iowa. Her father was Linford Van Bus- 
kirk. who came to Iowa from Ohio and opened 
up a farm in Cedar township, upon which he 
livefl with his family, his attention being given 
to the development and improvement of his 
land. 

After their marriage Mr. and ^Irs. Albertson 
located on the farm where they now reside. 
He owns here one hundred and si.xty acres of 
land. Pie had secured this property in 1882 
and kept "bachelor's hall" upon tlie farm for 
four years. He has since cultivated and im- 
])rc>\e(l the fields and has erected a good, neat 
residence, also built two good barns and out- 
buildings.. He has bought more land from 
time to time and now owns three hundred and 
twenty acres f)f land in two tracts with two 
hundred and forty acres in the home place. 
He has surrounded this with a well kept fence 
and has drained it with tiling. He has also 



planted fruit trees and made the farm what 
it is today, a splendidly improved property. He 
feeds and fattens for the market a carload of 
cattle and a large number of hogs each year, 
and both branches of his business are bringing 
to him a good, financial return. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Albertson have been 
born three children, Linford C, Harlan and 
Ethel yi. J. In his political allegiance Mr. Al- 
bertson is a democrat and has served on the 
school board for several years but otherwise 
has held no ofifice. He belongs to the Modern 
Woodmen camp. Living in this county from 
his youth to the present time he assisted in 
tilling the virgin soil and developed from 
properties. His business integrity is above 
question and his genuine, personal worth 
stands as an unquestioned fact in' his life. 



ORAN F. SCHEE. 



Oran F. Schee, secretary and treasurer of the 
Vehicle & Improvement Company of Oska- 
loosa, is a native of Ohio, having been born 
in Warren county on the nth of October, 
1875, a son of Nathan and Sarah J. (Alexan- 
der) Schee, natives of Ohio and Wisconsin re- 
spectively. The father was a iiioneer settler of 
Clarion county, Iowa, removing from Ohio to 
the vicinity of Tracey in 1855. He first engaged 
in the nursery business, which he followed for 
fifteen years and tlien turned his attention to 
the banking liusiness, which he carried on in 
Alilo. Warren county, and also at Bussey, Ma- 
rion county, Iowa. He was likewise identified 
with banking interests in Indianola and at Di- 
agonal, Iowa, organizing private banks in each 
of these towns. He thus became closely as- 
sociated with linancial interests in the state 
and is regarded as one of the represaitatives 
and progressive business men of Iowa, now 
making his home in Des Moines. He also has 



;io 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



lumljer interests in the south and has dealt 
to a considerable extent in Iowa lands, at the 
same time actively carrying on agricultural pur- 
suits. At least one-half of the hedge fences of 
Mahaska, Marion and Warren counties have 
been planted by the father of Mr. Schee, and he 
has contributed in substantial measure to the 
development and progress of Iowa's farming 
interests. In his family were four children : 
A^elettie, the widow of J. W. Goode and a resi- 
dent of Colorado Springs ; Hester, the wife of 
I. E. Ireland, of Chattanooga, Tennessee; Oran 
P., of this review; and Eleanor, at home. 

Oran F. Schee acquired his preliminary edu- 
cation in the public schools of Milo, Iowa, and 
later attended Simpson College, the Northwest- 
ern University, at Evanston, Illinois, and Drake 
University, at Des Moines, from which he was 
graduated in the class of 1898, on completing 
the scientific course. After completing his stu- 
dies he engaged in the hardware and lumber 
business at Decatur, Iowa, and a year later be- 
came cashier in the Decatur City Bank. Whai 
another year had passed he came to Oskaloosa 
as secretar}^ and treasurer of the Oskaloosa Ve- 
hicle & Improvement Company, and the busi- 
ness has more than doubled since he took charge 
thereof. He has extended tiie scope of the 
enterprise by establishing a branch house at 
Albia, Iowa, and the annual sales of both whole- 
sale and retail now amount to one hundred and 
fifty thousand dollars. The products of the 
house are shipped to all the middle and south- 
western states and to the Indian Territory and 
the lumber is all secured from the mills which 
the company owns in Arkansas and in Indian 
Territory, and is converted from the raw ma- 
terial into a finished lumber product in the inills 
and wood-working plants and in the lumber 
camps. The company owns splendid oak hick- 
ory and Cottonwood forests and the lumber is 
shipped in car lots. They manufacture wagon- 
boxes, shovel boards, wheelbarrows, standard 
fami wagons and farm trucks and have three 



plants, one in Oskaloosa, one in Omaha and one 
in the Indian Territory. Mr. Schee is the secre- 
tary and treasurer of the Oskaloosa Vehicle & 
Improvement Company, and is president of the 
Mitchell Carriage Compan}^ at Albia, Iowa. 

On the 19th of March, 1900, Mr. Schee was 
married to Miss Elgin Huston, a daughter of 
John Huston, of Blandinsville, Illinois. Their 
children are : John H. and O. F. Schee, Jr. 
Mr. Schee is a member of the board of direc- 
tors of the Young Men's Christian Association 
and in the midst of a busy life finds time and 
opportunity to aid in measures for the uplifting 
of his fellowmen and also co-operates in those 
interests which are a matter of civic pride and 
improvement. In his business career he is quick 
to note fidelity and loyalty on the part of em- 
ployes and to reward such by promotion as 
opportunity, offers. Honored and respected by 
all, there is no young man in Oskaloosa who oc- 
cupies a more enviable position in industrial 
and financial circles than Mr. Schee, not alone 
by reason of the success which he has achieved 
but also because of the straightforward business 
policy that he has ever followed. It is true that 
he entered upon a business already established 
but in controlling and enlarging this many a 
man of less resolute spirit would have failed, 
but he has embraced the opportunities which are 
ever to be found in business life and has 
wrought along lines of success and in accord- 
ance with business methods tlrat neither seek 
nor require disguise. 



MATTHEW W. CROZIER. 

Matthew W. Crozier is the owner of an at- 
tractive home and fine farm, located on sec- 
tions 34 and 35, Spring Creek township, and is 
classed with the active and progressive agri- 
culturists of this localitv. He is also a veteran 





-AIR. A.\[) MRS. M. W. CRoZIER. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



513 



of the Civil war, Tlirougliout the greater part 
of his life his time and energies have Ijeen de- 
\ote(l to farming interests and he now owns 
and ojierate.-; valnahle ])roperty of four hun- 
dred acres, of which one hundred and sixty 
acres is in the homestead. More than a half 
centurv has passed since he came to Mahaska 
couiit\- and during the period which has elapsed 
he lias liorne his full share in the work of 
]iublic improvement and progress. He was 
horn in Shelby county, Ohio, November 7, 
1836, and is a son of Robert S. Crozier, a na- 
ti\e of Pennsylvania, who was reared, however, 
in the Buckeye state. There he married Mar- 
garet Williams, a native of Ireland and a 
daughter of jMatthew Williams, also of that 
countr\-. The maternal grandfather on coming 
to America settled in Ohio. The ancestry of 
the famil)-, however, cah be traced back for ten 
generations to John Williams (1620) and the 
record is preserved in book form. 

Robert S. Crozier, father of our subject, 
came to Iowa in 1855, settling in Mahaska 
county. He first purchased one hundred and 
eighty acres of land which he began to improve 
and as the years passed he transfonned it into 
a productive tract. Upon that place he reared 
his family of six children four of whom are yet 
living, namely: Matthew W'., of this review; 
Thomas S.. who is living in Lucas county, 
Iowa; Charles E., of Oskaloosa; and Anna, the 
wife of William Harrison, a retired farmer and 
stock-shipper. 

Matthew \V. Crozier, reared upon the old 
home farm, assisted in carrying on the work 
<if the fields. His father died on Christmas day 
of 1862, and the mother survived for a num- 
ber of years, passing away in 1896, at the age 
of eighty-five years. When twenty-six years of 
age 2^Ir. Crozier enlisted in 1862 as a member 
of Company K, Thirty-third Regiment of Iowa 
Infantry-, formed in Oskaloosa. The troop en- 
listed in the county seat and went to St. Louis, 
Missouri, where they were engaged in guard- 



ing jirisoners in Myrtle and Gratiot street 
])risons for a month, this being their introduc- 
tion into active service. They then went to Co- 
lumbus. Kentucky, and on to Union City, Ten- 
nessee, proceeding afterward to Helena, Arkan- 
sas. The regiment participated in the engagement 
at Yazoo Pass. Later this command aided in the 
battle of Helena on the 4th of July, and it \vas 
on the same day that Vicksburg fell, and that 
the Ijattle of Gettysburg was won. The Thirty- 
tiiird Iowa proceeded to Little Rock, Arkansas, 
about September i, 1863, remaining there for 
some time and participated in Banks' campaign 
under General Steele. Returning to Little 
Rock, they remained at that point until 1864, 
the city being headquarters for the regiment 
for a year and a half. On the expiration of that 
period they went to New Orleans and to Mobile 
Point, Alabama, being engaged in the siege of 
IMohile. On one occasion Mr. Crozier was 
slightly wounded by a bullet grazing his hip. 
From Moloile the regiment went to Texas, do- 
ing duty at the mouth of the Rio Grande river, 
but was afterward sent to New Orleans, thence 
returned northward. The troops \\'ere mus- 
tered out at Davenport. Iowa, where ]\Ir. Cro- 
zier was honorably discharged in August, 1865, 
having served exactly three years. 

Following his return home he immediately 
resumed farming upon the old home property. 
As a companion and helpmate for life's journey 
he chose J\Iiss Mary E. ^lartin, to whom he was 
married October 26, 1865. She was born in 
Iowa and was brought to Mahaska county when 
only four months old, her parents being H. P. 
and .\manda L. (Jack) Martin, the fomier a 
nati\e of Fulton county, Illinois, and the latter 
of Greene county, Tennessee. Her father came 
to Iowa with his family and settled in Mahaska 
county when it was still a frontier district. He 
died in the year 1890. at the age of seventy 
years, and is .still survived by his widow, who 
is in her eighty-fourth year. She came to Ma- 
haska county in 1842 and she now resides with 



514 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



her son Byron upon the old homestead farm in 
Spring Creek township. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Crozier have been born 
eight children, of whom one died in infancy, 
while Mrs. Nellie Mclntyre passed away at the 
age of thirty-three years, leaving three children, 
Lucile, Edith and John Mclntyre. The oldest 
living member of the family of Mr. and Mrs. 
Crozier is William H., who is married and re-, 
sides upon a farm adjoining the old home place. 
He married Lillie B. Zaring and they have one 
child, Ralph \\\ Catherine is now in Des 
]\Ioines, Iowa. Lester S. was in the Spanish- 
American war, enlisting at Blue Earth, Min- 
nesota, Jnly I, 1898, under Captain I. C. Chase 
and Colonel Joseph Bohleter in Company M, 
Twelfth Minnesota Infantry. He was mus- 
tered out September 3, 1898, by order of the 
secretary of war, and discharged at Chicka- 
mauga, November 5. For twenty-eight days 
he was ill in the hospital at Lexington. For 
fifteen years he has spent much time in travel, 
visiting twenty-three states of the Laiion. 
Harry P. assists in managing the farm. Elsie 
Iowa is attending school in Des Moines. 

Mr. and Mrs. Crozier attend the Union 
church at Wright, but are members of the Un- 
ion Presbyterian church at White Oak. The 
nearness of the former, however, causes them 
to join the Sunday worship there. Politically 
Mr. Crozier is a stalwart republican, having 
given his support to the party continuously 
since casting his first presidential ballot for 
Abraham Lincoln. He has been a school treas- 
urer for thirty-three years, but has ne\'er sought 
nor cared for political office, finding incentive 
for his best effort in his business interests. His 
son Harr}- P., has attended the State Agricul- 
tural College at Ames and is a believer in scien- 
tific farming. They devote considerable attention 
to stock and their land is all \-aluable and pro- 
ductive. Mr. Crozier has a beautiful home, sup- 
plied with all modem equipments and conve- 
niences, and surrounded by a well kept lawn 



and ornamental shade trees. Few of the Civil 
war veterans are so well preserved as he. He 
and his wife are both in excellent health and 
happy in the environments of a comfortable 
home and the companionship of their children. 
His business interests have been carefully con- 
ducted and he is now one of the prosperous 
agriculturists of the communitv. 



SILVESTER WIMER. 

Silvester ^^'imer is the owner of four hun- 
dred and eighty acres of land in Prairie town- 
ship constituting one of the best improved fanns 
in his portion of the county. It is equipped 
with all modern conveniences and accessories 
and the owner is justly accounted a progres- 
sive agriculturist, deserving much credit for 
the success he has achieved. He was born in 
Licking county, Ohio, January 26, 1845, ^ son 
of Adam and Jemima (Godfrey) Wimer. The 
father was bom in Pennsylvania, July 12. 1813, 
and died in Ohio, July 16. 1848. The mother 
was born in Ohio and died in Keokuk county, 
Iowa, when Silvester \\'imer was a youth of 
thirteen years. Mr. Wimer does not remember 
e\'er seeing his father, but has learned that he 
was a carpenter, working 'at his trade through- 
out his business life. Following his death the 
mother removed to Indiana, where she lived 
until 1856, when she came to Iowa, settling in 
Keokuk county. She had married J. O. C. 
Wimer, a cousin of her first husband, and her 
death occurred in Keokuk county, September 
4, 1858. There were two sons of the first mar- 
riage, the brother of our subject being Amos 
\\'imer, who was born June i, T838. He en- 
listed as a member of Company E, Second Iowa 
Volunteer Infantry, at the time of the Civil 
war, became orderly sergeant and was killed 
at the battle of Shiloh. There were two chil- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



515 



dren born of tlie motlier's second marriag-e. hut 
one died at tlie age of six years, and die otlicr 
when Init three years old. 

Silvester W'inier was a lad of only thirteen 
vcars at the time of his mother's death, and he 
then went to work to provide for his own liv- 
ing;', receiving for the first year only his tjoard 
and clothes, while the second year he was paid 
a wage of thirty dollars in addition to his board 
and clothing. He afterward worked as a fann 
hand by the month until he enlisted for serv- 
ice in defense of the Union, when but eighteen 
years of age, joining the Thirty-third Iowa In- 
fantr\-. but was rejected on account of age and 
size, afterward became a member of the Seventh 
bnva Cavalry. He participated in a number of 
battles and skirmishes and had some narrow 
escapes. Once his horse was shot from under 
him and on another occasion he had just dis- 
mounted from his horse when it was shot. The 
regiment o])erated in the west and upon the ex- 
])iration of his term of service Mr. W'imer was 
discharged at Omaha, Nebraska, December 25, 
1865, having made a creditable military' record 
and displa}-ed valor and loyalty equal to that 
of many a veteran of twice his years. 

When the war was over Mr. Wimer returned 
to Keokuk county, Iowa, where he worked as 
a farm hand until January, 1868. when with 
the monev that he had saxeil from his own earn- 
ings he ])urchased one hundred and sixty acres 
of wild prairie land in Linngrove town- 
slii]), Jasper county, Iowa. On the ist of 
September, 1869. he was married to Bar- 
l)ara Moon, who was born in Lee county, 
Towa, May 7, 1847, a daughter of Jeremiah and 
Rachel (Xixon) Moon. She was, however, 
left an orphan when but twelve years of age 
and was teaching school in Limigrove townshi]) 
when she met Mr. \\'iiuer. When they were 
married the\' had two trunks and a bo.K of 
goods, but not a lamp nor stove nor other 
household furnishings. They boarded while a 
house was being built on their new farm and 



when it was completed they slept on the floor 
and ate off a dry goods box until furniture could 
be secured. Mr. W'imer worked for o'hers for 
the use of an ox-team with which to break his 
ground. He later bought a team and tools, 
built a better house and added eighty acres to 
his farm, upon which he reared his family and 
made his home until 1893. when he sold that 
jM'operty and came to Prairie township, Ma- 
haska county, where he purchased three hun- 
dred and twenty acres of good land, all im- 
proved with fair buildings. He has remodeled 
the house and now has a large residence of 
eleven rooms, well painted and tastefully fur- 
nished. He has built granaries, bams, .sheds 
and fences and indeed has one of the liest farms 
in the township. He has siu'-e added to the 
i:)roperty until he now has four hundred and 
eighty acres of valuable and productive land in 
this county. Mr. ^^'imer now buys consider- 
able corn and is extensively engaged in feed- 
ing cattle and hogs. He also has a nice peach 
and plum orchard upon hi.*? place, and in fact, 
all of the modern equipments and accessories of 
a model farm are found here. He has added 
two hundred and fort\' acres in Monroe town- 
ship, also owns one hundred and sixty acres in 
Oklahoma. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. W'imer ha\e been born 
eight children, of whom six are living: A. 
Roberta, who is ])raclicing osteopathy at Seat- 
tle, W'a.shington, taught school for a number 
of years. She attended school at Shenandoah, 
at Chicago and at Des Moines, Iowa, and is a 
graduate of the College of Osteopathy at Des 
Moines. .\vis I-", is married and resides in Hast- 
ings, Nebraska. Perry C, who married Jessie 
Holton and lives upon one of his father's farms, 
is a graduate of two undertaking schools, but 
prefers to give his attention to agricultural 
pursuits rather than to the undertaking busi- 
ness. B. J. married Jennie Roovart and lives 
upon a part of his father's farm. Louva M. 
was married January 31, 1906, to Leonard 



5i6 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Roovart and they reside upon a farm near 
Lacey, Iowa. Hoyt S. is attending school in 
New Sharon. The last named is his father's 
main standby in the farm work. He has a bank 
account of his own, does business on his own 
accord and also for his father. He attends 
sales and his bid is recognized the same as that 
of a grown man, although he is only sixteen 
years of age. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Wimer were 
born two children, who died in infancy. 

Mr. Wimer and his family were formerly 
identified with the Society of Friends but now 
attend the Methodist Episcopal church. He has 
always been a republican but has never held 
office. He and his wife have worked very earn- 
estly and indefatigably in order to attain the 
success which they now enjoy. Mrs. Wimer 
has raised chickens and through their sale and 
that of the eggs she has secured a goodly siun 
of money, her books showing that she has taken 
in more than thirty-nine hundred dollars in this 
way. During all of their married life they have 
never contracted but one store debt and that to 
the amount of only ten dollars. This is cer- 
tainly a creditable record. They are pleas- 
ant, genial people, who have given their chil- 
dren good educational advantages and provided 
them also with musical training. Mr. Wimer 
is a strictly temperate man, who has never used 
tobacco nor liquor in any form and his life rec- 
ord displays many sterling traits of character, 
including honesty and industry — qualities that 
in every land and clime cominand respect and 
good will. 



A. BROWNELLER. 



The farming interests of Mahaska county 
find a worthy representative in A. Browneller, 
■who, living on section 6, Spring Creek town- 
ship, is actively and successfully carrying on 
general agricultural pursuits. He owns and op- 



erates a neat and well improved farm of one 
hundred and ten acres situated only two and a 
half miles from Oskaloosa, so that the advan- 
tages of city life are easily attainable, while 
those of country life are constantly enjoyed by 
the family. His residence in the state covers 
the period from 1882 to the present time. 

Mr. Browneller was born in Fayette county, 
Pennsylvania, on the 24th of October, 1847. 
His father, Samuel Browneller, was born in 
Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, in 181 5, while 
the grandfather, Frederick Browneller, was a 
native of Germany and became an early resident 
of the Keystone state. Samuel Browneller was 
reared to manhood in Lancaster and Fayette 
counties, Pennsylvania, and in the latter was 
married to Sarah Slaughterbach, whose birth 
occurred in Lancaster county. Mr. Browneller 
followed farming in Fayette county and there 
reared his family, continuing his residence there 
up to the time of his death, which occurred 
about 1896. His wife passed away in 1895. 

A. Browneller of this review was the young- 
est of the family of five sons and three daugh- 
ters, all of whom reached adult age with the 
exception of the eldest son, who died at tlie age 
of five years. The others are all yet living. Mr. 
Browneller of this review remained a resident 
of Pennsylvania through the period of his boy- 
hood and youth, spending his days upon his fa- 
ther's farm and attending the public schools. 
When a young man he went to Ohio, where he 
worked at the carpenter's trade. Subsequently 
he made his way westward to Kansas, settling 
in Topeka, where he worked for six years for 
the Santa Fe Railroad Company, being em- 
ployed in the shops for two years and upon the 
road for four years, making his home through- 
out that entire time in Topeka. 

Mr. Browneller was married in that city in 
Novemljer, 1880, to Miss Emma Arthur, who 
was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, and there 
spent her girlhood, while in the public schools 
she was educated. She is the onlv child of 




A. BROWNELLKR. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



519 



l-rederick and Edith ( Murphy) Arthur, the 
fdriiicr a native of Maryland and tlie latter of 
Kentuck}-, but were married in Indiana. The 
father, who was a stock dealer, died at the age 
of forty-five years, and the mother passed away 
at the aofe of thirty-five. For two years after 
their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Browneller re- 
sided in Topeka. and came to Iowa, settling in 
Mahaska county, where Mr. Browneller pur- 
chased a farm. Taking up his abode thereon 
he began to cultivate and improve the place 
and the exidences of his earnest and indefati- 
gable labor are .seen in the various improve- 
ments that he has placed uixin his property. He 
has erected a good residence, supplied with all 
modern ecjuipments, including furnace heat and 
telephone. He has als<i built a basement barn, 
has fenced the land, drained it by tiling and al- 
together has developed a valuable farm which 
is well equipped in every department and pre- 
sents a neat and attractive appearance. In ad- 
dition to the cultivation of the cereals best 
adapted to soil and climate he also raises high 
grades of cattle, hogs and horses, and both 
branches of his business are returning to him a 
good income. 

Mr. Browneller cast his first presidential bal- 
lot in 1S6S for U. S. Grant and has supported 
each nominee at the head of the republican 
ticket since that time, but has lieen without 
aspiration for office for himself, preferring to 
give his time and energies to his business af- 
fairs. In addition to his fanning interests he 
is a stockholder in the Farmers National Bank 
of Oskaloosa. and he has prospered in his work 
as the years have gone by, owing to his judi- 
cious management, practical methods and untir- 
ing enterprise. 

Mr. and Mrs. Browneller have become the 
parents of four children : Harry Arthur, who 
is a business man of Oskaloosa, being a partner 
in one of the leading shoe stores of the city; 
Clyde O.. Wilbur Earl and Eva May, all at 
home. The members of the household are highly 
24 



esteemed in the communitv and enjoy the hos- 
pitality of many of the best homes in this part 
of the count}'. Mr. Browneller is widely recog- 
nized as one of the most active and progressive 
farmers of Spring Creek township and a good 
business man, well known in Oskaloosa and 
respected wherever known. 



JAMES FISHER, 



James Fisher, who has a good farm on sec- 
tion ^2. Prairie township, was Ixirn in Henrj 
county. Iowa, near Salem, on the 17th of No- 
vember. 1844. His father, Thomas Fisher, was 
bom in Ohio, July 15, 1819, and when a young 
man came to Iowa, settling in Henry county. 
There he was married on the 19th of October, 
1843. to Miss Maiy Jones, who was bom in 
Ohio, June 10, 18 17, and was a daughter of 
Isaac Jones, who removed with ox teams from 
Ohio to Iowa about 1840 and took up govern- 
ment land in Henry county, after which he 
spent his remaining days upon a farm, which 
he there developecll and improved. Thomas 
Fisher had purchased eighty acres of land in 
Henry county and made his home thereon until 
1854. when he became one of the pioneer resi- 
dents of Mahaska county, purchasing eighty 
acres of land near Oskaloosa. He built the first 
house upon the fann and otherwise improved 
the projjcrty. In 1859 he came to Prairie 
tounshi]) and purchased eighty acres which ad- 
joins on the north the farm upon which his 
son James now resides. Upon that place he 
built a log cabin and later a second house and 
there he lived until called to his final rest, his 
widow continuing to make her home there un- 
til her death. He passed away January ij, 
1863. while Mrs. Fisher survived until March 
12. 1899. They were the parents of si.x chil- 
dren, of whom Jaiues is tlie eldest. The others 
are: Rachel who was torn July i, 1847, ^nd 



520 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



became the wife of J. N. Gaston, now living in 
Boone county, Iowa; Thomas, who was born 
March i6, 1854, and married Viola Godby, 
their li(_ime being- now in Oklahoma; Elizabeth, 
who was born February 22, 1857. and is the 
wife of Milton Mitchell, both living in Burling- 
ton, Iowa ; Phoebe Jane, the wife of Carmen 
Godbey, of Oklahoma; and Abigail, who died 
at the age of six years. 

James Fisher remained with his parents un- 
til twenty-two years of age and pursued his 
education in an old log schoolhouse seated with 
slab seats and benches. His first purchase of 
land comprised forty acres, whereon he now 
resides. The place was fenced and the land 
broken, but there were no buildings upon it. He 
paid twelve and a half dollars per acre for the 
property and with characteristic energy he be- 
gan its improvement. Before his marriage he 
built thereon a house, hauling the lumber from 
Eddyville. On the 15th of September, 1867, in 
Granville, Iowa, he wedded Naomi Beal, who 
was bom December 23, 1844, and is a daugh- 
ter of Hiram Beal, a sketch of whom is given 
in connection with the histoi-y of H. A. Beal on 
another page of this work. The young couple 
drove across the prairie in a two-horse wagon 
to the place where the wedding ceremony was 
performed and then came to the new home 
which ;\Ir. Fisher had prepared. Here he cour- 
ageously began work. He enjoyed good health 
and is fortunate in that he has never had to 
pay a doctor's bill. His earnest and persistent 
labor enabled him to add to his possessions from 
time to time. He purchased two different tracts 
of land of forty acres at thirty dollars per 
acre and thirty-two acres at twenty-nine dol- 
lars per acre, also eighty acres at twenty dol- 
lars. He has likewise helped his son pay 
for forty acres. Mr. Fisher's landed posses- 
sions now comprise one hundred and fifty-six 
acres, upon which there is no indebtedness. His 
nearest cash market in the early days was Ot- 
tumwa, Iowa, and he drove hogs to Burlington, 



which he sold for a dollar and a half per hun- 
dred. In those days he never wore an over- 
coat and overshoes were unknown. A lamp was 
made by placing a rag in a saucer of grease 
and later tallow candles were used. The pio- 
neers raised flax and spun their own yarn. 
Mr. F"isher's mother would weave cloth and 
make all the clothes and also knit the socks for 
the family. As the years have passed Mr. 
Fisher has kept in touch with the general prog- 
ress along lines of agricultural development 
and has his farm now all tiled and in good 
shape. The house, though small, is well built and 
well painted. There is a good bam, windmill, 
sheds and outbuildings, a bearing" orchard and 
fine shade trees. The place is divided into 
fields of convenient size by well kept fences and 
even-thing upon the place is indicative of the 
skill and labor of the owner. In connection with 
the production of cereals Mr. Fisher is ex- 
tensively engaged in the raising of hogs and his 
sales have annually amounted to one thousand 
dollars for a number of years. He also raises 
good Norman horses and his stock conimands 
the highest market prices. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Fisher have been born 
five children, of whom four are living. Alice 
is the wife of Milton Spain, of this county, 
and unto them have been born four children. 
Albert married Bertha Shoemaker and with 
their three children they reside upon a farm of 
their own south of New Sharon. Efifie is the 
wife of Frank Pippin, now living upon her 
father's farm. Lillie is the wife of L. H. 
Faulkner, a resident of Union township. Lucy 
Ann died at the age of twenty-two months. 

In his political views Mr. Fisher has al- 
ways been an earnest republican, casting his 
first presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln in 
1864. He has held some school offices, but has 
never sought nor desired positions of political 
preferment. At the time of the mother's death 
the heirs chose James Fisher to settle up the es- 
tate, and he had the farm appraised and sold and 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



521 



the proceeds were divided to the satisfaction 
of all without the help or cost of an attorney. 
Both Mr. and Mrs. Fisher are faithful and de- 
voted members of the Society of Friends. There 
was formerly a church in the neigborhood, 
but it has ceased to exist and they now occa- 
sionally attend services at New Sharon. Both 
Mr. and Mrs. Fisher are social, genial people, 
whose home is attractive by reason of its cor- 
dial and warm-hearted hospitality. His worth 
is widely asknowledged and his work has been 
the strong element in his success, for he has 
placed his dependence upon untiring labor and 
unfaltering industry and thereby he has become 
one of the substantial agriculturists of the 
commumtv. 



JOHN P. WILKINSON. 

John I'. Wilkinson, who has brought his 
farm on section i. Union township, up to a 
high state of culti\ation, was born in Greene 
county, Ohio, December 3, 1S33, his parents 
being Abel and Sarah (Sharfif) Wilkinson, the 
former a nati\-e of Alaryland and the latter of 
Virginia. The father was a farmer by occupa- 
tion and owned and improved a farm in Ohio. 
In 1836 he came with his family to Iowa, set- 
tling in Union township, iMahaska county, 
where he secured three hundred and forty acres 
of land, which was nearly all wild and unculti- 
vated. There was a little log house on the place 
in which the family lived for a few years in 
true pioneer style, after which Mr. W'ilkinson 
erected a more modern and commodious frame 
residence. He continued to make his home 
upon this form until his death, which occurred 
when he was seventy-four years of age. while 
his wife passed away at the age of seventy. 
He was a busy, energetic man. whose labors 
resulted in the acquirement of a comfortable 
property. Both he and his wife were faithful 



members of the Christian church and his politi- 
cal support was given to the whig party until 
its dissolution, when he joined the ranks of the 
republican party but he never aspired to nor 
held any office. He belonged to that class of 
men w ho are well fitted for pioneer life, having 
the courage and detennination to face its dan- 
gers, privations and hardships and to bring the 
new country under subjection for the purposes 
of civilization. In the family were seven chil- 
dren but only three are now living, the sisters 
being Sarah, the wife of Ezekiel Wheeler, who 
is residing in Oklahoma, and Elizabeth, wdio 
became the wife of W'illiam Fagan and is now 
a widow living in Oklahoma. 

John P. Wilkinson was reared under the 
parental roof, remaining at home until twenty- 
four years of age. He was married on the 17th 
of September, 1857, to Miss Cynthia W^atkins, 
who was born in Greene county, Ohio, July 15, 
1840, a daughter of Reece and June (Elliott) 
Watkins. both of whom were natives of Vir- 
ginia. They came to Iowa in 1850 and lived 
upon a farm near Oskaloosa for many years, 
their last days being spent in Mahaska county. 
In their family were nine children but Mrs. 
\\ ilkinson is the only one now living. 

After his marriage Mr. W'ilkinson operated 
his father's farm for three years and then pur- 
chased seventy acres where he now resides. 
It was raw and uncultivated, being covered 
with brush and timber. He built the first dwell- 
ing — a frame house, wdiich is still standing and 
is now used for a granary. Later he erected 
his present residence, which is a neat home. 
The buildings are all well painted and every- 
thing about the place indicates his careful su- 
pervision and progressive methods. He now 
owns one hundred acres of land, all of which 
is under cultivation and his property is valu- 
able, owing to the care and labor which he 
has bestowed upon it. For many years he har- 
vested good crops and thus gathered the reward 
of his earnest labor but he is now no longer able 



522 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



to do any work and rents his land. His ill 
health was occasioned largely by his army 
service. In 1862 he enlisted as a member of 
Company B, Fortieth Iowa Volunteer In- 
fantry, with which he served as a private for 
three years. He took part in the siege of 
Vicksburg and on the expiration of his term 
of enlistment was mustered out at Fort Gibson 
in the Indian Territory. His wife was left at 
hiMue with two little children. The hard time 
she had taking care of her children and man- 
aging the farm, together with the anxiety over 
her husband, will never be forgotten. 

Three children have been born unto Mr. and 
Mrs. Wilkinson, of whom two are living, Clin- 
ton Luther and Blanche. The former is mar- 
ried, has six children and resides on a farm in 
Keokuk county, Iowa. Blanche is the wife of 
jdhn (nirsucb, a resident of Poweshiek county, 
Iowa. William A., who was the second of the 
family, was born in i860 and died at the age of 
thirt}--three years. Mr. Wilkinson has always 
been a republican but has had no aspiration 
for office. For many years his time and atten- 
tion were given in undivided manner to his 
general farming interests but his health has be- 
come so impaired that he leaves the active work 
of the farm to others. He now receives a pen- 
sion of thirty dollars per month, which he justly 
merits, for he made a great sacrifice for his 
ciiuntrv. 



JACOB T. TIMBREL. 

Jaci>b T. Timbrel owns and occupies a valu- 
able farm in Richland township, his landed pos- 
sessions comprising four hundred and ninety- 
seven acres and he is a representative of the 
class of self-made men who owe their success 
entirely to their own well directed efforts. He 
was born in Mercer county, Ohio. March 16, 
1844, his parents being Lot and Amy (Grant) 



Timbrel, both of whom were natives of But- 
ler county, Ohio, the father born September 
25. 1815, and the mother in 1821. They were 
married in that county and removed to Mercer 
county, where they lived upon a fann until 
1853, when Mr. Timbrel sold his property 
there and removed to Mahaska county, Iowa. 
Here he purchased eighty acres of gox-ernment 
land in Richland township and built thereon a 
log cabin, while subsequently he erected a frame 
residence which he occupied until 1886. He 
then removed to Adams county and purchased 
a little place which he occupied until his death. 
In 1863 he was called upon to mourn the loss 
of his first wife, who died in Richland township 
on the 5th of February, of that year. He after- 
ward wedded her sister, Mrs. Rebecca Ellis, 
and when she, too, had passed away he married 
Sarah Lyons, also now deceased. His death 
occurred in Adams county, Iowa, June 4, i8gi. 

Jacolj T. Timbrel was the second in order of 
birth in tiie family of ten children: C. A., who 
married Margaret Evans and is living in Prai- 
rie township: Jacob T. ; Jasper N., who wedded 
Margaret Shelly and resides at Blackwell, Ok- 
lahoma : Margaret, who become the wife of 
Amos Evans, who purchased her father's old 
homestead in Richland township, upon which 
the wife died a few years ago: J. \\'., who mar- 
ried Laura Boyd and is living in Knmvlton, 
Ringgold county, Iowa : Jonathan, who married 
Sadie Graham and made his home in Richland 
township until his death; Melinda, the wife of 
Lewis Shroyer, living in California; Melissa, 
who died at the age of five years; and twins, 
who died in infancy. 

Jacob T. Timbrel was a youth of nine years 
when he accompanied his parents to Iowa and 
his education was accpiired in the district 
schools of this state and of Ohio. He lived at 
home, working upon his father's farm until af- 
ter the outbreak of the Civil war, when he en- 
listed on the i8th of October, 1861, at Oska- 
loosa as a member of Company C, Fifteenth. 




-MR. A.\l) AIRS. (. T. TIAIl'.REL. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



s-:> 



Ii,\va lnfantr\'. 'Hie regiiiieiU rendezvoused 
at Keokuk, and four mondis later went south. 
Mr. Timbrel participated in some of the most 
lii.tlv contested engagements of tlie war, in- 
ckiding the sanguinary battles of Pittsburg 
Landing. Shiloh and Corinth, the siege of 
A'icksburg, Kenesaw Mountain and the siege 
of Atlanta. He was shot in the thigh at Shi- 
loh and for some time was in the hospital and 
at -Atlanta he was again wounded, this time in 
tile arm. He was then sent liome on a furlough 
and while at home his regiment was mustered 
out January ii. 1865. by reason of the expira- 
tion of the term of service. Mv. Timbrel was 
not yet eighteen years of age at that time, yet 
there was no more brave or loval soldier than 
this boy. who, true at all times to his duty, was 
often found in the thickest of the fight. He 
now receives a pension of twelve dollars per 
month in recognition of the aid which he ren- 
dered his country. 

After his return from the annv Mr. Timbrel 
began farming, working some of his father's 
land and also renting some which he operated 
for himself. The first land which he e\-er owned 
was a tract of forty acres given him b\- his fa- 
ther. It was wild and U]iim])ro\ed but he fenced 
and broke it and erected a dwelling therecju. In 
1868 he bought eighty acres of land in Prairie 
township, upon which he built a house and 
barns, making his hfnne there continuously un- 
til 1890 and bringing the fields under a lii.gh 
state of cultivation, in 1889 he was elected 
sherift" of Mahaska county on the democratic 
ticket, and during bis two year-' service in that 
office resided in Oskaloosa. Upon his retire- 
ment from the position in 1892 he purchased 
the farm u])on which he now resides, at that 
time comprising two hundred and ninety acres 
anil known as the Baldwin farm. There was a 
good house and barn and other buildings upon 
the place, but the fences were in a state of dilapi- 
dation. These Mr. Timbrel rebuilt and has 
continued the work of improvement until he 



has a splendid property. He has also extended 
the boundaries of his place until he now owns 
four hundred and ninety-seven acres of good 
land and he has also assisted his sons in pur- 
chasing property. 

On the 23d of February, i86q, Mr. Timbrel 
was married to Miss Jemima Spain, who was 
born in Union county, Ohio, March 15, 1845. 
Her father. Isaiah Spain, was born in Ohio, 
May 7, 182 1, and died in Prairie township. Ma- 
haska county, December 24, 1866. Her 
mother was Mary .\nn Miller, who was liorn 
.\pril 2',. 1827, and died in Prairie township, 
this county, August 18, 1892. .\fter the death 
of Mr. S]>ain she became the wife of Lyman 
Johnson and following his demise married Cal- 
\m Se.xton. It was in 1854 that Mr. and Mrs. 
Spain came to Mahaska county, making their 
home on a farm in Prairie townsFiip. They 
had five children, namely : Mrs. Timbrel ; 
Emil\- C, who is the wife of Charles Fleming 
and is living in this township: one who died 
in infancy: Pearl J., of Prairie townshi]j. who 
married Emma Burkett and afterward wedded 
Eva Littleman: and Milton X., who is living 
ill Adams township. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Tim- 
brel lia\e been born three children, but they lost 
their first born, .\lma Riilis, who died at the 
age of two years. J. X. Timbrel, who was 
educated in Penn L^niversity, at Oskaloosa, 
married Cora Scott. He served for two years 
as sherifif of die county as the successor of his 
father, owns a good farm in Richland town- 
sbi]i and is a member of the Lost Creek Coal 
Company, of which he has been superintendent 
for the past eight years. The younger son, .\. 
P. Timljiei. wedded I-ouise Stanley and owns 
and operates a good farm in Richland township. 
They have one child. Floyd. 

Jacob T. Timbrel has followed in his father's 
political footsteps and has always been a stanch 
democrat. In addition to the office of sheriff 
he has filled several minor positions. He was as- 
sessor of Prairie township for six years, has 



;26 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



been township trustee and school director and 
has frecjuently been a delegate to party conven- 
tions. Although his party is in the minority 
he has always received good support when a 
candidate for office. He is a good neighbor, a 
social, hospitable man and well informed. The 
home which he occupies was built many years 
ago and is a large old-fashioned roomy resi- 
dence. There are fair buildings upon his place 
and in connection with the tilling of the soil 
he feeds two or three carloads of cattle each 
year. The farm work is largely done by a hired 
man, who with his family lives in a tenant house 
upon the farm. ^Ir. Timbrel is familiar with 
the history of the county from pioneer times 
down to the present and can relate many in- 
teresting incidents of the early days. 



ISAAC KALBACH. 



Among the names which are most familiar in 
Alahaska county and in this part of Iowa, is 
that of Isaac Kalbach. It is a name that is 
always kindly and respectfully spoken because 
of what it has always stood for. 

Mr. Kalbach was bom in ^\'omelsdorfif, 
Berks county, Pennsylvania, November 13, 
1822, eighty-fi\'e miles west of the city of Phila- 
delphia. The ancestors of both his father and 
mother came to America before the Revolution- 
ary war and all who were then living partici- 
pated actively in that heroic struggle. He 
was the fifth child bom into the family of nine 
children, five brothers and four sisters. W^hen 
Mr. Kalbach was eleven years of age his father 
died and left the care of the young family to the 
mother. With great singleness of purpose she 
quietly assumed the double responsibility that 
came to her by the death of her husband, and 
raised all of her children to usefulness and re- 
spectability, living to the good old age of 
eighty-four years. A widowed mother with su- 



preme devotion to the welfare of her family 
will carve deep channels in the life of her chil- 
dren. Some of the best men this nation has 
e\er produced were sons of widowed mothers. 
^Ir. Kalbach contributed by his labor to the 
support of the family until he was twenty-one 
years of age. having in the meantime served an 
apprenticeship of three years in learning the 
cabinet-maker's trade. 

On November 3, 1843, INIr. Kalbach was 
united in marriage to Miss Christine Kock. who 
was his faithful companion for fifty-three 
years Unto them were born nine children, all 
of whom reached manhood and womanhood. 
Of the children John A., Sarah and Z. Taylor 
were born at Port Carbon. Pennsylvania, and 
accompanied their parents to Iowa. Emma R., 
Clara F., ^1. Alice. \\'illiam H., George and 
Nellie ^l. were born at Oskaloosa. 

On April i, 1849, Air. and Mrs. Kalbach 
bade adieu to the home of their childhood to 
join the great caravan that was moving west- 
ward that }'ear. The discovery of gold in Cali- 
fomia the previous year had aroused the entire 
nation and a sweeping tide of emigration set 
in for the Pacific coast and the west. Mr. Kal- 
bach and his company had only in mind locat- 
ing somewhere in the western states to engage 
in its growing enterprises. They left their 
home at Port Carbon, Schuylkill county, Penn- 
sylvania, and went to Reading by rail, thence 
b}' stage fourteen miles to \\^omelsdorf, the 
place of his birth, then to Harrisburg, Johns- 
town and on to Pittsburg by canal. The reader 
will notice that this route leads over the Alle- 
ghany mountains. Mr. Kalbach states the 
strange fact that he crossed this rugged range 
of mountains on a canal boat. The boat carry- 
ing the emigrants and their eflfects was built in 
five sections, and when they came to the foot of 
the mountains at Holidaysburg, each of the five 
sections of the boat was placed on car trucks 
and coupled together, making a train of cars. 
Stationary engines along the mountain railway 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASICA COUNTY. 



327 



furnislied the power, and by following slopes 
and inclines to the summit of the iliountains, 
then along the level ridge for eight or ten miles, 
the descent on the western slope was cautiously 
made to Johnstown, where the imi)ro\'ised train 
was transformed from a mountain climber into 
a modest canal boat, cheerfully submitting to 
the tow-path gait. 

. At Pittsl)urg the party re-shi]iped their 
goods and were towed down the Ohio river to 
Beaver, Pennsylvania, then across the state of 
Ohio to where the'city of Cleveland is now lo- 
cated. It was then a mere lake port with a few 
stores and a modest population. From Cleve- 
land the company lioarded a steamer and made 
the circuit of the lakes by way of Mackinac 
strait to Chicago. 

Mv. Kalbach has a distinct memory of many 
interesting- experiences and occurences in that 
earlier day. He was offered a house and two 
lots in what is now almost the heart of the city 
of Chicago for eight hundred dollars, on ten 
years' time at ten per cent interest. Ducks 
were hunted in the marshes near where the 
splendid Rock Island depot now stands. 

At the crossing of Lake and Clark streets a 
fence rail was stuck deep into the mud with a 
board tacked across the top with this ominous 
warning: "Xo Bottom Here." In that year the 
longest stretch of railroad track leaving the city 
was eighteen miles. After a week's sojourn in 
Chicago the party of thirteen persons secured a 
four-horse team to make a toiu^ of several hun- 
dred miles down thnmgh Illinois as far as Car- 
lisle, Indiana. Camping as they went and liv- 
ing on provisions that could be purchased along 
the way and whatexer wild game they were 
able to secure, they passed through Kankakee 
and on southward. .\t Dan\ille, Illinois, they 
practically ran out of provisions and sought to 
replenish their supply. The generous village 
store-keeper sold them all he had — one and 
one-half pounds of crackers and two mackerel. 
This scanty fare for fourteen persons, including 



the driver, began to be no joke, especially when 
there was before them for many miles nothing 
but broad, unsettled prairies. There was, how- 
ever, a mill near the village and the road miller 
shared with them his entire stock, a scanty sup- 
ply of "shorts." There was no need of anti- 
breakfast clubs in that party. Mr. Kalbach says 
it was delegated In him from the beginning of 
the journey to purchase the supply of eatables 
for the company. So, earl}' the next morning, 
he took his rifle and. breakfastless and afoot, 
preceded the home-seekers, determined in 
some way to secure something to appease the 
appetites of the hungry party. 

Pressing every trail and listening to every 
sound for wild game, he kept on his course 
throughout the day. without a lucky shot. 
.\b.out four o'clock in the afternoon he came to 
a cabin on the prairie, the only habitation he 
had met with all day. The household consisted 
of husband, wife and daughter. He called at 
the cabin door and asked if he could purchase 
something for himself and his companions. 
The lady of the house told him she had noth- 
ing to eat in the house at that time, but con- 
fidently expected the return of her husband 
from the mill with a supply of corn meal in an 
hour or two and when he came she could sup- 
ply their present wants. After resting a short 
time Mr. Kalbach noticed a strip of brush a 
quarter of a mile or so distant and determined 
to go over, in the hope of finding something to 
satisfy his hunger, while his company should 
have time to come up. He was fortunate 
enough to shoot a blackbird, which he dressed 
and roasted and had a feast all to himself. Re- 
turning to the cabin, he found his companions 
had arrived as well as the expected husband 
with the sack of meal, and the good housewife 
was vigorously stirring the mush pot for a 
bounteous supper. She was a Scotch lady, so- 
cial, pleasant and kind, but fearless and positive 
in character, and her heart went out for the 
eight small children in the company of travelers 



528 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



who had not tasted food for so many hours. 
To the cliagrin of her older guests, tiie decisive 
lady would not allow a single one of them to 
have a morsel to eat until the children had eaten 
all they wanted. She was not selfish in her wil- 
derness home, but humble as it was. her home 
must be ruled by her own ideas of fitness and 
propriety. 

The next morning the good lady fitted out 
the party with corn bread for the day. and they 
\\ent on their journey southwest as far as Car- 
lisle. Indiana. A short stay convinced the en- 
tire party that Carlisle was not the place they 
^.vanted to stop and they retraced their steps to 
Terre Haute. Indiana, where they dismissed 
their conveyance and driver and spent the win- 
ter. Mr. Kalbach found his services in ready 
demand as an undertaker. He says it seemed 
to him that the community was kept quite busy 
caring for the sick and burying their dead. Be- 
fore the swamps and marshes of Indiana were 
drained there was dreadful suffering from 
fever, ague, milk sickness and kindred diseases. 
Sometimes an entire village would be depopu- 
lated Ijy the scourge. Mr. Kalbach relates that 
on their tour of inspection through Indiana 
they traveled one day late into the night in or- 
der to reach a quite well known town liy the 
name of Caledonia. \\'hen they reached the 
place they found it utterly forsaken. Not a 
person was to be found. The party chanced to 
be out of matches and had to go some distance 
to a farm house to secure fire for a camp. 

While at Terre Haute a wealthy Frenchman, 
w ho was traveling through the country, fell a 
victim to cholera and the case fell into ^Ir. Kal- 
bach's hands for handling. The body was 
buried and late in the fall disinterred and pre- 
pared in ])roper casements for shii)ment to the 
east. A stage coach carried it to Cincinnati, 
and thence by river and canal to its destination. 

In the spring of 1850 Mr. and Mrs. Kalbach 
and their company visited a number of cities 
and towns in Illinois, working westward until 



they came to Nauvoo. Illinois. It was that year 
that the last detachment of Mormons left Nau- 
voo for their far western home and the town 
was almost depopulated. The landlady of the 
principal hotel of the place was the former 
widow of Joe Smith, who had been killed some 
years before but who in his lifetime was the 
head of the Monnon church. A deep shadow 
had fallen over the party of home-seekers. One 
of their number had died of cholera down the 
river and Mr. Kalbach had preceded the com- 
pany some days to Nauvoo to arrange for the 
burial. Death from cholera was quite frequent 
in many places in the west and if the cause of 
this death should become known they were lia- 
ble to be quarantined for days. 

For a time Mr. Kalbach was somewhat per- 
plexed to know just what course to pursue. 
He finally concluded to follow the principle that 
has governed all his life, namely : To go to the 
parties most interested and represent things 
just as they were. This he did to the landlady 
of the hotel where he was stopping. She was 
the owner of most of the vacant property in the 
town, and she quietly handed him a key to one 
of these comfortable homes, saying. "Go to 
that house and take full possession and make 
read}- for your company when it shall arrive 
Go about the burial ([uietlv and in that way no 
one will become excited or be exposed." Fif- 
teen years afterward Mr. Kalbach ate dinner at 
that hotel and was pleased to be recognized by 
the same landlady who was yet in charge. 

From Nauvoo the company went to Mus- 
catine, Iowa, and stopped for the winter. Mr. 
Kalbach worked at his trade until December. 
1850. when he went on foot in company with 
others to Fort Dodge, Iowa, to work on the 
g-overnment fort, then in process of construc- 
tion at that place. On his way he passed 
through Oskaloo.sa. Hundreds of the early 
settlers availed themselves of a good winter's 
job at good pay. Each workman got two and 
a half dollars per day and one and one-half 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



529 



rations fmm tlie time he left home. Twenty- 
miles i)er (lay was counted a day's travel. The 
o-ovemment spent one or more lumdred thou- 
sand dollars on the proposed fort, all of which 
was afterward abandoned as unnecessary for 
I he ])rotection of the rapidly growing young 
state. In the spring of 185 1 Mr. Kalhach took 
a boat down the Des Moines river to where it 
empties into the Mississippi, thence up that 
stream to his home at Muscatine. Here he at 
once made preparations to move to Oskaloosa, 
arriving here May 13, 185 1. That year has 
been known in Mahaska county history as the 
"flood year." It was a trying time for the early 
settlers. There were no bridges across the 
streams and but little hauling could be done. 
The Des Moines river was about the onh- 
means of transportation and crops were short 
everywhere. Mr. and Mrs. Kalbach had come 
to the end of their journeying and settled down 
to a hand to hand struggle for an independent 
li\ing and a competency for advanced years. 
Tlie\- did for the time being whatever their 
hands found to be done. Mr. Kalbach was Os- 
kaloosa's first city marshal for three successive 
\ears. acted for a time as street commissioner, 
was secretary of the city scIkwiI board when Os- 
l<aloo.sa built its first schoolhouse — the old Gos- 
])e1 Ridge schoolhouse. He has always contrib- 
uted generously of his time and means for the 
building up of the life of the city and the 
county. On June 13. 1864, he went into the 
lumber business, continuing in that business un- 
til advancing years compelled him to retire to a 
more f|uiet life. On October 30. 1897, Mrs. 
Kalbach passed to the scenes of another world. 
The chief delight of her life was in her home 
and her family, and her absence has been deeply 
felt. Her life was one of unceasing toil, from 
necessity, during early life, and, in later years, 
when the fanu'l\- had acipu'red a competency, 
the habit of constant activity had become too 
firmly fi.xed to be broken, and to the close of her 
life her greatest pleasure was found in provid- 



ing' comforts for her children. The raising of 
a family during the early days in Oskaloosa, 
when the necessities of life and the means of 
accjuiring them were equally hard to obtain, re- 
(|uired a thorotigh knowledge of all the 
branches of housewifery. 

Among the Pennsyhania Dutch the women 
were, and are to this day, skilled in all domestic 
duties, and this knowledge, acquired in the 
Pennsylvania village where she was raised, 
prol)ablv made ]\Irs. Kalbach's Ijurden lighter, 
but did not lessen the toil of providing for the 
large family of growing children. Home mar- 
kets could not be depended on for many of the 
necessities and money was scarce. l)ut the re- 
sourceful mother was skilled in many lines of 
housework which are now almost among the 
lost arts. In addition to the daily tasks of 
cooking and baking, came, each in its turn, the 
work of caring for the pork from the three or 
four hogs which were butchered each fall, the 
smoking of the hams and side-meat, the making 
of the tubs of sausage, the preparing of the 
"hogshead cheese," the cleaning and pickling 
of the pigs- feet, the rendering of the lard, the 
making of the soft soap from cracklings and 
ash Ive, the molding or dipping of the candles, 
the canning of tomatoes, the preserving of the 
small variety of wild and tame fruit, the drying 
of corn and apples, the preparing of "sauer 
kraut," the cutting up and sewing of carpet- 
rags, the dyeing of the carpet chain, the darn- 
ing, patching, mending and altering of the chil- 
dren's clothing (often remodeled to fit the 
younger children, after the older members of 
the family had outgrown them), in order that 
her boys and girls might appear respectably 
dresse<l — and all this was a part only of the 
ne\-er eufling task of the pioneer mother. 

riiough assisted bv her young family, who 
were all taught to work in some capacity, yet 
on her devolved the planning and the saving, 
that every cent of the small earnings of the 
husband might be used to the greatest advan- 



530 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



tage. She willingly assumed every duty that 
she might raise her family respectably and re- 
spected in the community, and no mother ever 
gave her whole life and energy to this work 
with more devotion. 

Air. Kalbach is much confined to his home, 
but is enjoying a cheerful old age with a clear 
mind and an unbroken interest in passing 
events. 



JOHN A. KALBACH. 



John A. Kalbach, born in Schuylkill county, 
Pennsylvania, September i, 1844, came to Os- 
kaloosa with his father in May, 185 1, and has 
resided here continuously since. His father 
started a lumber-yard in Oskaloosa, in June, 
1864. This was the first lumber-yard in Oska- 
loosa. John A. Kalbach became a partner with 
his father, January i, 1866, has been connected 
with the business then established ever since 
and in that respect is the oldest merchant in 
Oskaloosa. 

John A. Kalbach was a member of the city 
council in 1872 and 1873 and later a member 
of the board of county supervisors. He has in 
many ways identified himself with that which 
was intended to add to the growth and pros- 
perity of Oskaloosa. 

Mr. Kalbach was married at Chicago, Illi- 
nois, in June, 1873, to Louise Patterson. Their 
children are Warren ; Helen ; Annette, now 
Mrs. Valentine, of Centen-ille : and Tavlor P. 



GEORGE KALBACH. 

George Kalljach was Ixirn in Oskaloosa, June, 
30, i860, and is a brother of John A. Kalbach, 
a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this 
work, and is associated with him in the lumber 
business. His entire life has been passed in 



this city, and he is a graduate of the Oskaloosa 
high school, of the class of 1880. Throughout 
his business career he has been connected with 
the lumber trade in Oskaloosa. In 1890 he 
purchased the interest of his father, Isaac Kal- 
bach, and has since then been connected with 
the Kalbacli lumber firm. 



ROBERT L. FLEMING. 

Robert L. Fleming, who for many years was 
a respected and leading agriculturist of Ma- 
haska county, was born in Harrison county, 
West Virginia, September 3, 181 1, and died 
upon the home farm in Richland township, 
June 28, 1894. He started out in life on his 
own account when only thirteen years of age. 
lieing emploved as a farm hand !)y various farm- 
ers in the neighborhood in which his parents 
lived. He later ser\'ed a three years' appren- 
ticeship at the blacksmith's trade and in com- 
pensation for his services was given a suit of 
clothes and a sum of money. He then started 
west, intending to go to Indiana, which was re- 
garded as the "far west" in those days. On 
reaching ^Vood county, West Virginia, about 
eighty or one hundred miles from his home, he 
found a chance to teach school and, abandoning 
his idea of going to the Hoosier state, he there 
engaged in teaching and at the same time de- 
\-oted all of his leisure time to study, so that he 
greatly improved his own education. He Iie- 
came a well infonned man and throughout his 
entire life added to his knowledge through read- 
ing and in\-estigation. 

While in W'ood county, Mr. Fleming met and 
married Miss Amy Maddox, the wedding being 
celebrated June 6, 1833. She was born in \\^est 
Virginia. January i. 18 14, and died in Rich- 
land township, September 13, 1880. .\fter his 
marriage Mr. Fleming sold his shop and bought 
a little farm in the hills of West Virginia, 



PAST AXD PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



53 1 



where he resided until Mareh. 1852, wlien lie 
packed up his houseliold goods, wliich he loaded 
nil a boat at Parkersburg, West Virginia, to- 
gether with a horse and cow, and thus started 
tor Iowa. After ten da_vs spent upon the (_)hio 
and Mississippi rivers, his effects were unloaded 
at Keokuk, Iowa. He was accompaned by his 
wife and seven children. He had little ready 
niniic}'. but he possessed strong determination, 
willing hands and a stout heart and thus he be- 
g'an life in the west. He had written to ,Vmos 
liartlett, who had settled in Mahaska county, to 
meet them at Keokuk, and move them to Mahas- 
ka county, and Mr. Bartlettwith three teams, to- 
gether w illi a man liv the name of Raulles, who 
also possessed a team, went to Keokuk and in 
two days they traveled twelve miles over the 
old ]ilank road as far as Primrose, Iowa. There 
they halted and ]Mr. Fleming and his family 
moved into a log shantv, which had previously 
been used for a stable. They cleared it out and 
resided there for three weeks until they could 
secure a better house. The following Mav Mr. 
Fleming came on to Mahaska county to see Mr. 
Bartlett and try to get him to help move them 
again. Bartlett was busy putting in crops, so 
]\Ir. I'leming returned to Primrose, where he 
rented fifteen acres of land and planted com. 
In October of that year he gave his crop to a 
man to mo\-e him to Mahaska county. They 
reached Oskaloosa on the second day and just 
before dark crossed South Skunk river. That 
night they found the cabin of Jacob Bartlett, 
will 1111 tlie_\' had known in \'irgiiiia, and stayed 
with him for two weeks while lotiking over the 
ciiuntry. .Mr. Fleming found a place which bad 
been claimed li\- a man named Johnson and pur- 
chased this projierty, comprising two hun- 
dred and forty acres, for four hundred dollars. 
1 le went to Iowa City to have it entered and 
until Jnhnson ino\ed Mr. Fleming and bis fani- 
il\' li\ed in an oUl log schoolhouse. Ihe land 
was ])artially broken. There were few fences 
and a log cabin, in which the family li\ed until 



1857, when Mr. rdeming built a rock house 
which is still standing, Mr. Fleming making 
his home therein until his death. As he pros- 
pered in his undertakings he addcrl more land 
to his original ]jurchase and afterward divided 
this among his children. He was a self-made 
man in the truest and best sense of the term. 
He taught school for three terms after com- 
ing to this county, and as he possessed consider- 
able knowledge of surveying be followed that 
profession to some extent and did much toward 
bringing about changes in his township along 
lines of general improvement and progress. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Fleming were born thir- 
teen children, Init the first three died in West 
Virginia. Seven were brought by the parents 
to Iowa, and the remaining three were born in 
Mahaska county. The family record is as fol- 
lows : Leander J., born March 15, 1834, died 
October 9, 1840; Edward Randolph, born Oc- 
tober 27, 1835, died October 24, 1840; Rob- 
ert Luther, born December 26, 1837, died in 
Virginia; Martha V., born January 8, 1840, 
is the wife of J. R. Ryan, a minister residing in 
Nebraska: Charles, bom January 18, 1842, is 
living in this county; Orin, born December 17, 
1843, and now residing in Prairie township, 
married Elizabeth Evans, now deceased; Jus- 
tin, born ]\Iarch 13, 1846, wedded Man- E. 
Murdock and resides in Greenfield, Iowa: Aus- 
tin, born September 23, 1847, niarried Janette 
McCutcheon antl is living near Grinnell. Iowa; 
George, born August 6, 1849, is married and 
resides upon a part of the old home farm in 
Richland township; Fletcher, bom May 8, 1831, 
died October 17. 1852; Nancy, born August 4, 
1853, died February 2/. 1881 : R. C, born No- 
vember 2, 1857, is mentioned elsewhere in this 
work; .\my Cornelia, born November 2, 1857, 
is the wife of D. W. Richards, of Greenfield, 
Iowa. 

l-'or twenty-five years Robert L. Fleming 
was a preacher of the Methodist Episcopal 
faith, after which he became a believer in 



53^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Christian Union. He never had a regular 
charge, but promoted the interests of the gospel 
as a local preacher and until nearly eighty years 
of age conducted funeral serx'ices when called 
upon. In politics he was a democrat of the old 
school, and he often made political speeches. 
For twenty-eight years he acted as secretary 
of the district school board but advanced age 
tinally compelled him to abandon that task. He 
was a man of sound judgment, whose opinions 
were largely considered authoritati\e on matters 
which he discussed. He was an extensive reader 
and his books and records, many of which are 
very old, are now in the home of his son, R. 
C. Fleming. l"wo volumes of history of the 
Revolutionar}- war, published in 1779 and writ- 
ten in Quaker style, are very interesting me- 
mentoes of those early days. He also owned a 
pair of scales or old-fashioned balances which 
are still in possession of the family and which 
was presented to Captain Prunty. a grandfa- 
ther of our subject, by General George Wash- 
ington at the close of tiie Revolutionary war. 
]\Ir. Fleming stood as the supporter of all that 
is just, right and honorable in man's relations 
A\ith liis fellowmen. He li\ed to the advanced 
age I if more than eighty-two years, enjoying the 
full confidence and respect of all who knew 
liim and when he was called away the county 
mourned the loss of a worthy pioneer and valued 
citizen. 



THOMAS ^lONROE RIDPATH. 

Thomas Monroe Ridpath, now living in 
Prairie township, is numbered among the na- 
tive sons of Mahaska county, his birth having 
occurred in Richland township, October 8, 
1856. His father, Joseph Ridpath, a native of 
Indiana, is now living in Audubon count)', 
Iowa, and will be seventy-eight years of age on 
the 1st of September, 1906. His wife, who in 



maidenhood was Elizabeth Betsey Jarard, was 
born in Ohio and died in Prairie township, Ala- 
haska county, wdien her son Thomas was but 
nine years of age. She was a daughter of John 
Jarard, one of the early settlers of the county. 
Jdseph Ridpath came to Iowa when a young 
man and was preceded by an elder brother, who 
had taken up one hundred and si.xty acres of 
government land. After his marriage Joseph 
Ridpath purchased a half of his brother's farm 
and liuilt thereon a log cabin, in which his son 
Thomas was born. He made that place his 
home until after Thomas M. Ridpath had 
reached mature years and was married. After 
losing his first wife the father wedded Mrs. 
Petty and removed to Audubon countv. Iowa, 
where he is now living. 

Thomas Monroe Ridpath was the third in a 
family of four children, the others being : Hen- 
rietta, the wife of Gilford Petty, of Audubon 
county; Ollis, who died in childhood; and Al- 
Ijert, who married Emma Moore, of Barnes 
City, and is living in Whatcheer, Iowa. 

In the district schools of Prairie township 
Thomas M. Ridpath pursued his education and 
when about twenty years of age began working 
as a farm hand by the month, receiving twenty 
dollars per month, which was considered excel- 
lent wages for those days. After two years he 
rented a farm belonging to his cousin, Mrs. 
Reynolds, and cultivated that place for two 
years. He then married and came to the farm 
where he now lives, first purchasing forty 
acres of unimproved land. There were no 
buildings upon it, so he rented the farm ad- 
joining, upon whfch buildings had been erected. 
For his first forty he paid twent)--nine dollars 
per acre and be afterward bought the eighty 
acres which he had been renting for thirty dol- 
lars per acre. He then moved the house to its 
present location from the other side of the farm 
and has a comfortable home. There is also a 
good barn and other buildings upon the place 
and he has extended the boundaries of the farm 




T. Al. klDPATH. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



535 



until it iiuw comprises t\v(j hundred acres of 
ricli and productive land, in addition to which 
he owns one inindred and thirty acres in Powe- 
shiek county. He started out with a team and 
a few tools and has made all that he possesses 
through hard and unremitting labor. He has 
always been a stout, robust man, enjoying good 
healtli, as has his wife, and they have laljored 
earnesth- in order to gain their present desir- 
able property. Their sons are now large enough 
to do the work of the farm, so that Mr. Rid- 
path is to a considerable extent relieved from 
the strenuous work which claimed his atten- 
tion in earlier years. In 1904 and again in 
1905 the sons raised five thousand bushels of 
corn. But little stock is raised on the place, the 
grain being sold on the market. Mr. Ridpath 
built up his farm by putting it to clover and he 
sold two hundred ))ushels of clover seed in a 
single year. 

It was in 1879 that ^Ir. Ridpath was inarried 
to Miss Sarah M. Burkes, who was born in St. 
Clair county, Missouri, October 22, 1861, a 
daughter of William Burkes, who was born in 
Ohio, Alay 27,. 1828. and was married March 
6, 1853. to Nancy M. Eblen. whose birth oc- 
curred in Ohio and who is still living at Linn- 
ville, Iowa. Mr. Burkes removed to Missouri 
in 1S58. and in 1862 came to Alahaska county, 
living on a farm near Garden Hall in Prairie 
township for thirty-eight years. In 1900 he 
sold that property and took up his abode in 
Linnville, Iowa, where he died February 17, 
1904. He was spoken of by his neighbors as a 
"fine man," was kind and generous and earned 
and enjoyed the esteem of all who knew him. 
Although not a member of any church he was 
a firm belie\er in the Deity. In his family were 
eight children. John C, the eldest, now de- 
ceased, was educated at Keokuk and taught 
school for thirty terms in Mahaska county. He 
married Miss Mary Sheesley, of Richland 
township, and removed to .Xrizona, where he 
engaged in the practice of law and in the real- 



estate business and was also interested in silver 
mines in that part of the country. James M. 
Burkes married Ida Smith and is living in 
Linnville, Iowa. Fremont died in childhood. 
Mrs. Ridpath is the next of the family. Cyn- 
thia J. and Jacob both died in childhood. Oli- 
\er P. is living in New Mexico. Mary A. is 
living with her mother in Linnville. Unto Mr. 
and Mrs. Ridpath have been born nine children, 
of whom seven are living, as follows : Joseph 
F., who died at the age of four months and five 
days ; Clara B., an invalid now in Mount Pleas- 
ant, Iowa, for treatment; Lucy K., at home; 
William A., who died at the age of four 
months; James W., Mary R., John C, Rena 
Belle and Monroe Bryan, all of whom are at- 
tending school. 

In politics Mr. Ridpath always has been a 
stanch democrat and is a warm admirer of 
William Jennings Bryan. He has never sought 
office, preferring to devote his attention to his 
business interests and his indefatigable energy, 
frugality and earnest purpose have led to his 
success, making him the owner of a valuable 
farm property. He is thoroughly temperate, 
never using intoxicants in any form and his 
sons have followed in his footsteps in this re- 
gard. Such a record is certainly one of which 
he has every reason to be proud. 



ERXE.ST H. r.IBBS. 



Ernest H. (iibbs, deceased, capitalist of 0.s- 
kaloosa. was one of the prominent and repre- 
sentative men of Mahaska county. He was a 
native of Massachusetts, born in Blandford, 
February 10, 1848, and was the son of Israel 
M. and Cleotha V. (Fitch) Gibbs, the former 
also a native of Blandford, Massachusetts, but 
of English descent, tracing his connections to 
an old family in Yorkshire, England. His 



CiO^ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



grandfather Gibbs was a wealthy farmer, pos- 
sessing an estate of nearly one thousand acres 
adjacent to the city of Blandford. He was a 
buyer and shipper of stock, in which he was 
very successful, realizing a handsome fortune. 

The subject of this sketch was reared in his 
native town, where he attended the common 
schools until he was seventeen years old, and 
then entered upon a course of study at Wes- 
leyan Academy, Wilbraham, ^lassachusetts. 
From there he was sent by his father to Fair- 
field SeminaiT, at Little Falls. New York, but 
instead of remaining there he continued on his 
way west, practically running away, and going 
to Amboy, Illinois, where he had relatives. He 
prospected around for some time and then pur- 
chased at auction a piece of property near the 
city limits, which he sold at sufficient profit to 
give him a good start without any investment. 
He then entered the Exchange Bank of Amboy, 
with George Ryan, where he remained for two 
years, until August, 1868. From Amboy he 
went to Parkersbtu-g, Iowa, and in company 
with his brother, I. M. Gibbs, opened an Ex- 
change Bank and did a large collection business 
over a wide extent of territory. Thirteen 
months later he disposed of his interests there, 
came to Oskaloosa, and established the Union 
Savings Bank, in company wjth a cousin. Dr. 
H. L. Gibbs. and the brother with whom he had 
formerly been associated. They operated until 
1874, when the Doctor withdrew, the business 
being conducted under the firm name of Gibbs 
Brothers, in the building now occupied by Mr. 
Gibbs and the Farmers & Traders National 
Bank, which they erected that year for banking 
purposes. 

Three years later Mr. Gibbs organized the 
Farmers & Traders Bank but soon afterward 
withdrew that he might give his attention sole- 
ly to his private business. In 1882 Mr. Gibbs. 
in company with Judge Crookham and others, 
was instrumental in the organization of the 
Mahaska County Bank, and the Oskaloosa In- 



surance Company, the latter subsequently being 
transferred to Des Moines. 

Shortly after becoming a citizen of Oska- 
loosa, Mr. Gibbs was united in marriage, April 
I, 1 87 1, with Miss Martha J. White, a daugh- 
ter of John and Martha J. White. (See sketch 
of John White.) Of this union there was one 
son, who was born February 12, 1874, and died 
August II, 1876, and one daughter, Nellie 
(now ]\Irs. Guy Woodin), bom September 21, 
1877. 

After coming to Oskaloosa Mr. Gibbs led a 
very active life, and in everv' enterprise calcu- 
lated to build up or advance the interest of the 
place he was the leading spirit. Without dis- 
paragement to others, it can truthfully be said 
that in the matter of public and private build- 
ings, he has done more for Oskaloosa than any 
other citizen. The fine brick block now occu- 
pied by H. L. Spencer & Company, wholesale 
grocers, was erected by him; also the Times 
Block, which was destroyed by fire December 
22. 1886. At the time of its destruction ]Mr. 
Gibbs was in Chicago. On receiving a tele- 
gram giving an account of the fire, he hastened 
home and within two hours after his arrival 
had twenty men working at the ruins, and with- 
in sixty days had the building re-erected and 
ready for occupancy. Such enterprise is indeed 
commendable. In erecting- this building in the 
dead of winter, with the thermometer half the 
time below zero, he showed what could be done 
when there was a will back of it. In building 
at that season of the year, Mr. Gibbs gave em- 
ployment to many to whom the work was a 
Godsend, enabling them to provide more com- 
forts for their families than were usually en- 
joyed during the inclement season. 

In the building of the Rock Island and other 
railroads now entering Oskaloosa, Mr. Gibbs 
took an active part, devoting much of his time 
and more of his money to secure their construc- 
tion to this place. In the various banking and 
manufacturing' enterprises he has invested lib- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



537 



cniUy of his means and was a stockholder in the 
greater number. 

Alter the death of his father-in-law, John 
White, -Mr. Gibbs carried out the plan of the 
latter in issuing scholarships in Oskaloosa Col- 
lege, whicii were made eligible for such gifts 
under the college law. In this way he did great 



good. 



Politically Mr. Gibbs w'as a democrat, one 
who believed strongly in the principles of that 
jiarty and who was .ever ready to give a reason 
fur the faith that was in him. As a democrat, 
his council was sought by the leaders of the 
party in both county and state. He was mainly 
instrumental in establishing the Oskaloosa 
Times, the only democratic paper in the county, 
and for a short time was its editor. That he 
designed the paper should be a permanent fix- 
ture in Alahaska county politics, is evidenced 
from the naming of the block in which it was 
printed, the "Times Block." 

Though defeated in the state convention as 
a delegate to the national convention in 1880, 
it w-as on account of his well known adherence 
to Mr. Tilden. He was, however, elected an 
alternate. In 1884 he was chosen a delegate 
to the national democratic convention on ac- 
count of his devotion to Tilden. he being his 
claim until he retired from the field, wiien 
he was for Cleveland, recognizing that without 
New York his party could not succeed, and be- 
lieving that Cleveland could carry that state. 
Mr. Gibbs at one time served as a member of 
state central committees and chairman of con- 
gressional and county committees. 

Mr. Gibbs was quite extensively interested in 
real estate and mining, being- ])rominent during 
the time of Mahaska's greatest days in coal 
mining. He was, with W. A. Seevers, one of 
the organizers of the Oskaloosa Coal & Mining 
Company, which for years operated on an ex- 
tensive scale at Pieacon. and for fifteen years 
had an exceptionally valuable plant in that vi- 
cinity. Later he was one of the company to 



develop the valuable Hocking mines which he 
sold for more than one-half million dollars. In 
real estate Mr. Gibbs was perhaps more largely 
interested than any other Oskaloosan, having 
large interests both in the business and resi- 
dence sections of the town. 

As a gentleman who m;iterially aided in the 
worthy business projects of this community, 
Air. Gibbs was highly valued. As a neighbor 
and citizen, he fulfilled all his obligations in a 
highly creditable and faithful manner. 

Through the death of Ernest H. Gibbs, 
which occurred at his home north of town, 
April 7, 1906, Oskaloosa realized the loss of 
one of its most valuable and highly respected 
citizens. His death was due to heart trouble in 
the form of neuralgia, which lasted but a few 
minutes. The remaining family, consisting of 
Airs. Gibl)s and Mr. and Mrs. Guy Woodin, still 
occui)y the handsome "Gibbs residence" just 
north of town. 



JACOB HARPER. 



Jacob Harper has, since 1857, been a resident 
of Mahaska county. Almost a half century has 
passed since he came and great changes have 
occurred. His mind hears many pictures of 
early pioneer days and experiences and he is 
well informed concerning the events which have 
shaped the histoiy of this part of the state. He 
was l)om in Licking county, Ohio, September 
23, 1824, and has therefore passed the eighty- 
first milestone on life's journey. His father, 
Abraham Harper, was born in \'irginia and 
married Catherine Criger. a native of Pennsyl- 
\ania. Both died when about seventy years of 
age. passing away in Muchakinock, this county. 
In the family were thirteen children, of whom 
seven are now living: Mrs. Betsey Titcomb, 
who is now living in Montezuma, Iowa ; Sail}', 
the widow of Benjamin Gibbons, of Eddyville, 



538 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Iowa; William, of Muchakinock; Mary, the 
wife of Arthur Masters, a resident of Albia, 
Iowa; Archibald, living in [Muchakinock; 
George, of Monroe county, Iowa ; and Jacob. 

When quite young Jacob Harper began work- 
ing as a farm hand for ten dollars per month. 
He was seventeen years of age at the time of his 
parents' removal from Ohio to Indiana and later 
he drove a team, hauling pork to the Wabash 
river. As a companion and helpmate for life's 
journey, he chose Rebecca Harper, who, though 
of the same name, was not a relative. They 
were married ^lay 6. 1849, Mrs. Hai-per being 
at that time only sixteen years of age. Her birth 
occurred in Ohio, April 14, 1833. her parents 
Ijeing Joseph and Mary Harper, both of whom 
died in Ohio, when their daughter was a small 
girl. She had one brother. John, who was 
killed in the battle of Vicksburg. 

In the fall of 1857 Mr. and Mrs. Harper 
drove from Indiana to Iowa, being four weeks 
on the road. He purchased forty acres of wild 
land at a dollar and a quarter per acre, near 
Muchakinock and split rails at fifty cents per 
hundred in order to pay for the property. Upon 
the little claim he built a log cabin, in which he 
lived for several years and the children were all 
liorn in that pioneer home. He broke his land 
with fi\'e or six ox-teams and a twenty-twn-inch 
plow. The hazellirush was as high as the backs 
of his cattle, and there was no evidence of im- 
provement at that time, but soon his earnest and 
persistent labors wrought a marked change in 
the appearance of his place, which within a few 
years brought forth bounteous harvests. He 
lived in the log cabin until war times, and later 
he added eighty acres to his farm, which he 
cleared and improved with the aid of his eldest 
son. In 1883 he sold this property for one hun- 
dred tlollars per acre to a coal company and 
came to Prairie township, where he purchased 
one hundred and sixty acres, upon which he now 
resides. This was improved with a good house 
and bam, while the fields had been cultivated, 



the farm giving" every evidence of modern prog- 
ress. He also purchased two hundred acres 
farther north for his son William and bijught 
one hundred and sixty acres for his son Sidney 
adjoining his own place. Afterward he and his 
son Sidney purchased one hundred and sixty 
acres more, so that there is now three-fourths 
of a section in one body owned by the father 
and son. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Harper were born four 
chilflren, of whom three are yet living, namely ; 
William, who is mentioned elsewhere in this 
work ; Mary, the wife of J. H. Williams, living 
elsewhere in this township, Mr. Harper having 
assisted them in purchasing a farm ; and Sidney 
T., who married Ora Stevenson and resides 
upon the farm adjoining his father's. One 
daughter, Clara B., died when (inly three years 
old. Mr. Harper is in many respects a model 
man. for he ne\'er uses tobacco nor liquor in any 
form, and is a good neighbor — honest and ujj- 
right. With meager advantages in his youth, 
he has been a hard worker and his labors have 
been attended with success. At all times he has 
received the able assistance of his estimalile 
wife and they have labored together earnestly 
as the years have gone by until they now ha\-e 
a comfortable home and a valuable property. 
Mrs. Harper belongs to the Methodist Episco- 
pal church. Mr. Harper exercises his right of 
franchise in support of the men and measures of 
the republican party and their standing in pub- 
lic regard is indicated by the fact that it has 
been said of them, "They have not an enemy in 
the world." 



WILLIAM F. HARPER. 

William F. Harper is one of Iowa's native 
sons, who has made a creditable record both 
for success and an honorable life. He was 
born in Alahaska county, August 9, 185 1, and 
is a son of Jacob Harper, who is mentioned 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



539 



above. His education was acquired in the dis- 
trict schools and in Oskaloosa College, where 
he pursued a business course that well qualified 
liini fnr life's practical and responsible duties. 
Tic lived with his parents until four years after 
his marriage, and during that time assisted in 
tlie labor of the home farm. On the ist of July, 
1874, he wedded Miss Elizabeth McGlasson, 
who was born in Mahaska county, November 
14. 1858, a daughter of Joseph and Sarah (Red- 
man) McGlasson. The father was born in 
Kentucky in 1807, and became one of the early 
settlers of Mahaska county, locating a short dis- 
tance south of Oskaloosa near the old Harper 
home. Later he sold his land to coal operators 
and retired from active business life. He died 
at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Harper, when 
eighty-nine years of age, while his wife,' who 
was born in Illinois in 1819, passed away Sep- 
tember 14, 1903, at the age of eighty-four years. 
Four years after his marriage, William Har- 
per remo\ed to an eighty-acre farm belonging to 
his father south of the Excelsior Coal Works. 
For eighteen months he engaged in clerking in 
the store owned by the coal company About 
twenty-four years ago his father, having sold 
his home in that locality, removed to Prairie 
township, and William Harper in connection 
with his father purchased two hundred acres 
of improved land, upon which the son now re- 
sides. He has added one hundred and twenty 
acres to this farm and has remodeled the house, 
expending twelve hundred and fifty dollars in 
repairing it, until he now has a very attractive 
and comfortable home. He also built a large 
bam on the opposite side of the road. He was 
formerly a cattle-feeder, but in later years has 
given his attention to the raising of horses and 
mules and he ownes a good stallion of the im- 
ported Englishshire breed, which he purchased 
from the firm of Burgess & Son, of Wewona, 
Illinois. He has fifty-four head of horses and 
mules on his farm and finds this branch of busi- 
ness very profitable, for he breeds only high 
25 



grade stock. lie is a very prosperous farmer; 
whose business methods are practical, and are 
attended with gratifying results. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Harper have been bom 
two children : Estella G., born October 4, 
1876, is now the wife of Aaron S. Jarrard, of 
Prairie township, and has four children. Ada 
Grace, born April 13, 1887, is the wife of Jesse 
Rice, who resides upon a part of her father's 
farm, and they have one child. 

Mr. Harper has always been a republican, 
casting his first vote for Rutherford B. Hayes, 
and supporting each presidential candidate of 
the party since that time. He has served as 
trustee of his township, also as township as- 
sessor for nine years and is now, and has been 
for fifteen years, treasurer of his school district. 
He and his wife are faithful members and ac- 
tive workers in the Methodist Episcopal church 
at Taintor, and are also connected with the 
Holiness Band in New Sharon. They are held 
in highest esteem b}- neighbors and friends, and 
Mr. Harper is recognized as a man of genuine 
worth, of conscientious motives and upright 
principles, thoroughly reliable at all times. 



JOHN ANDERSON. 



John Anderson, now eighty-five years of age, 
is living retired in New Sharon. For a long 
period he was closely identified with agricul- 
tural interests in this county. He is very promi- 
nent among the Norwegian settlers in this 
part of the state, being held in the highest re- 
gard by them and recognized among them as a 
leader. He was born in Norway. February 17, 
1 82 1, his parents being Andrew and Lena 
(Erickson) Anderson, both of whom were na- 
tives of Norway, where they resided upon a 
farm until called to their final rest, the father 
passing away at the age of fifty years, while his 
wife died at the age of eighty years. They 



540 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



were in limited circumstances, owning only a 
small farm and securing little more than a liv- 
ing, so that their children had but few advan- 
tages in youth. There were seven children, but 
John and one sister are the only surviving 
members of the family. 

The educational advantages afforded John 
Anderson were very meager. He lived at 
home until old enough to work, after which he 
learned the carpenter's trade, following that 
pursuit in his native country and also to some 
extent after coming to America. He was mar- 
ried at the age of twenty-eight years to Chris- 
tina Knudson and purchased a little farm in 
Norway, upon which he resided for about eight 
years, but, seeing that the task of acquiring a 
competency would be a very long and tedious 
one in their native land, Mr. and Mrs. Ander- 
son resolved to come to America and in 1858 
sailed for the new world. They traveled with 
a party of thirty colonists, who started out to 
find a new home. 

Mr. Anderson had a cousin living in Henry 
county, Iowa, who had been in the United 
States for about eighteen years and on visiting 
Norway had persuaded our subject and his wife 
and some friends to return with him. 
They embarked on a sailing vessel and were 
eight weeks and two days in making the voy- 
ag'e from England to Quebec. They encoun- 
tered a severe storm which dro\e them one 
hundred miles out of their course. From Que- 
bec they came directly to Henry county, Iowa, 
and Mr. Anderson possessed only sixty dol- 
lars when he reached his destination. He 
bought two cows, one for sixteen dollars and 
the other for twenty dollars. It was at that 
time warm weather and they had only the 
heavy clothing which they had brought with 
them from Norway, so Mr. Anderson spent the 
rest of his money in purchasing lighter weight 
clothing. His cousin was a widower and John 
Anderson and his wife began to work upon his 
farm, where thev remained for about eight 



years, during which time they were enabled to 
save a little money in addition to purchasing a 
team of horses and a few sheep. Two years 
before leaving his cousin's employ Mr, Ander- 
son had purchased forty acres of land on sec- 
tion II, Prairie township, and about 1865 he 
removed to his little farm. There were no 
building or fences upon the place when it came 
into his possession and he paid three hundred 
dollars for the tract of uncultivated land. Pur- 
chasing a small frame house west of his farm, 
his neighbors assisted him with ox teams in 
remo\ing this house to his land and later he 
built an addition thereto, hauling the lumber 
from Grinnell and Ottumwa. A few years later 
he bought twenty acres and in 1872 purchased 
another forty acres, so that he now owns al- 
together one hundred acres, which is valuable 
property, there being not one foot of waste 
land upon his farm. He has erected very fair 
buildings and has a good orchard and a num- 
ber of years ago he replaced the old house with 
a more modern residence. In the early days 
neighbors were few and widely scattered. Only 
here and there would be seen a little home to 
show that the seeds of civilization were being 
planted on the western prairies. Mr. Anderson 
turned his sheep out to graze on the prairies 
and luany of them were lost, straying far from 
home. He had no fences at first and the stock 
had an open range. New Sharon was but a 
small village and Des Moines was an inconse- 
quential town containing onlv a few frame 
buildings and small stores. While living in 
Henry county Mr. Anderson engaged in rais- 
ing flax and also made a machine for dressing 
it b\- hand. His wife spun yarn and wove cloth 
for the clothing and in the early days their cabin 
home was lighted by tallow candles, but kero- 
sene lamps soon came into use. 

In 1878 Mr. .\nderson was called upon to 
mourn the loss of his wife, who died on the 
2 1 St of September of that year. She was bom 
April 8, 1825, and was therefore fifty-three 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



541 



years of age. After living alone for fifteen 
>ears Mr. Anderson wedded Mrs. Osmond 
Walland. a widow, who bore the maiden name 
of Bertha Olson. Slie was torn in Norway 
antl came to America with her first husband, 
I)\- w hom she liad one child, a daughter, Lena, 
n( i\v the wife of Ole Ferris, who is section boss 
on the Jowa Central Railroad and lives in New 
Sharon. Mr. Anderson has never had any 
children of his own but has reared a niece, 
Christine Anderson, who went to live with him 
when two years old and who is now the wife 
of Nels Thompson, of Prairie township. 

-About fourteen years ago Mr. Anderson 
himght three acres of land in the southwestern 
part of New Sharon, built thereon a residence 
and removed to the town. He has led a very 
l)us}- and useful life and indolence and idleness 
are utterly foreign to his nature. Though now 
eighty-five years of age he yet performs the 
chores around his place and takes great delight 
in this work. He and his wife keep two cows 
and a dock of chickens and their care fur- 
nishes him employment. In his farm work he 
was quite successful, acquiring" a competence 
that now enables him to live retired. He found 
conditions in America very different from those 
in his native countr}' and he never realized this 
uKire than when in icSjj he paid a visit to 
Norway. He saw that the land was stony and 
was so rocky in some places that nothing can 
be raised. In the early days he would cut 
grass all day lung with a sickle and then could 
tie up the entire amount with a rope and carry 
it f)n his back. The land was all dug over with 
a spade, for it was so rockv tliat a plow could 
not be used. Great numbers of people lived by 
fishing and those who farmed made a living 
and nothing more. Mr. Anderson brought 
back with him to this countrv two of his sisters. 
In ]X)litics he has always been a republican, be- 
confing an advocate of the party when it was 
formed to prevent the further extension of 
slaverv. He was reared in the Lutheran faith. 



but after coming to America became a member 
of the Society of Friends and has for a number 
of years been identified with the congregation 
of Friends at New Sharon. Though receiving 
but limited education in his youth he has ever 
made the most of his opportunities in 
this direction and although he could not 
write his name when he came to America 
he is now quite a well informed- man. He 
learned much by attending Sunday-school. He 
was determined to learn and therefore great 
pains were taken with him to assist him. He 
has always kept in touch with the progress of 
the country along many lines and he possesses 
sound judgment and keen discrimination which 
have made him a leader among the Norwegian 
citizens of this community. He has never had 
occasion to regret his determination to seek a 
home in the new world, for he has prospered in 
this country and is now the owner of valuable 
property interests in Mahaska county. 



K. W. BANTER. 



R. W . Baxter, living on section 16, Spring 
Creek township, devotes his time and energies to 
the tilling of the soil and the raising of stock. 
He owns two good farms in this township and 
his practical methods and enterprise contain the 
secret of his success. He has lived in the 
county since 1872. His birth occurred in 
county Antrim. Ireland, in 1846, and he is of 
Scotch ancestrx". He spent the first nineteen 
years of his }ife in his native land, where he 
served an ai)i)renticeshi]) in a rolling mill antl 
was thus employed for several years. Emi- 
grating to the new world he landed in New 
^'ork on the 7th of June, 1866, and thence made 
his way to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, where he 
was employed in a rolling mill, working there 
until February, 1875. In 1872, however, he 
liad come to Iowa and i)urchased land in Ma- 



542 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



haska county, and three years later he took up 
his abode upon this farm, comprising eighty 
acres, of which only a small part had been 
broken. There was upon the place a small frame 
house and log stable. 

Mr. Baxter was married in Pittsburg, July 
2, 1872, to Mrs. Jane Ross (nee Cruth), the 
widow of William Ross, and a native of Ire- 
land, in which place she was reared. The eld- 
est daughter of this marriage is now Mrs. W. 
F. Knott, a widow residing in Cedar, Iowa. She 
has six children : Irvin Ross, Laura Myrtle, 
Lottie May, Gracie Mabel, Mary Josephine and 
Carrie C. Knott. Marv^ Josephine is with her 
grandparents, and isalittlemaidenof seven years. 
She is now attending the home school and re- 
sides with her Grandmother Baxter. Mr. and 
Mrs. Baxter experienced many hardships and 
privations for many years, as he attempted to 
make a start in life. He began at the lowest 
round of the ladder of success, but has gradu- 
ally climbed upward. As his financial re- 
sources increased he bought more land from 
time to time and now owns one hundred and 
sixty acres of cultivable land and forty acres 
of timber. Upon this place he built a new cot- 
tage and good barn. He has also planted an 
orchard and has fenced the place. There is a 
good well and windmill, and altogether he has 
made a valuable farm, equipped with modern 
improvements, together with good machinery 
that facilitates the work of the fields. Upon the 
farm he continued to reside until 1899, when he 
bought a residence in Oskaloosa and retired to 
the city. During this time he has bought fifty- 
seven acres, including an improved place where 
he resides of twenty acres on the north side 
and thirty-seven acres on the south side. Upon 
the north side property there is a large, commo- 
dious and substantial residence, and a young 
orchard just coming into bearing. 

Mr. and Mrs. Baxter have three children : 
Ida May, now the wife of Arthur Delly, a 
farmer of Madison township; Carrie C, the 



wife of Frank Water, of Oskaloosa ; and Fan- 
nie A., who is a graduate of the high school of 
Oskaloosa, and is now a teacher in Mahaska 
county. They lost their first born, Jennie Bax- 
ter, who died when a year old. 

Politically Mr. Baxter is independent, sup- 
porting men and measures rather than party. 
He has never been a politician in the sense of 
office seeking but is desirous for the welfare of 
his community and is a believer in good schools 
and good teachers. He served for a number 
of years on the school board and put forth ef- 
fective and earnest service in behalf of the cause 
of education. Both he and his wife are mem- 
Ijers of the United Presbyterian church of Os- 
kaloosa. He has lived and labored in Mahaska 
county for many years, and is well known as a 
prosperous farmer and good business man, 
whose genuine worth and ability have resulted 
in winning for him an honorable name and also 
a gratifying measure of success. 



?^IOSFS E. VOTAW. 



Moses E. Votaw, who devotes his time and 
energies to general agricultural pursuits, includ- 
ing both the cultivation of the soil and the rais- 
ing and feeding of stock, is living on section 
15, Cedar township, and owns a valuable and 
well improved farm of nearly five hundred 
acres, which is conveniently located within a 
mile of Fremont. He has been a resident of 
the county since 1870, and in the years which 
have since passed he has been an active repre- 
sentative of agricultural interests. His birth 
occurred in Indiana, near the town of Wabash, 
on the 14th of February, 1852. His father, 
Isaac Votaw, was a native of Pennsylvania, 
Ijorn in 1805, but was married in Ohio, Miss 
Rebecca Pierce, a native of Pennsylvania, bom 
in 1809, becoming his wife. For some years 
thev resided in the Buckeye state and afterward 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



543 



removed U> W'abasli county, Indinna, wlience 
they went a few years later to Cass county, 
.Michigan, residing there for twelve years. In 
[870 they came to Iowa, and purchased one 
hundred and .^^ixty acres, constituting a part of 
the farm upon which Moses E. Votaw now re- 
sides. .\fter spending four years upon this 
propcrt)- the father took up his abode in Oska- 
loosa. where for some time he lived retired and 
later removed to Wright, where he died June 
_'. iS()2. His wife survived him four years, 
passing away in 1896. In the family were eight 
children, Uve sons and three daughters, but the 
daughters are all now deceased. 

JMoses E. Votaw was a young man of eight- 
een years when he came with his parents to 
Iowa, ha\-ing in the meantime accompanied 
them on their removal to Michigan. Here he 
assisted in carrying on the home farm and later 
he purchased the property whicli he further cul- 
tixated and improved. He rebuilt the barn, has 
erected a large two-story residence, and in 1900 
he built a large- new barn. He has tiled and 
fenced the place and has si.x; fine wells with 
water flowing to tanks. He also has a wind- 
pump attached to another well. There is an 
abundance of water for the stock and house and 
exerything upon the place is in keeping with 
ideas of modern farming, the latest improved 
machinery being used in the cultivation of the 
fieUls. Mr. Votaw has purchased more land 
fn jm time to time and now owns a farm of four 
hundred acres in one body which is splendidly 
improved. He has fifty acres of pasture land 
north of Fremont. He har\-ests good crops 
and in connection with the tilling of the soil he 
is raising, fattening and shipping stock, an- 
nually selling from three to four carloads of 
cattle, shee]) aud hogs. In addition to his farm- 
ing interests he aided in organizing the Fre- 
uv ml State Bank, of which he is a stockholder 
and director. 

Mr. Votaw was married in White Oak town- 
shi)). Mahaska county, on Thanksgiving day of 



1876, to Miss Sarah E. Caldwell, a native of 
Tennessee, who was reared in Mahaska county 
and is a daughter of Thomas Caldwell, one of 
the pioneers of Iowa, who came to this state 
from Tennessee. In 1892 Mr. Votaw was 
called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who 
passed away on the 17th of March, of that 
year, and was laid to rest in White Oak ceme- 
tery. Tiiere were two sons and two daughters 
of that marriage: Elva Etta, who is now in 
California; Thomas W., also in Los Angeles, 
California.; Nellie Grace, a student in Fremont; 
and I'^red C. 

Politically Mr. Votaw* is a stanch republican, 
but without aspiration for office, although he 
ser\'ed on one occasion as commissioner of high- 
ways. He is a believer in good schools and in 
the emplo\-ment of good teachers, and as a mem- 
hev of the school board has done effective sen'- 
ice for the cause of education. He is a member 
of the Society of Friends, at Bloomfield, and 
has lived an upright, honorable life, winning 
the confidence and respect of his fellowmen. 
For thirty-six years he has lived in Mahaska 
county, an interested witnesis of its growth 
and development, and has been one of the most 
active and prosperous farmers of this portion 
of the state. He certainly deserves much credit 
for what he has accomplished, his prosperity 
being attriliutahle to his own earnest labor, well 
directed eiYorts and capable management. He is 
today in possession of a valuable property and 
his life record should serve to encourage and 
inspire others, showing what may be accom- 
plisiied by determination and energy. 



W. H. SARBAUGH, M. D. 

Dr. Wilbur Holland Sarbaugh, engaged in 
tlie i)ractice of medicine and surgery in Oska- 
loosa. was born near Zanesville, in Muskin- 
gum county. Ohio, in 1870. His father, John 



544 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



W. Sarbaugh, also a native of Ohio, is a farmer 
by occupation and yet resides in Muskingum 
county, Ohio. He ser\'ed as a soldier of Com- 
pany F. Seventy-eighth Ohio Volunteer In- 
fantry, for thirteen months and \vas honorably 
discharged on account of disability. He is now 
chaplain of the Grand Army post at New Con- 
cord, Ohio. His political allegiance is given 
to the republican party and he is a member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church. His wife, 
who bore the maiden name of Nancy B. Hol- 
land, was born in Muskingum county, Ohio, 
and she too is a Methodist in religious faith. 
In their family were four children. Ida, the 
eldest, is the wife of A. M. Osier, a distant 
relative of the celebrated Dr. Osier, a college- 
bred man, who at one time was principal of 
schools. He is still teaching and farming in 
Muskingum county. Jennie Sarbaugh is now 
the wife of Charles Roberts, of Birmingham, 
Alabama. Dora is the wife of W. H. Dunkle, 
a jeweler of Centerville, Indiana. Dr. Sar- 
baugh, the third of the family, was reared to 
farm life and attended the district schools near 
his father's home, after which he became a stu- 
dent in Scio (Ohio) College. He engaged in 
teaching school between the ages of si.xteen and 
twenty-three years but regarded this profes- 
sional service merely as an initial step to a dif- 
ferent professional career. He read medicine 
in the office of Dr. G. W. Lane, at Sago, Ohio, 
and in 1897 was graduated from the Ohio Med- 
ical College at Columbus. He began practice 
in his home town and afterward came to Iowa, 
settling first at Wright, Mahaska county, where 
he practiced with success until, seeking a 
broader field of labor, he came to Oskaloosa in 
January. 1906. 

In October, 1898, Dr. Sarbaugh was married 
to Miss Nellie Gertrude Landfear, who was 
born in Ashtabula county, Ohio, in 1S80, and 
is a daughter of H. W. and Susan ^I. Land- 
fear, the former agent for the Iowa Central 
Railroad at \\'ri2-ht. The Doctor and his wife 



have three interesting children, Paul H., Rex 
L. and \\'an(la E. The Doctor is a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church, while his wife 
belongs to the Society of Friends. He also has 
membership relations with the Masons and the 
Odd Fellows and is a republican in- his political 
views. In his professional career he has made 
steady advancement and has already won a 
creditable name and place in Oskaloosa, having 
previously become quite widely known during 
the period of his residence in Wright. 



NICHOLAS BEAL. 



Nicholas Beal, a \'eteran of the Civil war, 
now engaged in general farming on section 20, 
Prairie township, was born in Guernsey county, 
Ohio. June 8, 1837. His father, Hiram Beal, 
was a native of Fayette county, Pennsylvania, 
born July 3, 1813, and his parents were Nich- 
olas and Mary ( Pearsall) Beal. The grandfa- 
ther died January 23, 1843, at the age of fifty- 
four years and nineteen days, while the grand- 
mother passed away April 25, i860, at the age 
of sixty-eight years, eight months and four 
days. Hiram Beal was united in marriage to 
Jerusha ^McDonald, who was born in Fayette 
county, Pennsylvania, October 27, 1813. They 
came to Mahaska county in 1854, when there 
was not a railroad in the state. They drove to 
Iowa from Illinois, where they had settled 
after leaving Ohio. They had one team of 
horses and two yoke of oxen and Nicholas Beal 
of this review drove the oxen. He had driven 
two yoke of oxen through to Mahaska county 
the vear before for his uncle, A\'illiam Beal. 
The family began life in this county in true pio- 
neer stvle and for many years Hiram Beal was 
identified with general agricultural pursuits 
here. He died upon the home farm in Prairie 
township, this county, January 31, 1899, while 
his wife passed away August 18, 1884. Fur- 



I'ASr AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



545 



tlier mention is made of them on another page 
of this work in connection witli the sketch of 
llieir son, H. .\. Beal. 

Nicholas Beal remained witli his parents un- 
til twenty-seven years of age and assisted in 
the development, cultivation and improvement 
of the old home farm. On the 3d of May, 
iS()8, he was united in marriage to Miss Vir- 
ginia I'otten. who was born in Indiana, No- 
vember 30. 1843, and was a daughter of John 
and Ruth (Debord) Totten, who came to Ma- 
haska county about the same time as the Beal 
family. When they were married Mr. and 
Mrs. Nicholas Beal removed to Hardin county. 
Iowa, where he had previously purchased a 
farm, and there they spent two years, after 
which they returned to Mahaska county, where 
Air. Beal purchased a farm in Madison town- 
ship, making his home thereon for a short pe- 
riod. At different times he owned and sold va- 
rious farms, always disposing of his property 
at an advance of the purchase price and thus 
adding somewhat to his income. Twenty-nine 
years ago he purchased the farm upon which he 
now resides. It was then improved with good 
buildings which he has, however, since replaced 
with more modern structures until he now has 
a well equipped farm property. He owns a nice 
farm of one hundred and twenty acres upon 
which is an attractive residence, substantial 
barn and other outbuildings. All are well 
painted, there are good fences and the 
places gives indication in its attractive appear- 
ance of neatness and prosperity. Mr. Beal now 
rents much of his land on shares, while he is 
practical!)' living retired from the more ardu- 
ous duties of farm labor. 

During the period of the Civil war Air. Beal 
put aside personal considerations and enlisted at 
Montezuma, Iowa, on the 29th of Februarv. 
1S64, as a nieml)er of Company E, of the Thir- 
ty-third Iowa Reserves under Captain Prouty, 
now residing in Des Moines." They rendezvoused 
at Davenport and afterward went to Little Rock, 



.\rkansas. Mr. Beal was in an engagement 
at Jenkins h'erry on the Saline river when Steel 
was making a retreat to Little Rock. He was 
also at the battle of Spanish Fort across the 
iiay from Mobile, the siege of that place lasting 
for thirteen days and nights. He was subse- 
quentK' at Little Rock. Arkansas, and becom- 
ing ill was in the hospital for a short time. 
He was mustered out at Houston. Texas, Au- 
gust 15, 1865, and now receives a small pension 
in recognition of his service. 

L'nto Mr. and Mrs. Beal w'ere born three 
children, of whom two are living: Elma, the 
wife of Louis A. Burden, who is residing upon 
a farm in Prairie township: and Emma, at 
home. The second child died in infaiicy. j\Ir. 
Beal has given to each of his surviving children 
a tract of land. He well remembers the early 
days when pioneer conditions existed, when a 
grease lamp was used and when cooking was 
done over an open fireplace. His parents, how- 
ever, were in comfortable circumstances and 
did not suffer many of the privations and hard- 
ships incident to pioneer life. In politics Mr. 
Beal has always been an earnest democrat, but 
has never been an aspirant for offi'-p prefer- 
ring to concentrate his energies upon his busi- 
ness affairs. He is a good neighbor, an honest 
and upright man and a faithful friend and in 
citizenship is as true and loyal to his country 
as when he followed the stars and stripes upon 
southern battle-fields. 



FRANCIS A. JONES. 

I'rancis A. Jones, who owns and operates a 
good farm of two hundred and four acres on 
section iS. Pleasant Grove tf)wnship, was born 
in Hendricks county. Indiana. February 19. 
1845. 'i'"' parents being James and Elizabeth 
( Gibbons) Jones, of whom mention is made 
in connection with the sketch of Robert M. 



546 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Jones on another page of this work. He was 
eleven years of age when with his parents he 
came to Iowa and in the district schools he 
.acquired his education. He continued to assist 
in the operation of the home farm until twenty- 
seven years of age, when he went to Missouri, 
where he purchased a farm, residing thereon 
for two years. He met with reverses, however, 
and lost his farm, after which he returned to 
Iowa. In 1883 he purchased the property upon 
which he now resides, becoming owner of two 
hundred and forty-four acres on section 18, 
pleasant Grove township. The place was but 
little improved. There was a small house, six- 
teen by tv,-enty-four feet, which Mr. Jones has 
since enlarged and remodeled, making it into a 
comfortable residence. He has also built a barn 
and other out buildings for the shelter of grain 
and stock. He has since sold forty acres of land 
but still retains possession of two hundred and 
four acres, constituting one of the valuable and 
productive famis of the county, the land respond- 
ing readily to the care and cultivation which he 
bestows upon it. He carries on general agri- 
cultural pursuits, raising both stock and grain. 
He has always been a hard worker and in fact 
his close application and unfaltering industry 
have soinewhat impaired his health. All that 
he possesses is due to his own efforts and his 
example should serve as a source of emulation 
and encouragement to others, showing what 
may be accomplished through diligence and 
perseverance. 

On the 22d of June, 1875. Mr. Jones was 
united in marriage to Miss Maria Belle Foster, 
who was born in Davis county, Iowa, a daugh- 
ter of Joseph and Nancy (Jones) Foster, the 
former a resident of Texas. The mother, how- 
ever, died in Idaho. They came to Iowa in 
1854, settling in Davis county, where they lived 
for many }^ears. Unto Mr. and ]\Irs. Jones have 
been born thirteen children, of whom three are 
now living : Mary Susan, the wife of Lafayette 
Tolles, a resident of this township ; Jennie May, 



the wife of John S. Small, of Pleasant Grove 
township ; and ^Nlary ]\Ielissa. at home. Ten 
died in infancy. 

In his political views Mr. Jones has always 
been a democrat but has never had a desire for 
office. He has served as school director and he 
and his family are members of the Baptist 
church. In manner he is unassuming but pos- 
sesses sound judgment and is considered one of 
the substantial farmers of Pleasant Grove 
township. 



DANIEL HULL. 



Daniel Hull, numbered among the successful 
and energetic farmers and stock-raisers of 
Spring Creek township has a good property of 
two hundred and si.xty acres on section 5, and 
the place is within three miles of Oskaloosa. A 
native son of this township, he was born 
on' ]\Iarch 26, 1858. His father, John 
Hull, was born in New York in 18 19, 
and, removing westward to Indiana, was 
there married in Randolph county to Miss 
Levina Bond, whose birth occurred in that 
county, while her girlhood days were also 
passed there. ]\Ir. Hull was a carpenter by trade 
and also a shoemaker. He followed both pur- 
suits in early life and about 1840 removed to 
Iowa, settling in Spring Creek township, where 
he opened up a number of farms. He would 
purchase land, improve the propertv and then 
sell, so that from time to time he owned a num- 
ber of different farms. He also owned and op- 
erated a sawmill. His father, Solomon Hull, 
was one of the first to settle in this locality and 
was also engaged in manufacturing lumber. 
The family lias thus been closely associated with 
the material progress and substantial upbuilding 
'of Mahaska county. After living here for some 
years, John Hull removed to Nebraska, settling 
upon a farm, and his death occurred in Tobias, 




DAXIEL IIL'LL 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



549 



Fillmore county. He was greatly interested ir, 
bee culture, made a close study of the habits of 
bees, hunted > ait their hives and made a specialty 
of raising honey for the market. He was con- 
sidered authority upon the subject of bee cul- 
ture and his apiary was a fine one. Fie died 
in 1901 and his wife, still surx'iving him, is 
now residing in Tobias at the age of eighty-two 
years. 

Daniel Hull is one of a family -of seven sons 
ruul fi\e daughters, all of wliom reached adult 
age. Of this number six sons and three daugh- 
ters are yet living. Daniel FIull was reared 
to manhood in Spring Creek township and re- 
mained with his father until twenty-two years 
of age. during which time he assisted in de- 
\eloping and carrying on the home farm. He 
had good common-school advantages and after- 
ward attended Penn College, so that he was 
well equipped by a liberal education for the 
jiractical and responsible duties of life. After 
attaining his majoritv he rented land for a 
few years, resohing to make farming his life 
work. 

Mr. Hull was married in ^ladison township, 
December 22, 188 1, to Miss Effie Glasscock, 
\\ ho was born in Ohio, a daughter of Joseph A. 
(ilasscock and a sister of H. H. Glasscock, who 
is mentioned elsewhere in this work. She lived 
successively in Ohio, Missouri and Iowa and 
acquired a high-.-chool education, .\fter his 
marriage Mr. Hull rented land and thus en- 
gaged in farming for a few- years, during \\liich 
time he carefully saved his earnings until he 
had a sum sufficient to enable him to purchase 
land. In 1898 he bought his present farm on sec- 
tion 5, .S])ring Creek townshi]x and, locating 
tiiereon, liegan its further development and im- 
jirovement. It already had fair buildings upon it, 
but he has built fences, not only to enclose the 
farm but also to divide it into fields of con- 
venient size. He has also grubbed out the 
stumps and cleared away the brush and raises 
good crops, in addition to which he devotes his 



time to the raising of pure-blooded and high 
grade stock, including cattle, sheep and hogs. 
He feeds and fattens quite a large number of 
hogs annually and finds a ready sale for them 
en the market. In all of his business dealings 
he is relialile and in his work is thoroughly 
practical and systematic. 

Unto ]\Ir. and Mrs. Hull have been born six 
children: Ethel, now the wife of Charles Al- 
lard, a farmer, of Spring Creek township, by 
whtmi she has a son, Howard Allard; Clifford 
J., a student in the high school of Oskaloosa; 
Grace, who is attending Penn College; Ray- 
mond D., Mary L. and Enid I. The parents are 
members of the Friends church of Oskaloosa. 
Mr. Flull casts his ballot for the candidates of 
the republican party, but has never been a poli- 
tician in the sense of seeking office for himself. 
His entire life has been passed in Mahaska 
county, during which time he has aided in 
clearing and developing several fanns. He has 
also driven an ox-team to the breaking plow, 
thus turning the virgin sod, has cleared land 
and has improved the county along agricultural 
lines. He is a man of upright character and 
worth, and he and his estimable wife are highly 
respected in the cnmmunit}- where they reside. 



CHARLES E. LOl'LAXD. 

Charles E. Lofland, ca.shier of the Oskaloosa 
National Bank, is a leading representative of 
financial interests in JNIahaska county, for he has 
made a close and discriminating study of the 
banking Inisiness and his labors have contrib- 
uted in substantial degree to the .success of the 
institution which he represents. He was born 
January 15, 1859, in Oskaloosa, a son of Colo- 
nel John and Sarali J. (Bartlett) Lofland, na- 
tives of Ohio. Following their marriage they 
came to Oskaloosa in 1854, finding here a small 



550 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



village, with tlie interests of whicli tliey became 
closely and helptnlly identified. 

Charles E. Lofland pursued a public-school 
education and also attended the Oskaloosa Col- 
lege. He afterward joined a surveying corps 
in southern Iowa and Missouri, continuing in 
that work for two years, when he came to the 
Oskaloosa National Bank as bookkeeper. He 
acted in that capacity from 1880 until 1885, 
was then made assistant cashier and in 1886 
was chosen cashier, since which time he has 
served in this capacity and has been instru- 
mental in Iniilding up a strong banking institu- 
tion in the county. He is also interested in 
coal mining to some extent, but the bank claims 
the greater part of his time and attention, and 
he has made a close study of each department 
of the business and believes in and practices a 
safe, conservative system which awakens uni- 
form confidence. 

On the 28th of December, 1881, Mr. Lofland 
was married to Miss Mary E. Little, a daughter 
of Henry L Little, of Oskaloosa. Their chil- 
dren are John H., Helen and Charles E. The 
elder son has been a member of the L^nited 
States navy since 1899. 

Colonel John Lofland, deceased, was among 
the early citizens of Mahaska county and was a 
prominent and valued factor during the forma- 
tive period of its growth and development. The 
extent of his labors and influence cannot be 
measured, but all who know aught of the his- 
tory of the county recognize the worth of his 
labors in behalf of public progress. A native 
of Belmont county, Ohio, Colonel Lofland was 
born on the loth of January. 1830. His fa- 
ther, Joseph Lofland, was a native of Mary- 
land, while the mother, Mrs. Elizabeth (Lippin- 
cott) Lofland, was a native of Pennsylvania. 
Both iaecame residents of Ohio in pioneer times 
when the wilderness had been brought under 
the influence of civilization tohardly any extent. 
In that state they were married and reared a 
family of three sons and one daughter. The 



father passed away n 1857. at the age of sixty- 
eight years, while his wife died in 1878, at the 
age of eighty-eight years. 

Colonel Lofland was reared upon a farm, 
where he remained until sixteen years of age, 
assisting his father in the cultivation of the 
fields and in other arduous tasks incident to the 
de\-elopment of a new tract of land. As oppor- 
tunity offered he attended the common schools 
of the neighborhood and at the age of sixteen 
he entered ufxin a four years' apprenticeship to 
learn the trade of a watchmaker and jeweler in 
Cambridge, Ohio. When the term of his in- 
denture was ended he went to Cadiz, Ohio, 
where he piuxhased a jewelr}' store and began 
his mercantile career, being then twenty-one 
years of age. 

About a year afterward, on the 4th of Decem- 
ber, 1 85 1, Colonel Lofland was united in mar- 
riage to Miss Sarah J. Bartlett, a native of Har- 
rison county, Ohio, born in April, 1830. and a 
daughter of George and Ursula ( WycofT) Bar- 
lett, both now deceased Four children were 
born of this marriage, of whom a daughter died 
in infancy. Of the others, George, born Janu- 
ary 28, 1854, died Januai-y 28, 1874, on the 
twentieth anniversary of his birth. Frank C 
born in 1856, of the Siebel Company. Charles 
E. is cashier of the Oskaloosa National Bank. 

In 1854 Colonel Lofland sold his interests in 
Ohio and came to Oskaloosa, where for three 
years he was engaged in the marble business. 
He then purchased a watchmaking and jewelry 
establishment from S. H. Chapman, who re- 
moved to Newton, Jasper county, Iowa, and 
sulisequentlv entered the army. liarlv in 1861 
John \Y. Irwin, another jeweler of Oskaloosa, 
also desirous of joining the army, sold his busi- 
ness to Colonel Lofland, who united the two 
stores. The war now being in active progress 
and call after call being made for troops. Colo- 
nel Lofland could no longer resist the appeal, 
and as the service had proved too hard for Mr. 
Chapman, he was discharged and in the sum- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



00" 



den. Jenkiii's Fern-. Spanish Fort, Fort Blakely 
lowed the battles of Helena, Little Rock, Cam- 
Colonel Lofland. the fonner becoming owner 
was soon effected lietween Mr. Chap:nan and 
and Mobile, together with numerous smaller 
mer of 1862 returned to Oskaloosa. The trade 
of the latter's stock of goods. 

Thus being freed from all business engage- 
ment, Colonel Lofland proceeded to raise a com- 
pany for the ser\ice and in August. 1862. this 
was mustered in as Company D, Thirty-diird 
Iowa \'olunteer Infantry, with Mr. Lofland as 
captain. The regiment was soon ordered to the 
field and its record is well known to those at 
all familiar with Iowa"s part in the great Civil 
war. The history of its movements is certainly 
a commendable one and no regiment of Iowa 
was more often in active duty. The first im- 
portant service in wliich the Thirty-third Iowa 
participated was Yazoo Pass expedition in the 
rear of Vicksburg. during which time the at- 
tack on Fort Sumter was made. Then fol- 
engagements and raids. In August, 1863. Cap- 
tain Lofland was promoted over the major and 
three captains, who were his seniors in rank, to 
the position of lieutenant colonel of the regiment 
and from the time of his promotion 'until the 
final muster out at Davenport, Iowa, in Au- 
gust, 1865, he was almost continually in com- 
mand of the Thirty-third. .\s an ofiicer he 
displayed unflinching courage, though he was 
never foolhardy nor sacrificed his men when he 
could save them, yet he never faltered in the 
performance of anv duty and his own valor 
often ins])ired his men to deeds of heroism. 
He had the entire confidence of his regiment 
and none refused to follow his lead. Though 
a strict disciplinarian his men all respected and 
loved him. On retiring from the service he re- 
mo\-ed to a farm, whereon he remained for 
three years and in .\ugust. 1869, he entered the 
international revenue service as assistant as- 
sessor with headquarters at Oskaloosa. where 
he continued until 1873, when he was appointed 



deputy collector of internal revenue, discharg- 
ing the duties of the office until August, 1882, 
when, having been duly approved, he w'as ap- 
pninted internal revenue agent, which position 
he held for several years, making an enviable 
record therein. He was sent on difiicult mis- 
sions to almost e\'er_\- section of the country^ and 
his multitudinous delicate duties were always 
faithfully and capably performed. All liquor 
interests came under his inspection and to Colo- 
nel Lofland is given the credit of discovering 
frauds practiced by Cincinnati manufacturers 
by the use of false staves in the barrel, by which 
the government was defrauded out of large 
sums of money. He was for years continu- 
ously in the revenue department of the general 
government, and on his retirement from the 
ofiice was one of the oldest in that branch of 
the service. He had been most faithful to the 
public trust, working without fear or favor, 
and he won the high encomiums of all in the 
government service who had occasion to know 
of his effective and earnest work. 

Colonel Lofland in early life gave his [xjlitical 
allegiance to the whig party, and later became 
a stanch republican, never swer\ing in his alle- 
giance to the latter organization. He was what 
is known as "an intense republican, though not 
offensively partisan." As an ofticer in the gov- 
ernment service he knew no politics, never let- 
ting personal preference or prejudice swerve 
him from die faithful discharge of his duties, 
but as a citizen he did not hestitate to advocate 
upon all proper occasions the views in which he 
believed, and supported the principles that he 
thought contained the best elements of good 
government. He was a member of the Pres- 
byterian church and socially he had the respect 
and good will of all by whom he was known, 
and his acquaintance was a wide one. In his 
death Mahaska county moumed the loss of a 
valued citizen, for during the jTCriod of his resi- 
dence here he was a prominent factor in its 
early growth and development. L'nfaltering 



552 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



lienor was one of his salient characteristics, and 
lie also drew many to him in strong ties of 
friendship. 



CHARLES FLEMING 

Charles Fleming, a representative of one of 
the old and prominent pioneer famiiles of Ma- 
haska county nOw living on section lo, Rich- 
land township, where he carries on general ag- 
ricultural pursuits, was born in West Virginia, 
January i8, 1842. He was ten years of age 
\\hen the parents came to Iowa. His father, 
Robert L. Fleming, is now deceased, but for 
many years was closely associated with agricul- 
tural interests in this part of the state. The 
family came here in pioneer times when Charles 
was only about ten y^ears of age. His child- 
hood and youth were passed under the parental 
roof, and he ^vorked ujxin the home farm until 
he reached the age of twenty-six years, his edu- 
cation having been acquired in the common 
schools. 

On the 6th of October, 1867, Charles Flem- 
ing was married to Miss Emily Samantha 
Spain, who was born in Union county, Ohio, 
March 28, 185 1. Mention is made of her par- 
ents in connection with the sketch of T. J. Tim- 
brel on another page of this work, Mrs. Tim- 
brel being a sister of Mrs. Fleming. From his 
father Mr. Fleming received forty acres of 
land, a part of which he purchased in 1853. The 
forty acres was all wild, not a fence having been 
built nor an improvement made upon the prop- 
erty. He erected a good frame residence, also 
built barns and fences and has since made his 
home upon the fann, which under his careful 
direction has been transformed into a rich and 
productive property. He bought forty acres 
adjoining the original purchase on the west and 
still later tought sixty acres, all of which is im- 
])roved with good buildings lying north of the 



second forty acres. Mr. Fleming has met the 
usual experiences of pioneer settlers. There has 
been much arduous labor in connection with the 
development of his land, but his work has tri- 
umphed over the pioneer conditions and he has 
made a good home and farm from tlie wild 
prairie. He now owns one hundred and forty 
acres of good land which is clear of all indebt- 
edness. His memoiy goes back to the early 
days when in his father's home grease lamps 
were used and afterward candles. They cooked 
over an open fireplace and the women of the 
household in those times spun their yarn and 
wove their own cloth. On one occasion when 
they first came to Iowa they were stopping at 
the home of an early settler named Petty. The 
supply of flour gave out and they thought none 
was to be had. Mr. Fleming rode all day in 
search of flour or meal, and returned with a 
peck of sour corn meal, from which they made 
bread, eating it with a relish because of their 
hunger. Long since, however, the hardships 
and difficulties of pioneer life have given way 
before an advancing civilization and the pros- 
perit}- which has been won by Mr. Fleming and 
other settlers. 

Unto our subject and his wife have been born 
two children : Dosha Drusilla and Almarillis. 
Dosha was married to Benjamin Warbleton, 
.\ugust 31, 1894, and to them have been born 
two children: Icy, who died in infancy: and 
Lelia. The younger daughter, Almarillis, was 
a teacher in the public schools for several years, 
but at the present time is at home. 

In politics Mr. Fleming was a democrat un- 
til ab,out twenty years ago, since which time he 
has \ote(l the republican ticket. He has served 
as school director, but has held no other office 
nor has he desired political prefemient. Both 
he and his wife are believers in the Christian re- 
ligion as taught by the Methodist Episcopal 
cliurch, hut are not members of any congrega- 
tion. Mv. Fleming is a well posted man and is 
a good farmer. It has not been the aim of 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



553 



liis life to become wejilthy, Init he has been suc- 
cessful in what he has accomplished and now 
has a good farm proix-rty. He is spoken of 
in creditable terms by all who know him and 
is one of the respected and worthy citizens of 
Mahaska county, where for more than a half 
centun- he has made his home. 



WILLIAM II. BROWN. 

William H. Brown, lix'ing on section i6, 
Monroe township, one of the successful farm- 
ers and all-afound business men of Mahaska 
county, is numbered with the veterans of the Civil 
war and the old settlers of this part of the 
state, where he owns and operates a neat and 
valuable farm of three hundred and twenty 
acres. He has lived in tlie count)^ since 1852, 
coming here widi his parents when a lad of 
twelve years. He was bom in Morrow county, 
Ohio, April 6, 1840, and his father, William 
l^)rown, was a native of Virginia, who in his 
boyhood days accompanied his parents on their 
removal to Ohio, Avhere he was reared and edu- 
cated, attending the common schools. He af- 
terward folkwed fanning there and subse- 
cjuent to the attainment of his majority he 
was married in Ohio to Miss Matilda McMil- 
lan, a daughter of John McMillan, a native of 
Ireland, who came to America and settled in the 
state of New York, whence he afterward re- 
moved to Ohio. Mr. Brown continued to farm 
in Ohio after his marriage but becoming im- 
bued with a desire to settle on the frontier he 
sold his interest in that state and with his fam- 
ily, then numbering a wife and seven children, 
came to Mahaska county, Iowa, in 1852. Here 
lie cntercfl from the government the land upon 
which his son William now resides, but the pre- 
\ious hard work incident to making a home in 
a new country undermined his health, and in 
1852 he passed away, leaving Mrs. Brown with 



an unimproved farm and seven children to sup- 
port. She heroically took up the task, however, 
and kept her children about her, giving them 
a good education. She managed her farm and 
later all of her sons engaged in teaching school, 
showing the training of the mother as a pre- 
ceptor. After attaining his majority William 
H. Brown purchased the interest of the other 
heirs in the home property and took his mother 
to live with him, her death occurring in 1871, 
when she was sixty-nine years of age. 

On the 1st of November, 1863, William H. 
Brown was married to Miss Margaret C. 
Ayers, a native of Ohio, and a daughter of 
William C. Ayers, who was also born in Ohio 
and came to Mahaska county in the early '50s, 
remaining here until his demise. Prior to his 
marriage Mr. Brown, when in his twenty-first 
}ear. had enlisted at Oskaloosa for service as a 
member of Company C, Fifteenth Iowa In- 
fantry, and with his company rendezvoused at 
Keokuk, joining the regular army at St. Louis, 
where he went into camp. Later the troops 
were at Pittsburg Landing and at Corintli, and 
he served in the war for fifteen months, being 
disabled at Shiloh by a bullet which pierced his 
hand. Because of his disability he was honor- 
ably discharged in November, 1862. 

After regaining his health Mr. Brown began 
farming and improved and developed a good 
farm. He has since erected a good substantial 
two-story residence, also commodious bams and 
outbuildings and as tlie years have passed he 
has bought more land from time to time. The 
farm is now well fenced and tiled and is an at- 
tractive property. In addition to raising the 
cereals best adapted to soil and climate he also 
raises full-blooded Merino sheep, shorthorn cat- 
tle and Poland China hogs, and the farm is well 
watered and equipped for stock-raising, in 
which business he is very successful, placing 
a large amount of stock on the market annually. 
In 1890 Mr. Brown was chosen secretary of the 
Famiers Mutual Insurance Company of Ma- 



554 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



haska county, which position he has since filled 
in an efficient manner. He is a man of re- 
sourceful business ability, having the power 
to co-ordinate plans, forces and possibilities, so 
that success results. In 1900 he was one of the 
organizers of the Bank of Rose Hill, and was 
chosen its \'ice-president and also one of its 
directors. This institution was capitalized at 
fifteen thousand dollars with J. R. Busby as 
cashier. Mr. Brown was for six years treas- 
urer of the township board and was township 
clerk for fifteen years and thus his commu- 
nity has benefited by his labors, for he proved 
a most capable and efficient officer. His po- 
litical allegiance has long been given to the 
republican party although he cast his first presi- 
dential ballot for Stephen A. Douglas, but has 
never ceased to regret it. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Brown ha\-e been bom 
eight children : Winfield, who died at the age 
of t\\ent}'-four years ; Anne, who died at the 
age of nineteen years; Cora, the wife of Dr. 
E. M. Haggard, of Indianapolis, Indiana; 
Lena, the wife of Charles Kent, superintendent 
of city schools at Charles City, Iowa ; Ethel, the 
wife of Frank Garrett, both being missionaries 
of the Christian church in China since 1896; 
William H., who married Lucy Fisher and lives 
upon a farm adjoining his father's property ; 
Justin, who has been a missionary in China 
since 1903; and Wirt, who married Lucy Lord 
and lives in a separate house upon the home 
farm, which he assists his father in carrying on. 
Mr. and Mrs. Brown and their family are mem- 
bers of the Christian church, of Monroe town- 
ship, and take a most active and helpful part in 
its work. He has witnessed much of the de- 
\'elopment of the county and is one of the most 
public-spirited and energetic citizens here. He 
has always manifested the same loyalty in citi- 
zenship that he displayed when he joined the 
"boys in blue" and fought for the defense of the 
L^nion upon the battle-fields of the south. In 
business affairs he has been found thoroughlv 



reliable, being straightforward in all of his 
dealings yet he has never concentrated his en- 
ergies upon his business interests to the exclu- 
sion of those duties which should claim a part 
of a man's attention — the duties relating to his 
citizenship and to his relations to his fellowmen. 
He is spoken of in most favorable terms by all 
\\-ho know him and he well deserves mention in 
this volume as a representative citizen of the 
county. 



WILLIAM RICE. 



\\'illiam Rice, a well known representative 
of farming interests in Richland township, liv- 
ing on section 23, was boni in LTnion county. 
Ohio, October 29, 1841, and is a son of Squire 
and Mary Ann (Holbrook) Rice. The former 
was a native of New York and became a resi- 
dent of Ohio, where he died when his son Wil- 
liam was only four or five years old. The 
mother afterward removed to Lee county, Illi- 
nois, where her death occurred when William 
was fourteen years of age. On account of be- 
ing early left an orphan Mr. Rice of this review 
knows little about his parents. He w^as the eld- 
est of three children, the others being Eben- 
ezer, who died in Tama county, Iowa ; and Fan- 
nie, who was the wife of John Ramsey, a resi- 
dent of Grinnell, Iowa, and who died January 
28, 1903. 

William Rice accjuired his education in the 
common schools of Ohio and Illinois and when 
sixteen years of age was left to shift for him- 
self, since which time he has depended entirely 
I'pon his own resources for a living. He went 
to work on a farm at five dollars per month 
and continued to be employed in that way until 
the first call to arms, following the firing on of 
Fort Sumter. He joined a company, but the 
reg'iment was not called into action until after 
the call was issued for three hundred thousand 
men. He enlisted at Dixon, Illinois, in Sep- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



555 



ieml>cr, i86i, becoming a member of Company 
C. Tliirty-fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
under commanil of Captain A. P. Dysart. He 
served for a year and a half and was dis- 
cliarged in 1863. The company and regiment 
then veteranized and Mr. Rice remained with 
his command until the close of hostilities. The 
first battle in which he participated was at Shi- 
loh and he afterward took part in many san- 
guinary engagements, including the battles of 
Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Atlanta, 
Rome, Peach Tree Creek and Kenesaw Moun- 
tain. He was also with Sherman on the cele- 
brated march to the sea and was mustered out 
a- Chicago on the 12th of July, 1865. He was 
never wounded save that he received a slight 
scratch on the shoulder by a ball which tore 
away the coat and shirt, leaving the skin ex- 
posed. He was then ill in the hospital at Nash- 
N'ille, Tennessee, and was there given his dis- 
charge, but he waited ten days in Chicago for 
his regiment and all were discharged there. 
.Mr. Rice was mustered out as second sergeant. 
He had proved a brave and loyal soldier, unfal- 
tering in his support of the Union cause. 

On the 25th of December, 1867, Mr. Rice 
\\as united in marriage to Miss Helen Nichols, 
will I was born in New York, February 14, 
1848. and 1s a daughter of Lafayette Nichols, 
whose birth occurred in the Empire state and 
who spent his last days in the home of Mr. and 
-Mrs. Rice, where he died at the age of seventy- 
four years. He married Almira Sheldon, who 
was born in Niagara county. New York, and 
died at the home of their daughter, Mrs. Rice, 
w hen seventy-four years of age. passing away 
in February. 1900, her husband having died in 
December previous. Hiey removed from New 
York to Lee county, Illin(^is, and later to Tama 
county, Iowa, where they resided for man\- 
years, but their last days were spent in the 
home of their daughter. There were but two 
children in their family, the son being Henry 
Nichols, who now li\-es in Marshalltown, Iowa. 



In the year of his marriage Mr. Rice re- 
moved to Tama county, Iowa, where he pur- 
chased eighty acres of land whicii was all wild 
])rairie. He built the first house upon that tract, 
broke the sod, tilletl the fields and there lived 
for fourteen years. Twenty-three years ago, 
in February, 1883, he came to Mahaska coun- 
ty and purchased what was known as the Gard- 
ner Lunt farm of two hundred acres. This 
was improved and had a good house and barn 
upon it. Mr. Rice has since made some re- 
pairs and improvements on the house, which is 
a large, square, two-story dwelling. It is kept 
well painted, is tastefully furnished and shows 
every evidence of comfort and good taste. It is 
situate<l on a knoll commanding a splendid view 
of the surrounding country. Not far away 
stands a good basement barn and there are 
other Ijuildings upon the place for the shelter 
of grain and stock. The house stands some- 
what back from the highway with a lovely lane 
leading up to it. The fences are kept in good 
repair and an air of neatness and thrift per- 
vades the place in all departments. Mr. Rice 
has also purchased thirty acres of timber and 
pasture land along the Skunk river. He de- 
votes his attention to general farming and his 
labors are now being attended with a gratifying 
measure of success. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Rice have been born 
eight children, of whom si.K are living: Lillie 
I... the deceased wife of George B. Appel, by 
whom she bad one son : Mary Almira, the wife 
of Fd Sharp, of Kansas, by whom she has 
three children: W'ilJjur H.. who is living on a 
farm in Prairie township and who married 
llattio Shuniake, by whom he has four chil- 
dren: .\liua. the wife of Charles Streagle, of 
Richland township, and the mother of three 
children : Jesse L., who married Grace Harper, 
lias one child, and is living in Prairie town- 
ship: Vernon, at home: Grace, also at home; 
and Elmer, who died March 22. 1875, at the 
age of four months. William Rice is a stal- 



556 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



wart republican, inflexible in his support of the 
party and its principles, though he has never 
been an office seeker and the only position that 
he has ever held has been that of school di- 
rector. He and his wife are valued members 
of the Methodist Episcopal church and he be- 
longs to Shiloh post, No. 126, G. A. R., at Peo- 
ria, Iowa, in which he is now oflicer of the day. 
He certainly deserves much credit for what he 
has accomplished in life, because he started out 
empty-handed and has worked his way steadily 
upward. Beginning to earn his own living 
when a young lad of sixteen years without 
family or friends to aid him, he is today one 
of the substantial residents of the county. 
Moreover, he has made a creditable military 
record and has a family of which he has every 
reason' to be proud. He keeps well informed 
on the questions of the day, is an interesting 
conversationalist and a jovial, genial gentle- 
man — qualities which have won him many 
friends. 



GARY M. KISOR. 



Gary M. Kisor, who is successfully and ex- 
tensively engaged in general farming on sec- 
tion 14, Union township, was born in Knox 
county, Ohio, March 2, 1842. His paternal 
grandparents were John and Elizabeth (Bol- 
ton) Kisor, who were natives of Rockingham 
county, Virginia. There were ten children in 
the family: Mrs. Anna Hayes, deceased; Mrs. 
Sena Dawson, who died in Texas ; Mrs. Ghris- 
tiana Litzenburg, living in Hancock county, 
Ohio ; Emma, who died in Knox county, Ohio ; 
James, who passed away in New Sharon, Iowa ; 
Mrs. Ellen Litzenburg, who died in Knox 
county, Ohio; Reuben, deceased, the father of 
Gary M. Kisor; John, who died in Texas two 
years ago, having gone there when it was an 
independent republic ; David, who died in 



Union township; and Robert, who died in 
Iowa Gity, Iowa. 

Reuben Kisor, born in Knox county, Ohio, 
April 29, 1819, died in Union township, Ma- 
haska county, in November, 1897. He married 
Miss Mary Buckingham, who was bom in 
Greene county, Pennsylvania, and died in April, 
i86'i, in Union township, at the age of forty- 
two years. She was a daughter of William and 
Nancy (McGlellan) Buckingham, natives of 
Pennsylvania. The McGlellans were of Irish 
descent and the great-grandfather of our sub- 
ject, Gary McGlellan. was one of Washington's 
bo'Gy-guard during the Revolutionary war. The 
Buckinghams were of English lineage and 
i?ame from the family who occupied Bucking- 
ham palace. The Kisor family, however, is of 
German lineage and three brothers of the fam- 
ily came from the fatherland to America in 
1700, one settling in Maryland, another in 
Pennsylvania and a third in Virginia, and from 
the last named Gary M. Kisor is descended. 
Reuben Kisor and Mary Buckingham were 
married in Knox county, Ohio, in 1841, and 
came by rail to Iowa in 1856, traveling in that 
manner to Iowa Gity, whence they drove in a 
wagon to Union township, Mahaska county. 
Here Mr. Kisor purchased one hundred and 
sixty acres of land on section 14, the greater 
part of which was covered with timber al- 
though two little log houses had been built. 
The family lived in one of the log cabins until 
i860, when the father erected a frame residence 
and upon this farm he spent his remaining 
days, being one of the pioneer agriculturists of 
the county who contributed largely to the work 
of earlv development and improvement. He 
and all of his family were members of the 
Ghristian church. 

\Mien Gary M. Kisor was twenty-one years 
of age he went to Colorado, crossing the plains 
with a freight train, and one winter he drove 
the overland-mail stage coach. With pony and 
pack he went to Oregon and worked in the 




MR. AXl) MRS. CARY M. KISOR. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



559 



mines on Powder river. In cumpauy with 
others he also whipsawed lumber near Yellow- 
stone Park, built a skiff and in that manner 
made his way down the Yellowstone and Mis- 
souri rivers to Omaha. Nebraska. They lost 
one of the luen on the wa}' and were often pur- 
suetl and shot at by Indians. From Omaha 
Mr. Kisor returned to Mahaska county and 
worked for his father until he was married. 
it was on the 22d of December, 1870. that he 
wedded Miss Mary Jane Fisher, who was born 
in Columbiana county, Ohio, April 24, 1845, a 
daughter of Dr. Amasa and Judith Fisher, who 
came to Iowa witli their frnnily in 1854, set- 
tling in Pleasant Grove township. For a num- 
ber of years Mrs. Kisor engaged successfully 
in teaching prior to her marriage. In 1858 she 
united with the Christian church and was al- 
ways one of its devoted and faithful members. 
For six or seven years she was in poor liealth, 
caused by cancer of the stomach, and on the 
22d of December, 1904, passed from this life. 
She had been a hopeful and patient sufferer and 
she was loved by all who knew her, her neigh- 
bors saying "a better woman ne\er lived." 

Mr. Kisor's first purchase of land was made 
in 1 868. when he became owner of one hun- 
dred acres, nearly all of which was timber. 
Upon this farm he still resides and he now 
owns one hundred and sixty acres. The place 
is improved with a good frame residence with 
basement, also a substantial barn and other out- 
buildings. He carries on general farming and 
his fields return golden harvests in reward for 
the care and labor which he bestows upon them. 
He had but limited educational privileges as it 
was necessary that he aid his father in the 
work of cultivating and improving the new 
Iowa farm but throughout his life he has al- 
ways been a great reader, being especially inter- 
ested in ancient history. He is today well 
posted on all subjects, being perhaps the best 
informed man in the township upon its early 
history and the events which shape its annals. 
26 



Tile editor of this volume acknowledges his in- 
debtedness to Mr. Kisor for considerable in- 
formation upon this subject. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Kisor were born four 
children : Cassie C, the wife of Elmer Gorsuch, 
a resident of Colorado ; RubieAmazette, the wife 
of Fred Kirk, living upon her father's farm; 
one who died in infancy unnamed; and C. Earl, 
at home. In politics Mr. Kisor is an independ- 
ent democrat. He is now ser\-ing as school 
director, has been president of the school board 
and has also been road supervisor. He holds 
membership in the Christian church and is in- 
terested in all that pertains to the material, 
educational and moral progress of his commu- 
nity. Fie is a prominent and honored repre- 
sentative of agricultural interests and he says 
that greater improvements have been made in 
ini])lements for farming and cultivating the 
soil than along any other line of business. Mr. 
Kisor himself brought the first vibrator 
threshing machine into Mahaska county and 
operated the outfit for several years. He has 
a hand sickle that was in -common use when he 
first came into Iowa and this was but little better 
than such as were used in ancient times. He 
says that if Methuselah had lived to the time 
of Mr. Kisor's birth he would not have seen 
as much improxement in farm implements up 
to the middle of the nineteenth century as 
Mr. Kisor has seen in the last fifty years. His 
first ]ilow was a double shovel, the shovels being 
of wood ancl not a nail in the whole ])low. 
The trip to Oskaloosa or Iowa City for mar- 
keting or milling were made with ox-teams. 
Today the country is crossed and re-crossed 
with railroads and many interurban lines and 
towns and villages ha\'e sprung up. affording 
excellent opportunities for the farmer to .secure 
his supplies and market his products. In- 
\ention has wrought a marked change and the 
harvester, binder, thresher, die cultivator and 
the riding plow have replaced the old-time im- 
plement. The farmer of today has not the lot 



56o 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



of hard manual labor to perform which he once 
had to do and although his life is a busy one 
much of his work is now performed by ma- 
chinery', requiring only his careful direction and 
close attention to keep his farm implements in 
good working order. Mr. Kisor has kept pace 
with the changes that have been made and is one 
of the progressi\'e agriculturists of the county. 



JAMES NOEL. 

James Noel is one of the pioneer residents of 
Mahaska county, who has intimate knowledge 
of the events which have marked the advance of 
its history and indicated its progress toward an 
advancing civilization. He was bom in Union 
township, Perr\' county, Ohio, March 30, 1830, 
a son of Joseph and Mary^ (Cooper) Noel, both 
of whom \\ere natives of Pennsylvania and 
spent their last days in Indiana, the father's 
death occur ing in White county, that state. He 
was a shoemaker in early life but later became 
a farmer and settled in White county. 

James Noel of this review is the only living 
son in a family of sixteen children, three broth- 
ers having died in the Civil war. He was eight- 
een years of age when his father died. He then 
went to work on a fann in the neighborhood, 
having previously acquired a good common- 
school education in the district schools of White 
county. In 1852 he came to Mahaska county 
Avith his wife's parents and on the 12th of De- 
cember, the same year, he was married in a little 
log cabin in Richland township, this county, to 
Miss Mar}' ]\I. Bacon, who was born in White 
county, Indiana, April 16, 1834, a daughter of 
Ira and Mary Bacon, the former bom n Mas- 
sachusetts and the latter in Ohio. Mr. Bacon 
and his family came to this county in July, 
1852, and he took up government land in Rich- 
land township, whereon he built a log cabin, in 



which the. family lived for several years. As 
time passed and he prospered in his undertak- 
ings he added to his fann until he owned five 
hundred acres of land and he continued his resi- 
dence in Richland township until his death, 
which occurred when he had reached the age of 
si.xty-six years. His widow survived him to the 
age of seventy-eight years. In their family were 
twelve children. 

Following his marriage James Noel pur- 
chased one hundred and sixty acres of govern- 
ment land in Richland township, which he im- 
proved and made his home for several years. 
He then traded that property for another farm 
partially improved and lived thereon fourteen 
years, when he sold out and removed to New 
Sharon, where he is now living a retired life. 
He was an active and energetic agriculturist, 
carefully directed his business affairs and his 
industry and perseverance constituted the sa- 
lient elements in his success. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Noel have been born 
six children, of whom four are living: Rubie, 
who died at the age of one year; Alfred, who 
married Miss Clara Tice, and is living at Leigh- 
ton, this county; Almeda, who died at the age 
of fifteen years; Otis B., who married Miss 
Julia E. Knowlton and resides upon a farm in 
Union township; Olive, living in Illinois; Lil- 
lian, the wife of Hemy C. Hull, a resident of 
Prairie township. In politics Mr. Noel is inde- 
penflent. He and his wife are members of the 
Christian church and they occupy a comfortable 
home on West .Main street. IMr. Noel relates 
many interesting incidents of the early days 
when his Indiana home was upon the frontier. 
They used grease lamps and burned coon oil, 
which gave a steadier light than any other 
grease. After coming to Iowa they burned lard 
and tallow in die same kind of lamp. Their 
first bed was made by placing poles in holes 
made in the logs in the side of the cabin and 
then covering these with clapboards. They 
shared in the hardships and privations of pio- 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



561 



neer times but as the years have gone by have 
been enaljled to secure the comforts and many 
of tlie hixuries of Hfe. 



OTIS B. NOEL. 



Otis B. Noel, living on section 21, Union 
township, was born in Black Oak township, this 
county, May i, 1859, a son of James and Mary 
(Bacon) Noel, whose sketch is given above. In 
his youth he remained upon his father's farm 
and attended the district school. At the age of 
seventeen years he rented his father's fann, 
which he operated on the shares for three years. 
He afterward spent three years in Oskaloosa 
College to further perfect his education and 
then engaged in teaching for two years. He was 
aftenvard connected with the dry-goods and 
grocery trade in New Sharon for a year and 
for three years was a hardware merchant of 
that place, but in 1894 resumed farming, which 
he has since followed, in that year taking up 
his abode on the farm where he now resides. He 
is a wide-awake and progressive agriculturist, 
thoroughly familiar with all the duties con- 
nected with the farm and his capable manage- 
ment and careful work have resulted in making 
his property very valuable and productive. 

Mr. Noel was married .September 15, 1892, 
to Miss Julia Ellen Knowlton. who was born in 
Clinton count}', Ohio, January 3, 1864, and is 
a daughter of Samuel Knowlton, who is men- 
tioned elsewhere in this work in connection with 
the sketch of Dennis E. Whitehill. Mr. and 
Mrs. Noel have a son. Homer Otis, born Feb- 
ruary 20, 1896. Their home is a farm of one 
iiundred and sixty acres of productive land, on 
which are good buildings and many modern im- 
])rovements and it is a part of the Samuel 
Knowlton estate. In his political views Mr. 
Noel is an earnest republican, keeping well in- 
formed on the questions and issues of the day 



as every true American citizen should do. He 
has served as township assessor for two years 
and as school director. He belongs to the 
Christian church, while his wife is a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal church. They are both 
interested in all good work and their pleasant 
home is justly celebrated for its hospitality, 
which is greatly enjoyed by their many friends. 



CORNELIUS FLEMING. 

Cornelius Fleming, whose fellow^ townsmen 
speak of him in terms of respect and good will, 
is now devoting his time and energies to farm- 
ing on section 10, Richland township. He w^as 
born November 2, 1857, in the house which is 
yet his place of residence and here he has al- 
ways lived. He is the son of R. L. Fleming 
and a twin brother of Amy Cordelia Fleming. 
In his youth he attended the district schools and 
was trained to farm work, remaining in the 
employ of his father until his marriage, which 
was celebrated on the 4th of December, 1887, 
Miss Annettie \\'illock becoming his wife. Her 
birth occurred in Logan county, Illinois, July 
22, 1867. After the marriage of the son the 
father lived with him for seven years, or until 
his death, which occurred upon the old family 
homestead. At that time Cornelius Fleming 
inherited ninety acres of the land. This is a 
good farm, well situated. It is rolling prairie 
and very productive. There are fair buildings 
upon the place, which were erected by the fa- 
ther and the residence is a story and a half 
structure, being built of rock and cement. Mr. 
Fleming gives his attention to general agricul- 
tural pursuits and has his fields under a high 
state of cultivation. He is a good worker, 
honest and industrious. In his home he has an 
old bureau which his father brought from Vir- 
ginia. It is filled with old books and papers 



S62 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



which were kept by R. L. Fleming, many of 
which are valuable, while all are very in- 
teresting. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Cornelius Fleming have 
been born eight children : Robert Glenn, bom 
October ii, 1888; Lemuel Guy, February 23, 
1891 ; Hulda Maud, September 19, 1893; 
Perry Weldon, Februaiy 8, 1896; Chanley 
Lee, August 15, 1898; Carl Sanford, December 
II, 1900; John Lloyd, May 31, 1903; and 
Paul Ernest, January 15, 1906. 

Mr. Fleming exercises his right of fran- 
chise in support of the men and measures of the 
democracy. He has never sought office, how- 
ever, and has served only as constable. His 
time and attention are devoted to his farming" 
interests, which he has followed throughout 
his entire life. 



F. W. FERRALL. 



F. W. Ferrall, a retired farmer now living 
in New Sharon, came to Mahaska county when 
there was but one house in the village in which 
he makes his home. Born in Columbiana 
county, Ohio, January i/, 181 7, he comes of 
German and Lnsh lineage. His paternal grand- 
parents were William and Mary Ferrall, both 
natives of Virginia but born of Irish parentage. 
Their son, John Ferrall, was but two years of 
age when they remo\'ed from the Old Domin- 
ion to Ohio, locating in the midst of the forest 
in Columbiana county, where they lived in a 
bark shanty until a log cabin could be built. 
John Ferrall was therefore reared amid the wild 
scenes of frontier life in Ohio and after reach- 
ing years of maturity was married in that state 
to Miss Elizabeth Zepernick, who was born in 
Pennsylvania and was a daughter of Fred- 
erick and Elizabeth Zepernick, who were na- 
tives of Pennsvhania and were of German de- 



scent. They, too, removed to Ohio at an early 
period in its settlement and Mrs. Ferrall spent 
her girlhood days there. After their marriage 
Mr. and Mrs. Ferrall lived upon a farm in Co- 
lumliiana county, where they resided until they 
planned to establish a home in Iowa. Then 
selling' their property in Ohio they came to 
Oskaloosa about thirty-five years ago and both 
remained residents of the county seat until 
their death, Mr. Ferrall passing away at the 
age of eighty-six years, while his wife died at 
the very advanced ag"e of ninety-one years. 

F. \\\ Ferrall of this review remained with 
his parents until twenty-two years of age. He 
was tlie eldest of ten children, eight of whom 
are now living. He pursued his education in a 
little log schoolhouse with puncheon floor, stick 
chimney and slab seats, and the branches of 
learning therein taught were few in number, 
wliile the methods of instruction had not 
reached the present degree of efficiency known 
today. At the age of twenty-two years Mr. 
Ferrall was married to Miss Addis Hopy, a 
native of Pennsylvania, and for long years 
they traveled life's journey together but Mrs. 
Ferrall died about twelve vears ag'o, when 
eighty-six years of age, Before their mar- 
riage Mr. Ferrall's father had visited Iowa and 
had purchased several different tracts of land, 
including ont piece of one hundred and sixty 
acres in Union township, Mahaska count)'. F. 
\\'. Ferrall owned a good farm in Ohio l;)ut 
after the failure of crops for two successi\-e 
years he resolved to seek a home in Iowa, hav- 
ing heard flattering reports of this state from 
a brother who lived here and was at that time 
visiting in Ohio. Mr. Ferrall therefore traded 
his farm to his father for the one hundred and 
sixty acres of land in Mahaska county and 
with his brother he started to the new home, 
accompanied by his wife and three children. 
They traveled by rail as far as Iowa City, while 
a team and wagon loaded with their household 
goods were sent overland from Iowa Citv. thus 




1'. W . I'l'.RRAIJ 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



565 



hauling their goods Uj their new home. .\. 
small brick house had been built and a prairie 
stable. The little dwelling contained but one 
nioni and the ceiling' was very low. It w^as in 
the spring of 1856 and Mr. Ferrall at once be- 
gan the task of putting in wheat and corn. He 
continuously made his home u])()n that farm 
until about ten years ago and he erected there 
;dl modern buildings and made a beautiful 
honie. while the \vil<l prairie land was trans- 
formed into rich and productive fields. In all 
of his work he was practical and progressive 
and his labors were attended with a gratifying 
measure of prosperit\-. Following the death 
of his wife he removed to New Sharon and is 
nciw making his home with his daughter, Mrs. 
^IcMain. 

Into Mr. and Mrs. Ferrall were born five 
children, all of whom are lix'ing, namely : Irene. 
the wife of Barney James, wlm resides on a 
farm in L'nion township; Elizal)eth, the wife 
of William Groves, of Union township; .\nna 
E.. the wife of Elwood Hatcher, of New Shar- 
on ; jiihn M., who is residing near Oskaloosa : 
and Mrs. Cora McMain, of New Sharon. 

Mr. Ferrall has been a re])ul)lican since the 
organization of the party and his first presi- 
dential vote was cast for William Henry Har- 
rison, after which he supported the whig party 
until its dissolution. He has nex'cr sought of- 
fice and though often urged 1)y his friends and 
neighbors to acce])t public positions lie would 
never serve save as township trustee, as school 
assessor and overseer of roads. He has been a 
fuember of the Christian churcli for sixty years 
and his life has ever Ijeen an honorable and up- 
right one. His memory goes back to an early 
period in the development of Maha.ska county. 
There were many wolves and other wild ani- 
mals when he came but the deer were scarce, 
having been dri\-en out by the cold winter of 
the ])revious year, .\lthough he had but lim- 
ited educational privileges Mr. Ferrall has al- 
ways been a great reader and likes to keep in 



touch with the pnjgre.ss of the day. He is still 
enjoying quite good health at the age of eighty- 
/line years and he finds pleasure in going down 
town in good weather to meet friends and 
neighbors there rmd s])en(l the hours in social 
con\-erse. 



ROBERT M. JONES. 

Robert M. Jones owns a farm of eight hun- 
dred and fifty-three and three-fourths acres, his 
home being on .section 6, Pleasant Grove town- 
ship. He has always resided in the middle west, 
his birth place being Hendricks county, Indiana, 
and his natal day May 12, 1843. His paternal 
grandfather was Allen Jones, his father, James 
G. Jones. The latter was bom in Kentucky, 
Februar}' 11, 1810, and after arriving at years 
of maturity wedded Elizabeth Gibbons, who 
was born in South Carolina, February 7, 1809, 
her parents being Francis and Susannah (Cox) 
(iibl^ons, both of whom were born in 1780, 
while their marriage was celebrated in iSoo. 
When a young man of about twenty-one years 
James G. Jones removed to Indiana and it was 
in that state that he was married. He followed 
farming in Hendricks county until 1857. when 
he came to Iowa, settling upon a farm of four 
hundred acres in Poweshiek county. The land 
was all new and he built the lirst dwelling upon 
the place, making his home there until his 
death, which occurred in 1876, at which time his 
kind was divided among his children. His 
w idow resided in Poweshiek county for a few 
years after her husband's death and then came 
to Pleasant Grove township. Mahaska county, 
to make her home with her son, R. M. Jones, 
with whom she lived until called to her final 
rest in January, 1893. I" their family were ten 
children: Nancy S., who became the wife of 
llamilton I'oster and died in Nevada, while 
on the way to California. Wiley N., living in 



566 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Poweshiek county; David A., who makes his 
home in the state of Washington; C. E., of 
Arkansas; Elizabeth C, the wife of James 
Wonnan, living in Kansas; Robert M. ; F. A., 
who resides in this township; Alexander A., 
who died in Oklahoma; Sarah A., who became 
the wife of Jesse Darland and died in Kansas; 
and Mary E., who married David Rice and died 
in Pleasant Grove township. 

Robert M. Jones pursued a common district- 
school education and lived with his parents until 
twenty-four years of age, when he began op- 
erating a ditching machine. He afterward re- 
turned to Indiana for the benefit of his health 
and spent about four years visiting among 
friends and relatives there. He then returned 
to Iowa and engaged in farming on forty acres 
of land given him by his father. In 1879 he 
came to Mahaska county and purchased a farm 
of one hundred and sixty acres, which he soon 
sold, however, and about 1880 bought two hun- 
dred acres where he now resides. This land had 
never been improved. Nearly all of it was 
timber and with characteristic energy he began 
clearing and ailtivating it. He built the frame 
house which he now occupies and he has since 
bought land from time to time until his pos- 
sessions aggregate eight hundred and fifty 
acres, making him one of the large and pros- 
perous landowners of the county. Much of 
his land is in pasture and he raises cattle on 
an extensive scale formerly feeding as high as 
three hundred head in a year, but not raising 
so many now. He also carries on general 
farming, owns a steam threshing outfit and does 
his own threshing and sometimes threshes for 
others. 

Mr. Jones was married November 22, 1886, 
to Miss Sarah Ann Hart, who was born in 
Kansas, June 9, 1871, a daughter of Absalom 
and Amanda (Shion) Flart, who were natives 
of Ohio and are now living in Union township, 
Mahaska county. Mr. and Mrs. Jones have 
become the parents of nine children, of whom 



Mary died at the age of five years, and Robert 
at the age of one year and three months. Pal- 
mer, Annie, Lizzie, Wesley, James, George and 
William are still at home. 

Mr. Jones is a man of strong determination 
and energy, who carries forward to successful 
completion whate\'er he undertakes. He has 
encountered difficulties and obstacles in his path 
]jut has overcome these by his resolute will and 
unfaltering energ)-, and has worked his way 
steadily upward to success. In politics he is 
a democrat but has filled no office save that of 
school director, preferring to concentrate his 
attention upon his business affairs. His ex- 
ample should ser\-e as a source of emulation and 
encouragement to others, showing what may 
be accomplished if one has the will to dare 
and to do. 



JOSHUA R. GORSUCH. 

The farming interests of Union township 
have a worthy representative in Josiiua R. Gor- 
such, who is living on section 22 and has been 
one of the extensive landowners of the county 
but has divided his property among his chil- 
dren, retaining possession, however, of one 
hundred acres of land. He has passed the 
Psalmist's span of three score years and ten, 
his birth having occurred in Harrison county, 
Ohio, September i, 183 1. His parents were 
Charles and Matilda (Roberts) Gorsuch. The 
father was bom in Maryland, about twenty-five 
miles from Baltimore, in 1797, and the mother's 
birth occurred in Ohio. The paternal grand- 
parents were also natives of Maryland and the 
family is of Irish origin. Charles Gorsuch de- 
voted his entire life to general agricultural pur- 
suits, becoming the owner of a valuable farm 
of two hundred and fifty acres in Delaware 
county, Ohio, where he successfully carried on 
general agricultural pursuits for some years. 




.Ml\. AXI) MRS. I. R. (i( >RSI"C1I. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



569 



In 1S54 his sun Jushua came to Iowa on a 
])rospecting' tour, knowing' that he had no 
cliance to get land in Oliio. Noting how cheap 
land was in Iowa he returned to the Buckeye 
state and advised ills father to sell and come 
west, so that in the spring of 1855 Charles 
Gorsucli. having disposed of his property in 
the east, drove with his family across the coun- 
try and took up his abode in Union township, 
Mahaska county. He purchased a farm near 
where his son Joshua now lives and made his 
home here until his death, which occurred in 
1873. He was a man of very limited educa- 
tion, having had no school privileges in his 
youth but he was a very successful farmer. Flis 
wife survived him for only about a year. 

Joshua R. Gorsuch was the second in order 
of birth in a family of nine children, all of 
whom came to Iowa in 1855, and one brother, 
William Gorsuch, is now living in Union town- 
ship, while a sister, Mrs. Latcham, resides in 
southern Kansas. These, with the exception of 
our suliject, are all that are now living. 

Joshua R. Gorsuch from early boyhood was 
imbued with a desire to obtain a good educa- 
tion and told his father that if he would help 
him to attend school he would not ask for any 
propert}-. The father, however, thought a 
common-school education was sufficient and 
Mr. Gorsuch of this review was permitted to at- 
tend only the district schools of the neighbor- 
In lod. He remained with his parents until after 
they came to Iowa, when he began farming on 
his (iwn account, purchasing eighty acres of 
land where he now resides. It was mostly 
timber and the remainder was covered with 
brush. His first dwelling was a small fraine 
house in which he lived until he erected his pres- 
ent large frame residence in 1866. He thought at 
first if he ever succeeded in clearing up that 
eighty acres it was all the land that he wanted, 
but as the years passed by and his financial re- 
sources increased he added to his property from 
time til time until eventualh- he became the 



owner of about seven hundred acres of valuable 
land. He has since divided this among his chil- 
dren although he still retains the title to the 
different farms and he has one hundred acres 
which will be inherited by the daughter who re- 
mains with him and is acting as his house- 
keeper. 

Mr. Gorsuch was married in May, 1857, to 
Miss Eleanor McMasters, born October 22, 
1829. a daughter of Samuel and Eleanor Mc- 
Masters. Her death occurred May 28, 1884. 
In their family were nine children : Charles Q., 
who was born June 7, 1858, and died October 
23, of the same year; S. L., who was born Au- 
gust 31, 1859, and married Lizzie Gilbert, their 
home being on a farm adjoining his father's 
property; Martha, who was bom February il, 
1861, and is the wife of Bai Latchman, of this 
township; Robert E., who was born December 
30, 1862, and is in California; Alfred N., who 
was born October 14, 1864, and died at the age 
of fourteen months; Matilda, who was born 
June 5, 1866, and is acting as her father's 
housekeeper; Irene, who was born October 19, 
1868, and is the wife of Charles Curry, of this 
township; James, who was born June 6, 1871, 
and is living in California; and Mary, who was 
born February 23, 1873, and is the wife of 
-Miles Bashaw, of this township. 

Mr. Gorsuch has been a very successful 
farmer and his success is attributable to his 
good management and his close attention to 
business. For many years he bought and fed 
cattle, making most of his money in that way. 
He has done much hard work but is still a ro- 
bust man. enjoying good health. In politics he 
was formerly a democrat but is now a repub- 
lican, nor has he ever sought office as a reward 
for party fealty. He is a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church and although he 
never joined any fraternal orders or societies 
he has advised his sons to join the Masons. 
He is a man thoroughly reliable and straight- 
forward at all times and in his business has 



570 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



manifested not only justice but consideration 
and it is safe to say that he has not an enemy 
in the world. 



THOMAS W. CALDWELL. 

In taking up the personal history of Thomas 
W. Caldwell we present to our readers the life 
record of one who is widely and favorably 
known in Mahaska county, especially in White 
Oak township. He lives on section 20, where 
he owns a valuable farm of one hundred and 
eighty-seven acres, and to the further develop- 
ment and improvement of this place he is giv- 
ing his attention with the result that he now 
has a valuable farm equipped with all modern 
conveniences. He was born in Tennessee, No- 
vember 2, 1848, and came with his parents to 
Iowa when a child of only three years, thus 
dating his residence in the county since 1851. 
His father, Franklyn Caldwell, was a native of 
Tennessee and was reared and married there. 
Miss Sarah White becoming his wife. She, 
too, was born in Tennessee, as was her father. 
Franklyn Caldwell was a farmer by occupa- 
tion and soon after his marriage removed to 
Iowa, where he entered land from the govern- 
ment. He began with eighty acres in White 
Oak township, on which not a furrow had been 
turned or an impro\'ement made. In 1853 he 
began to cultivate and develop the property, on 
which he built a log house. As the years passed 
l.;y he placed the land under the plow, and in 
the course of time gathered rich harvests. He 
afterward bought more land and at the time 
of his death owned one hundred and twenty 
acres, which had been placed under a high state 
of cultivation and therefore brought to him a 
good financial return. He passed away in 1855, 
after which his widow, with the assistance of 
her cliildren. carried on the home farm. Thev 



had a family of seven children, of whom four 
are yet li\'ing. 

Thomas W. Caldwell was reared on the old 
homestead and received but common-school 
advantages. As his age and strength permitted, 
he engaged more and more largely in the work 
of the fields, remaining with his mother 
throughout the period of his minority. The 
home property was afterward sold, and Thomas 
W. Caldwell purchased the tract of land upon 
which he now resides, his mother coming to 
live with him. In 1876 he bought one hun- 
dred and seventy-six acres of land, on which 
was a good house an<l he has since erected a 
good barn and substantial outbuildings. He has 
also planted an orchard of three acres and has 
added various modern equipments which go 
to make up a mridel farm property of the twen- 
tieth century. His mother continued to reside 
with him until her death, which occurred in 
1882, when she was seventy-three years of age. 

On the 23d of December, i860, Thomas W. 
Caldwell had been married to Miss Mary J. 
Gordon, a native of Ohio and a daughter of 
Jasper Gordon, who was also a native of that 
state, but at an early age removed to Iowa. Mr. 
Caldwell lost his first wife March 10, 1872. On 
the 3d of December, 1876, he married Mary A. 
Carpenter, a native of Indiana and a daughter 
of Asahel and Ann Carpenter, who were na- 
ti\-es of Massachusetts and removed from New 
England to Indiana, where they spent their re- 
maining days. Their daughter Mary came 
with a brother to Iowa. Unto Mr. and Mrs. 
Caldwell have been born seven children, of 
whom Frank died at the age of twelve years. 
Effa Pearl, the oldest surviving member of 
the family, is a school teacher, who, having 
taught for several years, is now assistant prin- 
cipal at Biwabik, Minnesota. Terry A. is at 
home and conducts a general mercantile store 
at White Oak, where he has a good business. 
Shirley A. is living at home and assists in car- 




T. \V. CALDWELL. 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



573 



rving on the farm. Elsie. V'ida and Opal are 
with their parents. 

In connection with the tilling of the soil Mr. 
Caldwell is engaged in raising good graded 
stock and feeds all of his grain. He has his farm 
under a good state of cultivation and has done 
some tiling. Both he and his wife attend the 
White Oak church. Politically he is an earnest 
repulilican, voting for the men and measures of 
the ]>art\' because he has firm faith in its prin- 
ciples. He has held the office of township as- 
sessor for two terms, but prefers to give his 
time to his farm and business interests rather 
than to politics. His h()me is a model one and 
e\erything aliout the place indicates his careful 
supervision and progressive methods. Almost 
his entire life has been spent in Iowa and he is 
a typical citizen of this state, imbued with the 
spirit of progress and enterprise which have 
been the dominant factors in the upbuilding of 
tlie middle west. His aitl can be counted upon 
to further progressive measures for the' general 
good, and while advancing his individual in- 
terests he has also promoted the public welfare. 



JACOB \\-.\TLANn. 



Jacob Walland, the senior partner of the firm 
of W'atland & Son. proprietors of a large and 
well conducted hardware store, is numbered 
among the representative and enter]3rising citi- 
zens of New Sharon and moreover is entitled 
to distinctive mention in this \-olume as a vet- 
eran of the Civil war. He was born in the 
town of Stavanger, Norway, on the 21st of 
January. 1844, and is a son of Jacob and Elsie 
(Thompson) Watland, both of whom were na- 
tives of the land of the midnight sun. The fa- 
ther was a farmer by occupation and hoping to 
improve his financial condition in the new world 
he came to America in 1856, settling first in 



La Salle county, Illinois, where he engaged in 
farming. In 1864 he came to Mahaska county, 
Iowa, where he purchased eighty acres of im- 
proved land, making his home thereon up to 
the time of his death, which occurred when he 
was sixty-three years of age. His wife long 
survived him and died at the age of eighty-eight 
years. In their family were eight children, of 
whom Jacob was the fcnu'th in order of birth 
and is the second of the three surx'iving, the 
others being Mrs. Martha Knudson. of New 
Sharon, and 'Osmund Watland, \\ho is an im- 
plement dealer of Sioux City, Iowa. 

Jacob Watland was a youth of twelve and a 
kalf years when he accompanied his parents to 
America. He well remembers the trip across 
the ocean, which consumed seven weeks, the 
voyage being h:ade in a sailing vessel which 
eventually dropped anchor in the harbor of 
Quebec. The parents were in limited financial 
circumstances, so that the children were early 
obliged to earn their own liveliha'id, and at the 
age of thirteen years Jacob \\'atland went to 
work by the month as a farm hand. Ijeing em- 
ployed in that way until he Ijccame a soldier. 
On the 1 8th of January, 1862, responding to his 
country's call for troops, he enlisted at Ottawa. 
Illinois, and joined the boys in blue of Company 
C. Fifty-third Illinois Infantry, for three years' 
ser\-ice. On the ex])iration of that term he re- 
enlisted to serve until the end of the war and 
was luustered out at Chicago in August, 1865. 
He i)artici])ated in several sanguinaiy but im- 
portant engagements, including the battle of 
Shiloh, where he first saw the dead Confed- 
erates ni)on the field. He was also in the bat- 
tles of Corinth, Memphis, Hatchie's Run. the 
siege of .Atlanta, and was with Sherman on the 
march to the sea. He afterward took part in 
the Carolina campaign and proceeded north- 
ward to Washington. He was never wounded 
nor taken prisoner, being verA^ fortunate in 
those respects but he became ill with t>'phoid 
fe\cr and through a mistake was numbered 



574 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



among the dead. The man who was supposed 
to be Mr. Watland was buried and his parents, 
who received the report of his death, were mak- 
ing preparation to go after his remains, when he 
returned home, much to tlieir surprise and joy. 
He was a faithful soldier, never faltering in the 
performance of any military duty and loj'ally 
followed the stars and stripes, even where the 
rebel hail fell thickest. 

When the war was over Mr. Watland 
worked for three years at the carpenter's trade 
in Chicago and then came to Iowa, where he 
operated his father's farm for a year. About 
that time he was married on the 24tli of De- 
cember, 1870, to Miss Bertha Munson, who was 
born in Norway in March, 1850. The young 
couple removed to Shelby county, Iowa, where 
Mr. Watland purchased one hundred and 
twenty acres of wild land, which he improved 
and cultivated, making his home thereon for 
thirteen years. During that time he developed 
an excellent farm and was classed with the rep- 
resentative agriculturists of his community, but 
desiring to give his attention to commercial 
rather than agricultural pursuits, he closed out 
his business interests there and came to New 
Sharon, where he embarked in the hardware 
trade under the finn name of Radliff, Watland 
& Company. That firm continued in business 
until 1890, when a change in the partnership 
occurred and the name of Watland & Freligh 
was assumed. Six years later the firm became 
Watland & Son and under this style the busi- 
ness has since been carried on with gratifying 
success. They carr\- a complete line of shelf 
and heav'}- hardware, and also tools and like- 
wise sell farm implements. There is only one 
other hardware store in the town, and they 



have a veiy good trade, their business methods 
commending them to the support and confidence 
of all. In recognition of his services in the 
Civil war Mr. Watland drew a soldier's claim 
to one hundred and sixty acres of land in Okla- 
homa, and went there to prove it up. He also 
bought another tract of one hundred and sixty 
acres, making a half section of land which some 
day will be very valuable. He owns his store 
building in New Sharon and also has a nice 
home here. 

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Watland have been bom 
seven children, but Elsie E., the eldest, died 
at the age of two years. The others are : J. 
A., who is engaged in business with his father, 
and he married Mollie Whiteman; Elsie E., the 
wife of Henry Stuck, cashier of the Traders 
Bank, at Vail, Iowa; Anna, the wife of Charles 
Vail, also residing at Vail, Iowa; Maynard F., 
who wedded Fay Williams; Elmer G., at home; 
and William P., who is employed in the store 
of Marshall Field & Company, at Chicago. 

Mr. Watland has always been a republican 
since becoming an American citizen. He served 
as treasurer of his school district for six years, 
and as a member of the village council for three 
years, and his co-operation in community in- 
terests has been of a beneficial and practical na- 
ture. He belongs to Henry C. Leighton post. 
No. 199, G. A. R., in which he is now serving 
as quartermaster, and he and his family are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
All that tends to promote material, intellectual 
and moral progress receives his endorsement 
and support, and he is today an honored veteran 
of the Civil war and one of the leading repre- 
sentatives of the Norwegian-American element 
in our citizenship. 



INDEX 



HISTORY OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Introduction. 

Chapter I — First Iowa Explor- 
ers 7 

Chapter II— First White Settlers 

in Iowa 10 

Chapter III — Land Deals with 

the Indians 12 

Chapter IV — Some Early Mahas- 
ka Settlers 15 

Chapter V— Pioneer Life 19 

Chapter VI — Claim Associa- 
tions 21 

CHAPTER VTI— Chief Mahaska 24 
Chapter VIII — Organization of 

Mahaska County 27 

Chapter IX — Early Reminiscen- 
ces 30 

Chapter X— Early Oskaloosa... 33 
Chapter XI — Mahaska Pioneers. 39 

Chapter XII— Kish-ke-kosh 42 

Chapter XIII— Holland in Ma- 
haska County 45 



Chapter XIV— Flood Year— 1851 48 

Chapter XV — Mahaska County 
Mills 52 

Chapter XVI — Pioneer Days in 
Mahaska County 56 

Chapter XVII — Mahaska Coun- 
ty's First Schools 60 

Chapter XVIII — Pioneer Doctors 63 

Chapter XIX — Adams, Black Oak 
and Cedar Townships 66 

Chapter XX — East Des Moines 
Township 69 

Chapter XXI— Garfield and Har- 
rison Townships 74 

Chapter XXII — Jefferson, Lin- 
coln. Madison and Monroe 
Townships 77 

Chapter XXIIl — Pleasant Grove, 
Prairie and Richland Town- 
ships 80 

Chapter XXIV— Scott, Spring 
Creek, Union, West Des 



Moines and White Oak Town- 
ships 83 

Chapter XXV — Missionaries — 
Early Ox Roasts 88 

Chapter XXVI— War Period 93 

Chapter XXVII— War Period 
(continued) 96 

Chapter XXVIII — First Things 
in Mahaska County 99 

Chapter XXIX — Oskaloosa Cem- 
eteries 102 

Chapter XXX— Railroads of Ma- 
haska County 105 

Chapter XXXI— Colleges 108 

Chapter XXXII— County Press.. 112 

Chapter XXXIII — O skaloosa 
Past and Present 115 

Chapter XXXIV— Two Useful 
Organizations 119 

Chapter XXXV — Int eresting 
Facts Gathered from Old 
County Records 122 



BIOGR APHIC AL. 



Abbott, Dr. C. A 132 

Akerman, G. W 352 

Akerman, Harmon 401 

Albertson, J. C 50S 

Allen Brothers 456 

Anderson. .lohn 539 

Anderson. W. C 256 

Appel. George B 384 

Arnold. David 311 

Arnold. .Tohn 232 

Augustine, A. .1 332 

Bacon. L. M 163 

Baer. .Tohn R 137 

Barbour. G. H 491 

Barnhouse, C. L 293 

Barrowman. Richard 389 

Bartlett. A. J 498 

Bass, Robert 282 

Baxter. R. W 541 

Beach. T. C 292 

Beal. H. A 231 

Beal. Nicholas 544 

Beck. F. R 351 

Bertsch, G. P 178 

Biggs, Meeker 370 



Blanchard, L. C 131 

Blattner. Frederick 472 

Bolton, J. B 197 

Briggs. Thomas 238 

Brown. Frank 477 

Brown, Solomon 337 

Brown. William H 553 

Browneller. A 516 

Bullers, William 299 

Burdick, A. W 186 

Burnside. R. H 274 

Burnside. William 248 

Burton. Charles J 496 

Busby, Elijah 212 

Busby, John R 141 

Byers, John D 420 

Caldwell, A. N 166 

Caldwell, T. W 570 

Carlon, G. H 286 

Carver, Dr. H. E 153 

Chew. B. W 315 

Childress, Dr. Moses 209 

Comstock, A. J 426 

Conaway, Dr. H. 504 

Cook, Sarah A 326 



Cook, S. S 466 

Cooper, Albert 192 

Corlett, L. E 171 

Corns. Alonzo 389 

Crookham. Horace 377 

Ci-ookham. J. A. L 318 

Crozier, M. W 510 

Cunningham. W. H 216 

Davis, R. K 484 

Deck. U. G 134 

Devitt. J. A 140 

Dickson. R. H 485 

Dodds. J. P 405 

Dye. R. W 198 

Eastburn, C. A 344 

Eby, W. W 300 

Edris, Edward 250 

Ellis, O. S 357 

Else. F. W 254 

Engle. G. S 435 

Evans, W. E 480 

Faulkner, Allen 413 

Ferguson, E. H 382 



576 



PAST AND PRESENT OF MAHASKA COUNTY. 



Ferrall, P. W 562 

Fisher, James 519 

Fleming, Charles 552 

Fleming, Orin 502 

Fleming, Cornelius 561 

Fleming, R. L 530 

Garner, Filmore 455 

Gibbs, E. H 535 

Gilchrist, M. D 236 

Glasscock, H. H 36S 

Gleason, H. W 143 

Gorsuch, J. R 566 

Grace, Philip 395 

Guthrie, J. D 411 

Hambleton, A. F. N 390 

Hamilton, V. E 142 

Hanna, J. C 270 

Harbour, H. F 396 

Harper, Jacob 537 

Harper, W. F 538 

Harter, A. J 490 

Hatcher, Elwood 145 

Hayes, J. S 169 

Heflge, Manoah 342 

Hedge, O. P 418 

Hess, Samuel 358 

Hiatt, John P 230 

Hillis, Dr. W. G. 461 

Hoffman, Dr. D. A 264 

Hoffmann. Phil 157 

Hoffman, Dr. R. C 275 

Hoffmann, C. V 211 

Homer. Dr. H. C 262 

Hook, Dr. N. R 215 

Hoover, J. R 474 

Hoover, W. A 376 

Hoover, W. N 242 

Hull. Daniel 546 

Irwin, John W 221 

James, Luke 471 

Jamison, J. R 336 

Jarvis. Bruce 349 

Jarvis, Dr. W. M 269 

Jewell, A. J .• 303 

Johnson, Irving C 195 

Johnson, J. K 138 

Jones. F. A 545 

Jones, J. W 497 

Jones, R. M 565 

Jones, W. G 466 

Kalbach, George 530 

Kalbach, Isaac 526 

Kalbach, John A 530 

Kalbach, W. H 133 

Keating, W. H 438 

Kissick, Robert 190 

Kissick, W. L 237 



Kisor, Gary M 556 

Kisor, David 306 

Lofland, C. E 549 

Loring, F. H 362 

McCurdy. O. C 224 

McCurdy, W. G 3SS 

McDowell, W. C 331 

McManus, F. P 196 

McMillen, Listen 135 

McNeill, J. F 154 

McNeill, W. A 146 

Martin, W. T 1S4 

Masteller, J. C 263 

Mickle. William 419 

Miller. Charles 406 

Minard, W. H 408 

Mobley, Alonzo 154 

Moore, R. W 338 

Moore, W. A 369 

Morrish, Tom 204 

Nash, Frank T 449 

Nelson, J. L 441 

Newell, R. T 329 

Noel, James 560 

Noel, O. n 561 

Norris, A. D 316 

Norris. P. L 350 

Norris, Shadraoh 341 

Norton, A. P 243 

Nugent, W. 224 

Oldham, R. J 267 

Oppenheimer. J. G 430 

Owens, E. H 402 

Parker, Dr. F. F 170 

Patterson, J. G 253 

Perry, Edwin 305 

Perry, John H 281 

Phillippe, E. W 217 

Phillips, Dr. J. H 158 

Phillips, P. W 423 

Porter, CM 185 

Preston. B. W 160 

Preston, F. A 183 

Prichett. Edward 223 

Prine, George S 172 

Pugh, J. M 249 

Ramsay, G. H 294 

Randell, C. D ' 364 

Randell, S. A 368 

Reynolds, S. V 312 

Rice, William 554 

Ridpath, T. M 532 

Riegel, Daniel 206 

Riggs, Tracy 276 



Rinehart, J. A 383 

Roberts, Dr. J. G 280 

Rogers, D. T 450 

Rosebrook, L. R 297 

Rosecrans, H. S 247 

Rosenberger, Absalom 165 

Ryan, Absalom 4S6 

Sanders, J. L 287 

Sarbaugli, Dr. W. H 543 

Schee, O. F 509 

Scoles, J. C 210 

Seevers, W. H 255 

Sellers, J. C 180 

Shafer, F. B 170 

Shannon. S. B 203 

Shaw, O. R 496 

Sherman, L. H 454 

Siebel, John 478 

Sinclair, S. B 492 

Smith. A. L 400 

Smith, L. E 317 

Smith, T. K 310 

Somerville, J. W 205 

Sopher, W. P 462 

Stuart, J. A 325 

Thomas, Robert 414 

Timbrel. J. T 522 

Todd, Dr. R. H 503 

Towns, L. M 288 

Triplett, C. J 425 

Triplett, M. F 460 

Troy, J. W 309 

Unsicker, D. K 356 

Vail. H. J 46S 

Votaw, M. E 542 

Walling, C. S 235 

Warner, John H 436 

Watland, Dr. Clarence 179 

Watland, Jacob 573 

Wehrle, W. T 432 

Welch, F. G 218 

West, C. B 189 

White. John P 298 

Whitehill, D. E 448 

Wilkinson. J. P 521 

Williams. J. C 244 

Willhoit, W. J 378 

Wilson, Mrs. A. S 292 

Wimer, Silvester 514 

Winder, W. W 444 

Wright, Dr. W. W 164 

Wright, W. W 479 

Yeoman, J. D 454