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Full text of "Biographical history of Pottawattamie County, Iowa. Containing portraits of all the presidents of the United States, with accompanying biographies ... history of Iowa, with ... biographies of the governors ... and engravings of prominent citizens of Pottawattamie County, with personal histories of many of the early settlers and leading families .."

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Containing Portraits of all the Presidents of the United States, with accompanying 

Biographies of each-, a Condensed History of Iowa, with Portraits and 

Biographies of the Governors of the State; and Engravings 

of Prominent Citizens of Pottawattamie County, with 

Personal Histories of many of the Early 

Settlers and Leading Families. 



Biography is the only true history." — Emerson. 






THE LEWIS PUBLISHING COMPANY 

1891. 

- • 



r 



THE NEW YORK 
PUBLIC LIBRARY 

453425 A 

AS TOR, LENOX AND 

TILDEN FOUNDATIONS 

H 1929 L 




PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED 
STATES. 

George Washington 

John Adams 14 

Thomas Jefferson 20 

James Madison 26 

James Monroe 32 

John Quincy Adams 38 

Andrew Jackson 47 

Martin Van Buren 52 

William Henry Harrison 56 

John Tyler 60 

James K. Polk 64 

Zachary Taylor 68 

Millard Fillmore 72 

Franklin Pierce 76 

James Buchanan 80 

Abraham Lincoln 84 

Andrew Johnson 93 

Ulysses S. Grant 96 

Rutherford B. Hayes 102 



James A. Garfield 109 

Chester A. Arthur 113 

Grover Cleveland 117 

Benjamin Harrison 120 

HISTORY OF IOWA. 

Aboriginal 183 

( 'aucasian 124 

Pioneer Life 133 

Louisiana Territory 137 

Iowa Territory 139 

State Organization and Subse- 
quent History 141 

Patriotism 146 

Iowa Since the War 151 

State Institutions 151 

Educational 154 

Statistical 157 

Physical Features 158 

Geology 158 

C'l imate 163 



Census of Iowa 164 

Territorial officers 104 

State Officers 165 

GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 

Robert Lucas 171 

John Chambers 173 

James Clarke ....175 

Ansel Briggs 179 

Stephen Hempstead 183 

James W. Grimes 187 

Ralph P. Lowe 191 

Samuel J. Kirkwood 195 

William M. Stone 199 

Samuel Merrill 203 

Cyrus C. Carpenter 207 

Joshua G. Newbold 211 

John H. Gear 215 

Buren R. 'Sherman 219 

William Larrabee 223 

Horace Boies 223 



OS- 



-*-• sSi 



HISTORY OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY, 

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 



Abbott, E.J 539 

Abel, Joseph 622 

Ackels, Paul 689 

Acker, W. C 694 

Agnew, S. G 599 

Afdridge, 11. L 267 

Alexander, C 376 

Allee, F. M 388 

Allen, A. L 540 

Alleusworlh, J. P 246 

Alston, Joshua 669 

Altmannsperger, C. A 632 

Anderson, Andrew 590 

Avery, A. E 535 

Axtell.J.M 364 

Axtell, L. S 317 

Aylesworth, E. E 688 



Bair, I. F 408 

Baldwin, Caleb 231 

Baldwin, J. N 279 

Baldwin, J. T 443 

Ball, W. I) 679 

Barnett, E. S 412 

Barstow, J. M 583 

Barstow, Samuel 245 

Barton, J.J 633 

Barton, Reuben 417 

Battin, Vincent 434 

Beck, C. H 258 

Beezley, Paul 562 

Beezley, William 666 

Bell & Berlinehof 485 

Bellinger, F. P. & M. J 486 

Bevan, S. E 275 



Beyer, Win 567 

Bisbee, A. C 286 

Bixby, B. F 530 

Blain, David 594 

Blakely, John 333 

Blanchard, W. A 451 

Bloom, J. C 155 

Bloomer, Amelia 242 

Bloomer, D. C 241 

Boiler, Cyrus 335 

Boiler, James 259 

Bolton, C. H 578 

Bolton, George 299 

Bolton, J. M. 439 

Book, John 466 

Boren, I. A 417 

Boren, J. B 508 



Iv 



CONTENTS. 



Boruff, I). W 302 

Borutl", J. C 508 

Bosen, C 408 

Hosted, August 442 

Boulden, J. P 306 

Boulden, J. R 382 

Bowman, Thomas. 385 

Braden, Peier 528 

Bradley, J. G 179 

Bray, Theodore 650 

Breneman, N E 010 

Briggs, I). M 509 

Brown, A. 1 004 

Brown, 0. II 898 

Brown, Wm 348 

Brown, Wm. K 437 

Bryant, T. G 554 

Bullis, Allen 51*0 

Bunker. W. W 820 

Bunnell, J. A 682 

Burckhalter, DA 574 

Burckhalter, J. W 852 

Bnrke, Finley 447 

Burke, F. A 446 

Burke, J. P 703 

Burnett, G. V 500 

By bee, Alfred 064 

Cady.T.J 371 

Campbell, Lyman 881 

Campbell, Iiasmus 882 

Carley, E. B 591 

I larson, George 475 

Carson, A. S 710 

Carter, I G 692 

Casady, .1 P 431 

Casady, T. E 439 

Cater, K. II 834 

Chambers, II. J 458 

Champ, G. II 477 

Chaney, C. II 595 

Chaney, Win L 481 

Charles, Wm 345 

Cheney, M.J 506 

Chicago Lumber Co 381 

Citizens' Bank of Oakland 200 

City Holler Mills 838 

Clark, I). B 311 

Clark, F. C 487 

Clark, John 568 

Clark, J. II. E :;i 'l 

Clayton, B. F 458 

l'i»' I) A 570 

Cole, W.T 651 

Coleman, Frank 504 

Coleman. W. .1 611 

Collaiil. Frank 818 

Collins, N. 8 576 

Coiner, S. U 628 

Confarr, W N ••■ -541 

Conklin, .1 F 658 

Consigny, E. A 623 

Converse, Win 500 

Cook. II. C 652 

Co.,1, John 344 

Coons, .1 M 815 

Cooper, A. 1' 183 

Cooper, W. A... 541 

Copeland, T N 816 

Council Bluffs Limber Co 031 



Craft, W. P 505 

Crippen C. M 379 

Croghan, J. M 236 

Cuppy, Win. B 035 

Currie, John, Jr 683 

Currie, Hubert 081 

Dailey, D. B 467 

Davis, Fred 051 

Davis, J. C 380 

Davis, J. H 691 

Dean,W..rren 250 

Dean, W. L 254 

Dellait, F. A 527 

Dentler, B. B 514 

Devol, P. C 327 

Devol, David 327 

DeWilt, W 309 

Dial, W. II 655 

Dingmau, J B 458 

Dohany, John 328 

Doner, II. A 616 

Duner, Jacob 377 

Doner, I. E 402 

Dool, Thomas 580 

Dorton, J. M 371 

Dowty, Joseph 612 

Dunkle, David 347 

Dunn, S. T 581 

Durham, W. E 670 

Dye Bros, it Co 668 

Dye, G. S 543 

Earnest, Solomon 2411 

Edie, Wm. S 270 

Ellis, F. M. & Co 052 

Ellis, MP 037 

Elswick, J. C 374 

Evans, John .653 

Evans, Joseph 0*2 

Evans, T. J 471 

Everett, Horace 519 

Everett, Leonard 615 

Everson, J. W 672 

Exchange Bank 702 

Fay, Wooster 

Ferguson, M. W 672 

Flint. John 518 

Flood. Thomas 676 

Ford, Fred 270 

Forsyth, Mrs. S 422 

Foster, C. P 161 

Foster, J. B 057 

Foster, S. II 465 

Foxlev, A. H 492 

Frank". J. A 861 

Frazter, Allied 662 

Freeman B. F 260 

Frisbie, Ml! 40 4 

Frizzell. A. L 200 

Fii/./.ell, J. O 502 

Fuller, A E 584 

Gardner, I.N 

Garner, F G 822 

Garner, Wm 288 

Gault, .ID I5H 

Caul!. T 280 



Gerlz, II. P 695 

Gittens, Henry 854 

Glynn, A 409 

Godfrey, C 645 

Gordon, <> W 429 

Gorrell, J. V 593 

Goudie, M. C 518 

Gould, J. II 644 

Graff, w 11 555 

Graham, (). W 414 

Grass, F 489 

Graybill.H 481 

Graybill, (J. II 602 

Green, Charles 511 

Green, John 686 

Green, Norman 882 

Gregg, J. II 280 

Gress, Beruhard 598 

Groneweg, Win 449 

Croat, Alonzo 547 

G Hi liar, Francis 505 

Guittar, TheoJore 564 

Gustiu, Wm 288 

Haines, David 399 

Hall, A. J 531 

Hamilton, G.W 508 

Hammer, Lewis 649 

Hanchett, A. P 379 

Hansen, Isaac 810 

Harbert, B. F 315 

Harcourt.B 307 

Hardenbergb, Otis 532 

Hardin, \W D 455 

Harding, B. G 659 

Hardin-, John 680 

Hail, C. M 305 

llaiie, M. E 568 

Harris, A r ' s '' 

Hartwell, T. J 656 

Hats well, L. A 657 

Ha/.leton, A.S 308 

Headlee, Joseph 865 

Heagney, C. F 391 

Heileman, Wm 885 

Hell man, Andrew 4ii0 

Hendricks, A. I ".07 

Hendricks, I. F MM 

Henry, J. H 7u2 

HetZel. F. G 616 

Hewitt, G. W 415 

Hicks, G. W 704 

Hitchcock, F.G 479 

Hoffmayer, J. C :::;s 

Holmes, G. A 375 

Hoogewoning, A 480 

Hooker, J. D 360 

Hoops, Isaac 602 

Horner, Albert 592 

Hose Co. No, 8 179 

llouhkiss, 0.0 628 

Bough, II. C 618 

Houyh, J. R 321 

Hough, Morris 653 

Hough, Warren 890 

Houghton, F. W 687 

Hul'Ih's. Martin 469 

Huff, A. M 690 

llulchinsi n. A A 668 



CONTENTS. 



Ingram, Robert 073 

Irwin, H. T 392 

Jack, H.B GOG 

Jameson Bros 387 

Jameson, W.J 007 

Jefferson, T. II 835 

Johns, T.J 661 

Johannsen, J. B 698 

Johnson, A. W 329 

Johnson, P. T. C 70S 

Jones, J. G 325 

Jones, L. G 330 

Jones, O. W 34!) 

Jones, K. P 309 

Jones, T.J 440 

Judd, C. B 324 

Kaven, August 611 

Keast, Thomas 704 

Keller, A. H 322 

Kenedy, Alex . r )4fl 

Kerney, Lawrence 295 

Kerney, Perry 491 

Kiel Stables 651 

Killion, I. C G40 

Killion, J. A 490 

Kill pack, James 304 

Kimball, Caleb 3G8 

Kimball, J. F 41(5 

Kincaid, A. E 566 

Kinnehan, L 474 

Kirby, Joseph 515 

Kirkwooil, Robert 478 

Kleppinger, W. C 490 

Knepher, W. II 630 

Knotls, Joseph 493 

Knotls, L. G 494 

Kulin, W. H 685 

Lacey, T. B 434 

Lacy, Patrick 412 

Lainson, A. T 530 

Lange, J. C 474 

Larson, C. A 389 

Lathan, Edmond 675 

Lebeck, A 099 

Leland, H. C 592 

Leland, L. S 594 

Leonard, Thomas 288 

Lerette N 511 

Leslie, P. N 558 

Levin, P. R 644 

Lewis, F. M 348 

Lewis, Jackson 510 

Lewis, Nelson 252 

Lewis, Win 512 

Lewis, Wm 681 

Livingston, James 579 

Lodge, O. P 535 

London Bros 370 

Long, Wm. C 239 

Loudenheck, J. A 482 

Lowe, H. G 350 

MacConnell, S. P 381 

MacKay, T. J 532 

Mackland, Elizabeth, 282 

Macrae, Donald 271 

Manhattan, The 492 



Martin, Andrew 330 

Martin, I. L 402 

Martin, Martha - 531 

Martin, W.J 041 

Maxfield, Wm. II 380 

Maxwell, W. E 595 

Mayue, W. S 285 

McDonald, J. II 561 

McDonald, Wm 590 

McFall, S. T 041 

McGee, II. G 480 

McGee, J. E. F 407 

McGinuis, Joseph 540 

McKenzie, K 577 

McKeown, Wm 350 

McMaster, D. B 336 

McMenomy, B. P 247 

McMillen, W. A 483 

McMullen, C. E 234 

McPherron, F. T 428 

McReynolds, L 357 

Merriam, F 237 

Meneray, F. W 454 

Metcall, George 453 

Mickelwait it Young 340 

Mikesill, J. W 630 

Miller, J. W 400 

Miller, Robert 499 

Minahan.M 373 

Mitchell, A. 1 340 

Montgomery, H 308 

Montgomery, P. J 372 

Morris, F 274 

Morrison, S. . . v 480 

Mulholland, J.'P 396 

Muller, Julius 428 

Murchison, J. K 552 

Murphy, J. A 503 

Murray, James 634 

Mynster, 0. O 319 

Mynster, W. A 087 

Nellis, L. D 393 

Nicholas, A. B 378 

Nixon, Wm 289 

Nordyke, Albert 324 

Nusum, J. W 444 

O'Brien, N 492 

Officer, Thomas 495 

Olds, James 413 

Olney, J. J 243 

Orr, William 675 

Osborn, G. H 084 

Osier, Alex 320 

Owens, F. M 684 

Packard, W. S 557 

Painter, Lewis 490 

Palmer, M 695 

Parish, E 292 

Parker, D. K 441 

Parker, Henry 404 

Parker, Joseph 488 

Passmore, S. B 251 

Pearce, A. W 283 

Peck, G. W G60 

Perkins, A. B 674 

Peters, Wm 290 

Peterson, E. W 457 



Peterson, II II 558 

Peterson, M. P 312 

Phillips, John M 346 

Pieper, Henry 546 

Pierce, O. W 254 

Pilling, T. A 450 

Pinney, C. II 272 

Plank, M. V 575 

Pleak, D. S 329 

Plumb, George 246 

Plumer, H. P 654 

Plummer, A 608 

Plunket, W. F 678 

Poland, G. W 600 

Potter, L. F 260 

Powell, Isaac 700 

Pratt, C. F 670 

Prentice, A. R 403 

Price, C. S 577 

Pusey, W. II. M 487 

Putnam, A. D 277 

Quick, Wm 646 

Quick, W. S 677 

Rainbow, James 596 

Randall, A. A 550 

Rankin, S. L 298 

Read, S. R 372 

Reed, J. 1 597 

Reed, J. R 609 

Reel, C. D 301 

Keichart, E 602 

Reimer, Max 515 

Reynolds, C 291 

Reynolds, Simon 341 

Reynolds, S. W 520 

Rishton, Henry 362 

Riss, F. X 275 

Ritter, Adam 451 

Robbins, T. M 313 

Robertson, .1.0 305 

Robinson, OS 572 

Robinson, James 323 

Rock, Wm V 517 

Rodenbough, J. j 278 

Rodwell, John 281 

Rohrer, M. F 255 

Rollins, J. Q 248 

Roop, M. S 343 

Roosa, Isaiah 679 

Boss, L. W 351 

Rush, J. W 452 

Rust, S. S 260 

Saint, James 643 

Sanderson, Charles 480 

Sapp, W. F 423 

Sarr, II. M 401 

Schlicht, John 480 

Schmoock, A. 362 

Schultz,J. II 363 

Scott, G. W 269 

Seward, L. D 350 

Seybert, P. T 711 

Sheldon, L 470 

Sherraden, C. H 706 

Shinn, Frank 603 

Sidener, Wm 653 

Sides, John 614 

Siedentopf, Wm 567 



\i 



- "AT AW 7 s 



Sims, Jacob 262 

Srvers,J.H 396 

Smart, G. F C 560 

Smith, E. C 268 

Smith, J. F 605 

Smith, Peter 121 

Smith, W. I 249 

Snyder, C. W 823 

Snyder, Wesley 688 

Spetmao, P. W 421 

Spetmari, II. II 528 

B ie, Win 521 

Stephens, S. 1 664 

Stephenson, A. J 1 15 

Stevenson, Henry 631 

Stevenson, Wm 525 

St. Francis Xavier Church 2 17 

Slidham, Wm 647 

Stillings, Origan 558 

Stoker, Margaret ; ! s "' 

Stone, Albert 854 

Stone, ('. E 100 

Strong, S. (' 571 

Straub, Christian 7(11 

Stuhr, .1. II. C 488 

Stnhr, .1. P 485 

Sullivan & Virtue 668 

Sylvester, J. A 420 

Taylor, .1. A 502 

Taylor, W. II 524 

Templeton, J. L 649 

Terry, II. A 472 

Thayer, John 483 

Thomas, P. s 389 

Thomas, Zeph 640 

Thompson, Joseph :ms 

Throp, W. 1 673 

Tilton, Preston 705 

Timberraan, Isaiah en; 

Tinley, Emmet 392 

Tipton,.!. 6 331 

Tittswortb, \V. (i 584 

Tompkin, Wm 667 

Tostevin, Thomas -1111) 

Treynor, I. M 303 

Underwood, s. <; 619 

UUerback, W. C 384 



Vallier, Alex 264 

Van, S. F 516 

Van, W. H 488 

Van Brunt, II. II 383 

Vandruff, C II 014 

Voorhis, Cornelius 711 

Wadsworlh, s. B 287 

Waldo, Mary A (09 

Walker, K. F 555 

Ware, Mrs. E 897 

Ware, W. II 867 

Waterman, E.T 108 

Way, W. .1 627 

Weak, A. I, 481 

Weaver, .1. P. F 843 

Weeks. F. G 887 

Wells, Lucius 551 

Wells, Win. S im 

West, II. S 116 

Westcolt, J. II 411 

Western Lumber & Supply Co. .649 

Wheeler. Wm. .1 358 

While, R. M 548 

Whitney, Wm 268 

Wickham, James .648 

Wickham, O. P 642 

Wicks, N. 11 479 

Wilding, David 639 

Williams, J. E 300 

Williams, N. W 538 

Williams, W.S 867 

Wilson, II. M 0.18 

Wilson, James 500 

Winans, J. II 6W 

Winchester, 11 542 

Wind, P. II ".v.i 

Winterstein, Wm 4117 

Wolf, J. A - r ,.-,2 

Wood, Alex. 539 

Wood, E. A 545 

Woodbury, E. 1 406 

Wright, Fred 817 

Wright, George 81 1 

Wright. G.F. 295 

Wyland, J. M 569 

Wyman, A. W 621 



Young, J. F., Jr 651 

Young, J. N (i!i7 

Young, T. J 340 

Young, W.0 529 

Zahner, Jacob 271 

ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Baldwin, Caleb 281 

Baldwin, J. N 270 

Barstow.J. H 

Bloomer, Amelia 241 

Bloomer, 1). C 241 

Bowman. Thomas 385 

Burke, Finley . . .» 1 17 

Casady, J. P Ml 

Casa.lv, T.E 189 

Clark, I). B :ill 

Clark, Eleanor :'. II 

Clark, J. H. E 391 

Devol, P. 3 7 

Evans, T.J 171 

Everett, Horace 519 

Everett, Leonard 615 

Grand Hotel 177 

Haines, David 399 

Hewitt, George W 415 

Holmes, (1. A :!75 

Lodge, O. F 585 

M acrae, Donald 271 

McGee.J. E. F 407 

McMenomy, B. P 217 

Murphy, J. A !>0:5 

Mynster, C. 0. and Mrs. M :'.l!i 

Officer, Thomas 4!C> 

Pusey, W. H. M 4S7 

Robrer, M. F ..255 

Ross, L. W 351 

Sapp, W. P ...428 

Smith, E. C 208 

Treynor, I. M 308 

Van Brunt, II. II 38-t 

Wadsworlh, S. 1! 887 

Ware, W. II 867 

Weaver, J. P. F :;4:t 

Wells, Lucius 651 

Wind, P. II 359 

Wright, G. F 295 




THE NEW YORK 
'PUBLIC LIBRARY 



- 
— 



GEORGE WASHINGTON. 



-l-^EEL.^-^t.- l-.,^ _>k © Bcl<ryt^)l bg(g) ■4,_^_^_^ _ ? |. „^_^» l-_c^>.«n'|g is-3§!l 





EORGE WASHING- 
TON, the "Father of 
his Country" and its 
first President, 1789— 
'97, was born Febru- 
ary 22, 1732, in Wash- 
ington Parish, West- 
moreland Count y, Virginia. 
His father, Augustine Wash- 
ington, first married Jane But- 
f^l^S^j ' er ' wno bore mm ' our chil- 
^'wj$i clren - and March 6, 1730, he 
married Mary Ball. Of six 
children by his second mar- 
riage, George was the eldest, 
the others being Betty, Samuel, John, Au- 
gustine, Charles and Mildred, of whom the 
youngest died in infancy. Little is known 
of the early years of Washington, beyond 
the fact that the house in which he was 
born was burned during his early child- 
hood, and that "his father thereupon moved 
to another farm, inherited from his paternal 
ancestors, situated in Stafford County, on 
the north bank of the Rappahannock, where 
he acted as agent of the Principio Iron 
Works in the immediate vicinity, and died 
there in 1743. 

From earliest childhood George devel- 
oped a noble character. He had a vigorous 
constitution, a fine form, and great bodily 
strength. His education was somewhat de- 



fective, being- confined to the elementary 
branches taught him by his mother and at 
a neighboring school. He developed, how- 
ever, a fondness for mathematics, and en- 
joyed in that branch the instructions of a 
private teacher. On leaving school he re- 
sided for some time at Mount Vernon with 
his half brother, Lawrence, who acted as 
his guardian, and who had married adaugh- 
ter of his neighbor at Belvoir on the Poto- 
mac, the wealthy William Fairfax, for some 
time president of the executive council of 
the colony. Both Fairfax and his son-in-law, 
Lawrence Washington, had served with dis- 
tinction in 1740 as officers of an American 
battalion at the siege of Carthagena, and 
were friends and correspondents of Admiral 
Vernon, for whom the latter's residence on 
the Potomac has been named. George's 
inclinations were for a similar career, and a 
midshipman's warrant was procured for 
him, probably through the influence of the 
Admiral ; but through the opposition of his 
mother the project was abandoned. The 
family connection with the Fairfaxes, how- 
ever, opened another career for the young 
man, who, at the age of sixteen, was ap- 
pointed surveyor to the immense estates of 
the eccentric Lord Fairfax, who was then 
on a visit at Belvoir, and who shortly after- 
ward established his baronial residence at 
Grcenway Court, in the Shenandoah Valley. 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES 



Three years were passed by young Wash- 
ington in a rough frontier life, gaining ex- 
perience which afterward proved very es- 
sential tn him. 

In 1751, when the Virginia militia were 
put under training with a view to active 
service against France, Washington, though 
only nineteen years of age, was appointed 
Adjutant with the rank of Major. In Sep- 
tember of that year the failing health of 
Lawrence Washington rendered it neces- 
sary for him to seek a warmer climate, and 
Gorge accompanied him in a voyage to 
Ba? ladoes. They returned early in 1752, 
and Lawrence shortly afterward died, leav- 
ing \\.< large property to an infant daughter. 
In his will George was named one of the 
executors and as eventual heir to Mount 
Vernon, and by the death oi the infant niece 
s 1 succeeded to that estate-. 

On the arrival of Robert Dinwiddie as 
Lieutenant-Governor of Virginia in 1752 
the militia was reorganized, and tin- prov- 
ini e divided into four districts. Washing- 
ton was commissioned by Dinwiddie Adju- 
tant-General of the Northern District in 
17; ;, and in November of that year a most 
important as well as hazardous mission was 
assigned him. This was to proceed to the 
Canadian posts recently established on 
French Creek, near Lake Erie, to demand 
in the name of the King of England the 
withdrawal of the French from a territory 
claimed by Virginia. This enterprise had 
been declined by more than one officer, 
since it involved a journey through an ex- 
tensive and almost unexplored wilderness 
in the occupancy of savage Indian tribes, 
either hostile to the English, or of doubtful 
attachment. Major Washington, however, 
ted the commission with alacrity ; and. 
npanied by Captain Cist, lie reached 
Fort Le Bceul on French Creek, delivered 
iiis dispatches and received reply, which, of 
Course, was a polite refusal to surrender the 
posts. This reply was of such a character 



as to induce the Assembly of Virginia to 
authorize the executive to raise a regiment 
of 300 men for the purpose of maintaining 
the asserted rights of the British crown 
over the territory claimed. As Washing- 
ton declined to be a candidate for that post, 
the command of this regiment was given to 
Colonel Joshua Fry, and Major Washing- 
ton, at his own request, was commissioned 
Lieutenant-Colonel. On the march to Ohio, 
news was received that a party previously 
sent to build a fort at the confluence of the 
Monongahela with the Ohio had been 
driven back by a considerable French force, 
which had completed the work there be- 
gun, and named it Fort Duquesnc, in honor 
of the Marquis Duquesnc, then Governor 
of Canada. This was the beginning of the 
great " French and Indian war," which con- 
t inued seven years. On the death of Colonel 
Fry, Washington succeeded to the com- 
mand of the regiment, and so well did he 
fulfill his trust that the Virginia Assembly 
commissioned him as Commander-in-Chief 
of all the forces raised in the colony. 

A cessation of all Indian hostility on the 
frontier having followed the expulsion of 
the French from the Ohio, the object of 
Washington was accomplished and he re- 
signed his commission as Commander-in- 
Chief of the Virginia forces. He then pro- 
ceeded to Williamsburg to take his seat in 
the General Assembly, of which he had 
been elected a member. 

January 17, 1759. Washington married 
Mrs. Martha (Dandridge) Custis, a young 
and beautiful widow of great wealth, and de- 
voted himself for the ensuing fifteen years 
to the quiet pursuits of agriculture, inter- 
rupted only by his annual attendance in 
winter upon the Colonial Legislature at 
amsburg, until summoned by his 
country to inter upon that other arena in 
which his fame was to become world wide. 

It is unnecessary here to trace the details 
of the struggle upon the question of local 



CEottaE Washing ton. 



ii 



self-government, which, after ten years, cul- 
minated by act of Parliament of the port of 
Boston. It was at the instance of Virginia 
that a congress of all the colonies was called 
to meet at Philadelphia Septembers, 1 774. 
to secure their common liberties — if possible 
by peaceful means. To this Congress 
Colonei Washington was sent as a dele- 
gate. On dissolving in October, it recom- 
mended the colonies to send deputies to 
another Congress the following spring. In 
the meantime several of the colonies felt 
impelled to raise local forces to repel in- 
sults and aggressions on the part of British 
troops, so that on the assembling of the next 
Congress, May 10, 1775, the war prepara- 
tions of the mother country were unmis- 
takable. The battles of Concord and Lex- 
ington had been fought. Among the earliest 
• acts, therefore, of the Congress was the 
selection of a commander-in-chief of the 
colonial forces. This office was unani- 
mously conferred upon Washington, still a 
member of the Congress. He accepted it 
on June 19, but on the express condition he 
should receive no salary. 

He immediately repaired to the vicinity 
of Boston, against which point the British 
ministry had concentrated their forces. As 
early as April General Gage had 3,000 
troops in and around this proscribed city. 
During the fall and winter the British policy 
clearly indicated a purpose to divide pub- 
lic sentiment and to build up a British party 
in the colonies. Those who sided with the 
ministry were stigmatized by the patriots 
as " Tories," while the patriots took to them- 
selves the name of " Whigs." 

As early as 1776 the leading men had 
come to the conclusion that there was no 
hope except in separation and indepen- 
dence. In May of that year Washington 
wrote from the head of the army in New 
York: "A reconciliation with Great Brit- 
ain is impossible When I took 

command of the army, I abhorred the idea 



of independence ; but I am now fully satis- 
tied that nothing else will save us." 

It is not the object of this sketch to trace 
the military acts of the patriot hero, to 
whose hands the fortunes and liberties of 
the United States were confided during the 
seven years' bloody struggle that ensued 
until the treaty of 1783, in which England 
acknowledged the independence of each of 
the thirteen States, and negotiated with 
them, jointly, as separate sovereignties. The 
merits of Washington as a military chief- 
tain have been considerably discussed, espe- 
cially by writers in his own country. Dur- 
ing the war he was most bitterly assailed 
for incompetency, and great efforts were 
made to displace him ; but he never for a 
moment lost the confidence of either the 
Congress or the people. December 4, 1783, 
the great commander took leave of his offi- 
cers in most affectionate and patriotic terms, 
and went to Annapolis, Maryland, where 
the Congress of the States was in session, 
and to that body, when peace and order 
prevailed everywhere, resigned his com- 
mission and retired to Mount Vernon. 

It was in 1788 that Washington was called 
to the chief magistracy of the nation. He 
received every electoral vote cast in all the 
colleges of the States voting for the office 
of President. The 4th of March, 1789, was 
the time appointed for the Government of 
the United States to begin its operations, 
but several weeks elapsed before quorums 
of both the newly constituted houses of the 
Congress were assembled. The city of New 
York was the place where the Congress 
then met. April 16 Washington left his 
home to enter upon the discharge of his 
new duties. He set out with a purpose ot 
traveling privately, and without attracting 
any public attention ; but this was impossi- 
ble. Everywhere on his way he was met 
with thronging crowds, eager to see the 
man whom they regarded as the chief de- 
fender of their liberties, and everywhere 



PRESIDENTS OF THE r SITED STATES. 



he was hailed with those public manifesta- 
tions of joy, regard and love which spring 
spontaneously from the hearts of an affec- 
tionate and grateful people. His reception 
in New York was marked by a grandeur 
and an enthusiasm never before witnessed 
in that metropolis. The inauguration took 
place April 30,in the presence of an immense 
multitude which had assembled to witness 
the new and imposing ceremony. The oath 
of office was administered by Robert R. 
Livingston, Chancellor of the State. When 
this sacred pledge was given, he retired 
with the other officials into the Senate 
chamber, where he delivered his inaugural 
address to both houses of the newly con- 
stituted Congress in joint assembly. 

In the manifold details of Ins civil ad- 
ministration, Washington proved himself 
equal to the requirements of his position. 
The greater portion of the first session ol 
the first Congress was occupied in passing 
the necessary statutes for putting the new 
organization into complete operation. In 
the discussions brought up in the course of 
this legislation the nature and character of 
the new system came under general review. 
On no one of them did any decided antago- 
nism of opinion arise. All held it to be a 
limited government, clothed only with spe- 
cific powers conferred by delegation from 
the States. There was no change in the 
name of the legislative department ; it still 
remained "the Congress of the United 
States ol America." There was no change 
in the' original Hag of the country, and none 
in the seal, which still remains with the 
Grecian escutcheon borne by the eagle, 
with other emblems, under the great and 
expressive motto, "£ Pluribus Ununi." 

The first division ol parties arose upon 
the mannei it construing the powers dele- 
gated, and they were first styled -'strict 
constructionists" and " latitudinarian con- 
st mi t ionists." The former were for con- 
fining the- ac tion ol the Government strictly 



within its specific and limited sphere, while 
the others were for enlarging its powers by 
inference and implication. Hamilton and 
Jefferson, both members of the first cabinet- 
were regarded as the chief leaders, respeel 
ively, of these rising antagonistic parties 
which have existed, under different names 
from that day to this. Washington n-as re- 
garded as holclinga neutral position between 
them, though, by mature deliberation, he 
vetoed the first apportionment bill, in 1790, 
passed by the party headed by Hamilton, 
which was based upon a principle construct- 
ively leading to centralization or consoli- 
dation. This was the first exercise of the 
veto power under the present Constitution. 
It created considerable excitement at the 
time. Another bill was soon passed in pur- 
suance of Mr. Jefferson's views, which has 
been adhered to in principle in every ap 
portionment act passed since. 

At the second session of the new Con 
gress, Washington announced the gratify- 
ing fact of "the accession of North Cam 
lina" to the Constitution of 17S7, and June 
1 of the same year he announced by special 
message the like " accession of the State of 
Rhode Island," with his congratulations on 
the happy event which " united under the 
general Government" all the States which 
were originally confederated. 

In 1792, at the second Presidential elec- 
tion. Washington was desirous to retire; 
but he yielded to the general wish of the 
country, and was again chosen President 
l>\ the unanimous vote of every electoral 
college. At the third election, 1796, he was 
again most urgently entreated to consent to 
remain in the executive chair. This he 
positively refused. In September, before 
the election, he gave to his countrymen his 
memorable Farewell Address, which in lan- 
guage, sentiment and patriotism was a fit 
and crowning glory of his illustrious life. 
Alter March 4, 1797, he again retired to 
Mount Vernon lor peace, quiet and repose. 



GEO ROE WASHINGTON. 



'S 



His administration for the two terms had 
been successful beyond the expectation and 
hopes of even the most sanguine of his 
friends. The finances of the country were 
no longer in an embarrassed condition, the 
public credit was fully restored, life was 
given to every department of industry, the 
workings of the new system in allowing 
Congress to raise revenue from duties on 
imports proved to be not only harmonious 
in its federal action, but astonishing in its 
results upon the commerce and trade of all 
the States. The exports from the Union 
increased from $19,000,000 to over $56,000,- 
000 per annum, while the imports increased 
in about the same proportion. Three new 
members had been added to the Union. The 
progress of the States in their new career 
under their new organization thus far was 
exceedingly encouraging, not only to the 
friends of liberty within their own limits, 
but to their sympathizing allies in all climes 
and countries. 

Ol the call aofain made on this illustrious 



chief to quit his repose at Mount Vernon 
and take command of all the United States 
forces, with the rank of Lieutenant-General, 
when war was threatened with France in 
1798, nothing need here be stated, except to 
note the fact as an unmistakable testimo- 
nial of the high regard in which he was still 
held by his countrymen, of all shades of po- 
litical opinion. He patriotically accepted 
this trust, but a treaty of peace put a stop 
to all action under it. He again retired to 
Mount Vernon, where, after a short and 
severe illness, he died December 14, 1799, 
in the sixty-eighth year of his age. The 
whole country was filled with gloom by this 
sad intelligence. Men of all parties in poli- 
tics and creeds in religion, in ever)' State 
in the Union, united with Congress in " pay- 
ing honor to the man, first in war, first in 
peace, and first in the hearts of his country- 
men." 

His remains were deposited in a fami') 
vault on the banks of the Potomac at Mount 
Vernon, where they still lie entombed. 




>4 



P/ihS/DHXTS OF THE UNITED STATUS. 







; ■ ■ , : ■ n;:ii ;■;]' s — '-^fiux; m m 
riiTniitiiiiinTirrrtiriTVtnTin 






'°mr 





OHN ADAMS, the second , 
President of the United 
States. 1797 to 1801, was 
' born in the present town 

k, of Quincy, then a portion 
'J. : of Braintree, Massachu- 
setts, October 30, 1735. His 
father was a farmer of mod- 
erate means, a worthy and 
industrious man. He was 
a deacon in the church, and 
' was very desirous of giving 
his son a collegiate educa- 
tion, hoping that he would 
become a minister of the 
gospel. But, as up to this 
time, the age ol fourteen, he had been only 
a play-boy in the fields and forests, he had 
no taste for books, he chose farming. On 
being set to work, however, by his father 
out in the field, the very first day con- 
verted the boy into a lover of books. 

Accordingly, at the age of sixteen he 
entered 1 [arvard College, and graduated in 
1755, at the age of twenty, highly esteemed 
for integrity, energy and ability. Thus, 
having no capital but his education, he 
started out into the stormv world at a time 
ol gnat political excitement, as France and 
England were then engaged in their great 
seven-years struggle for the mastery over 
the New World. The lire of patriotism 



seized young Adams, and for a time be 
studied over the question whether he 
should take to the law, to politics or the 
army. He wrote a remarkable letter to a 
friend, making prophecies concerning the 
future greatness of this country which have 
since been more than fulfilled. For two 
years he taught school and studied law, 
wasting no odd moments, and at the early 
age of twenty-two years he opened a law 
office in his native town. His inherited 
powers of mind and untiring devotion to 
his profession caused him to rise rapidly 
in public esteem. 

In October, 1764, Mr. Adams married 
Miss Abigail Smith, daughter of a clergy- 
man at Weymouth and a lady of rare per- 
sonal and intellectual endowments, who 
afterward contributed much to her hus- 
band's celebrity. 

Soon the oppression of the British in 
America reached its climax. The Boston 
merchants employed an attorney by the 
name of James Otis to argue the legality of 
oppressive tax law before the Superior 
Court. Adams heard the argument, and 
afterward wrote to a friend concerning the 
ability displayed, as follows: "Otis was a 
flame of fire. With a promptitude of 
classical allusion, a depth of research, a 
rapid summary of historical events and 
dates, a prolusion of legal authorities and a 




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jorr.v .ioa.tis. 



'7 



prophetic glance into futurity, he hurried 
away all before him. American independence 
was then and there born. Every man of an 
immensely crowded audience appeared to 
me to go away, as I did, ready to take up 
arms." 

Soon Mr. Adams wrote an essay to be 
read before the literary club of his town, 
upon the state of affairs, which was so able 
as to attract public attention. It was pub- 
lished in American journals, republished 
in England, and was pronounced by the 
friends of the colonists there as " one of the 
very best productions ever seen from North 
America." 

The memorable Stamp Act was now 
issued, and Adams entered with all the 
ardor of his soul into political life in order 
to resist it. He drew up a series of reso- 
lutions remonstrating against the act, which 
were adopted at a public meeting of the 
citizens of Braintree, and which were sub- 
sequently adopted, word for word, by more 
than forty towns in the State. Popular 
commotion prevented the landing of the 
Stamp Act papers, and the English author- 
ities then closed the courts. The town of 
Boston therefore appointed Jeremy Grid- 
lex, James Otis and John Adams to argue a 
petition before the Governor and council 
for the re-opening of the courts; and while 
the two first mentioned attorneys based 
their argument upon the distress caused to 
the people by the measure, Adams boldlv 
claimed that the Stamp Act was a violation- 
both of the English Constitution and the 
charter of the Provinces. It is said that 
this was the first direct denial of the un- 
limited right of Parliament over the colo- 
nies. Soon after this the Stamp Act was 
repealed. 

Directly Mr. Adams was employed to 
defend Ansel 1 Nickerson, who had killed an 
Englishman in the act of impressing him 
(Nickerson) into the King's service, and his 
client was acquitted, the court thus estab- 



lishing the principle that the infamous 
royal prerogative of impressment could 
have no existence in the colonial code. 
But in 1770 Messrs. Adams and Josiah 
Quincy defended a party of British soldiers 
who had been arrested for murder when 
thev had been only obeying Governmental 
orders ; and when reproached for thus ap- 
parently deserting the cause of popular 
liberty, Mr. Adams replied that he would a 
thousandfold rather live under the domina- 
tion of the worst of England's kings than 
under that of a lawless mob. Next, after 
serving a term as a member of the Colonial 
Legislature from Boston, Mr. Adams, find- 
ing his health affected by too great labor, 
retired to his native home at Braintree. 

The year 1774 soon arrived, with its fa- 
mous Boston '• Tea Party," the first open 
act of rebellion. Adams was sent to the 
Congress at Philadelphia ; and when the 
Attorney-General announced that Great 
Britain had " determined on her system, 
and that her power to execute it was irre- 
sistible," Adams replied : " I know that 
Great Britain has determined on her sys- 
tem, and that very determination deter- 
mines me on mine. You know that I have 
been constant in my opposition to her 
measures. The die is now cast. I have 
passed the Rubicon. Sink or swim, live or 
die, with my country, is my unalterable 
determination." The rumor beginning to 
prevail at Philadelphia that the Congress 
had independence in view, Adams foresaw 
that it was too soon to declare it openly. 
He advised every one to remain quiet in 
that respect; and as soon as it became ap- 
parent that he himself was for independ- 
ence, he was advised to hide himself, which 
he did. 

The next year the great Revolutionary 
war opened in earnest, and Mrs. Adams, 
residing near Boston, kept her husband ad- 
vised by letter of all the events transpiring 
in her vicinity. The battle of Bunker Hill 



■ 3 



r/iES/DENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



came on. Congress had to do something 
immediately. The first thing was to 
choose a commander-in-chief for the — we 
can't say " army " — the fighting men of the 
colonics. The New England delegation 
was almost unanimous in favor of appoint- 
ing General Ward, then at the head of the 
Massachusetts forces, but Mr. Adams urged 
the appointment of George Washington, 
then almost unknown outside of his own 
State. He was appointed without oppo- 
sition. Mr. Adams offered the resolution, 
which was adopted, annulling all the royal 
authority in the colonies. Having thus 
prepared the way, a few weeks later, viz., 
June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee, of Vir- 
ginia, who a few months before had declared 
that the British Government would aban- 
don its oppressive measures, now offered 
the memorable resolution, seconded by 
Adams, "that these United States arc, and 
of right ought to be, free and independent." 
Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Sherman and 
Livingston were then appointed a commit- 
tee to draught a declaration of independ- 
ence. Mr. Jefferson desired Mr. Adams 
to draw up the bold document, but the 
latter persuaded Mr. Jefferson to perform 
that responsible task. The Declaration 
drawn up, Mr. Adams became its foremost 
d( fender on the floor of Congress. It was 
signed by all the fifty-five members present, 
and the next day Mr. Adams wrote to his 
wife how great a deed was done, and how 
proud he wasof it. Mr. Adams continued 
to be the leading man of Congress, and 
the leading advocate of American inde- 
pendence. Above all other Americans, 
he was considered by every one the prin- 
cipal shining mark for British vengeance. 
Thus circumstanced, he was appointed to 
the most dangerous task ol crossing the 
ocean in winter, exposed to capture by tin- 
British, who knew of his mission, which 
w.is Id visit Paris and solicit the CO-opera- 
tion oi the biench. Besides, to take him- 



self away from the country of which he 
was the most prominent defender, at that 
critical time, was an act of the greatest self- 
sacrifice. Sure enough, while crossing the 
sea, he had two very narrow escapes from 
capture; and the transit was otherwise a 
storm v and eventful one. During thr 
summer of 1779 he returned home, but was 
immediately dispatched back to France, to 
be in readiness there to negotiate terms of 
peace and commerce with Great Britain as 
soon as the latter power was ready for such 
business. But as Dr. Franklin was more 
popular than heat the court of France, Mr. 
Adams repaired to Holland, where he was 
far more successful as a diplomatist. 

The treaty of peace between the United 
States and England was finally signed at 
Paris, January 21, 1783; and the re-action 
from so great excitement as Mr. Adams had 
so long been experiencing threw him into 
a dangerous fever. Before he fully re- 
covered he was in London, whence he was 
dispatched again to Amsterdam to negoti- 
ate another loan. Compliance with this 
order undermined his physical constitution 
for life. 

In 17S5 Mr. Adams was appointed envoy 
to the court of St. James, to meet face to 
face the very king who had regarded him 
as an arch traitor! Accordingly he re- 
paired thither, where he did actually meet 
and converse with George 111.! After a 
residence there for about three years, he 
obtained permission to return to America. 
While in London he wrote and published 
an able work, in three volumes, entitled: 
'• A Defense of the American Constitution." 

The Articles of Confederation proving 
inefficient, as Adams had prophesied, a 
carefully draughted Constitution was 
adopted in 17S0, when George Washington 
was elected President of the new nation, 
and Adams Vice-President. Congress met 
for a time in New York, but was removed 
to Philadelphia lor ten years, until suitable 



■JOHN ADAMS. 



<9 



buildings should be erected at the new 
capital in the District of Columbia. Mr. 
Adams then moved his family to Phila- 
delphia. Toward the close of his term of 
office the French Revolution culminated, 
when Adams and Washington rather 
sympathized with England, and Jefferson 
with France. The Presidential election of 
1796 resulted in giving Mr. Adams the first 
place by a small majority, and Mr. Jeffer- 
son the second place. . 

Mr. Adams's administration was consci- 
entious, patriotic and able. The period 
was a turbulent one, and even an archangel 
could not have reconciled the hostile par- 
ties. Partisanism with reference to Eng- 
land and France was bitter, and for four 
years M r. Adams struggled through almost 
a constant tempest of assaults. In fact, he 
was not truly a popular man, and his cha- 
grin at not receiving a re-election was so 
great that he did not even remain at Phila- 
delphia to witness the inauguration of Mr. 
Jefferson, his successor. The friendly 
intimacy between these two men was 
interrupted for about thirteen years of their 
life. Adams finally made the first advances 
toward a restoration of their mutual friend- 
ship, which were gratefully accepted by 
Jefferson. 

Mr. Adams was glad of his opportunity 
to retire to private lite, where he could rest 
his mind and enjoy the comforts of home. 
By a thousand bitter experiences he found 
the path of public duty a thorny one. For 
twenty-six years his service of the public 
was as arduous, self-sacrificing and devoted 
as ever fell to the lot of man. In one im- 
portant sense he was as much the " Father 
of his Country " as was Washington in 
another sense. During these long years of 
anxiety and toil, in which he was laying, 
broad and deep, the foundations of the 



greatest nation the sun ever shone upon, he 
received from his impoverished country a 
meager support. The only privilege he 
carried with him into his retirement was 
that of franking his letters. 

Although taking no active part in public 
affairs, both himself and his son, John 
Quincy, nobly supported the policy of Mr. 
Jefferson in resisting the encroachments of 
England, who persisted in searching 
American ships on the high seas and 
dragging from them any sailors that might 
be designated by any pert lieutenant as 
British subjects. Even for this noble sup- 
port Mr. Adams was maligned by thou- 
sands of bitter enemies ! On this occasion, 
for the first time since his retirement, he 
broke silence and drew up a very able 
paper, exposing the atrocity of the British 
pretensions. 

Mr. Adams outlived nearly all his family. 
Though his physical frame began to give 
way many years before his death, his mental 
powers retained their strength and vigor to 
the last. In his ninetieth year he was 
gladdened by the popular elevation of his 
son to the Presidential office, the highest in 
the gift of the people. A few months more 
passed away and the 4th of Julv, 1826. 
arrived. The people, unaware of the near 
approach of the end of two great lives — 
that of Adams and Jefferson — -were making 
unusual preparations for a national holiday. 
Mr. Adams lay upon his couch, listening to 
the ringing of bells, the waftures of martial 
music and the roar of cannon, with silent 
emotion. Only four days before, he had 
given for a public toast, " Independence 
forever." About two o'clock in the after- 
noon he said, "And Jefferson still survives." 
But he was mistaken by an hour or so; 
and in a few minutes he had breathed his 
last. 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



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JH O M A S J E F F E R- 
son, the third Presi- 
dent of the United 
States, 1801-9, was 
born April 2, 1743, 
the eldest child of 
his parents, Peter 
Jane (Randolph) Jef- 
ferson, near Charlottes- 
ille, Albemarle County, 
Virginia, upon the slopes 
of the Blue Ridge. When 
he -was fourteen years of 
age, his father died, leav- 
ing a widow and eight 
children. She was a beau- 
tiful and accomplished 
a good letter-writer, with a fund of 
humor, and an admirable housekeeper. His 
parents belonged to the Church of England, 
and are said to be of Welch origin. But 
little is known of them, however. 

Thomas was naturally of a serious turn 
of mind, apt to learn, and a favorite at 
school, his choice studies being mathemat- 
ics and the classics. At the age of seven- 
teen he entered William and Mary College, 
in an advanced class, and lived in rather an 
expensive style, consequently being much 
caressed by gay society. That he was not 
ruined, is proof of his stamina of character. 
But during his second year he discarded 



lady, 



society, his horses and even his favorite 
violin, and devoted thenceforward fifteen 
hours a day to hard study, becoming ex- 
traordinarily proficient in Latin and Greek 
authors. 

On leaving college, before he was twenty- 
one, he commenced the study of law, and 
pursued it diligently until he was well 
qualified for practice, upon which he 
entered in 1767. By this time he was also 
versed in French, Spanish, Italian and An- 
glo-Saxon, and in the criticism of the fine 
arts. Being very polite and polished in his 
manners, he won the friendship of all whom 
he met. Though able with his pen, he was 
not fluent in public speech. 

In 1769 he was chosen a member of the 
Virginia Legislature, and was the largest 
slave-holding member of that body. He 
introduced a bill empowering slave-holders 
to manumit their slaves, but it was rejected 
by an overwhelming vote. 

In 1770 Mr. Jefferson met with a great 
loss; his house at Shadwell was burned, 
and his valuable library of 2,000 volumes 
was consumed. But he was wealthy 
enough to replace the most of it, as from 
his 5,000 acres tilled by slaves and his 
practice at the bar his income amounted to 
about $5,000 a year. 

In 1772 he married Mrs. Martha Skelton, 
a beautiful, wealthy and accomplished 





€^2t77^ 



THOMAS JEFFERSON. 



23 



young widow, who owned 40,000 acres of 
land and 130 slaves; yet he labored assidu- 
ously for the abolition of slavery. For his 
new home he selected a majestic rise of 
iand upon his large estate at Shad well, 
called Monticello, whereon he erected a 
mansion of modest yet elegant architecture. 
Here he lived in luxury, indulging his taste 
in magnificent, high-blooded horses. 

At this period the British Government 
gradually became more insolent and op- 
pressive toward the American colonies, 
and Mr. Jefferson was ever one of the most 
foremost to resist its encroachments. From 
time to time he drew up resolutions of re- 
monstrance, which were finally adopted, 
thus proving his ability as a statesman and 
as a leader. By the year 1774 he became 
quite busy, both with voice and pen, in de- 
fending the right of the colonies to defend 
themselves. His pamphlet entitled : " A 
Summary View of the Rights of British 
America," attracted much attention in Eng- 
land. The following year he, in company 
with George Washington, served as an ex- 
ecutive committee in measures to defend 
by arms the State of Virginia. As a Mem- 
ber of the Congress, he was not a speech- 
maker, yet in conversation and upon 
committees he was so frank and decisive 
that he always made a favorable impression. 
But as late as the autumn of 1775 he re- 
mained in hopes of reconciliation with the 
parent country. 

At length, however, the hour arrived for 
draughting the " Declaration of Indepen- 
dence," and this responsible task was de- 
volved upon Jefferson. Franklin, and 
Adams suggested a few verbal corrections 
before it was submitted to Congress, which 
was June 28, 1776, only six days before it 
was adopted. During the three days of 
the fiery ordeal of criticism through which 
it passed in Congress, Mr. Jefferson opened 
not his lips. John Adams was the main 
champion of the Declaration on the floor 



of Congress. The signing of this document 
was one of the most solemn and momentous 
occasions ever attended to by man. Prayer 
and silence reigned throughout the hall, 
and each signer realized that if American 
independence was not finally sustained by 
arms he was doomed to the scaffold. 

After the colonies became independent 
States, Jefferson resigned for a time his seat 
in Congress in order to aid in organizing 
the government of Virginia, of which State 
he was chosen Governor in 1779, when he 
was thirty-six years of age. At this time 
the British had possession of Georgia and 
were invading South Carolina, and at one 
time a British officer, Tarleton, sent a 
secret expedition to Monticello to capture 
the Governor. Five minutes after Mr. 
Jefferson escaped with his family, his man- 
sion was in possession of the enemy ! The 
British troops also destroyed his valuable 
plantation on the James River. " Had they 
carried off the slaves," said Jefferson, with 
characteristic magnanimity, " to give them 
freedom, they would have done right." 

The year 1781 was a gloomy one for the 
Virginia Governor. While confined to his 
secluded home in the forest by a sick and 
dying wife, a party arose against him 
throughout the State, severely criticising 
his course as Governor. Being very sensi- 
tive to reproach, this, touched him to the 
quick, and the heap of troubles then sur- 
rounding him nearly crushed him. He re- 
solved, in despair, to retire from public life 
for the rest of his days. For weeks Mr. 
Jefferson sat lovingly, but with a crushed 
heart, at the bedside of his sick wife, during 
which time unfeeling letters were sent to 
him, accusing him of weakness and unfaith- 
fulness to duty. All this, after he had lost 
so much property and at the same time 
done so much for his country ! After her 
death he actually fainted away, and re- 
mained so long insensible that it was feared 
he never would recover! Several weeks 



=4 



PKE.S/DE.VTS OF THE U. WIT ED STATES. 



passed before he could fully recover his 
equilibrium. He was never married a 
second time. 

In the spring of 17S2 the people of Eng- 
land compelled their king to make to the 
Americans overtures of peace, and in No- 
vember following, Mr. Jefferson was reap- 
pointed by Congress, unanimously and 
without a single adverse remark, minister 
plenipotentiary to negotiate a treaty. 

In March, 1784, Mr. Jefferson was ap- 
pointed on a committee to draught a plan 
for the government of the Northwestern 
Territory. His slavery-prohibition clause 
in that plan was stricken out by the pro- 
slavery majority of the committee; but amid 
all the controversies and wrangles of poli- 
ticians, he made it a rule never to contra- 
dict anybody or engage in any discussion 
as a debater. 

In company with Mr. Adams and Dr. 
Franklin, Mr. Jefferson was appointed in 
May, 1784, to act as minister plenipotentiary 
in the negotiation of treaties of commerce 
with foreign nations. Accordingly, he went 
to Paris and satisfactorily accomplished his 
mission. The suavity and high bearing of 
his manner made all the French his friends; 
and even Mrs. Adams at one time wrote 
to her sister that he was "the chosen 
of the earth." But all the honors that 
he received, both at home and abroad, 
seemed to make no change in the simplicity 
of his republican tastes. On his return to 
America, he found two parties respecting 
the foreign commercial policy, Mr. Adams 
sympathizing with that in favor of England 
and himself favoring France. 

On the inauguration of General Wash- 
ington as President, Mr. Jefferson was 
chosen by him for the office of Secretary of 
State. At this time the rising storm of the 
French Revolution became visible, and 
Washington watched it with great anxiety. 
His cabinet was divided in their views of 
constitutional government as well as re- 



garding the issues in France. General 
Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, was 
the leader of the so-called Federal party, 
while Mr. Jefferson was the leader of the 
Republican party. At the same time there 
was a strong monarchical party in this 
country, with which Mr. Adams sympa- 
thized. Some important financial measures, 
which were proposed by Hamilton and 
finally adopted by the cabinet and approved 
by Washington, were opposed by Mr. 
Jefferson; and his enemies then began to 
reproach him with holding office under an 
administration whose views he opposed. 
The President poured oil on the troubled 
waters. On his re-election to the Presi- 
dency he desired Mr. Jefferson to remain 
in the cabinet, but the latter sent in his 
resignation at two different times, probably 
because lie was dissatisfied with some of 
the measures of the Government. His 
final one was not received until January 1, 
1794, when General Washington parted 
from him with great regret. 

Jefferson then retired to his quiet home 
at Monticello, to enjoy a good rest, not even 
reading the newspapers lest the political 
gossip should disquiet him. On the Presi- 
dent's again calling him back to the office 
ol Secretary of State, he replied that no 
circumstances would ever again tempt him 
to engage in anything public! But, while 
all Europe was ablaze with war, and France 
in the throes of a bloody revolution and the 
principal theater of the conflict, a new 
Presidential election in this country came 
on. John Adams was the Federal candi- 
date and Mr. Jefferson became the Republi- 
can candidate. The result of the election 
was the promotion of the latter to the Vice- 
Presidency, while the former was chosen 
President. In this contest Mr. Jefferson 
really did not desire to have either office, 
he was " so weary " of party strife. He 
loved the retirement of home more than 
any other place on the earth. 



THOMAS JEFFERSON. 



25 



But for four long years his Vice-Presi- 
dency passed joylessly away, while the 
partisan strife between Federalist and Re- 
publican was ever growing hotter. The 
former party split and the result of the 
fourth general election was the elevation of 
Mr. Jefferson to the Presidency! with 
Aaron Burr as Vice-President. These men 
being at the head of a growing party, their 
election was hailed everywhere with joy. 
On the other hand, many of the Federalists 
turned pale, as they believed what a portion 
of the pulpit and the press had been preach- 
ing — that Jefferson was a " scoffing atheist," 
a "Jacobin," the "incarnation of all evil," 
" breathing threatening and slaughter ! " 

Mr. Jefferson's inaugural address con- 
tained nothing but the noblest sentiments, 
expressed in fine language, and his personal 
behavior afterward exhibited the extreme 
of American, democratic simplicity. His 
disgust of European court etiquette grew 
upon him with age. He believed that 
General Washington was somewhat dis- 
trustful of the ultimate success of a popular 
Government, and that, imbued with a little 
admiration of the forms of a monarchical 
Government, he had instituted levees, birth- 
days, pompous meetings with Congress, 
etc. Jefferson was always polite, even to 
slaves everywhere he met them, and carried 
in his countenance the indications of an ac- 
commodating disposition. 

The political principles of the Jeffersoni- 
an party now swept the country, and Mr. 
Jefferson himself swayed an influence which 
was never exceeded even by Washington. 
Under his administration, in 1803, the Lou- 
isiana purchase was made, for $15,000,000, 
the " Louisiana Territory " purchased com- 
prising all the land west of the Mississippi 
to the Pacific Ocean. 

The year 1804 witnessed another severe 
loss in his family. His highly accomplished 
and most beloved daughter Maria sickened 
and died, causing as great grief in the 



stricken parent as it was possible for him to 
survive with any degree of sanity. 

The same year he was re-elected to the 
Presidency, with George Clinton as Vice- 
President. During his second term our 
relations with England became more com- 
plicated, and on June 22, 1807, near Hamp- 
ton Roads, the United States frigate 
Chesapeake was fired upon by the Brit- 
ish man-of-war Leopard, and was made 
to surrender. Three men were killed and 
ten wounded. Jefferson demanded repara- 
tion. England grew insolent. It became 
evident that war was determined upon by 
the latter power. More than 1,200 Ameri- 
cans were forced into the British service 
upon the high seas. Before any satisfactory 
solution was reached, Mr. Jefferson's 
Presidential term closed. Amid all these 
public excitements he thought constantly 
of the welfare of his family, and longed 
for the time when he could return home 
to remain. There, at Monticello, his sub- 
sequent life was very similar to that of 
Washington at Mt. Vernon. His hospi- 
tality toward his numerous friends, indul- 
gence of his slaves, and misfortunes to his 
property, etc., finally involved him in debt. 
For years his home resembled a fashion- 
able watering-place. During the summer, 
thirty-seven house servants were required! 
It was presided over by his daughter, Mrs. 
Randolph. 

Mr. Jefferson did much for the establish- 
ment of the University at Charlottesville, 
making it unsectarian, in keeping with the 
spirit of American institutions, but poverty 
and the feebleness of old age prevented 
him from doing what he would. He even 
went so far as to petition the Legislature 
for permission to dispose of some of his 
possessions by lottery, in order to raise the 
necessary funds for home expenses. It was 
granted ; but before the plan was carried 
out, Mr. Jefferson died, July 4, 1826, at 
12:50 I'. M. 



26 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 








'AMES MADISON, the 
four tli President of the 
United States, 1809-' 17, 
was born at Port Con- 
way, Prince George 
County, Virginia, March 
16, 1751. His father, 
Colonel James Madison, was 
a wealthy planter, residing 
upon a yery fine estate 
called " Montpelier," only 
twenty-five miles from the 
home of Thomas Jefferson 
at Monticello. The closest 
personal and political at- 
tachment existed between 
these illustrious men from their early youth 
until death. 

James was the eldest ol a family of seven 
children, four sons and three daughters, all 
of whom attained maturity. His early edu- 
cation was conducted mostly at home, 
under a private tutor. Being naturally in- 
tellectual in his tastes, he consecrated him- 
self with unusual vigor to study. At a very 
early age he made considerable proficiency 
in the Greek, Latin, French and Spanish 
languages. In 1769 he entered Princeton 
College, New Jersey, of which the illus- 
trious Dr. Weatherspoon was then Presi- 
dent. He graduated in 1771, with a char- 



acter of the utmost purity, and a mind 
highly disciplined and stored with all the 
learning which embellished and gave effi- 
ciency to his subsequent career. After 
graduating he pursued a course of reading 
for several months, under the guidance of 
President Weatherspoon, and in 1772 re- 
turned to Virginia, where he continued in 
incessant study for two years, nominally 
directed to the law, but really including 
extended researches in theology, philoso- 
phy and general literature. 

The Church of England was the estab- 
lished church in Virginia, invested with all 
the prerogatives and immunities which it 
enjoyed in the fatherland, and other de- 
nominations labored under serious disabili- 
ties, the enforcement of which was rightly 
or wrongly characterized by them as per- 
secution. Madison took a prominent stand 
in behalf of the removal of all disabilities, 
repeatedly appeared in the court of his own 
county to defend the Baptist nonconform- 
ists, and was elected from Orange County to 
the Virginia Convention in the spring of 
1766, when he signalized the beginning of 
his public career by procuring tin' passage 
of an amendment to the Declaration of 
Rights as prepared by George Mason, sub- 
stituting for "toleration" a more emphatic 
assertion of religious liberty. 




/ O^^-^- ■c/t ao^^r *^ 



• •. 




JAMES MAD/SON. 



ig 



In 1776 he was elected a member of the 
Virginia Convention to frame the Constitu- 
tion of the State. Like Jefferson, he took 
but little part in the public debates. His 
main strength lay in his conversational in- 
fluence and in his pen. In November, 1777, 
he was chosen a member of the Council of 
State, and in March, 1780, took his seat in 
the Continental Congress, where he first 
gained prominence through his energetic 
opposition to the issue of paper money by 
the States. He continued in Congress three 
years, one of its most active and influential 
members. 

In 1784 Mr. Madison was elected a mem- 
ber of the Virginia Legislature. He ren- 
dered important service by promoting and 
participating in that revision of the statutes 
which effectually abolished the remnants of 
the feudal system subsistent up to that 
time in the form of entails, primogeniture, 
and State support given the Anglican 
Church ; and his " Memorial and Remon- 
strance" against a general assessment for 
the support of religion is one of the ablest 
papers which emanated from his pen. It 
settled the question of the entire separation 
of church and State in Virginia. 

Mr. Jefferson says of him, in allusion to 
the study and experience through which he 
had already passed : 

" Trained in these successive schools, he 
acquired a habit of self-possession which 
placed at ready command the rich resources 
of his luminous and discriminating mind and 
of his extensive information, and rendered 
him the first of every assembly of which he 
afterward became a member. Never wan- 
dering from his subject into vain declama- 
tion, but pursuing it closely in language 
pure, classical and copious, soothing al- 
ways the feelings of his adversaries by civili- 
ties and softness of expression, he rose to the 
eminent station which he held in the great 
National Convention of 1787; and in that of 
/lrginia, which followed, he sustained the 



new Constitution in all its parts, bearing off 
the palm against the logic of George Mason 
and the fervid declamation of Patrick 
Henry. With these consummate powers 
were united a pure and spotless virtue 
which no calumny has ever attempted to 
sullv. Of the power and polish of his pen, 
and of the wisdom of his administration in 
the highest office of the nation, I need say 
nothing. They have spoken, and will for- 
ever speak, for themselves." 

In January, 1786, Mr. Madison took the 
initiative in proposing a meeting of State 
Commissioners to devise measures for more 
satisfactory commercial relations between 
the States. A meeting was held at An- 
napolis to discuss this subject, and but five 
States were represented. The convention 
issued another call, drawn up by Mr. Madi- 
son, urging all the States to send their dele- 
gates to Philadelphia, in May, 1787, to 
draught a Constitution for the United 
States. The delegates met at the time ap- 
pointed, every State except Rhode Island 
being represented. George Washington 
was chosen president of the convention, 
and the present Constitution of the United 
States was then and there formed. There 
was no mind and no pen more active in 
framing this immortal document than the 
mind and pen of James Madison. He was, 
perhaps, its ablest advocate in the pages of 
the Federalist. 

Mr. Madison was a member of the first 
four Congresses, 17S9-97, in which he main- 
tained a moderate opposition to Hamilton's 
financial policy. He declined the mission 
to France and the Secretaryship of State, 
and, gradually identifying himself with the 
Republican party, became from 1792 its 
avowed leader. In 1796 he was its choice 
for the Presidency as successor to Wash- 
ington. Mr. Jefferson wrote : " There is 
not another person in the United States 
with whom, being placed at the helm of our 
affairs, my mind would be so completely at 



3° 



PRES/DEXTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



rest for the fortune of our political bark." 
But Mr. Madison declined to be a candi- 
date. His term in Congress had expired, 
and he returned from New York to his 
beautiful retreat at Montpelier. 

In 1794 Mr. Madison married a young 
widow of remarkable powers of fascination 
— Mrs. Todd. Her maiden name was Doro- 
thy Paine. She was born in 1767, in Vir- 
ginia, of Quaker parents, and had been 
educated in the strictest rules of that sect. 
When but eighteen years of age she married 
a young lawyer and moved to Philadelphia, 
where she was introduced to brilliant scenes 
of fashionable life. She speedily laid aside 
the dress and address of the Quakeress, and 
became one of the most fascinating ladies 
of the republican court. In New York, 
alter the death of her husband, she was the 
belle of the season and was surrounded with 
admirers. Mr. Madison won the prize. 
She proved an invaluable helpmate. In 
Washington she was the life of society. 
If there was any diffident, timid young 
girl just making her appearance, she 
found in Mrs. Madison an encouraging 
friend. 

During the stormy administration of John 
Adams Madison remained in private life, 
but was the author of the celebrated " Reso- 
lutions of 1798," adopted by the Virginia 
Legislature, in condemnation of the Alien 
ami Sedition laws, as well as of the "report" 
in which he defended those resolutions, 
which is, by many, considered his ablest 
State paper. 

The storm passed away ; the Alien and 
Sedition laws were repealed, John Adams 
lost his re-election, and in 1801 Thomas Jef- 
ferson was chosen President. The great re- 
action in public sentiment which seated 
Jefferson in the presidential chair was large- 
ly owing to the writings of Madison, who 
was consequently well entitled to the post 
oi Secretary of State. With great ability 
be discharged the duties of this responsible 



office during the eight years of Mr. Jeffer 
son's administration. 

As Mr. Jefferson was a widower, and 
neither of his daughters could be often with 
him, Mrs. Madison usually presided over 
the festivities of the White House; and as 
her husband succeeded Mr. Jefferson, hold- 
ing his office for two terms, this remarkable 
woman was the mistress of the presidential 
mansion for sixteen years. 

Mi. Madison being entirely engrossed by 
the cares of his office, all the duties of so- 
cial life devolved upon his accomplished 
wife. Never were such responsibilities 
more ably discharged. The most bitter 
foes of her husband and of the administra- 
tion were received with the frankly prof- 
fered hand and the cordial smile of wel- 
come; and the influence of this gentle 
woman in allaying the bitterness of party 
rancor became a great and salutary power 
in the nation. 

As the term of Mr. Jefferson's Presidency 
drew near its close, party strife was roused 
to the utmost to elect his successor. It was 
a death-grapple between the two great 
parties, the Federal and Republican. Mr. 
Madison was chosen President by an elec 
toral vote of 122 to 53, and was inaugurated 
March 4, 1809, at a critical period, when 
the relations of the United States with Great 
Britain were becoming embittered, and his 
first term was passed in diplomatic quarrels, 
aggravated by the act of non-intercourse of 
May, 1 8 10, and finally resulting in a decla- 
ration of war. 

On the 1 8th of June, 1812, President 
Madison gave his approval to an act of 
Congress declaring war against Great Brit- 
ain. Notwithstanding the bitter hostility 
of the Federal party to the war, the country 
in general approved; and in the autumn 
Madison was re-elected to the Presidency 
by 128 electoral votes to So in favor (l | 
George Clinton. 

March 4, 1817, Madison yielded the Presi- 



yAMES MADISON. 



3> 



dency to his Secretary of State and inti- 
mate friend, James Monroe, and retired to 
his ancestral estate at Montpelier, where he 
passed the evening of his days surrounded 
by attached friends and enjoying the 
merited respect of the whole nation. He 
took pleasure in promoting agriculture, as 
president of the county society, and in 
watching the development of the University 
of Virginia, of which he was long rector and 
visitor. In extreme old age he sat in 1829 
as a member of the convention called to re- 
form the Virginia Constitution, where his 
appearance was hailed with the most gen- 
uine interest and! satisfaction, though he 
was too infirm io participate in the active 
work of revision. Small in stature, slender 
and delicate in form, with a countenance 
full of intelligence, and expressive alike of 
mildness and dignity, he attracted the atten- 
tion of all who attended the convention, 
and was treated with the utmost deference. 
He seldom addressed the assembly, though 
he always appeared self-possessed, and 
watched with unflagging interest the prog- 
ress of every measure. Though the con- 
vention sat sixteen weeks, he spoke only 
twice; but when he did speak, the whole 
house paused to listen. His voice was 
feeble though his enunciation was very dis- 
tinct. One of the reporters, Mr. Stansbury, 
relates the following anecdote of Mr. Madi- 
son's last speech: 

" The next day, as there was a great call 
for it, and the report had not been returned 
for publication, I sent my son with a re- 
spectful note, requesting the manuscript. 
My son was a lad of sixteen, whom I had 
taken with me to act as amanuensis. On 
delivering my note, he was received with 
the utmost politeness, and requested to 
come up into Mr. Madison's room and wait 
while his eye ran over the paper, as com- 
pany had prevented his attending to it. He 
did so, and Mr. Madison sat down to correct 
the report. The lad stood near him so that 



his eye fell on the paper. Coming to a 
certain sentence in the speech, Mr. Madison 
erased a word and substituted another ; but 
hesitated, and not feeling satisfied with the 
second word, drew his pen through it also. 
My son was young, ignorant of the world, 
and unconscious of the solecism of which he 
was about to be guilty, when, in all simplic- 
ity, he suggested a word. Probably no 
other person then living would have taken 
such a liberty. But the sage, instead of 
regarding such an intrusion with a frown, 
raised his eyes to the boy's face with a 
pleased surprise, and said, ' Thank you, sir ; 
it is the very word,' and immediately in- 
serted it. I saw him the next day, and he 
mentioned the circumstance, with a compli- 
ment on the young critic." 

Mr. Madison died at Montpelier, June 28, 
1836, at the advanced age of eighty-five. 
While not possessing the highest order of 
talent, and deficient in oratorical powers, 
he was pre-eminently a statesman, of a well, 
balanced mind. His attainments were solid, 
his knowledge copious, his judgment gener- 
ally sound, his powers of analysis and logi- 
cal statement rarely surpassed, his language 
and literary style correct and polished, his 
conversation witty, his temperament san- 
guine and trusfful, his integrity unques- 
tioned, his manners simple, courteous and 
winning. By these rare qualities he con- 
ciliated the esteem not only of friends, but 
of political opponents, in a greater degree 
than any American statesman in the present 
century. 

Mrs. Madison survived her husband thir- 
teen years, and died July 12, 1849, m the 
eighty-second year of her age. She was one 
of the most remarkable women our coun- 
try has produced. Even now she is ad- 
miringly remembered in Washington as 
" Dolly Madison," and it is fitting that her 
memory should descend to posterity in 
company with thatof the companion of 
her life. 



PIfES/DEXTS OF T//E UN/TED STATES. 




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'AMES MONROE, the fifth 
President of the United 
States, 1817-25, was born 
in Westmoreland County 
Virginia, April 28, 1758, 
He was a son of Spence 
Monroe, and a descendant 
of a Scottish cavalier fam- 
ily. Like all his predeces- 
sors thus far in the Presi- 
dential chair, he enjoyed all 
the advantages of educa- 
tion which the country 
could then afford. He was 
early sent to a fine classical 
school, and at the age of six- 
teen entered William and Mary College.. 
In 1776, when he had been in college but 
two years, the Declaration of Independence 
was adopted, and our feeble militia, with- 
out arms, amunition or clothing, were strug- 
gling against the trained armies of England. 
James Monroe left college, hastened to 
General Washington's headquarters at New 
York and enrolled himself as a cadet in the 
army. 

At Trenton Lieutenant Monroe so dis- 
tinguished himself, receiving a wound in his 
shoulder, that he was promoted to a Cap- 
taincy. Upon recovering from his wound, 
lie was invited to act as aide to Lord Ster- 
ling, and in that capacity he took an active 
part in the battles of Brandy wine, Ger- 
mantownand Monmouth. At Germantown 



he stood by the side of Lafayette when the 
French Marquis received his wound. Gen- 
eral Washington, who had formed a high 
idea of young Monroe's ability, sent him to 
Virginia to raise a new regiment, of which 
he was to be Colonel; but so exhausted was 
Virginia at that time that the effort proved 
unsuccessful. He, however, received his 
commission. 

Finding no opportunity to enter the army 
as a commissioned officer, he returned to his 
original plan of studying law, and entered 
the office of Thomas Jefferson, who was 
then Governor of Virginia. He developed 
a very noble character, frank, manly and 
sincere. Mr. Jefferson said of him: 

"James Monroe is so perfectly honest 
that if his soul were turned inside out there 
would not be found a spot on it." 

In 1782 he was elected to the Assembly 
of Virginia, and was also appointed a mem- 
ber of the Executive Council. The next 
year he was chosen delegate to the Conti- 
nental Congress for a term of three years. 
He was present at Annapolis when Wash- 
ington surrendered his commission of Com- 
mander-in-chief. 

With Washington, Jefferson and Madison 
he felt deeply the inefficiency of the old 
Articles of Confederation, and urged the 
formation of a new Constitution, which 
should invest the Central Government with 
something like national power. Influenced 
by these views, he introduced a resolution 




^?£>^7^*^7 A^^Z^ 



<^ 



WBUC UBr. 




JAMES MONROE. 



35 



that Congress should be empowered to 
regulate trade, and to lay an impost duty 
of five per cent. The resolution was refer- 
red to a committee of which he was chair- 
man. The report and the discussion which 
rose upon it led to the convention of five 
States at Annapolis, and the consequent 
general convention at Philadelphia, which, 
in 1787, drafted the Constitution of the 
United States. 

At this time there was a controversy be- 
tween New York and Massachusetts in 
reference to their boundaries. The high 
esteem in which Colonel Monroe was held 
is indicated by the fact that he was ap- 
pointed one of the judges to decide the 
controversy. While in New York attend- 
ing Congress, he married Miss Kortright, 
a young lady distinguished alike for her 
beauty and accomplishments. For nearly 
fifty years this happy union remained un- 
broken. In London and in Paris, as in her 
own country, Mrs. Monroe won admiration 
and affection by the loveliness of her per- 
son, the brilliancy of her intellect, and the 
amiability of her character. 

Returning to Virginia, Colonel Monroe 
commenced the practice of law at Freder- 
icksburg. He was very soon elected to a 
seat in the State Legislature, and the next 
year he was chosen a member of the Vir- 
ginia convention which was assembled to 
decide upon the acceptance or rejection of 
the Constitution which had been drawn up 
at Philadelphia, and was now submitted 
to the several States. Deeply as he felt 
the imperfections of the old Confederacy, 
he was opposed to the new Constitution, 
thinking, with many others of the Republi- 
can party, that it gave too much power to 
the Central Government, and not enough 
to the individual States. 

In 1789 he became a member of the 
United States Senate, which office he held 
acceptably to his constituents, and with 
honor to himself for four years. 



Having opposed the Constitution as not 
leaving enough power with the States, he, 
of course, became more and more identi- 
fied with the Republican party. Thus he 
found himself in cordial co-operation with 
Jefferson and Madison. The great Repub- 
lican party became the dominant power 
which ruled the land. 

George Washington was then President. 
England had espoused the cause of the 
Bourbons against the principles of the 
French Revolution. President Washing- 
ton issued a proclamation of neutrality be- 
tween these contending powers. France 
had helped us in the struggle for our lib- 
erties. All the despotisms of Europe were 
now combined to prevent the French 
from escaping from tyranny a thousandfold 
worse than that which we had endured. 
Colonel Monroe, more magnanimous than 
prudent, was anxious that we should help 
our old allies in their extremity. He vio- 
lently opposed the President's procla- 
mation as ungrateful and wanting in 
magnanimity. 

Washington, who could appreciate such 
a character, developed his calm, serene, 
almost divine greatness by appointing that 
very James Monroe, who was denouncing 
the policy of the Government, as the Minis- 
ter of that Government to the republic of 
France. He was directed by Washington 
to express to the French people our warm- 
est sympathy, communicating to them cor- 
responding resolves approved by the Pres- 
ident, and adopted by both houses of 
Congress. 

Mr. Monroe was welcomed by the Na- 
tional Convention in France with the most 
enthusiastic demonstrations of respect and 
affection. He was publicly introduced to 
that body, and received the embrace of the 
President, Merlin de Douay, after having 
been addressed in a speech glowing with 
congratulations, and with expressions of 
desire that harmony might ever exist be 



36 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



fevveen the two nations. The Hags of the 
two republics were intertwined in the hall 
of the convention. Mr. Monroe presented 
the American colors, and received those of 
France in return. The course which he 
pursued in Paris was so annoying to Eng- 
land and to the friends of England in 
this country that, near the close of Wash- 
ington's administration, Mr. Monroe, was 
recalled. 

After his return Colonel Monroe wrote a 
book of 400 pages, entitled " A View of the 
Conduct of the Executive in Foreign Af- 
fairs." In this work he very ably advo- 
cated his side of the question; but, with 
the magnanimity of the man, he recorded a 
warm tribute to the patriotism, ability and 
spotless integrity of John Jay, between 
whom and himself there was intense antag 
onism ; and in subsequent years he ex- 
pressed in warmest terms his perfect 
veneration for the character of George 
Washington. 

Shortly after his return to this country 
Colonel Monroe was elected Governor of 
Virginia, and held that office for three 
years, the period limited by the Constitu- 
tion. In 1802 he was an Envoy to France, 
and to Spain in 1805, and was Minister to 
England in 1803. In 1806 he returned to 
his quiet home in Virginia, and with his 
wife and children and an ample competence 
from his paternal estate, enjoyed a few years 
of domestic repose. 

In 1809 Mr. Jefferson's second term of 
office expired, and many of the Republican 
party were anxious to nominate James 
Monroe as his successor. The majority 
were in favor of Mr. Madison. Mr. Mon- 
roe withdrew his name and was soon after 
chosen a second time Governor of Virginia. 
He soon resigned that office to accept the 
position ol Secretary of State, offered him 
by President Madison. The correspond- 
ence which he then carried on with the 
British Government demonstrated that 



there was no hope of any peaceful adjust- 
ment of our difficulties with the cabinet of 
St. James. War was consequently declared 
in June, 1812. Immediately after the sack 
of Washington the Secretary of War re- 
signed, and Mr. Monroe, at the earnest 
request of Mr. Madison, assumed the ad- 
ditional duties of the War Department, 
without resigning his position as Secretary 
of State. It has been confidently stated, 
that, had Mr. Monroe's energies been in the 
War Department a few months earlier, the 
disaster at Washington would not have 
occurred. 

The duties now devolving upon Mr. Mon- 
roe were extremely arduous. Ten thou- 
sand men, picked from the veteran armies 
of England, were sent with a powerful fleet 
to New Orleans to acquire possession of 
the mouths of the Mississippi. Our finan- 
ces were in the most deplorable condition. 
The treasury was exhausted and our credit 
gone. And yet it was necessary to make 
the most rigorous preparations to meet the 
foe. In this crisis James Monroe, the Sec- 
retary of War, with virtue unsurpassed in 
Greek or Roman story, stepped forward 
and pledged his own individual credit as 
subsidiary to that of the nation, and thus 
succeeded in placing the city of New Or- 
leans in such a posture of defense, that it 
was enabled successfully to repel the in- 
v. der. 

Mr. Monroe was truly the armor-bearer 
ol President Madison, and the most efficient 
business man in his cabinet. His energy 
in the double capacity of Secretary, both 
of State and War, pervaded all the depart- 
ments of the country. He proposed to 
increase the army to 100,000 men, a meas- 
ure which he deemed absolutely necessary 
to save us from ignominious defeat, but 
which, at the same time, he knew would 
render his name so unpopular as to preclude 
the possibility of his being a successful can- 
didate for the Presidency. 



JAMES MONROE. 



37 



The happy result of the conference at 
Ghent in securing peace rendered the in- 
crease of the army unnecessary; but it is not 
too much to say that James Monroe placed 
in the hands of Andrew Jackson the 
weapon with which to beat off the foe at 
New Orleans. Upon the return of peace 
Mr. Monroe resigned the department of 
war, devoting himself entirely to the duties 
of Secretary of State. These he continued 
to discharge until the close of President 
Madison's administration, with zeal which 
was never abated, and with an ardor of 
self-devotion which made him almost for- 
getful of the claims of fortune, health or 
life. 

Mr. Madison's second term expired in 
March, 1817, and Mr. Monroe succeeded 
to the Presidency. He was a candidate of 
the Republican party, now taking the name 
of the Democratic Republican. In 1821 he 
was re-elected, with scarcely any opposition. 
Out cf 232 electoral votes, he received 231. 
The slavery question, which subsequently 
assumed such formidable dimensions, now 
began to make its appearance. The State 
of Missouri, which had been carved out of 
that immense territory which we had pur- 
chased of France, applied for admission to 
the Union, with a slavery Constitution. 
There were not a few who foresaw the 
evils impending. After the debate of a 
week it was decided that Missouri could 
not be admitted into the Union with slav- 
ery. This important question was at length 
settled by a compromise proposed by 
Henry Clay. 

The famous "Monroe Doctrine," of which 
so much has been said, originated in this 
way: In 1823 it was rumored that the 
Holy Alliance was about to interfere to 
prevent the establishment of Republican 
liberty in the European colonies of South 
America. President Monroe wrote to his 
old friend Thomas Jefferson for advice in 
the emergency. In his reply under date of 



October 24, Mr. Jefferson writes upon the 
supposition that our attempt to resist this 
European movement might lead to war: 

" Its object is to introduce and establish 
the American system of keeping out of our 
land all foreign powers; of never permitting 
those of Europe to intermeddle with the 
affairs of our nation. It is to maintain our 
own principle, not to depart from it." 

December 2, 1823, President Monroe 
sent a message to Congress, declaring it to 
be the policy of this Government not to 
entangle ourselves with the broils of Eu- 
rope, and not to allow Europe to interfere 
with the affairs of nations on the American 
continent; and the doctrine was announced, 
that any attempt on the part of the Euro- 
pean powers " to extend their system to 
any portion of this hemisphere would be 
regarded by the United States as danger- 
ous to our peace and safety." 

March 4, 1825, Mr. Monroe surrendered 
the presidential chair to his Secretary of 
State, John Quincy Adams, and retired, 
with the universal respect of the nation, 
to his private residence at Oak Hill, Lou- 
doun Count)', Virginia. His time had been 
so entirely consecrated to his country, that 
he had neglected his pecuniary interests, 
and was deeply involved in debt. The 
welfare of his country had ever been up- 
permost in his mind. 

For many years Mrs. Monroe was in such 
feeble health that she rarely appeared in 
public. In 1830 Mr. Monroe took up his 
residence with his son-in-law in New York, 
where he died on the 4th of July, 1831. 
The citizens of New York conducted his 
obsequies with pageants more imposing 
than had ever been witnessed there before. 
Our country will ever cherish his mem- 
ory with pride, gratefully enrolling his 
name in the list of its benefactors, pronounc- 
ing him the worth)' successor of the illus- 
trious men who had preceded him in the 
presidential chair. 



3S 



PHES/DENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 




■*T*r$&4r***- 



i ?3?? p ? ? rlrJrJrJ r j r j ?????p?? r ' ^^ ^^^?i f ??? Hg ^r' a!£ EHggggHgg?7 



♦itf^.^-* 



n Quiacy Adams, % 

^ ... ^ 





OHN QUINCY ADAMS, 
the sixth President of the 
United States, i825-'a, 
was born in the rural 
home of his honored 
father, John Adams, in 
Q u i n c y , Massachusetts, 
July ii, 1767. His mother, 
a woman of exalted worth, 
watched over his childhood 
during the almost constant 
absence of his father. He 
commenced his education 
at the village school, giving; 
at an early period indica- 
tions of superior mental en- 
dowments. 

When eleven years of age he sailed with 
his father for Europe, where the latter was 
associated with Franklin and Lee as Minister 
Plenipotentiary. The intelligence of John 
Quincy attracted the attention of these men 
and received from them flattering marks of 
attention. Mr. Adams had scarcely returned 
to this country in 1779 ere he was again 
sent abroad, and John Quincy again accom- 
panied him. On this voyage he commenced 
a diary, which practice he continued, with 
hut few interruptions, until liis death He 
journeyed with his father from Ferrol, in 
Spain, to Paris. Here he applied himself 
tor m\ months to study; then accompanied 



his father to Holland, where he entered, 
first a school in Amsterdam, and then the 
University of Leyden. In 1781, when only 
fourteen years of age, he was selected by 
Mr. Dana, our Minister to the Russian 
court, as his private secretary. In this 
school of incessant labor he spent fourteen 
months, and then returned alone to Holland 
through Sweden, Denmark, Hamburg and 
Bremen. Again he resumed his studies 
under a private tutor, at The Hague. 

In the spring of 1782 he accompanied his 
father to Paris, forming acquaintance with 
the most distinguished men on the Conti- 
nent. After a short visit to England, he re- 
turned to Paris and studied until May, 
1785, when he returned to America, leav- 
ing his father an embassador at the court 
of St. James. In 1786 he entered the jun- 
ior class in Harvard University, and grad- 
uated with the second honor of his class. 
The oration he delivered on this occasion, 
the " Importance of Public Faith to t he 
Well-being of a Community," was pub- 
lished — an event very rare in this or any 
other land. 

Upon leaving college at the age 01 twenty 
he studied law three years with the Hon. 
Theophilus Parsons in Newburyport. In 
1790 heopened alaw office in Boston. The 
profession was crowded with able men, and 
the fees were small. The first year he had 




3, 2. M 



A/HvJ 



JOJJN QU/NCr ADAMS. 



no clients, but not a moment was lost. The 
second year passed away, still no clients, 
and still he was dependent upon his parents 
for support. Anxiously he awaited the 
third year. The reward now came. Cli- 
ents began to enter his office, and before 
the end of the year he was so crowded 
with business that all solicitude respecting 
a support was at an end. 

When Great Britain commenced war 
against France, in 1793, Mr. Adams wrote 
some articles, urging entire neutrality on 
the part of the United States. The view 
was not a popular one. Many felt that as 
France had helped us, we were bound to 
help France. But President Washington 
coincided with Mr. Adams, and issued his 
proclamation of neutrality. His writings 
at this time in the Boston journals gave 
him so high a reputation, that in June, 
1794, he was appointed by Washington 
resident Minister at the Netherlands. In 
July, 1797, he left The Hague to go to Port- 
ugal as Minister Plenipotentiary. Wash- 
ington at this time wrote to his father, John 
Adams: 

" Without intending to compliment the 
father or the mother, or to censure any 
others, I give it as my decided opinion, 
that Mr. Adams is the most valuable char- 
acter we have abroad; and there remains 
no doubt in my mind that he will prove the 
ablest of our diplomatic corps." 

On his way to Portugal, upon his arrival 
in London, he met with dispatches direct- 
ing him to the court of Berlin, but request- 
ing him to remain in London until he should 
receive instructions. While waiting he 
was married to Miss Louisa Catherine John- 
son, to whom he had been previously en- 
gaged. Miss Johnson was a daughter of 
Mr. Joshua Johnson, American Consul 
in London, and was a lady endowed with 
that beauty and those accomplishments 
which fitted her to move in the elevated 
sphere for which she was destined. 



In July, 1799, having fulfilled all the pur- 
poses of his mission, Mr. Adams returned. 
In 1802 he was chosen to the Senate of 
Massachusetts from Boston, and then was 
elected Senator of the United States for six 
years from March 4, 1804. His reputation, 
his ability and his experience, placed him 
immediately among the most prominent 
and influential members of that body. He 
sustained the Government in its measures 
of resistance to the encroachments of Eng- 
land, destroying our commerce and insult- 
ing our flag. There was no man in America 
more familiar with the arrogance of the 
British court upon these points, and no 
one more resolved to present a firm resist- 
ance. This course, so truly patriotic, and 
which scarcely a voice will now be found 
to condemn, alienated him from the Fed- 
eral party dominant in Boston, and sub- 
jected him to censure. 

In 1 80S Mr. Adams was chosen professor 
of rhetoric in Harvard College. His lect- 
ures at this place were subsequently pub- 
lished. In 1809 he was sent as Minister to 
Russia. He was one of the commissioners 
that negotiated the treaty of peace with 
Great Britain, signed December 24, 1814, 
and he was appointed Minister to the court 
of St. James in 1815. In 1817 he became 
Secretary of State in Mr. Monroe's cabinet 
in which position he remained eight years. 
Few will now contradict the assertion that 
the duties of that office were never more 
ably discharged. Probably the most im- 
portant measure which Mr. Adams con- 
ducted was the purchase of Florida from 
Spain for $5,000,000. 

The campaign of 1824 was an exciting 
one. Four candidates were in the field. 
Of the 260 electoral votes that were cast, 
Andrew Jackson received ninety-nine; John 
Quincy Adams, eighty-four; William II. 
Crawford, fortv-one, and Henry Clay, 
thirty-seven. As there was no choice by 
the people, the question went to the House 



41 



PRES/DENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



of Representatives. Mr. Clay gave the 
vote of Kentucky to Mr. Adams, and he 
was elected. 

The friends of all disappointed candidates 
now combined in a venomous assault upon 
Mr. Adams. There is nothing more dis- 
graceful in the past history of our country 
than the abuse which was [toured in one 
uninterrupted stream upon this high- 
minded, upright, patriotic man. There was 
never an administration more pure in prin- 
ciples, more conscientiously devoted to t he- 
best interests of the country, than that of 
John Ouincy Adams; and never, perhaps, 
was there an administration more unscru- 
pulously assailed. Mr. Adams took his seat 
in the presidential chair resolved not to 
know any partisanship, but only to con- 
sult for the interests of the whole Republic, 

He refused to dismiss any man from of- 
fice for his political views. If he was a faith- 
ful officer that was enough. Bitter must 
have been his disappointment to find that t he 
Nation could not appreciate such conduct. 

Mr. Adams, in his public manners, was 
cold and repulsive; though with his per- 
sonal friends he was at times very genial. 
This chilling address very seriously de- 
tracted from his popularity. No one can 
read an impartial record of his administra- 
tion without admitting that a more noble 
example of uncompromising dignity can 
scarcely be found. It was stated publicly 
that Mr. Adams' administration was to be 
put clown, " though it be as pure as the an- 
gels which stand at the right hand of the 
throne of God." Many of the active par- 
ticipants in these scenes lived to regret the 
course they pursued. Some years after, 
Warren R. Davis, ol South Carolina, turn- 
ing to Mr. Adams, then a member oi the 
I louse of Representatives, said: 

" Well do 1 remember the enthusiastic 
zeal with which we reproached the admin- 
istration of that gentleman, and the ardor 
and vehemence with which we labored to 



bring in another. For the share I had in 
these transactions, and it was not a small 
one, I hope God will forgive me, for I shall 
//i-.rr forgive myself." 

March 4, 1829, Mr. Adams retired from 
the Presidency and was succeeded by An- 
drew Jackson, the latter receiving 168 out 
of 261 electoral votes. John C. Calhoun 
was elected Vice-President. The slavery 
question now began to assume pretentious 
magnitude. Mr. Adams returned to 
Quincy, and pursued his studies with una- 
bated zeal. But he was not long permitted 
to remain in retirement. In November, 
1830, he was elected to Congress. In this 
he recognized the principle that it is honor- 
able for the General of yesterday to act as 
Corporal to-day, if by so doing he can ren- 
der service to his country. Deep as are 
our obligations to John Ouincv Adams for 
his services as embassador, as Secretary ol 
State and as President; in his capacity as 
legislator in the House of Representa- 
tives, he conferred benefits upon our land 
which eclipsed all the rest, and which can 
never be over-estimated. 

For seventeen years, until his death, he 
occupied the post of Representative, tow- 
ering above all his peers, ever ready to do 
brave battle for freedom, and winning the 
title of " the old man eloquent." Upon 
taking his seat in the House he announced 
that he should hold himself bound to no 
party. lie was usually the first in his 
place in the morning, and the last to leave 
his seat in the evening. Not a measure 
could escape his scrutiny. The battle 
which he fought, almost singly, against the 
pro-slavcrv party in the Government, was 
sublime in its moral daring and heroism. 
For persisting in presenting petitions for 
the abolition of slavery, he was threatened 
with indictment by the Grand Jury, with 
expulsion from the House, with assassina- 
tion; but no threats could intimidate him, 
and his final triumph was complete. 



JOHN ^UINCr ADAMS. 



43 



On one occasion Mr. Adams presented a 
petition, signed by several women, against 
the annexation of Texas for the purpose of 
cutting it up into slave States. Mr. How- 
ard, of Maryland, said that these women 
discredited not only themselves, but their 
section of the country, by turning from 
their domestic duties to the conflicts of po- 
litical life. 

"Are women," exclaimed Mr. Adams, 
" to have no opinions or actions on subjects 
relating to the general welfare ? Where 
did the gentleman get his principle? Did 
he find it in sacred history, — in the language 
of Miriam, the prophetess, in one of the 
noblest and sublime songs of triumph thai 
ever met the human eye or ear? Did the 
gentleman never hear of Deborah, to whom 
the children of Israel came up for judg- 
ment ? Has he forgotten the deed of Jael, 
who slew the dreaded enemy of her coun- 
try ? Has he forgotten Esther, who, by her 
petition saved her people and her coun- 
t r v ? 

" To go from sacred history to profane, 
does the gentleman there find it ' discredita- 
ble ' for women to take an interest in politi- 
cal affairs? Has he forgotten the Spartan 
mother, who said to her son when going 
out to battle, ' My son, come back to me 
with thy shield, or upon thy shield ? ' Does 
he remember Cloelia and her hundred com- 
panions, who swam across the river une'er 
a shower of darts, escaping from Porsena ? 
Has he forgotten Cornelia, the mother of 
the Gracchi? Does he not remember Por- 
tia, the wife of Brutus and the daughter of 
Cato? 

" To come to later periods, what says the 
history of our Anglo-Saxon ancestors? 
To say nothing of Boadicea, the British 
heroine in the time of the Cresars, what 
name is more illustrious than that of Eliza- 
beth ? Or, if he will go to the continent, 
will he not find the names of Maria Theresa 
of Hungary, of the two Catherines of 



Prussia, and of Isabella of Castile, the pa- 
troness of Columbus ? Did she bring ' dis- 
credit ' on her sex by mingling in politics ? " 

In this glowing strain Mr. Adams si- 
lenced and overwhelmed his antagonists. 

In January, 1842, Mr. Adams presented 
a petition from forty-five citizens of Haver- 
hill, Massachusetts, praying for a peaceable 
dissolution of the Union. The pro-slavery 
party in Congress, who were then plotting 
the destruction of the Government, were 
aroused to a pretense of commotion such as 
even our stormy hall of legislation has 
rarely witnessed. They met in caucus, and, 
finding that the)' probably would not be 
able to expel Mr. Adams from the House 
drew up a series of resolutions, which, ii 
adopted, would inflict upon him disgrace, 
equivalent to expulsion. Mr. Adams had 
presented the petition, which was most re- 
spectfully worded, and had moved that it be 
referred to a committee instructed to re- 
port an answer, showing the reason why 
the prayer ought not to be granted. 

It was the 25th of January. The whole 
body of the pro-slavery party came crowd- 
ing together in the House, prepared to 
crush Mr. Adams forever. One of the num- 
ber, Thomas F. Marshall, of Kentucky, was 
appointed to read the resolutions, which 
accused Mr. Adams of high treason, of 
having insulted the Government, and 01 
meriting expulsion; but for which deserved 
punishment, the House, in its great mercy, 
would substitute its severest censure. With 
the assumption of a very solemn and mag- 
isterial air, there being breathless silence in 
the audience, Mr. Marshall hurled the care- 
fully prepared anathemas at his victim. 
Mr. Adams stood alone, the whole pro-slav- 
ery party against him. 

As soon as the resolutions were read, 
every eye being fixed upon him, that bold 
old man, whose scattered locks were whit- 
ened by seventy-five years, casting a wither- 
ing glance in the direction of his assailants. 



44 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



in a clear, shrill tone, tremulous with sup- 
pressed emotion, said: 

" In reply to this audacious, atrocious 
charge of high treason, I call for the read- 
ing of the first paragraph of the Declaration 
of Independence. Read it ! Read it! and 
see what that says of the rights of a people 
to reform, to change, and to dissolve their 
Government.' 

The attitude, the manner, the tone, the 
words; the venerable old man, with flash- 
ing eye and flushed cheek, and whose very 
form seemed to expand under the inspiration 
of the occasion — all presented a scene over- 
flowing in its sublimit v. There was breath- 
less silence as that paragraph was read, in 
defense of whose principles our fathers had 
pledged their lives, their fortunes and their 
sacred honor. It was a proud hour to Mr. 
Adams as they were all compelled to listen 
to the words: 

" That, to secure these rights, govern- 
ments are instituted anions: men, deriving 
their just powers from the consent of the 
governed; and that whenever any form of 
government becomes destructive of those 
ends, it is the right of the people to alter or 
abolish it, and to institute new government, 
laying ils foundations on such principles 
and organizing its powers in such form 
as shall seem most likelv to effect their 
safety and happiness." 

That one sentence routed and baffled the 



foe. The heroic old man looked around 
upon the audience, and thundered out, 
" Read that again!" It was again read. 
Then in a few fiery, logical words he stated 
his defense in terms which even prejudiced 
minds could not resist. His discomfited 
assailants made several attempts to rally. 
After a conflict of eleven days they gave 
up vanquished and their resolution was ig- 
nominiously laid upon the table. 

In January, 1846, when seventy-eight 
years of age, he took part in the great de- 
bate on the Oregon question, displaying 
intellectual vigor, and an extent and accu- 
racy of acquaintance with the subject that 
excited great admiration. 

On the 2 1 st of February, 1848, he rose on 
the floor of Congress with a paper in his 
hand to address the Speaker. Suddenly 
he fell, stricken by paralysis, and was caught 
in the arms of those around him. For a 
time he was senseless and was conveyed 
to a sofa in the rotunda. With reviving 
consciousness he opened his eyes, looked 
calmly around and said, " This is t lie end of 
earth." Then alter a moment's pause, he 
added, " I am content." These were his last 
words, and he soon breathed his last, in the 
apartment beneath the dome of the capitol 
— thetheaterol his labors and his triumphs. 
In the language of hymnology, he "died a1 
his post;" he " ceased al once to work and 
live." 






. 



§H 



.-.iitf-'W* *-'•*. 




/ / , >r/ r s , , \ _^7v r s£j~&7 v 



ANDREW JACKSON. 



47 









P^NDREW JACKSON, 

the seventh President 
of the United States, 
i82o-'37, was born at 
the Waxhaw Settle. 
■g^&« ment, Union Coun- 
7^ ty, North Carolina, 
March 16, 1767. His parents 
were Scotch-Irish, natives of 
Carrickfergus, who came to 
America in 1765, and settled 
on Twelve-Mile Creek, a trib- 
utary of the Catawba. His 
father, who was a poor farm 
laborer, died shortly before An- 
drew's birth, when his mother removed to 
Waxhaw, where some relatives resided. 

Few particulars of the childhood of Jack- 
son have been preserved. His education 
was of the most limited kind, and he showed 
no fondness for books. He grew up to be a 
tall, lank boy, with coarse hair and freck- 
led cheeks, with bare feet dangling from 
trousers too short for him, very fond of ath- 
letic sports, running, boxing and wrestling. 
He was generous to the younger and 
weaker boys, but very irascible and over- 
bearing with his equals and superiors. He 
was profane — a vice in which he surpassed 
all other men. The character of his mother 



he revered; and it was not until after her 
death that his predominant vices gained 
full strength. 

In 1780, at the age of thirteen, Andrew, 
or Andy, as he was called, with his brother 
Robert, volunteered to serve in the Revo- 
lutionary forces under General Sumter, and 
was a witness of the latter's defeat at Hang- 
ing Rock. In the following year the 
brothers were made prisoners, and confined 
in Camden, experiencing brutal treatment 
from their captors, and being spectators of 
General Green's defeat at Hobkirk Hill. 
Through their mother's exertions the boys 
were exchanged while suffering from small- 
pox. In two days Robert was dead, and 
And)' apparently dying. The strength of 
his constitution triumphed, and he regained 
health and vigor. 

As he was getting better, his mother 
heard the cry of anguish from the prison- 
ers whom the British held in Charleston, 
among whom were the sons of her sisters. 
She hastened to their relief, was attacked 
by fever, died and was buried where her 
grave could never be found. Thus Andrew 
Jackson, when fourteen years of age, was 
left alone in the world, without father, 
mother, sister or brother, and without one 
dollar which he could call his own. He 



4 8 



rifliS /DENTS OF Tr/H UNITED STATES. 



soon entered a saddler's shop, and hibored 
diligently for six months. But gradually, 
as health returned, he became more and 
more a wild, reckless, lawless boy. He 
gambled, drank and was regarded as about 
the worst character that could be found. 

lie now turned schoolmaster. He could 
teach the alphabet, perhaps the multiplica- 
tion table; and as he was a very bold boy, 
it is possible he might have ventured to 
teach a little writing. But he soon began to 
think of a profession and decided to study 
law. With a very slender purse, and on 
the back of a very tine horse, he set out 
for Salisbury, North Carolina, where he 
entered the law office of Mr. McCay. 
Here he remained two years, professedly 
studying law. He is still remembered in 
traditions of Salisbury, which say: 

" Andrew Jackson was the most roaring, 
rollicking, horse-racing, card-playing, mis- 
chievous fellow that ever lived in Salisbury. 
He did not trouble the law-books much." 

Andrew was now, at the age of twenty, 
a tall young man, being over six feet in 
height. He was slender, remarkably grace- 
ful and dignified in his manners, an exquis- 
ite horseman, and developed, amidst his 
loathesome profanity and multiform vices, a 
vein of rare magnanimity. His temper was 
fiery in the extreme; but it was said of him 
that no man knew better than Andrew 
Jackson when to get angry and when not. 

In 1786 he was admitted to the bar, anil 
two years later removed to Nashville, 
in what was then the western district of 
North Carolina, with the appointment of so- 
licitor, or public prosecutor. It was an of- 
fice of little honor, small emolument and 
great peril. Few men could be found to 
accept it. 

And now Andrew Jackson commenced 
vigorously to practice law. It was an im- 
portant part of his business to collect debts. 
[t required nerve. During the first seven 
of his residence in those wilds he 



traversed the almost pathless forest between 
Nashville and Jonesborough, a distance of 
200 miles, twenty-two times. Hostile In- 
dians were constantly on the watch, and a 
man was liable at any moment to be shot 
down in his own field. Andrew Jackson 
was just the man for this service— a wild, 
daring, rough backwoodsman. Daily he 
made hair-breadth escapes. He seemed to 
bear a charmed life. Boldly, alone or with 
few companions, he traversed the forests, 
encountering all perils and triumphing 
over all. 

In 1790 Tennessee became a Territory, 
and Jackson was appointed, by President 
Washington, United States Attorney for 
the new district. In 1791 he married Mrs. 
Rachel Robards (daughter of Colonel John 
Donelson), whom he supposed to have been 
divorced in that year by an act of the Leg- 
islature of Virginia. Two years after this 
Mr. and Mrs. Jackson learned, to their 
great surprise, that Mr. Robards had just 
obtained a divorce in one of the courts of 
Kentucky, and that the act of the Virginia 
Legislature was not final, but conditional. 
To remedy the irregularity as much as pos- 
sible, a new license was obtained and the 
marriage ceremony was again performed. 

It proved to be a marriage of rare felic- 
ity. Probablv there never was a more 
affectionate union. However rough Mr. 
Jackson might have been abroad, he was 
always gentle and tender at home; and 
through all the vicissitudes of their lives, he 
treated Mrs. Jackson with the most chival- 
ric attention. 

Under the circumstances it was not un- 
natural that the facts in the case of this 
marriage were so misrepresented by oppo- 
nents in the political campaigns a quarter 
or a century later as to become the basis 
of serious charges against Jackson's moral- 
ity which, however, have been satisfactorily 
attested by abundant evidence. 

Jackson was untiring in Ins duties as 



AX DREW JACKSON. 



49 



United States Attorney, which demanded 
frequent journeys through the wilderness 
and exposed him to Indian hostilities. He 
acquired considerable property in land, and 
obtained such influence as to be chosen 
a member of the convention which framed 
the Constitution for the new State of Ten- 
nessee, in 1796, and in that year was elected 
its first Representative in Congress. Albert 
Gallatin thus describes the first appearance 
of the Hon. Andrew Jackson in the House: 

" A tall, lank, uncouth-looking personage, 
with locks of hair hanging over his face and 
a cue down his back, tied with an eel skin; 
his dress singular, his manners and deport- 
ment those of a rough backwoodsman." 

Jackson was an earnest advocate of the 
Democratic part}'. Jefferson was his idol. 
He admired Bonaparte, loved France and 
hated England. As Mr. Jackson took his 
seat, General Washington, whose second 
term of office was just expiring, delivered 
his last speech to Congress. A committee 
drew up a complimentary address in reply. 
Andrew Jackson did not approve the ad- 
dress and was one of twelve who voted 
against it. 

Tennessee had fitted out an expedition 
against the Indians, contrary to the policy 
of the Government. A resolution was intro- 
duced that the National Government 
should pay the expenses. Jackson advo- 
cated it and it was carried. This rendered 
him very popular in Tennessee. A va- 
cancy chanced soon after to occur in the 
Senate, and Andrew Jackson was chosen 
United States Senator by the State of Ten- 
nessee. John Adams was then President 
and Thomas Jefferson, Vice-President. 

In 1798 Mr. Jackson returned to Tennes- 
see, and resigned his seat in the Senate. 
Soon after he was chosen Judge of the Su- 
preme Court of that State, with a salary of 
$600. This office he held six years. It is 
said that his decisions, though sometimes 
ungrammatical, were generally right. He 



did not enjoy his seat upon the bench, and 
renounced the dignity in 1804. About 
this time he was chosen Major-General of 
militia, and lost the title of judge in that of 
General. 

When he retired from the Senate Cham- 
ber, he decided to try his fortune through 
trade. He purchased a stock of goods in 
Philadelphia and sent them to Nashville, 
where he opened a store. He lived about 
thirteen miles from Nashville, on a tract of 
land of several thousand acres, mostly un- 
cultivated. He used a small block-house 
for a store, from a narrow window of 
which he sold goods to the Indians. As he 
had an assistant his office as judge did not 
materially interfere with his business. 

As to slavery, born in the midst of it, the 
idea never seemed to enter his mind that it 
could be wrong. He eventually became 
an extensive slave owner, but he was one of 
the most humane and gentle of masters. 

In 1804 Mr. Jackson withdrew from pol- 
itics and settled on a plantation which he 
called the Hermitage, near Nashville. He 
set up a cotton-gin, formed a partnership 
and traded in New Orleans, making the 
voyage on flatboats. Through his hot tem- 
per he became involved in several quarrels 
and "affairs of honor," during this period, 
in one of which he was severely wounded, 
but had the misfortune to kill his opponent, 
Charles Dickinson. For a time this affair 
greatly injured General Jackson's popular- 
ity. The verdict then was, and continues 
to be, that General Jackson was outra- 
geously wrong. If he subsequently felt any 
remorse he never revealed it to anyone. 

In 1805 Aaron Burr had visited Nash- 
ville and been a guest of Jackson, with 
whom he corresponded on the subject of a 
war with Spain, which was anticipated and 
desired by them, as well as by the people 
of the Southwest generally. 

Burr repeated his visit in September, 
1806, when he engaged in the celei^ated 



5° 



PRE.t/DEXTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



combinations which led to his trial for trea- 
son. He was warmly received by Jackson, 
at whose instance a public ball was given 
in his honor at Nashville, and contracted 
with the latter for boats and provisions. 
Early in 1807, when Burr had been pro- 
claimed a traitor by President Jefferson, 
volunteer forces for the Federal service 
were organized at Nashville under Jack- 
son's command; but his energy and activ- 
ity did not shield him from suspicions of 
connivance in the supposed treason. He 
was summoned to Richmond as a witness 
in Burr's trial, but was not called to the 
stand, probably because he was out-spoken 
in his partisanship. 

On the outbreak of the war with Great 
Britain in 1812, Jackson tendered his serv- 
ices, and in January, 18 13, embarked for 
New Orleans at the head of the Tennessee 
contingent. In March he received an or- 
der to disband his forces; but in Septem- 
ber he again took the field, in the Creek 
war, and in conjunction with his former 
partner, Colonel Coffee, inflicted upon the 
Indians the memorable defeat at Talladega, 
Emuckfaw and Tallapoosa. 

In May, 1814, Jackson, who had now ac- 
quired a national reputation, was appointed 
a Major-General of the United States army, 



against the Seminoles of Florida, during 
which he seized upon Pensacola and exe- 
cuted by courtmartial two British subjects, 
Arbuthnot and Ambrister — acts which 
might easily have involved the United 
States in war both with Spain and Great 
Britain. Fortunately the peril was averted 
by the cession of Florida to the United 
States; and Jackson, who had escaped a 
trial for the irregularity of his conduct 
only through a division of opinion in Mon- 
roe's cabinet, was appointed in 1821 Gov- 
ernor of the new Territory. Soon after he 
declined the appointment of minister to 
Mexico. 

In 1823 Jackson was elected to the United 
States Senate, and nominated by the Ten- 
nessee Legislature for the 1 'resiliency. This 
candidacy, though a matter of surprise, and 
even merryment, speedily became popular, 
and in 1824, when the stormy electoral can- 
vas resulted in the choice of John Quincy 
Adams bv the House of Representatives, 
General Jackson received the largest popu- 
lar vote among the four candidates. 

In 1828 Jackson was triumphantly elected 
President over Adams after a campaign of 
unparalleled bitterness. He was inaugu- 
rated March 4, 1829, and at once removed 
from office all the incumbents belonsrinir to 



and commenced a campaign against the the opposite party — a procedure new to 



British in Florida. He conducted the de- 
fense at Mobile, September 1 5, seized upon 
Pensacola, November 6, and immediately 
transported the bulk of his troops to New 
Orleans, then threatened by a powerful 
naval force. Martial law was declared in 
Louisiana, the State militia was called to 
arms, engagements with the British were 
ton- lit December 23 and 28, and after re-en- 
forcements had been received on both sides 
the famous victory of January 8, 1815, 
rowned Jackson's fame as a soldier, and 
made him the typical American hero ol 
the first hall of the nineteenth century. 
In 1 8 1 7—' 1 8 Jackson conducted the war 



American politics, but which naturally be- 
came a precedent. 

His first term was characterized by quar- 
rels between the Vice-President, Calhoun, 
and the Secretary of State, Van Buren, at- 
tended bv a cabinet crisis originating in 
scandals connected with the name of Mrs. 
General Eaton, wife of the Secretary of 
\\';ii; bv the beginning ol his war upon the 
United States Bank, and bv his vigorous 
action against the partisans ol Calhoun, 
who, in South Carolina, threatened to 
nullify the acts ol Congress, establishing a 
protective tariff. 

In the Presidential campaign <>i 1832 



ANDREW JACKSON. 



51 



Jackson received 219 out of 288 electoral 
votes, his competitor being Mr. Clay, while 
Mr. Wirt, on an Anti-Masonic platform, 
received the vote of Vermont alone. In 
1833 President Jackson removed the Gov- 
ernment deposits from the United States 
bank, thereby incurring a vote of censure 
from the Senate, which was, however, ex- 
punged four years later. During this second 
term of office the Cherokees, Choctaws and 
Creeks were removed, not without diffi- 
culty, from Georgia, Alabama and Missis- 
sippi, to the Indian Territory; the National 
debt was extinguished; Arkansas and 
Michigan were admitted as States to the 
Union; the Seminole war was renewed; the 
anti-slavery agitation first acquired impor- 
tance; the Mormon delusion, which had 
organized in 1829, attained considerable 
proportions in Ohio and Missouri, and the 
country experienced its greatest pecuniary 
panic. 

Railroads with locomotive propulsion 
were irtroduced into America during Jack- 
son's first term, and had become an impor- 
tant element of national life before the 
close of his second term. For many rea- 
sons, therefore, the administration of Presi- 
dent Jackson formed an era in American 
history, political, social and industrial. 
He succeeded in effecting the election of 



his friend Van Buren as his successor, re- 
tired from the Presidency March 4, 1837; 
and led a tranquil life at the Hermitage 
until his death, which occurred June 8, 
1845. 

During his closing years he was a pro- 
fessed Christian and a member of the Pres- 
byterian church. No American of this 
century has been the subject of such oppo- 
site judgments. He was loved and hated 
with equal vehemence during his life, but 
at the present distance of time from his 
career, while opinions still vary as to the 
merits of his public acts, few of his country- 
men will question that he was a warm- 
hearted, brave, patriotic, honest and sincere 
man. If his distinguishing qualities were 
not such as constitute statesmanship, in the 
highest sense, he at least never pretended 
to other merits than such as were written 
to his credit on the page of American his- 
tory — not attempting to disguise the de- 
merits which were equally legible. The 
majority of his countrymen accepted and 
honored him, in spite of all that calumny 
as well as truth could allege against him. 
His faults may therefore be truly said to 
have been those of his time; his magnifi- 
cent virtues may also, with the same jus- 
tice, be considered as typical of a state of 
society which has nearly passed away. 



5* 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UXITED STATES. 




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ARTIN VAN BU- 
REN, the eighth 
^t President of the 
United States, 1837- 
'41, was born at Kin- 
derhook, New York, 
December 5, 1782. 
1 1 is ancestors were of Dutch 
IK origin, and were among the 
\f-\ earliest emigrants from Hol- 
K land to the banks of the 
K Hudson. His father was a 
|« tavern-keeper, as well as a 
Crtfe. farmer, and a very decided 
Democrat. 
Martin commenced the Study 
of law at the age of fourteen, and took an 
active part in politics before he had reached 
the age of t went v. tn 1803 he commenced 
the practice of law in his native village. 
In 1809 he removed to Hudson, the shire 
town of his county, where he spent seven 
years, gaining strength by contending in 
the courts with some of the ablest men 
who have adorned the bar ol his State. 
The heroic example ol JohnQuincy Adams 
in retaining in office every faithful man, 
without regard to his political preferences, 
had been thoroughly repudiated by Gen- 
eral Jackson. The unfortunate principle 
was now fully established, that "to the 
victor belong the spoils." Still, this prin- 
ciple, to which Mr. Van Buren gave his ad- 



herence, was not devoid of inconveniences. 
When, subsequently, he attained power 
which placed vast patronage in his hands. 
he was heard to say : " I prefer an office 
that has no patronage. When 1 give a man 
an office I offend his disappointed competi- 
tors and their friends. Nor am I certain oi 
gaining a friend in the man I appoint, for. 
in all probability, he expected something 
better." 

In 181 j Mr. Van Buren was elected to 
the State Senate. In [815 he was appointed 
Attorney-General, and in 18 16 to the Senate 
a second time. In 1818 there was a great 
split in the Democratic party in New York, 
and Mr. Van Buren took the lead in or- 
ganizing that portion of the party called 
the Albany Regency, which is said to have 
swayed the destinies of the State for a 
quarter of a century. 

In 1821 he was chosen a member ol the 
convention for revising the State Constitu- 
tion, in which he advocated an extension of 
the franchise, but opposed universal suf- 
frage, and also favored the proposal that 
colored persons, in order to vote, should 
have freehold property to the amount of 
$250. In this year he was also elected to 
the United Slates Senate, and at the con- 
clusion ol his term, in 1S27. was re-elected, 
hut resigned the following year, having 
been chosen Governor of the State. In 
March, 1820. he was appointed Secretary of 




O 7 2^^ 




MARTIN VAN BUREN. 



State by President Jackson, but resigned 
in April, 1831, and during the recess of 
Congress was appointed minister to Eng- 
land, whither he proceeded in September, 
but the Senate, when convened in Decem- 
ber, refused to ratify the appointment. 

In May, 1832, Mr. Van Buren was nomi- 
nated as the Democratic candidate for Vice- 
President, and elected in the following 
November. May 26, 1836, he received the 
nomination to succeed General Jackson as 
President, and received 170 electoral votes, 
out of 283. 

Scarcely had he taken his seat in the 
Presidential chair when a financial panic 
swept over the land. Many attributed 
this to the war which General Jackson had 
waged on the banks, and to his endeavor to 
secure an almost exclusive specie currency. 
Nearly every bank in the country was com- 
pelled to suspend specie payment, and ruin 
pervaded all our great cities. Not less than 
254 houses failed in New York in one week. 
All public works were brought to a stand, 
and there was a general state of dismay. 
President Van Buren urged the adoption of 
the independent treasury system, which 
was twice passed in the Senate and defeated 
in the House, but fir.ally became a law near 
the close of hie rxlministration. 

Another important measure was the pass- 
age of a pre-emption law, giving actual set- 
tlers the preference in the purchase of 
public lands. The question of slavery, also, 
now began to assume great prominence in 
national politics, and after an elaborate 
anti-slavery speech by Mr. Slade, of Ver- 
mont, in the House of Representatives, the 
Southern members withdrew for a separate 
consultation, at which Mr. Rhett, of South 
Carolina, proposed to declare it expedient 
that the Union should be dissolved; but 
the matter was tided over by the passage 
of a resolution that no petitions or papers 
relating to slavery should be in any way 
considered or acted upon. 



In the Presidential election of 1840 Mr. 
Van Buren was nominated, without opposi- 
tion, as the Democratic candidate, William 
H. Harrison being the candidate of the 
Whig party. The Democrats carried only 
seven States, and out of 294 electoral votes 
only sixty were for Mr. Van Buren, the re- 
maining 234 being for his opponent. The 
Whig popular majority, however, was not 
large, the elections in many of the States 
being very close. 

March 4, 1841, Mr. Van Buren retired 
from the Presidency. From his fine estate 
at Lindenwald he still, exerted a powerful 
influence upon the politics of the country. 
In 1844 he was again proposed as the 
Democratic candidate for the Presidency, 
and a majority of the delegates of the 
nominating convention were in his favor ; 
but, owing to his opposition to the pro- 
posed annexation of Texas, he could not 
secure the requisite two-thirds vote. His 
name was at length withdrawn by his 
friends, and Mr. Polk received the nomina- 
tion, and was elected. 

In 1848 Mr. Cass was the regular Demo- 
cratic candidate. A schism, however, 
sprang up in the party, upon the question 
of the permission of slavery in the newly- 
acquired territory, and a portion of the 
party, taking the name of " Free-Soilers," 
nominated Mr. Van Buren. They drew 
away sufficient votes to secure the election 
of General Taylor, the Whig candidate. 
After this Mr. Van Buren retired to his es- 
tate at Kinderhook, where the remainder 
of his life was passed, with the exception of 
a European tour in 1853. He died at 
Kinderhook, July 24, 1862, at the age of 
eighty years. 

Martin Van Buren was a great and good 
man, and no one will question his right to 
a high position among those who have 
been the successors of Washington in the 
faithful occupancy of the Presidential 
chair. 



c6 



P/1ES/DENTS OF THE U.V/TED STATES. 





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WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. f 







LLIAM HENRY 
HARRISON, the 
ninth President (if 
the United States, 
i 84 i, was born 
February 9, 1773, 
in Charles County, 
Virginia, at Berkeley, the resi- 
dence of his father, Governor 
Benjamin Harrison. He studied 
at Hampden, Sidney College, 
with a view of entering the med- 
ical profession. After gradual ion 
he went to Philadelphia to study 
medicine under the instruction of 
Dr. Rush. 
George Washington was then President 
){ the United States. The Indians were 
committing fearful ravages on our North- 
western frontier. Young Harrison, cither 
lured by the love of adventure, or moved 
by the sufferings of families exposed to the 
most horrible outrages, abandoned his med- 
ical studies and entered the army, having 
obtained a commission of ensign from Pres- 
ident Washington. The first duty assigned 
him was to take a train of pack-horses 
hound to Fort Hamilton, on the Miami 
River, about forty miles from Fort Wash- 
ington. He was soon promoted to the 



rank of Lieutenant, and joined the army 
which Washington had placed under the 
command of General Wayne to prosecute 
more vigorously the war with the In- 
dians. Lieutenant Harrison received great 
commendation from his commanding offi- 
cer, and was promoted to the rank of 
Captain, and placed in command at Fort 
Washington, now Cincinnati, Ohio. 

About this time he married a daughter 
of John Cleves Sy mines, one of the fron- 
tiersmen who had established a thriving 
settlement on the bank of the Maumee. 

In 1797 Captain Harrison resigned his 
commission in the army and was appointed 
Secretarv of the Northwest Territory, and 
ex-officio Lieutenant-Governor, General St. 
Clair being then Governor of the Territory. 
At that time the law in reference to the 
disposal of the public lands was such that 
no one could purchase in tracts less than 
4,000 acres. Captain Harrison, in the 
face of violent opposition, succeeded in 
obtaining so much of a modification of 
this unjust law that the land was sold in 
alternate tracts of 640 and 320 acres. The 
Northwest Territory was then entitled 
to one delegate in Congress, and Cap- 
tain Harrison was chosen to fill that of- 
fice. In 1800 he was appointed Governor 




& Jt/9t 



<z- 



WILLIAM IIENRT HARRISON. 



59 



of Indiana Territory and soon after of 
Upper Louisiana. He was also Superin- 
tendent of Indian Affairs, and so well did lie 
fulfill these duties that he was four times 
appointed to this office. During his admin- 
istration he effected thirteen treaties with 
the Indians, by which the United States 
acquired 60,000,000 acres of land. In 1804 
he obtained a cession from the Indians of 
all the land between the Illinois River and 
the Mississippi. 

In [812 he was made Major-General of 
Kentucky militia and Brigadier-General 
111 the army, with the command of the 
Northwest frontier. In 1813 he was made 
Major-General, and as such won much re- 
nown by the defense of Fort Meigs, and the 
battle of the Thames, Octobers, 1813. In 
1S14 he left the army and was employed in 
Indian affairs by the Government. 

In 18 16 General Harrison was chosen a 
member of the National House of Repre- 
sentatives to represent the district of Ohio. 
In the contest which preceded his election 
he was accused of corruption in respect to 
the commissariat of the army. Immedi- 
ately upon taking his seat, he called for an 
investigation of the charge. A committee 
was appointed, and his vindication was 
triumphant. A high compliment was paid 
to his patriotism, disinterestedness and 
devotion to the public service. For these 
services a gold medal was presented to him 
with the thanks of Congress. 

In 1819 he was elected to the Senate of 
Ohio, and in 1824, as one of the Presiden- 
tial electors of that State, he gave his vote 
to Henry Clay. In the same year he was 
elected to the Senate of the United States. 
In 182S he was appointed by President 
Adams minister plenipotentiary to Colom- 
bia, but was recalled by General Jackson 
immediately after the inauguration of the 
latter. 

Upon his return to the United States, 
General Harrison retired to his farm at 



North Bend, Hamilton County, Ohio, six- 
teen miles below Cincinnati, where for 
twelve years he was clerk of the County 
Court. He once owned a distillery, but 
perceiving the sad effects of whisky upon 
the surrounding population, he promptly 
abandoned his business at great pecuniary 
sacrifice. 

In 1836 General Harrison was brought 
forward as a candidate for the Presidency. 
Van Buren was the administration candi- 
date; the opposite party could not unite, 
and four candidates were brought forward. 
General Harrison received seventy-three 
electoral votes without an}' general concert 
among his friends. The Democratic party 
triumphed and Mr. Van Buren was chosen 
President. In 1839 General Harrison was 
again nominated for the Presidency by the 
Whigs, at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Mr. 
Van Buren being the Democratic candi- 
date. General Harrison received 234 elec- 
toral votes against sixty for his opponent. 
This election is memorable chiefly for the 
then extraordinary means employed during 
the canvass for popular votes. Mass meet- 
ings and processions were introduced, and 
the watchwords " log cabin " and " hard 
cider" were effectually used by the Whigs, 
and aroused a popular enthusiasm. 

A vast concourse of people attended his 
inauguration. His address on that occasion 
was in accordance with his antecedents, and 
gave great satisfaction. A short time after he 
took his seat, he was seized by a pleurisy- 
fever, and after a few days of violent sick- 
ness, died April 4, just one short month after 
his inauguration. His death was universally 
regarded as one of the greatest of National 
calamities. Never, since the death of 
Washington, were there, throughout one 
land, such demonstrations of sorrow. Not 
one single spot can be found to sully his 
fame; and through all ages Americans will 
pronounce with love and reverence the 
name of William Henry Harrison. 



r« 



PIIES/DEXTS OF THE UN/TED STATES. 




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OIIN TYLER, the tenth 
President of the United 
States, was born in 
Charles City County, 
Virginia, March 29, 1790. 
His father, Judge John 
Tyler, possessed large 
landed estates in Virginia, 
and was one of the most 
distinguished men of his 
day, filling the offices of 
Speaker of the House of 
Delegates, Judge of the Su- 
preme Court and Governor 
of the State. 
At the early age of twelve 
young John entered William and Mary 
College, and graduated with honor when 
but seventeen years old. He then closely 
applied himself to the study of law, and at 
nineteen years of age commenced the prac- 
tice of his profession. When only twenty- 
One he was elected to a scat in the State 
Legislature. He acted with the Demo- 
cratic party and advocated the measures of 
Jefferson and Madison. For five years he 
was elected to the Legislature, receiving 
nearly the unanimous vote of his county. 

When but twenty-six years of age he was 
elected a member of Congress. He advo- 
cated a strict construction 11I the Constitu- 
tion and the most careful vigilance over 



State rights. He was soon compelled to 
resign his seat in Congress, owing to ill 
health, but afterward took his seat in the 
State Legislature, where he exerted a 
powerful influence in promoting public 
works of great utility. 

In 1825 Mr. Tyler was chosen Governor 
of his State — a high honor, for Virginia 
had many able men as competitors for 
the prize. His administration was signally 
a successful one. He urged forward inter- 
nal improvements and strove to remove 
sectional jealousies. His popularity secured 
his re-election. In 1827 he was elected 
United States Senator, and upon taking his 
seat joined the ranks of the opposition. He 
opposed the tariff, voted against the bank 
as unconstitutional, opposed ail restrictions 
upon slavery, resisted all projects of inter- 
nal improvements by the General Govern- 
ment, avowed his sympathy with Mr. Cal- 
houn's views of nullification, and declared 
that General Jackson, by his opposition to 
the milliners, had abandoned the principles 
of the Democratic party. Such was Mr. 
Tyler's record in Congress. 

This hostility to Jackson caused Mr. 
Tyler's retirement from the Senate, after 
his election to a second term. He soon 
after removed to Williamsburg for the 
better education of his children, and again 
took his scat in the Legislature. 





(rfi/rt 




JOHN TYLER. 



63 



lii 1839 he was sent to the National Con- 
vention at Harrisburg to nominate a Presi- 
dent. General Harrison received a majority 
of votes, much to the disappointment of the 
South, who had wished for Henry Cla}'. 
In order to conciliate the Southern Whigs, 
John Tyler was nominated for Vice-Presi- 
dent. Harrison and Tyler were inaugu- 
rated March 4, 1841. In one short month 
from that time President Harrison died, 
and Mr. Tyler, to his own surprise as well 
as that of the nation, found himself an 
occupant of the Presidential chair. His 
position was an exceedingly difficult one, 
as he was opposed to the main principles of 
the party which had brought him into 
power. General Harrison had selected a 
Whig cabinet Should he retain them, and 
thus surround himself with councilors 
whose views were antagonistic to his own? 
or should he turn against the party that 
had elected him, and select a cabinet in 
hai ony with himself? This was his fear- 
ful dilemma. 

President Tyler deserves more charity 
than he has received. He issued an address 
to the people, which gave general satisfac- 
tion. He retained the cabinet General 
Harrison had selected. His veto of a bill 
chartering a new national bank led to an 
open quarrel with the party which elected 
him, and to a resignation of the entire 
cabinet, except Daniel Webster, Secretary 
of State. 

President Tyler attempted to conciliate. 
He appointed a new cabinet, leaving out all 
strong party men, but the Whig members 
of Congress were not satisfied, and they 
published a manifesto September 13, break- 
ing off all political relations. The Demo- 
crats had a majority in the House ; the 
Whigs in the Senate. Mr. Webster soon 
found it necessary to resign, being forced 
out by the pressure of his Whig friends. 

April 12, 1844, President Tyler concluded, 
through Mr. Calhoun, a treaty for the an- 



nexation of Texas, which was rejected by 
the Senate ; but he effected his object in the 
closing days of his administration by the 
passage of the joint resolution of March 1 
1845. 

He was nominated for the Presidency by 
an informal Democratic Convention, held 
at Baltimore in May, 1844, but soon with- 
drew from the canvass, perceiving that he 
had not gained the confidence of the Demo- 
crats at large. 

Mr. Tyler's administration was particu- 
larly unfortunate. No one was satisfied. 
Whigs and Democrats alike assailed him. 
Situated as he was, it is more than can 
be expected of human nature that he 
should, in all cases, have acted in the wisest 
manner ; but it will probably be the verdict 
of all candid men, in a careful review of his 
career, that John Tyler was placed in a 
position of such difficulty that he could not 
pursue any course which would not expose 
him to severe censure and denunciation. 

In 18 1 3 Mr. Tyler married Letitia Chris- 
tian, who bore him three sons and three 
daughters, and died in Washington in 1842. 
June 26, 1844, he contracted a second mar- 
riage with Miss Julia Gardner, of New 
York. He lived in almost complete retire- 
ment from politics until February, 1S61, 
when he was a member of the abortive 
"peace convention," held at Washington, 
and was chosen its President. Soon after 
he renounced his allegiance to the United 
States and was elected to the Confederate 
Congress. He died at Richmond, January 
17, 1862, after a short illness. 

Unfortunately for his memory the name 
of John Tyler must forever be associated 
with all the misery of that terrible Re- 
bellion, whose cause he openly espoused. 
It is with sorrow that history records that 
a President of the United States died while 
defending the flag of rebellion, which was 
arrayed against the national banner in 
deadly warfare. 



<M 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 








gffefegZjr y^'A M E S K N O X I'O LK, 
the eleventh President of 
the United States, 1845- 
'49, was born in Meck- 
lenburg County, Ninth 
Carolina, November 2, 
1795. He was the eldest 
son of a family of six sons 
and four daughters, and was 
a grand-nephew of Colonel 
Thomas Polk, celebrated in 
connection with the Meck- 
lenburg Declaration of In- 
dependence. 

In 1806 his fat her, Samuel 
Polk, emigrated with his fam- 
ily two or three hundred miles west to the 
valley of the Duck River. He was a sur- 
veyor as well as farmer, and gradually in- 
creased in wealth until he became one of 
the leading men of the region. 

In the common schools James rapidly be- 
came proficient in all the common branches 
of an English education. In 1813 he was 
sent to Murfreesboro Academy, and in the 
autumn of 181 5 entered the sophomore class 
in the University ol North Carolina, at 
Chapel Hill, graduating in 1818. After a 
short season of recreation he went to Nash- 
ville and entered the law office of Felix 
Grundv. As sodh as be had his finished 



legal studies and been admitted to the bar, 
he returned to Columbia, the shire town of 
Maury County, and opened an office. 

James K. Polk ever adhered to the polit- 
ical faith of his father, which was that of 
a Jeffersonian Republican. In 1823 he was 
elected to the Legislature of Tennessee. As 
a "strict constructionist," he did not think 
that the Constitution empowered the Gen- 
eral Government to carry on a system of 
internal improvements in the States, but 
deemed it important that it should have 
that power, and wished the Constitution 
amended that it might be conferred. Sub- 
scqucntlv, however, he became alarmed lest 
the General Government become so strong 
as to undertake to interfere with slavery. 
He therefore gave all his influence to 
strengthen the State governments, and to 
check the growth of the central power. 

In January, 1824, Mr. Polk married Miss 
Mary Childress, of Rutherford County, Ten- 
nessee. Had some one then whispered to 
him that he was destined to become Presi- 
dent of the United States, and that he must 
select for his companion one who would 
adorn that distinguished station, he could 
not have made a more lifting choice. She 
was truly a lady of rare beauty and culture. 

In the fall of 1S25 Mr. Polk was chosen 
a member of Congress, and was continu 



JA UES K. POLK. 



67 



ouslv re-elected until 1839. He then with- 
drew, only that he might accept the 
eubernatorial chair of his native State. 
He was a warm friend of General Jackson, 
who had been defeated in the electoral 
contest bv John Ouincy Adams. This 
latter gentleman had just taken his seat in 
the Presidential chair when Mr. Polk took 
his seat in the House of Representatives. 
He immediately united himself with the 
opponents of Mr. Adams, and was soon 
regarded as the leader of the Jackson party 
in the House. 

The four years of Mr. Adams' adminis- 
tration passed a way, and General Jackson 
took trie Presidential chair. Mr. Polk had 
now become a man of great influence in 
Congress, ana was chairman of its most 
important committee — that of Ways and 
Means. Eloquently he sustained General 
Jackson in all his measures — in his hostility' 
to internal improvements, to the banks, and 
to the tariff. Eight years of General Jack- 
son's administration passed away, and the 
powers he had wielded passed into the 
hands of Martin Van Buren ; and still Mr. 
Polk remained in the House, the advocate 
of that type of Democracy which those 
distinguished men upheld. 

During five sessions of Congress Mr. 
Polk was speaker of the House. He per- 
formed his arduous duties to general satis- 
faction, and a unanimous vote of thanks to 
him was passed by the House as he with- 
drew, March 4, 1839. He was elected 
Governor by a large majority, and took 
the oath of office at Nashville, October 14, 
1S39. He was a candidate for re-election 
in 1841, but was defeated. In the mean- 
time a wonderful revolution had swept 
over the country. W. H. Harrison, the Whig- 
candidate, had been called to the Presiden- 
tial chair, and in Tennessee the Whig ticket 
had been carried by over 12,000 majority. 
Under these circumstances Mr. Polk's suc- 
cess was hopeless. Still he canvassed the 



State with his Whig competitor, Mr. Jones, 
traveling in the most friendly manner to- 
gether, often in the same carriage, and at 
one time sleeping in the same bed. Mr. 
Jones was elected by 3,000 majority. 

And now the question of the annexation 
of Texas to our country agitated the whole 
land. When this question became national 
Mr. Polk, as the avowed champion of an- 
nexation, became the Presidential candidate 
of the pro-slavery wing of the Democratic 
party, and George M. Dallas their candi- 
date for the Vice-Presidency. They were 
elected by a large majority, and were in- 
augurated March 4, 1845. 

President Polk formed an able cabinet, 
consisting of James Buchanan, Robert J. 
Walker, William L. Marcy, George Ban 
croft, Cave Johnson and John V. Mason. 
The Oregon boundary question was settled, 
the Department of the Interior was created, 
the low tariff of 1846 was carried, the 
financial system of the Government was 
reorganized, the Mexican war was con- 
ducted, which resulted in the acquisition of 
California and New Mexico, and had far- 
reaching consequences upon the later fort- 
unes of the republic. Peace was made. 
We had wrested from Mexico territory 
equal to four times the empire of France, 
and five times that of Spain. In the prose- 
cution of this war we expended 20,000 
lives and more than $100,000,000. Of this 
money $15,000,000 were paid to Mexico. 

Declining to seek a renomination, Mr. 
Polk retired from the Presidency March 4, 
1849, when he was succeeded try General 
Zachary Taylor. He retired to Nashville, 
and died there June 19, 1849, in the fifty- 
fourth year of his age. His funeral was at- 
tended the following day, in Nashville, with 
every demonstration of respect. He left 
no children. Without being possessed of 
extraordinary talent, Mr. Polk was a capable 
administrator of public affairs, and irre- 
proachable in private life. 



ss 



FKES/DENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 






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ACHARY TAY- 
LOR, the twelfth 
President of the 
United States, 
i849-'50, was born 
in ( )range County, 
Virginia, Septem- 
17S4. His father, 
Richard Taylor, was Colo- 
nel of a Virginia regiment 
in the Revolutionary war, 
and removed to Kentucky 
in 1785 ; purchased a large 
plantation near Louisville 
and became an influential cit- 
izen; was a member of the convention that 
framed the Constitution of Kentucky; served 
in both branches of the Legislature; was 
Collector of the port of Louisville under 
President Washington; as a Presidential 
elector, voted for Jefferson, Madison, Mon- 
roe and Clay; died January 19,1829. 

Zachary remained on his father's planta- 
tion until 180S. in which year (May 3) he 
was appointed First Lieutenant in the 
Seventh Infantry, to fill a vacancy 0C- 
. ied by the death oi his elder brother, 
1 [ancock. Up to this point he had received 
but a limited education. 

Joining his regimen! at New ( >rleans, he 




was attacked with yellow fever, with nearly 
fatal termination. In November, 1810, he 
was promoted to Captain, and in the sum- 
mer of 1 Si 2 he was in command of Fort 
Harrison, on the left bank of the Wabash 
River, near the present site of Tcrre Haute, 
his successful defense of which with but a 
handful of men against a large force of 
Indians which had attacked him was one of 
the first marked military achievements of 
the war. He was then brcvetted Major, 
and in 1814 promoted to the full rank. 

During the remainder of the war Taylor 
was actively' employed on the Western 
frontier. In the peace organization of 1815 
he was retained as Captain, but soon after 
resigned and settled near Louisville. In 
May, 1S16, however, he re-entered the armv 
as Major of the Third Infantry ; became 
Lieutenant-Colonel of the Eighth Infantry 
in 1819, and in 1832 attained the Colonelcy 
of the First Infantry, of which he had been 
Lieutenant-Colonel since 1821. On different 
occasions he had been called to Washington 
as member of a military board for organiz- 
ing the militia ol the Union, and to aid the 
Government with his knowledge in the 
organization of the Indian Bureau, having 
for many years discharged the duties oi 
Indian agenl over large tracts ol Western 




7 ^^o/^i^?-^ t y^ U y 



ZA CHA RT TATL OR. 



7l 



country. He served through the Black 
Hawk war in 1832, and in 1837 was ordered 
to take command in Florida, then the scene 
of war with the Indians. 

In 1S46 he was transferred to the com- 
mand oi the Army of the Southwest, from 
which he was relieved the same year at his 
own request. Subsequently he was sta- 
tioned on the Arkansas frontier at Forts 
Gibbon, Smith and Jesup, which latter work 
had been built under his direction in 1822. 

May 28, 1 845, he received a dispatch from 
the Secretary of War informing him of the 
receipt of information by the President 
"that Texas would shortly accede to the 
terms of annexation," in which event he 
was instructed to defend and protect her 
from "foreign invasion and Indian incur- 
sions." He proceeded, upon the annexation 
of Texas, with about 1,500 men to Corpus 
Christi, where his force was increased to 
some 4,000. 

Taylor was brevetted Major-General May 
28, and a month later, June 29, 1846, his full 
commission to that grade was issued. After 
needed rest and reinforcement, he advanced 
in September on Monterey, which city ca- 
pitulated after three-days stubborn resist- 
ance. Here he took up his winter quarters. 
The plan for the invasion of Mexico, by 
way of Vera Cruz, with General Scott in 
command, was now determined upon by 
the Govenrment, and at the moment Taylor 
was about to resume active operations, he 
received orders to send the larger part of 
his force to reinforce the army of General 
Scott at Vera Cruz. Though subsequently 
reinforced by raw recruits, yet after pro- 
viding a garrison for Monterey and Saltillo 
he had but about 5,300 effective troops, of 
which but 500 or 600 were regulars. In 
this weakened condition, however, he was 
destined to achieve his greatest victor}-. 
Confidently relying upon his strength at 
Vera Cruz to resist the enemy for a long 
time, Santa Anna directed his entire army 



against Taylor to overwhelm him, and then 
to return to oppose the advance of Scott's 
more formidable invasion. The battle of 
Buena Vista was fought February 22 and 
23, 1S47. Taylor received the thanks of 
Congress and a gold medal, and " Old 
Rough and Ready," the sobriquet given 
him in the army, became a household word. 
He remained in quiet possession of the 
Rio Grande Valley until November, when 
he returned to the United States. 

In the Whig convention which met at 
Philadelphiajune 7, 1848, Taylor was nomi- 
nated on the fourth ballot as candidate of 
the Whig party for President, over Henry 
Clay, General Scott and Daniel Webster. 
In November Taylor received a majority 
of electoral votes, and a popular vote of 
1,360,752, against 1,219,962 for Cass and 
Butler, and 291,342 for Van Buren and 
Adams. General Taylor was inaugurated 
March 4, 1849. 

The free and slave States being then equal 
in number, the struggle for supremacy on 
the part of the leaders in Congress was 
violent and bitter. In the summer of 1849 
California adopted in convention a Consti- 
tution prohibiting slavery within its borders. 
Taylor advocated the immediate admission 
of California with her Constitution, and the 
postponement of the question as to the other 
Territories until they could hold conven- 
tions and decide for themselves whether 
slavery should exist within their borders. 
This policy ultimately prevailed through 
the celebrated " Compromise Measures" of 
Henry Clay ; but not during the life of the 
brave soldier aud patriot statesman. July 
5 he was taken suddenly ill with a bilious 
fever, which proved fatal, his death occur- 
ring July 9, 1850. One of his daughters 
married Colonel W. W. S. Bliss, his Adju- 
tant-General and Chief of Staff in Florida 
and Mexico, and Private Secretary during 
his Presidency. Another daughter was 
married to Jefferson Davis. 



PItES/DENTS OF THE UN /TED STATES. 






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K 



ILLARD FILL- 
MORE, the thir- 
■§|3/ teenth President 
of the United 
States, i85o'3, was 
g-<x' born in Summer 
Hill, Cayuga 
County, New York, Janu- 
ary 7, 1800. He was of 
New England ancestry, and 
his educational advantages 
were limited. He early 
learned the clothiers' trade, 
but spent all his leisure time 
in study. At nineteen years 
of age he was induced by 
Judge Walter Wood to abandon his trade 
and commence the study of law. Upon 
learning that the young man was entirely 
destitute of means, he took him into his 
own office and loaned him such money as 
he needed. That he might not be heavily 
burdened with debt, young Fillmore taught 
school during the winter months, and in 
various other ways helped himself along. 
At the age of twenty-three lie was ad- 
mitted to the Court of Common Pleas, and 
commenced the practice of his profession 
in the village of Aurora, situated on the 



eastern bank of the Cayuga Lake. In 1825 
he married Miss Abisjail Powers, daughter 
of Rev. Lemuel Powers, a lady of great 
moral worth. In 1825 he took his seat in 
the House of Assembly of his native State, 
as Representative from Erie County, 
whither he had recently moved. 

Though he had never taken a very 
active part in politics his vote and his sym- 
pathies were with the Whig party. The 
State was then Democratic, but his cour- 
tesy, ability and integrity won the respect 
of li is associates. In 1832 he was elected 
to a seat in the United States Congress. 
At the close of his term he returned to Ins 
law practice, and in two years more he was 
again elected to Congress. 

He now began to have a national reputa- 
tion. His labors were very arduous. To 
draft resolutions in the committee room, 
and then to defend them against the most 
skillful opponents on the floor of the House 
requires readiness of mind, mental resources 
and skill in debate such as few possess. 
Weary with these exhausting labors, and 
pressed by the claims of his private affairs, 
Mr. Fillmore wrote a Idler to his constitu- 
ent and declined to be a candidate for re- 
election. Notwithstanding this cemmuni- 



.«&!>*»*■-: 





V 



ZW(,6 c/6< 




MILLARD FILLMORE. 



75 



cation his friends met in convention and 
renominated him by acclamation. Though 
gratified by this proof of their appreciation 
of his labors he adhered to his resolve and 
returned to his home. 

In 1S47 Mr. Fillmore was elected to the 
important office of comptroller of the State. 
In entering upon the very responsible duties 
which this situation demanded, it was nec- 
essary for him to abandon his profession, 
and he removed to the city of Albany. In 
this year, also, the Whigs were looking 
around to find suitable candidates for the 
President and Vice-President at the ap- 
proaching election, and the names of Zach- 
ary Taylor and Millard Fillmore became 
the rallying cry of the Whigs. On the 4th 
of March, 1849, General Taylor was inaug- 
urated President and Millard Fillmore 
Vice-President of the United States. 

The great question of slavery had as- 
sumed enormous proportions, and perme- 
ated every subject that was brought before 
Congress. It was evident that the strength 
of our institutions was to be severely tried. 
July 9, 1850, President Taylor died, and, by 
the Constitution, Vice-President Fillmore 
became President of the United States. 
The agitated condition of the country 
brought questions of great delicacy before 
him. He was bound by his oath of office 
to execute the laws of the United States. 
One of these laws was understood to be, 
that if a slave, escaping from bondage, 
should reach a free State, the United States 
was bound to do its utmost to capture him 
and return him to his master. Most Chris- 
tian men loathed this law. President Fill- 
more felt bound by his oath rigidly to see 
it enforced. Slavery was organizing armies 
to invade Cuba as it had invaded Texas, 
and annex it to the United States. Presi- 
dent Fillmore gave all the influence of his 
exalted station against the atrocious enter- 
prise. 

Mr. Fillmore had serious difficulties to 



contend with, since the opposition had a 
majority in both Houses. He did every- 
thing in his power to conciliate the South, 
but the pro-slavery party in that section 
felt the inadequency of all measures of tran. 
sient conciliation. The population of the 
free States was so rapidly increasing over 
that of the slave States, that it was inevita- 
ble that the power of the Government 
should soon pass into the hands of the free 
States. The famous compromise measures 
were adopted under Mr. Fillmore's admin- 
istration, and the Japan expedition was 
sent out. 

March 4, 1853, having served one term, 
President Fillmore retired from office. He 
then took a long tour through the South, 
where he met with quite an enthusiastic 
reception. In a speech at Vicksburg, al- 
luding to the rapid growth of the country, 
he said: 

" Canada is knocking for admission, and 
Mexico would be glad to come in, and 
without saying whether it would be right 
or wrong, we stand with open arms to re- 
ceive them; for it is the manifest destiny of 
this Government to embrace the whole 
North American Continent." 

In 1855 Mr. Fillmore went to Europe 
where he was received with those marked 
attentions which his position and character 
merited. Returning to this country in 
1856 he was nominated for the Presidency 
by the " Know-Nothing " party. Mr. Bu- 
chanan, the Democratic candidate was 
the successful competitor. Mr. Fillmore 
ever afterward lived in retirement. Dur- 
ing the conflict of civil war he was mostly 
silent. It was generally supposed, how- 
ever, that his sympathy was with the South- 
ern Confederacy. He kept aloof from the 
conflict without any words of cheer to the 
one party or the other. For this reason 
he was forgotten by both. He died of 
paralysis, in Buffalo, New York, March 8, 
1874. 



7 6 



PRESIDENTS OE THE UNITED STATES. 



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J . ,$ 

iANKLIN PIERCE, 
the fourteenth Presi- 
dent of the United 
%a'BL^ States, was born in 

Hillsborough, New- 
Hampshire, Novem- 
ber 23, 1804. His 
father, Governor 
Benjamin Pierce, was a Rev- 
olutionary soldier, a man of 
rigid integrity; was for sev- 
eral years in the State Legis- 
lature, a member of the Gov- 
ernor's council and a General 
of the militia. 
Franklin was the sixth of eight children. 
As a boy he listened eagerly to the argu- 
ments of his father, enforced by strong and 
ready utterance and earnest gesture. It 
was in the days of intense political excite- 
ment, when, all over the New England 
States, Federalists and Democrats wen- ar- 
rayed so fiercely against each other. 

In 1820 he entered Bowdoin College, at 
Brunswick, Maine, and graduated in 1824. 
and commenced the study of law in the 
office of Judge Woodbury, a very distin- 
guished lawyer, and in 1827 was admitted 
to the bar. He practiced with greal success 
in Hillsborough and Concord. He served 



in the State Legislature four years, the last 
two of which he was chosen Speaker of the 
House by a very large vote. 

In 1833 he was elected a member of Con- 
gress. In 1837 he was elected to the United 
States Senate, just as Mr. Van Buren com- 
menced his administration. 

In 1834 he married Miss Jane Means 
Appleton, a lady admirably fitted to adorn 
every station with which her husband was 
honored. Three sons born to them all 
found an early grave. 

Upon his accession to office, President 
Polk appointed Mr. Pierce Attorney-Gen- 
eral of the United States, but the offer was 
declined in consequence of numerous pro- 
lessional engagements at home and the 
precarious state of Mrs. Pierce's health. 
About the same time he also declined t he 
nomination for Governor by the Demo- 
cratic party. 

The war with Mexico called Mr. Pit ice 
into the army. Receiving the appointment 
of Brigadier-General, he embarked with a 
portion of his troops at Newport, Rhode 
Island, May 27, 1S47. lie served during 
this war, and distinguished himself by his 
bravery, skill and excellent judgment. 
When he reached his home in his native 
State he was enthusiastically received by 






£%£^ 



FRANKLIN PIERCE. 



79 



the advocates of the war, and coldly by its 
opponents. He resumed the practice of his 
profession, frequently taking an active part 
in political questions, and giving his sup- 
port to the pro-slavery wing of the Demo- 
cratic party. 

June 12, 1852, the Democratic convention 
met in Baltimore to nominate a candidate 
for the Presidency. For four days they 
continued in session, and in thirty-five bal- 
loting^ no one had received the requisite 
two-think vote. Not a vote had been 
thrown thus far for General Pierce. Then 
the Virginia delegation brought forward 
his name. There were fourteen more bal- 
lotings, during which General Pierce 
gained strength, until, at the forty-ninth 
ballot, he received 282 votes, and all other 
candidates eleven. General Winfield Scott 
was the Whisr candidate.* General Pierce 
was elected with great unanimity. Only 
lour States — Vermont, Massachusetts, Ken- 
tuckv and Tennessee — cast their electoral 
votes against him. March 4, 1853, he was 
inaugurated President of the United States, 
and William R. King, Vice-President. 

President Pierce's cabinet consisted of 
William S. Marcv, James Guthrie, Jefferson 
Davis, James C. Dobbin, Robert McClel- 
land, James Campbell and Caleb dishing. 

At the demand of slavery the Missouri 
Compromise was repealed, and all the Ter- 
ritories of the Union were thrown open to 
slaver)-. The Territory of Kansas, west of 
Missouri, was settled by emigrants mainly 
from the North. According to law, they 
were about to meet and decide whether 
slavery or freedom should be the law of 
that realm. Slavery in Missouri and 
other Southern States rallied her armed 
legions, marched them into Kansas, took 
possession of the polls, drove away the 
citizens, deposited their own votes by 
handluls, went through the farce of count- 
ing them, and then declared that, by an 
overwhelming majority, slaverv was estab- 



lished in Kansas. These facts nobody 
denied, and yet President Pierce's adminis- 
tration felt bound to respect the decision 
obtained by such votes. The citizens of 
Kansas, the majority of whom were free- 
State men, met in convention and adopted 
the following resolve : 

"Resolved, That the body of men who, 
for the past two months, have been passing 
laws for the people of our Territory, 
moved, counseled and dictated to by the 
demagogues of other States, are to us a 
foreign bod)', representing only the lawless 
invaders who elected them, and not the 
people of this Territory ; that we repudiate 
their action as the monstrous consummation 
of an act of violence, usurpation and fraud 
unparalleled in the history of the Union." 

The free-State people of Kansas also sent 
a petition to the General Government, im- 
ploring its protection. h» reply the Presi- 
dent issued a proclamation, declaring that 
Legislature thus created must be recog- 
nized as the legitimate Legislature of Kan- 
sas, and that its laws were binding upon 
the people, and that, if necessary, the whole 
force of the Governmental arm would be 
put forth to inforce those laws. 

James Buchanan succeeded him in the 
Presidency, and, March 4, 1857, President 
Pierce retired to his home in Concord, 
New Hampshire. When the Rebellion 
burst forth Mr. Pierce remained steadfast 
to the principles he had always cherished, 
and gave his sympathies to the pro-slavery 
party, with which he had ever been allied. 
He declined to do anything, either by 
voice or pen, to strengthen the hands of 
the National Government. He resided in 
Concord until his death, which occurred in 
October, 1869. He was one of the most 
genial and social of men, generous to 
a fault, and contributed liberally of his 
moderate means for the alleviation of suf- 
fering and want. He was an honored 
communicant of the Episcopal church. 



so 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UXITED STATES. 






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'AMES BUCHANAN, the 

fifteenth President of the 
United States. I S57— *6i , 
was horn in Franklin 
C o u n t v, Pennsylvania, 
A p r i 1 23, 1791. The 
place where his father's 
cabin stood was called 
Stony Batter, and it was 
situated in a wild, romantic 
spot, in a gorge of mount- 
ains, with towering sum- 
mits rising all around. He 
was of Irish ancestry, his 
father having emigrated in- 
1783, with very little prop- 
erty, save his own strong arms. 

James remained in his secluded home for 
eight years enjoying very few social or 
intellectual advantages. His parents were 
industrious, frugal, prosperous and intelli- 
gent. In 1799 his father removed to Mer- 

cersburg, where James was placed in 
school and commenced a course in English, 
Greek and Latin. His progress was rapid 
and in 1S01 he entered Dickinson College 
at Carlisle. 1 [ere he took his stand among 
the first Scholars in the institution, and was 
able to master the most abstruse subjects 
with facility. In 1809 he graduated with 
the highest honors in his class. 

1 [e was then eighteen years oi age, tall, 



graceful and in vigorous health, fond oi 
athletic sports, an unerring shot and en- 
livened with an exuberant flow of animal 
spirits. He immediately commenced the 
study of law in the city of Lancaster, and 
was admitted to tne bar in 1S12. He rose 
very rapidly in his profession and at once 
took undisputed stand with the ablest law- 
yers of the State. When but twenty-six 
years of age, unaided by counsel, he suc- 
cessfullv defended before the State Senate 
one of the Judges of the State, who was 
tried upon articles of impeachment At 
the age of thirty it was generally admitted 
that hestoodat the head of the bar, and 
there was no lawyer in the State who had 
a more extensive or lucrative practice. 

In 1812, just after Mr. Buchanan had 
entered upon the practice of the law, our 
second war with England occurred. With 
all his powers he sustained the Govern- 
ment, eloquently urging the rigorous pros- 
ecution ol the war; and even enlisting as a 
private soldier to assist in repelling the 
British, who had sacked Washington and 
wen- threatening Baltimore, lie was at 
that time a Federalist, but when the Con- 
stitution was adopted by both parties, 
Jefferson truly said, "We are all Federal- 
ists; we ai e all Republicans." 

The opposition ol the Federalists to the 
war with England, and the alien and sedi- 






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6.1 



tion laws of John Adams, brought the party 
into dispute, and the name of Federalist 
became a reproach. Mr. Buchanan almost 
immediately upon entering Congress began 
to incline more and more to the Repub- 
licans. In the stormy Presidential election 
of 1824, in which Jackson, Clay, Crawford 
and John Quincy Adams were candidates, 
Mr. Buchanan espoused the cause of Gen- 
eral Jackson and unrelentingly opposed the 
administration of Mr. Adams. 

Upon his elevation to the Presidency, 
General Jackson appointed Mr. Buchanan, 
minister to Russia. Upon his return in 1833 
he was elected to a seat in the United States 
Senate. He there met as his associates, 
Webster, Clay, Wright and Calhoun. He 
advocated the measures proposed by Presi- 
dent Jackson of making reprisals against 
France, and defended the course of the Pres- 
ident in his unprecedented and wholesale 
removals from office of those who were not 
the supporters of his administration. Upon 
this question he was brought into direct col- 
lision with Henry Clay. In the discussion 
of the question respecting the admission of 
Michigan and Arkansas into the Union, Mr. 
Buchanan defined his position by saying: 

" The older I grow, the more I am in- 
clined to be what is called a State-rights 
man." 

M. de Tocqueville, in his renowned work 
upon " Democracy in America," foresaw 
the trouble which was inevitable from the 
doctrine of State sovereignty as held by 
Calhoun and Buchanan. He was con- 
vinced that the National Government was 
losing that strength which was essential 
to its own existence, and that the States 
were assuming powers which threatened 
the perpetuity of the Union. Mr. Buchanan 
received the book in the Senate and de- 
clared the fears of De Tocqueville to be 
groundless, and yet he lived to sit in the 
Presidential chair and see State after State, 
in accordance with his own views of State 



rights, breaking from the Union, thus 
crumbling our Republic into ruins; while 
the unhappy old man folded his arms in 
despair, declaring that the National Consti- 
tution invested him with no power to arrest 
the destruction. 

Upon Mr. Polk's accession to the Presi- 
dency, Mr. Buchanan became Secretary of 
State, and as such took his share of the 
responsibility in the conduct of the Mexi- 
can war. At the close of Mr. Polk's ad- 
ministration, Mr. Buchanan retired to pri- 
vate life; but his intelligence, and his great 
ability as a statesman, enabled him to exert 
a powerful influence in National affairs. 

Mr. Pierce, upon his election to the 
Presidency, honored Mr. Buchanan with 
the mission to England. In the year 1856 
the National Democratic convention nomi- 
nated Mr. Buchanan for the Presidency. 
The political conflict was one of the most 
severe in which our country has ever en- 
gaged. On the 4th of March, 1857, Mr. 
Buchanan was inaugurated President. His 
cabinet were Lewis Cass, Howell Cobb, 
J. B. Floyd, Isaac Toucey, Jacob Thomp- 
son, A. V. Brown and J. S. Black. 

The disruption of the Democratic party, 
in consequence of the manner in which the 
issue of the nationality of slavery was 
pressed by the Southern wing, occurred at 
the National convention, held at Charleston 
in April, i860, for the nomination of Mr. 
Buchanan's successor, when the majority 
of Southern delegates withdrew upon the 
passage of a resolution declaring that the 
constitutional status of slavery should be 
determined by the Supreme Court. 

In the next Presidential canvass Abra- 
ham Lincoln was nominated by the oppo- 
nents of Mr. Buchanan's administration. 
Mr. Buchanan remained in Washing-ton 
long enough to see his successor installed 
and then retired to his home in Wheatland. 
He died June 1, 1868, aged seventy-seven 
years. 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UN/TED STATES. 



(Sti KSM * <fe -|- t>? ^ ^ -1- i<» »1- ©giovi-foia® ~l- gfr «^. ^» ^L- <i *l- t fr «<iiS^5 








BRAHAM LIN- 
COLN, the sixteenth 
President of the 
United States, i86l-*5, 
was born February 
DKJy i-. 1809, in Larue 
^■'^ (then Hardin) County, 
Kentucky, in a cabin on Nolan 
Creek, three miles west of 
Hudgcnsville. His parents 
w e 1 e Thomas a n d Nancy 
(Hanks) Lincoln. Of his an- 
cestry and early years the little 
that is known may best be 
given in his own language: " My 
parents were both born in Virginia, of un- 
distinguished families — second families, per- 
haps I should say. My mother, who died 
in my tenth year, was of a family ol the 
name of I lanks, some of whom now remain 
in Adams, and others in Macon Counts-, 
Illinois. My paternal grandfather, Abra- 
ham Lincoln, emigrated from Rockbridge 
County, Virginia, to Kentucky in 1781 or 
1782, where, a year or two later, he was 
killed by Indians — not in battle, but by 
stealth, when he was laboring to open a 
farm in the forest. His ancestors, who were 
Quakers, went to Virginia from Berks 
County, Pennsylvania. An effort to iden- 



tify them with the New England family of 
the same name ended in nothing mote defi- 
nite than a similarity of Christian names in 
both families, such as Enoch, Levi. Mor- 
deeai, Solomon, Abraham and the like. 
My father, at the death of his father, was 
but six years of age, and he grew up, liter- 
ally, without education. I le removed from 
Kentucky to what is now Spencer County, 
Indiana, in my eighth year. We reached 
our new home about the time the State came 
into the Union. It was a wild region, with 
bears and other wild animals stil! in the 
woods. There I grew to manhood. 

"There were some schools, SO called, but 
no qualification was ever required of a 
teacher beyond ' readin', writin', and cipher- 
in' to the rule of three.' II a straggler, sup- 
posed to understand Latin, happened to 
sojourn in the neighborhood, he was looked 
upon as a wizard. There was absolutely 
nothing to excite ambition for education. 
01 course, when I came ol age I did not 
know much. Still, somehow, I could read, 
write and cipher to the rule ol three, and 

that was all. 1 have nol been to school 

since. The little advance 1 now have upon 
this store ol education I have picked up 
from time to time under the pressure of 
necessity. I was raised to farm-work, which 




& 







1 



AliliAHAM LINCOLN. 



87 



I continued till 1 was twenty-two. At 
twenty -one I came to Illinois and passed 
the first year in Macon County. Then I got 
to New Salem, at that time in Sangamon, 
now in Menard County, where I remained 
a year as a sort of clerk in a store. 

" Then came the Black Hawk war, and I 
was elected a Captain of volunteers — a suc- 
cess which gave me more pleasure than any 
1 have had since. I went the campaign, 
was elated ; ran for the Legislature the 
year (1832) and was beaten, the only 
time I have ever been beaten by the people. 
The next and three succeeding biennial 
elections I was elected to the Legislature, 
and was never a candidate afterward. 

" During this legislative period I had 
studied law, and removed to Springfield to 
practice it. In 1846 I was elected to the 
Lower House of Congress; was not a can- 
didate for re-election. From 1849 to I 854, 
inclusive, I practiced the law more assid- 
uously than ever before. Always a Whig 
in politics, and generally on the Whig elec- 
toral tickets, making active canvasses, I was 
losing interest in politics, when the repeal 
of the Missouri Compromise roused me 
again. What 1 have done since is pretty 
well known." 

The early residence of Lincoln in Indi- 
ana was sixteen miles north of the Ohio 
River, on Little Pigeon Creek, one and a 
half miles east of Gentryville, within the 
present township of Carter. Here his 
mother died October 5, 1818, and the next 
year his father married Mrs. Sally (Bush) 
Johnston, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky. She 
was an affectionate foster-parent, to whom 
Abraham was indebted for his first encour- 
agement to study. He became an eager 
reader, and the few books owned in the 
vicinity were many times perused. He 
worked frequently for the neighbors as a 
farm laborer; was for some time clerk in a 
Store at Gentryville; and became famous 
throughout that region for his athletic 



powers, his fondness for argument, his in- 
exhaustible fund of numerous anecdote, as 
well as for mock oratory and the cornposi 
tion of rude satirical verses. In 1828 he 
made a trading voyage to New Orleans as 
"bow-hand" on a flatboat; removed to 
Illinois in 1830; helped his father build a 
log: house and clear a farm on the north 
fork of Sangamon River, ten miles west of 
Decatur, and was for some time employed 
in splitting rails for the fences — a fact which 
was prominently brought forward for a 
political purpose thirty years later. 

In the spring of 185 1 he, with two of his 
relatives, was hired to build a flatboat on 
the Sangamon River and navigate it to 
New Orleans. The boat "stuck" on a 
mill-dam, and was got off with great labor 
through an ingenious mechanical device 
which some years later- led to Lincoln's 
taking out a patent for "an improved 
method for lifting vessels over shoals." 
This voyage was memorable for another 
reason — the sight of slaves chained, mal- 
treated and flogged at New Orleans was 
the origin of his deep convictions upon the 
slavery question. 

Returning from this voyage he became a 
resident for several years at New Salem, a 
recently settled village on the Sangamon, 
where he was successively a clerk, grocer, 
surveyor and postmaster, and acted as pilot 
to the first steamboat that ascended the 
Sangamon. Here he studied law, inter- 
ested himself in local politics after his 
return from the Black Hawk war, and 
became known as an effective "stump 
speaker." The subject of his first politicai 
speech was the improvement of the channel 
of the Sangamon, and the chief ground on 
which he announced himself (1832) a candi- 
date for the Legislature was his advocacy 
of this popular measure, on which subject 
his practical experience made him the high- 
est authority. 

Elected to the Legislature in 1834 as a 



P /I liS/D i:\T.S OP THE r SITED STATES. 



" Henry Clay Whig," he rapidly acquired 
that command of language and that homely 
but forcible rhetoric which, added to his 
intimate knowledge of the people from 
which he sprang, made him more than a 
match in debate for his few well-educated 
opponents. 

Admitted to the bar in 1S37 he soon 
established himself at Springfield, where 
the State capital was located in 1839, 
.argely through his influence; became a 
successful pleader in the State, Circuit and 
District Courts ; married in 1842 a lady be- 
longing to a prominent family in Lexington, 
Kentucky; took an active part in the Pres- 
idential campaigns of 1840 and 1844 as 
candidate for elector on the Harrison and 
Clay tickets, and in 1846 was elected to the 
United States House of Representatives 
over the celebrated Peter Cartwright. 
During his single term in Congress he did 
not attain any prominence. 

He voted for the reception of anti-slavery 
petitions for the abolition of the slave trade 
in the District of Columbia and for the 
Wilraot proviso; but was chiefly remem- 
bered for the stand he took against the 
Mexican war. For several years there- 
after he took comparatively little interest 
in politics, but gained a leading position at 
the Springfield bar. Two or three non- 
political lectures and an eulogy on Henry 
Clay (1852) added nothing to his reputation. 

In 1854 the repeal of the Missouri 
Compromise by the Kansas-Nebraska act 
aroused Lincoln from his indifference, and 
in attacking that measure he had the im- 
mense advantage of knowing perfectly well 
the motives and the record of its author, 
Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois, then popu- 
larly designated as the " Little Giant." The 
latter came to Springfield in October, 1854, 
on the occasion of the State Fair, to vindi- 
cate his policy in the Senate, and the " Anti- 
Nebraska" Whigs, remembering that Lin- 
coln had often measured his strength with 



Douglas in the Illinois Legislature and be- 
fore the Springfield Courts, engaged him 
to improvise a reply. This speech, in the 
opinion of those who heard it, was one of 
the greatest efforts of Lincoln's life ; cer- 
tainly the most effective in his whole career. 
It took the audience by storm, and from 
that moment it was felt that Douglas had 
met his match. Lincoln was accordingly 
selected as the Anti-Nebraska candidate for 
the United States Senate in place of General 
Shields, whose term expired March 4, 1855, 
and led to several ballots; but Trumbull 
was ultimately chosen. 

The second conflict on the soil of Kan- 
sas, which Lincoln had predicted, soon be- 
gan. The result was the disruption of the 
Whig and the formation of the Republican 
party. At the Bloomington State Conven- 
tion in 1856, where the new party first 
assumed form in Illinois, Lincoln made an 
impressive address, in which for the first 
time he took distinctive ground against 
slavery in itself. 

At the National Republican Convention 
at Philadelphia, June 17, after the nomi- 
nation of Fremont, Lincoln was put for- 
ward by the Illinois delegation for the 
Vice-Presidency, and received on the first 
ballot no votes against 259 for William L 
Dayton. He took a prominent part in the 
canvass, being on the electoral ticket. 

In 1858 Lincoln was unanimously nomi- 
nated by the Republican State Convention 
as its candidate for the United States Senate 
in place of Douglas, and in his speech of 
acceptance used the celebrated illustration 
of a "house divided against itself' on the 
slavery question, which was, perhaps, the 
cause of his defeat. The great debate car- 
ried on at all the principal towns of Illinois 
between Lincoln and Douglas as rival Sena- 
torial candidates resulted at the time in the 
election of the latter; but being widely cir- 
culated as a campaign document, it fixed 
the attention of the country upon the 



ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



89 



former, as the clearest and most convinc- 
ing exponent of Republican doctrine. 

Early in 1859 ne began to be named in 
Illinois as a suitable Republican candidate 
for the Presidential campaign of the ensu- 
ing year, and a political address delivered 
at the Cooper Institute, New York, Febru- 
ary 27, i860, followed by similar speeches 
at New Haven, Hartford and elsewhere in 
New England, first made him known to the 
Eastern States in the light by which he had 
long been regarded at home. By the Re- 
publican State Convention, which met at 
Decatur, Illinois, May 9 and 10, Lincoln 
was unanimously endorsed for the Presi- 
dency. It was on this occasion that two 
rails, said to have been split by his hands 
thirty years before, were brought into the 
convention, and the incident contributed 
much to his popularity. The National 
Republican Convention at Chicago, after 
spirited efforts made in favor of Seward, 
Chase and Bates, nominated Lincoln for 
the Presidency, with Hannibal Hamlin 
for Vice-President, at the same time adopt- 
ing a vigorous anti-slavery platform. 

The Democratic party having been dis- 
organized and presenting two candidates, 
Douglas and Breckenridge, and the rem- 
nant of the "American" party having put 
forward John Bell, of Tennessee, the Re- 
publican victory was an easy one, Lincoln 
being elected November 6 by a large plu- 
rality, comprehending nearly all the North- 
ern States, but none of the Southern. The 
secession of South Carolina and the Gulf 
States was the immediate result, followed 
a few months later by that of the border 
slave States and the outbreak of the great 
civil war. 

The life of Abraham Lincoln became 
thenceforth merged in the history of his 
country. None of the details of the vast 
conflict which filled the remainder of Lin- 
coln's life can here be given. Narrowly 
escaping assassination by avoiding Balti- 



more on his way to the capital, he reached 
Washington February 23, and was inaugu- 
rated President of the United States March 
4, 1 86 1. 

In his inaugural address he said: " I hold, 
that in contemplation of universal law and 
the Constitution the Union of these States is 
perpetual. Perpetuity is implied if not ex- 
pressed in the fundamental laws of all na- 
tional governments. It is safe to assert 
that no government proper ever had a pro- 
vision in its organic law for its own termi- 
nation. I therefore consider that in view 
of the Constitution and the laws, the Union 
is unbroken, and to the extent of my ability 
I shall take care, as the Constitution en- 
joins upon me, that the laws of the United 
States be extended in all the States. In 
doing this there need be no bloodshed or vio- 
lence, and there shall be none unless it be 
forced upon the national authority. The 
power conferred to me will be used to hold, 
occupy and possess the property and places 
belonging to the Government, and to col- 
lect the duties and imports, but beyond 
what may be necessary for these objects 
there will be no invasion, no using of force 
against or among the people anywhere. In 
your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-country- 
men, is the momentous issue of civil war. 
The Government will not assail you. You 
can have no conflict without being your- 
selves the aggressors. You have no oath 
registered in heaven to destroy the Gov- 
ernment, while I shall have the most sol- 
emn one to preserve, protect and defend 
it." 

He called to his cabinet his principal 
rivals for the Presidential nomination — 
Seward, Chase, Cameron and Bates ; se- 
cured the co-operation of the Union Demo- 
crats, headed by Douglas ; called out 75.000 
militia from the several States upon the first 
tidings of the bombardment of Fort Sumter, 
April 15; proclaimed a blockade of the 
Southern posts April 19; called an extra 



oo 



PRESIDENTS (>r THE UNITED STATES. 



>n of Congress lor July 4, from which 
he asked and obtained 400,000 men and 
§400,000,000 for the war; placed McClellan 
at the head of the Federal army on General 
Scott's resignation, October 31; appointed 
Edwin M. Stanton Secretary of War, Jan- 
uary 14. 1862, and September 22, 1862, 
issued a proclamation declaring the free- 
dom of all slaves in the States and parts of 
States then in rebellion from and after 
January 1, 1863. This was the crowning 
act of Lincoln's career — the act by which 
he will be chiefly known through all future 
time -and it decided the war. 

October 16, 1863, President Lincoln called 
for 300,000 volunteers to replace those 
whose term of enlistment had expired ; 
made a celebrated and touching, though 
brief, address at the dedication of the 
Gettysburg military cemetery, November 
19, 1863; commissioned Ulysses S. Grant 
Lieutenant-General and Commander-in. 
Chief of the armies of the United States, 
March 9, 1S64; was re-elected President in 
November of the same year, by a large 
majority over General McClellan, with 
Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, as Vice- 
President; delivered a very remarkable ad- 
dress at his second inauguration, March 4, 
1865; visited tin- army before Richmond the 
same month; entered the capital of the Con- 
federacy the day alter its fall, and upon the 
surrender of General Robert E. Lee'oarmy, 
April 9, was actively engaged in devising 
generous plans for the reconstruction of the 
Union, when, on the evening ol Good Pi i- 
day, April 14, he was shot in his box at 
Ford's Theatre, Washington, byjohn Wilkes 
Booth, a fanatical actor, and expired early 
on the following morning, April 15. Al- 
most simultaneously a murderous attack 
was made upon William H. Seward, Secre- 
tin \ "I Si. ilr. 

At noon on the 15th ol April Andrew 



Johnson assumed the Presidency, and active 
measures were taken which resulted in the 
death ol Booth and the execution of his 
principal accomplices. 

The funeral of President Lincoln was 
conducted with unexampled solemnity and 
magnificence. Impressive services were 
held in Washington, after which the sad 
procession proceeded over the same route 
he had traveled four years before, from 
Springfield to Washington. In Philadel- 
phia his body lay in state in Independence 
Hall, in which he had declared before his 
hist inauguration "that I would sooner be 
assassinated than to give up the principles 
of the Declaration of Independence." He 
was buried at Oak Ridge Cemetery, near 
Springfield, Illinois, on May 4, where a 
monument emblematic of the emancipation 
of the slaves and the restoration of the 
Union mark his resting place. 

The leaders and citizens of the expiring 
Confederacy expressed genuine indignation 
at the murder of a generous political adver- 
sary. Foreign nations took part in mourn- 
ing the death of a statesman who had proved 
himself a true representative of American 
nationality. The frecdmen of the South 
almost worshiped the memory of their de- 
liverer; and the general sentiment of the 
great Nation he had saved awarded him a 
I 'Ik 1 in its affections, second only to that 
held by Washington. 

The characteristics of Abraham Lincoln 
have been familiarly known throughout the 
civilized world. His tall, gaunt, ungainly 
figure, homely countenance, and his shrewd 
mother-wit, shown in his celebrated con- 
versations overflowing in humorous and 
pointed anecdote, combined with an accu- 
rate, intuitive appreciation of the questions 
of the time, are recognized as forming the 
best type of a period of American history 
now rapidly passing away. 



UBRAM 








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'Jtfsi 



ANDREW JOHNSON. 



95 



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NDREW JOHNSON, 
the seventeenth Presi- 
dent of the United 
States, 1865— 'g, was 
b o r n at Raleigh, 
North Carolina, De- 
ceraber 29, 1808. 
His father died when 
he was four years old, and in 
his eleventh year he was ap- 
prenticed to a tailor. He nev- 
er attended school, and did 
not learn to read until late in 
his apprenticeship, when he 
suddenly acquired a passion for 
obtaining knowledge, and devoted 
all his spare time to reading. 

After working two years as a journev- 
man tailor at Lauren's Court-House, South 
Carolina, he removed, in 1826, to Green- 
ville, Tennessee, where he worked at his 
trade and married. Under his wife's in- 
structions he made rapid progress in his 
education, and manifested such an intelli- 
gent interest in local politics as to be 
elected as " workingmen's candidate " al- 
derman, in 1828, and mayor in 1830, being 
twice re-elected to each office. 

During this period he cultivated his tal- 
ents as a public speaker by taking part in a 



debating society, consisting largely of stu- 
dents of Greenville College. In 1835, and 
again in 1839, ne was chosen to the lower 
house of the Legislature, as a Democrat. 
In 1 841 he was elected State Senator, and 
in 1843, Representative in Congress, being 
re-elected four successive periods, until 
1853, when he was chosen Governor of 
Tennessee. In Congress he supported the 
administrations of Tyler and Polk in their 
chief measures, especially the annexation 
of Texas, the adjustment of the Oregon 
boundary, the Mexican war, and the tariff 
of 1846. 

In 1855 Mr. Johnson was re elected Gov- 
ernor, and in 1857 entered the United 
States Senate, where he was conspicuous 
as an advocate of retrenchment and of the 
Homestead bill, and as an opponent of the 
Pacific Railroad. He was supported by the 
Tennessee delegation to the Democratic 
convention in i860 for the Presidential 
nomination, and lent his influence to the 
Breckenridge wing of that party. 

When the election of Lincoln had 
brought about the first attempt at secession 
in December, i860, Johnson took in the 
Senate a firm attitude for the Union, and 
in May, 1861, on returning to Tennessee, 
he was in imminent peril of suffering from 



94 



/'/CES /DENTS OF THE UN/TED STATES. 



popular violence for his loyalty to the " old 
flag." He was the leader of the Loyalists' 
convention of East Tennessee, and during 
the following winter was very active in or- 
ganizing relief for the destitute loyal refu- 
gees from that region, his own family being 
among those compelled to leave. 

By his course in this crisis Johnson came 
prominently before the Northern public, 
and when in March, 1862, ho was appointed 
by President Lincoln military Governor of 
Tennessee, with the rank of Brigadier-Gen- 
eral, he increased in popularity by the vig- 
orous and successful manner in which he 
labored to restore order, protect Union 
men and punish marauders. On the ap- 
proach of the Presidential campaign of 1864, 
the termination of the war being plainly 
foreseen, and several Southern States being 
partially reconstructed, it was felt that the 
Vice-Presidency should be given to a South- 
ern man of conspicuous loyalty, and Gov- 
ernor Johnson was elected on the same 
platform and ticket as President Lincoln; 
and on the assassination of the latter suc- 
ceeded to the Presidency, April 15, 1865. 
In a public speech two days later he said: 
"The American people must be taught, if 
they do not already feel, that treason is a 
crime and must be punished; that the Gov- 
ernment will not always bear with its ene- 
mies; that it is strong, not only to protect, 
but to punish. In our peaceful history 
treason has been almost unknown. The 
people must understand that it is the black- 
est of crimes, and will be punished." He 
then added the ominous sentence: " In re- 
gard to my future course, I make no prom- 
ises, no pledges." President Johnson re- 
tained the cabinet of Lincoln, and exhibited 
considerable severity toward traitors in his 
earlier acts and speeches, but he soon inaug- 
urated a policy of reconstruction, proclaim- 
ing a general amnesty to the late Confeder- 
ates, and successively establishing provis- 
ional Governments in the Southern States. 



These States accordingly claimed represen- 
tation in Congress in the following Decem- 
ber, and the momentous question of what 
should be the policy of the victorious Union 
toward its late armed opponents was forced 
upon that body. 

Two considerations impelled the Repub- 
lican majority to reject the policy of Presi. 
dent Johnson: First, an apprehension that 
the chief magistrate intended to undo the re- 
sults of the war in regard to slavery; and, sec- 
ond, the sullen attitude of the South, which 
seemed to be plotting to regain the policy 
which arms had lost. The credentials of the 
Southern members elect were laid on the 
table, a civil rights bill and a bill extending 
the sphere of the Freedmen's Bureau were 
passed over the executive veto, and the two 
highest branches of the Government were 
soon in open antagonism. The action of 
Congress was characterized by the Presi- 
dent as a " new rebellion." In July the 
cabinet was reconstructed, Messrs. Randall, 
Stanbury and Browning taking the places 
of Messrs. Denison, Speed and Harlan, and 
an unsuccessful attempt was made by 
means of a general convention in Philadel- 
phia to form a new party on the basis of the 
administration policy. 

In an excursion to Chicago for the pur- 
pose of laying a corner-stone of the monu- 
ment to Stephen A. Douglas, President 
Johnson, accompanied by several membcis 
of the cabinet, passed through Philadelphia, 
New York and Albany, in each of which 
cities, and in other places along the route 
he made speeches justifying and explaining 
his own policy, and violently denouncing 
the action of Congress. 

August 12, 1867, President Johnson re- 
moved the Secretary of War, replacing 
him by General Grant. Secretary Stanton 
retired under protest, based upon the ten 
ure-of-ofnee act which had been passed the 
preceding March. The President then is- 
sued a proclamation declaring the insurrec- 



A NDRB W JOHNSON. 



95 



tion at an end, and that " peace, order, tran- 
quility and civil authority existed in and 
throughout the United States." Another 
proclamation enjoined obedience to the 
Constitution and the laws, and an amnesty 
was published September 7, relieving nearly 
all the participants in the late Rebellion 
from the disabilities thereby incurred, on 
condition of taking the oath to support the 
Constitution and the laws. 

In December Congress refused to confirm 
the removal of Secretary Stanton, who 
thereupon resumed the exercise of his of- 
fice; but February 21, 1868, President 
Johnson again attempted to remove him, 
appointing General Lorenzo Thomas in his 
place. Stanton refused to vacate his post, 
and was sustained by the Senate. 

February 24 the House of Representa- 
tives voted to impeach the President for 
" high crime and misdemeanors," and March 
5 presented eleven articles of impeachment 
on the ground of his resistance to the exe- 
cution of the acts of Congress, alleging, in 
addition to the offense lately committed, 
his public expressions of contempt for Con- 
gress, in " certain intemperate, inflamma- 
tory and scandalous harangues" pronounced 
in August and September, 1866, and there- 
after declaring that the Thirty-ninth Con- 
gress of the United States was not a 
competent legislative body, and denying 
its power to propose Constitutional amend- 
ments. March 23 the impeachment trial 
began, the President appearing by counsel, 
and resulted in acquittal, the vote lacking 



one of the two-thirds vote required for 
conviction. 

The remainder of President Johnson's 
term of office was passed without any such 
conflicts as might have been anticipated. 
He failed to obtain a nomination for re- 
election by the Democratic party, though 
receiving sixty-five votes on the first ballot. 
July 4 and December 25 new proclamations 
of pardon to the participants in the late 
Rebellion were issuer 1 , but were of little 
effect. On the accession of General Grant 
to the Presidency, March 4, 1869, Johnson 
returned to Greenville, Tennessee. Unsuc- 
cessful in 1870 and 1872 as a candidate re- 
spectively for United States Senator and 
Representative, he was finally elected to the 
Senate in 1875, and took his seat in the extra 
session of March, in which his speeches 
were comparatively temperate. He died 
July 31, 1875, and was buried at Green- 
ville. 

President Johnson's administration was a 
peculiarly unfortunate one. That he should 
so soon become involved in bitter feud with 
the Republican majority in Congress was 
certainly a surprising and deplorable inci- 
dent; yet, in reviewing the circumstances 
after a lapse of so many years, it is easy to 
find ample room for a charitable judgment 
of both the parties in the heated contro- 
versy, since it cannot be doubted that any 
President, even Lincoln himself, had he 
lived, must have sacrificed a large portion 
of his popularity in carrying out any pos- 
sible scheme of reconstruction. 



96 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



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LYSSES SIMPSON 
CRANT, the eight- 
eenth President of the 

United States, 1869-'/", 
was born April 27, [822, 
at Point Pleasant, 
^ Clermont County, 
Ohio. His father was of Scotch 
descent, and a dealer in leather. 
At the age of seventeen he en- 
tered the Military Academy at 
West Point, and four years later 
graduated twenty-first in a class 
of thirty-nine, receiving the 
commission of Brevet Second 
Lieutenant. He was assigned 
to the Fourth Infantry and re- 
mained in the army eleven years. I [e was 
engaged in every battle of the Mexican war 
except that of Buena Vista, and received 
two brevets for gallantry. 

In 1848 Mr. Grant married Julia, daughter 
of Frederick Dent, a prominent merchant of 
St. Louis, and in 1854, having ed the 

grade of Captain, he resigned his commis- 
sion in the army. For several years he fol 
lowed farming near St. Louis, but unsuc- 
cessfully ; and in i860 he entered the leather 
trade with his father at Galena, Illinois. 

When the civil war broke oul in 1861, 
Giant was thirty-nine years ol age, but 
tin l\ unknown to publii mi n and without 



any personal acquaintance with great affairs. 
President Lincoln's first call for troops was 
made on the 15th of April, and on the 19th 
Grant was drilling a company of volunteers 
at Galena. He also offered his services to 
the Adjutant-General of the army, but re- 
ceived no reply. The Governor of Illinois, 
however, employed him in the organization 
of volunteer troops, and at the end of five 
weeks he was appointed Colonel of the 
Twenty-first Infantry. I Ie took command 
of his regiment in June, and reported first 
to General Pope in Missouri. I lis superior 
knowledge of military life rather surprised 
his superior officers, who had never before 
even heard of him, and they were thus led 
to place him on the road to rapid advance- 
ment. August 7 he was commissioned a 
Brigadier-General of volunteers, the ap» 
pointment having been made without his 
knowledge. He had been unanimously 
recommended by the Congressmen from 
Illinois, not one of whom had been his 
personal acquaintance. For a few weeks 
he was occupied in watching the move- 
ments of partisan forces in Missouri. 

September 1 he was placed in command 
of the District of Southeast Missouri, with 
headquarters at Cairo, and on the 6th, with- 
out orders, he seized Paducah, at the mouth 
of the Tennessee River, and commanding 
the navigation both oi thai stream and of 







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C/I.rSSES S. GRANT. 



99 



the Ohio. This stroke secured Kentucky 
to the Union ; for the State Legislature, 
which had until then affected to be neutral, 
at once declared in favor of the Govern- 
ment. In November following, according 
to orders, he made a demonstration about 
eighteen miles below Cairo, preventing the 
crossing of hostile troops into Missouri ; 
but in order to accomplish this purpose he 
had to do some fighting, and that, too, with 
only 3,000 raw recruits, against 7,000 Con- 
federates. Grant carried off two pieces of 
artillery and 200 prisoners. 

After repeated applications to General 
Halleck, his immediate superior, he was 
allowed, in February, 1862, to move up the 
Tennessee River against Fort Henry, in 
conjunction with a naval force. The gun- 
boats silenced the fort, and Grant immedi- 
ately made preparations to attack Fort 
Donelson, about twelve miles distant, on 
the Cumberland River. Without waiting 
for orders he moved his troops there, and 
with 15,000 men began the siege. The 
fort, garrisoned with 21,000 men, was a 
strong one, but after hard fighting on three 
successive days Grant forced an " Uncon- 
ditional Surrender " (an alliteration upon 
the initials of his name). The prize he capt- 
ured consisted of sixty-five cannon, 17,600 
small arms and 14,623 soldiers. About 4,- 
000 of the garrison had escaped in the night, 
and 2,500 were killed or wounded. Grant's 
entire loss was less than 2,000. This was the 
first important success won by the national 
troops during the war, and its strategic re- 
sults were marked, as the entire States of 
Kentucky and Tennessee at once fell into the 
National hands. Our hero was made a 
Major-General of Volunteers and placed in 
command of the District of West Ten- 
nessee. 

In March, 1862, he was ordered to move 
up the Tennessee River toward Corinth, 
where the Confederates were concentrat- 
ing a large army ; but he was directed not 



to attack. His forces, now numbering 38.- 
000, were accordingly encamped near Shi- 
loh, or Pittsburg Landing, to await the 
arrival of General Buell with 40,000 more; 
but April 6 the Confederates came out from 
Corinth 50,000 strong and attacked Grant 
violently, hoping to overwhelm him before 
Buell could arrive ; 5,000 of his troops were 
beyond supporting distance, so that he was 
largely outnumbered and forced back to the 
river, where, however, he held out until 
dark, when the head of Buell's column 
came upon the field. The next day the 
Confederates were driven back to Corinth, 
nineteen miles. The loss was heavy on 
both sides ; Grant, being senior in rank to 
Buell, commanded on both days. Two 
days afterward Halleck arrived at the front 
and assumed command of the army, Grant 
remaining at the head of the right wing and 
the reserve. On May 30 Corinth was 
evacuated by the Confederates. In July 
Halleck was made General-in-Chief, and 
Grant succeeded him in command of the 
Department of the Tennessee. September 
19 the battle of Iuka was fought, where, 
owing to Rosecrans's fault, only an incom- 
plete victory was obtained. 

Next, Grant, with 30,000 men, moved 
down into Mississippi and threatened Vicks- 
burg, while Sherman, with 40,000 men, was 
sent by way of the river to attack that place 
in front ; but, owing to Colonel Murphy's 
surrendering Holly Springs to the Con- 
federates, Grant was so weakened that he 
had to retire to Corinth, and then Sherman 
failed to sustain his intended attack. 

In January, 1863, General Grant took 
command in person of all the troops in the 
Mississippi Valley, and spent several months 
in fruitless attempts to compel the surrender 
or evacuation of Vicksburg; but July 4, 
following, the place surrendered, with 31,- 
600 men and 172 cannon, and the Mississippi 
River thus fell permanently into the hands 
of the Government. Grant was made a 



PliES/DENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



Major-General in the regular army, and in 
October following he was placed in com- 
mand of the Division of the Mississippi. 
The same month he went to Chattanooga 
and saved the Army of the Cumberland 
from starvation, and drove Brasrs: from that 
part of the country. This victory over- 
threw the last important hostile force west 
of the Alleghanies and opened the way for 
the National armies into Georgiaand Sher- 
man's march to the sea. 

The remarkable series of successes which 
Grant hail now achieved pointed him out 
as the appropriate leader of the National 
armies, and accordingly, in February, 1864, 
the rank of Lieutenant-General was created 
for him by Congress, and on March 17 he 
assumed command of the armies of the 
United States. Planning the grand final 
campaign, he sent Sherman into Georgia, 
Sigel into the valley of Virginia, and Butler 
to capture Richmond, while he fought his 
own way from the Rapidan to the James. 
The costly but victorious battles of the 
Wilderness, Spottsylvania, North Anna and 
Cold Harbor were fought, more for the 
purpose' of annihilating Lee than to capture 
any particular point. In June, 1864, the 
siege of Richmond was begun. Sherman, 
meanwhile, was marching and fighting daily 
in Georgia and steadilv advancing toward 
Atlanta; but Sigel had been defeated in the 
valley of Virginia, and was superseded by 
Hunter. Lee sent Early to threaten the Na- 
tional capital ; whereupon Grant gathered 
up a force which he placed under Sheridan, 
and that commander rapidly drove Early, 
in a succession of battles, through the valley 
of Virginia and destroyed his army as an 
organized force. The siege of Richmond 
went on, and Grant made numerous attacks, 
but was only partially successful. The 
people of the North grew impatient, and 
even the Government advised him to 
abandon the attempt to take Richmond or 
crush the Confederacy in that way ; but he 



never wavered. He resolved to " fight it 
out on that line, if it took all summer." 

By September Sherman had made his 
way to Atlanta, and Grant then sent him 
on his famous " march to the sea," a route 
which the chief had designed six months 
before. He made Sherman's success possi- 
ble, not only by holding Lee in front of 
Richmond, but also by sending reinforce- 
ments to Thomas, who then drew off and 
defeated the only army which could have 
confronted Sherman. Thus the latter was 
left unopposed, and, with Thomas and Sheri- 
dan, was used in the furtherance of Grant's 
plans. Each executed his part in the great 
design and contributed his share to the re- 
sult at which Grant was aiming. Sherman 
finally reached Savannah, Schofieid beat 
the enemy at Franklin, Thomas at Nash- 
ville, and Sheridan wherever he met him; 
and all this while General Grant was hold- 
ing Lee, with the principal Confederate 
army, near Richmond, as it were chained 
and helpless. Then Schofieid was brought 
from the West, and Fort Fisher and Wil- 
mington were captured on the sea-coast, so 
as to afford him a foothold; From here he 
was sent into the interior of North Caro- 
lina, and Sherman was ordered to move 
northward to join him. When all this was 
effected, and Sheridan could find no one else 
to fight in the Shenandoah Valley, Grant 
brought the cavalry leader to the front of 
Richmond, and, making a last effort, drove 
Lee from his entrenchments and captured 
Richmond. 

At the beginning of the final campaign 
Lee had collected 73,000 lighting men in 
the lines at Richmond, besides the local 
militia and the gunboat crews, amounting 
to 5,000 more. Including Sheridan's force 
Grant had 1 10,000 men in the works before 
Petersburg and Richmond. Petersburg fell 
on the 2d of April, and Richmond on the 
3d, and Lee lied in the direction of Lynch- 
burg. Grant pursued with remorseless 



c/LrssES s. an a nt. 



energy, only stopping to strike fresh blows, 
and Lee at last found himself not only out- 
fought but also out-marched and out-gen- 
eraled. Being completely surrounded, he 
surrendered on the 9th of April, 1865, at 
Appomattox Court-House, in the open field, 
with 27,000 men, all that remained of his 
army. This act virtually ended the war. 
Thus, in ten days Grant had captured 
Petersburg and Richmond, fought, by his 
subordinates, the battles of Five Forks and 
Sailor's Creek, besides numerous smaller 
ones, captured 20,000 men in actual battle, 
and received the surrender of 27,000 more 
at Appomattox, absolutely annihilating an 
army of 70,000 soldiers. 

General Grant returned at once to Wash- 
ington to superintend the disbandment of 
the armies, but this pleasurable work was 
scarcely begun when President Lincoln was 
assassinated. It had doubtless been in- 
tended to inflict the same fate upon Grant ; 
but he, fortunately, on account of leaving 
Washington early in the evening, declined 
an invitation to accompany the President 
to the theater where the murder was com- 
mitted. This event made Andrew Johnson 
President, but left Grant by far the most 
conspicuous figure in the public life of the 
country. He became the object of an en- 
thusiasm greater than had ever been known 
in America. Every possible honor was 
heaped upon him ; the grade of General 
was created for him by Congress; houses 
were presented to him by citizens; towns 
were illuminated on his entrance into them ; 
and, to cap the climax, when he made his 
tour around the world, "all nations did him 
honor" as they had never before honored 
a foreigner. 

The General, as Commander-in-Chief, 
was placed in an embarrassing position by 
the opposition of President Johnson to the 
measures of Congress ; but he directly man- 
ifested his characteristic loyalty by obeying 
Congress rather than the disaffected Presi- 



dent, although for a short time he had 
served in his cabinet as Secretary of War. 

Of course, everybody thought of General 
Grant as the next President of the United 
States, and he was accordingly elected as 
such in 1868 "by a large majority," and 
four years later re-elected by a much larger 
majority — the most overwhelming ever 
given by the people of this country. His first 
administration was distinguished by a ces- 
sation of the strifes which sprang from the 
war, by a large reduction of the National 
debt, and by a settlement of the difficulties 
with England which had grown out of the 
depredations committed by privateers fit- 
ted out in England during the war. This 
last settlement was made by the famous 
" Geneva arbitration," which saved to this 
Government $1 5,000,000, but, more than all, 
prevented a war with England. " Let us 
have peace," was Grant's motto. And this 
is the most appropriate place to remark 
that above all Presidents whom this Gov- 
ernment has ever had, General Grant was 
the most non-partisan. He regarded the 
Executive office as purely and exclusively 
executive of the laws of Congress, irrespect- 
ive of " politics." But every great man 
has jealous, bitter enemies, a fact Grant 
was well aware of. 

After the close of his Presidency, our 
General made his famous tour around the 
world, already referred to, and soon after- 
ward, in company with Ferdinand Ward, 
of New York City, he engaged in banking 
and stock brokerage, which business was 
made disastrous to Grant, as well as to him- 
self, by his rascality. By this time an in- 
curable cancer of the tongue developed 
itself in the person of the afflicted ex- 
President, which ended his unrequited life 
July 23, 1885. Thus passed away from 
earth's turmoils the man, the General, who 
was as truly the " father of this regenerated 
country" as was Washington the father of 
the infant nation. 



J'h'ES/DENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 

















>^ 




RUTHERFORD BIRCH- 
ARD HAYES, the nine- 
teenth President of 
the United States, 
1S77— *Si, was born in 
Delaware, Ohio, Oc- 
tober 4, 1822. His 
ancestry can be traced as far 
back as 1280, when Hayes and 
Rutherford were two Scottish 
chieftains fighting side by side 
with Baliol, William Wallace 
and Robert Bruce. Both fami- 
lies belonged to the nobility, 
owned extensive estates and had 
a large following. The Hayes 
family had, for a coat of-arms, a 
shield, barred and surmounted by a flying 
eagle. There was a circle of stars about 
the eagle and above the shield, while on a 
scroll underneath the shield was inscribed 
the motto, " Recte." Misfortune overtaking 
the family, George Hayes left Scotland in 
16S0, and settled in Windsor, Connecticut. 
1 le was an industrious worker in wood and 
iron, having a mechanical genius and a cul- 
tivated mind. 1 1 is son George was born 
in Windsor and remained there during his 
life. 

Daniel Hayes, son of the latter, married 
Sarah Lee, and lived in Simsbury, Con- 




necticut. Ezekiel, son of Daniel, was born 
in 1724, and was a manufacturer of scythes 
at Bradford, Connecticut. Rutherford 
Hayes, son of Ezekiel and grandfather of 
President Hayes, was born in New Haven, 
in August, 1756. He was a famous black- 
smith and tavern-keeper. He immigrated to 
Vermont at an unknown date, settling in 
Brattleboro where he established a hotel. 
Here his son Rutherford, father of Presi- 
dent Hayes, was born. In September, 1813, 
he married Sophia Birchard, of Wilming- 
ton, Vermont, whose ancestry on the male 
side is traced back to 1635, to John Birch- 
ard, one of the principal founders of Nor- 
wich. Both of her grandfathers were 
soldiers in the Revolutionary war. 

The father of President Hayes was of a 
mechanical turn, and could mend a plow, 
knit a stocking, or do almost anything that 
he might undertake. He was prosperous 
in business, a member of the church and 
active in all the benevolent enterprises of 
the town. After the close of the war of 1812 
he immigrated to Ohio, and purchased a 
farm near the present town of Delaware. 
His family then consisted of his wife and 
two children, and an orphan girl whom he 
had adopted. 

It was in 1817 that the family arrived at 
Delaware. Instead of settling upon his 




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RUTHERFOtW B. It AYES. 



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farm, Mr. Hayes concluded to enter into 
business in the village. He purchased an 
interest in a distillery, a business then as re- 
spectable as it was profitable. His capital 
and recognized ability assured him the 
highest social position in the community. 
He died July 22, 1822, less than three 
months before the birth of the son that was 
destined to fill the office of President of the 
United States. 

Mrs. Hayes at this period was very weak, 
and the subject of this sketch was so feeble 
at birth that he was not expected to live 
beyond a month or two at most. As the 
months went by he grew weaker and weaker 
so that the neighbors were in the habit of 
inquiring from time to time " if Mrs. 
Hayes's baby died last night." On one oc- 
casion a neighbor, who was on friendly 
terms with the family, after alluding to the 
boy's big head and the mother's assiduous 
care of him, said to her, in a bantering way, 
"That's right! Stick to him. You have 
got him along so far, and I shouldn't won- 
der if he would really come to something 
yet." " You need not laugh," said Mrs. 
Haves, " you wait and see. You can't tell 
but I shall make him President of the 
United Statesyet." 

The boy lived, in «pite of the universal 
predictions of his speedy death; and when, 
in 1825, his elder brother was drowned, he 
became, if possible, still dearer to his mother. 
He was seven years old before he was 
placed in school. His education, however, 
was not neglected. His sports were almost 
wholly within doors, his playmates being 
his sister and her associates. These circum- 
stances tended, no doubt, to foster that 
gentleness of disposition and that delicate 
consideration for the feelings of others 
which are marked traits of his character. 
At school he was ardently devoted to his 
studies, obedient to the teacher, and care- 
ful to avoid the quarrels in which many of 
his schoolmates were involved. He was 



always waiting at the school-house door 
when it opened in the morning, and never 
late in returning to his seat at recess. His 
sister Fannie was his constant companion, 
and their affection for each other excited 
the admiration of their friends. 

In 1838 young Hayes entered Kenyon 
College and graduated in 1842. He then 
began the study of law in the office of 
Thomas Sparrow at Columbus. His health 
was now well established, his figure robust, 
his mind vigorous and alert. In a short 
time he determined to enter the law school 
at Cambridge, Massachusetts, where for 
two years he pursued his studies with great 
diligence. 

In 1845 he was admitted to the bar at 
Marietta, Ohio, and shortly afterward went 
into practice as an attorney-at-law with 
Ralph P. Buckland, of Fremont. Here he 
remained three years, acquiring but limited 
practice, and apparently unambitious of 
distinction in his profession. His bachelor 
uncle, Sardis Birchard, who had always 
manifested great interest in his nephew and 
rendered him assistance in boyhood, was 
now a wealth} 7 banker, and it was under- 
stood that the young man would be his 
heir. It is possible that this expectation 
may have made Mr. Hayes more indifferent 
to the attainment of wealth than he would 
otherwise have been, but he was led into no 
extravagance or vices on this account. 

In 1849 ne removed to Cincinnati where 
his ambition found new stimulus. Two 
events occurring at this period had a pow- 
erful influence upon his subsequent life. 
One of them was his marriage to Miss 
Lucy Ware Webb, daughter of Dr. James 
Webb, of Cincinnati; the other was his 
introduction to the Cincinnati Literary 
Club, a body embracing such men as Chief 
Justice Salmon P. Chase, General John 
Pope and Governor Edward F. Noyes. 
The marriage was a fortunate one as every- 
body knows. Not one of all the wives ol 



io6 



PRESIDENTS OF THE U SITED STATES. 



our Presidents was more universally ad- 
mired, reverenced and beloved than is Mrs. 
Hayes, and no one has done more than she 
to reflect honor upon American woman- 
hood. 

In 1856 Mr. Hayes was nominated to the 
office of Judge of the Court cf Common 
Pleas, but declined to accept the nomina- 
tion. Two years later he was chosen to the 
office of City Solicitor. 

In 1 861, when the Rebellion broke out, 
he was eager to take up arms in the defense 
of his country. His military life was 
bright and illustrious. June 7, 1861, he 
was appointed Major of the Twenty-third 
Ohio Infantry. In July the regiment was 
sent to Virginia. October 15, 1861, he was 
made Lieutenant-Colonel of his regiment, 
and in August, 1862, was promoted Colonel 
of the Seventy-ninth Ohio Regiment, but 
refused to leave his old comrades. He was 
wounded at the battle of South Mountain, 
and suffered severely, being unable to enter 
upon active duty for several weeks. No- 
vember 30, 1862, he rejoined his regiment as 
its Colonel, having been promoted Octo- 
ber 15. 

December 25, 1862, he was placed in com- 
mand of the Kanawha division, and for 
meritorious service in several battles was 
promoted Brigadier-General. He was also 
brevetted Major-General for distinguished 



services in 1864. He was wounded lour 
times, and five horses were shot from 
under him. 

Mr. Hayes was first a Whig in politics, 
and was among the first to unite with the 
Free-Soil and Republican parties. In 1864 
he was elected to Congress from die Sec- 
ond Ohio District, which had always been 
Democratic, receiving a majority of 3,098. 
In 1866 he was renominated for Congress 
and was a second time elected. In 1867 he 
was elected Governor over Allen G. Thur- 
man, the Democratic candidate, and re- 
elected in 1869. In 1874 Sardis Birchard 
died, leaving his large estate to General 
I layes. 

In 1876 he was nominated for the Presi- 
dency. His letter of acceptance excited 
the admiration of the whole country. He 
resigned the office of Governor and retired 
to his home in Fremont to await the result 
of the canvass. After a hard, long contest 
he was inaugurated March 5, 1877. H' s 
Presidency was characterized by compro- 
mises with all parties, in order to please as 
many as possible. The close of his Presi- 
dential term in 1881 was the close of his 
public lite, and since then lie has remained 
at his home in Fremont, Ohio, in Jefferso- 
nian retirement from public notice, in strik- 
ing contrast with most others of the world's 
notables. 






james A. Garfield. 



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AMES A. GARFIELD, 

twentieth President of 
the United States, 1881, 
was born November 19, 
1 83 1, in the wild woods 
o f Cuyahoga County, 
Ohio. His parents were 
Abram and Eliza (Ballou) 
Garfield, who were of New 
• England ancestry. The 
senior Garfield was an in- 
dustrious farmer, as the 
rapid improvements which 
appeared on his place at- 
tested. The residence was 
the familiar pioneer log cabin, 
and the household comprised the parents 
and their children — Mehetable, Thomas, 
Mary and James A. In May, 1833, the 
father died, and the care of the house- 
hold consequently devolved upon young 
Thomas, to whom James was greatly in- 
debted for the educational and other ad- 
vantages he enjoyed. He now lives in 
Michigan, and the two sisters live in Solon, 
Ohio, near their birthplace. 

As the subject of our sketch grew up, he, 
too, was industrious, both in mental and 
physical labor. He worked upon the farm, 
or at carpentering, or chopped wood, or at 
any other odd job that would aid in support 
of the family, and in the meantime made the 



most of his books. Ever afterward he was 
never ashamed of his humble origin, nor for- 
got the friends of his youth. The poorest 
laborer was sure of his sympathy, and he 
always exhibited the character of a modest 
gentleman. 

Until he was about sixteen years of age, 
James's highest ambition was to be a lake 
captain. To this his mother was strongly 
opposed, but she finalty consented to his 
going to Cleveland to carry out his long- 
cherished design, with the understanding, 
however, that he should try to obtain some 
other kind of employment. He walked all 
the way to Cleveland, and this was his first 
visit to the city. After making many ap- 
plications for work, including labor on 
board a lake vessel, but all in vain, he 
finally engaged as a driver for his cousin, 
Amos Letcher, on the Ohio & Pennsyl- 
vania Canal. In a short time, however, he 
quit this and returned home. He then at- 
tended the seminary at Chester for about 
three years, and next he entered Hiram In- 
stitute, a school started in 1850 by the 
Disciples of Christ, of which church he was 
a member. In order to pa}' his way he 
assumed the duties of janitor, and at times 
taught school. He soon completed the cur- 
riculum there, and then entered Williams 
College, at which he graduated in 1856, 
taking one of the highest honors of his class. 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



Afterward he returned to Hiram as Presi- 
dent. In his youthful and therefore zealous 
piety, he exercised his talents occasionally 
as a preacher of the Gospel. He was a 
man of strong moral and religious convic- 
tions, and as soon as he began to look into 
politics, he saw innumerable points that 
could be improved. He also studied law, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1859. 
November 11, 1858, Mr. Garfield married 
Miss Lucretia Rudolph, who ever after- 
ward proved a worthy consort in all the 
stages of her husband's career. They had 
seven children, five of whom are still living. 

It was in 1859 that Garfield made his 
first political speeches, in Hiram and the 
neighboring villages, and three years later 
he began to speak at county mass-meetings, 
being received everywhere with popular 
favor. He was elected to the State Senate 
this year, taking his scat in January, i860. 

On the breaking out of the war of the 
Rebellion in 1861, Mr. Garfield resolved to 
fight as he had talked, and accordingly he 
enlisted to defend the old flag, receiving 
his commission as Lieutenant-Colonel of the 
Forty-second Regiment of the Ohio Volun- 
teer Infantry, August 14, that year. He 
was immediately thrown into active service, 
and before he had ever seen a gun fired in 
action he was placed in command of four 
regiments of infantry and eight companies 
of cavalry, charged with the work of driv- 
ing the Confederates, headed by Humphrey 
Marshall, from his native State, Kentucky. 
This task was speedily accomplished, al- 
though against great odds. On account of 
his success, President Lincoln commissioned 
him Brigadier-General, January 11, 1862; 
and, as he had been the youngest man in 
the Ohio Senate two years before, so now 
he was the youngest General in the arm v. 
He was with General Buell's army at Shi- 
loh, also in its operations around Corinth 
and its march through Alabama. Next, he 
was detailed as a member of the general 



court-martial for the trial of General Fitz- 
John Porter, and then ordered to report to 
General Rosecrans, when he was assigned 
to the position of Chief of Staff. His mili- 
tary history closed with his brilliant ser- 
vices at Chickamauga, where he won the 
stars of Major-General. 

In the fall of 1862, without any effort on 
his part, he was elected as a Representative 
to Congress, from that section of Ohio 
which had been represented for sixty years 
mainly by two men — Elisha Whittlesey and 
Joshua R. Giddings. Again, he was the 
youngest member of that body, and con- 
tinued there by successive re-elections, as 
Representative or Senator, until he was 
elected President in 1880. During his life 
in Congress he compiled and published by 
his speeches, there and elsewhere, more 
information on the issues of the day, espe- 
cially on one side, than any other member. 

June 8, 1880, at the National Republican 
Convention held in Chicago, General Gar- 
field was nominated for the Presidency, in 
preference to the old war-horses, Blaine 
and Grant ; and although many of the Re- 
publican party felt sore over the failure ot 
their respective heroes to obtain the nomi- 
nation, General Garfield was elected by a 
fair popular majority. He was duly in- 
augurated, but on July 2 following, before 
he had fairly got started in his administra- 
tion, he was fatally shot by a half-dement< '1 
assassin. After very painful and protracted 
suffering, he died September 19, [881, la- 
mented by all the American people. Never 
before in the history of this country had 
anything occurred which so nearly froze 
the blood of the Nation, lor the moment, as 
the awful ac( oi Guiteau, the murderer. 
He was duly tried, convicted and put to 
death on the gallows. 

The lamented Garfield was succeeded by 
the Vice-President, General Arthur, who 
seemed to endeavor to carry out the policy 
inaugurated by his predecessor. 



CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 



»'3 





HESTER ALLEN 
ARTHUR, the twen- 
ty-first Chief Execu- 
tive of this growing 
republic, i88i-'S, was 
born in Franklin 
County, Vermont, 
October 5, 1830, the eldest of a 
family of two sons and five 
daughters. His father, Rev. 
Dr. William Arthur, a Baptist 
clergyman, immigrated to this 
country from Count}' Antrim, 
Ireland, in his eighteenth year, 
and died in 1875, in Newton- 
ville, near Albany, New York, 
after serving many years as a successful 
minister. Chester A. was educated at that 
old, conservative institution, Union Col- 
lege, at Schenectady, New York, where he 
excelled in all his studies. He graduated 
there, with honor, and then struck out in 
life for himself by teaching school for about 
two years in his native State. 

At the expiration- of that time young 
Arthur, with $500 in his purse, went to the 
city of New York and entered the law office 
of ex-Judge E. D. Culver as a student. In 
due time he was admitted to the bar, when 
he formed a partnership with his intimate 



friend and old room-mate, Henry D. Gar- 
diner, with the intention of practicing law 
at some point in the West; but after spend- 
ing about three months in the Wester. 
States, in search of an eligible place, they 
returned to New York City, leased a room, 
exhibited a sign of their business and al- 
most immediately enjoyed a paying patron- 
age. 

At this stage of his career Mr. Arthur's 
business prospects were so encouraging 
that he concluded to take a wife, and ac- 
cordingly he married the daughter of Lieu- 
tenant Herndon, of the United States Navy, 
who had been lost at sea. To the widow 
of the latter Congress voted a gold medal, 
in recognition of the Lieutenant's bravery 
during the occasion in which he lost his 
life. Mrs. Artnur died shortly before her 
husband's nomination to the Vice-Presi- 
dency, leaving two children. 

Mr. Arthur obtained considerable celeb- 
rity as an attorney in the famous Lemmon 
suit, which was brought to recover posses- 
sion of eight slaves, who had been declared 
free by the Superior Court of New York 
City. The noted Charles O'Conor, who 
was nominated by the "Straight Demo- 
crats" in 1872 for the United States Presi- 
dency, was retained by Jonathan G. Lem- 



11+ 



presidents of the united states. 



mon, of Virginia, to recover the negroes, 
but he lost the suit. In this case, however, 
Mr. Arthur was assisted by William M. 
Evarts, now United States Senator. Soon 
afterward, in 1S56, a respectable colored 
woman was ejected from a street car in 
New York City. Mr. Arthur sued thecar 
company in her behalf and recovered $500 
damages. Immediately afterward all the 
car companies in the city issued orders to 
their employes to admit colored persons 
upon their cars. 

Mr. Arthur's political doctrines, as well 
as his practice as a lawyer, raised him to 
prominence in the part)- of freedom ; and 
accordingly he was sent as a delegate to 
the first National Republican Convention. 
Soon afterward he was appointed Judge 
Advocate for the Second Brigade of the 
State of New York, and then Engineer-in- 
Chief on Governor Morgan's staff. In 1861, 
the first year of the war, he was made In- 
spector-General, and next, Quartermaster- 
General, in both which offices he rendered 
great service to the Government. After 
the close of Governor Morgan's term lie 
resumed the practice of law, forming first a 
partnership with Mr. Ransom, and subse- 
quently adding Mr. Phelps to the firm. 
Each of these gentlemen were able lawyers. 

November 21, 1872, General Arthur was 
appointed Collector of the Port of New 
York by President Grant, and he held the 
office until July 20. 1878. 

The next event of prominence in General 
Arthur's career was his nomination to the 
Vice-Presidency of the United States, under 
the influence of Roscoe Conkling, at the 
National Republican Convention held at 
Chicago in June, 1S80, when James A. Gar- 
lield was placed at the head of the ticket. 
Both the convention and the campaign that 
followed were noisy and exciting. The 
friends of Grant, constituting nearly half 



the convention, were exceedingly persist- 
ent, and were sorely disappointed over 
their defeat. At the head of the Demo- 
cratic ticket was placed a very strong and 
popular man ; vet Garfield and Arthur were 
elected by a respectable plurality of the 
popular vote. The 4th of March following, 
these gentlemen were accordinglv inaugu- 
rated ; but within four months the assassin's 
bullet made a fatal wound in the person of 
General Garfield, whose life terminated 
September 19, 1881, when General Arthur, 
ex officio, was obliged to take the chief 
reins of government. Some misgivings 
were entertained by many in this event, as 
Mr. Arthur was thought to represent espe 
ciallv the Grant and Conkling wing of the 
Republican party ; but President Arthur 
had both the ability and the good sense to 
allay all fears, and he gave the restless, 
critical American people as good an ad- 
ministration as they had ever been blessed 
with. Neither selfishness nor low parti- 
sanism ever characterized any feature of 
his public service. He ever maintained a 
high sense of everv individual right as well 
as of the Nation's honor. Indeed, he stood 
so high that his successor, President Cleve- 
land, though of opposing politics, expressed 
a wish in his inaugural address that he 
could only satisfv the people with as good 
an administration. 

But the day of civil service reform had 
come in so far, and the corresponding re- 
action against "third-termism" had en- 
croached so far even upon "second-term" 
service, that the Republican party saw fit 
in 1884 to nominate another man for Presi- 
dent. Only by this means was General 
Arthur's tenure of office closed at Wash- 
ington, (hi his retirement from the Presi- 
dency, March, 1885, ho engaged in the 
practice of law at New York City, where he 
died November IS 1886. 




^^_- 



r 



G ROVER CLEVELAND. 



117 







^ 












— ^tJ»-2»l>— ^^t^-^t^^ 



w 



' 







ROVER CLEVE- 
LAND, the twenty- 
second President of the 
United States, 1885—, 
was born in Caldwell, 
Wm!^^^^^-- Essex County, New 
" A Jersey, March 18, 
The house in which he 
was born, a small two-story 
wooden building, is still stand- 
4f®}-J»W 1 ,l. ing. It was the parsonage of 
t^^jjS the Presbyterian church, of 
which his father, Richard 
Cleveland, at the time was 
pastor. The family is of New 
England origin, and for two centuries has 
contributed to the professions and to busi- 
ness, men who have reflected honor on the 
name. Aaron Cleveland, Grover Cleve- 
land's great-great-grandfather, was born in 
Massachusetts, but subsequently moved to 
Philadelphia, where he became an intimate 
friend of Benjamin Franklin, at whose 
house he died. He left a large family of 
children, who in time married and settled 
in different parts of New England. A 
grandson was one of the small American 
force that fought the British at Bunker 
Hill. He served with gallantry through- 
out the Revolution and was honorably 
discharged at its close as a Lieutenant in 
the Continental army. Another grandson, 
William Cleveland (a son of a second Aaron 



Cleveland, who was distinguished as a 
writer and member of the Connecticut 
Legislature) was Grover Cleveland's grand- 
father. William Cleveland became a silver- 
smith in Norwich, Connecticut. He ac- 
quired by industry some property and sent 
his son, Richard Cleveland, the father of 
Grover Cleveland, to Yale College, where 
he graduated in 1824. During a year spent 
in teaching at Baltimore, Maryland, after 
graduation, he met and fell in love with a 
Miss Annie Neale, daughter of a wealthy 
Baltimore book publisher, of Irish birth. 
He was earning his own way in the world 
at the time and was unable to marry; but 
in three years he completed a course of 
preparation for the ministry, secured a 
church in Windham, Connecticut, and 
married Annie Neale. Subsequently he 
moved to Portsmouth, Virginia, where he 
preached for nearly two years, when he 
was summoned to Caldwell, New Jersey, 
where was born Grover Cleveland. 

When he was three years old the family 
moved to Fayetteville, Onondaga County, 
New York. Here Grover Cleveland lived 
until he was fourteen years old, the rugged, 
healthful life of a country boy. His frank, 
generous manner made him a favorite 
among his companions, and their respect 
was won by the good qualities in the germ 
which his manhood developed. He at- 
tended the district school of the village and 



nS 



PKESIDEXTS OF THE UN/TED STATES. 



was for a short time at the academy. Mis 
lather, however, believed that boys should 
be taught to labor at an early age, and be- 
fore he had completed the course of study 
at the academy he began to work in the 
village store at $50 for the first year, and the 
promise of $100 for the. second year. His 
work was well done and the promised in- 
crease of pay was granted the second year. 
Meanwhile his father and family had 
moved to Clinton, the seat of Hamilton 
College, where his father acted as agent to 
the Presbyterian Board of Home Missions, 
preaching in the churches of the vicinity. 
Hither Grover came at his father's request 
shortly after the beginning of his second 
year at the Fayette ville store, and resumed 
his studies at the Clinton Academy. After 
three years spent in this town, the Rev. 
Richard Cleveland was called to the vil- 
lage church of Holland Patent. He had 
preached here only a month when he was 
suddenly stricken down and died without 
an hour's warning. The death of the father 
left the family in straitened circumstances, 
as Richard Cleveland had spent all his 
salary of $1,000 per year, which was not 
required for the necessary expenses of liv- 
ing, upon the education of his children, of 
whom there were nine, Grover being the 
fifth. Grover was hoping to enter Hamil- 
ton College, but the death of his father 
made it necessary for him to earn his own 
livelihood. For the first year (i853-'4) he 
acted as assistant teacher and bookkeeper in 
the Institution for the Blind in New York 
City, of which the late Augustus Schell was 
for many years the patron. In the winter 
of 1854 he returned to Holland Patent 
where the generous people of that place, 
Fayetteville and Clinton, had purchased a 
home for his mother, and in the following 
spring, borrowing $25, he set out for the 
West to earn his liviiiLr. 

D 

Reaching Buffalo he paid a hasty visit to 
ail uncle, Lewis F. Allen, a well-known 



stock farmer, living at Black Rock, a tew 
! miles distant. He communicated his plans 
to Mr. Allen, who discouraged the idea of 
the West, and finally induced the enthusi- 
astic boy of seventeen to remain with him 
and help him prepare a catalogue of blooded 
short-horn cattle, knownas " Allen's Amer- 
ican Herd Book," a publication familiar to 
all breeders of cattle. In August, 1855, he 
entered the law office of Rogers, Bowen 
& Rogers, at Buffalo, and after serving a 
few months without pay, was paid $4 a 
week — an amount barely sufficient to meet 
the necessary expenses of his board in the 
family of a fellow-student in Buffalo, with 
whom he took lodgings. Life at this time 
with Grover Cleveland was a stern battle 
with the world. He took his breakfast by 
candle-light with the drovers, and went at 
once to the office where the whole day was 
spent in work and study. Usually he re- 
turned again at night to resume reading 
which had been interrupted by the duties 
of the da)-. Gradually his employers came 
to recognize the ability, trustworthiness 
and capacity for hard work in their young 
employe, and by the time he was admitted 
to the bar (1859) nc stood high in their con- 
fidence. A year later he was made confi- 
dential and managing clerk, and in the 
course of three years more his salary had 
been raised to $1,000. In 1863 he was ap- 
pointed assistant district attorney of Eric 
County by the district attorney, the Hon. 
C. C. Torrance. 

Since his first vote had been cast in 1858 
he had been a staunch Democrat, and until 
he was chosen Governor he always made 
it his duty, rain or shine, to stand at the 
polls and give out ballots to Democratic 
voters. During the first year of his term 
as assistant district attorney, the Democrats 
desired especially to carry the Board of Su- 
pervisors. The old Second Ward in which 
he lived was Republican- ordinarily by 250 
majority, but at the urgent request of the 



GliOVER CLEVELAND 



119 



party Grover Cleveland consented to be 
the Democratic candidate for Supervisor, 
and came within thirteen votes of an elec- 
tion. The three years spent in the district 
attorney's office were devoted to assiduous 
;abor and the extension of his professional 
attainments. He then formed a law part- 
nership with the late Isaac V. Vanderpoel, 
ex-State Treasurer, under the firm name 
of Vanderpoel tS: Cleveland. Here the bulk 
of the work devolved on Cleveland's shoul- 
ders, and he soon won a good standing at 
the bar of Erie County. In 1869 Mr. 
Cleveland formed a partnership with ex- 
Senator A. P. Laning and ex-Assistant 
United States District Attorney Oscar Fol- 
som, under the firm name of Laning, Cleve- 
land & Folsom. During these years he 
began to earn a moderate professional in- 
come; but the larger portion of it was sent 
to his mother and sisters at Holland Patent 
to whose support he had contributed ever 
since i860. He served as sheriff of Erie 
County, i87o-'4, and then resumed the 
practice of law, associating himself with the 
Hon. Lyman K. Bass and Wilson S. Bissell. 



The firm was strong and popular, and soon 
commanded a large and lucrative practice. 
Ill health forced the retirement of Mr. Bass 
in 1879, an d the firm became Cleveland & 
Bissell. In 1881 Mr. George J. Sicard was 
added to the firm. 

In the autumn election of 1881 he was 
elected mayor of Buffalo by a majority of 
over 3,500 — the largest majority ever given 
a candidate for mayor — and the Democratic 
city ticket was successful, although the 
Republicans carried Buffalo by over 1,000 
majority for their State ticket. Grover 
Cleveland's administration as mayor fully 
justified the confidence reposed in him by 
the people of Buffalo, evidenced by the 
great vote he received. 

The Democratic State Convention met 
at Syracuse, September 22, 1882, and nomi- 
nated Grover Cleveland for Governor 
on the third ballot and Cleveland was 
elected by 192,000 majority. In the fall of 
1 884 he was elected President of the United 
States by about 1,000 popular majority, 
in New York State, and he was accordingly 
inaugurated the 4th of March following. 



PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



» BENJAMIN HAI^ISON. 



■:■-■ 




ENJAMIN HARRISON, 

the twenty-third Presi- 
dent of the United States, 
1889, was born at North 
Bend, Hamilton County, 
Ohio, in the house of his 
grandfather, William Hen- 
ry Harrison (who was the 
ninth President of this 
country), August 20th, 
1833. He is a descendant 
of one of the historical 
families of this country, as 
also of England. The 
head of the family was a 
Major-General Harrison 
who was devoted to the cause of Oliver 
Cromwell. It became the duty of this Har- 
rison to participate in the trial of Charles 1. 
and afterward to sitrn the death warrant of 
the king, which subsequently cost him his 
life. His enemies succeeding to power, he 
was condemned and executed October 13th, 
1 f")fi(). II is descendants came to America, 
and the first mention made in history of the 
Harrison family as representative in public 
affairs, is that of Benjamin Harrison, great- j 
grandfather of our present President, who 
whs a member of the Continental Congress, 
1774-5-G, and one of the original signers of 



the Declaration of Independence, and three 
times Governor of Virginia. His son, Will- 
iam Henry Harrison, made a brilliant mili- 
tary record, was Governor of the Northwest 
Territory, and the ninth President of the 
United States. 

The subject of this sketch at an early age 
became a student at Farmers College, where 
he remained two years, at the end of which 
time he entered Miami University, at Ox- 
ford, Ohio. Upon graduation from said seat 
of learning he entered, as a student, the of- 
fice of Stover A; Gwyne, a notable law firm at 
Cincinnati, Ohio, where he applied himself 
closely to the study of his chosen profession, 
and here laid the foundation for the honora- 
ble and famous career before him. lie spent 
two years with the firm in Cincinnati, at the 
expiration of which time he received the 
only inheritance of his life, which was a lot 
left him by an aunt, which he sold for $800. 
This sum he deemed sufficient to justify him 
in marrying the lady of his choice, and to 
whom he was then engaged, a daughter of 
Dr. Scott, then Principal of a female school 
at Oxford, Ohio. 

After marriage he located at Indianapolis, 
Indiana, where he began the practice of law. 
Meeting with slight encouragement he made 
but little the first year, but applied himself 





. ^^2 



tZ^^^sL^&^L^ 



BENJAMIN HARRISON. 



■23 



closely to his business, and by perseverance, 
honorable dealing and an upright life, suc- 
ceeded in building npan extensive practice and 
took a leading position in the legal profession. 

In I860 he was nominated for the position 
of Supreme Court Reporter for the State of 
Indiana, and then began his experience as a 
stump speaker. He canvassed the State 
thoroughly and was elected. 

In 1862 his patriotism caused him to 
abandon a civil office and to offer his country 
his services in a military capacity. He or- 
ganized the Seventieth Indiana Infantry and 
was chosen its Colonel. Although his regi- 
ment was composed of raw material, and he 
practically void of military schooling, he at 
once mastered military tactics and drilled bis 
men, so that when be with his regiment was 
assigned to Gen. Sherman's command it was 
known as one of the best drilled organ- 
izations of the army. He was especially 
distinguished for bravery at the battles of 
Resacca and Peach Tree Creek. For bis 
bravery and efficiency at the last named bat- 
tle he was made a Brigadier-General, Gen- 
eral Hooker speaking of him in the most 
complimentary terms. 

While General Harrison was actively en- 
gaged in the field the Supreme Court declared 
the office of Supreme Court Reporter vacant, 
and another person was elected to fill the 
position. From the time of leaving Indiana 
with his regiment for the front, until the fall 
of 1864, General Harrison bad taken no leave 
of absence. But having been nominated 
that year for the same office that he vacated 
in order to serve his country where he could 
do the greatest good, he got a thirty-day leave 
of absence, and during that time canvassed 
the State and was elected for another term as 
Supreme Court Reporter. lie then started 
to rejoin bis command, then with General 
Sherman in the South, but was stricken down 



with fever and after a very trying siege, made 
his way to the front, and participated in the 
closing scenes and incidents of the war. 

In 1868 General Harrison declined a re- 
election as Reporter, and applied himself to 
the practice of his profession. He was a 
candidate for Governor of Indiana on the 
Republican ticket in 1876. Although de- 
feated, the brilliant campaign brought him 
to public notice and gave him a National 
reputation as an able and formidable debater 
and he was much sought in the Eastern 
States as a public speaker. He took an act- 
ive part in the Presidential campaign of 
1880, and was elected to the United States 
Senate, where he served six years, and was 
known as one of the strongest debaters, as 
well as one of the ablest men and best law- 
yers. When his term expired in the Senate 
he resumed his law practice at Indianapolis, 
becoming the head of one of the strongest 
law firms in the State of Indiana. 

Sometime prior to the opening of the 
Presidential campaign of 1888, the two great 
political parties (Republican and Democratic) 
drew the line of political battle on the ques- 
tion of tariff, which became the leading issue 
and the rallying watchword during the mem- 
orable camrv.ign. The Republicans appealed 
to the people for their voice as to a tariff to 
protect home industries, while the Democrats 
wanted a tariff for revenue only. The Re- 
publican convention assembled in Chicago in 
June and selected Mr. Harrison as their 
standard bearer on a platform of principles, 
among other important clauses being that of 
protection, which he cordially indorsed in 
accepting the nomination. November 6, 
1888, after a heated canvass, General Harri- 
son was elected, defeating Grover Cleveland, 
who was again the nominee of the Demo- 
cratic party. He was inaugurated and as- 
sumed the duties of his office March 4, 1889. 










IOWA STATE HOUSE AT DES MOINES. 



^ 



5 

^^^^*^&#^ 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



^*^^||^^^^^^^ 




'^■^>% ' 







>0 T?HZ 2 ?7 J '.-'r'^r'r'Ha HH2 r J ? r . : 'a , ? ZaHt 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



U3 




J *•> . RJ li _ll 11 »»- » * " 11 - 1 .' -'I \K ly *J, 



ABORIGINAL. 




gjJvVjHE race or races who 
occupied this beau- 
tiful prairie country 
before the advent of 
the whites from Eu- 
rope had no litera- 
ture, and therefore 
have left us no history of 
themselves. Not even tra- 
ditions, to any extent, have 
been handed down to us. 
Hence, about all we know 
of the Indians, previous to 
explorations by the whites, 
is derived from mounds 
and a few simple relics. 
The mounds were erected 
by a people generally denominated Mound 
Builders, but whether they were a distinct 
race from the Indians is an unsettled ques- 
tion. Prof. Alex. Winchell, of the Michigan 
State University, as well as a number of 
other investigators, is of the opinion that 
those who built mounds, mined copper and 
iron, made elaborate implements of war, 
agriculture and domestic economy, and 
built houses and substantial villages, etc., 
were no other than the ancestors of the 
present Indians, who, like the ancient 

Greeks and Romans, were more skilled in 
10 



the arts of life than their successors during 
the middle ages. Most people have their 
periods of decline, as well as those of prog- 
ress. The Persians, Hindoos and Chinese, 
although so long in existence as distinct 
nations, have been forages in a state of de- 
cay. Spain and Italy do not improve, 
while Germany, Russia and the United 
States have now their turn in enjoying a 
rapid rise. Similarly, the Indians have long 
been on the decline in the practical arts of 
life. Even since the recent days of Feni- 
more Cooper, the " noble " red men have 
degenerated into savages, despite the close 
contact of the highest order of civilization. 

Nearly all modern authorities unite in 
the opinion that the American continent 
was first peopled from Eastern Asia, either 
by immigration across Behring's Strait or 
by shipwrecks of sailors from the Kamt- 
schatkan and Japanese coast. If mankind 
originated at the north pole, and subse- 
quently occupied an Atlantic continent, 
now submerged, it is possible that the 
American Indians are relics of polar or 
Atlantic races. 

The ancient race which built the towns 
and cities of Mexico and the Western 
United States is called the Aztec, and even 
of them is scarcely anything known save 



124 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



whit can be learned (rum their buried 
structures. The few inscriptions that are 
found seem to be meaningless. 

Indian mounds are found throughout 
the United States east of the Rocky 
Mountains, but are far more abundant in 
some places than others. In this State 
they abound near the principal rivers. 
They vary in size from a few to hundreds 
of feet in diameter, and from three to fifteen 
or more feet in height. They are generally 
round, or nearly so, but in a few notable 
exceptions they bear a rude resemblance in 
their outline to the figure of some animal. 
Their contents are limited, both in quantity 
and variety, and consist mainly of human 
bones, stone implements, tobacco pipes, 
beads, etc. The stone implements are axes, 
skinning knives, pestles and mortars, arrow 
points, etc. The human bones are often 
found in a mass as if a number of corpses had 
been buried together, and indicate that their 
possessors were interred in a sitting posture. 
Judge Samuel Murdock, of Elkader, this 
State, who has made this subject a special 
study for many years, is of the opinion that 
■ these remains are not of subjects who were 
inhumed as corpses, but of persons who, 
under the influence of a savage religion, 
voluntarily sacrificed themselves by under- 
going a burial when alive. 

CAUCASIAN. 

The first member of this race to discover 
the Mississippi River was Ferdinand De 
Soto, a Spaniard, who explored the region 
of the Lower Mississippi in 1541, but came 
no farther north than the 35th parallel, 
lie founded no settlements, nor was he ever 
followed by others of his country to make 
settlements, and hence Spain lost her title 
to the country which she had earned by 
discovery through her subject, De Soto. 
At a subsequent period a Frenchman re- 
discovered the realm, took possession of it 
in tne name of France, and his fellow 



countrymen soon followed and effected 
actual settlements. Accordingly, in 1682, 
France claimed the country, and, accord- 
ing to the usage of European nations, 
earned a proper title to the same. The re- 
sult was a collision between those two na- 
tions, success finally crowning the efforts of 
France. 

In a grand council of Indians, on the 
shore of Lake Superior, they told the 
Frenchmen glowing stories of the " Father 
of Waters " and of the adjacent country, 
and in 1669 Jacques Marquette, a zealous 
and shrewd Jesuit missionary, became in- 
spired with the iilea of visiting this re- 
gion, in the interests of civilization. After 
studying the language and customs of 
the Illinois Indians until 1673, he made prep- 
arations for the journey, in which he was 
to be accompanied by Louis Joliet, an agent 
of the French Government. The Indians, 
who had gathered in large numbers to wit- 
ness his departure, endeavored to dissuade 
him from the undertaking, representing that 
the Indians of the Mississippi Valley were 
cruel and bloodthirsty. The great river 
itself, they said, was the abode of terrible 
monsters which could swallow men, canoes 
and all. But the shrewd missionary, already 
aware of Indian extravagance in descrip- 
tion, set out upon the contemplated jour- 
ney May 13. With the aid of two Miami 
guides he proceeded to the Wisconsin 
River, and down thai stream to the Mis- 
sissippi. Floating down the latter he dis- 
covered, on the 25th of June, traces of 
Indians on the west bank, and Landed. 
This was at a point a little above the mouth 
of the Des Moines River, and thus a Euro- 
pean first trod the soil of Iowa. After re- 
maining a short time and becoming ac- 
quainted with the red man as he then and 
there exhibited himself, he proceeded down 
to the mouth of the Illinois, thence up 
that river and by Lake Michigan to the 
French settlements. 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



125 



Nine years later, in 1682, Rene Robert 
Cavelier La Salle descended the Missis- 
sippi to the Gulf of Mexico, and in the name 
of the King of France took formal posses- 
sion of all the Mississippi Valley, naming it 
Louisiana, in honor of his king, Louis XIV. 
The river itself he named Colbert, in honor 
of the French minister. Soon afterward 
the Government of France began to en- 
courage the establishment of a line of trad- 
ing posts and missionary stations through- 
out the West from Canada to Louisiana, 
and this policy was maintained with par- 
tial success for about seventy-five years. 
Christian zeal animated both France and 
England in missionary enterprise, the 
former in the interests of Catholicism and 
the latter in favor of Protestantism. Hence 
their haste to pre-occupy the land and prose- 
lyte the aborigines; but this ugly rivalry dis- 
gusted the Indians and they refused to be 
converted to either branch of Christianity. 
The traders also persisted in importing 
whisky, which canceled nearly every civ- 
ilizing influence that could be brought to 
bear upon the savages. Another character- 
istic of Indian nature was to listen atten- 
tive!)' to all that the missionary said, pre- 
tending to believe all he preached, and then 
offer in turn his theory of the world, of re- 
ligion, etc.; and, not being listened to with 
the same degree of attention and pretense 
of belief, would depart from the white 
man's presence in disgust. This was his 
idea of the golden rule. 

Comparatively few Indians were perma- 
nently located within the present bounds 
of the State of Iowa. Favorite hunting 
grounds were resorted to by certain bands 
for a time, and afterward by others, subject 
to the varying fortunes of their little wars. 
The tribes were principally the Illinois, 
lowas, Dakotas, Sioux, Pottawatomies and 
finally the Sacs and Foxes. 

In 1765 the Miami confederacy was com- 
posed of four tribes, whose total number 



of warriors was estimated at only 1,050 
men. Of these about 250 were Twightwees, 
or Miamis proper; 300 Weas, or Ouiate- 
nons; 300 Piankeshaws and 200 Shockeys; 
but their headquarters were along the 
Maumee River, in Indiana and Ohio. 

From 1688 to 1697 the wars in which 
France and England were engaged re- 
tarded the growth of their American colo- 
nies. The efforts made by France to 
connect Canada and the Gulf of Mexico by 
a chain of trading posts and colonies nat- 
urally excited the jealousy of England and 
gradually laid the foundation for a struggle 
at arms. The crisis came and the contest 
obtained the name of the French and Indian 
war, the French and Indians combining 
against the English. The war was termi- 
nated in 1763 by a treaty at Paris, by which 
France ceded to Great Britain all of North 
America east of the Mississippi, except the 
island on which New Orleans is situated. 
The preceding autumn France ceded to 
Spain all the country west of that river. 

In 1765 the total number of French fami- 
lies within the limits of the Northwest Ter- 
ritory did not probably exceed 600. These 
were in settlements about Detroit, alone 
the river Wabash and the neighborhood of 
Fort Chartres on the Mississippi. The 
colonial policy of the British Government 
opposed any measures which might 
strengthen settlements in the interior of 
this country, lest they should become self- 
supporting and consequently independent 
of the mother country, Hence the settle- 
ment of the Northwest was still further 
retarded. That short-sighted policy con- 
sisted mainly in holding the lands in the 
possession of the Government, and not 
allowing it to be subdivided and sold to 
those who would become settlers. After 
the establishment of American indepen- 
dence, and especially under the administra- 
tion of Thomas Jefferson, both as Governor 
of Virginia and President of the United 



ta6 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



States, subdivision of land and giving it to 
actual settlers rapidly peopled this portion 
of the Union, so that the Northwest Terri- 
tory was formed and even subdivided into 
other Territories and States before the 
year 1820. 

I'm more than 100 years after Marquette 
and Joliel trod the virgin soil of Iowa and 
admired its fertile plains, not a single settle- 
ment was made or attempted ; not even a 
trading-post was established. During this 
time the Illinois Indians, once a powerful 
tribe, gave up the entire possession of this 
" Beautiful Land," as Iowa was then called, 
to the Sacs and Foxes. In 1803, when 
Louisiana was purchased by the United 
States, the Sacs, Foxes and lowas pos- 
sessed this entire State, and the two for- 
mer tribes occupied also most of the State 
of Illinois. The four most important towns 
of the Sacs were along the Mississippi, two 
on the cast side, one near the mouth of the 
Upper Iowa and one at the head of the 
Des Moines Rapids, near the present site 
of Montrose. Those of the Foxes were — 
One 'in the west side of the Mississippi just 
above Davenport, one about twelve miles 
from the river back of the Dubuque lead 
mines and one on Turkey River. The 
principal village ol the lowas was on the 
Des Moines River, in Van Buren County, 
where lowaville now stands. Here the last 
great battle between the Sacs and Foxes 
and the lowas was fought, in which Black 
Hawk, then a young man, commanded the 
attacking forces. 

The Sioux had the northern portion of 
this State and Southern Minnesota. They 
.1 fierce and war-like nation, who often 
disputed possessions with their rivals in 
savage and bloody warfare; but finally a 
boundary line was established between 
them l>\ the Government of the United 
statis. in .1 treaty held at Prairie du Chien 
in [825. This, however, became the occa- 
sion ot an increased number ol quarrels be- 



tween tin tribes, as each trespassed, or was 
thought to trespass, upon the other's side of 
the line. In 1830, therefore, the Govern- 
ment created a forty-mile neutral strip of 
land between them, which policy proved to 
be more successful in the interests of peace. 

Soon after the acquisition of Louisiana bv 
our Government, the latter adopted meas- 
ures for the exploration of the new terri- 
tory, having in view the conciliation of the 
numerous tribes of Indians by whom it was 
possessed, and also the selection of proper 
sites for military posts and trading stations. 

The Army of the West, General Wilkin- 
son commanding, had its headquarters at 
St. Louis. From this post Captains Lewis 
and Clarke, in 1805. were detailed with a 
sufficient force to explore the Missouri 
River to its source, and Lieutenant Zebulon 
M. Pike to ascend to the head of the Missis- 
sippi. August 20 the latter arrived within 
the present limits of Iowa, at the foot of the 
Des Moines Rapids, where he met William 
Ewing, who had just been appointed Indian 
Agent at this point, a French interpreter, 
four chiefs and fifteen Sac and Fox war- 
riors. At the head of the rapids, where 
Montrose now is. Pike held a council with 
the Indians, merely for the purpose of stat- 
ing to them that the 1 'resident ot the United 

States wished to inquire into the needs ol 
the red man, with a view of suggesting 
remedies. 

On the 23d he reached what is supposed 
from his description to be the site of Bur- 
lington, which place he designated for a 
post ; lint tlu- station, probably by some 
mistake, was afterward placed al Fori Madi- 
son. After accidentally separating (rom his 
men and losing his way, suffering at one 
time for six days for want of food, and after 
main' other mishaps Lieutenant Pike over- 
took the remainder of the parts' at tlu- point 
now occupied bv Dubuque, who had gone 
mi up the river hoping to overtake him. At 
that point Pike was cordially received by 



HI STOUT OF WW A. 



127 



Julien Dubuque, a Frenchman who held a 
mining claim under a grant from Spain, but 
was not disposed to publish the wealth of 
his possessions. Having an old field-piece 
with him, however, he fired a salute in 
honor of the first visit of an agent from the 
United States to that part of the country, 
and Pike pursued his way up the river. 

At what was afterward Fort Snelling, 
Minnesota, Lieutenant Pike held a council 
with the Sioux September 23, and obtained 
from them a grant of 100,000 acres of land. 
January 8 following (1806) he arrived at a 
trading post on Lake De Sable, belonging 
to the Northwestern Fur Company, whose 
field of operations at that time included this 
State. Pike returned to St. Louis the fol- 
lowing spring, after making a successful 
expedition. 

Before this country could be opened for 
settlement by the whites, it was necessary 
that Indian title should be extinguished and 
the aboriginal owners removed. When the 
Government assumed control of the country 
by virtue of the Louisiana purchase, nearly 
the whole State was in possession of the 
Sacs and Foxes, at whose head stood the 
rising Black Hawk. November 3, 1804, a 
treaty was concluded with these tribes by 
which they ceded to the United States the 
Illinois side of the great river, in consider- 
ation of $2,234 worth of goods then de- 
livered, and an annuity of $1,000 to be paid 
in goods at cost; but Black Hawk always 
maintained that the chiefs who entered into 
that compact acted without authority, and 
that therefore the treaty was not binding. 

The first fort erected on Iowa soil was at 
Fort Madison. A short time previously a 
military post was fixed at what is now 
Warsaw, Illinois, and named Fort Edwards. 
These enterprises caused mistrust among 
the Indians. Indeed, Fort Madison was 
located in violation of the treaty of 1804. 
The Indians sent delegations to the whites 
at these forts to learn what they were do- 



ing, and what they intended. On being 
"informed" that those structures were 
merely trading-posts, they were incredu- 
lous and became more and more suspicious. 
Black Hawk therefore led a party to the 
vicinity of Fort Madison and attempted its 
destruction, but a premature attack by him 
caused his failure. 

In 1812, when war was declared between 
this country and Great Britain, Black Hawk 
and his band allied themselves to the British, 
partly because thev were dazzled by their 
specious promises, but mostly, perhaps, be- 
cause they had been deceived by the Amer- 
icans. Black Hawk said plainly that the 
latter fact was the cause. A portion of the 
Sacs and Foxes, however, headed by Keo- 
kuk ("watchful fox"), could not be per- 
suaded into hostilities against the United 
States, being disposed to abide by the 
treaty of 1804. The Indians were there- 
fore divided into the "war" and the 
"peace" parties. Black Hawk says he 
was informed, after he had gone to the war, 
that his people, left on the west side of the 
river, would be defenseless against the 
United States forces in case they were at- 
tacked ; and, having all the old men, the 
women and the children on their hands to 
provide for, a council was held, and it was 
determined to have the latter go to St. 
Louis and place themselves under the 
" American" chief stationed there. Ac- 
cordingly they went down, and were re- 
ceived as the " friendly band " of Sacs and 
Foxes, and were provided for and sent up 
the Missouri River. 

On Black Hawk's return from the British 
army, he says that Keokuk was introduced 
to him as the war chief of the braves then 
in the village. On inquiry as to how he 
became chief, there were given him the 
particulars of his having killed a Sioux in 
battle, which fact placed him among the 
warriors, and of his having headed an ex- 
pedition in defense of their village at Peoria. 






HtSTOtir OF IOWA. 



In person Keokuk was tall and of portly 
bearing, and in speech he was an orator. 
He did not master the English language, 
however, and his interpreters were never 
able to do him justice. He was a friend of 
our Government, and always endeavored 
to persuade the Indians that it was useless 
to attack a nation so powerful as that of 
the United States. 

The treaty of 1804 was renewed in 1816, 
which Black Hawk himself signed; but he 
afterward held that he was deceived, and 
that that treaty was not even vet binding. 
But there was no further serious trouble 
with the Indians until the noted " Black 
Hawk war" of 1832, all of which took place 
in Illinois and Wisconsin, with the expected 
result — the defeat and capture of the great 
chief, and the final, effectual and permanent 
repulsion of all hostile Indians to the west 
of the great Mississippi. Black Hawk died 
October 3, 1838, at his home in this State, 
and was buried there ; but his remains were 
afterward placed in the museum of the I lis 
torical Society, where they were accident- 
ally destroyed by fire. 

More or less affecting the territory now 
included within the State of Iowa, fifteen 
treaties with the Indians have been made, 
an outline of which is here given. In [S04, 
when the whites agreed not to settle west 
of the Mississippi on Indian lands. In 1815, 
with the Sioux, ratifying peace with Greal 
Britain and the United States; with tin- 
Sacs, a treaty of a similar nature, and also 
ratifying that of 1804, the Indians agreeing 
not to join their brethren who, under Black 
Hawk, had aided the British; with the 
Foxes, ratifying the treaty of 1804, the In- 
dians agreeing to deliver up all their 
prisoners; and with the lowas, a treaty oi 
friendship. In r 8 16, with the Sacs of Rock 
River, ratifying the treaty ol 1804. In 1824, 
with the Sacs and Foxes, the latter relin- 
quishing all their lands in Missouri ; and 
that portion ol the southeast corner ol 



Iowa known as the "half-breed tract" was 
set off to the half-breeds. In 1825, placing 
a boundary line between the Sacs and Foxes 
on the south and the Sioux on the north. 
In 1830, when that line was widened to 
forty miles. Also, in the same year, with 
several tribes, who ceded a large portion of 
their possessions in the western part of the 
State. In 1S32, with the Winnebagoes, ex- 
changing lands with them and providing a 
school, farm, etc., for them. Also, in the 
same year, the "Black Hawk purchase" 
was made, of about 6,000,000 acres, along 
the west side of the Mississippi from the 
southern line of the State to the mouth of 
the Iowa River. In 1836, with the Sacs and 
Foxes, ceding Keokuk's reserve to the 
United States. In 1837, with the same, 
when another slice of territory, comprising 
1,250000 acres, joining west ol the forego- 
ing tract, was obtained. Also, in the same 
year, when these Indians gave up all their 
lands allowed them under former treaties; 
and finally, in 1842, when they relinquished 
their title to all their lands west of the 
Mississippi. 

Before the whole of Iowa fell into the 
hands of the United States Government 
sundry white settlers had, under the Spanish 
and French Governments, obtained and oc- 
cupied several important claims within our 
boundaries, which it may be well to notice 
in brief. September 22, 1788, Julien Du- 
buque, before mentioned, obtained a lease 
ol lands from the Fox Indians, at tin- point 
now occupied by the city named alter him. 
This tract contained valuable lead ore, and 
Dubuque followed mining. His claims, 
however, as will as those to whom he after- 
ward conveyed title, were litigated for 
many years, with the final result of dis- 
appointing thi' purchasers. In 1799 Louis 
I lonori obtained a trad of land about three 
miles square where Montrose is now sit- 
uated, and his title, standing through all 
the treaties and being finally continued bv 



klSTORT OF iowA. 



I2Q 



the Supreme Court of the United States, is 
the oldest legal title held by a white man 
in the State of Iowa. A tract of 5,860 acres 
in Clayton County was granted by the 
Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Louisiana 
in 1795 to Basil Girard, whose title was 
made valid some time after the preceding 
case was settled. 

Other early settlers were : Mr. Johnson, 
an agent of the American Fur Company, 
who had a trading-post below Burlington. 
Le Moliere, a French trader, had, in 1820, 
a station at what is now Sandusky, in Lee 
County, six miles above Keokuk. During 
the same year Dr. Samuel C. Muir, a sur- 
geon of the United States army, built a 
cabin where the city of Keokuk now stands. 
His marriage and subsequent life were so 
romantic that we give the following briet 
sketch : 

While stationed at a military post on the 
Upper Mississippi, the post was visited by 
a beautiful Indian maiden — whose native 
name unfortunately has not been preserved 
— who, in her dreams, had seen a white 
brave unmoor his canoe, paddle it across 
the river and come directly to her lodge. 
She felt assured, according to the super- 
stitious belief of her race, that in her dreams 
she had seen her future husband, and had 
come to the fort to find him. Meeting Dr. 
Muir she instantly recognized him as the 
hero of her dream, which, with childlike 
innocence and simplicity, she related to 
him. Her dream was, indeed, prophetic. 
Charmed with Sophia's beauty, innocence 
and devotion, the Doctor honorably mar- 
ried her, but after a while the sneers and 
gibes of his brother officers — less honorable 
than he, perhaps — made him feel ashamed 
of his dark-skinned wife, and when his regi- 
ment was ordered down the river to Belle- 
fontaine, it is said that he embraced the 
opportunity to rid himself of her, and left 
her, never expecting to see her again, and 
little dreaming that she would have the 



courage to follow him. But, with her in- 
fant child, this intrepid wife and mother 
started alone in her canoe, and after many 
days of weary labor and a lonely journey of 
900 miles, she at last reached him. She 
afterward remarked, when speaking of this 
toilsome journey down the river in search 
of her husband, " When I got there I was 
all perished away — so thin!" The Doctor, 
touched by such unexampled devotion, 
took her to his heart, and ever after until 
his death treated her with marked respect. 
She always presided at his table with grace 
and dignity, but never abandoned her na- 
tive style of dress. In i8i9-'2o he was 
stationed at Fort Edward, now Warsaw, 
but the senseless ridicule of some of his 
brother officers on account of his Indian 
wife induced him to resign his commission. 
He then built a cabin as above stated, 
where Keokuk is now situated, and made 
a claim to some land. This claim he leased 
to Otis Reynolds and John Culver, of St. 
Louis, and went to La Pointe (afterward 
Galena), where he practiced his profession 
for ten years, when he returned to Keokuk. 
His Indian wife bore to him four children — 
Louise, James, Mary and Sophia. Dr. 
Muir died suddenly of cholera in 1832, but 
left his property in such a condition that it 
was soon wasted in vexatious litigation, and 
his brave and faithful wife, left friendless 
and penniless, became discouraged, and, 
with her two younger children, disap- 
peared. It is said she returned to her peo- 
ple on the Upper Missouri. 

The gentleman who had leased Dr. 
Muir's claim at Keokuk subsequently em- 
ployed as their agent Moses Stillwell, who 
arrived with his family in 182S, and took 
possession. His brothers-in-law, Amos and 
Valencourt Van Ansdal, came with him 
and settled near. Mr. Stillwell's daughter 
Margaret (afterward Mrs. Ford) was born 
in 1 83 1, at the foot of the rapids, called by 
the Indians Puckashetuck. She was prob- 



i30 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



ably the first white American child born in 
Eowa. 

In 1829 Dr. Isaac Gallaud made a settle- 
ment on the Lower Rapids, at what is now 
Nashville. The same year James S. Lang- 
worthy, who had been engaged in lead- 
mining at Galena since 1824. commenced 
lead-mining in the vicinity of Dubuque. A 
few others afterward came to that point as 
miners, and they soon found it necessary to 
hold a council and adopt some regulations 
for their government and protection. They 
met in 1830 on the bank of the river, by the 
side of an old Cottonwood drift log, at what 
is now the Jones Street Levee in Dubuque, 
and elected a committee, consisting of J. L. 
Langworthy, H. F. Lander, James Mc- 
Phetres, Samuel Scales and E. M. Wren, 
who drafted a set of rules, which were 
adopted by this, the first " Legislature" of 
Iowa. They elected Dr. Jarote as their 
officer to choose arbitrators for the settle- 
ment of difficulties that might arise. These 
settlers, however, were intruders upon In- 
dian territory, and were driven off in 1832 
by our Government, Colonel Zachary Tay- 
lor commanding the troops. The Indians 
returned and were encouraged to operate 
the rich mines opened by the late white 
occupants. 

But in June of the same year the troops 
were ordered to the east side of the Missis- 
sippi to assist in the annihilation of the 
very Indians whose rights they had been 
protecting on the west side ! 

Immediately after the close of the Black 
Hawk war and the negotiations of the treaty 
in September, 1S32, by which the Sacs and 
Foxes ceded the tract known as the " Black 
Hawk Purchase," the settlers, supposing 
that now they had a right to re-enter the 
territory, returned and took possession of 
their claims, built cabins, erected furnaces 
and prepared large quantities of lead foi 
market. But the prospects of the hardy 
and enterprising settlers and miners were 



again ruthlessly interfered with by the 
Government, on the ground that the treaty 
with the Indians would not go into force 
until June 1, 1833, although they had with- 
drawn from the vicinity of the settlement. 
Colonel Taylor was again ordered by the 
War Department to remove the miners, 
and in January, 1833, troops were again 
sent from Prairie du Chien to Dubuque for 
that purpose. This was a serious and per- 
haps unnecessary hardship imposed upon 
the miners. They were compelled to aban- 
don their cabins and homes in mid-winter. 
This, too, was only out of respect for forms; 
for the purchase had been made, and the 
Indians had retired. After the lapse of 
fifty years, no very satisfactory reason for 
this rigorous action of the Government can 
be given. But the orders had been given, 
and there was no alternative but to obey. 
Many of the settlers re-crossed the river, 
and did not return ; a few, however, re- 
moved to an island near the east bank of 
the river, built rude cabins of poles, in 
which to store their lead until spring, when 
they could float the fruits of their labor to 
St. Louis for sale, and where they could re- 
main until the treaty went into force, when 
they could return. Among these were the 
Langworthy brothers, who had on hand 
about 300,000 pounds of lead. 

No sooner had the miners left than Lieu- 
tenant Covington, who had been placed in 
command at Dubuque by Colonel Taylor, 
ordered some of the cabins of the settlers to 
be torn down, and wagons and other prop- 
erty to be destroyed. This wanton and 
inexcusable action on the pari of a subordi- 
nate, clothed with a little brief authority, 
was sternly rebuked by Colonel Taylor, and 
Covington was superseded by Lieutenant 
George Wilson, who pursued a just and 
friendly course with the pioneers, that were 
only waiting for the time when they could 
repossess their claims. 

The treaty went formally into effect June, 



HISTORY OP tOWA. 



i 3 t 



1833, the troops were withdrawn, and the 
Langworthy brothers and a few others at 
once returned and resumed possession of 
their homes and claims. From this time 
must date the first permanent settlement of 
this portion of Iowa. John P. Sheldon was 
appointed superintendent of the mines by 
the Government, and a system of permits 
to miners and licenses to smelters was 
adopted, similar to that which had been 
in operation at Galena since 1825, under 
Lieutenant Martin Thomas and Captain 
Thomas C. Legate. Substantially the primi- 
tive law enacted by the miners assembled 
around that old Cottonwood drift log in 
1830, was adopted and enforced by the 
United States Government, except that 
miners were required to sell their mineral 
to licensed smelters, and the smelter was 
required to give bonds for the payment of 
6 per cent, of all lead manufactured to the 
Government 

About 500 people arrived in the mining 
district in 1833, after the Indian title was 
fully extinguished, of whom 150 were from 
Galena. In the same year Mr. Langworthy 
assisted in building the first school- house in 
Iowa, and thus was formed the nucleus of 
the populous and thriving city of Dubuque. 
Mr. Langworthy lived to see the naked 
prairie on which he first settled become the 
site of a city of 15,000 inhabitants, the small 
school-house which he aided in construct- 
ing replaced by three substantial edifices, 
wherein 2,000 children were being trained, 
churches erected in every part of the city, 
and railroads connecting the wilderness 
which he first explored with all the eastern 
world. He died suddenly on the 13th of 
March, 1865/ while on a trip over the Du- 
buque & Southern Railroad, at Monticello, 
and the evening train brought the news of 
his death and his remains. 

Lucius H. Langworthy, his brother, was 
one of the most worthy, gifted and influ- 
ential of the old settlers of this section of 
11 



Iowa. He died greatly lamented by many 
friends, in June, 1865. 

The name Dubuque was given to the 
settlement by the miners, at a meeting held 
in 1S34. 

Soon after the close of the Black Hawk- 
war in 1832, Zachariah Hawkins, Benjamin 
Jennings, Aaron White, Augustine Horton, 
Samuel Gooch, Daniel Thompson and Peter 
Williams made claims at Fort. Madison. In 
1833 General John H. Knapp and Colonel 
Nathaniel Knapp purchased these claims, 
and in the summer of 1835 they laid out the 
town of " Fort Madison." Lots were ex- 
posed for sale early in 1836. The town was 
subsequently re-surveyed and platted by 
the United States Government. The popu- 
lation rapidly increased, and in less than 
two years the beautiful location was cov- 
ered by a flourishing town, containing 
nearly 600 inhabitants, with a large pro- 
portion of enterprising merchants, mechan- 
ics and manufacturers. 

In the fall of 1832 Simpson S. White 
erected a cabin on the site of Burlington, 
seventy-nine miles below Rock Island. 
During the war parties had looked long- 
ingly upon the "Flint Hills" from the op- 
posite side of the river, and White was 
soon followed by others. David Tothers 
made a claim on the prairie about three 
miles back from the river, at a place since 
known as the farm of Judge Morgan. The 
following winter the settlers were driven 
off by the military from Rock Island, as 
intruders upon the rights of {he Indians. 
White's cabin was burned by the soldiers. 
He returned to Illinois, where he remained 
during the winter, and in the following 
summer, as soon as the Indian title was ex- 
tinguished, returned and rebuilt his cabin. 
White was joined by his brother-in-law, 
Doolittle, and they laid out the town ol 
Burlington in 1834, on a beautiful area oi 
sloping eminences and gentle declivities, 
enclosed within a natural amphitheater 



132 



HISTORY OF /OU.i. 



formed l>v the surrounding Hi lis, which 
were crowned with luxuriant forests and 
presented the most picturesque scenery. 
The same autumn witnessed the opening ol 
the first dry-goods stores by Dr. W. R. Ross 
and Major Jeremiah Smith, each well sup- 
plied with Western merchandise. Such 
was the beginning of Burlington, which in 
less than four years became the seat of 
government for the Territory of Wisconsin, 
and in three years more contained a popu- 
lation of 1.400 persons. 

Immediately after the treaty with the 
Sacs and Foxes, in September, 1832, Colonel 
George Davenport made the first claim on 
the site of the present thriving city of 
Davenport. As early as 1827, Colonel 
Davenport had established a flat-boat ferry, 
which ran between the island and the main 
shore of Iowa, by which he carried on a 
trade with the Indians west o4 the Missis- 
sippi. In 1833 Captain Benjamin W. Clark 
moved from Illinois, and laid the founda- 
tion of the town of Buffalo, in Scott County, 
which was the first actual settlement within 
the limits of that county. 

The first settlers of Davenport were An- 
toine Le Claire, Colonel George Davenport, 
Major Thomas Smith, Major William Gor- 
don, Philip Hambough, Alexander W. Mc- 
Gregor, Levi S. Colton, Captain James May 
and others. 

A settlement was made in Clayton County 
in the spring of 1832, on Turkey River, by 
Robert Hatfield and William W. Wavman. 
No further settlement was made in this part 
of the State until 1S36. 

The first settlers of Muscatine County 
were Benjamin Nye, John Vanater and G. 
W. Kasey, all of whom came in 1834. E. 
E. Fay, William St John. \. Fullington, 
H. Recce, Jonas Pettibone, R. P. Lowe, 
Stephen Whicher, Abijah Whitney, J. E. 
Fletcher, \V. I). Abernethy and Alexis 
Smith were also earl\ settlers < if Musca- 
tine. 



As early as 1S24 a French trader named 
Hart had established a trading-post, and 
built a cabin on the bluffs above the large 
spring now known as " Mynster Spring," 
within the limits of the present pity of 
Council Bluffs, and had probably been there 
some time, as the post was known to the 
employes of the American Fur Company 
as " La Cote de Hart," or " Hart's Bluff." 
In 1827 an agent of the American Fur 
Company, Francis Guittar, with others, 
encamped in the timber at the foot of the 
bluffs, about on the present location of 
Broadway, and afterward settled there. In 
1839 a block house was built on the bluff in 
the east part of the city. The Pottawat- 
omie Indians occupied this part of the 
State until 1846 '7, when they relinquished 
the territory and removed to Kansas. Billy 
Caldwell was then principal chief. There 
were no white settlers in that part of the 
State except Indian traders, until the arri- 
val of the Mormons under the lead of Brig- 
ham Young. These people on their way 
westward halted for the winter of i846-'7, 
on the west bank of the Missouri River, 
about five miles above Omaha, at a place 
now called Florence. Some of them had 
reached the eastern bank of the river the 
spring before in season to plant a crop. In 
the spring of 1847 Brigham Young and a 
portion of the colony pursued their journey 
to Salt Lake, but a large portion of them 
returned to the Iowa side and settled mainly 
within the present limits of Pottawatomie 
County. The principal settlement of this 
strange community was at a place first 
called " Miller's Hollow," on Indian Creek, 
and afterward named Kanesville, in honor 
of Colonel Thomas L. Kane, of Pennsyl- 
vania, who visited them soon afterward. 
The Mormon settlement extended over 
the county and into neighboring counties, 
wherever timber and water furnished de- 
sirable locations. Orson 1 lyde, priest, law- 
yer and editor, was installed as president 



HISTOHr OF /Oil I 



133 



of the Quorum of Twelve, and all that part 
of the State remained under Mormon con- 
trol for several years. In 1847 they raised 
a battalion numbering 500 men for the 
Mexican war. In 1848 Hyde started a 
paper called the Frontier Guardian, at 
Kanesvillc. In 1849, after many of the 
faithful had left to join Brigham Young at 
Salt Lake, the Mormons in this section of 
Iowa numbered 6,552, and in 1850,7,828; 
but they were not all within the limits of 
Pottawatomie County. This county was 
organized in 1848, all the first officials be- 
ing Mormons. In 1852 the order was pro- 
mulgated that all the true believers should 
gather together at Salt Lake. Gentiles 
flocked in, and in a few years nearly all 
the first settlers were gone. 

May 9, 1843, Captain James Allen, with 
a small detachment of troops on board the 
steamer lone, arrived at the site of the 
present capital of the State, Des Moines. 
This was the first steamer to ascend the Des 
Moines River to this point. The troops 
and stores were landed at what is now the 
foot of Court avenue, and the Captain re- 
turned in the steamer to Fort Sanford to 
arrange for bringing up more soldiers and 
supplies. In due time they too arrived, 
and a fort was built near the mouth of Rac- 
coon Fork, at its confluence with the Des 
Moines, and named "Fort Des Moines." 
Soon after the arrival of the troops, a trad- 
ing-post was established on the east side of 
the river by two noted Indian traders 
named Ewing, from Ohio. Among the 
first settlers in this part of Iowa were Ben- 
jamin Bryant, J. B. Scott, James Drake 
(gunsmith), John Sturtevant, Robert Kin- 
zie, Alexander Turner, Peter Newcomer 
and others. 

PIONEER LIFE. 

Most of the early settlers of Iowa came 
from older States, as Pennsylvania, New 
York and Ohio, where their prospects for 



even a competency were very poor. They 
found those States good — to emigrate from. 
Their entire stock of furniture, implements 
and family necessities were easily stored 
in one wagon, and sometimes a cart was 
their only vehicle. 

After arriving and selecting a suitable 
location, the next thing to do was to build 
a log cabin, a description of which may be 
interesting to many of our younger readers, 
as in some sections these old-time struct- 
ures are no more to be seen. Trees of 
uniform size were chosen and cut into logs 
of the desired length, generally twelve to 
fifteen feet, and hauled to the spot selected 
for the future dwelling. On an appointed 
day the few neighbors who were available 
would assemble and have a " house-raisintr." 
Each end of every log was saddled and 
notched so that the}' would lie as close down 
as possible; the next day the proprietor, 
would proceed to "chink" and "daub" 
the cabin, to keep out the rain, wind and 
cold. The house had to be re-daubed ev- 
ery fall, as the rains of the intervening time 
would wash out a great part of the mortar. 
The usual height of the house was seven or 
eight feet. The gables were formed by 
shortening the logs gradually at each end 
of the building near the top. The roof was 
made by laying very straight small logs or 
stout poles suitable distances apart, and on 
these were laid the clapboards, somewhat 
like shingling, generally about two and a 
half feet to the weather. These clapboards 
were fastened to their place by " weight- 
poles " corresponding in place with the 
joists just described, and these again were 
held in their place by " runs" or " knees " 
which were chunks of wood about eighteen 
or twenty inches long fitted between them 
near the ends. Clapboards were made 
from the nicest oaks in the vicinity, by 
chopping or sawing them into four-foot 
blocks and riving these with a frow, which 
was a simple blade fixed at right angles to 



HISTOIir OF IOWA. 



its handles. This was driven into the 
blocks of wood by a mallet. As the frow 
was wrenched down through the wood, 
the latter was turned alternately over from 
side to side, one end being held by a forked 
piece of timber. 

The chimney to the Western pioneer's 
cabin was made by leaving in the original 
building a large open place in one wall, or 
by cutting one after the structure was up, 
and by building on the outside, from the 
ground up, a stone column, or a column of 
sticks and mud, the sticks being laid up 
cob house fashion. The fire-place thus made 
was i iften large enough to receive fire-wood 
six to eight feet long. Sometimes this 
wood, especially the " back-log," would be 
nearly as large as a saw-log. The more 
rapidly the pioneer could burn up the wood 
in his vicinity the sooner he had his little 
farm cleared and ready for cultivation. 
For a window, a piece about two feet long 
was cut out of one of the wall logs, and the 
hole closed, sometimes by glass but gener- 
ally with greased paper. Even greased deer- 
hide was sometimes used. A doorway was 
cut through one of the walls if a saw was to 
be had; otherwise the door would be left 
by shortened logs in the original building. 
The door was made by pinning clapboards 
to two or three wood bars, and was hung 
upon wooden hinges. A wooden latch, 
with catch, then finished the door, and the 
latch was raised by any one on the outside 
by pulling a leather string. For security 
at night this latch-string was drawn in, but 
for friends and neighbors, and even stran- 
gers, the " latch-string was always hanging 
out," as a welcome. In the interior over 
the fire-place would be a shelf called "the 
mantel," on which stood a candlestick or 
lamp, some cooking and table ware, possi- 
bly an old clock, and other articles; in the 
tire-place would be the crane, sometimes of 
iron, sometimes of wood; on it the pots were 
nung for cooking; over the door, in forked 



cleats, hung the ever-trustful rifle and pow- 
der-horn; in one corner stood the larger bed 
for the " old folks," and under it the 
trundle-bed for the children; in another 
stood the old-fashioned spinning-wheel, 
with a smaller one by its side; in another the 
heavy table, the only table, of course, there 
was in the house; in the remaining was a 
rude cupboard holding the tableware, 
which consisted of a few cups and saucers, 
and blue-edged plates, standing singly on 
their edges against the back, to make the 
display of table-furniture more conspicu- 
ous; while around the room were scattered 
a few splint-bottom or Windsor chairs, and 
two or three stools. 

These simple cabins were inhabited by a 
kind and true-hearted people. They were 
strangers to mock modesty, and the traveler 
seeking lodging for the night, or desirous 
of spending a few days in the community, 
if willing to accept the rude offering, was 
always welcome, although how they were 
disposed of at night the reader might not 
easily imagine; for, as described, a single 
room was made to answer for kitchen, 
dining-room, sitting-room, bed-room and 
parlor, and many families consisted of six 
or eight members. 

The bed was very often made by fixing a 
post in the floor about six feet from one 
wall and four feet from the adjoining wall, 
and fastening a stick to this post about 
two feet above the floor, on each of two 
sides, so that the other end of each of the 
two sticks could be fastened in the oppo- 
site wall; clapboards were laid across these, 
and thus the bed was made complete. 
(iiu'sis were given this bed, while the fam- 
ily disposed of themselves in another cor- 
ner of the room or in the loft. When 
several guests were on hand at once they 
were sometimes kept over night in the fol- 
lowing manner: When bedtime came the 
men were requested to step out of doors 
while the women spread out a broad bed 



HISIORT OF IOWA. 



135 



upon the mid floor, and put themselves 
to bed in the center; the signal was given, 
and the men came in and each husband took 
his place in bed next his own wife, and 
single men outside beyond them again. 
They were generally so crowded that they 
had to lie "spoon" fashion, and whenever 
anyone wished to turn over he would say 
" spoon," and the whole company of sleep- 
ers would turn over at once. This was the 
only way they could all keep in bed. 

To witness the various processes of cook- 
ing in those days would alike surprise and 
amuse those who have grown up since 
cooking stoves and ranges came into use. 
Kettles were hung over the large fire, sus- 
pended with pot-hooks, iron or wooden, 
on the crane, or on poles, one end of which 
would rest upon a chain. The long-hand- 
led frying pan was used for cooking meat. 
It was either held over the blaze by hand 
or set down upon coals drawn out upon 
the hearth. This pan was also used for 
baking pancakes, also call flapjacks, batter- 
cakes, etc. A better article for this, how- 
ever, was the cast-iron spider, or Dutch 
skillet. The best thing for baking bread 
in those days, and possibly even in these 
latter days, was the flat-bottomed bake 
kettle, of greater depth, with closely fitting 
cast-iron cover, and commonly known as the 
Dutch oven. With coals over and under it, 
bread and biscuits would be quickly and 
nicely baked. Turkey and spare-ribs were 
sometimes roasted before the fire, sus- 
pended by a string, a dish being placed 
underneath to catch the drippings. 

Hominy and samp were very much used. 
The hominy, however, was generally hulled 
corn — boiled corn from which the hull or 
bran had been taken by hot lye, hence 
sometimes called lye hominy. True hom- 
iny and samp were made of pounded corn. 
A popular method of making this, as well 
as real meal for bread, was to cut out or 
burn a large hole in the top of a huge 



stump, in the shape of a mortar, and pound- 
ing the corn in this by a maul or beetle 
suspended by a swing pole like a well- 
sweep. This and the wellsweep consisted 
of a pole twenty to thirty feet long fixed in 
an upright fork so that it could be worked 
" teeter" fashion. It was a rapid and sim- 
ple way of drawing water. When the samp 
was sufficiently pounded it was taken 
out, the bran floated off, and the delicious 
grain boiled like rice. 

The chief articles of diet in an early day 
were corn bread, hominy or samp, venison, 
pork, honey, pumpkin (dried pumpkin for 
more than half the year), turkey, prairie 
chicken, squirrel and some other game, 
with a few additional vegetables a portion 
of the year. Wheat bread, tea, coffee and 
fruit were luxuries not to be indulged in 
except on special occasions, as when visit- 
ors were present. 

Besides cooking in the manner described, 
the women had many other arduous duties 
to perform, one of the chief of which was 
spinning. The big wheel was used for 
spinning yarn and the little wheel for spin- 
ning flax. These stringed instruments fur- 
nished the principal music for the family, 
and were operated by our mothers and 
grandmothers with great skill, attained 
without pecuniary expense, and with far 
less practice than is necessary for the girls 
of our period to acquire a skillful use of 
their costly and elegant instruments. But 
those wheels, indispensable a few years ago, 
are all now superseded by the mighty fac- 
tories which overspread the country, fur- 
nishing cloth of all kinds at an expense ten 
times less than would be incurred now by 
the old system. 

The traveler always found a welcome at 
the pioneer's cabin. It was never full. 
Although there might be already a guest 
for every puncheon, there was still " room 
for one more," and a wider circle would be 
made for the new-comer at the big fire. If 



I 



HISTORY OF It'll l 



the stranger was in search of land, he was 
doubly welcome, and his host would vol- 
unteer to show him all the " first rate claims 
in this neck of the woods," going with him 
for davs, showing the corners and advan- 
tages of every " Congress tract " within a 
dozen miles of his own cabin. 

To his neighbors the pioneer was equally 
liberal. If a deer was killed, the choicest 
bits were sent to his nearest neighbor, a 
half-dozen miles away perhaps. When a 
pig was butchered, the same custom pre- 
vailed. If a new-comer came in too late 
for " cropping," the neighbors would sup- 
ply his table with just the same luxuries 
they themselves enjoyed, and in as liberal 
quantity, until a crop could be raised. 
When a new-comer had located his claim, 
the neighbors for miles around would 
assemble at the site of the proposed cabin 
and aid himin " gittm " it up. One party 
with axes would cut down the trees and 
hew the logs; another with teams would 
haul the Logs to the ground; another party 
would "raise" the cabin; while several 
of the old men would rive the clap-boards 
for the roof. By night the little forest 
domicile would be up and ready for a 
"house-warming,*' which was the dedica- 
tory occupation of the house, when music 
and dancing and festivity would be enjoyed 
at full height. The next day the new-comer 
would be as well situated as his neighbors. 

An instance of primitive hospitable man- 
ners will be in place here. A traveling 
Methodist preacher arrived in a distant 
neighborhood to fill an appointment. The 
house where services were to be held did not 
belong to a church member, but no matter 
for that. Boards were collected from all 
quarters with which to make temporary 
seats, one of the neighbors volunteering to 
lead ofi in the work, while the man of the 
house, w ith the faithful rifle on his shoulder, 
sallied forth inquest of meat, for this truly 
was a "ground hog" case, the preacher 



coming and no meat in the house. The 
host ceased not to chase until he found the 
meat, in the shape of a deer; returning he 
sent a boy out after it, with directions on 
what "pint" to find it. After services, 
which had been listened to with rapt atten- 
tion by all the audience, mine host said to 
his wife, "Old woman, I reckon this 'ere 
preacher is pretty hungry and you must 
git him a bite to eat." " What shall I get 
him?" asked the wife, who had not seen 
the deer, " that's nuthen in the house to 
eat." " Why, look thar," returned he, 
" thai -'s a deer, and thar's plenty of corn in 
the field; you git some corn and grate it 
while I skin the deer, and we'll have a 
good supper for him." It is needless to add 
that venison and corn bread made a sup- 
per fit for any pioneer preacher, and was 
thankfully eaten. 

Fires set out by Indians or settlers some- 
times purposely and sometimes permitted 
through carelessness, would visit the prai- 
rie every autumn, and sometimes the for- 
ests, either in autumn or spring, and settlers 
could not always succeed in defending 
themselves against the destroying element. 
Many interesting incidents are related. 
Often a fire was started to bewilder game, 
or to bare a piece of ground for the early 
grazing of stock the ensuing spring, and it 
would get away under a wind and soon 
be beyond control. Violent winds would 
often arise and drive the flames with such 
rapidity that riders on the fleetest steeds 
could scarcely escape. On the approach 
of a prairie fire the farmer would immedi- 
ately set about "cutting ofi supplies'' for 
the devouring enemy by a " back fire." 
Thus by starting a small fire near the bare 
ground about his premises, and keeping it 
under control next his property, he would 
bum ofi a strip around him and prevent the 
attack of the on-coming flames. A few 
furrowsora ditch around the farm were 
in some degrees a protection. 



HISTORY OF IOWA 



I3 7 



An original prairie of tall and exuberant 
grass on fire, especially at night, was a mag- 
nificent spectacle, enjoyed only by the 
pioneer. Here is an instance where the 
frontiersman, proverbially deprived of the 
sights and pleasures of an old community, 
is privileged far beyond the people of the 
present day in this country. One could 
scarcely tire of beholding the scene, as its 
awe-inspiring features seemed constantly to 
increase, and the whole panorama unceas- 
ingly changed like the dissolving views of 
a magic lantern, or like the aurora borealis. 
Language cannot convey, words cannot 
express,, the faintest idea of the splendor 
and grandeur of such a conflagration at 
night, ft was as if the pale queen of night, 
disdaining to take her accustomed place in 
the heavens, had dispatched myriads upon 
myriads of messengers to light their torches 
at the altar of the setting sun until all had 
flashed into one long and continuous blaze. 
One instance has been described as follows: 

" Soon the fires began to kindle wider 
and rise higher from the long grass; the 
gentle breeze increased to stronger currents, 
and soon formed the small, flickering blaze 
into fierce torrent flames, which curled up 
and leaped along in resistless splendor; and 
like quickly raising the dark curtain from 
the luminous stage, the scenes before me 
were suddenly changed, as if by a magi- 
cian's wand, into one boundless amphithea- 
ter, blazing from earth to heaven and 
sweeping the horizon round, — columns of 
lurid flames sportively mounting up to the 
zenith, and dark clouds of crimson smoke 
curling away and aloft till they nearly ob- 
scured stars and moon, while the rushing, 
crashing sounds, like roaring cataracts, 
mingled with distant thunders, were almost 
deafening; danger, death, glared all around; 
it screamed for victims; yet, notwithstand- 
ing the imminent peril of prairie fires, one 
is loth, irresolute, almost unable to with- 
draw or seek refuge. 



LOUISIANA TERRITORY. 
As before mentioned, although De Soto, 
a Spaniard, first took possession of the Mis- 
sissippi Valley for his Government, Spain 
did not establish her title to it by following 
up the proclamation with immediate settle- 
ments, and the country fell into the hands 
of France, by whose agent it was named 
" Louisiana." 

By the treaty of Utrecht, France ceded 
to England her possessions in Hudson's 
Bay, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, but 
retained Canada and Louisiana. In 171 1 
this province was placed in the hands of a 
governor-general, with headquarters at 
Mobile, for the purpose of applying a new 
policy for the settlement and development 
of the country. The very next year ano- 
ther change was made, placing all this ter- 
ritory in the hands of Anthony Crozat, a 
wealthy merchant of Paris, but this scheme 
also failed, as Spain continued to obstruct 
the efforts of any Frenchman to establish 
trade, by closing the ports against him. In 
1717 John Law appeared on the scene with 
his famous " Mississippi Company," as the 
Louisiana branch of the Bank of France -. 
and as his roseate scheme promised to do 
much in raising crippled France upon a 
surer footing, extended powers and privi- 
leges were granted him. He was to be 
practically a viceroy, and the life of his 
charter was fixed at twenty-five years. But 
in 1720, when the " Mississippi bubble" was 
at the height ot its splendor, it suddenly 
collapsed, leaving the mother country in a 
far worse condition than before. 

Heretofore Louisiana had been a sub- 
ordinate dependence, under the jurisdiction 
of the Governor-General of Canada. Early 
in 1723 the province of Louisiana was 
erected into an independent Government, 
and it was divided into nine districts, for 
civil and military purposes. 

Characteristic of human nature, the peo- 
ple were more excited with prospects 0/ 



I 3 i 



UISTORr OF IOWA. 



finding enormous wealth ready ai hand, if 
they should continue to scour the country, 
which they did in places as far west as the 
Rocky Mountains, to the neglect of their 
agricultural and domestic interests. A habit 
of roaming became fixed. At the same time 
their exposed condition was a constant 
temptation to Indian rapine, and the Nat- 
chez tribe in 1723 made a general assault 
upon the whites. At first they were re- 
pulsed, but about fiye years afterward, 
aided by the Chickasaws and others, they 
fell upon the French village of St. Catha- 
rine and massacred the whole male popu- 
lation. Two soldiers, who happened to be 
in the woods, alone escaped to New Or- 
leans, to bear the news. The colonies on 
the Yazoo and the Washita suffered the 
same fate. Maddened by these outrages, 
the whites turned upon the Natchez anil in 
the course of three years exterminated 
them. They were probably the most in- 
telligent tribe of Indians north of Mexico. 

During the fifteen years from 1717 to 
1732 the province increased in population 
from 700 to 5,000, and in prosperity to a 
wonderful degree. It remained under royal 
governors until 1764. the end of the French 
dominion. Most of this time the Indians 
were troublesome, and in 1754 began the 
long "French and Indian war" with Eng- 
land, which resulted in favor of the latter, 
thai Government obtaining all of New 
France, Canada, and the eastern half of 
Louisiana. This province did not suffer 
by being the scene of battle, but did suffer 
a great deal from a Hood ol irredeemable 
paper money. In the meantime the western 
portion, or residue, of this province was 
secretly promised to Spain ; but before 
either of the foreign powers had opportu- 
nity to rejoice long in their western posses- 
sions, a new power on earth, the United 
States, took independent possession of all 
the country except Louisiana and Florida, 
which it lias maintained ever since. During 



the seventy years of French control the 
province of Louisiana increased in popula- 
tion from a few destitute fishermen to a 
flourishing colony of 13,540. 

St. Louis, Missouri, was started in 1764. 

Don O'Reilly, the new Governor of Loui- 
siana in 1764, ruled with a despotic hand, 
yet for the general advantage of the peo- 
ple. His successor, Don Antonio Maria 
Bucarelly, was mild, and he was succeeded 
January i, 1777, by Don Bernard de Gal- 
vez, who was the last Governor. lie sym- 
pathized with American independence. The 
British, with 140 troops and 1,400 Indians, 
invaded Upper Louisiana from the north 
by way of the Straits of Mackinaw, and in- 
vested St. Louis, Missouri, in 1780, but 
were driven off. When the Indians saw 
that they were led to fight " Americans" as 
well as Spaniards, they found that they had 
been deceived, and withdrew from the 
British army, and thus General George R. 
Clark, in behalf of the Americans, easily 
defended St. Louis, and also all the new 
settlements in this western country. 

After the Revolutionary war the country 
began again to prosper. Governor Galvez, 
by a census, ascertained that Louisiana had 
in 1785 a population of about 33,000, exclu- 
sive of Indians. 

In the summer of the latter year Don 
Fstavan Miro became Governor pro tern, of 
the Spanish possessions in this country, and 
was afterward confirmed as such by the 
king. During his administration a vain 
attempt was made by the Catholics to 
establish the inquisition at New Orleans. 
He was succeeded in 1792 by Baron de 
Carondelet, and during his term the Spanish 
colonics grew so rapidly that their Govern- 
ment became jealous of the United States 
and sought to exclude all interference from 
them in domestic affairs ; but all efforts in 
this direction were ended in 1795 by the 
treats- of Madrid, which, after some delay 
and trouble, was fully carried out in 1798. 



HISTORT OF IOWA. 



13') 



Under the leadership of Livingston and 
Monroe, the United States Government, 
after various propositions had been dis- 
cussed by the respective powers, succeeded 
in effecting, in 1803, a purchase of the whole 
of Louisiana from France for $11,250,000, 
and all this country west of the great river 
consisted of the "Territory of Orleans" 
(now the State of Louisiana) and the " Dis- 
trict of Louisiana " (now the States of Ar- 
kansas, Missouri and Iowa, and westward 
indefinitely). The latter was annexed to the 
Territory of Indiana for one year, and in 
1805 it was erected into a separate Terri- 
tory, of the second class, the legislative 
power being vested in the Governor and 
judges. Before the close of the year it was 
made a Territory of the first class, under 
the name of the " Territory of Louisiana," 
the Government being administered by the 
Governor and judges. The first Governor 
wasjames Wilkinson, and he was succeeded 
near the close of 1806 by Colonel Meri- 
weather Lewis, the seat of Government be- 
ing at St. Louis; and during his adminis- 
tration the Territory was divided into six 
judicial districts or large counties — St. 
Charles, St. Louis, St. Genevieve, Cape 
Girardeau, New Madrid and Arkansas. In 
18 10 the population of Louisiana Territory 
was 21,000, five-sevenths of whom were in 
Arkansas. 

In 18 1 2 the State of Louisiana was ad- 
mitted into the Union, and then it was 
deemed expedient to change the name of 
the Territory. It was accordingly given 
the name of " Missouri Territory," which it 
retained until the admission of the State of 
Missouri in 1821. 

IOWA TERRITORY. 

Although the " Northwestern Territory" 

— carved out of Virginia and now divided 

into the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, 

Michigan and Wisconsin — never included 

iowa, this State was in 1834 incorporated 
la 



into the "Territory of Michigan," and thus 
became subject to the ordinance of 1787; 
and two years later it was made a part of 
" Wisconsin Territory," and two years still 
later, in 1838, the "Territory of Iowa" 
was formed independently, with sixteen 
counties and a population of 23,000. 

In 1S33, at Dubuque, a postoffice was 
established, and some time prior to 1834 
one or two justices of the peace had been 
appointed. In 1834 the Territorial Legis- 
lature of Michigan created two counties 
west of the Mississippi — Dubuque and Des 
Moines — separated by a line drawn west- 
ward from the foot of Rock Island. These 
counties were partially organized. John 
King was appointed " Chief Justice" of Du- 
buque County, and Isaac Leffler, of Bur- 
lington, of Des Moines County. Two 
associate justices in each county were ap- 
pointed by the Governor. In October, 
1835, General George W. Jones, of Du- 
buque, was elected a delegate to Congress. 
April 20, 1836, through the efforts of Gen- 
eral Jones, Congress passed a bill creating 
the Territory of Wisconsin, which went 
into operation July 4, that year. Iowa was 
then included in that Territory, of which 
General Henry Dodge was appointed Gov- 
ernor. The census of 1836 showed a popu- 
lation in Iowa of 10,531, of which 6,257 
were in Des Moines County and 4,274 in 
Dubuque County. 

Ths first Legislature assembled at Bel- 
mont, Wisconsin, October 25, 1836; the 
second at Burlington, Iowa, November 9, 
1837 ; and the third, also at the latter place, 
June 1, 1838. 

As early as 1837 the people of Iowa be- 
gan to petition Congress for a separate 
Territorial organization, which was granted 
June 12 following. Ex-Governor Lucas, of 
Ohio, was appointed by President Van Bu- 
ren to be the first Governor of the new 
Territory. Immediately upon his arrival 
he issued a proclamation for the election of 



'4° 



HISTOlir OF IOWA. 



members of the first Territorial Legislature, 
to take place September 10. The following 
were elected : 

Council. — Jesse B. Brown, J. Keith, E. 
A. M. Swazey, Arthur Ingram, Robert 
Ralston, George Hepner, Jesse J. Payne, 
D. B. Hughes, James M. Clark, Charles 
Whittlesey, Jonathan W. Parker, Warner 
Lewis, Stephen Hempstead. 

House. — Wm. Patterson, Hawkins Tay- 
lor, Calvin J. Price, James Brierly, James 
Hall, Gideon S. Bailey, Samuel Parker, 
James \V. Grimes, George Temple, Van B. 
Delashmutt, Thomas Blair, George H. 
Beeler, Wm. G. Coop, Wm. H. Wallace, 
Asbury B. Porter, John Frierson, Wm. L. 
Toole, Levi Thornton, S. C. Hastings, 
Robert G. Roberts, Laurel Summers, 
Jabez A. Burchard, Jr., Chauncey Swan, 
Andrew Bankson, Thomas Cox and Har- 
din Nowlin. 

At the session of the above Legislature 
Wm. W. Chapman was elected delegate 
to Congress. As the latter body had given 
the Governor unlimited veto power, and 
as Governor Lucas was disposed to exer- 
cise it arbitrarily, the independent " Hawk- 
eyes " grew impatient under his administra- 
tion, and, after having a storm) - session for 
a time, they had Congress to limit the veto 
[lower. Great excitement also prevailed, 
both in the Legislature and among the 
people, concerning the question of the loca- 
tion of the seat of Government for the 
State. As they knew nothing concerning 
the great future development and extent of 
the State, they had no correct idea where 
the geographical center would or should 
be. The Black I lawk purchase, which was 
that strip of kind next the Mississippi, in 
the southeastern part of the State, was the 
full extent and horizon of their idea of the 
new commonwealth. Hence they thought 
first only of Burlington or Mount Pleasant 
as the capital. Indeed, at that time, the 
Indian- had possession of the rest of Iowa. 



But a few of the more shrewd foresaw 
that a more central location would soon be 
further to the north at least, if not west, 
and a point in Johnson County was ulti- 
mately decided upon. 

Commissioners, appointed by the Gov- 
ernor, selected the exact site, laid out a sec- 
tion of land into a town, sold lots and 
proceeded to erect the public buildings. 
The capitol was commenced in 1840 and 
Iowa City became thenceforward the capi- 
tal of the State. The fourth Legislative 
Assembly met at this place December 6, 
1S41, but not in the new capitol building, 
as it was not yet ready. Being somewhat 
difficult to raise the necessary funds, the 
building was not completed for several 
years. The early Territorial Legislatures 
of Iowa laid the foundation for a very just 
and liberal Government, far in advance of 
what had ever been done before by any 
State. 

About this time a conflict arose between 
this Territory and Missouri concerning the 
boundary line between them. There was 
a difference of a strip eight or ten miles 
wide, extending from the Mississippi to the 
Missouri rivers, which each claimed. Mis- 
souri officers, attempting to collect taxes 
within the disputed territory, were arrested 
and confined in jail by Iowa sheriffs, and 
the respective Governors called out the 
militia, preparing for bloodshed. About 

1,200 Iowa men enlisted, and 500 were act- 
ually armed and encamped in Van Buren 
County, ready to defend their Territory, 
when three prominent and able men were 
sent to Missouri as envoys plenipotentiary, 
to effect, if possible, a peaceable adjustment 
of the difficulty. Upon their arrival, they 
found that the county commissioners of 
Clark County. Missouri, had rescinded their 
order for the collection of the taxes, and that 
Governor Boggs had dispatched messen- 
gers to the Governor of Iowa proposing to 
submit an agreed case to the Supreme 



MsToitf op Iowa. 



14* 



Court of the United States for the settle- 
ment of the boundary question. This prop- 
osition was declined; but afterward, upon 
petition of Iowa and Missouri, Congress 
authorized a suit to settle the controversy. 
The suit was duly instituted, and resulted 
in the decision that Iowa had only asserted 
" the truth of history," and she knew where 
the rapids of the Des Moines River were 
located. Thus ended the Missouri war. 
'• There was much good sense," says Hon. 
C. C. Nourse, "in the basis upon which 
peace was secured, to-wit: ' If Missourians 
did not know where the rapids of the river 
Des Moines were located, that was no suffi- 
cient reason for killing them off with powder 
and lead; and if we did know a little more of 
history and geography than they did we 
ought not to be shot for our learning. We 
commend our mutual forbearance to older 
and greater people.' " Under an order 
from the Supreme Court of the United 
States commissioners surveyed and estab- 
lished the boundary. The expenses of the 
war, on the part of Iowa, were never paid, 
either by the United States or the Territo- 
rial Government. 

STATE ORGANIZATION AND SUBSEQUENT 
HISTORY. 

The population having become, by the 
year 1844, sufficient to justify the formation 
of a State Government, the Territorial Leg- 
islature of Iowa passed an act, approved 
February 12, that year, submitting to the 
people the question of the formation of a 
State Constitution and providing for the 
election of delegates to a convention to be 
called together for that purpose. The 
people voted upon this at their township 
elections in the following April, giving the 
measure a large majority. The elected 
delegates assembled in convention at Iowa 
City, October 7, 1844, and completed then- 
work by November 1. Hon. Shepherd 
Leffler, the President of this convention, 



was instructed to transact a certified copy 
of the proposed Constitution to the Dele- 
gate in Congress, to be submitted bv him 
to that body at the earliest practicable day. 
It also provided that it should be submitted, 
together with any conditions or changes 
that might be made by Congress, to the 
people of the Territory, for their approval 
or rejection, at the township election in 
April, 1845. 

The Constitution, as thus prepared, fixed 
the boundaries of the State very differently 
from what were finally agreed upon. 

May 4, 1846, a second convention met at 
Iowa City, and on the 18th of the same 
month another Constitution, prescribing the 
boundaries as they now are, was adopted. 
This was accepted by the people, August 
3, by a vote of 9,492 to 9,036. The new 
Constitution was approved by Congress, 
and Iowa was admitted as a sovereign 
State in the American Union, December 
28, 1846. The people of the State, antici- 
pating favorable action by Congress, held 
an election for State officers October 26 
which resulted in Ansel Briggs being de- 
clared Governor; Elisha Cutler, Jr., Secre- 
tary of State; Joseph T. Fales, Auditor; 
Morgan Reno, Treasurer; and members of 
the Senate and House of Representatives. 

The act of Congress which admitted 
Iowa gave her the 16th section of every 
township of land in the State, or its equiv- 
alent, for the support of schools; also 
seventy-two sections of land for the pur- 
pose of a university; also five sections of 
land for the completion of her public build- 
ings; also the salt springs within her limits, 
not exceeding twelve in number, with sec- 
tions of land adjoining each; also, in con- 
sideration that her public lands should be 
exempt from taxation by the State, she 
gave to the State five per cent, of the net 
proceeds of the sale of public lands within 
the State. Thus provided for as a bride 
with her marriage portion, Iowa com- 



M2 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



menced " housekeeping " upon her own 
account. 

A majority of the Constitutional Conven- 
tion of [846 were of the Democratic party; 
and the instrument contains some of the 
pecidiar tenets of the party at that day. 
All banks of issue, were prohibited within 
the State. The State was prohibited from 
becoming a stockholder in any corporation 
for pecuniary profit, and the General As- 
sembly could only provide for private cor- 
porations by general statutes. The Consti 
tution also limited the State's indebtedness 
to $100,000. It required the General As- 
sembly to provide public schools through- 
out the State for at least three months in 
the year. Six months' previous residence 
of any white male citizen of the United 
States constituted him an elector. 

At the time of organization as a State, 
Iowa had a population of 1 16,651, as appears 
by the census of 1X47. There were twenty- 
seven organized counties in the State, and 
the settlements were rapidly pushing to- 
ward the Missouri River. 

The first General Assembly was com- 
posed of nineteen Senators and forty Rep- 
resentatives. It assembled at Iowa City, 
November 30, 1S46, about a month before 
the State was admitted into the Union 

The most important business transacted 
was the passage of a bill authorizing a loan 
ol $50,000 for means to run the State Gov- 
ernment and pay the expenses of the Con- 
stitutional conventions. The great excite- 
ment of the session, however, was the 
attempt to choose United States Senators. 
The Whigs had a majority of two in the 
I louse, and the Democrats a majority of 
one in the Senate. After repeated attempts 
to 1 ontrol these majorities for caucus nom- 
inees and frequent sessions of a joint con- 
vention for purposes of an election, the 
attempt was abandoned. A school law was 
passedatthis session lor the organization 
1 >l public schools ill I lie Stale. 



At the first session also arose the ques- 
tion of the re-location of the capital. The 
western boundary of the State, as now 
determined, left Iowa City too far toward 
the eastern and southern boundary of the 
State; this was conceded. Congress had 
appropriated five sections of land for the 
erection of public buildings, and toward the 
close of the session a bill was introduced 
providing for the rc-location of the seat of 
Government, involving to some extent the 
location of the State University, which had 
already been discussed. This bill gave rise 
to much discussion and parliamentary ma- 
neuvering, almost purely sectional in its 
character. It provided for the appointment 
of three commissioners, who were author- 
ized to make a location as near the geo- 
graphical center of the State as a healthy 
and eligible site cot. Id be obtained; to select 
the five sections of land donated by Con- 
gress; to survey and plat into town lots not 
exceeding one section of the land so se- 
lected, etc. Soon after, by " An act to 
locate and establish a State University," 
app/oved February 25, 1847, the unfinished 
public buildings at Iowa City, together 
with ten acres of land on which they were 
situated, were granted for the use of the 
University, reserving their use, however, 
by the General Assembly and the State 
officers, until other provisions were made 
by law. 

When the report of the commissioners, 
showing their financial operations, .had 
been read in the House of Representa- 
tives, at the next session, and while it was 
under consideration, an indignant member, 
afterward known as the eccentric Judge 
McFarland, moved to refer the report to a 
select committee of five, with instructions 
to report " how much of said city of Mon- 
roe was under water, and how much was 
burned." The report was referred with- 
out the instructions, but Monroe City never 
became the seat of Government, By an 



ins tour of iowa. 



143 



act approved January 15, 1849, the law by 
which the location had been made was re- 
pealed and the new town was vacated, the 
money paid by purchasers of lots being re- 
funded to them. This, of course, retained 
the seat of Government at Iowa City, and 
precluded for the time the occupation of 
the building and grounds by the University. 

After the adjournment of the first Gen- 
eral Assembly, the Governor appointed 
Joseph Williams, Chief Justice, and George 
Green and John F. Kinney, Judges of the 
Supreme Court. They were afterward 
elected bv the second General Assembly, 
and constituted the Supreme Court until 
1855, with the exception that Kinney re- 
signed in January, 1854, and J. C. Hall, of 
Burlington, was appointed in his place. 

At this session Charles Mason, William 
G. Woodward and Stephen Hempstead 
were appointed commissioners to prepare a 
code of laws for the State. Their work 
was finished in 1850 and was adopted by 
the General Assembly. This " code" con- 
tained among other provisions a code of 
civil practice, superseding the old common- 
law forms of actions and writs, and it was 
admirable for its simplicity and method. It 
remained in force until 1863, when it was 
superseded by the more complicated and 
metaphysical system of the revision of that 
year. 

The first Representatives in Congress 
were S. Clinton Hastings, of Muscatine, 
and Shepherd Leffler, of Des Moines 
County. The second General Assembly 
elected to the United States Senate Au- 
gustus Caesar Dodge and George W.Jones. 
The State government, after the first ses- 
sion, was under the control of Democratic 
administrations till 1855. The electoral vote 
of the State was cast for Lewis Cass in 1848, 
and for Franklin Pierce in 1852. The popu- 
lar vote shows that the Free-Soil element 
of the State during this period very nearly 
held the balance of power, and that up to 



1854 it acted in the State elections to some 
extent with the Democratic party. In 1858 
Lewis Cass received 12,093 votes, Zachary 
Taylor 11,034, an d Martin Van Buren, the 
Free-Soil candidate, 1,226 votes, being 167 
less than a majority for Cass. In 1852 
Pierce received 17,762 votes, Scott 15,855, 
and Hale, Free-Soil, 1,606, being for Pierce 
301 votes more than a majority. 

The question of the permanent location 
of the seat of government was not settled, 
and in 185 1 bills were introduced for the 
removal of the capital to Pella and to Fort 
Des Moines. The latter appeared to have 
the support of the majority, but. was finally 
lost in the House on the question of order- 
ing it to its third reading. 

At the next session, in 1853, a bill was 
introduced in the Senate for the removal of 
the seat of government to Fort Des Moines, 
and on first vote was just barely defeated. 
At the next session, however, the effort was 
more successful, and January 15, 1855, r. 
bill re-locating the capital within two miles 
of the Raccoon Fork of the Des Moines, 
and for the appointment of commissioners, 
was approved by Governor Grimes. The 
site was selected in 1856, in accordance 
with the provisions of this act, the land 
being donated to the State by citizens and 
property-holders of Des Moines. An asso- 
ciation of citizens erected a building for a 
temporary capitol, and leased it to the State 
at a nominal rent. 

The passage by Congress of the act or- 
ganizing the Territories of Kansas and Ne- 
braska, and the provision it contained abro- 
gating that portion of the Missouri bill that 
prohibited slavery and involuntary servi- 
tude north of 36° 30' was the beginning of 
a political revolution in the Northern States, 
and in none was it more marked than in the 
State of Iowa. Iowa was the " first free 
child born of the Missouri Compromise," 
and has always resented the destruction oi 
her foster parent. 



M4 



HISIORT OF IOWA. 



The year [856 marked a new era in the his- 
tory o( Iowa. In 1854 theChicagoA Rock 
Island Railroad had been completed to the 
cast bank of the Mississippi River, opposite 
Davenport. In the same year the corner- 
stone of a railroad bridge that was to be the 
first to span the " Father of Waters," was 
laid with appropriate ceremonies at this 
point. St. Louis had resolved that the 
enterprise was unconstitutional, and by 
writs of injunction made an unsuccessful 
effort to prevent its completion. Twenty 
years later in her history, St. Louis re- 
pented her folly, and made atonement for 
her sin by imitating Iowa's example. Jan- 
uary 1, 1856, this railroad was completed to 
Iowa City. In the meantime, two other 
railroads had reached the east bank of the 
Mississippi — one opposite Burlington, and 
one opposite Dubuque — and these were be- 
ing extended into the interior of the State. 
Indeed, four other lines of railroads had 
been projected across the State from the 
Mississippi to the Missouri, having eastern 
connections. 

May 15, 1856, Congress passed an act 
granting to the State, to aid in the con- 
struction of railroads, the public lands in 
alternate sections, six miles on either side 
of the proposed lines. An extra session of 
the General Assembly was called in July of 
this year, that disposed of the grant to the 
several companies that proposed to com- 
plete these enterprises. The population ol 
Iowa was now 500,000. Public attention 
had been called to the necessity of a rail- 
road across the continent. The position of 
Iowa, in the very heart and center of the 
republic, on the route- of this great high- 
way ol tin- continent, began to attract atten- 
tion. Cities and towns sprang up through 
1 Ik State as if by magic. Capital began to 
pour into the State, and had it been em- 
ployed in developing the vast coal measures 
and establishing manufactories, or if it had 
been expended in improving the lands, and 



in building houses and barns, it would have 
been well. But all were in haste to get 
rich, and the spirit of speculation ruled the 
hour. 

In the meantime, every effort was made 
to help the speedy completion of the rail- 
roads. Nearly every county and city on 
the Mississippi, and many in the interior, 
voted large corporate subscriptions to the 
stock of the railroad companies, and issued 
their negotiable bonds for the amount. 
Thus enormous county and city debts were 
incurred, the payment of which these mu- 
nicipalities tried to avoid, upon the plea 
that they had exceeded the constitutional 
limitation of their powers. The Supreme 
Court of the United States held these bonds 
to be valid, and the courts by mandamus 
compelled the city and county authorities 
to levy taxes to pay the judgments re- 
covered upon them. These debts are not 
all paid, even to this day ; but the worst is 
over, and the incubus is in the course ol 
ultimate extinction. The most valuable 
lessons are those learned in the school of 
experience, and accordingly the corpora- 
tions of Iowa have ever since been noted 
for economy. 

In 1856 the popular vote was as follows: 
Fremont, 43,954; Buchanan, 36,170, and 
Fillmore, 9,180. This was 1,296 less than a 
majority for Fremont. The following year 
an election was held, after an exciting cam- 
paign, for State officers, resulting in a ma- 
jority of 1,406 for Ralph P. Lowe, the Re- 
publican nominee. The Legislature wis 
largely Republican in both branches. 

One of the most injurious results to the 
State, arising from the spirit ol speculation 
prevalent in 1856, was the purchase and 
entry of great bodies ol Government land 
within the State by non-residents. This 
land was held for speculation and placed 
beyond the reach of actual settlers for many 
years. From no other one cause has Iowa 
suffered so much as from the short-sighted 



HISTOttr OF IOWA. 



Ui 



policy of the Federal Government in selling 
lands within her borders. The money 
thus obtained by the Federal Government 
has been comparatively inconsiderable. 
The value of this magnificent public do- 
main to the United States was not in the 
few thousands of dollars she might exact 
from the hardy settlers, or that she might 
obtain from the speculator who hoped to 
profit by the settlers' labors in improving 
the country. Statesmen should have taken 
a broader and more comprehensive view of 
national economy, and a view more in har- 
mony with the divine economy that had 
prepared these vast fertile plains of the 
West for the " homes of men and the seats 
of empire." It was here that new States 
were to be builded up, that should be the 
future strength of the nation against foreign 
invasion or home revolt. A single regi- 
ment of Iowa soldiers during the dark days 
of the Rebellion was worth more to the 
nation than all the money she ever exacted 
from the toil and sweat of Iowa's early 
settlers. Could the statesmen of forty 
years ago have looked forward to this day, 
when Iowa pays her $1,000,000 annually 
into the treasury of the nation for the ex- 
tinction of the national debt, they would 
have realized that the founding of new 
States was a greater enterprise than the re- 
tailing of public lands. 

In January, 1857, another Constitutional 
Convention assembled at Iowa City, which 
framed the present State Constitution. One 
of the most pressing demands for this con- 
vention grew out of the prohibition of 
banks under the old Constitution. The 
practical result of this prohibition was to 
flood the State with every species of " wild- 
cat" currency. 

The new Constitution made ample pro- 
visions for home banks under the super- 
vision of our own laws. The limitation of 
the State debt was enlarged to $250,000, 
and the corporate indebtedness of the cities 



and counties was also limited to 5 percent, 
upon the valuation of their taxable property. 
The judges of the Supreme Court were to 
be elected by the popular vote. The per- 
manent seat of government was fixed at 
Des Moines, and the State University lo- 
cated at Iowa City. The qualifications of 
electors remained the same as under the old 
Constitution, but the schedule provided for 
a vote of the people upon a separate propo- 
sition to strike the word " white" out of the 
suffrage clause, which, had it prevailed, 
would have resulted in conferring the right 
of suffrage without distinction of color. 
Since the early organization of Iowa there 
had been upon the statute book a law pro- 
viding that no negro, mulatto nor Indian 
should be a competent witness in any suit 
or proceeding to which a white man was a 
party. The General Assembly of i856-'7 
repealed this law, and the new Constitution 
contained a clause forbidding such disquali- 
fication in the future. It also provided for 
the education of "all youth of the State" 
through a system of common schools. This 
Constitution was adopted at the ensuing 
election by a vote of 40,311 to 38,681. 

October 19, 1857, Governor Grimes issued 
a proclamation declaring the city of Des 
Moines to be the capital of the State of Iowa. 
The removal of the archives and offices was 
commenced at once and continued through 
the fall. It was an undertaking of no 
small magnitude; there was not a mile of 
railroad to facilitate the work, and the 
season was unusually disagreeable. Rain, 
snow and o^her accompaniments increased 
the difficulties; and it was not until Decem- 
ber that the last of the effects, — the safe of 
the State Treasurer, loaded on two large 
" bob sleds " drawn by ten yokes of oxen, 
— was deposited in the new capitol. It is 
not imprudent now to remark that during 
this passage over hills and prairies, across 
rivers, through bottom lands and timber, 
the safes belonging to the several depart- 



1 4C1 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



mints contained large sums of money, 
mostlv individual funds, however. Thus 
Iowa City ceased to be the capital of the 
State, alter four Territorial • Legislatures, 
six Sine Legislatures and three Constitu- 
tional Conventions had held their sessions 
there. By the exchange, the old capitol at 
Iowa City became the seat of the university, 
and, except the rooms occupied by the 
United States District Court, passed under 
the immediate and direct control of the 
trustees of that institution. Des Moines 
was now the permanent seat of govern- 
ment, made so by the fundamental law of 
the State, and January 11, 1858, the Sev- 
enth General Assembly convened at the 
new capitol. The citizens' association, 
which built this temporary building, bor- 
rowed the money of James D. Eads, Super- 
intendent of Public Instruction, and leased 
it to the State. In 1864 the State pur- 
chased the building. At the session of the 
General Assembly in 1858, James W. 
Grimes was elected United States Senator 
as successor to George W. Jones. 

During the years i858-'6o, the Sioux 
Indians became troublesome in the north- 
western part of the State. They made fre- 
quent raids for the purpose of plunder, and 
on several occasions murdered whole fami- 
lies of settlers. In 1861 several companies 
of militia were ordered to that portion of 
the State, to hunt down and expel the 
thieves. No battles were fought. The 
Indians fled as soon as they ascertained 
that systematic measures had been adopted 
tor their punishment. 

PATRIOTISM. 

The Presidential campaign of i860 was 
the most remarkable and exciting of all in 
the history of Iowa. The fact that civil 
war might be inaugurated and was threat- 
ened, in case Mr. Lincoln was elected, was 
well understood and duly considered. The 
people ol Iowa indulged in no feeling of 



hatred or ill-will toward the people of any 
Slate or section of the Union. There was, 
however, on the part of the majority, a 
cool determination to consider and decide 
upon our national relations to this institu- 
tion of slavery, uninfluenced by any threat 
of violence or civil war. The popular vote 
of Iowa gave Mr. Lincoln 70,409; Stephen 
A. Douglas, 55,011; Breckenridge, 1,048. 

The General Assembly of the State 01 
Iowa, as early as 1851, had by joint resolu- 
tion declared that the State of Iowa was 
•• bound to maintain the union of these 
States by all the means in her power." The 
same year the State furnished a block of 
marble for the Washington monument at the 
national capital, and by order of the Gen- 
eral Assembly there was inscribed upon its 
enduring surface the following: " Iowa: 
Her affections, like the rivers of her borders, 
flow to an inseparable Union." The time 
was now approaching in her history when 
these declarations of attachment and fidelity 
to the nation were to be put to a practical 
test. 

The declaration of Mr. Buchanan's last 
annual message, that the nation possessed 
no constitutional power to coerce a seced- 
ing State, was received by a great majority 
of our citizens with humiliation and .dis- 
trust. Anxiously they awaited the expiring 
hours of his administration, and looked tr, 
the incoming President as to an expected 
deliverer that should rescue the nation 
from the hands of traitors, and the control 
of those whose non-resistance invited her 
destruction. The firing upon the national 
Hag at Sumter aroused a burning indigna- 
tion throughout the loyal States of the re- 
public, and nowhere was it more intense 
than in Iowa; and when the proclamation 
of the President was published, April 15, 
1861, calling for 75,000 citizen soldiers to 
"maintain the honor, the integrity, and 
the existence of our national Union, and 
the perpetuity of popular government," 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



M7 



the good people of Iowa were more 
than willing to respond to the call. Party 
lines gave way, and for a while, at least, 
party spirit was hushed, and the cause of 
our common country was supreme in the 
affections of the people. Peculiarly fort- 
unate were the citizens of Iowa at this 
crisis, in having a truly representative 
man, Samuel J. Kirkwood, as executive 
of the State. 

Within thirty days after the date of the 
President's call for troops, the first Iowa 
regiment was mustered into the service of 
the United States, a second regiment was 
in camp ready for the service, and the 
General Assembly of the State was con- 
vened in special session, and had by joint 
resolution solemnly pledged every resource 
of men and money to the national cause. 

The Constitution of Iowa limited the 
State debt to $250,000, except debts con- 
tracted to " repel invasion, suppress insur- 
rection, or defend the State in war." The 
General Assembly authorized a loan of 
$800,000 for a war and defense fund, to be 
expended in organizing, arming, equipping 
and subsisting the militia of the State to 
meet the present and future requisitions of 
the President. Those in power looked to 
the spirit rather than to the letter of the 
Constitution, and acted upon the theory 
that to preserve the nation was to pre- 
serve the State, and that to prevent in- 
vasion was the most effectual means of 
repelling it. A few, however, in both 
branches of the General Assembly were 
more careful of the letter of the Constitu- 
tion. Three votes in the Senate and sev- 
enteen in the House were cast against 
the loan bill. These bonds were at 7 per 
cent, interest. Only $300,000 were ever 
issued, and they were purchased and held 
chiefly by our own citizens. At this crisis 
James W. Grimes and James Harlan were 
in the United States Senate, and General 
Samuel R. Curtis and General Vandeverin 

13 



the House of Representatives. During the 
first year of the war, Iowa furnished sixteen 
regiments of infantry, six of cavalry and 
three batteries, — in all, 22,000 soldiers. 
Iowa had no refuse population to enlist as 
" food for powder." Her cities contained 
none of that element found about the pur- 
lieus of vice in the great centers of popu- 
lation. Her contribution to the armies of 
the republic was a genuine offering of 
manhood and patriotism. From her fields, 
her workshops, her counting-houses, her 
offices, and the halls of her schools and 
colleges, she contributed the best muscle, 
sinew and brain of an industrious, enter- 
prising and educated people. The first 
regiment of Iowa soldiers fought the bat- 
tle of Wilson's Creek after their term ot 
enlistment had expired, and after the} 7 were 
entitled to a discharge. They were citi- 
zen soldiers, each of whom had a persona' 
interest in the struggle. It was to them no 
question of enlistment, of bounty or of pay. 
When the gallant General Lyon placed 
himself at their head, and told them that 
the honor of Iowa and of the nation was in 
their hands, he addressed men who knew 
what the appeal meant, and to whom such 
an appeal was never made in vain. 

At the fall election of 1861, party spirit 
had revived; and the contest for the control 
of the State administration was warm and 
earnest. Dissensions arose in both parties 
but the election resulted in a majority of 
16,600 votes for Kirkwood, who was thus 
retained as Governor of Iowa. In 1863 
the Republicans elected their candidate 
for Governor, William M. Stone, by a ma- 
jority of 29,000. 

Meanwhile the General Assembly had 
passed a law authorizing the " soldiers' 
vote," that is, citizens of the State in the 
volunteer military service of the United 
States, whether within or without the limits 
of the State, were authorized to open a poll 
on the day of the election, and to make re- 



*4o 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



turn of their votes to the proper civil au- 
thorities. In the Presidental contest of 
1864 the popular vote at home was as 
follows: Lincoln, 72,122; McClcllan, 47,- 
703. The soldier vote returned was: Lin- 
coln, 16,844; McClellan, 1,883. 

The General Assembly did all in its 
power to encourage enlistment and to pro- 
tect the soldiers in the field and their fami- 
lies at home. Statutes were enacted sus- 
pending all suits against soldiers in the 
service, and all writs of execution or attach- 
ment against their property; and county 
boards of supervisors were authorized to 
vote bounties for enlistments, and pecuni- 
ary aid to the families of those in the serv- 
ice. The spirits of our people rose and 
fell, according to the success of the Union 
armies. One day the bells rung out with 
joy for the surrender of Vicksburg, and 
again the air seemed full of heaviness be- 
cause of our defeats on the Peninsula; but 
through all these dark and trying days, the 
faith of the great majority never wavered. 

The Emancipation Proclamation of the 
President was to them an inspiration of a 
new hope. 

In the Adjutant's department at Des 
Moines are preserved the shot-riddled col- 
ors and standards of Iowa's regiments. 
Upon them, by special authority, were 
inscribed from time to time during the war 
the names of the battle-fields upon which 
these regiments gained distinction. These 
names constitute the geographical nomen- 
clature of two-thirds of the territory lately 
in rebellion. From the Des Moines River 
to the Gulf, from the Mississippi to the 
Atlantic, in the Mountains of West Virginia 
and in the valley of the Shenandoah, the 
Iowa soldier made his presence known and 
frit, and maintained the honor of the State, 
and the cause ol the nation. They were 
with Lyon at Wilson's Creek; with Tuttle 
at Donelson. Thev fought with Sigel and 
with Curtis at Tea Ridge; with Crocker 



at Champion Hills; with Reid at Shiloh. 
They were with Grant at the surrender of 
Vicksburg. They fought above the clouds 
with Hooker at Lookout Mountain. They 
were with Sherman in his march to the sea, 
and were readv for battle when Johnston 
surrendered. They were with Sheridan in 
the valley of the Shenandoah, and were in 
the veteran ranks of the nation's deliverers 
that stacked their arms in the national cap- 
itol at the close of the war. 

The State furnished to the armies of the 
republic, during the war, over 70,000 men, 
and 20,000 of these perished in battle or 
from diseases contracted in the service. 

We append here a brief notice of each 
regiment : 

The First Regiment was organized under 
the President's first call for three-months 
volunteers, with John Francis Bates, of Du- 
buque, as Colonel. It comprised various 
independent military companies that had 
been organized before the war, who ten- 
dered their services even before the break- 
ing out of hostilities. The)- were mustered 
in May 14, and first saw service under 
General Lyon in Missouri. 

Second Infantry; Samuel R. Curtis, of 
Keokuk, Colonel. This was the first three- 
years regiment, and made a most distin- 
guished record throughout the South, go- 
ing with Sherman to the sea, returning 
through the Carolinas, etc. After the 
battle at Fort Donelson, the unenthusiastic 
General Halleck pronounced this regiment 
" the bravest of the brave." 

Third Infantry; Nelson G. Williams, of 
Dubuque County, Colonel. Veteranized 
in 1864, but before the new officers received 
their commissions the regiment fought itself 
out of existence at the battle of Atlanta ! 

Fourth Infantry; G. M. Dodge, of Coun- 
cil Bluffs, Colonel. Engaged in the prin- 
cipal battles of the South. 

Fifth Infantry; William II. Worthington, 
of Keokuk, Colonel; 180 veteranized in 



HlSTO/tr OF IOWA. 



149 



1864 and were transferred to the Fifth 
Cavalry. 

Sixth Infantry; John A. McDowell, of 
Keokuk, Colonel. Engaged faithfully in 
many of the prominent battles. 

Seventh Infantry; J. G. Lauman, of Bur- 
lington, Colonel. It lost 227 at the single 
battle of Belmont. 

Eighth Infantry ; Frederick Steele, of the 
regular army, Colonel. Most of this com- 
mand suffered in rebel prisons for eight 
months. Was on duty in Alabama nearly 
a year after the collapse of the Rebellion. 

Ninth Infantry; William Vandever, of 
Dubuque, Colonel. Was in almost every 
Southern State, traveling altogether 10,000 
miles; marched more than 4,000 miles! 

Tenth Infantry ; Nicholas Persczel, of 
Davenport, Colonel. Fought mainly in 
Mississippi ; losing half its number at the 
battle of Champion Hills alone ! 

Eleventh Infantry ; A. M. Hare, of Mus- 
catine, Colonel. Served mainly in the in- 
terior of the South, doing as valiant service 
as any other regiment. 

Twelfth Infantry ; I. J. Wood, of Maquo- 
keta, Colonel. In rebel prisons eight 
months. Veteranized January 4, 1864, a 
larger proportion of the men re-enlisting 
than from any other Iowa regiment. Served 
for several months after the close of the 
war. 

Thirteenth Infantry; M. M. Crocker, of 
Des Moines, Colonel. Fought in the South- 
ern interior and made the famous round 
with Sherman to the sea, being the first to 
enter Columbia, South Carolina, where se- 
cession had its rise. 

Fourteenth Infantry; William T. Shaw, 
of Anamosa, Colonel. Nearly all captured 
at Shiloh, but were released after a few 
months. Engaged in some of the severest 
contests. 

Fifteenth Infantry; Hugh T. Reid, of 
Keokuk, Colonel. Served three and a half 
years in the heart of the Rebellion. 



Sixteenth Infantry ; Alex. Chambers, of 
the regular army, Colonel. Bravely served 
throughout the South. 

Seventeenth Infantry; John W. Rankin, 
of Keokuk, Colonel. Served in the in- 
terior of the South. 

Eighteenth Infantry; John Edwards, of 
Chariton, Colonel. Much of its time was 
spent in garrison duty. 

Nineteenth Infantry ; Benjamin Crabb, 
of Washington, Colonel. Served mainly in 
Mississippi. Were prisoners of war about 
ten months. 

Twentieth Infantry, comprising five com- 
panies each from Scott and Linn counties, 
who vied with each other in patriotism; 
William M. Dve, of Marion, Colonel. En- 
gaged mainly on the Gulf coast. 

Twenty-first Infantry ; ex-Governor Sam- 
uel Merrill, Colonel. Distinguished in val- 
iant service throughout the South. See 
Twenty-third Regiment. 

Twenty-second Infantry ; William M. 
Stone, of Knoxville, since Governor of the 
State, was Colonel. Did excellent service, 
all the way from Mississippi to old Virginia. 

Twenty-third Infantry ; William Dewey, 
of Fremont County, Colonel. Its services 
were mainly in Mississippi. At Black River 
but a few minutes were required in carry- 
ing the rebel works, but those few minutes 
were fought with fearful loss to the troops. 
The Twenty-first also participated in this 
daring assault, and immediately after the 
victory was gained General Lawler passed 
down the line and joyfully seized every man 
by the hand, so great was his emotion. 

Twenty-fourth Infantry ; the " Iowa 
Temperance Regiment," was raised by 
Eber C. Byam, of Linn County. Engaged 
mainly in the Lower Mississippi Valley. 

Twenty-fifth Infantry ; George A. Stone, 
of Mt. Pleasant, Colonel. " To the sea." 

Twenty-sixth Infantry; Milo Smith, of 
Clinton, Colonel. Took part in many great 
battles. 






HISTORY OF IOWA. 



Twenty-seventh Infantry; James I. Gil- 
bert, of Lansing, Colonel. On duty all the 
way from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. 

Twenty-eighth Infantry ; William E. 
Miller, of Iowa City, Colonel. Service, in 
the region of the Lower Mississippi. 

Twenty-ninth Infantry ; Thomas H. Ben- 
ton, Jr., of Council Bluffs, Colonel. Sta- 
tioned in Arkansas. 

Thirtieth Infantry; Charles B. Abbott, 
of Louisa County, Colonel. In the thickest 
of the war, coming home loaded with 
honors. 

Thirty-first Infantry ; William Smyth, of 
Marion, Colonel. Returned from its many 
hard-fought battles in the interior of the 
South with only 370 men out of 1,000 en- 
listed. 

Thirty-second Infantry; John Scott, of 
Nevada, Colonel. Engaged in a number of 
battles. 

Thirty-third Infantry ; Samuel A. Rice, 
a popular politician of Central Iowa, Colo- 
nel. Served from Arkansas to Alabama. 

Thirty-fourth Infantry; George W.Clark, 
ol [ndianola, Colonel. Traveled 15,000 
miles in its service ! 

Thirty-fifth Infantry ; S. G. Hill, of Mus- 
catine, Colonel. Served bravely in a dozen 
battles, and traveled 10,000 miles. 

Thirty-sixth Infantry ; Charles W. Kitt- 
redge, of Ottumwa, Colonel. Suffered a 
great deal from sickness— small-pox, measles, 
malaria, etc. 

Thirty-seventh Infantry, the "Gray- 
Beard Regiment," being composed of men 
over forty-five years of age, and was the 
only one of its kind in the war. Garrison 
ami post duty. 

Thirty-eighth Infantry; D. H. Hughes, 
of Decorah, Colonel. Most unfortunate of 
all in respect of sickness, 300 dying during 
the first two years. 

Thirty-ninth Infantry; H. J. B. Cum- 
mings, ol Winterset, Colonel. One of the 
mosl distinguished regiments in the field. 



Fortieth Infantry; John A. Garrett, ol 
Newton, Colonel. 

Forty-first Infantry was not completed, 
and the three companies raised for it were 
attached to the Seventh Cavalry. 

There were no regiments numbered 
Forty-second or Forty-third. 

Forty-fourth Infantry for 100 days; 
Stephen II. Henderson, Colonel. Garrison 
duty in Tennessee. 

Forty-filth Infantry, lor 100 days; A. H. 
Bereman, of Mt. Pleasant, Colonel. Garri- 
son duty in Tennessee. 

Forty -sixth Infantry, for 100 days; D. B. 
Henderson, of Clermont, Colonel. Garri- 
son duty in Tennessee. 

Forty-seventh Infantry, for 100 days; 
James P. Sanford, of Oskaloosa, Colonel. 
Stationed at the sickly place of Helena, 
Arkansas. 

Forty-eighth Infantry (battalion), for 100 
days; O. H. P. Scott, of Farmington, Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel. Guarded prisoners on Rock 
Island. 

First Cavalry ; Fitz Henry Warren, of 
Burlington, Colonel. Served for three 
years, mainly along the Lower Mississippi. 

Second Cavalry; W. L. Elliott, a Cap- 
tain in the Third Cavalry of the regular 
army, Colonel. Fought faithfully in many 
important battles in Tennessee and Missis- 
sippi. 

Third Cavalry ; Cyrus Bussey, of Broom- 
field, Colonel. Distinguished in war. 

Fourth Cavalry; A. B. Porter, of Mt. 
Pleasant, Colonel. Participated with zeal 
and judgment in the hottest of battles in 
Tennessee and Mississippi. 

Fifth Cavalry, only in part an Iowa regi- 
ment; William W. Lowe, of the regular 
army, Colonel. Distinguished in the hotly 
contested battles of Tennessee and vicinity. 

Sixth Cavalry; D. S. Wilson, of Du- 
buque, Colonel. Served against the In- 
dians. 

Seventh Cavalry; S. W. Summers, of 



HISTORY OF IOWA 



Ottumwa, Colonel. Served against the 
Indians. 

Eighth Cavalry ; Joseph B. Dorr, of Du- 
buque, Colonel. Served faithfully in guard- 
ing Sherman's communications, etc. 

Ninth Cavalry; M. M. Trumbull, of 
Cedar Falls, Colonel. Scouting, guard and 
garrison duties in Arkansas. 

First Battery of Light Artillery ; C. H. 
Fletcher, of Burlington, Captain. Served 
in Arkansas and Tennessee. 

Second Battery ; Nelson I. Spoor, of 
Council Bluffs, Captain. Engaged at Farm- 
ington, Corinth and other places. 

Third Battery ; M. M. Hayden, of Du- 
buque, Captain. Engaged at Pea Ridge, 
and in other important battles. 

Fourth Battery ; on duty most of the 
time in Louisiana. 

Iowa Regiment of Colored Troops ; John 
G. Hudson, of Missouri, Colonel. Garrison 
duty at St. Louis and elsewhere. 

Northern Border Brigade ; James A. 
Sawyer, of Sioux City, Colonel. Protected 
the Northwestern frontier. 

Southern Border Brigade ; protected the 
southern border of the State. 

The following promotions were made by 
the United States Government from Iowa 
regiments: To the rank of Major-General 
— Samuel R.Curtis, Frederick Steele, Frank 
J. Herron and Grenville M. Dodge ; to that 
of Brigadier-General — Jacob G. Lauman, 
James M. Tuttle, W. L. Elliott, Fitz Henry 
Warren, Charles L. Matthies, William Van- 
dever, M. M. Crocker, Hugh T. Reid, 
Samuel A. Rice, John M. Corse, Cyrus 
Bus=ey, Edward Hatch, Elliott W. Rice, 
William W. Belknap, John Edwards, James 
A. Williamson, James I. Gilbert and Thomas 
J. McKean ; Corse, Hatch, Belknap, Elliott 
and Vandever were brevetted Major- 
Generals ; brevetted Brigadier-Generals — 
William T. Clark, Edward F. Winslow, S. 
G. Hill, Thomas II. Benton, S. S. Glasgow, 
Clark R. Weaver, Francis M. Drake, 



George A. Stone, Datus E. Coon, George 
W. Clark, Herman H. Heath, J. M. Hed- 
rick and W. W. Lowe. 

IOWA SINCE THE WAR. 

The two principal events of political in- 
terest in this State since the war have been 
the popular contests concerning woman 
suffrage and the liquor traffic. In the 
popular elections the people gave a ma- 
jority against the former measure, but in 
favor of prohibiting the sale or manufact- 
ure of intoxicating liquors. 

A list of State officers to date is given on 
a subsequent page. The last vote for 
Governor, October 9, 1883, stood as fol- 
lows: For Buren R. Sherman, Republican, 
164,141 ; L. G. Kinne, Democrat, 140,032, 
and James B. Weaver, National Green- 
back, 23,093. 

STATE INSTITUTIONS. 

The present capitol building is a beauti- 
ful specimen of modern architecture. Its 
dimensions are, in general, 246 x 364 feet, 
with a dome and spire extending up to a 
height of 275 feet. In 1870 the General 
Assembly made an appropriation, and pro- 
vided for the appointment of a board of com- 
missioners to commence the work of build- 
ing. They were duly appointed and pro- 
ceeded to work, laying the corner-stone with 
appropriate ceremonies, November 23, 1871. 
The structure is not yet completed. When 
finished it will have cost about $3,500,000. 

The State University, at Iowa City, was 
established therein 1858, immediately after 
the removal of the capital to Des Moines. 
As had already been planned, it occupied 
the old capitol building. As early as Janu- 
ary, 1849, two branches of tne university 
were established — one at Fairfield and one 
at Dubuque. At Fairfield, the board of 
directors organized and erected a building 
at a cost of $2,500. This was nearly de- 
stroyed by a hurricane the following year. 



is: 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



but was rebuilt more substantially by the 
citizens of Fairfield. This branch never 
received any aid from the State, and Janu- 
ary 24, i s 5 3 , at the request of the board, 
the General Assembly terminated its rela- 
tion to the State. The branch at Dubuque 
had only a nominal existence 

By act of Congress, approved July 20, 
1840, two entire townships of land were 
set apart in this State for the support of a 
university. The Legislature of this State 
placed the management of this institution 
in the hands of a board of fifteen trustees, 
five to be chosen (by the Legislature) ever)' 
two years, the superintendent of public 
instruction to be president of the board. 
This board was also to appoint seven trus- 
tees for each of the three normal schools, to 
be simultaneously established — one each 
at Andrew, Oskaloosa and Mt. Pleasant. 
One was never started at the last-named 
place, and after a feeble existence for a 
short time the other two were discontin- 
ued. The university itself was closed dur- 
ing i859-'6o, for want of funds. 

The law department was established in 
June, 1868, and soon afterward the Iowa 
Law School at Des Moines, which had been 
in successful operation for three years, was 
transferred to Iowa City and merged in the 
department. The medical department was 
established in 1869; and in 1874 a chair of 
military instruction was added. 

Since April 11, 1870, the government of 
the university has been in the hands of a 
board of regents. The present faculty 
comprises forty-two professors, and the 
attendance 560 students. 

The State Normal School is located at 
Cedar Falls, and was opened in 1876. It 
has now a faculty of nine members, with an 
attendance of 301 pupils. 

The State Agricultural College is located 
at Ames, in Story County, being established 
bv the legislative act of March 23, 1858. 
In 1862 Congress granted to Iowa 240,000 



acres of land for the endowment of schools 
oi agriculture and the mechanic arts. The 
main building was completed in 1868, and 
the institution opened the following year. 
Tuition is free to pupils from the State 
over sixteen years of age. The college 
farm comprises 860 acres, of which a major 
portion is in cultivation. Professors, twen- 
ty-two; scholars, 319. 

The Deaf and Dumb Institute was estab- 
lished in 1855, at Iowa City, but was after- 
ward removed to Council Bluffs to a tract 
of ninety acres of land two miles south of 
that city. In October, 1870, the main build- 
ing and one wing were completed and 
occupied. In February, 1S77, fire destroyed 
the main building and east wing, and dur- 
ing the summer following a tornado par- 
tially demolished the wesl wing. It is at 
present (1SS5) manned with fifteen teachers, 
and attended by 292 pupils. 

The College for the Blind has been at Vin- 
ton since 1862. Prof. Samuel Bacon, himself 
blind, a fine scholar, who had founded the 
Institution for the Blind, at Jacksonville, 
Illinois, commenced as earl)- as 1852 a school 
of instruction at Keokuk. The next year 
the institution was adopted by the State 
and moved to Iowa City, with Prof. Bacon 
as principal. It was moved thence, in 1862, 
to Vinton. The building was erected and 
the college manned at vast expenditure of 
money. It is said that $282,000 were ex- 
pended upon the building alone, and that it 
required an outlay ol $5,000 a year to heat 
it, while it had accommodations for 130 in- 
mates. At present, however, they have 
accommodations for more pupils, with an 
attendance of 132. There are eleven teach- 
ers. The annual legislative appropriation 
is $8,OCO, besides $128 per year for each 
pupil. 

The first Iowa Hospital for the Insane 
was established by an act of the Legislature 
approved January 24, 1855. It is located at 
Mt. Pleasant, where the building was com- 



lJISTORT OF IOWA. 



153 



pleted in 1861, at a cost of $258,555. Within 
the first three months 100 patients were ad- 
mitted, and before the close of October, 
1877, an aggregate of 3,684 had been ad- 
mitted. In April, 1876, a portion of the 
building was destroyed by fire. At this in- 
stitution there are now ninety-four superin- 
tendents and assistants, in charge of 472 
patients. 

Another Hospital for the Insane, at Inde- 
pendence, was opened May i, 1873, in a 
building which cost $88,114. The present 
number of inmates is 580, in the care of 1 1 1 
superintendents and employes. 

The Soldiers' Orphans' Home is located at 
Davenport. It was originated by Mrs. Annie 
Wittenmeyer, during the late war, who 
called a convention for the purpose at Mus- 
catine, September 7, 1863, and uly 13 fol- 
lowing the institution was opened in a brick 
bui4dingat Lawrence, Van Buren County. 
It was sustained by voluntary contributions 
until 1 866, when the State took charge of 
it. The Legislature provided at first for 
three " homes." The one in Cedar Falls 
was organized in 1865, an old hotel build- 
ing being fitted up for it, and by the follow- 
ing January there were ninety-six inmates. 
In October, 1869, the Home was removed 
to a large brick building about two miles 
west of Cedar Falls, and was very prosper- 
ous for several years; but in 1876 the Leg- 
islature devoted this building to the State 
Normal School, and the buildings and 
grounds of the Soldiers' Orphans' Home 
at Glenwood, Mills County, to an institution 
for the support of feeble-minded children, 
and also provided for the removal of the 
soldiers' orphans at the Glenwood and 
Cedar Falls homes to the institution at 
Davenport. The latter has now in charge 
169 orphans. 

The Asylum for Feeble-Minded Children 
referred to above, is at Glenwood, estab- 
lished by the Legislature in March, 1876. 
The institution was opened September 1, 



following, with a few pupils; but now the 
attendance is 215, in the care of four teach- 
ers. This asylum is managed by three trus- 
tees, one of whom must be a resident of that 
county, Mills. 

The first penitentiary was established in 
1841, near Fort Madison, its present loca- 
tion. The cost of the original building was 
$55,934, and its capacity was sufficient for 
138 convicts. At present there are at this 
prison 364 convicts, in charge of forty-three 
employes. 

The penitentiary at Anamosa was estab- 
lished in i872-'3. It now has 239 convicts 
and thirty-four employes. 

The boys' reform school was permanent!- 
located at Eldora, Hardin County, in 1872. 
For the three years previous it was kept at 
the building of the Iowa Manual Labor In- 
stitute at Salem, Henry County. Only 
boys between seven and sixteen years of 
age are admitted. Credit of time for good 
conduct is given, so that occasionally one 
is discharged before he is of age. There 
are now (1885) 201 pupils here. 

The "girls' department" is at Mitchell- 
ville, similarly managed. Inmates, eighty- 
three. 

The State Historical Society is in part 
supported by the State, the Governor ap- 
pointing nine of the eighteen curators. 
This society was provided for in connection 
with the University, by legislative act of 
January 28, 1857, and it has published a 
series of valuable collections, and a large 
number of finely engraved portraits of 
prominent and early settlers. 

The State Agricultural Society is con- 
ducted under the auspices of the State, and 
is one of the greatest promoters of the 
welfare of the people among all the State 
organizations. It holds an annual fair at 
Des Moines, and its proceedings are also 
published annually, at the expense of the 
State. 

The Fish-Hatching House has been sue- 



>54 



HfSTORV OF IOWA. 



cessfully carrying on its good work since 
its establishment in 1874, near Anamosa. 
Three fish commissioners are appointed, 
one for each of the three districts into which 
•■he State is for the purpose divided. 

The State Board of Health, established 
in 1880, has an advisory supervision, and to 
a limited extent also a police supervision, 
over the health of the people, — especially 
with reference to the abatement of those 
nuisances that are most calculated to pro- 
mulgate dangerous and contagious diseases. 
Their publications, which are made at the 
expense of the State, should be studied by 
every citizen 

EDUCATIONAL. 

The germ of the free public school sys- 
tem of Iowa, which now ranks second to 
none in the United States, was planted by 
the first settlers, and in no other public 
measure have the people ever since taken 
so deep an interest. They have expanded 
and improved their original system until 
now it is justly considered one of the most 
complete, comprehensive and liberal in the 
country. 

Nor is this to be wondered at when it is 
remembered that humble log school-houses 
were built almost as soon as the log cabins 
of the earliest settlers were occupied, and 
school teachers were among the first im- 
migrants to Iowa. Schools, therefore, the 
people have had everywhere from the start, 
and the school-houses, in their character and 
accommodations, have kept fully abreast 
with the times. 

The first school-house within the limits 
of Iowa was a log cabin at Dubuque, built by 
J. L. Langworthy and a few other miners, 
in the autumn of 1833. When it was com- 
pleted George Cabbage was employed as 
teacher during the winter of i833-'4, thirty- 
five pupils attending his school. Barrett 
Whittemore taught the next school term, 
with twenty-five pupils in attendance. Mrs. 
Caroline Dexter commenced teaching in 



Dubuque in March, 1836. She was the first 
female teacher there, and probably the first 
in Iowa. In 1839 Thomas II. Benton, Jr., 
afterward for ten years Superintendent of 
Public Instruction, opened an English and 
classical school in Dubuque. The first tax 
for the support of schools at Dubuque was 
levied in 1840. 

At Burlington a commodious log school- 
house, built in 1834, was among the first 
buildings erected. A Mr. Johnson taught 
the first school in the winter of i834-'5. 

In Muscatine County, the first school was 
taught by George Bumgardner, in the 
spring of 1837. In 1839 a '°g school-house 
was erected in Muscatine, which served for 
a long time as school-house, church and 
public hall. 

The first school in Davenport was taught 
in 1838. In Fairfield, Miss Clarissa Sawyer, 
James F. Chambers and Mrs. Reed taught 
school in 1839. 

Johnson County was an entire wilderness 
when Iowa City was located as the capital 
of the Territory of Iowa, in May, 1839. 
The first sale of lots took place August 18, 
1839, ar >d before January 1, 1840, about 
twenty families had settled within the limits 
of the town. During the same year Jesse 
Berry opened a school in a small frame 
building he had erected on what is now 
College street. 

In Monroe County, the first settlement 
was made in 1843, by Mr. John R. Gray, 
about two miles from the present site of 
Eddyville; and in the summer of i844alog 
school-house was built by Gray, William 
V. Beedle, C. Renfro, Joseph McMullen 
and Willoughby Randolph, and the first 
school was opened by Miss Urania Adams. 
The building was occupied for school pur- 
poses for nearly ten years. 

About a year after the first cabin was 
built at Oskaloosa, a log school-house was 
built, in which school was opened by Sam- 
uel W. Caldwell, in 1S44. 



HISTORr OF IOWA. 



155 



At Fort Des Moines, now the capital of 
the State, the first school was taught by 
Lewis Whittcn, Clerk of the District Court, 
in the winter of 1846-'", in one of the rooms 
on " Coon Row," built for barracks. 

The first school in Pottawattamie County 
was opened by George Green, a Mormon, 
at Council Point, prior to 1849; a "d until 
about 1S54 nearly all the teachers in that 
vicinity were Mormons. 

The first school in Decorah was taught in 
1855, by Cyrus C. Carpenter, since Gov 
ernor of the State. In Crawford County the 
first school-house was built in Mason's 
Grove, in 1856, and Morris McHenry first 
occupied it as teacher. 

During the first twenty years of the his- 
tory of Iowa, the log school-house pre- 
vailed, and in 1861 there were 893 of these 
primitive structures in use for school pur- 
poses in the State. Since that time they 
have been gradually disappearing. In 1865 
there were 796; in 1870, 336; and in 1875, 
121. 

In 1846, the year of Iowa's admission as 
a State, there were 20,000 scholars out of 
100,000 inhabitants. About 400 school dis- 
tricts had been organized. In 1850 there 
were 1,200, and in 1857 the number had in- 
creased to 3,265. 

In March, 1858, upon the recommenda- 
tion of Hon. M. L. Fisher, then Superin- 
tendent of Public Instruction, the seventh 
General Assembly enacted that" each civil 
township is declared a school district," and 
provided that these should be divided into 
sub-districts. This law went into force 
March 20, 1858, and reduced the number of 
school districts from about 3,500 to less than 
900. This change of school organization 
resulted in a very material reduction of the 
expenditures for the compensation of dis- 
trict secretaries and treasurers. An effort 
was made for several years, from 1867 to 
1872, to abolish the sub-district system. 
Mr. Kissell, Superintendent, recommended 
14 



this in his report of January 1, 1872, and 
Governor Merrill forcibly endorsed his 
views in his annual message. But the 
Legislature of that year provided for the 
formation of independent districts from the 
sub-districts of district townships. 

The system of graded schools was in- 
augurated in 1849, a "d new schools, in 
which more than one teacher is employed, 
are universally graded. 

Teachers' institutes were organized early 
in the history of the State. The first offi- 
cial mention of them occurs in the annual 
report of Hon. Thomas H. Benton, Jr., 
made December 2, 1850, who said : " An 
institution of this character was organized 
a few years ago, composed of the teachers 
of the mineral regions of Illinois, Wisconsin 
and Iowa. An association of teachers has 
also been formed in the county of Henry, 
and an effort was made in October last to 
organize a regular institute in the county 
of Jones." 

No legislation, however, was held until 
March, 1858, when an act was passed au- 
thorizing the holding of teachers' institutes 
for periods not less than six working days, 
whenever not less than thirty teachers 
should desire. The superintendent was 
authorized to expend not exceeding $ioo 
for any one institute, to be paid out by the 
county superintendent, as the institute may 
direct, for teachers and lecturers, and $1,- 
000 was appropriated to defray the expenses 
of these institutes. Mr. Fisher at once 
pushed the matter of holding institutes, and 
December 6, 1858, he reported to the Board 
of Education that institutes had been ap- 
pointed in twenty counties within the pre- 
ceding six months, and more would have 
been held but the appropriation had been 
exhausted. At the first session of the Board 
of Education, commencing December 6, 
1858, a code of school laws was enacted, 
which retained the existing provisions for 
teachers' institutes. In March, i860, the 



is6 



HISTORY OF IOWA. 



General Assembly amended the act of the 
board by appropriating " a sum not ex- 
ceeding $50 annually for one such institute, 
held as provided by law in each county." 
In 1865 the superintendent, Mr. Faville, re- 
ported that "the provision made by the 
State for the benefit of teachers' institutes 
has never been so fully appreciated, both 
by the people and the teachers, as during 
the last two years." Under this law an in- 
stitute is held annually in each count}', 
under the direction of the county superin- 
tendent. 

By an act approved March 19, 1874, nor- 
mal institutes were established in each 
county, to be held annually by the county 
superintendent. This was regarded as a 
very decided step in advance by Mr. Aber- 
nethy, and in 1876 the General Assembly 
established the first permanent State Nor- 
mal School at Cedar Falls, Black Hawk 
County, appropriating the building and 
property of the Soldiers' Orphans Home 
at that place for that purpose. This school 
is now " in the full tide of successful ex- 
periment." 

Funds for the support of the public 
schools are derived in several ways. The 
sixteenth section of every congressional 
township was set apart by the General 
Government lor school purposes, being 
one thirty-sixth part of all the lands of the 
State. The minimum price of these lands 
was fixed at $1.25 per acre. Congress also 
made an additional donation to the State of 
500,000 acres, and an appropriation of 5 
per cent, on all the sales of public lands to 
the school fund. The State gives to this 
fund the proceeds of the sales of all lands 
which escheat to it; the proceeds of all 
lines for the violation of the liquor and 
criminal laws. The money derived from 
these sources constitutes the permanent 
school fund of the State, which cannot be 
diverted to any other purpose. The pen- 
alties collected by the courts for fines and 



forfeitures go to the school fund in me. 
counties where collected. The proceeds 
of the sale of lands and the 5 per cent, fund 
go into the State Treasury, and the State 
distributes these proceeds to the several 
counties according to their request. 

In 1844 there were in the State 4,339 
school districts, containing 11,244 schools, 
and employing 21,776 teachers. The aver- 
age monthly pay of male teachers was 
$32.50, and of female teachers $27.25. There 
were 594,730 persons of school age, of whom 
431,513 were enrolled in the public schools. 
The average cost of tuition for each pupil 
per month was $1.62. The expenditures 
for all school purposes was $5,129,819.49. 
The permanent school fund is now $3,547,- 
123.82, on which the income for 1881 was 
$234,622.40. 

Besides the State University, Agricult- 
ural College and Normal School, described 
on preceding pages, ample provision for 
higher education has been made by the 
different religious denominations, assisted 
by local and individual beneficence. There 
are, exclusive of State institutions, twenty- 
three universities and colleges, and one 
hundred and eleven academies and other 
private schools for the higher branches. 
All these are in active operation, and most 
of them stand high. 

Amity College, located at College 
Springs, Page County, has eight instructors 
and two hundred and forty-live students. 

Burlington University, eight instructors 
and forty-three pupils. 

Callanan College, at Des Moines, has 
eighteen in the faculty and one hundred 
and twenty students enrolled. 

Central University, at Bella, Marion 
County, is under the auspices ol the Baptist 
church, and has eleven in the (acuity anil 
one hundred anil two students. 

Coe College, at Cedar Rapids, has a 
faculty of ten, and an attendance of one 
hundred and ninety-nine. 



Hisronr OP IOWA. 



157" 



Cornell College, Methodist Episcopal, at 
Mt. Vernon, Linn County, has eighteen 
members of the faculty and four hundred 
and seventy-nine scholars. This is a strong 
institution. 

Drake University, at Des Moines, has 
thirty instructors and three hundred and 
twenty -five pupils. 

Griswold College, at Davenport, is under 
the control of the Episcopal church, and 
has seven instructors and seventy-five stu- 
dents. 

Iowa College, at Grinnell, is permanently 
endowed. Has fourteen instructors and 
three hundred and eighty-four students. 

Iowa Wesleyan University (Methodist 
Episcopal), at Mt. Pleasant, has six mem- 
bers of the faculty and one hundred and 
seventy-five students. 

Luther College, at Decorah, Winneshiek 
County, has a faculty of ten, and one hun- 
dred and sixty-five pupils. 

Oskaloosa College has a faculty of five, 
and one hundred and thirty-five students. 

Penn College, at Oskaloosa, has a facultv 
of five members, and one hundred and forty 
pupils in attendance. 

Simpson Centenary College, at Indianola, 
Warren County (Methodist Episcopal), has 
a faculty of seven and an attendance of two 
hundred. 

Tabor College, at Tabor, Fremont 
County, modeled after the Oberlin (Ohio) 
College, has twelve members in the faculty 
and an attendance of two hundred and ten 
scholars. 

University of Des Moines has five in- 
structors and fifty pupils. 

Upper Iowa University (Methodist Epis- 
copal), located at Fayette, in Fayette 
County, has eleven instructors and three 
hundred and fifty students. 

Whittier College, at Salem, Henry 
Count)', is under the auspices of the 
Friends. There are two instructors and 
sixty pupils. 



STATISTICAL. 

When Wisconsin Territory was organ- 
ized in 1836, the entire population of that 
portion of the Territory now embraced in 
the State of Iowa was 10,531. The Terri- 
tory then embraced two counties, Dubuque 
and Des Moines, erected by the Territory 
of Michigan in 1834. Since then (he 
counties have increased to ninety-nine, and 
the population in 1880 was 1,624,463. The 
following table will show the population at 
different periods since the erection of Iowa 
Territory : 



Year. Population 

1S3S 22,589 

■84° 43.»5 

1S44 75.152 

1S46 97,588 

1S47 116,651 

1S49 15^988 

1850 191,9s.: 

l8 5' 204.774 

'852 230,713 

1854 326,013 

1S56 519.055 



Year Population 

'859 638,775 

i860 674,913 

'863 7oi.732 

1865 7150.699 

1S67 902 0)0 

IS69 I040SI9 

1870 1,191,727 

■S73 1.251.333 

1 S75 1 366,000 

1SS0 1,624 463 



The most populous county is Dubuque — ■ 
42,997. Polk County has 42,395, and Scott, 
41,270. Not only in population, but in 
everything contributing to the growth and 
greatness of a State, has Iowa made rapid 
progress. In a little more than thirty-five 
years its wild but beautiful prairies have 
advanced from the home of the savage to a 
highly civilized commonwealth. 

The first railroad across the State was 
completed to Council Bluffs in January, 
1 87 1. The completion of three others scon 
followed. In 1854 there was not a mile of 
railroad in Iowa. Within the succeeding 
twenty years, 3,765 miles were built and 
put in successful operation. 

The present value of buildings for our 
State institutions is as follows : 



Sta e Capitol $2,500,000 

State University. 400,000 
Agricultural Col 

and Farm .... 300,000 
Inst, for the ISlind 150,000 
Institution for the 

Deaf and Dumb 



225,000 



Institutions for the 

Insane $1,149,000 

Orphans' H me.. 62,000 
Penitentiaries.... 408,000 
Normal School. . 50,000 
Reform School. . 90,000 



J53 



IltSTORr OF loWA. 



The State has never levied more than 
two and one-half mills on the dollar for 
State tax, and this is at present the consti- 
tutional limit. 

Iowa has no State debt. Whatever obli- 
gations have been incurred in the past have 
been promptly met and fully paid. Many 
nl the counties are in debt, but only lour of 
them to an amount exceeding $100,000 each. 
The bonded debt of the counties amounts 
in the aggregate to $2,592,222. and the float- 
ing debt, $153,456; total, $2,745,678. 

In the language of Judge C. C. Noursc, 
we feel compelled to say : " The great ulti- 
mate fact that America would demonstrate 
is, the existence of a people capable of at- 
taining and preserving a superior civiliza- 
tion, with a government self-imposed, self- 
administered and self-perpetuated. In this 
age of wonderful progress, America can 
exhibit nothing to the world of mankind 
more wonderful or more glorious than her 
new States — young empires, born of her 
own enterprise and tutored at her own 
political hearth-stone. Well may she say 
to the monarchies of the Old World, who 
look for evidence of her regal grandeur 
and state, ' Behold, these are my jewels !' 
and may she never blush to add, ' This one 
in the center of the diadem is Iowa !' " 

PHYSICAL FEATURES. 

Iowa, in the highly figurative and ex- 
pressive language ol the aborigines, is said 
to signify " The Beautiful Land," and was 
applied by them to this magnificent section 
of the country between the t wo great rivers. 

The general shape of the State is that of 
a rectangle, the northern and southern 
boundaries being due east and west lines, 
and its eastern and western boundaries de- 
termined by southerly flowing rivers — the 
Mississippi on the cast and the Missouri 
and the Big Sioux on the west. The width 
ol t he State from north to south is over 200 

miles, being from the parallel of 43 30' to 



that of 40° 36', or merely three degrees; 
but this does not include the small angle at 
the southeast corner. The length ot the 
State from east to west is about 265 miles. 
The area is 55,044 square miles, nearly all 
of which is readily tillable and highly fer- 
tile. 

The State lies wholly within, and com- 
prises a part of a vast plain, and there is no 
mountainous or even hilly country within 
its borders, excepting the bluffs of the large' 
rivers. The highest point is near Spirit 
Lake, and is but 1 ,200 feet above the lowest, 
which is in the southeast corner, and is 444 
feet above the level of the Gulf of Mexico. 
The average descent per mile between these 
two points is four feet, and that from Spirit 
Lake to the northeast corner of the State, 
at low-water mark of the Mississippi, is five 
feet five inches. 

It has been estimated that about seven- 
eighths of Iowa was prairie when the white 
race first settled here. It seems to be a set- 
tled point in science that the annual fires of 
the Indians, prevented this western country 
from becoming heavily timbered. 

GEOLOGY. 

Geologists divide the soil of Iowa into 
three general divisions, which not only 
possess different physical characters, hut 
also differ in the mode of their origin. 
These are drift, bluff and alluvial and be- 
long respectively to the deposits bearing 
the same names. The drift occupies a 
much larger part of the surface of the State 
than both the others. The bluff has the 
next greatest area ol surface. 

All soil is disintegrated rock. The drift 
deposit of Iowa was derived to a consider- 
able extent from the rocks of Minnesota; 
but the greater part was derived from its 
own rocks, much of which has been trans- 
ported but a short distance. In Northern 
and Northwestern Iowa the drift contains 
more sand and gravel than elsewhere. In 



H AS TORT OF low A. 



159 



Southern Iowa the soil is frequently stiff 
and clayey. The bluff soil is found only in 
the western part of the State, and adjacent 
to Missouri River. Although it contains 
less than 1 per cent, of clay in its com- 
position, it is in no respect inferior to the 
best drift soil. The alluvial soil is that of 
the flood plains of the river valleys, or bot- 
tom lands. That which is periodically 
flooded by the rivers is of little value for 
agricultural purposes; but a large part of 
it is entirely above the reach of the highest 
flood, and is very productive. 

The stratified rocks of Iowa range from 
the Azoic to the Mesozoic, inclusive ; but 
the greater portion of the surface of the 
State is occupied by those of the Palaeozoic 
age. The table below will show each of 
these formations in their order: 




~ <S* OOO^ <*>--n O ^1 \£> VO 

OOOOCOO'JiCMO 



O O O Ls> '*n O 
OOOOOO 



The Sioux quartzite, in the azoic system, 
is found exposed in natural ledges only 
upon a few acres in the extreme northwest 
corner of the State, upon the banks of the 
Big Sioux River, for which reason the 
specific name of Sioux quartzite has been 
given them. It is an intensely hard rock, 
breaks in splintery fracture, and of a color 
varying, in different localities, from a light 
to deep red. The process of metamorphism 
has been so complete throughout the whole 
formation that the rock is almost every- 
where of uniform texture. The dip is four 
or five degrees to the northward, and the 
trend of the outcrop is eastward and west- 
ward. 

The Potsdam sandstone formation is ex- 
posed only in a small portion of the north- 
eastern part of the State. It is only to be 
seen in the bases of the bluffs and steep 
valley sides which border the river there. 
It is nearly valueless for economic purposes. 
No fossils have been discovered in this for- 
mation in Iowa. 

The Lower Magnesian limestone has but 
little greater geographical extent in Iowa 
than the Potsdam sandstone. It lacks a 
uniformity of texture and stratification, ow- 
ing to which it is not generally valuable for 
building purposes. 

The St. Peter's sandstone formation is 
remarkably uniform in thickness through- 
out its known geographical extent, and it 
occupies a large portion of the northern 
half of Allamakee County; immediately be- 
neath the drift. 

With the exception of the Trenton lime- 
stone, all the limestones of both Upper and 
Lower Silurian age in Iowa are magnesian 
limestone. This formation occupies large 
portions of Winneshiek and Allamakee 
counties, and a small part of Clayton. The 
greater part of it is useless for economic 
purposes ; but there are some compact, 
even layers that furnish fine material for 
window caps and sills. 



l6o 



History of low a. 



The Galena limestone is the upper for- 
mation of the Trenton Group. It is 150 
miles long and seldom exceeds twelve miles 
in width. It exhibits its greatest develop- 
ment in Dubuque County. It is nearly a 
pure dolomite with a slight admixture of 
silicious matter; good blocks for dressing 
are sometimes found near the top of the 
bed, although it is usually unfit for such a 
purpose. This formation is the source of 
the lead ore of the Dubuque lead mines. 
The lead region proper is confined to an 
area of about fifteen miles square in the 
vicinity of Dubuque. The ore occurs in 
vertical fissures, which traverse the rock at 
regular intervals from east to west; some 
is found in those which have a north and 
south direction. This ore is mostly that 
known as galena, or sulphuret of lead, very 
small quantities only of the carbonate being 
found with it. 

The surface occupied by the Maquoketa 
shales is more than 100 miles in length, but 
is singularly long and narrow, seldom reach- 
ing more than a mile or two in width. The 
most northern exposure yet recognized is 
in the western part of Winneshiek County, 
while the most southerly is in Jackson 
Count}', in the bluffs of the Mississippi. 
The formation is largely composed of bluish 
and brownish shales, sometimes slightly 
arenaceous, sometimes calcareous, which 
weather into a tenacious clay upon the sur- 
face, and the soil derived from it is usually 
stiff and clayey. 

The area occupied by the Niagara lime- 
stone is forty and fifty miles in width and 
nearly 160 miles long from north to south. 
This formation is entirely a magnesian lime- 
stone, with a considerable portion ol sili 
cious matter, in some places, in the form of 
chert or coarse flint. A large part of it 
probably affords the best and greatest 
amount ol quarry rock in the State. The 
quarries at Anamosa, Le Claire and Farley 
are all opened in this formation 



The area of surface occupied by the 
Hamilton limestone and shales, is as great 
as those by all the formations of both Upper 
and Lower Silurian age in the State. Its 
length is nearly 200 miles, and width from 
forty to fifty. Portions of it are valuable 
for economic purposes ; and, having a large 
geographical extent in the State, is a very 
important formation. Its value for the pro- 
duction of hydraulic lime has been demon- 
strated at Waverly, Bremer County. The 
heavier and more uniform magnesian beds 
furnish material for bridge piers and other 
material requiring strength and durability. 
A coral occurs near Iowa City, known as 
" Iowa City marble" and " bird's-eye mar- 
ble." 

Of the three groups of formations that 
constitute the carboniferous, viz., the sub- 
carboniferous, coal measures and Permian, 
only the first two are found in Iowa. 

The Subcarboniferous group occupies a 
very large area of surface. Its eastern 
border passes from the northeastern part of 
Winnebago County, with considerable di- 
rectness in a southeasterly direction to the 
northern part of Washington County. It 
then makes a broad and direct bend nearly 
eastward, striking the Mississippi at Mus- 
catine. The southern and western bound- 
aries are to a considerable extent the saun- 
as that which separates it from the real 
field. From the southern part of Poca 
hontas County it passes southeast to Fori 
Dodge, thence to Webster City, thence to 
a point three or four miles northeast ol El- 
dora, in Hardin County, thence southward 
to tin' middle of the north line of Jasper 
County, thence southeastward to Sigour- 
ney, in Keokuk County, thence to the north- 
eastern corner of Jefferson County, thence 
s» eeping a few miles eastward to the south- 
east corner of Van Buren County. Its arc 
is about 250 miles long and from twenty to 
fifty miles wide. 

The most southerly exposure of the Kin- 



msrottr of tow A. 



if>i 



derhook beds is in Des Moines County, 
near the mouth of Skunk River. The most 
northerly now known is in the eastern part 
of Pocahontas County, more than 200 miles 
distant. The principal exposures of this 
formation are along the bluffs which border 
the Mississippi and Skunk rivers, where 
they form the eastern and northern bound- 
ary of Des Moines County; along English 
River, in Washington Count}' ; along the 
Iowa River, in Tama, Marshall, Hamlin 
and Franklin counties, and along the Des 
Moines River, in Humboldt County. This 
formation has a considerable economic 
value, particularly in the northern portion 
of the region it occupies. In Pocahontas 
and Humboldt counties it is invaluable, as 
no other stone except a few boulders are 
found here. At Iowa Falls the lower 
division is very good for building purposes. 
In Marshall County all the limestone to be 
obtained comes from this formation, and 
the quarries near Le Grand are very valu- 
able. At this point some of the layers are 
finely veined with peroxide of iron, and are 
wrought into both useful and ornamental 
objects. In Tama County the oolitic mem- 
ber is well exposed, where it is manufact- 
ured into lime. Upon exposure to atmos- 
phere and frost it crumbles to pieces; 
consequently it is not valuable for building 
purposes. 

The Burlington limestone is carried down 
by the southerly dip of the Iowa rocks, so 
that it is seen for the last time in this State 
in the valley of Skunk River, near the 
southern boundary of Des Moines County; 
it has been recognized in the northern part 
of Washington County, which is the most 
northerly point that it has been found ; but 
it probably exists as far north as Marshall 
County. Much valuable material is afforded 
by this formation for economic purposes. 
The upper division furnishes excellent com- 
mon quarry rock. Geologists are attracted 
by the great abundance and variety of its 



fossils — crinoids — now known to be more 
than 300. 

The Keokuk limestone formation is to be 
seen only in four counties : Lee, Van Buren, 
Henry and Des Moines. In some localities 
the upper silicious portion is known as the 
Geode bed ; it is not recognizable in the 
northern portion of the formation, nor in 
connection with it where it is exposed, 
about eighty miles below Keokuk. The 
geodes of the Geode bed are more or less 
masses of silex, usually hollow and lined 
with crystals of quartz; the outer crust is 
rough and unsightly, but the crystals which 
stud the interior are often very beautiful ; 
they vary in size from the size of a walnut 
to a foot in diameter. This formation is of 
great economic value. Large quantities 
of its stone have been used in the finest 
structures in the State, among which are 
the postoffices at Dubuque and Des Moines. 
The principal quarries are along the banks 
of the Mississippi, from Keokuk to Nauvoo. 

The St. Louis limestone is the uppermost 
of the subcarboniferous group in Iowa. It 
occupies a small superficial area, consisting 
of long, narrow strips, yet its extent is very 
great. It is first seen resting on the Geode 
division of the Keokuk limestone, near Keo- 
kuk ; proceeding northward, it forms a 
narrow border along the edge of the coal 
fields in Lee, Des Moines, Henry, Jeffer- 
son, Washington, Keokuk and Mahaska 
counties ; it is then lost sight of until it 
appears again in the banks of Boone River, 
where it again passes out of view under the 
Coal Measures, until it is next seen in the 
banks of the Des Moines, near Fort Dodge. 
As it exists in Iowa, it consists of three 
tolerably distinct sub-divisions : The mag- 
nesian, arenaceous and calcareous. The 
upper division furnishes excellent material 
for quicklime, and when quarries are well 
opened, as in the northwestern part of Van 
Buren County, large blocks are obtained. 
The sandstone, or middle division, is of 



1 62 



/t /STORY OF /OHM. 



little value. The lower, or magnesian di- 
vision, furnishes a valuable and durable 
stone, exposures of which arc found on Lick 
Creek, in Van Buren County, and on Long 
Creek, seven miles west of Burlington. 

The Coal Measure group is properly 
divided into three formations, viz.: The 
Lower, Middle and Upper Coal Measures, 
each having a vertical thickness of about 
200 feet. The Lower Coal Measures exist 
eastward and northward of the Des Moines 
River, and also occupy a large area west- 
ward and southward of that river, but their 
southerly dip passes them below the Middle 
Coal Measures at no great distance from 
the river. This formation possesses greater 
economic value than any other in the whole 
State. The clay that underlies almost every 
bed of coal furnishes a large amount of ma- 
terial for potter's use. The sandstone of 
these measures is usually soft and unfit, but 
in some places, as in Red Rock in Marion 
County, blocks of large dimensions are ob- 
tained, which make good building material, 
samples of which can be seen in the State 
Arsenal, at Des Moines. 

The Upper Coal Measures occupy a 
very large area, comprising thirteen whole 
counties, in the southwestern part of the 
State. By its northern and eastern bound- 
aries it adjoins the area occupied by the 
Middle Coal Measures. 

The next strata in the geological series 
are of the Cretaceous age. They are found 
in the western half of the State, and do not 
dip, as do all the other formations upon 
which they rest, to the southward and west- 
ward, but have a general dip of their own 
to the north of westward, which, however, 
is very slight. Although the actual ex- 
posures of cretaceous rocks are few in Iowa, 
there is reason to believe thct nearly all the 
western half of the Slate was originally 
occupied by them ; but they have been 
removed by denudation, which has taken 
place at two separate periods. 



The Nishnabotany sandstone has the most 
easterly and southerly extent of the cre- 
taceous deposits of Iowa, reaching the 
southeastern part of Guthrie County and 
the southern part of Montgomery County. 
To the northward, it passes beneath the 
Woodbury sandstones and shales, the latter 
passing beneath the chalky beds. This 
sandstone is, with few exceptions, valueless 
for economic purposes. 

The chalky beds rest upon the Wood- 
bury sandstone and shales. Thev have not 
been observed in Iowa except in the bluffs 
which border the Big Sioux River in Wood- 
bury and Plymouth counties. The}' are 
composed almost entirely of calcareous ma- 
terial, the upper portion of which is exten- 
sively used for lime. No building material 
can be obtained from these beds, and the 
only value they possess, except lime, are 
the marls, which at some time may be use- 
ful on the soil of the adjacent region. 

Extensive beds of peat exist in Northern 
Middle Iowa, which, it is estimated, contain 
the following areas: Cerro Gordo Count y, 
1,500 acres; Worth, 2,000; Winnebago, 2,- 
000; Hancock, 1,500; Wright, 500; Kos- 
suth, 700; Dickinson, So. Several other 
counties contain peat beds, but the peat is 
inferior to that in the northern part of the 
State. The beds are of an average depth 
of four feet. It is estimated that each acre 
of these beds will furnish 250 tons of drv 
fuel for each foot in depth. At present 
this peat is not utilized ; but owing to its 
great distance from the coal fields and the 
absence of timber, the time is coming when 
its value will be fully realized. 

The only sulphate of the alkaline earths 
of any economic value is gypsum, and it 
may be found in the vicinity of Fort Dodge 
in Webster County. The deposit occupies 
a nearly central position in the county, the 
Des Moines River running nearly centrally 
through it, along the valley sides of which 
the gypsum is seen in the form of ordinary 









HISTORY OF IOWA. 



»63 



rock cliff and ledges, and also occurring 
abundantly in similar positions along both 
sides of the valleys of the smaller streams 
and of the numerous ravines coming into 
the river valley. The most northerly known 
limit of the deposit is at a point near the 
mouth of Lizard Creek, a tributary of the 
Des Moines River and almost adjoining the 
town of Fort Dodge. The most southerly 
point at which it has been exposed is about 
six miles, by way of the river, from the 
northerly point mentioned. The width of 
the area is unknown, as the gypsum be- 
comes lost beneath the overlying drift, as 
one goes up the ravines and minor valleys. 

On either side of the creeks and ravines 
which come into the valley of the Des 
Moines River, the gypsum is seen jutting 
out from beneath the drift in the form of 
ledges and bold quarry fronts, having al- 
most the exact appearance of ordinary lime- 
stone exposures, so horizontal and regular 
its lines of stratification, and so similar in 
color is it to some varieties of that rock. 
The principal quarries now opened are on 
Two Mile Creek, a couple of miles below 
Fort Dodge. 

Epsomite, or native Epsom salts, having 
been discovered near Burlington, all the 
sulphates of alkaline earths of natural origin 
have been recognized in Iowa, all except 
the sulphate of lime being in very small 
quantity. 

Sulphate of lime in the various forms of 
fibrous gypsum, selenite and small, amor- 
phous masses, has also been discovered in 
various formations in different parts of the 
State, including the Coal Measure shales 
near Fort Dodge, where it exists in small 
quantities, quite independently of the great 
gypsum of deposit there. The quantity of 
gypsum in these minor deposits is always 
too small to be of any practical value, 
usually occurring in shales and shaly clays, 
associated with strata that contain more or 
less sulphuret of iron. Gypsum has thus 



been detected in the Coal Measures, the St. 
Louis limestone, the Cretaceous strata, and 
also in the dead caves of Dubuque. 

Sulphate of strontia is found at Fort 
Dodge. 

CLIMATE. 

The greatest objection to the climate of 
this State is the prevalence of wind, which 
is somewhat greater than in the States south 
and east, but not so great as farther west. 
The air is purer than either east or south, 
as indicated by the bluer sky and conse- 
quent deeper green vegetation, and is 
therefore more bracing. By way of con- 
trast, Northern Illinois has a whiter sky 
and a consequent more yellowish green 
vegetation. 

The prevailing direction of the wind is 
from the west. 

Thunder-storms are somewhat more vio- 
lent here than east or south, but not so 
furious as toward the Rocky Mountains. 
The greatest rainfall is in the southeastern 
part of the State, and the least in the north- 
western portion. The increase of timber 
growth is increasing the amount of rain, as 
well as distributing it more evenly through- 
out the year. As elsewhere in the North- 
western States, easterly winds bring rain 
and snow, while westerly ones clear the skv- 
While the highest temperature occurs here 
in August, the month of July averages the 
hottest, and January the coldest. The mean 
temperature of April and October nearly 
corresponds to the mean temperature of 
the year, as well as to the seasons of spring 
and fall, while that of summer and winter 
is best represented by August and Decem- 
ber. Indian summer is delightful and well 
prolonged. Untimely frosts sometimes oc- 
cur, but seldom severely enough to do 
great injury. The wheat crop being a 
staple product of this State, and not injured 
at all by frost, this great resource of the 
State continues intact. 



If>4 



tilSTORT OF rowA 



CENSUS OF IOWA. 



(.'DIN 1 IIS. 



Adair 

Adams 

Allamakee 

Appanoose . . . 

Audubon 

Benton 

Black Hawk.. 

Boone 

Bremer 

Buchanan 

Buena Vista.. . 

Butler 

Calhoun 

Carroll 

Cass 

Cedar 

Cerro Gordo. . 

Cherokee 

Chickasaw 

Clarke 

Clay 

Clayton 

Clinton 

Crawford 

Dallas 

Davis 

Decatur 

Delaware 

Des Moines.. . 

Dickinson 

Dubuque 

Emmett 

Favette , 

Floyd 

Franklin 

Fremont 

Greene 

Grundy , 

Guthiie 

Hamilton 

Hancock 

Hardin 

Harrison 

Henry 

Howard 

Humboldt 

Ida 

Iowa 

Jackson 

Jasper 

JcH'erson 

Johnson 

Jones 

Keokuk 

Kossuth 

Lee 

Linn 

Louisa 

Lucas 

Lyon 

Madison 

Mahaska 

Marion 

Marshall 

Mills... . 



1S50 



i860. 



777 
3,i3' 



6 7 2 

'35 
735 



517 



3.91' 



709 



3,«73 

2,82 2 



854 
7,264 

965 

',759 
12,98s 



10,841 



82s 



1,244 



8,707 



82 

7.210 
1,280 
9,9°4 
4.473 
3,007 
4,822 



i8,S6i 

5,444 

4,939 

47' 

','79 
5989 

5.482 
338 



1S70. 



984 
1,533 

12,237 

",93' 

, 454 
8,406 

8,244 
4,232 
4,9 '5 
7,906 

57 

3,724 

'47 

281 

1,612 

'2,949 
940 

58 
4-33 6 

5.42 7 

52 

20,728 

i8,93S 

383 

5,244 

'3,764 

8,h77 

11,024 

19,611 

1 jo 

31,164 

105 

12,073 

3,744 

i,3°9 

5,o74 

J, 374 

793 

3,058 

1,699 

179 

5,440 

3,621 

18,701 

3,168 

332 

43 
8,029 

'8.493 
9,88.3 
15,038 
'7-573 
13,306 

■3,27 
416 

29,232 

18,947 

'0,370 
5,766 

7,339 

14.816 

16813 

6,o'i5 

h48> 



3.9S2 

4,614 

I7.S68 

16,456 

1,212 

22,454 
21,706 

M.584 
12,52^ 

17.034 

1 ,585 

9,95 ' 
1,602 

2,45' 
5.464 
'9.73 ' 
4,72 2 
1,96 
10,180 
8,735 
1.5- 
27.77 
35.35 
2.530 
12,011 
1.5.56 
12,01! 

'7,43 
27,2 <;6 

',389 
38,969 

1,392 
16,973 
10,768 

4,7 > 
11,174 

4,627 
6,399 
7,o6i 

6,055 

999 

13,684 

8,931 
21,463 

6,282 

2,596 

22b 

16,664 

22,619 

22,116 

■7.S39 
24,898 

'9,731 
■9 434 

3,35i 
37,2io 
28,Sq 

2,87. 
10,388 

221 

13,884 
22,508 
24.436 
'7,576 

S,7'8 



1SS0. 



11,199 

11,188 

'9.791 
16,636 

744^ 
24.SS8 

23 9'3 
20,83s 
14,081 
'8,547 

7,537 
14,293 

5 595 
'2.35' 
16.943 
' s 937 
1 1,4b! 

8,240 

14.534 
1 1,512 
4.248 
28,829 
36,764 
12,41.3 
18,746 
16,468 
'5.336 
'7.952 

33.099 
1,901 

42,997 
i,55o 

22,2 sS 

14,677 

10.248 

17,653 
12,725 

12,639 

14,863 

11,252 

3,453 
17,808 

16,649 
20,826 
10,837 

6,34i 

4,382 
19,221 

23,771 
25.962 
17.478 
-'5.42 V 
21,052 
2 1, 2 =,9 
6,179 
34,S59 
37,235 
■3.146 

■4,.' 3" 
1,968 

17,225 
25,201 
25,1 1 1 
23,752 

'I.Ms 



I OIXTIF.S. 



Mitchell 

Monona 

Monroe 

Montgomery. . . 
Muscatine... . 

O'Brien 

Osceola 

Page 

Palo Alto 

Plymouth 

Pocahontas. . . . 

Polk .. 

Pottawattamie. . 

Poweshiek 

Ringgold 

Sac 

Scott 

Shelby 

Sioux 

Storv 

Tama 

Taylor 

Union 

Van Buren. . . 

Wapello 

Warren 

Washington. . . 

Wayne 

Webster 

Winnebago. . . . 

Winneshiek 

Woodburv 

Worth...". 

Wright 



Total. 



1S50. 



2S84 
5,73' 



55 



4,5'3 

7 ,S28 

6'5 



5,986 



8 
204 

12,270 

8,471 
961 

4.957 
340 



546 



192,214 



i860. 



3.409 

o 8 3- 
8,612 

1,256 

16,444 
8 



1870. 



9,582 

3.654 
12.724 

5.934 
21,688 

7'5 



4.419 

148 

i°3 

11,625 
4.968 
5,668 

2.923 
246 

2.5.959 
S18 
10 
4P5 

5.2S5 

3.590 

2,012 
1 7,08 1 
14.518 
10,281 

14,235 

6,409 

2,504 

16S 

13,942 

1,119 

756 

653 



674.91.3 



9,975 
'.336 
2,199 
1,446 

27-S57 
16,893 

«5.S81 

5,691 

1,411 

3S.509 

2,549 

57o 

11,651 

16,131 

6,989 

5.9S6 

17,672 

22,346 

i7, 9 So 

18.952 

n,2S7 

10,484 

1,562 

23,57° 
6,172 
2,892 
2,392 



1880. 



M,36i 
9,055 
i3,7'9 
■5,S95 
23,i6S 

4,155 

2,219 

19,667 

4,131 
8,s67 

3,7 '3 
42,395 
39.S46 
18,936 
12,085 

8,77-t 
41,270 
12,696 

5,426 
16,966 
21,585 
15,635 
14.980 
17,042 

25.2S2 

19.578 

20,375 
l6,I27 

15.950 

4,9 '7 

23.937 

14,997 

7.953 

5.062 



,191,792 1,624,463 



TERRITORIAL OFFICERS. 

Governors. — Robert Lucas, 1838-41; John 
Chamber, i84i-'4S ; James Clark, [845. 

Secretaries. — Wm. B. Conway, 1S3S, died 
1839; James Clark, i83o-'4i ; O. H. W. 
Stull, 1841-43; Samuel J. Burr, 1S43-45 ; 
Jesse Williams, 1845. 

Auditors. — Jesse Williams, 1840- '43; Will- 
iam L.Gilbert, 1843-45; Robert M. Secrest, 

1845. 

Treasurers. — Thornton Baylie, 1S39-40; 
Morgan Reno, 1840. 

Judges- — Charles Mason, Chief Justice. 
1838; Joseph Williams, 1838; Thomas S. 
Wilson, 1838. 

Presidents of Council. — Jesse B. Brown, 
1838-49; Stephen Hempstead, 1839 '40; M. 
Bainridge, 1840-41; J. W. Parker, 1841 '42: 
John I). Libert. 1842-43; Thomas Cox, 



HISTOItr OF IOWA. 



165 



1843-44; S. Clinton Hasting, 1845; Stephen 
Hempstead, i845~'46. 

Speakers of the House. — William H. Wal- 
lace, i838-'39; Edward Johnson, 1839-40; 
Thomas Cox, 1 840-71 ; Warner Lewis, 
i84i-'42; James M. Morgan, 1842-43; James 
P. Carleton, 1843-44; James M. Morgan, 
1845 : George W. McLeary, 1845-46. 

STATE OFFICERS. 

Governors. — Ansel Briggs, i846-'5o; 
Stephen Hempstead, 1850-54: James W. 
Grimes, 1854-58; Ralph P. Lowe, 1858- 
'60; Samuel J. Kirkwood, i86o-'64 ; Will- 
iam M. Stone, i864-'68; Samuel Morrill, 
i868-'/2; Cyrus C. Carpenter, i872-'76; 
Samuel J. Kirkwood, i876-'77;J. G. New- 
bold, 1877-78; John H. Gear, 1878-82; 
Buren R. Sherman, i882-'86; William Lar- 
rabee, 1886. 

Lieutenant-Governors. — Oran Faville,iS58- 
'60; Nicholas J. Rusch, iS6o-'62; John R. 
Needham, iS62-'64; Enoch W. Eastman, 
i864-'66; Benjamin F. Gue, i866-'68 ; John 
Scott, 1868-70; M. M. Walden, 1870-72; 
H. C. Bulis, 1872-74; Joseph Dysart, 
1874-76; Joshua G. Newbold, 1876-78 ; 
Frank T. Campbell, 1878-82; Orlando H. 
Manning, 1882-85 5 John A. T. Hull, 1886. 

This office was created by the new con- 
stitution Sept. 3, 1857. 

Secretaries of State. — Elisha Cutter, Jr., 
i846-'48; Joseph H. Bonney, i848-'5o; 
George W. McCleary, i85o-'56; Elijah 
Sells, 1856— '63 ; James Wright, 1863-67; 
Ed. Wright, 1867-73 ; Josiah T. Young, 
1873-79 : J- A. T. Hull, 1879-85 ; Franklin 
D. Jackson, 1885. 

Auditors of State. — Joseph T. Fales, 
i846-'50; William Pattee, i850-'54; Andrew 
J. Stevens, 1 854— '5 5 ; John Pattee, 1855— '59 ; 
Jonathan W. Cattell, i8sg-'65 ; John A. 
Elliott, 1865-71; John Russell, 1871-75 ; 
Buren R. Sherman, 1875-81; Wm. V. 
Lucas, 1881 ; John L. Brown, i882-'83 ; J. 
W. Cattell, acting, 1885-86. 



Treasurers of State. — Morgan Reno, 
i846-'5o; Israel Kister, i85o-'52 ; Martin L. 
Morris, 1852— '59 ; John W. Jones, 1859— '63 » 
William H. Holmes, i863-'67; Samuel E. 
Rankin, 1867-73 ; William Christy, 1873- 
77; George W. Bemis, 1 S77— '8 1 ; Edwin 
H. Conger, 1881— '85 ; Voltaire Twombly, 
1885. 

Attorney-Generals. — David C. Cloud, 
1853— '56 ; Samuel A. Rice, i856-'6o; Charles 
C. Nourse, i86o-'64; Isaac L. Allen, 1S65- 
'66; Frederick E. Bissell, i866-'67; Henry 
O'Connor, 1867-72; Marcena E. Cutts, 
1872-76; John F. Mcjunkin, 1877-81 ; 
Smith McPherson, 1881-85 ; A. J. Baker, 
1885. 

Adjutant-Generals. — Daniel S. Lee, 185 1 — 
'55; George W. McCleary, 1855-57; Eli- 
jah Sells, 1857; Jesse Bowen, 1857— '61 .Na- 
thaniel Baker, 1861-77; John H. Looby, 
1877-78; W. L, Alexander, 1878-84. 

Registers of the State Land-Office. — Anson 
Hart, 1S55— '57 ; Theodore S. Parvin, 1857- 
'59; Amos B. Miller, i859-'62 ; Edwin 
Mitchell, i862-'63; Josiah A. Harvey, 
i863-'67; Cyrus C. Carpenter, 1867-71; 
Aaron Brown, 1871-75 ; David Secor, 
1 875-79 ! J- K. Powers, i879-'82.* 

Superintendents of Public Instruction. — 
James Harlan, 1847- '48; Thos. H. Benton, 
Jr., i848-'54; James D. Eads, 1854— '57 , 
Joseph C. Stone, 1857; Maturin L. Fisher, 
1857-58; Oran Faville, 1S64-67; D.Frank- 
lin Wells, 1867-68 ; A. S. Kissell, 1868-72; 
Alonzo Abernethy, 1872-76; Carl W. 
Van Coelen, i876-'82; John W. Akers, 
1882-84. 

This office was created in 1S47 and abol- 
ished in 1858, and the duties then devolved 
upon the secretary of the Board of Educa- 
tion ; it was re-created March 23, 1864. 

State Printers. — Garrett D. Palmer and 
George Paul, iS49-'5i ; William H. Merritt, 
1851— '53 ; William A. Hornish, 1853 ; Den- 

*Office abolished January 1, looj, and i'.uti« devolved 
on the Secretary of State 



166 



I II. STORY OF IOWA. 



nis A. Mahoncy and Joseph B. Dorr, 1853 
'55 ; Peter Moriarty, 1S55— '57 ; John Tees- 
dale, iS57-'6i ; Francis W. Palmer, 1S61- 
C.j; Frank M. Mills, i86q-*7i ; G. W. Ed- 
wards, 1 87 1 -'73 I Rich. P. Clarkson, 1873— 
•79; Frank 11. Mills, i87o-'8i ; Geo. E. 
Roberts, 1881. 

State Binders. — William M. Coles, 1855— 
'58; Frank M. Mills, i858-'67 ; James S. 
Carter, 1867-71 ; J.J. Smart, 1871-75; H. 
A. Perkins, 1875-79; Matt. Parrott, 1879- 
'85; L. S. Merchant, 1885. 

Secretaries of Board of Education. — T. 
II. Benton, Jr., i85o-'63; Oran Faville, 
1863-64. 

This office was abolished March 23, 1864. 

Presidents of the Senate. — Thomas Baker, 
i846-'47; Thomas Hughes, 1847-48; John J. 
Selman, 1848-49; Enos Lowe, i849-'5i ; 
Win. E. Leffingwell, 185 1-*53 ; Maturn L. 
Fisher, i853-'5 5 ; Wm. W. Hamilton, 855- 

'57- 

Under the new Constitution the Lieuten- 
ant-Governor is President of the Senate. 

Speakers of the House. — Jesse B. Brown, 
1846-48; Smiley H. Bonham, i848-'5o; 
George Temple, i85o-'52; James Grant, 
i852-'54; Reuben Noble, 1854— '56 ; Samuel 
McFarland, iS56-'57; Stephen B. Sheledy, 
1 857— "59 ; John Edwards, i8S9-'6i ; Rush 
Clark, 1861-63; Jacob Butler, 1863-65; Ed. 
Wright, 1865-67; John Russell, i867-'69; 
Aylett R. Cotton, 1869— '71 ; James Wilson, 
1871-73; John H. Geer, 1873-77; John Y. 
Stone, i877-'79; Lore Alford, i88o-'8i ; G. 
R. Struble, 1882-83; Wm. P. Wolf, 1884; 
Albert Head, 1886. 

Chief Justices of the Supreme Court. — 
Charles Mason, 1847; Joseph Williams, 
1 847-48; S. Clinton Hastings, i848-'49; 
Joseph Williams, i849-'55 ; George G. 
Wright, 1855-60; Ralph P. Lowe, i86o-'62; 
Caleb Baldwin, iS62-'64; George G. 
Wright, 1864-66; Ralph P. Lowe, 1S66- 

r*, )ohr? F. r»ii-->n 1868 '70; Chester C. 



Cole, 1870-71 ; James G. Day, 1871-'/.!; 
Joseph M. Beck, 1872-74; W. E Miilcr, 
i874-'76; Chester C. Cole, 1876; Wm. H. 
Seevers, i876-'77; James G. Day, 1877— '78; 
James H. Rothrock, i878-'83 and '84; 
Joseph M. Beck, i87o-'8o and '85 ; Austin 
Adams, i88o-'8i and 'S6; Wm. H. Seevers, 
1882. 

Associate Justices. — Joseph Williams, held 
over from territorial government until a 
successor was appointed ; Thomas S. Wil- 
son, 1847; John F. Kinney, iS47-'54; George 
Greene, i847-'55 ; Jonathan C. Hall, 1854- 
'55; William G. Woodward, 1855 ; Norman 
W. [shell, 1 S55— '56 ; Lacon D.Stockton, 
i856-'6o; Caleb Baldwin, i86b-'64; Ralph 
P. Lowe, 1S60; George G Wright, i860; 
John F. Dillon, i864-'70; Chester C. Cole, 
1864-77; Joseph M. Beck, 1868; W. E. 
Miller, 1870; James G. Day, 1870. 

United States Senators. — Augustus C. 
Dodge, 1 848-' 5 5 ; George W. Jones, 1848- 
'59; James Harlan, 1S55— '65 ; James W. 
Grimes, i859-'69; Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
1866; James Harlan, 1 867-73 ; James B. 
Howell, 1870; George G. Wright, 1871- 
'7j; William B. Allison, 1873-79; Samuel 
J. Kirkwood, i877-'8i ; Wm. B. Allison, 
1879-85 ; James W. McDill, 1881 ; James 
F. Wilson, 1883. 

Present State Officers (1886). — Governor, 
William Larrabee ; Secretary of State, 
Frank D. Jackson ; Auditor of State, J. W. 
Cattell, acting ; Treasurer, Voltaire Twom- 
bly ; Superintendent Public Instruction. 
John W. Akers ; Printer, George E. Rob- 
erts; Binder, L. S. Merchant; Adjutant- 
General, W. L. Alexander- Librarian, Mrs. 
S. B. Maxwell. 

Supreme Court. — William H. Seevers, 
Chief Justice, Oskaloosa; James G. Day, 
Sidney, James H. Rothrock, Tipton, Josepr 
M. Beck, Fort Madison, Austin Adams, 
Dubuque, Judges; A. J. Baker, . v tturnc>- 
General. 




(joverpors of |ou/a. 




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ROBERT LUCAS. 




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OBERT LUCAS, the first 
Governor of Iowa Ter- 
ritory, was the fourth 
son and ninth child of 
William and Susan- 
nah Lucas, and was 
born April i, 1781, 
in Jefferson Valley, 
at Shepherdstown, Jefferson 
County, Virginia, a few miles 
from Harper's Ferry, where his 
ancestors settled before the Rev- 
olution. His father, who was 
descended from William Penn, 
was born January 18, 1743, and 
his mother, of Scotch extrac- 
tion, was born October S, 1745. 
They were married about the 
year 1760, and reared a family of six sons 
and six daughters. His father, who had 
served as a Captain in the Continental army 
during the Revolutionary war, and had 
distinguished himself at the battle of Bloody 
Run, emigrated with his family to Scioto 
County, Ohio, early in the present century. 
At the time of this removal Robert was 
a young man. He had obtained his educa- 
tion chieflv in Virginia, from an old Scotch 
schoolmaster named McMullen, who taught 
him mathematics and surveying. The latter 
afforded him remunerative employment im- 
mediately upon his entrance into Ohio. 

He was married at Portsmouth, Ohio, 
April 3, 1810, to Elizabeth Brown, who died 
October 18, 1812, leaving an infant daugh- 



ter, who afterward became Mrs. Minerva 
E. B. Sumner. March 7, 18 16, he formed 
a second matrimonial connection ; this time 
with Friendly A. Sumner, who bore to him 
four sons and three daughters. 

The first public office held by Robert 
Lucas was that of County Surveyor of Sci- 
oto County, the commission from Governor 
Edward Tiffin, of Ohio, appointing him such 
being dated December 26, 1803. Decem- 
ber 16, 1805, he was commissioned by 
Governor Tiffin justice of the peace for 
three years. His first military appointment 
was that of Lieutenant of militia, by virtue 
of which he was authorized to raise twenty 
men to assist in filling Ohio's quota of 500 
volunteers called for by the President in 
view of possible difficulties with the Spanish. 
He was subsequently promoted through 
all the military grades to Major Gen- 
eral of Ohio militia, which latter rank was 
conferred upon him in 1818. 

He was a Brigadier-General on the 
breaking out of the war of 1S12, and had 
much to do with raising troops. He was 
appointed a Captain in the regular army, 
but before his commission reached him he 
was already in active service, scouting, 
spying, carrying a musket in the ranks and 
in other useful capacities. After Hull s 
surrender he was paroled and returned to 
Ohio. He was in the course of time made 
a Lieutenant-Colonel, and then a Colonel, 
from which position he resigned. 

He served in numerous civil offices in 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



Ohio, and at the time of his second marriage, 
in 1S16, he was and had been for some time 
a member of the Ohio Legislature, serving 
luccessively for nineteen years in one or the 
other branch, and in the course of his leg- 
islative career presiding over first one 
and then the other branch. In 1820 and 
again in 1828, he was chosen one of the 
Presidential electors of Ohio. In May. 
1832, at Baltimore, Maryland, he presided 
over the first Democratic National Con- 
vention — that which nominated Andrew 
Jackson for his second term as President, 
and Martin Van Buren for Vice Presi- 
dent. In 1832 he was elected Governor 
of Ohio, and re-elected in 1834. He declined 
a third nomination for the same office. 

Under the act of Congress to divide tne 
Territory of Wisconsin and to establish the 
territorial government of Iowa, approved 
June 12, 1838, the subject of this sketch was 
appointed Governor of the new Territory, 
and he immediately accepted the responsi- 
bilitv. A journey from the interior of Ohio 
to the banks of the Upper Mississippi was 
then a matter of weeks ; so that, although 
Governor Lucas set out from his home on 
the 25th of July, delaying on his route 
a few days at Cincinnati, to arrange for the 
selection of the books for a territorial 
library, it was not till nearly the middle of 
August that he reached Burlington, then 
the temporary scat of government. 

The first official act of Lucas as Gov- 
ernor of Iowa wasio issue a proclamation 
dated Augusl 13, 1838, dividing the Terri- 
tory into eight representative districts, ap- 
portioning the members of the Council and 
1 louse of Representatives among the nine. 
teen counties then composing the Tcrri- 
tory, and appointing the second Monday 
hi September ensuing for the election of 
members of the Legislative Assembly and 
a delegate to Congress. His first message 
to the Legislature, after its organization, 
was dated November 12, 1838, and related 



chiefly to a code of laws for the new com- 
monwealth. He opposed imprisonment for 
debt, favored the death penalty for murder 
(executions to be in the presence of only 
the Sheriff and a suitable number of wit- 
nesses), and strenuously urged the organi- 
zation of a liberal system of common 
schools. The organization of the militia 
was also one of his pet measures. There 
was a broad difference between the views 
of a majority of this Legislative Assembly 
and the Governor, on many questions of 
public policy, as well as points of authority. 
This resulted in the sending to the Presi- 
dent of a memorial, dated January 12, 1839, 
signed by eight of the council and seven 
of the Representatives, praying the re 
moval of Governor Lucas. In addition to 
this, a memorial for the Governor's re- 
moval was passed by both Houses, signed 
in due form by their presiding officers, and 
transmitted to the President. The charges 
made were met by a protest signed by 
eight Representatives, and as a result Gov- 
ernor Lucas was allowed to remain in office 
until the next change of administration. 

In 1839 and '40 occurred the well-known 
boundary dispute with Missouri, which 
was finally settled in favor of Iowa, by the 
Supreme Court of the United States. No- 
vember 5, 1839, Governor Lucas announced 
that the Territory had advanced in improve- 
ment, wealth and population (which latter 
was estimated at 50,000) without a parallel 
in history, and recommended the neccssarv 
legislation preparatory to the formation of 
a State government. This was overruled 
by the people, however. Among the latest 
of Governor Lucas's acts was a proclama- 
tion dated April 30, 1841, calling the Leg- 
islature to assemble, for the first time, at 
Iowa City, the new capitol. 

March 25, 1841, lie was succeeded by 
John Chambers. He lived a private life 
near Iowa City until his death, February 
7, 1853, at the age of seventy-one years. 



JOHN CHAMBERS. 





OHN CHAMBERS was 
the second Governor of 
Iowa Territory. He was 
born October 6, 1780, at 
Bromley Bridge, Somer- 
set County, New Jersey. 
His father, Rowland Cham- 
bers, was born in Pennsyl- 
vania, of Irish parentage. 
According to a tradition in 
the family, their remote 
ancestors were Scotch, and 
belonged to the clan Cam- 
eron. Having refused to 
join in the rebellion of 1645, 
they migrated to Ireland, 
ivhere, by an act of Parliament, on their 
own petition, they took the name o: C ira- 
bers. Rowland Chambers espoused with 
enthusiasm the cause of American inde- 
pendence, and was commissioned a Colonel 
of New Jersey militia. At the close of the 
war, reduced in circumstances, he immi- 
grated to Kentucky and settled in Wash- 
ington, then the seat of Mason County. 
John, the youngest of seven children, was 
then fourteen years old. A few days after 
the family settled in their new home he 
found employment in a dry-goods store, 
and the following spring was sent to 
Transylvania Seminary, at Lexington. He 
returned home in less than a year. In 1797 

Ifi 



he became deputy under Francis Taylor, 
Clerk of the District Court. His duties 
being light, he applied himself to the study 
of law. In the spring of 1800 he assumed 
all the duties of the office in which he had 
been employed, and in November following 
he was licensed to practice law. 

In 1803 Mr. Chambers, who had now 
entered upon a career of uninterrupted 
professional prosperity, was married to Miss 
Margaret Taylor, of Hagerstown, Mary- 
land. She lived but about three years, and 
in 1807 he married Miss Hannah Taylor, a 
sister of his first wife. Not long after he 
engaged in the manufacture of bale rope 
and bagging for the Southern market. In 
this he incurred heavy losses. 

In the campaign of 1812 he served as 
aid-de-camp to General Harrison, with the 
rank of Major. In 1815 Mr. Chambers was 
sent to the Legislature, and in 1828 he went 
to Congress to fill the unexpired term of 
General Thomas Metcalfe. In 1830 and 
1 83 1 he was again in the State Legislature. 
In 1832 he lost his wife. She was a lady of 
cultivated mind and elegant manners, and 
had made his home a happy and attractive 
one. The same year he was offered a seat 
on the bench of the Supreme Court of 
Kentucky, but this he declined. The same 
office was tendered him in 1835, but before 
the time for taking his seat, he was obliged 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



to resign, out of consideration for his health. 
From 1835 to 1839 ne was m Congress, 
making for himself a high reputation. 

Between 1815 and 1828 Mr. Chambers 
was, for several years, the commonwealth's 
attorney for the judicial district in which 
he lived. He was during that period at the 
zenith of his reputation as a lawyer and ad- 
vocate. He met the giants of the Ken- 
tucky bar in important civil and criminal 
trials. His well-known high sense of honor, 
and his contempt for professional chicanery, 
commanded the respect of his legal com- 
peers. His appearance and manner were 
dignified, his tone calm and impressive, 
and his language singularly direct and 
vigorous. 

He closed his congressional career in 
1839 with the purpose of resuming the 
practice of law, but his old friend General 
Harrison was nominated for the Presi- 
dency and induced him to aid in the 
personal canvass General Harrison made 
through the country. He was urged by 
President Harrison to accept some office 
requiring his residence in Washington, but 
this he declined, though he afterward ac- 
cepted the appointment of Governor of 
low a. He entered upon the duties of this 
office May 13, 1841. His success in his 
administration of the affairs of the Territory 
was well attested by the approbation of the 
people, and by the hearty commendation 
of those in authority at Washington, espe- 
cially for his management of Indian affairs. 
During his term of office he found it neces- 
sary on several occasions to suppress the 
lends of the vvi\ men, which he did with 
such firmness and decision that quiet was 
promptly restored where war seemed im- 
minent. Governor Chambers was repeat- 
edly called on to treat with the Indian tribes 



for the purchase of their lands. In October, 
1841, he was commissioned jointly with 
Hon. T. H. Crawford, Commissioner of In- 
dian Affairs, and Governor Dot)', of Wis- 
consin, to hold a treaty with the Sacs and 
Foxes, which, however, did not result in a 
purchase. In September, 1842, being ap- 
pointed sole Commissioner for the same 
purpose, he succeeded fully in carrying out 
the wishes of the Government. In 1843 ne 
held a treaty with the Winnebagoes, but in 
this instance no result was :tac:::d 

In 1844, his term of office having expired, 
he was re-appointed by President Tyler, 
but was removed in 1845 by President 
Polk. Shortly afterward, with grc^-y :r.. 
paired health, he returned to Kentucky 
where, with skillful medical treatment and 
entire relief from official cares, he partially 
recovered. During the few remaining years 
of his life Governor Chambers's recollec- 
tions of Iowa were of the most agreeable 
character. He spoke gratefully of the re- 
ception extended to him by her people, and 
often referred with great kindness to his 
neighbors in Des Moines County. 

His infirm health forbade his engaging in 
any regular employment after his return to 
Kentucky, but in 1S49, at tne solicitation of 
the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, he ne- 
gotiated jointly with Governor kamsey : of 
Minnesota, a successful treaty with the 
Sioux Indians for the purchase or lands. 
The latter years of Governor Chambers's 
life were spent mostly with his children. 
whose affection and respect were the chief 
conditions of his happiness. During a \ isil 
to his daughter in Paris, Kentucky, iie was 
taken sick at the house of his son-in-iaw, C. 
S. Brent, and after a few weeks Dicathed 
his last, September 21, 1S5Z. in nis sev-nt\. 
second year. 



James clarke. 



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5-TE third and last Ter- 
ritorial Governor 
was James Clarke. 
Sometime in the 
autumn of the year 
1837, when the trees 
were in the " sear 
and yellow leaf," a printer 
boy of slender form and 
gentle appearance might 
have been seen crossing 
the laurel hills of his own 
State. Behind him rolled 
the waters of the " Blue 
Juniata," on the banks of 
which he had spent, in 
merry glee, his youthful 
days. He had heard and read of strange 
countries that lay far off toward the setting 
sun, through which broad rivers run, and 
spreading landscapes unfolded to human 
eyes the most rare and magnificent beauty. 
With his youthful gaze fixed upon that star 
which never sets, he set forth into the wilds 
of Wisconsin, a stranger in a strange land, 
an adventurer seeking his own fortune, de- 
pending upon his own exertions, with no 
recommendation save an honest face and 
genteel deportment. This young man was 
James Clarke, who afterward became the 
able, talented and popular Governor of 
Iowa. 

He remained in Wisconsin, working at 
his trade as a printer, until after the organi- 



zation of the Territory of Iowa, when he 
removed to Burlington, where the first 
Legislature of Iowa assembled. After the 
death of Mr. Conway he was appointed by 
President Van Buren, Secretary of the Ter- 
ritory, which office he filled with great 
credit to himself and satisfaction to the 
people. During the time he held this office 
he contributed by his kind, gentle and 
amiable manner to soften the feelings of 
hatred and distrust which at one time ex- 
isted between leading men of the Territory. 
Whoever had business at his office found 
him a kind, gentle, quiet, amiable man, al- 
ways ready and willing to do whatever was 
desired of him, regretting, at the same time, 
that he could do no more. During the 
time he was Secretary he performed a vast 
amount of labor, but notwithstanding the 
large amount of business he transacted, he 
still found time to write for the press, and 
contributed many valuable articles touch- 
ing the future greatness of Iowa. 

After he retired from the office of Secre- 
tary he again returned to the printing trade, 
and became the leading editor of the Bur- 
lington Gazette. To the columns of this 
paper he devoted his whole energies, and 
by so doing made it the leading Democratic 
paper of the Territory. In the early sum- 
mer of 1845 President Polk removed Mr. 
Chambers, and appointed Mr. Clarke to suc- 
ceed him as Governor of Iowa. Previous 
to his appointment he had been elected by 



>7 6 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



the people of his county a delegate to the 
first convention which assembled to form a 
Constitution for the State of Iowa. In this 
convention he distinguished himself both 
for his talent and personal demeanor, and 
contributed to the pages of that Constitu- 
tion some of the great elementary principles 
which lie at the foundation of human rights. 
And although that Constitution was de- 
feated, he still had the satisfaction of seeing 
their spirit and meaning transferred to 
another, and still continued as the funda- 
mental law of our State. 

The first Legislature after he received 
his appointment assembled at Iowa City, 
on the first Monday of December, 1845. 
His message to the Legislature after its or- 
ganization is a model of style and clearness. 
He set forth the importance of an early ex- 
tinguishment of the Indian title to all the 
lands within the limits ol Iowa, and urged 
the Legislature to memorialize Congress to 
purchase a tract of land on the Upper Mis- 
sissippi for a future home for the Winne- 
bagoes, and thus induce them to part with 
their title to a large tract of country known 
as the " neutral ground," a recommendation 
which the General Government soon after 
acted upon and carried out. 

January 16, 1846, the Legislature passed 
once more an act for the purpose of elect- 
ing: delegates to frame a Constitution for 
the State of Iowa. This time the friends of 
a State government took it for granted 
that the people of the Territory wanted a 
Constitution, so the Legislature provided 
that at the April election following the 
passage of this act, the people of the Ter- 
ritory should elect delegates to a conven- 
tion. Accordingly, at the April election 
delegates were elected, and the convention, 
agreeable to said act, consisting of thirty- 
two members instead <>f seventy as in the 
previous convention, met at Iowa City, on 
the first Monday of May, 1846, and after a 



session of eighteen days produced a Con- 
stitution which was immediately submitted, 
adopted, and made the organic law of the 
State of Iowa. After the result was known 
the Governor issued his proclamation for a 
general election to be held in November 
following, atwhich Ansel Briggs, of Jack- 
son County, was elected Governor of the 
State. 

This proclamation was the last public act 
of James Clarke, for as soon as the new 
Governor was qualified, he turned over to 
him all the archives of his office, and re- 
turned once more to the printing office. 
Again he scattered through Iowa his beau- 
tiful editorials through the columns of the 
Burlington Gazette, until the name and 
fame of Iowa became known throughout 
the length and breadth of the land. He 
appeared at the capitol at the first session 
of the State Legislature under the new Con- 
stitution, delivered to that body an affecting 
and interesting farewell address, then stood 
back quietly during the whole of the ses- 
sion, and gazed with indignation upon his 
countenance at the dreadful strife, storms 
and bitterness which was manifested during 
the entire session. 

This was the last time that Mr. Clarke 
ever appeared at the Legislature. He died 
soon after, at Burlington, of the cholera. 
Thus closed the earthly career oi a just and 
noble man, cut off in the prime of life and 
in the midst of an useful career. He was 
married to a sister of General Dodge, and 
this fact being known at the time of his ap- 
pointment as Governor, drew upon the 
Dodges the title of the " royal family." But 
whatever might be said in this respect, the 
appointment could not have been bestowed 
upon a better man, or one more competent 
to till it. His history is without a stain or 
reproach, and throughout his whole life no 
man ever imputed aught against his char- 
acter as a man and a citizen. 






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|HE first Governor of 
Iowa under its State 
organization, was 
Ansel Briggs, who, 
like his two imme- 
diate successors, was 
a son of that won- 
derful nursery of progress, 
New England. He was 
the son of Benjamin Ingley 
Briggs and Electa his wife, 
and was born in Vermont, 
February 3, 1806. His 
boyhood was spent in his 
native State, where, in the 
common schools, he re- 
ceived a fair education, 
improved by a term spent at the academy 
of Norwich. In his youth, about the year 
1830, with his parents, he removed to 
Cambridge, Guernsey County, Ohio, where 
he engaged in the work of establishing 
stage lines, and where, as a Whig, he com- 
peted with John Ferguson, a Jackson 
Democrat, for the office of county audi- 
tor and was defeated. In his twenty- 
fourth year he married a wife, born the 
same day and year as himself, of whom he 
was soon bereft. Before leaving Ohio he 
married his second wife, Nancy M., daugh- 
ter of Major Dunlap, an officer of the war 
of 1812. 



In 1836, removing from Ohio, he joined' 
that hardy band, so honored here to-day, 
the pioneers of Iowa, and settled with his 
family at Andrew, in Jackson County. 
Here he resumed his former business of 
opening stage lines, sometimes driving the 
stage himself, and entering into contracts 
with the postoffice department for carrying 
the United States mails weekly between 
Dubuque and Davenport, Dubuque and 
Iowa City, and other routes. 

On coming to Iowa he affiliated with the 
Democrats, and on their ticket, in 1842, 
was elected a member of the Territorial 
House of Representatives from Jackson 
County, and subsequently sheriff of the 
same county. On the formation of the 
State government, he at once became a 
prominent candidate for Governor. His 
competitors for the Democratic nomination 
were Judge Jesse Williams and William 
Thompson. The question above all others 
dividing the parties in Iowa in that day was 
that of banks, favored by the Whigs, and op- 
posed by the Democrats. A short time be- 
fore the nominating convention met, Briggs, 
at a banquet, struck a responsive chord in 
the popular heart by offering the toast, " No 
banks but earth, and they well tilled," a 
sententious appeal to the pride of the pro- 
ducer and the prejudice of the partisan, 
which was at once caught up as a party 



«8o 



(.DVERXORS OF TOW A. 



cry, and did more to secure its author the 
nomination for Governor than all else. 

The convention was held at Iowa City 
on Thursday, September 24, 1846, and as- 
sembled to nominate State officers and two 
Congressmen. It was called to order by 
F. D. Mills, of Des Moines County. Will- 
iam Thompson, of Henry County, presided, 
and J. T. Fales, of Dubuque, was Secretary. 
The vote for Governor in the convention 
stood: Briggs, sixty-two; Jesse Williams, 
thirty-two; and William Thompson, thirty- 
one. The two latter withdrew, and Briggs 
was then chosen by acclamation. Elisha 
Cutler, Jr., of Van Buren County, was 
nominated for Secretary of State; Joseph 
T. Fales, of Linn, for Auditor, and Morgan 
Reno, of Johnson, for Treasurer. S. C. 
Hastings and Shepherd Leffler were nomi- 
nated for Congress. The election was held 
October 28, 1846, the entire Democratic 
ticket being successful. Briggs received 
7,626 votes, and his competitor, Thomas 
McKnight, the Whig candidate, 7,379, giv- 
ing Briggs a majority of 247. 

The administration of Governor Bribers 
was generally placid. Although avoiding 
excitement and desirous of being in har- 
monious accord with his party, when oc- 
casion required he exhibited an independent 
firmness not easilv shaken. One perplex- 
ing controversy bequeathed him by his 
predecessors was the Missouri boundary 
question, which had produced much dis- 
quiet, and even a resort to arms on tiie part 
of both Iowa and Missouri. 

After the expiration of his four-years 
term, Governor Briggs continued his resi- 
dence in Jackson County, where he engaged 
in commercial business, having sold out his 
mail contracts when he became Governor. 

By his second marriage he had eight 
children, all of whom died in infancy save 
two, and of these latter Ansel, Jr., died 
May 15, 1867, aged twenty-five years. 
John S. Briggs, the only survivor of the 



family, is the editor of the Idaho Herald, 
published at Blackfoot, Idaho Territory. 
Mrs. Briggs died December 30, 1847, dur- 
ing her husband's term as Governor. She 
was an ardent Christian woman, adhering 
to the Presbyterian faith, and very domestic 
in her tastes. She was well educated and 
endowed by nature with such womanly 
tact and grace as to enable her to adorn the 
high estate her husband had attained. She 
dispensed (albeit in a log house, a form of 
architecture in vogue in Iowa in that day, 
as the mansion of the rich or the cabin of 
the poor) a bounteous hospitality to the 
stranger and a generous charity to the poor, 
in which gracious ministrations she was al- 
ways seconded by her benevolent husband. 

In 1870 Governor Briggs removed from 
Andrew to Council Bluffs. He had visited 
the western part of the State before rail- 
roads had penetrated there, and made the 
trip by carriage. On that occasion he en- 
rolled himself as one of the founders of the 
town of Florence, on the Nebraska side of 
the Missouri River, six miles above Coun- 
cil Bluffs, and which, for a time, disputed 
with Omaha the honor of being the chief 
town of Nebraska. 

He made a trip to Colorado during the 
mining excitement in i860. After return- 
ing and spending some time at home, he 
went to Montana in 1863, with his son John, 
and a large party, remaining until 1S65, 
when he came back. 

His last illness, ulceration of the stomach, 
was only five winks in duration. He was 
able to be out three (lavs before his death, 
which occurred at the residence of his son, 
John S. Briggs, in Omaha, May 5, 1881, at 
half past three in the morning. Governor 
Gear issued a proclamation the next day, 
reciting his services to the State, ordering 
half-hour guns to be tired and the national 
flag on the State capitol to be half-masted, 
during the day of the funeral. He was 
buried on Sunday succeeding his death. 






v^ts^ZT; 



STEPHEN HEMPSTEAD. 



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until 

when 

came 



jH I S gentleman, the 
second Governor of 
the State, was born 
at New London, 
Connecticut, Octo- 
ber i, 1 812, and 
lived in that State 
the spring of 1828, 
his father's family 
West and settled on 
a farm a few miles from 
St. Louis, Missouri. Here 
he remained until 1830, 
when he entered as clerk 
in a commission house in 
Galena, Illinois, and dur- 
ing the Black Hawk war he 
was an officer in an artillery company or- 
ganized for the protection of that place. 

At the close of the war he entered as a 
student of the Illinois College at Jackson- 
ville, Illinois, remaining about two years, 
leaving to commence the study of law 
which he finished under Charles S. Hemp- 
stead, Esq., then a prominent lawyer at 
Galena. In 1836 he was admitted to prac- 
tice his profession in the courts of the Ter- 
ritory of Wisconsin, then embracing Iowa, 
and in the same year located in Dubuque, 
being the first lawyer who practiced in 
that place. At the organization of the 



Territorial Legislature in 1838 he was 
elected to represent the northern portion 
of the Territory in the Legislative Council, 
of which he was chairman of the committee 
on judiciary, one of the important com- 
mittees of the Council. At the second 
session of that body he was elected presi- 
dent thereof, was again elected a member 
of the Council in 1845, which was held in 
Iowa City, and was again president of the 
same. In 1844 he was elected one of the 
delegates to the first constitutional conven- 
tion of the State of Iowa, and was chair- 
man of the committee on incorporations. 
In 1848, in connection with Hon. Charles 
Mason and W. G. Woodward, he was ap- 
pointed commissioner by the Legislature to 
revise the laws of the State of Iowa, and 
which revision, with a few amendments, 
was adopted as the code of Iowa in 1851. 
In 1850 he was elected Governor of the 
State of Iowa, receiving 13,486 votes, 
against 11,403 for James L. Thompson, 575 
for William P. Clarke, and 1 1 scattering. 

The vote was canvassed on the 4th of 
December, and a committee was appointed 
to inform the Governor elect that the two 
Houses of the Legislature were ready to re- 
ceive him in joint convention, in order that 
he might receive the oath prescribed by 
the Constitution. After receiving: forma! 



is* 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



notification. Governor Hempstead, accom- 
panied by Governor Briggs, the judges of 
the Supreme Court and the officers of 
State, entered the hall of the House, and 
having been duly announced, the Governor 
elect delivered his inaugural message, after 
which the oath was administered by the 
chief justice of the Supreme Court. 

This session of the Legislature passed a 
number of important acts which were 
approved by Governor Hempstead, and 
formed fifty-two new counties, most of 
them having the same names and bound- 
aries to-day. These new counties were : 
Adair, Union, Adams, Cass, Montgomery, 
Mills, Pottawattomie, Bremer, Butler, 
Grundy, Hardin, Franklin, Wright, Risley, 
Veil, Greene, Guthrie, Carroll, Fox, Sac, 
Crawford, Shelby, Harrison, Monona, Ida, 
Waukau, Humboldt, Pocahontas, Bucna 
Vista, Fayette, Cherokee, Plymouth, Alla- 
makee, Chickasaw, Floyd, Cerro Gordo, 
Hancock, Kossuth, Palo Alto, Clay, O'- 
Brien, Sioux, Howard, Mitchell, Worth, 
Winnebago, Winneshiek, Bancroft, Em- 
mett, Dickinson, Osceola and Buncombe. 
The last-named county was so called under 
peculiar circumstances. The Legislature 
was composed of a large majority favoring 
stringent corporation laws, and the liability 
of individual stockholders for corporate 
debts. This sentiment, on account of the 
agitation of railroad enterprises then begin- 
ning, brought a large number of prominent 
men to the capital. To have an effect upon 
the Legislature, they organized a "lobby 
legislature," in which these questions were 
ably discussed. They elected as Governor 
Verplank Van Antwerp, who delivered to 
tUis self-constituted body a lengthy mes- 
sage, in which he sharply criticised the 
regular general assembly. Some of the 
members of the latter were in the habit of 
making long and useless speeches, much to 
the hindrance of business. To these he 
especiallv referred, charging them with 



speaking " for buncombe." and recom- 
mended that as their lasting memorial, a 
county should be called by that name. 
This suggestion was readily seized upon 
by the Legislature, and the countv of " Bun- 
combe" was created with few dissenting 
voices. By act of the General Assembly 
approved September u, 1862, the name 
was changed to " Lyon," in honor of Gen- 
eral Nathaniel Lyon, who was killed in the 
civil war. 

Governor Hempstead's message to the 
fourth General Assembly, December, 1852, 
stated, among other things, that the popu- 
lation of the State was by the federal cen- 
sus 192,214, and that the State census 
showed an increase for one year 01 37,786. 
He also stated that the resources of the 
State for the coming two years would be 
sufficient to cancel all that part of the funded 
debt which was payable at its option. 

By 1854 the State had fully recovered 
from the depression produced by the bad 
season of 1851, and in 1854 and 1855 the 
immigration from the East was unprece- 
dented. For miles and miles, day after day, 
the prairies of Illinois were lined with cattle 
and wagons, pushing on toward Iowa. At 
Peoria, one gentleman said that during a 
single month 1,743 wagons passed through 
that place, all for Iowa. The Burlington 
Telegraph said : " Twenty thousand immi- 
grants have passed through the city within 
the last thirty days, and they are still cross- 
ing the Mississippi at the rate of 600 a day." 

Governor Hempstead's term expired in 
the latter part of 1854. and he returned to 
Dubuque, where the following year he was 
elected county judge. This position he 
held twelve years, and in 1867 he retired on 
account of impaired health. I le lived, how- 
ever, till February 16, 1883, when at his 
home in Dubuque he closed his record on 
earth. He was a useful and active man, 
and deserves a prominent place in the 
esteem of lowans. 




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HE third to fill the of- 
fice of Governor oi 
Iowa, and whose 
name deserves a 
foremost rank 
among the men 
whose personal his- 
tory is interwoven insepar- 
ably with that of the State, 
was James Wilson Grimes. 
He was born in the town 
of Deering, Hillsborough 
County, New Hampshire, 
October 20, 1816. His 
parents — John Grimes, 
born August u, 1772, and 
Elizabeth Wilson, born 
March 19, 1773 — were natives of the same 
town. Of a family of eight children born 
to them, James was the youngest. In 
early childhood he evinced a taste for 
learning, attending the district school and 
also studying Latin and Greek under the 
instruction of the village pastor. He 
completed his preparation for college 
at Hampton Academy, and entered Dart- 
mouth College in August, 1832, in the 
sixteenth year of his age. Upon leaving 
college in February, 1835, he commenced 
reading law with James Walker, Esq., in 
Petersburgh, New Hampshire. 

Being young and adventurous, and wish- 
ing to carve a fortune for himself, he left 

17 



his native home in 1836 for the far West, 
landing in Burlington, then a new town in 
what was known as the " Black Hawk 
Purchase." Here he opened an office and 
soon established a reputation as a rising 
lawyer. In April, 1837, he was appointed 
city solicitor ; and entering upon the duties 
of that office he assisted in drawing up the 
first police laws of that town. In 1838 he 
was appointed justice of the peace, and be- 
came a law partner of William W. Chap- 
man, United States District Attorney for 
Wisconsin Territory. In the early part of 
the year 1841 he formed a partnership with 
Henry W. Starr, Esq., which continued 
twelve years. This firm stood at the head 
of the legal profession in Iowa. Mr. Grimes 
was widely known as a counselor of supe- 
rior knowledge of the law, and with a clear 
sense of truth and justice. He was chosen 
one of the representatives of Des Moines 
County in the first Legislative Assembly 
of the Territory of Iowa, which convened 
at Burlington, November 12, 1838; in the 
sixth, at Iowa City, December 4, 1843; ar >d 
in the fourth General Assembly of the 
State, at Iowa City, December 6, 1852. 
He early took front rank among the pub- 
lic men of Iowa. He was chairman of the 
judiciary committee in the House of Rep- 
resentatives of the first Legislative As- 
sembly of the Territory, and all laws for the 
new Territory passed through his hands. 



:*S 



i.nvn UXORS OF IOWA. 



He was married at Burlington, Novem- 
ber 9, 1846, to Miss Elizabeth Sarah Ncally. 

In February, 1854, Mr. Grimes was nom- 
inated by a convention of the Whig party 
for Governor of the State. It was the 
largest convention of that party ever held 
in Iowa, and the last. He was elected, and 
assumed the duties of the office in Decem- 
ber, 1854. Soon after his election it was 
proposed that he should be sent to the 
United States Senate, but he made it under- 
stood that he should fill the term of office 
for which he had been chosen, and he 
served his full term to the entire satisfac- 
tion and acceptance of all parties. He was 
a faithful leader in the political regenera- 
tion of the State. He introduced liberal 
measures to develop the resources of 
the State, and to promote the interests 
of all educational and humane establish- 
ments. Up to the time of his election 
as Governor, Democracy reigned supreme 
in the Territory. The representatives in 
Congress were allies of the slave power. 
He, after being elected, gave his whole 
soul to the work, and it may truly be said 
that Governor Grimes made Iowa Repub- 
lican and allied it with the loyal States. 

January 14, 1858, he laid down his office, 
only to be placed in another and greater 
one; for on the 25th he was nominated 
by the Republican caucus for United 
States Senator. He took his seat in the 
Senate March 4, 1859, and was placed upon 
the committee on naval aflairs January 24, 
1861, on which he remained during the 
remainder of his senatorial career, serving 
as chairman from December, 1864. 

Mr. Grimes voted for the Pacific Rail- 
road bill on June 20, 1862, and for estab- 
lishing the gauge of the road from the Mis- 
souri River to the Pacific Ocean, at four 
feet eight and a half inches, February 18, 
1863. 

January \(\ 1864, Mr. Grimes was again 
chosen United States Senator from Iowa 



for six years from March 4, 1865, receiving 
the votes of all but six of the members of 
the General Assembly in joint convention ; 
128 out of 134. His council was often 
sought in matters of great moment, and in 
cases of peculiar difficultv. Always ready 
to promote the welfare of the State, he 
gave, unsolicited, land worth $6,000 to the 
Congregational college at Grinnell, It 
constitutes the "Grimes foundation," and 
" is to be applied to the establishment and 
maintenance in Iowa College, forever, of 
four scholarships, to be awarded by the 
trustees, on the recommendation of the fac- 
ulty, to the best scholars, and the most 
promising, in any department, who may 
need and seek such aid, and without any 
regard to the religious tenets or opinions 
entertained by any person seeking either 
of said scholarships." These terms were 
imposed by Mr. Grimes and assumed July 
20, 1865, by the trustees. He received 
the honorary degree of LL.D. in 1865 
from Dartmouth College, and also from 
Iowa College. He also aided in founding 
a public library in Burlington, donating 
§5,000, which was expended in the purchase 
of costly books, and subsequently sent from 
Europe 256 volumes in the German lan- 
guage, and also contributed 600 volumes of 
public documents. 

In Januarv, 1869, he made a donation of 
$5,000 to Dartmouth College, and $1,000 
to the " Social Friend," a literary society of 
which he was a member when in college. 

His health failing, Mr. Grimes sailed for 
Europe April 14, 1869, remaining abroad 
two years, reaching home September 22, 
1871, apparently in improved health and 
spirits. In November he celebrated his 
silver wedding, and spent the closing 
months of his life with his family. 1 le voted 
at the city election February 5, 1872, was 
suddenly attacked with severe pains in the 
region of the heart, and died alter a lew 
short hours ol intense suffering. 



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rlE fourth Governor 
of the State, and 
the seventh of Iowa 
without reference to 
the form of govern- 
ment, was Ralph P. 
Lowe. He was born 
in Ohio in 1808, and lived 
just three-fourths of a cent- 
ury. He came to the 
Territory of Iowa in 1839 
or 1840, when he was a 
little over thirty years old. 
He settled in Muscatine, 
where in a short time he 
became prominent in local 
affairs and of recognized 
ability in questions of public policy. While 
yet residing in that city, he represented 
the county of Muscatine in the constitu- 
tional convention of 1844 that framed the 
rejected Constitution. 

After this constitutional convention, Mr. 
Lowe took no further part in public mat- 
ters for a number of years. He removed 
*.o Lee County about 1849 or '50, where 
he became district judge as a successor to 
Seorge H. Williams, who was afterward 
famous as President Grant's Attorney Gen- 
eral. He was district judge five years, 
from 1852 to 1857, being succeeded by 
Judge Claggett. In the summer of 1857 



he was nominated by the Republicans for 
Governor of Iowa, with Oran Faville for 
Lieutenant-Governor. The Democracy 
put in the field Benjamin M. Samuels for 
Governor and George Gillaspy for Lieu- 
tenant Governor. There was a third ticket 
in the field, supported by the American or 
" Know Nothing " party, and bearing the 
names of T. F. Henry and Easton Morris. 
The election was held in October, 1857, and 
gave Mr. Lowe 38,498 votes, against 36,088 
for Mr. Samuels, and 1,006 for Mr. Henry. 

Hitherto the term of office had been four 
years, but by an amendment to the Consti- 
tution this was now reduced to two. Gov- 
ernor Lowe was inaugurated January 14, 
1858, and at once sent his first message to 
the Legislature. Among the measures 
passed by this Legislature were bills to in- 
corporate the State Bank of Iowa ; to pro- 
vide for an agricultural college ; to author- 
ize the business of banking ; disposing of 
the land grant made by Congress to the 
Des Moines Valley Railroad ; to provide 
for the erection of an institution for the 
education of the blind ; and to provide for 
taking a State census. 

No events of importance occurred dur- 
ing the administration of Governor Lowe, 
but it was not a period of uninterrupted 
prosperity. The Governor said in his 
biennial message of January 10, i860, re- 



1 9 2 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



viewing the preceding two years: " The 
period that has elapsed since the last 
biennial session has been one of great dis- 
turbing causes, and of anxious solicitude to 
all classes of our fellow citizens. The first 
year of this period was visited with heavy 
and continuous rains, which reduced the 
measure of our field crops below one-half 
of the usual product, whilst the financial 
revulsion which commenced upon the At- 
lantic coast in the autumn of 1857 did not 
reach its climax for evil in our borders until 
the year just past." 

He referred at length to the claim of the 
State against the Federal Government, 
and said that he had appealed in vain to 
the Secretary of the Interior for the pay- 
ment of the 5 per cent, upon the military 
land warrants that the State is justly en- 
titled to, which then approximated to a 
million of dollars. The payment of this 
fund, he said, "is not a mere favor which 
is asked of the General Government, but a 
subsisting right which could be enforced in 
a court of justice, was there a tribunal of 
this kind clothed with the requisite juris- 
diction." 

The subject of the Des Moines River 
grant received from the Governor special 
attention, and he gave a history of the 
operations of the State authorities in ref- 
erence to obtaining the residue of the lands 
to which the State was entitled, and othei* 
information as to the progress of the work. 
He also remarked "that under the act 
authorizing the Governor to raise a com- 
pany of mounted men for defense and pro- 
tection of our frontier, approved February 
9, 1858, a company of thirty such men, 
known as the Frontier Guards, armed and 
equipped as required, were organized and 
mustered into service under the command 
of Captain Henry B. Martin, of Webster 
City, about the first of March then follow- 
ing, and were divided into two companies, 
one stationed on the Little Sioux River, 



the other at Spirit Lake. Their presence 
afforded security and gave quiet to the 
settlements in that region, and after a ser- 
vice of four months they were duly dis- 
banded. 

" Late in the fall of the year, however, 
great alarm and consternation was again 
felt in the region of Spirit Lake and Sioux 
River settlements, produced by the appear 
ance of large numbers of Indians on the 
border, whose bearing was insolent and 
menacing, and who were charged with 
clandestinely running off the stock of the 
settlers. The most urgent appeals came 
from these settlers, invoking again the 
protection of the State. From the repre- 
sentations made of the imminence of their 
danger and the losses already sustained, 
the Governor summoned into the field once 
more the frontier guards. After a service 
of four or five months they were again 
discharged, and paid in the manner 
prescribed in the act under which they 
were called out." 

Governor Lowe was beaten for the 
renomination by Honorable S. J. Kirkwood, 
who was considered much the stronger 
man. To compensate him for his defeat 
for the second term, Governor Lowe was 
appointed one of the three judges under 
the new Constitution. He drew the short 
term, which expired in 1861, but was 
returned and served, all told, eight years. 
He then returned to the practice of 
law, graduallv working into a claim busi- 
ness at Washington, to which city he re- 
moved about 1874. In that city he died, on 
Saturday, December 22, 1S83. He had a 
large family. Carleton, one of his sons, 
was an officer in the Third Iowa Cavalry 
during the war. 

Governor Lowe was a man of detail, 
accurate and industrious. In private and 
public life he was pure, upright and honest. 
In religious faith lie was inclined to be a 
Spiritualist. 



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SAMUEL J. K I UK WOOD. 



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.AMUEL JORDAN 
KIRK WOOD, the 
fifth Governor of the 
State of Iowa, was born 
December 20, 181 3, in 
Harford County, Mary- 
land, on his father's 
farm. His father was twice 
married, first to a lady named 
Coulson, by whom he had 
two sons, and, after her 
death, to Mary Alexander, by 
whom he had three children, 
all sons, the youngest of whom 
is the subject of these notes. The 
father of Governor Kirkwood was 
a native of Maryland, his ancestors 
having settled there previous to the Revo- 
lution ; his mother was born in Scotland, 
and both parents were strict members of 
the Presbyterian church. 

When ten years old young Kirkwood was 
sent to Washington City to attend a school 
taught by a relative named John McLeod. 
He remained at school four years, when he 
entered a drug store at Washington as 
clerk, in which occupation he continued till 
after attaining his majority, with the excep- 
tion of about eighteen months spent in 
teaching in York County, Pennsylvania. 
In 1835 Samuel left Washington and set- 
tied in Richland County, Ohio, where he 
assisted his father and brother (who had re- 



moved from Maryland there) in clearing a 
farm. In 1841 he entered, as a student, the 
taw office of Thomas W. Bartley, afterward 
Governor of Ohio, and in 1843 was admit- 
ted to the bar by the Supreme Court of 
Ohio. He then engaged in the practice 
of law with his former preceptor, Mr. 
Bartley, forming an association which con- 
tinued for eight years. 

From 1845 to 1849 he served as prose- 
cuting attorney of his county. In 1849 he 
was elected as a Democrat to represent his 
county and district in the constitutional 
convention. In 185 1 Mr. Bartley, his part- 
ner, having been elected to the supreme 
judiciary of the State, Kirkwood formed a 
partnership with Barnabas Barns, with 
whom he continued to practice until the 
spring of 1855, when he removed to the 
West. 

Up to 1854 Mr. Kirkwood had acted with 
the Democratic party. But the measures 
proposed and sustained that year by the 
Democracy in Congress, concentrated in 
what was known as the Kansas-Nebraska 
act, drove him with hosts of anti-slavery 
Democrats out of the party. He was be- 
sought by the opposition in the " Richland 
district" to become their candidate for 
Congress, but declined. In 1855 he came 
to Iowa and settled two miles northwest of 
Iowa City, entering into a partnership with 
his brother-in-law, Ezekiel Clark, in the 



> i)0 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA 



milling business, and kept aloof from pub- 
lic affairs. He could not long conceal his 
record and abilities from his neighbors, 
however, and in 1856 he was elected to the 
State Senate from the district composed of 
the counties of Iowa and Johnson, and 
served through the last session of the 
Legislature held at Iowa City and the first 
one held at Des Moines. 

In 1859 Mr. Kirkwood was made the 
standard-bearer of the Republicans of Iowa, 
and though he had as able and popular a 
competitor as General A. C. Dodge, he was 
elected Governor of Iowa by a majority of 
over 3,000. He was inaugurated January 
11, i860. Before the expiration of his first 
term came the great civil war. As Gov- 
ernor, during the darkest days of the Rebell- 
ion, he performed an exceedingly impor- 
tant duty. He secured a prompt response 
by volunteers to all requisitions by the 
federal Government on the State for troops, 
so that during his Governorship no " draft *' 
took place in Iowa, and no regiment, except 
the first, enlisted for less than three years. 
At the same time he maintained the State's 
financial credit. The Legislature, at its ex- 
tra session in 1861, authorized the sale of 
$800,000 in bonds, to assist in arming and 
equipping troops. So frugally was this 
work done, that but $300,000 of the bonds 
were sold, and the remaining $500,000 not 
having been required, the bonds represent- 
ing this amount were destroyed by order 
of the succeeding Legislature. 

In October, 1861, Governor Kirkwood 
was. with comparatively little opposition, 
rc-cii cted— an hoi. or accorded for the first 
time in the history of the State. His ma- 
jority wasabout 18,000. During his second 
term he was appointed by President Lin- 
coln to be Minister to Denmark; but he 
declined to enter upon his diplomatic duties 
until the expiration of his term as Governor. 
The position was kept open for him until 
that time, but, when it came, pressing pri- 



vate business compelled a declination of 
the office altogether. 

In January, 1866, he was a prominent 
candidate before the Legislature for United 
States Senator. Senator Harlan had re- 
signed the senatorship upon his appoint- 
ment to the office of Secretary of the 
Interior by President Lincoln, just before 
his death, but had withdrawn from the 
cabinet soon after the accession of Mr. 
Johnson to the Presidency. In this way 
it happened that the Legislature had two 
terms of United States Senator to fill, a 
short term of two years, to fill Harlan's 
unexpired term, and a long term of six 
years, to immediately succeed this; and 
Harlan had now become a candidate for 
his own successorship, to which Kirkwood 
also aspired. Ultimately, Kirkwood was 
elected for the first and Harlan for the 
second term. During his brief senatorial 
service, Kirkwood did not hesitate to meas- 
ure swords with Senator Sumner, whose 
natural egotism had begotten in him an 
arrogant and dictatorial manner, borne with 
humbly until then by his colleagues, in 
deference to his long experience and emi- 
nent ability, but unpalatable to an inde- 
pendent Western Senator like Kirkwood. 

At the close of his senatorial term, March 
4, 1867, he resumed the practice of law, 
which a few years later he relinquished to 
accept the presidency of the Iowa City 
Savings Bank. In 1875 he was again elected 
Governor, and was inaugurated January 13, 
1876. He served but little over a year, as 
early in 1877 he was chosen United States 
Senator. 1 le tilled this position four years, 
resigning to become Secretary of the In- 
terior in President Garfield's cabinet. In 
this office he was succeeded, April 17, 1882, 
by Henry M. Teller, of Colorado. 

Governor Kirkwood returned to Iowa 
City, his home, where he still resides, being 
now advanced in years. He was married 
in 1X4} to Miss Jane Clark, a native of Ohio. 



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WILLIAM M. STONE. 



19U 










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[HE subject of this brief 
sketch was the ninth 
to hold the position 
of Governor of Iowa, 
and the sixth to fill 
the office under the 
State organization, 
held the office four 
years, from 1864 to 1868. 
William Milo Stone was 
rn October 14, 1827, 
son of Truman and La- 
/ina (North) Stone. His 
great-grandfather on both 
les of the family was in 
the seven years' struggle 
for independence. His 
grandfather, Aaron Stone, was in the second 
war with England. Truman Stone moved 
to Lewis County, New York, when the son 
was a year old, and six 3^ears later to Co- 
shocton County, Ohio. 

Like many other self-made men, William 
M. had few advantages. He never attended 
a school of any kind more than twelve 
months. In boyhood he was for two season? 
a team-driver on the Ohio Canal. At seven- 
teen he was apprenticed to the chairmaker's 
trade, and he followed that business until 
twenty-three years of age, reading law 



meantime during his spare hours, wher- 
ever he happened to be. He commenced 
at Coshocton, with James Mathews, who 
afterward became his father-in-law ; con- 
tinued his readings with General Lucius V. 
Pierce, of Akron, and finished with Ezra B. 
Taylor, of Ravenna. He was admitted to 
the bar in August, 185 1, by Peter Hitch- 
cock and Rufus P. Ranney, supreme judges, 
holding a term of court at Ravenna. 

After practicing three years at Coshocton 
with his old preceptor, James Mathews, he, 
in November, 1854, settled in Knoxville, 
which has remained his home since. The 
year after locating here Mr. Stone pur- 
chased the Knoxville Journal, and was one 
of the prime movers in forming the Repub- 
lican party in Iowa, being the first editor to 
suggest a State convention, which met 
February 22, 1856, and completed the or- 
ganization. In the autumn of the same 
year he was a Presidential elector on the 
Republican ticket. 

In April, 1857, Mr. Stone was chosen 
Judge of the Eleventh Judicial District. 
He was elected judge of the Sixth Judicial 
District when the new Constitution went 
into operation in 1858, and was serving on 
the bench when the American flag was 
stricken down at Fort Sumter. At that 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



time, April, i86l, he was holding court in 
Fairfield, Jefferson Count}', and when the 
news came of the insult to the old flag he 
immediately adjourned court and prepared 
for what he believed to be more important 
duties — duties to his country. 

In May he enlisted as a private; was 
made Captain of Company B, Third Iowa 
Infantry, and was subsequently promoted 
to Major. With that regiment he was at 
the battle of Blue Mills, Missouri, in Sep- 
tember, 1S61, where he was wounded. At 
Shiloh, the following spring, he commanded 
the regiment and was taken prisoner. By 
order of Jefferson Davis he was paroled for 
the time of forty days, with orders to re- 
pair to Washington, and if possible secure 
an agreement for a cartel for a general ex- 
change of prisoners, and to return as a 
prisoner if he did not succeed. Failing to 
secure that result within the period speci- 
fied he returned to Richmond and had 
his parol extended fifteen days; repairing 
again to Washington, he effected his pur- 
pose and was exchanged. 

In August, [862, he was appointed by 
Governor Kirk wood Colonel of the Twen- 
ty-Second Iowa Infantry, which rendez- 
voused and organized at Camp Pope, Iowa 
City, in August, 1862. The regiment was 
occupied for several months in guarding 
supply stores and the railroad, and escorting 
supply trains to the Army ot the Southeast 
Missouri until January 27, 1863, when it re- 
ceived orders to join the army under Gen- 
eral Davidson, at West Plains, Missouri. 
Alter a march of five days it reached its 
destination, and was brigaded with the 
Twenty-first and Twenty-third Iowa regi 
ments, Colonel Stone commanding, and was 
designated the First Brigade, First Divis- 
ion. Army of Southeast Missouri. April I 
found Colonel Stone at Milliken's Bend, 
Louisiana, to assist Grant in the capture of 
Vieksburg. lie was now in immediate 
command of his regiment, which formed a 



part of a brigade under Colonel C. L. 
Harris, of the Eleventh Wisconsin. In the 
advance upon Port Gibson Colonel Harris 
was taken sick, and Colonel Stone was 
again in charge of a brigade. In the battle 
of Port Gibson the Colonel and his com- 
mand distinguished themselves, and were 
successful. The brigade was in the reserve 
at Champion Hills, and in active skirmish 
at Black River. 

On the evening of May 21 Colonel Stone 
received General Grant's order for a gen- 
eral assault on the enemy's lines at 10 A. m. 
on the 22d. In this charge, which was 
unsuccessful, Colonel Stone was again 
wounded, receiving a gunshot in his left 
forearm. Colonel Stone commanded a 
brigade until the last of August, when, 
being ordered to the Gulf department, he 
resigned. He had become very popular 
with the people of Iowa, and they were 
determined to make him Governor. 

He was nominated in a Republican con 
vention held at Des Moines in June, 1S63, 
and was elected by a large majority. He 
was brevetted Brigadier-Gemral in 1864, 
during his first year as Governor. He was 
inaugurated January 14, 1864, and was re- 
elected in 1865, his four years in office 
closing January 16,1868. His majority in 
1863 was nearly 30,000, and in 1865 about 
16,500. His diminished vote in 1865 was 
due to the fact that he was very strongly 
committed in favor of negro suffrage. 

Governor Stone made a very energetic 
and efficient executive. Since the expira- 
tion of his gubernatorial term he has sought 
to escape the public notice, and has given 
his time largely to his private business in- 
terests. He is in partnership with Hon. O. 
B. Ayrcs, of Knoxville, in legal practice. 

He was elected to the General Assembly 
in 1877, and served one term. 

In May, 1857, he married Miss Carloaei 
Mathews, a native of Ohio, then residing in 
Knoxville. Thcv have one son — William A. 



SAMUEL MERRILL. 



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K OLONEL SAM- 
UEL MERRILL, the 

seventh Governor of 
the State of Iowa, the 
successor of Governor 
Stone, is among the 
men of the West who 
have been called from 
private life to places of trust on 
account of their peculiar fitness 
for office. He was born in the 
town of Turner, Oxford County, 
Maine, August 7, 1822. He is 
of English ancestry, being a 
descendant on his mother's side 
of Peter Hill, who came from 
the West of England and set- 
tled in Saco, Maine (now known as Bidde- 
ford), in 1653. From this ancestry have 
sprung the most of the Hills of America. 
On his father's side he is a descendant of 
Nathaniel Merrill, who, with his brother 
John, came from Salisbury, England, and 
settled in Newburg, Massachusetts, in 1636. 
Abel Merrill married Abigail Hill, June 
25, 1809, in Buxton, Maine. They soon 
moved to Turner, where they became the 
parents of eight children, Samuel, the sub- 
ject of this sketch, being next the youngest, 
the fourth and youngest son in the family, 
and in the eighth generation from his Pil- 
grim fathers. 

18 



Samuel was married first to Catherine 
Thorns, who died in 1847, but fourteen 
months after their marriage. In January, 
1 85 1, he was again married, his second wife 
being a Miss Hill, of Buxton, Maine. To 
this union there have been born four chil- 
dren, three of whom died young, the eldest 
living to be only two and a half years old. 

At the age of sixteen he moved with his 
parents to Buxton, where his time was 
mostly engaged by turns in teaching and 
in attending school until he attained his 
majority. Having determined to make 
teaching a profession, he set out for that 
purpose toward the sunny South, but, as 
he says, he was " born too far north " for 
his political comfort. Suspicion having 
been aroused as to his abolitionist pro- 
clivities, and finding the elements not al- 
together congenial, he soon abandoned the 
land of chivalry for the old Granite State, 
where he engaged for several years in 
farming. 

In 1847 ne removed to Tarn worth, New 
Hampshire, where he embarked in mer- 
cantile business in company with a brother. 
In this, as in all his business enterprises, he 
was quite successful. Not being satisfied 
with the limited resources of Northern 
New England, he determined to try his 
good fortune on the broad prairies of the 
new and more fertile West. Accordingly, 



: °4 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



in 1856, he turned his face toward the set- 
ting sun. He made a final settlement at 
McGregor, Iowa, where lie established a 
branch house of the old firm. 

During all these years of business Mr. 
Merrill took an active but not a noisy part 
in politics. In 1854 he was ele.cted as an 
Abolitionist to the New Hampshire Legis- 
lature, at the same time General N. B. 
Baker, ex-Adjutant General of Iowa, was 
Governor of the same State. In 1855 he 
was returned for a second term to the Leg- 
islature. In Iowa he was equally fortunate 
in securing the good will of those who 
knew him. His neighbors and those who 
had dealings with him found a man who 
was honest in his business, fair in his deal- 
ings, social in his relations, and benevolent 
in his disposition. He took an active in- 
terest in the prosperity of the town and 
ever held an open hand to all needed chari- 
ties. These traits of character had drawn 
around him, though not realized or intended 
by himself, a host of personal admirers. 
This good will resulted in his being nomi- 
nated for a seat in the State Legislature, 
and he was the only one on his ticket that 
was elected. The Legislature met in extra 
session in 1861 to provide for the exigencies 
o! the Rebellion, and in its deliberations Mr. 
Merrill rendered effective and unselfish 
service. 

He continued in business at McGregor 
until the summer oi 1862, when he was 
commissioned as Colonel of the Twenty- 
firs! Iowa Infant ry, proceeding immediately 
to Missouri, where active service awaiteil 
him. Marmaduke was menacingthe Union 
forces in Central Missouri, which called for 
prompt action on the part of the Union 
Generals. Colonel Merrill was placed in 
command of a detachment of the Twenty- 
firsl Iowa, a detachment of the Ninety-ninth 
Illinois, a portion of the Third Iowa Cavalry 
and two pieces of artillery, with orders to 
make a forced march to Springfield, he be- 



ing at Houston, eighty miles distant. On 
the morning of the nth of January, 1863, 
they having come across a body of rebels, 
found them advancing in heavy force. 
Colonel Merrill immediately made dis- 
position for battle, and brisk firing was 
kept up for an hour, when the enemy fell 
back. Colonel Merrill now moved in the 
direction of Hartville, where he found the 
rebels in force under Marmaduke, and from 
six to eight thousand strong, with six pieces 
of artillery, while Colonel Merrill had but 
800 men and two pieces of artillery. 

In this engagement the rebels lost several 
officers and not less than 300 men in killed 
and wounded. The Union loss was seven 
killed and sixty-four wounded, five captured 
and two missing. The regiment performed 
severe marches and suffered much in sick- 
ness during the winter. It was assigned to 
the Thirteenth Corps, General John A. Mc- 
Clernand ; fought gallantly at the battle of 
Port Gibson; and while the impetuous 
charge of Black River bridge was being 
made Colonel Merrill was severely, ami re- 
ported fatally, wounded. The battle of Black 
River bridge, the last of the series of engage- 
ments during the campaign of Vicksburg in 
which the rebels fought without their fortifi- 
cations, was a short but bloody combat. 
While Colonel Merrill was leading his regi- 
ment in this deadly charge he was wounded 
through the hips. This brought his mili- 
tary career to a close. Suffering from his 
wounds, he resigned his commission and re- 
turned to McGregor, but was unable to at- 
tend to his private affairs for many months. 

In 1867 he was chosen Governor to suc- 
ceed William M. Stone. He was inaugu- 
rated January 16, 1868, and served till 
January 11, 1872, being re-elected in 1S69. 
After the expiration of his term of office 
he returned to McGregor, but as soon as 
he could adjust his business interests he lo- 
cated in Des Moines, where he is now 
President of the Citizens' National Bank. 



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ROM his numerous offi- 
cial positions, and 
the ability with 
which they have 
been filled, Cyrus 
C. Carpenter, the 
eighth Governor of 
the State of Iowa, 
deserves to be remembered 
as one of Iowa's foremost 
men. He is a native of Sus- 
quehanna County, Pennsyl- 
vania, and was born Novem- 
ber 24, 1829. His parents 
were Asahel and Amanda M. 
(Thayer) Carpenter, both of whom died be- 
fore he was twelve years old. His grand- 
father, John Carpenter, was one of nine 
young men who, in 1789, left Attleborough, 
Massachusetts, for the purpose of finding a 
home in the " new country." After various 
vicissitudes they located upon the spot 
which they called Harford, in Northeastern 
Pennsylvania, the township in which Cyrus 
was born. This location at that time was 
far from any other settlement, Wilkesbarre, 
in Wyoming Valley, near the scene of the 
celebrated Indian massacre, being among 
the nearest, though fifty miles away. 

Cyrus attended a common school three 
or four months in a year until 1846, then 



taught winters and worked on a farm sum- 
mers for three or four years, and with the 
money thus raised paid his expenses for 
several months at the academy which had 
been established in his native town. After 
leaving this institution, in 1852, he started 
westward ; halted at Johnstown, Licking 
County, Ohio; taught there a year and a 
half, and with his funds thus replenished he 
came to Iowa, loitering some on the way, 
and reaching Des Moines in June, 1854. A 
few days later he started on foot up the 
Des Moines Valley, and found his way to 
Fort Dodge, eighty miles northwest of Des 
Moines, from which place the soldiers had 
moved the previous spring to Fort Ridgely, 
Minnesota. 

He now had but a single half dollar in 
his pocket. He frankly told the landlord 
of his straightened circumstances, offering 
to do any kind of labor until something 
should " turn up." On the evening of his 
arrival he heard a Government contractor 
state that his chief surveyor had left him 
and that he was going out to find another. 
Young Carpenter at once offered his ser- 
vices. To the inquiry whether he was a 
surveyor, he answered that he understood 
the theory of surveying, but had had no 
experience in the field. His services were 
promptly accepted, with a promise of steady 



2o8 



GOVERNORS OF tOWA. 



employment if he were found competent. 
The next morning he met the party and 
took command. When the first week's 
work was done he went to Fort Dodge to 
replenish his wardrobe. As he left, some 
of the men remarked that that was the last 
that would be seen of him. He was then 
of a slight build, jaded and torn by hard 
work, and, when he left the camp, so utterly 
tired out it is not surprising that the men 
who were inured to out-door life thought 
him completely used up. But they did not 
know their man. With the few dollars 
which he had earned, he supplied himself 
with comfortable clothing, went back to 
his work on Monday morning and con- 
tinued it till the contract was completed. 

The next winter he taught the first school 
opened in Fort Dodge, and from that date 
his general success was assured. For the 
first two years he was employed much of 
the time by persons having contracts for 
surveying Government lands. He was thus 
naturally led into the land business, and 
from the autumn of 1855, when the Land 
Office was established at Fort Dodge, much 
of his time was devoted to surveying, select- 
ing lands for buyers, tax-paying for foreign 
owners, and in short a general land agency. 
During this period he devoted such time as 
he could spare to reading law, with the 
view of eventually entering the profession. 

Soon after the civil war commenced he 
entered the army, and before going into the 
field was commissioned as Captain in the 
staff department, and served over three 
years, attaining the rank of Lieutenant? 
Colonel and being mustered out as brevet 
Colonel. 

He has served his State in numerous 
civil capacities. He was elected Surveyor 
of Webster County in the spring of 1856, 
and the next year was elected a Represen- 
tative to the General Assembly, and served 
in the first session ol thai body held at Des 
Moines. He was elected Register ol the 



State Land Office in 1866, re-elected in 
1868, and held the office four years, declin- 
ing to be a candidate for renomination. 
He was elected Governor of Iowa in 

1871, and was inaugurated January 1 1, 1872. 
He was re-elected two years later, and 
served until January 13, 1874. He made 
an able and popular executive. In his first 
inaugural address, delivered January 11, 

1872, he made a strong plea for the State 
University, and especially its normal de- 
partment, for the agricultural college, and 
for whatever would advance the material 
progress and prosperity of the people, urg- 
ing in particular the introduction of more 
manufactories. 

At the expiration of his second term as 
Governor Mr. Carpenter was appointed, 
without his previous knowledge, Second 
Comptrollerof the United States Treasury, 
and resigned after holding that office about 
fifteen months. He was influenced to take 
this step at that time because another bureau 
officer was to be dismissed, as the head ol 
the department held that Iowa had more 
heads ol bureaus than she was entitled to, 
and his resigning an office of a higher grade 
saved a man who deserved to remain in 
Government employ. 

He was in the forty-seventh Congress 
from 1 88 1 to 1883, and represented Web- 
ster County in the twentieth General As- 
sembly. He is now leading the life of a 
private citizen at Fort Dodge, his chief 
employment being the carrying on of a 
farm. He is not rich, which is a striking 
commentary on his long official service. 
He has led a pure and upright life. 

lie has been a Republican since the or- 
ganization ol that party. In religious mat- 
ters he is orthodox. 

He was married in March, 1864, to Miss 
Susan C. Burkholder, of Fori Dodge. They 
have no children, but have reared horn 
childhood a niece of Mrs. Carpenter, Miss 
Fannie Burkholder. 



VYORK 



ASTO 



JOSHUA G. NEWBOLD. 




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ff OSHUA G. NEWBOLD 
was the tenth Governor 
of the State, and the 
thirteenth of Iowa, num- 
bering from the first 
Territorial G o v e r nor. 
He is yet living at Mount 
Pleasant. He is a native of 
Pennsylvania, and his an- 
cestors in this country were 
among the very early set- 
tlers in New Jersey. They 
were Friends, and conse- 
quent 1 y none of them 
figured in the struggle for 
the independence of the colo- 
nies. Governor Newbold is the son of 
Barzilla and Catherine (Houseman) New- 
bold. He was born in Fayette County, 
Pennsylvania, May 12, 1830, and reared as 
a farmer. When he was eight years of age 
the family moved to Westmoreland County*, 
same State, where he was educated in the 
common school, and also in a select school 
or academy, the latter taught by Dr. John 
Lewis, since of Grinnell, Iowa. At sixteen 
he returned with the family to Fayette 
Count)', where he remained eight years, 
assisting his father in running a flouring 
mill, when not teaching. When about nine- 
teen he began the study of medicine, read- 
ing a year or more while teaching, and then 
abandoning the notion of being a physician. 



In the month of March, 1854, Mr. New- 
bold removed to Iowa, locating on a farm, 
now partly in the corporation of Mount 
Pleasant, Henry County. At the end of 
one year he removed to Cedar Township, 
Van Buren County, there merchandising 
and farming till about i860, when he re- 
moved to Hillsboro, Henry Count)- and 
pursued the same callings. 

In 1862, when the call was made for 600,- 
000 men to finish the work of crushing the 
Rebellion, Mr. Newbold left his farm in the 
hands of his family and his store in charge 
of his partner, and went into the army as 
Captain of Company C, Twenty-fifth Regi- 
ment Iowa Infantry. He served nearly 
three years, resigning just betore the war 
closed, on account of disability. During 
the last two or three months he served at 
the South he filled the position of Judge 
Advocate, with headquarters at Woodville, 
Alabama. 

His regiment was one of those that made 
Iowa troops famous. It arrived at Helena, 
Arkansas, in November, 1862, and sailed in 
December following on the expedition 
against Vicksburg by way of Chickasaw 
Bayou. At the latter place was its first en- 
gagement. Its second was at Arkansas 
Post, and there it suffered severely, losing 
in killed and wounded more than sixty. 

Alter Lookout Mountain it joined in the 
pursuit of Bragg's flying forces to Ring- 



Hi 



GOVERNORS OF tO\VA. 



gold, where it engaged the enemy in their 
strong works, November 27 losing twenty- 
nine wounded. The following year it joined 
Sherman in his Atlanta campaign, then on 
the famous march to the sea and through 
the Carolinas. 

On returning to Iowa he continued in 
the mercantile trade at Hillsboro for three 
or four years, and then sold out, giving 
thereafter his whole attention to agricult- 
ure, stock-raising and stock-dealing, mak- 
ing the stock department an important 
factor in his business for several years. Mr. 
Newbold was a member of the thirteenth, 
fourteenth and fifteenth General Assem- 
blies, representing Henry County, and was 
chairman of the school committee in the 
fourteenth, and of the committee on appro- 
priations in the fifteenth General Assembly. 
In the fifteenth (1874) he was temporary 
Speaker during the deadlock in organizing 
the House. In 1875 he was elected Lieu- 
tenant Governor on the Republican ticket 
with Samuel J. Kirkwood. 

His Democratic competitor was E. B. 
Woodward, who received 93,060 votes. Mr. 
Newbold received 134,166, or a majority of 
31,106. Governor Kirkwood being elected 
United States Senator during that session, 
Mr. Newbold became Governor, taking the 
chair February 1, 1877, and vacating it for 
Governor Gear in January, 1878. 

Governor Newbold's message to the Leg- 
islature in 1878 shows painstaking care 
and a clear business-like view of the in- 
terests of the State. His recommendations 
were carefully considered and largely 
adopted. The State's finances were then 
in a less creditable condition than ever be- 
fore or since, as there was an increasing 
floating debt, then amounting to $340,- 
826.56, more than $90,000 in excess of the 
Constitutional limitation. Said Governor 
Newbold in his message: "The common- 
wealth ought not to set an example of dila- 



toriness in meeting its obligations. Of ah 
forms of indebtedness, that of a floating 
character is the most objectionable. The 
uncertainty as to its amount will invariably 
enter into any computation made by persons 
contracting with the State for supplies, ma- 
terial or labor. To remove the present 
difficulty, and to avert its recurrence, I 
look upon as the most important work that 
will demand your attention." 

One of the greatest problems before 
statesmen is that of equal and just taxation. 
The following recommendation shows that 
Governor Newbold was abreast with fore- 
most thinkers, for it proposes a step which 
yearly finds more favor with the people: 
" The inequalities of the personal-property 
valuations of the several counties suggest 
to my mind the propriety of so adjusting 
the State's levy as to require the counties 
to pay into the State treasury only the tax 
on realty, leaving the corresponding tax on 
personalty in the county treasury. This 
would rest with each county the adjust- 
ment of its personal property valuations, 
without fear that they might be so high as 
to work injustice to itself in comparison 
with other counties." 

Governor Newbold has always affiliated 
with the Republican party, and holds to its 
great cardinal doctrines, having once em- 
braced them, with the same sincerity and 
honesty that he cherishes his religious senti- 
ments. He has been a Christian for some- 
thing like twenty-five years, his connection 
being with the Free-Will Baptist church. 
He found his wife, Rachel Farquhar, in 
Fayette County, Pennsylvania, their union 
taking place on the 2d of May, 1850. They 
have had five children, and lost two. The 
names of the living are — Mary Allene, 
Emma Irene and George C. 

The Governor is not yet an old man, and 
may serve his State or county in other 
capacities in the coming years. 






yo//JV //. GEAR. 




i'S 




HE eleventh to hold the 
highest official posi- 
tion in the State of 
Iowa was John H. 
Gear, of Burlington. 
He is yet living in 
that city. He was 
born in Ithaca, New York, 
April 7, 1825. His father 
was Rev. E.G. Gear, a cler- 
gyman of the Protestant 
Episcopal c h u r c h , who 
was born in New London, 
Connecticut, in 1792. 
When he was quite young 
h i s family removed to 
Pittsfield, Berkshire County, 
Massachusetts; in 18 16, after being or- 
dained, he emigrated to New York and 
settled at Onondaga Hill, near which is now 
the thriving city of Syracuse. Soon after 
locating there he was married to Miranda E. 
Cook. He was engaged in the ministry in 
various places in Western New York until 
1836, when he removed to Galena, Illinois. 
There he remained until 1838, when he was 
appointed Chaplain in the United States 
Army at Fort Snelling, Minnesota. He 
died in 1874, aged eighty-two years. . 

John H., his only son, in 1843, came to 
Burlington, where he has since continued 
to reside. On his arrival he commenced 



his mercantile career by engaging as clerk 
with the firm of Bridgeman & Bros. After 
being with this firm for a little over a year 
he entered the employ of W. F. Coolbaugh 
(since president of the Union National 
Bank, of Chicago), who was even at that 
early date the leading merchant of Eastern 
Iowa. He was clerk for Mr. Coolbaugh 
for about five years, and was then taken 
into partnership. The firm of W. F. Cool- 
baugh & Co. continued in business for 
nearly five years, when Mr. Gear suc- 
ceeded to the business by purchase, and 
carried it on until he became known as the 
oldest wholesale grocer in the State. He 
is now president of a large rolling mill 
company at Burlington. 

Mr. Gear has been honored by his fellow- 
citizens with many positions of trust. In 
1852 he was elected alderman ; in 1863 was 
elected mayor over A. W. Carpenter, be- 
ing the first Republican up to that time 
who had been elected in Burlington on a 
party issue. In 1867 the Burlington, Cedar 
Rapids & Minnesota Railroad Company 
was organized, and he was chosen as its 
president. His efforts highly contributed 
to the success of the enterprise, which did 
much for Burlington. He was also active 
in promoting the Burlington & Southwest- 
ern Railway, as well as the Burlington & 
Northwestern narrow-gauge road. 



2i6 



GOVERNORS OF tOW'A. 



He has always acted with the Republican 
party, and in 1871 was nominated and 
elected a member of the House of Repre- 
sentatives of the Fourteenth General As- 
sembly. In 1873 he was elected to the 
Fifteenth General Assembly. The Repub- 
lican caucus of the House nominated him 
for Speaker by acclamation, and after a 
contest of two weeks he was chosen over 
his opponent, J. W. Dixon. He filled the 
position of Speaker very acceptably, and 
at the close of the session all the members 
of the House, independent of part}- affili- 
ations, joined in signing their names to a 
resolution of thanks, which was engraved 
and presented to him. In 1875 he was the 
third time nominated to the Assembly by 
the Republican party, and while his county 
gave a large Democratic vote he was again 
elected. He was also again nominated for 
Speaker, by the Republican caucus, and 
was elected by a handsome majority over 
his competitor, Hon. John Y. Stone. He 
is the only man in the State who ever had 
the honor of being chosen to this high posi- 
tion a second time. He enjoys the reputa- 
tion of being an able parliamentarian, his 
rulings never having been appealed from. 
At the close of the session he again received 
the unanimous thanks of the House for his 
courtesy and impartiality. 

In 1877 he was nominated for Governor 
by the Republican convention which met 
at Des Moines, June 28, and at the election 
held the following October he received 
121,546 votes, against 79,353 for John P. 
Irish, 10,639 for Eliasjcssup, and 38,228 for 
D. P. Stubbs. His plurality over Irish was 
42,193. He was inaugurated January 17, 
1 878, and served four years, being re-elected 
in 1879, by the following handsome vote: 
Gear, 157,571 ; Trimble, 85,056 ; Campbell, 
45,439; Dungan, 3,258; Gear's majority 
over all competitors, 23,828. His second 
inauguration was in January, 1880. 

Governor Gear's business habits enabled 



him to discharge the duties of his office 
with marked ability. He found the finan- 
cial condition of the State in a low ebb, but 
raised Iowa's credit to that of the best of 
our States. In his last biennial message he 
was able to report: "The warrants out- 
standing, but not bearing interest, Septem- 
ber 30, 1 88 1, amounted to $22,093.74, and 
there are now in the treasury ample funds 
to meet the current expenses of the State. 
The war and defense debt has been paid, 
except the warrants for §125,000 negotiated 
by the executive, auditor and treasurer, 
under the law of the Eighteenth General 
Assembly, and $2,500 of the original bonds 
not yet presented for payment. The only 
other debt owing by the State amounts to 
$245,435.19, due to the permanent school 
fund, a portion of which is made irredeem- 
able by the Constitution. These facts place 
Iowa practically among the States which 
have no debt, a consideration which must 
add much to her reputation. The expenses 
of the State for the last two years are less 
than those of any other period since 1869, 
and this notwithstanding the fact that the 
State is to-day sustaining several institu- 
tions not then in existence ; namely, the 
hospital at Independence, the additional 
penitentiary, the normal school, and the 
asylum for the feeble-minded children, be- 
sides the girl's department of the reform 
school. The State also, at present, makes 
provision for fish culture, for a useful 
weather service, for sanitary supervision 
by a board of health, for encouraging im- 
migration to the State, for the inspection of 
coal mines by a State inspector, and liberally 
for the military arm of the Government." 

Governor Gear is now in the sixty-first 
year of his age, and is in the full vigor of 
both his mental and physical faculties. He 
was married in 1852 to Harriet S. Foot, 
formerly of Middlebury, Vermont, by whom 
he has had four children, two of whom are 
living. 



PUBLIC LIB** 8 * \ 



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BUliEN R. SHEKMA.V. 



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LE twelfth Governor 

of the State was 

Buren R. Sherman, 

who held office two 

terms, from 1882 to 

1886. He was born 

in Phelps, Ontario 

ounty, New York, May 

28, 1836, and is the third 

son of Phineas L. and Eve- 

ine (Robinson) Sherman, 

both of whom were natives 

of the Empire State. 

The subject of this sketch 
received his early educa- 
tion in the public schools 
1 if his native place, and con- 
cluded his studies at Elmira, New York, 
acquiring a thorough knowledge of the 
English branches. At the close of his 
studies, acting on the advice of his father, 
who was a mechanic (an ax maker), he ap- 
prenticed himself to Mr. S. Ayres, of El- 
mira, to learn the watchmaker's trade. In 
1855, with his family, he removed to Iowa 
and settled upon an unbroken prairie, in 
what is now Geneseo Township, Tama 
County, where his father had purchased 
lands from the Government. There young 
Sherman labored on his father's farm, em- 
ploying his leisure hours in the stud}' of 
law, which he had begun at Elmira. He 
also engaged as bookkeeper in a neighbor- 
ly 



ing town, and with his wages assisted his 
parents in improving their farm. In the 
summer of 1859 ne was admitted to the bar, 
and the following spring removed to Yin 
ton, and began the practice of law with 
Hon. William Smyth, formerly District 
Judge, and J. C. Traer, conducting the 
business under the firm name of Smyth. 
Traer & Sherman. 

They built up a flourishing practice and 
were prospering when, upon the opening 
of the war, in 1S61, Mr. Sherman enlisted in 
Company G, Thirteenth Iowa Volunteer 
Infantry, and immediately went to the 
front. He entered the service as Second 
Sergeant, and in February, 1862, was made 
Second Lieutenant of Company E. On the 
6th of April following he was very severely 
wounded at the battle of Pittsburg Landing, 
and while in the hospital was promoted to 
the rank of Captain. He returned to his 
company while yet obliged to use crutches, 
and remained on duty till the summer of 
1863, when, by reason of his wound, he was 
compelled to resign and return home. Soon 
after returning from the army he was 
elected County Judge of Benton County, 
and re-elected without opposition in 1865. 
In the autumn of 1866 he resigned his judge- 
ship and accepted the office of clerk of the 
District Court, to which he was re-elected 
in 1868, 1870 and 1872, and in December, 
1874, resigned in order to accept the office 



220 



aoVE/ittoRS op loWA. 



of Auditor of State, to which he had been 
elected by a majority of 28,425 over J. M. 
King, the " anti-monopoly" candidate. In 
1876 he was re-nominated and received 50,- 
272 more votes than W. Growneweg(Demo- 
crat) and Leonard Brown (Greenback) to- 
gether. In 1878 he was again chosen to 
represent the Republican party in that office, 
and this time received a majority of 7,164 
over the combined votes of Colonel Eiboeck 
(Democrat) and G. V. Swearenger (Green- 
back). In the six years that he held this 
office, he was untiring in his faithful appli- 
cation to routine work and devotion to his 
especial share of the State's business. He 
retired with such an enviable record that it 
was with no surprise the people learned, 
June 27, 1 88 1, that he was the nominee of the 
Republican party for Governor 

The campaign was an exciting one. The 
General Assembly had submitted to the 
people the prohibitory amendment to the 
Constitution. This, while not a partisan 
question, became uppermost in the mind 
of the public. Mr. Sherman received 133,- 
330 votes, against 83,244 for Kinne and 28,- 
1 12 for D. M. Clark, or a plurality of 50,086 
and a majority of 21,974. In 1883 ne was 
re-nominated by the Republicans, as was L. 
G. Kinne by the Democrats. The National 
party offered J. B. Weaver. During the 
campaign these candidates held a number 
of joint discussions at different points In the 
State. At the election the vote was : Sher- 
man, 164,182; Kinne, 139,093 ; Weaver, 23,- 
089; Sherman's plurality, 25,089; majority, 
2,000. In his second inaugural Governor 
Sherman said : 

" In assuming, for the second time, the 
office of Chief Magistrate of the State, I 
fully realize my grateful obligations to the 
people of Iowa, through whose generous 
confidence I am here. 1 am aware of the 
duties and grave responsibilities of this ex- 
alted position, and as well what is expected 
of me therein. As in the past I have given 



my undivided time and serious attention 
thereto, so in the future I promise the most 
earnest devotion and untiring effort in the 
faithful performance of my official require- 
ments. I have seen the State grow from 
infancy to mature manhood, and each year 
one of substantial betterment of its previous 
position. 

" With more railroads than any other 
State, save two ; with a school interest the 
grandest and strongest, which commands 
the support and confidence of all the peo- 
ple, and a population, which in its entirety 
is superior to any other in the sisterhood, 
it is not strange the pride which attaches to 
our people. When we remember that the 
results of our efforts in the direction of good 
government have been crowned with such 
magnificent success, and to-day we have a 
State in most perfect physical and financial 
condition, no wonder our hearts swell in 
honest pride as we contemplate the past 
and so confidently hope for the future. 
What we may become depends on our own 
efforts, and to that future I look with earnest 
and abiding confidence." 

Governor Sherman's term of office con- 
tinued until January 14, 1886, when he was 
succeeded by William Larrabee, and he is 
now, temporarily, perhaps, enjoying a well- 
earned rest. He has been a Republican 
since the organization of that party, and his 
services as a campaign speaker have been 
for many years in great demand. As an 
officer he has been able to make an enviable 
record. Himself honorable and thorough, 
his management of public business has been 
of the same character, and such as has com- 
mended him to the hearty approval of the 
citizens of the State. 

He was married August 20, 1862, to Miss 
Lena Kendall, of Vinton, Iowa, a young 
lady of rare accomplishments and strength 
of character. The union has been happy 
in every respect. They have two children 
— Lena Kendall and Oscar Eugene. 



\ 




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WILLIAM LARRABEE. 




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LLIAM LARRABEE 

is the thirteenth 
Governor of this 
State, and the six- 
teenth Governor 
of Iowa, counting 
from I he Territo- 
ization. His ancestors 
me of d'Larrabee, and 
among the French Hugue- 
s who came to America early 
the seventeenth century, set- 
ng in Connecticut. Adam 
-rabee was born March 14, 
and was one of the early 
graduates of West Point Military Academy. 
He served with distinction in the war of 
1S12, having been made a Second Lieuten- 
ant March 1, 181 1. He was promoted to be 
Captain February 1, 18 14, and was soon 
after, March 30, of the same year, severely 
wounded at the battle of Lacole Mills, dur- 
ing General Wilkinson's campaign on the 
St. Lawrence. He recovered from this 
wound, which was in the lung, and was 
afterward married to Hannah Gallup Lester, 
who was born June 8, 1798, and died March 
15, 1837. Captain Larrabee died in 1869, 
aged eighty-two. 

The subject of this sketch was born at 



Ledyard, Connecticut, January 20, 183? 
and was the seventh of nine children. He 
passed his early life on a rugged New Eng- 
land farm, and received only moderate 
school advantages. He attended the dis- 
trict schools winters until nineteen years of 
age, and then taught school for two winters. 

He was now of an age when it became 
necessary to form some plans for the future 
In this, however, he was embarrassed by a 
misfortune which befel him at the age ol 
fourteen. In being trained to the use of 
fire-arms under his father's direction, an ac- 
cidental discharge resulted in the loss of 
sight in the right eye. This unfitted him 
for many employments usually sought by 
ambitious youths. The family lived two 
miles from the sea, and in that locality it 
was the custom for at least one son in each 
family to become a sailor. William's two 
eldest brothers chose this occupation, and 
the third remained in charge of the home 
farm. 

Thus made free to choose for himself 
William decided to emigrate West. In 
1853, accordingly, he came to Iowa. His 
elder sister, Hannah, wife of E. H. Williams, 
was then living at Garnavillo, Clayton 
County, and there he went first. In that 
way he selected Northeast Iowa as l lf s 



12A 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



future home. After teaching one winter at 
I lardin, he was for three years employed as 
a sort of foreman on the Grand Meadow 
farm of his brother-in-law, Judge Williams. 

In 1857 he bought a one-third interest in 
the Clermont Mills, and located at Cler- 
mont, Fayette Count}-. He soon was able 
to buy the other two-thirds, and within a 
year found himself sole owner. He oper- 
ated this mill until 1874, when he sold to S. 
M. Leach. On the breaking out of the war 
he offered to enlist, but was rejected on ac- 
count of the loss of his right eye. Being 
informed he might possibly be admitted as 
a commissioned officer he raised a company 
and received a commission as First Lieu- 
tenant, but was again rejected for the same 
disability. 

After selling the mill Mr. Larrabee de- 
voted himself to farming, and started a 
private bank at Clermont. He also, ex- 
perimentally, started a large nursery, but 
this resulted only in confirming the belief 
that Northern Iowa has too rigorous a cli- 
mate for fruit-raising. 

Mr. Larrabee did not begin his political 
career until 1867. He was reared as a 
Whig, and became a Republican on the or- 
ganization of that party. While interested 
in politics he generally refused local offices, 
serving only as treasurer of the School 
Board prior to 1867. In the autumn of that 
year, on the Republican ticket, he was 
elected to represent his county in the State 
Senate. To this high position he was re- 
elected from time to time, so that he served 
as Senator continuously for eighteen years 
before being promoted to the highest office 
in the State. He was so popular at home 
that he was generally re-nominated by ac- 
clamation, and for some years the Demo- 
crats did not even make nominations. 
During the whole eighteen years Senator 
Larrabee was a member of the principal 
committee, that on Ways and Means, of 
which he was generally chairman, and was 



also a member of other committees. In the 
pursuit of the duties thus devolving upon 
him he was indefatigable. It is said that 
he never missed a committee meeting. Not 
alone in this, but in private and public 
business of all kinds his uniform habit is 
that of close application to work. Many 
of the important measures passed by the 
Legislature owe their existence or present 
form to him. 

He was a candidate for the gubernatorial 
nomination in 1881, but entered the contest 
too late, as Governor Sherman's following 
had been successfully organized. In 1885 
it was generally conceded before the meet- 
ing of the convention that he would be 
nominated, which he was, and his election 
followed as a matter of course. He was 
inaugurated January 14, 1886, and so far 
has made an excellent Governor. His 
position in regard to the liquor question, 
that on which political fortunes are made 
and lost in Iowa, is that the majority should 
rule. He was personally in favor of high 
license, but having been elected Governor, 
and sworn to uphold the Constitution and 
execute the laws, he proposes to do so. 

A Senator who sat beside him in the 
Senate declares him to be "a man of the 
broadest comprehension and informatiou. 
an extraordinarily clear reasoner, fair and 
conscientious in his conclusions, and of 
Spartan firmness in his matured judg- 
ment," and says that " he brings the prac- 
tical facts and philosophy of human nature, 
the science and history of law, to aid in his 
decisions, and adheres with the earnestness 
of Jefferson and Sumner to the fundamental 
principles of the people's rights in govern- 
ment and law." 

Governor Larrabee was married Sep- 
tember 12, 1 86 1, at Clermont, to Anna M. 
Appelman, daughter of Captain G. A. 
Appelman. Governor Larrabee has seven 
children — Charles, Augusta, Julia, Anna, 
William, Frederic and Helen. 




M 



/Sc^cx^S 



HORACE BOIES. 



225 




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II ( >EACE BOIES, Governor 
of Iowa, is a lawyer by 
profession, and a resident 
of the city of Waterloo, 
•g^, of which city he has 
i* been a resident, engaged 
in the active practice of his pro- 
fession, since 1867. Governor 
Boies is a son of Eber and Hettie 
(Ilenshaw) Boies, and was born 
in Aurora, Erie County, New 
York, on the 7th day of Decem- 
ber, 1827. His father was a 
farmer by occupation, and in 
moderate circumstances, and Horace was 
reared under the healthful influence of farm 
life. He attended the public schools as op- 
portunity afforded, until sixteen years of age, 
when, being inspired with an ambition to see 
more of the world than had been possible for 
him within the narrow limits of his native 
town, with the added variety of an occasional 
visit to Buffalo, he persuaded his father to 
consent to his departure for the West. Pass- 
age was secured on a steamer at Buffalo, 
which was bound up the lakes, and in due 
time he landed at the little hamlet of Racine, 
Wisconsin. This was in the spring of 1843, 
live years before Wisconsin was admitted 
into the Union. The to'al cash assets of the 
youthful emigrant amounted to but 75 cents, 



which required on his part strict economy 
and immediate employment. 

Not finding a favorable opening at Racine, 
he struck out on foot in search of work 
among the farmers, which he secured of a 
settler near Rochester, and about twenty 
miles from Racine. His employer proved a 
hard task-master, and put the boy at the 
laborious work of ditch-digging, while he 
gave him the poorest kind of food, and even 
that to a very limited amount. After a 
month spent in a half-starved condition, and 
having been greatly overworked, he received 
the sum of $10 for his services. Broken in 
health, he left his employer, and soon for- 
tunately fell in with a family that had re- 
cently come from the vicinity of his home 
in the State of New York. These people 
proved true friends, and kindly cared for him 
through a long illness that followed, which 
was the legitimate result of his month of 
hardship and starvation. On recovering his 
health, young Boies continued at farm work 
until a year had elapsed since he left his 
home; he then returned to his native town, 
having learned the useful lesson of self- 
reliance, which in after years enabled him to 
more easily overcome the difficulties that 
beset the way of him who has to hew out his 
own road through life. On his return to 
Aurora, Mr. Boies pursued a course of study 



22b 



GOVERNORS OF IOWA. 



at the academy of that village, and later 
spent one winter in school-teaching in Boone 
County, Illinois. 

Returning to the State of New York, he 
was married in Aurora, on the 18th of April, 
1848, to Miss Adela King, a daughter of 
Darius and Hannah King. Mrs. Boies was 
a native of Erie County. They had three 
children, of whom only one is now living, a 
daughter, Adela, who is now the widow of 
John Carson. Mrs. Carson resides at Mt. 
Vernon, Iowa. 

In 1850 Mr. Boies began the study of law 
in Aurora, and was admitted to the bar at 
Buffalo at the general term of the Supreme 
Court in November, 1852. He pursued the 
practice of his profession in Buffalo and 
vicinity with marked success, and in the fall 
of 1857 was elected to represent his district 
in the New York House of Representatives 
for the session of 1858. 

Mrs. Boies died in November, 1855, and 
he was married the second time in Decem- 
ber, 1858, iu Waterloo, Iowa, to Miss Yer- 
salia M. Rarber, who was born in Boston, 
Erie County, New York, a daughter of Dr. 
P. .1. Barber. Mrs. Boies had removed to 
Iowa six months previous to her marriage. 
She died in April, 1877, leaving three chil- 
dren, a daughter and two sons. Earl L., the 
eldest, was graduated at Cornell College, 
studied law with his father, was admitted to 
the bar in lSSti, and became the partner 
of his father. Jessie, the daughter, i6 her 
father's companion and housekeeper. Her- 
bert B., the youngest, is a law student in his 
father's office at Waterloo. 

After pursuing the practice of his pro- 
fession at Buffalo and vicinity for fifteen 
years, Mr. Boies removed to Iowa, settling at 
Waterloo in April, 1807. He at once formed 
a law partnership with II. B. Allen, and for 
% time the tirni was Boies A; Allen. Then 



Carol ton F. Couch, the present District 
Judge, was admitted to membership, and the 
firm name became Boies, Allen & Couch. 
That connection was continued till 1878, 
when Mr. Allen, on account of failing health, 
was obliged to withdraw, the firm becoming 
Boies & Couch until 1884, when Mr. Couch 
was elected Judge of the Ninth Judicial Dis- 
trict. Air. Boies was then alone in business 
for a short time, when he was joined by his 
eldest son. In 1880 Mr. James L. Husted 
was admitted to membership in the firm, 
which has 6ince continued under the name 
of Boies, Husted & Boies, and is widely 
known as a leading law firm of eastern 
Iowa. 

Governor Boies was a Whig in early life, 
and on the disruption of that party and the 
formation of the Republican party, he joined 
the latter. He was never ambitious to serve 
in official position, and with the exception of 
his one term in the Legislature of his native 
State and one term as City Attorney of 
Waterloo, he held no office of importance till 

j elected Governor of Iowa in the fall of 1889. 

I He maintained his connection with the Re- 
publican party until 1882, since which time 
he has affiliated with the Democrats. Gov- 
ernor Boies enjoys the distinction of being 
the first Governor of Iowa elected by the 
Democratic party for thirty live years, and 
was the only successful candidate of his 
party on the State ticket at the late election. 
Considering the fact that the State was car- 
ried the year previous, in the Presidential 
election, by a majority of 35,000 in favor of 
the Republicans, the success of Governor 
Boies may be said to have been a compli- 
ment to him as a man and leader, without 
disparaging the splendid campaign work of 
his party managers, or ignoring the effect of 
the evident change in popular political senti- 
ment in Iowa. 



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POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY 



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(ALEB BALDWIN was born April 3, 
1824, about five miles southeast of the 
borough of Washington, in the State of 
Pennsylvania. He enjoyed the advantages 
of a good primary education, and after com- 
pleting his preparatory studies he entered 
Washington College, in his native State, and 
graduated with honor in the c!ass of 1842. 
As it was the custom in those early days for 
students to teach for a year or more before 
beginning the study of law, ho went to Paris, 
Kentucky, and taught school for one year. 
He then returned to Washington and studied 
law with the Hon. T. M. T. McKennan, a 
distinguished jurist and statesman of Penn- 
sylvania, and at one time Secretary of the 
Interior under Millard Fillmore, was ad- 
mitted to the bar in the spring of 1846, and 
soon afterward removed to Fairfield, Iowa, 
and commenced the practice of law. His 
manhood more than justified the promise of 
his youth, for he rose to marked eminence in 
the State of Iowa. He resided in Fairfield 
for eleven years, during which period he was 
three times elected Prosecuting Attorney of 
Jefferson County, a position be resigned to 
accept the appointment of District Judge 
tendered him by Governor Grimes. 

At the expiration of his term as District 



Judge he removed to Council Bluffs, in 1857, 
where he continued to reside the remainder 
of his life. Two years later, in 1859, he was 
chosen by the popular voice as one of the 
Judges of the Supreme Court. Up to that 
time the judges of the Supreme Court had not 
been elected directly by the people, and many 
doubts were entertained whether the choice 
of a tribunal of such power could be safely 
trusted to the voice of the masses. In the 
canvass of that year it was argued with par- 
ticular vigor against .fudge Baldwin that he 
was a new and an untried man, and that the 
State had no assurance that he would be 
equal to the high position to which he had 
been nominated. Making no personal appeal 
to the people, he quietly awaited their choice, 
and in company with ex-Governor Ralph P. 
Lowe and Hon. L. D. Stockton was elected 
by a handsome majority- In the classifica- 
tion by lot of the members of the court be 
drew the four-year term, and after the expi- 
ration of two years became by succession the 
Chief Justice of the State. He discharged 
the laborious work of his office with such 
ability, and by his ceaseless attention to the 
duties of bis position and by his impartiality 
and unassuming manners had so won the con- 
fidence of the people, that after the close of 



ao 



i3-i 



HIOdRAPUWM. HISTORY 



the four years lie was universally desired by 
the members of the bar of his own party to 

accept a renoini nation, and had he consented 
would have liccn chosen by acclamation. He 
deemed it his duty, however, to decline a re- 
nomination, and retired for a time from pub- 
lic life to resume the practice of his profes- 
sion. Warm-hearted as a friend, energetic 
and public-spirited as a citizen, and able and 
impartial as a judge, be carried with him 
into his retirement the confidence and affec- 
tion of the people of the entire State. 

At a meeting of the Supreme Court the fol- 
lowing preamble and resolutions were passed : 

Whereas, the judicial term of Hon. Caleb 
Baldwin is about to expire, and although it 
was the manifest wish of a large majority of 
the people of Iowa, the unanimous desire of 
the Legal Profession of the State that he 
should continue his connection with our Su- 
preme Bencli, yet by his own voluntary de- 
termination that connection is about to be 
severed; and 

Whereas, Under such circumstances it is 
eminently proper for the Bar of the State to 
give authoritative expression of their senti- 
ments of respect for our retiring Chief Jus- 
tice; therefore, 

Resolved, That in the Hon. Caleb Baldwin 
we have found and recognize an able, impar- 
tial and faithful jurist; that in his compre- 
hensive, yet accurate view of the whole case 
under consideration he has evinced a capac- 
ity for the administration of justice, and at 
the same time a faithful regard for the prin- 
ciples of law, which is justly envied by all 
and possessed by but few; that we refer with 
much pride and confidence to the opinions de- 
livers! by him during his term as a vindica- 
tion of this expression of our sentiments, and 
as an evidence oi the high character of our 
Supreme Bench, which we are glad to know, 

through his influence and that of his asso- 
- 



ciates, is being justly recognized and appre- 
ciated by the best jurists of other Stale-. 

Resolvd, Tliat the Hon. Caleb Baldwin, by 
his uniform dignity, courtesy and kindness 
on the Bench, has shown how unerringly a 
true man may exercise authority without 
showing power, and by his conduct has now 
and retains our highest regards. 

Resolved, That the Hon. Caleb Baldwin 
carries with him in his retirement our grate- 
ful esteem and affection, our sincere wish for 
his good health, long lift- and continued use- 
fulness, and our profound regrets that he has 
felt it to be his duty to dissolve that relation 
which has for four years existed between us 
with a pleasure that has been uninterrupted 
by even the slightest act, word or thought. 

His name was frequently suggested with 
the Chief Magistracy of Iowa, but he could 
not be prevailed upon to become a candidate 
before a State Convention. 'He was a favor- 
ite in the West, and if his ambition had been 
equal to his ability and to the good will of 
the people toward him, there would have been 
no office too high for his possible attainment. 

In 1864 he was appointed by President 
Lincoln United States District Attorney for 
the District of Iowa, which position he held 
until after the assassination of President 
Lincoln and the assumption of the Presi- 
dency by Andrew Johnson, when he resigned. 
Ho again resumed the active practice of his 
profession at Council Bluffs, associating with 
him the Hon. George F. Wright. He re- 
mained actively in the practice until 1874, 
when he was appointed by President Grant 
one of the members of the Alabama Claims 
Commission, which position he held until 
his death, which occurred at Council Bluffs, 
Iowa, December 15, 1876. 

Judge Baldwin's life was one of unusual 
activity and usefulness. As a lawyer he 
stood at the head of his profession and was 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



233 



without a peer in the West. Pie was pos- 
sessed of a natural genius for the law, culti- 
vated and strengthened by careful study and 
experience. Fortunate in his early legal 
training, and still more fortunate in being 
endowed with the strictest integrity and an 
untiring industry, he infused into his decis- 
ions and thus into the legal monuments of 
the State the spirit which he imbued from a 
life-lone: intercouse with the highest sources 
of the law. As a judicial writer Judge Bald- 
win had clearness, succinctness and force. 
He always meant what he said and said what 
he meant in the fewest possible words and 
most direct manner, and seldom, if ever, 
tailed to illustrate clearly and logically his 
earnest and honest convictions whatever the 
subject with which he dealt. As a citizen of 
Council Bluffs Judge Baldwin was active in 
all public affairs and zealous for the upbuild- 
ing of the city and its future welfare. He 
was closely identified with its struggles, 
growth and prosperity. Nor did he limit 
his work to the city. He helped build his 
State. He carried to public position what 
he had shown in private life, — -business habits 
and a carefully trained legal mind. 

Nature had endowed Judge Baldwin with 
a form of manly dignity and a face of impres- 
sive benevolence. With remarkably pleasing 
manners, he commanded the admiration of 
all who met him. In his influence over men 
and their emotions he had a sublime mastery, 
and he took pleasure in affording needed re- 
lief and imparting to others that desirable 
inspiration which he himself possessed. As 
a friend he was generous, kind, true and 
faithful. He was deliberate in drawing con- 
clusions and judging faults. His heart was 
large enough to embrace within its sympa- 
thies all classes. Ever willing to lend a 
helping hand, whether to one in need of en- 
couragement or in distress, affable and oblig- 



ing, Judge Baldwin was personally popular 
with rich and poor, high and low, alike. He 
was a leader and controller of men and a 
great organizer, and he was, as has often been 
said of him, " the Von Moltke of Iowa poli- 
tics;" but the essential element of his success 
had a surer foundation than this. lie was 
distinguished for his unchallenged honesty; 
holding some of the most responsible posi- 
tions in his State and nation, his course was 
ever marked by unswerving integrity. He 
was faithful to every public duty and true to 
his friends. He never betrayed a public trust 
or a personal friend. In private life he was 
genial and companionable, in the home he 
was the dutiful son, an affectionate husband, 
a kind and indulgent father. 

In 1848 Judge Baldwin was married to 
Miss Jane Barr, a daughter of the Rev. 
Thomas Barr, of liushville, Indiana. She 
was a woman admirably fitted to be the wife 
of so noble a husband. She had more than 
average intellectual force, and her naturd 
powers had been cultivated, enlarged and de- 
veloped by careful study and training. For 
this reason she was an acquisition to society, 
and it enabled her to fulfill the duties de- 
volving upon her as the wife of a prominent 
man and the mother of a large family. After 
the death of her husband she held the office 
of Postmistress in the city of Council Blulfs 
• luring the administration of President Hayes 
and part of Garfield's. Her administration 
of that office was marked by the utmost fidel- 
ity and acceptance, and she left behind her a 
monument of virtue that the storms of time 
can never destroy. Her deeds of kindness, 
love and mercy shown to the many with 
whom she came in contact year by year, will 
never be forgotten. 

Judge Baldwin died December 15, 1876, 
after a long and painful illness. Calm re- 
signed, with an unswerving faith in the fu- 



•231 



lllOdltM'llICA I. Ill SI on Y 



tnre, lie passed qnietly and peacefully away, 
just as he had reached the zenith of his capa- 
bilities, just as his mind fully disciplined by 
exorcise, matured by experience and enlarged 
by observation, was capable of its best and 
grandest achievements, in the midst of pub- 
lic employment and arduous duties, sur- 
rounded by a host of earnest friends, and in 
the bosom of an interesting family. In the 
power of example, in the wealth of an earnest, 
active, true life, he still lives. 

As a mark of the high respect and esteem 
in which he was hold by the Court of Claims, 
and also by the Iowa delegation then in Con- 
gress, resolutions fittingly portraying his 
character and virtues were unanimously 
adopted by both these bodies, spread upon 
the record of the Court and the history of 
Iowa in Congress. 



E. MoMULLEN, a prominent farmer 
of Washington Township, was born in 
I* Bedford County, Pennsylvania, Feb- 
ruary 22, 1846, the son of William McMul- 
len, also a native of Pennsylvania. He was 
the son of Charles McMullen, who was born 
in Maryland, of Scotch-Irish parentage, and 
who also served in the war of 1812. Our 
subject's mother was Margaret (llerage) Mc- 
Mullen, a native of Bedford County, Penn- 
sylvania. William McMullen is still living, 
in Washington Township, at the age of sev- 
enty-one years, lie has been a farmer all his 
life; is a Republican in politics, and a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Church. 

The subject of this sketch was but seven 
years of age when his parents moved to Pe- 
oria County, Illinois, where he remained until 
he was eighteen, engaged in farm work. Dur- 
ing the war he enlisted in the One Hundred 
and Forty-sixth Illinois Infantry, Company 



I, under Colonel Dean, and later was a mem- 
ber of Company 1!, Twenty-second Regiment 
United States Infantry, and serred on the 
frontier for three years after the war. lie 
was then engaged in freighting and teaming 
in Colorado and Wyoming for two years. 
He next went to Missouri, and from there 
came to Pottawattamie County in 1871, first 
settling in Silver Creek Township. He then 
removed to Mills County, where he remained 
for a time, and in 1881 bought his present 
farm of 340 acres in Washington Township. 
He has improved this place until he now 
owns one of the finest farms in Pottawatta- 
mie County. 

Mr. McMullen was married in Mills Coun- 
ty, December 21, 1875, to Sarah E. Ellis, 
who was born in Orange County, Indiana, a 
daughter of Jesse and Rachel (Frazier) Ellis, 
both natives of North Carolina. Mrs. Mc- 
Mullen was eleven years of age when her 
parents settled near Oskaloosa, Mahaska 
County, Iowa. Her father died in 1856, in 
Illinois, on the way to Iowa. The mother 
died in this county at the age of seventy four 
years. Religiously they were Quakers, or 
Friends. Mrs. McMullen received a good 
education at New Sharon, Iowa, and at the 
age of seventeen years was engaged in teach- 
ing, which occupation she continued for thir- 
ty-two terms. In 1871 she went to Kansas 
atid took up a Government homestead, after 
which sho returned to Mahaska County. In 
1875 she came to Mills County, where she 
was married. Mr. and Mrs. McMullen have 
six children: Byron Gr., Herman Ray and 
Normon Fay, twins; Herbert A., Laura, 
Grace and Blanche. Mr. McMullen is a 
strong believer in the principles of tho Demo- 
cratic party, and has served as Township 
Trustee and in other minor offices in his 
township. Ho is a member of the Masonic 
order, No. 400, of Silver City, and also of 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



235 



the G. A. R., Bradford Post, No. 471. Mrs. 
McMullen was reared a Quaker, and is now 
a member of the Evangelical Church. 



— £ , i"t ' S" *' — 

FIIOMAS H. JEFFERSON, a promi- 
nent farmer of Pottawattamie County, 
Iowa, is a son of William Jefferson, 
who was born in 1801, and was married to 
Elizabeth Hewett, daughter of John Hewett, 
a native of England. Mr. Jefferson came to 
America in 1823, and settled in Trumbull 
County, Ohio, where he was among the early 
settlers. He was the only member of his 
family that ever came to this country. He 
was engaged first in driving a stage for the 
Ohio Stage Company for sixteen years, and 
next in clearing a farm from heavy timber. 
The country at that time was covered with 
giant beech, oaks, walnut, maple, hickory and 
almost all kinds of timber native to that 
State, and wild beasts were also plentiful. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Jefferson were born five 
children: William, Mary, Thomas, Edward, 
and one who died when young. The father 
lived on his farm for many years, where he was 
a well-known and prominent man, and both he 
and his wife were members of the Church of 
England. In 1863 he went to Black Hawk 
County, Iowa, where he lived the remainder of 
his days, dying at the age of seventy-six years. 
He was a hard-working and upright man. 

Thomas H. Jefferson, our subject, was 
born February 23, 1839, and after his mar- 
riage was engaged in the oil country in 
Warren and Erie counties, Pennsylvania, for 
three years. In 1867 he came to Iowa, set- 
tling in Black Hawk County, where he re- 
mained two years; he next lived on the Mis- 
souri line in Polk and Cedar coiinties, and 
in 1872 he came to Belknap Township, Pot- 
tawattamie County, settling on wild land. 



There was but one house between him and 
Big Grove, now Oakland, which then con- 
tained a store, blacksmith shop, a saw-mill 
and three small cabins. In 1881 he came to 
his present fine farm of 320 acres, one-half 
of which is in Belknap Township. Politi- 
cally he is a Democrat, and stands deservedly 
high" as a straightforward and honorable man. 
Mr. Jefferson was married in 1863, in 
Pennsylvania, to Rose Stewart, daughter of 
Simeon and Hannah (Blakesley) Stewart, and 
they have three children: Stewart, Charles 
C. and Tommy. Simeon Stewart was born 
in New York State, and was the father of 
five children: Tryphenia, Calplmrnia, Perry, 
Rose and Dora. He was a carpenter by 
trade, but owned a farm in the woods of 
Erie County, Pennsylvania, where he lived 
for many years, and where he was a pioneer 
settler. He went thirty-two miles to Erie 
on horseback for his flour. He was a soldier 
in the war of 1812, and lived to the age of 
eighty-two, dying on his farm. He was a 
member of the Masonic order, and a man 
well known and respected in his county. He 
kept a hotel on the road from Oil City to 
Corry, Pennsylvania, and during the oil 
exitement did an immense business, accumu- 
lating a handsome property. 

— ..... g . i i n ' 3 — 



fOHN BLAKELY is one of the enter- 
prising and well-known citizens of 
Wright Township. He came here in 
the spring of 1877, and has since made this 
place his home. He was born in Perry 
County, Ohio, February 13, 1842, a son of 
Andrew Blakely. His great-grandfather 
Blakely was a native of the Emerald Jsle. 
Andrew Blakely was a stone-cutter by trade, 
which ho followed the most of his life. His 
political views were those of the Democratic 



an 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



party. He married Catherine Gilchriest, a 
native of Pennsylvania and a lady of German 
ancestry. They reared a family of six chil- 
dren, five of whom are living, John being the 
tifth born. Mrs. Blakely was born in 1807, 
and is now eighty-three years of age. She 
resides in Pennsylvania, near the old Gil- 
chriest homestead. 

John was principally brought up in West- 
moreland County, Pennsylvania, where he 
learned the carpenter's trade, which he fol- 
lowed for many years in that State and in 
Ohio. In 1868 he came West, and worked 
in different parts of Missouri, and finally in 
Maryville, Nodaway County. In 1871 he 
came to Cass County, Iowa, and bought 
eighty acres of land, six miles southeast of 
Lewis, which he improved. February 5, 
1874, he married Miss Lucina Ingraham, a 
native of New York State and a daughter of 
Clark and Electa Lucina (Grinnell) Ingra- 
ham, both natives of the East. When a child 
she came with her parents to Illinois, and 
later to Cass County, Iowa. Her father is 
now a resident of Griswold. 

In 1877 Mr. Blakely sold his farm in Cass 
County and bought his present farm of 
eighty acres, upon which he has since made 
many improvements. He erected a two-story 
frame house and surrounded it with shade 
and ornamental trees; and his barn, other out- 
buildings and improvements on the premises 
all Bhow thrift and enterprise. Mr. and Mrs. 
Blakely have five children: Etta Belle, 
Lenora, Elizabeth Jane, John Sherman and 
Electa Lucina. 

In politics Mr. Blakely is a Republican. 
He has served the public' as a member of the 
School Board. Both he and his wife are 
members of the Presbyterian Church of Gris- 
wold. He is associated with Lewis Lodge, 
No. 140, I. O. (). V. Mr. Blakely is a man 
yet in the prime of life; has traveled exten- 



sively, and is well-informed on all general 
topics. He takes an active interest in edu- 
cational and religious matters, and any move- 
ment that has for its object the upbuilding 
or advancement of the community where he 
resides, finds in him an earnest supporter. 

— ~ .. g - 3 , .r . °; 



fOSHUA M. CROGHAN, one of the rep- 
resentative farmer citizens of Wright 
Township, is a native of the Buckeye 
State. He was born in Perry County, Ohio, 
April 12, 1846, a son of James Croghan,also 
a native of Ohio. The Croghans are of Irish 
descent. The mother of our subject was nee 
Catherine Munson. She was born in Ger- 
many, a daughter of Thomas Munson. Her 
education was obtained in her native land, 
and she came to the United States at the age 
of fourteen. She was a woman of much in- 
telligence and refinement, and after coming 
to this country was engaged in teaching the 
German language in the schools. Her hus- 
band, James Croghan, was also a successful 
teacher for many years. In 1853 they 
moved to Rochester, Cedar County, Iowa, 
becoming early pioneers of that county. Her 
death occurred that same year. She was a 
member of the Baptist Church. Mr. Cro- 
ghan spent the residue of his life in Cedar 
County, and died September 18, 1870, in his 
seventieth year. He was a mason by trade, 
but for many years had followed the profes- 
sion of teaching. In politics he was a Re- 
publican. He was a member of the Gray 
beard Regiment of Iowa, and served in his 
regiment two years and seven months as 
Second Lieutenant. While in Ohio he was a 
member of the " Hardshell " Baptist Churcji, 
lmt after coming to Iowa he united with the 
Christian Church. Mr. and Mrs. Crotrhan 
were the parents of fourteen children. Ben- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



237 



jarnin, their first born, is a resident of Allen 
County, Kansas. 

Joshua was reared in Cedar County, Iowa, 
on a farm, and when he grew up learned the 
harness-maker's trade at Wilton Junction, 
Muscatine County, same State. During the 
great Rebellion he enlisted, in 1864, in Com- 
pany B, Second Iowa Infantry. The regi- 
ment was on its noted march to the sea under 
General Sherman. Mr. Croghan joined them 
at Atlanta, Georgia, and from there marched 
with them to Savannah, then up through the 
Carolinas and to Richmond. After the sur- 
render of General Lee's army they marched 
on to Washington, and were present at tho 
grand review. He was mustered out at 
Louisville, Kentucky, and at Davenport, 
Iowa, received his final discharge and was 
paid off. 

The war over, Mr. Croghan returned to 
Cedar County, Iowa, where he resided six 
years. He then removed to Clinton County, 
same State, and after remaining three years 
returned to Cedar County. Five years later, 
in 1879, he came to Pottawattamie County. 
In 1880 he purchased forty acres of wild 
land, which he has since improved and brought 
under a high state of cultivation. He has a 
comfortable home, a good barn, modern wind 
pump, a grove and orchard of four acres, and 
other substantial improvements. Everything 
about the Croghan farm shows thrift and 
enterprise. At present Mr. Croghan is cul- 
tivating 240 acres of land, and is feeding 
twenty-eighty head of cattle and a large 
number of hogs. 

February 25, 1868, and Clinton County, 
Iowa, are the date and place of Mr. Cro- 
ghan's marriage to Miss Mary Jane Dale, a 
native of Crawford County, Ohio, daughter 
of Samuel and Mary Dale. Her father died 
in 1864, and her mother is a resident of 
Muscatine, Iowa, where she has three sons. 



Mr. Croghan and his wife have seven chil- 
dren: Mary C, the oldest, died in 1870; 
James F., Phillip, Sina A., Charles, Colbert 
aud Sherwood M. Mr. Croghan is a charter 
member of Washington Post, G. A. R., No. 
9. In politics he is a Republican. He and 
his wife are members of the Protestant 
Methodist Church. 



fARWELL MERRIAM, a farmer of 
Lewis Township, is a native of Wor- 
cester County, Massachusetts, born Jan- 
nary 14, 1833, the son of Asa and Sarah 
(Warren) Merriam, natives of Westminster, 
Massachusetts, and of French extraction. 
The parents were both deceased in Massachu- 
setts, the father dying May 19, 1886, at the 
advanced age of eighty-six years, ten months 
and eleven days, and the mother in 1859; 
she was born about the beginning of the 
nineteenth century. The father was a farmer, 
and also owned and operated a mill in 
Princeton, Worcester County, Massachusetts. 
Farwell Merriam was the fifth child in a 
family of ten children, was reared to farm 
life, and received his education in the district 
schools. When he was twenty years of age 
he entered a wood shop, engaged in getting 
out chair material, and also learned wood- 
turning for about one year. February 6, 
1854, he embarked for California on board the 
steamship Georgia; ticket, $115; March 
13, 1854, arrived at San Francisco. He 
there took steamboat Pawnee up the river 
to Marysville, and then walked twenty- 
eight miles to Swedish Flat, Butte County, 
where he engaged in gold-mining for over 
three years, when he returned to his native 
State, remaining until the spring of 1858. 
At Worcester, Massachusetts, April 6, 1858, 
he purchased a ticket for $32 to St. Louis, 



ass 



MOGliAl'IIICAL HISTORY 



M issouri, via Chicago, which was at that 
time a small place. From St. Louis he 
came by boat to Council Bluffs, where he re- 
mained over night, and the next morning 
started out afoot for Onawa, Iowa, a distance 
of some sixty miles. Here he engaged at 
work forjudge Whitney, in Monona Coun- 
ty, where lie remained for two or three 
weeks. Mr. Merriam then purchased a piece 
of land, all of the northwest quarter of sec- 
tion 5, on the west side of the Sioux River, 
comprising 114 acres. This was a tract of 
uncultivated land, which he slightly im- 
proved, and remained one year. He then re- 
turned to Onawa, where he erected a home, 
and resided there until May 6, 1861, when 
he started with a wagon and two yoke of 
cattle for Denver, Colorado, arriving at Den- 
ver June 15, 1861. From there he went to 
Golden Gate, and over the divide to 
Black Hawk Point and Central City, where 
he took up a claim between Central and Ne- 
vada City, which he worked for several 
months: On October 6 he sold out and re- 
turned overland to Council Bluffs, and thence 
to Onawa, where he remained until April, 
1862. Mr. Merriam then returned to Coun- 
cil Bluffs, en route for Denver; but when he 
arrived here he changed his mind, and on 
May 15, 1862, opened a small grocery, notion 
and fruit store at No. 187 Broadway. Dur- 
ing his stay in Council Bluffs he increased 
his stock, and controlled the whole fruit 
market. In 1881 he turned his entire atten- 
tion to his farm, which is located on section 
17, Lewis Township, where he has lived since 
the spring of 1875, having purchased the 
same in 1874. This farm consists of forty 
acres, for which he paid $2,000, and which 
he has turned into a vegetable garden and 
fruit farm; but for a number of years he fol- 
lowed stock-raieing. Mr. Merriam bus made 
many improvements, and now haB one of the 



best located farms in this part of the county; 
everything denotes thrift, energy and pros- 
perity. He is a stanch Republican, and takes 
an active part in all political issues of the 
day, and strives to promote the best interests 
of his party. 

Mr. Merriam was married September 4, 
1867, in Sparta, Wisconsin, to Miss Sarah E. 
Jones, aged thirty-nine years, the daughter 
of G. II. and Adaline Jones, of Council Bluffs. 
Mr. and Mrs. Merriam have six children, 
viz.: George N., of Council Bluffs, aged 
twenty-two years and four months; Grace 
E., nineteen years and nine months, and the 
wife of W. W. Biddleston, of Council Bluffs; 
Charles F., deceased March 15, 1889, aged 
fifteen years, three months and twenty-two 
days; Walter, deceased in 1882, at the age of 
three years, eleven months and twenty-five 
days; Leonard A., at home, aged seven years 
and six months, and Ilarrold, four years and 
six months old. Mr. Merriam is a member 
of the Pioneer Association of Monona Coun- 
ty, Iowa. 




% • ! * ■ { ■ % '• — 

ILLIAM GARNER, one of the early 
pioneers of Pottawattamie County, 
was born in Davidson County, North 
Carolina, June 22, 1817, a son of David and 
Sarah (Stevens) Garner, also natives of Nortli 
Carolina. The father lived to the age of 104 
years, and the mother died at the age of 
ninety years. Our subject was but seven- 
teen years of age when his parents moved to 
Quincy, Illinois, where he remained eleven 
years. Ho was married in 1846 to Sarah 
Workman, and they then joined the Mormons 
at Nauvoo, Illinois, and some years later 
came with that colony to Pottawattamie 
County, Iowa. Mr. Garner was one of the 
firs! settlers in this county, and Garner Town- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



239 




ship was named in his honor. He served in 
the Mexican war, and inarched through to 
Mexico, thence to Lower California, after 
which he returned home. He now owns 350 
acres of fine land in Garner Township, and 
lias also given each of his eleven children a 
good farm. He has lived to see his children 
grow to maturity, and is a well-to-do and 
honorable citizen of Pottawattamie County. 
He built the woolen mill on Mosquito Creek, 
and has been an important factor in many 
other improvements. 



ILL I AM C. LONG, a successful 
ii| farmer of Wright Township and an 
ex-soldier of the late war, came to 
Pottawattamie County, Iowa, in 1876, and 
has since resided here. 

He was born in Somerset County, Penn- 
sylvania, February 11, 1847. His father and 
grandfather, Jacob H. and Henry Long, were 
both natives of Somerset County. His 
mother was Mary E. Baker, also a native of 
that county, a daughter of Josiah Baker, a 
native of Pennsylvania. Both the Longs 
and Bakers are of German extraction. When 
William C. was six years old his parents 
moved to Howard County, Indiana. There 
he worked on the farm in summer and at- 
tended school during the winter months. In 
the fall of 1863 he enlisted in Company E, 
Eleventh Indiana Cavalry, and took an active 
part in the war until its close. He partici- 
pated in the battles of Huntsvilleand Athens, 
Alabama; Columbia, Tennessee; was on the 
march against General Hood's forces, and 
was at Franklin, Spring Hill and Nashville, 
Tennessee. The war over, Mr. Long received 
an honorable discharge at Indianapolis, Indi- 
ana, and from there went to Lee County, 
Illinois, whither his father had moved during 



the war. His mother had died in Howard 
County, Indiana, in 1863, leaving twelve chil- 
dren, as follows: Lydia Susana, Lucinda, 
William C, Rebecca, J. W., Matilda E., 
Martin Luther, Mary Ellen, Rosyanna: 
Franklin and a babe nnnamed are deceased. 
Henry, another son, was drowned. He was 
a member of the same company in which his 
brother served, was taken prisoner at Colum- 
bia, Tennessee, and confined at Anderson - 
ville for four months. At the end of that 
time he was paroled, put on board the Old Sul- 
tana, a condemned vessel, which went to the 
bottom of the river with all on board, near 
Memphis. 

Mr. Long resided in Lee County, Illinois, 
until 1876, when he came to Iowa. He 
spent one year in Boone County before com- 
ing to Pottawattamie County. In Center 
Township he purchased and improved a farm 
of eighty acses, which, in 1883, he sold to 
Jack Evans. Then he bought his present 
farm of 120 acres. This place is one of the 
best farms in the township, everything about 
the premises indicating industry and prosper- 
ity. Mr. Long has a story and a half frame 
house, which is built in modern style and 
which is surrounded with a grove and 
orchard. He has a good barn 24x26 feet 
with sixteen-feet posts, and a corn -crib 24 x 
32 x 12 feet, with a capacity of 3,000 bushels. 
He has a long cattle shed, a cow stable, a 
wind pump, and everything convenient for 
carrying on general farming and stock-rais- 
ing to the best advantage. 

July 3, 1867, Mr. Long was married, in 
Howard County, Indiana, to Miss Lavina 
Darby, a lady of much intelligence and a na- 
tive of Clinton County, that State. She is a 
daughter of John and Rachel Darby. Mr. 
and Mrs. Long have three children: Laura 
Etta, Lilly Dale and Lucy Ellen. They lost 
their first-born, an infant son. Mr. Long is 



240 



B10GKAPIIICAL UISTORY 



a Republican, and, like the representative 

citizens of his county, is well posted on gen- 
eral topics and current events. 



— -■■ S ' i . .t . g. . » - — 

|OL< >MON ERNEST, one of the enter- 
prising and successful citizens of Wash- 
ington Township, came to Pottawattamie 

County in 1873, and to his present farm in 
1881, where he has since resided and made 
his home. He was born in Somerset County, 
Pennsylvania, June 15, 1832, the son of 
William Ernest, who was also a native of 
Pennsylvania, and was a son of William Er- 
nest, Sr., who were of Pennsylvania Dutch 
ancestry. The mother of our subject was 
Mary (Wagamon) Ernest, also of Pennsylvania 
Dutch ancestry. Solomon Ernest was seven 
years of age when, in 1839, his parents re- 
moved to Fayette County, Illinois, where 
they resided until their death, the father dy- 
ing in 1872, at the age of over sixty years; 
and the mother in 1855. The father was a 
farmer all his life; politically he was a Dem- 
ocrat. Poth parents were members of the 
Christian Church. They reared throe sons 
and four daughters. 

Solomon, the second son and third child, 
was reared on a farm, and received his edu- 
cation in the Fayette County public schools. 
lie resided in that county seven years, and 
then removed to Olmsted County, Minne- 
sota, settling near Rochester. He resided in 
that State eleven years, and in 1873 came 
to Pottawattamie County, first settling in 
Washington Township, and afterward re- 
moved to Silver Creek Township, where lie 
resided four years. In 1880 he bought wild 
land where he now resides, and the next 
year improved it. Mr. Ernest now owns 200 
acres in Washington Township and seventy- 
three acres in Belknap Township, which is 



just across the highway. He has a com- 
fortable frame residence, 16 x 24 feet and 
one and a half stories high, situated on a 
natural building site, and surrounded by a 
grove and orchard of two acres. 

Mr. Ernest was married April 6, 1856, in 
Fayette County, Illinois, to Miss Isabelle E. 
Lee, a woman of intelligence and education, 
who was born in that county April 17, 1839, 
and was a daughter of Harvey Lee, a native 
of jS'ew York State, and a son of Abijah 
Lee. They were of a patriotic family, several 
members of the family having fought in 
the Revolutionary war. The mother of Mrs. 
Eruest was Elizebeth (Nosbitt) Lee, a native 
of Dixon County, Tennessee, and a daughter 
of Joseph and Isabelle (Harper) Nesbitt. 
The parents were married in Fayette County, 
near Vandalia, Illinois, where the mother 
was reared and educated. The father died 
when Mrs. Ernest was nine years of age, and 
the mother died in 1878, at the age of sixty- 
six years. She was a member of the Chris- 
tian Church. The father was a carpenter by 
trade, although he was engaged in farming 
for many years; in politics he was a Whig. 
They had a family of eight children, three 
sons and live daughters. Mr. and Mrs. Er- 
nest hare four children, viz.: Henrietta, wife 
of George Darrymple, of Washington Town- 
ship, and they are the parents of four chil- 
dren; Marilla, wife of Simon Finley, of 
Fillmore County, .Minnesota, and they are 
the parents of five children; Abijah P., at 
home; Florence, wife of George W. Killion, 
of Washington Township, and they have two 
children. They have lost two by death, — 
Abner, a young man of twenty-eight years; 
and Ella, wife of John M. Killion. at the age 
of nineteen years. Mr. and Mrs. Ernest are 
members of the Christian Church; they were 
reared that way and have not departed from 
the teachings of their youth. Two of their 







* 




cJ^fUi£cO^ /DCcrO/ 



2^2<_ 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



241 



daughters have been workers in the Sabbath- 
school. In politics Mr. Ernest is a Democrat. 
He was rocked in a Democratic cradle, and 
has always stood by that party. He is well- 
known in the community where he resides, 
is honorable in all his dealings, and is num- 
bered among the solid men of the township. 



lEXTER CHAMBERLAIN BLOOM- 
ER, attorney at law and one of the 
most prominent and respected citizens 
of Council Bluffs, was born in Scipio, Cayuga 
County, New York, July 4, 1816, and was 
reared under the influence of Quakers. His 
father, John Bloomer, was a native of West- 
chester County, New York, and of English 
descent, and his mother, Tamma Chamber- 
lain, was a native of Massachusetts and also 
of English ancestry. On receiving his edu- 
cation, Mr. Bloomer exhibited a decided taste 
for literary and professional pursuits. In 
1837 he began the study of law, and soon 
afterward political affairs. Later he became 
editor of the Seneca County Courier, a 
Whig paper, at Seneca Ealls, New York, and 
tilled that position for fifteen years. In 1843 
he was admitted to practice in the several 
courts of New York. During his residence 
there he held several offices, among them 
that of Postmaster during the last four years, 
under the Taylor-Fillmore adminstration. In 
1853 he removed to Mount Vernon, Ohio, 
and became the editor of the Western Home 
Visitor, Mrs. Bloomer continuing the pub- 
lication of the Lily at the same place. With 
the view of still bettering his situation, he 
visited Council Bluffs in October, 1854, and 
decided to make this point his future home, 
and the next year he moved thither, arriving 
April 15, and immediately established him- 
self in the practice of law and in the real- 



estate business. At that time the county 
was strongly Democratic, and Mr. Bloomer, 
in company with John T. Baldwin, C. E. 
Stone and others, led in the organization of 
the new Republican party in Western Iowa. 
The interest which he manifested in political 
movements and the able manner in which he 
performed the duties imposed upon him 
caused his fellow citizens to bestow upon him 
many trusts, and he was frequently presented 
as a candidate for the offices of Judge, Rep- 
resentative to the Legislature, etc. For 
eleven years he was a member of the Board 
of Education, for a time serving as its Presi- 
dent. Within this period seven fine school- 
houses were erected, one of the number, the 
Bloomer School, being named in his honor. 
He was a member of the State Board of Edu- 
cation until that office was abolished; was 
largely influential in procuring the establish- 
ment of the Council Bluffs Free Public Libra- 
ry, of which he has been an honored trustee 
from its foundation. For twelve years, and 
until the office was abolished, he was Receiver 
of the Public Moneys at this point; was 
Alderman in 1856, and Mayor of the city 
two years, 1869-'71. In all these official 
capacities he was honest and efficient, render- 
ing satisfaction to the public. Durino- the 
war he rendered efficient service to the cause 
of the Union, and was a member of the Union 
League. In 1872-'73 he was editor of the 
Council Bluffs Republican, and for a time 
was editor also of the North-western Odd 
Fellow. He also compiled a history of Pot- 
tawattamie County, under the title of " Notes 
on the Early History of Pottawattamie Coun- 
ty," which was published in a magazine 
called the Annals of Iowa. As an evidence 
that he has a fine, large brain, it can be said 
that he has been as efficient in his business 
relations as in the legal and literary. As a 
politician his record is unblemished. In 



242 



BIOGRAPHICAL II I STORY 



religious matters he is a member of the 
Protostant Episcopal Church, of which he has 
been Senior Warden for tholast thirty years. 
He was married April 15, 1840, to Miss 
Amelia Jenks, a lady of culture, and in hearty 
sympathy with every movement of reform. 
Her first national notoriety was occasioned 
by her introduction of what was known as 
the " Bloomer costume," which called the 
attention of the public to an urgent reform 
in dress, and has led to important modifica- 
tions of the old and unhoalthful fashion, and 
secondly, and more lastingly, as a prominent 
and efficient advocate of the cause of woman 
suffrage. (A biographical account of her 
is given in connection herewith.) She and 
her husband first arrived in Council Bluffs 
on the 15th day of April, 1855, and immedi- 
ately took up their residence in their present 
pleasant homo. That day was the fifteenth 
anniversary of their marriage, and April 15, 
1890, they celebrated both that event and 
their marriage by a " Golden Wedding." It 
was a grand occasion. A large number of 
magnificent presents were made to them, and 
letters of congratulation from eminent co- 
workers in the cause of reform throughout 
the United States were received, — among 
them Miss Susan B. Anthony and Mrs. ex- 
Governor Hale, of Wyoming. A splendid 
poem was composed for the occasion by Rev. 
G. W. Crofts, and illustrated on its presenta- 
tion by Miss S. D. Rhese. 



— « 



g - 3"I - 3 " 




US. AMELIA BLOOMER. — Inas- 

V much as the name of this lady has 
become prominent over the country, 
it seems proper that it should appear in this 
history, more especially as she is now one of 
the oldest settlers. 

Mrs. Bloomer was burn in Cortland Conn 



ty, New York, in the year 1818. Her maiden 
name was Amelia Jenks. She received a 
fair education in the common schools of the 
State, and after arriving at suitable age 6he 
engaged iu teaching, at first in the public 
schools and afterward as a private tutor. 
She was married in 1840 to Dexter C. 
Bloomer, of Seneca Falls, New York, where 
she resided with her husband until the fall 
or winter of 1853. Mr. Bloomer was an 
attorney, and also, at the time of their mar- 
riage and for some years after, editor and one 
of the publishers of a county newspaper. 
Mrs. Bloomer early began to write for the 
paper, confining her articles mainly to the 
advocacy of temperance, of which she has 
always been an ardent defender. She was 
one of the editors of the Water Bucket, a 
temperance paper published during the 
Washingtonian revival, and she early con- 
nected herself with the order of Good Tem- 
plars. In 1849 a temperance paper called 
the Lily was commenced in Seneca Falls, and 
it very soon fell entirely into the hands of 
Mrs. Bloomer, both as editor and publisher. 
It was continued by her for six years in New 
York, and one year in Ohio. It was devoted 
to the " interests of woman," and ardently 
advocated the cause of temperance and wo- 
man's enfranchisement, and attained a wide 
circulation. In 1851 Mrs. Bloomer first ap- 
peared on the platform as a public speaker, 
and she, in company with other advocates of 
temperance and Woman's Rights, in the 
winter of that year addressed large and atten- 
tive audiences in all large cities of the State. 
Mrs. Bloomer continued, d urine her residence 
in New York and Ohio, to speak frequently 
on the question so near her heart, visiting and 
speaking in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago, 
Milwaukee and St. Louis; and wherever she 
went she always was favored with full houses. 
In 1850 Mrs. Bloomer's attention was called 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNT F. 



243 



to the short dresses and trowsers which a 
few ladies about that time began to don. She 
was pleased with it, adopted it in place of 
the long, heavy skirt that ladies were accus- 
tomed to wear, and advocated in the Lily its 
adoption by others. It soon excited great 
interest, and her name soon became connected 
with it the world over. Mrs. Bloomer con- 
tinued to wear it for some six years; and she 
is still a tirin believer that its general use 
would tend to promote the comfort and 
health of her sex. She, however, never pub- 
licly advocated it other than in the columns 
of her paper, and never in any way alluded 
to it in her public addresses. Her main 
theme and the work of her life has been the 
enfranchisement of woman, alike in industrial 
employments, in educational privileges, and 
in political rights; and in all these respects 
she has been spared to witness most wonder- 
ful progress; but the hour of complete 
triumph is yet delayed. 

In 1854 Mrs. Bloomer removed with her 
husband to Mount Vernon, Ohio, where, dur- 
ing that year, she continued the publication 
of her paper, acting also as associate editor 
of the Western Home Visitor. She made 
many addresses during the year in that State, 
and organized a number of lodges of Good 
Templars. In 1855 she became a resident 
of Council Bluffs, where she has since resided. 
She has spoken often and written a great 
deal on her favorite subject of Woman's 
Rights, as well as upon temperance and other 
prominent questions before the public. She 
was the first president of the Iowa Woman 
Suffrage Society, and her residence has always 
been open to the advocates of her favorite 
ideas, as they stopped or passed through the 
city. But advancing years has limited her 
activities, and she has been compelled to 
to leave to others the carrying on the battle 
for equal justice for her sex. 



In 1842 she became a member of the Epis- 
copal Church, and she has continued her 
connections with it through all the subsequent 
years, and aided in its work in many ways in 
the city of her adoption. She has taken a 
deep interest in whatever tends to ameliorate 
all suffering and promote the happiness of 
the poor and the unfortunate, as well as the 
rich. In the spring of 1890 she celebrated, 
in connection with her husband, their Golden 
Wedding, in the pleasant cottage in which 
they have resided for thirty-five years. It 
was thronged with their friends, who joyfully 
seized the occasion to express their high 
regards for the venerable pair, and the pres- 
ents which they received were alike numer- 
ous, beautiful and spontaneous. 

— g « im • % *■■— — 



fUSTIN J. OLNEY, of Belknap Town- 
ship, was born in Kirtland, Lake County, 
Ohio, February 8, 1838, a son of Oliver 
and Alice (Johnson) Olney, the former a na- 
tive of New England, and the latter of the 
State of Vermont. The father, reared and 
educated in New England, followed his pro- 
fession as cloth manufacturer, in the land of 
his birth, and emigrated to Ohio in an early 
day, locating first in Portage County, thence 
removing to Lake County. He emigrated 
thence to Nauvoo, Illinois, and a few years 
later removed to the State of Missouri, where 
his wife died, in 1842. Soon afterward he 
moved back to Illinois, where he married 
again, and remained until the date of his 
death, lie was the father of eleven children, 
namely: Newton, who died about the year 
1841; Milton, now residing in Ohio; Emily, 
who resides in Oregon, having emigrated 
thereabout the year 1846 or 1847; Mary, 
who went to Oregon in 1852, and died in 



344 



BIOORAPUICjiL HISTORY 



November, 1855; Rosetta, who died about 
the year 1842; Oliver, who died in Belknap 

Township, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, in 
1875, at the age of forty-two years; Laura, 
still living in Kirtland, Ohio; Caroline A., 
who died in 1858; Cornelia, who died about 
the year 1841; Justin J., the subject of this 
sketch; and Albert, who died in infancy, in 
1842. 

Mr. Olney, tho subject of this sketch, and 
his sister Mary, after the deatli of their 
mother, were taken by an uncle, John John- 
son, living at Hiram, Ohio, who brought them 
uj>. Laura was brought lip by Mrs. Emily 
Quinn, an aunt, who lived at Kirtland, Ohio. 
Caroline was brought up by Mrs. Jason Ry- 
der, an aunt, of ILiram, Ohio. In the year 
1855 Mr. Johnson came to Pottawattamie 
County, Iowa, and located on a farm near 
Council Bluffs, where young Jti6tin J. worked 
for him by the month for about one year. lie 
then rented a part of Mr. Johnson's farm, 
and worked for him until 18G2, when lie made 
three trips across the plains to Denver. 
August 9, 1865, he married Miss Mary E., 
daughter of Edwin S. and Eveline (Morris) 
Morrison. 

Mr. Morrison was reared in his native 
State, Missouri. December 8, 1836, he mar- 
ried his wife in Virginia, her native State. 
His first ancestors in America settled in this 
country in early times. His father was a 
Presbyterian minister. After his marriage 
Mr. Morrison visited Cincinnati, Ohio, re- 
sided for a time at Madison, Indiana, and 
then returned to Cincinnati, where his wife 
died in 1847, leaving five children, namely: 
Monteville, now a resident of Kansas City, 
Missouri; Sarah Iv, deceased; Mary E., wife 
of .Mr. Olney; Catherine and Elizabeth, both 
decease!. Mrs. Olney was born in Indiana. 
November 27, 1842. Her mother having 
died when she was qnite young, she was 



taken care of by her grandmother for one 

year; then her lather married Margaret Den- 
ton September 14, 1849, and she was taken 
to his home in Cincinnati, where she was 
brought up. At the age of eighteen years 
she came to South English, Iowa, to reside 
with her brother, where she made her home 
until her marriage. 

In 1866 Mr. Olney purchased 240 acres of 
land on the west side of the Nishnabotna 
River, near his present home. Since that 
time he purchased forty acres more, all of 
which he occupied and improved until 1880, 
when he rented his farm and removed to 
Oakland, and en<ra»red in the trade in agri- 
cultural implements; but a year afterward he 
moved upon a farm in the vicinity of Oak- 
land. In 1883 he exchanged his farm for an 
undivided one-half interest in a tract of 560 
acres. When the division was made he ob- 
tained 320 acres of fine land in sections 23 
and 24, where improvements had been made. 
His principal business is agriculture. He has 
140 acres in cultivation, and the rest in pas- 
ture and meadow. He also has an orchard of 
one and a half acres of apples and small fruit. 
There is a fine spring of water upon his land, 
furnishing a good supply of pure water for 
all purposes. 

Politically Mr. Olney is a Republican, and 
a zealous advocate of Republican principles. 
He has been a prominent member of the 
Board of Education in his township, and has 
held many of the township offices, which lie 
has filled to the satisfaction of the people. 

His family are members of the Christian. 
or Disciples' Church, of Oakland. His two 
children are: Caroline Alice, the wife of D. 
S. Pleak, who now resides in Macedonia 
Township, this county; and Wayne, living at 
home with his parents. Mrs. Olney's father 
resides in Springfield, < )hio, and by bis second 
wife has six children, to wit: Marion E, 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



245 



Belle, Sarah, Louisa, Margaret and George. 
Marion E. now resides in Cincinnati, Ohio; 
Louisa is the wife of a Mr. McConnell, in 
Illinois; and the others are at home. 



|AMUEL BAKSTOW is a native of 
Muskingum County, Ohio, born Au- 
gust 18, 1829, five miles north of 
Zanesville, the son of Samuel and Alvira 
(Woodruff) Barstow, natives of Maine and 
Ohio respectively. The mother died May 5, 
1840, and the father died at Farinington, 
Illinois, in 1867. They had a family of 
seven children, of whom only five still sur- 
vive: Warren II., deceased in Illinois; 
George W., of Licking County, Ohio; Wil- 
lis, of Cleveland, Ohio; Samuel, our subject; 
Anthony H.. deceased; Martha, wife of M. 
W. Spaulding, residing in Tecum seh, Ne- 
braska; Stephen, of Farmington, Illinois; 
and Sarah A., deceased in infancy. Mr. Bar- 
stow was again married, this time to Mary 
L. Jet, of Ohio, who died in 1889, at Farm- 
ington, Illinois. By this marriage there were 
seven children, namely: Judson, who died 
in Andersonville prison after having been 
wounded at the battle of Chickahominy 
Swamps. He was first taken to Libby prison, 
thence to Andersonville, where he died of 
abuse and neglect; Elvira, deceased, wife of 
M. W. Spaulding, of Tecumseh, Nebraska; 
Henry, deceased in Illinois; Eliza, a resi- 
dent of Farmington, Illinois; Ann, deceased; 
Milton, deceased; Ross, a resident of Farm- 
ington. 

Samuel Barstow, Jr., our subject, was 
reared in his native county, and remained at 
home until he had attained his majority. He 
was brought up to farm life, and received 
his education in the old log school house of 



those days. September 19, 1853, he re- 
moved to Fulton County, Illinois, where he 
remained a short time, and then removed to 
Peoria County, working at whatever pre- 
sented itself, farming being his principal oc- 
cupation. He was married November 24, 
1853, to Miss Eleanor A. Caulson, daughter 
of William S. and Hephzibah (Eno) Caulson, 
natives of England and New York respect- 
ively. The mother, born in Michigan in 1804, 
still resides in the State of Washington, near 
Olympia. The father died in 1844, at the 
age of forty-three years. They had a family 
of ten children, of whom seven still survive: 
Hannah T., wife of Ambrose Clark, of 
Union County Oregon; Sarah Ann, widow 
of J. W. Clark, residing in Mills County, 
Iowa; William P., deceased in Mexico; 
Mary O., deceased, was the wife of Charles 
Davis, of Exeter, Nebraska; Eleanor A., 
the wife of the subject of this sketch ; 
Jakie, a resident of California; Imle E., of 
Cordelan Mines, Idaho; Emeline, widow of 
J. S. Sherwood, of the State of Washington; 
Henry S., also of Washington. Eleanor, the 
wife of our subject, was born in Peoria 
County, Illinois, near Peoria city, January 
29, 1832, where she was reared and married. 
In the fall of 1855 they came to Iowa, and 
located in Mills County, where Mr. Barstow 
purchased a pre-emption right of raw prairie, 
with no improvements whatever. Here they 
made their home for eight years, and im- 
proved eighty acres. In 1863 they returned 
to Illinois, where they spent one year, and 
then returned to Iowa, spending four years in 
Mills County; returned to Peoria and spent 
one year, and again returned to Mills Countv. 
In April, 1872, they located on their present 
farm of forty acres, on the southwest quarter 
of section 31, Lewis Township, Pottawat- 
tamie County. Here they at once com- 
menced improvements, erected a small resi- 



246 



lilOORAPHlCAL HISTORY 



dence, 10 x 21, and one and a half stories 
high. They made their homo here for sev- 
eral years, when they removed to their pres- 
ent residence. Mr. Barstow has added to 
liis first purchase until he now has 160 acres 
of finely improved land, the most of which 
he has done himself. When they landed in 
Iowa they had nothing but pluck and energy, 
hut by close application they have secured 
for themselves a comfortable home. lie de- 
votes himself principally to farming and 
stock-raising. Politically he is a stanch Re- 
publican, taking an active part in all of the 
political work of the county. He has held 
the office of Justice of the Peace and Road 
Supervisor, and while in Mills County he 
was chosen as Supervisor of the county two 
terms. Mr. and Mrs. Barstow are members 
of the Christian Church, of which he is an 
ordained elder. 

They have five children: James Mr, born 
September, 1854, a practicing physician of 
Council Bluffs; Roseltha, wife of Joseph 
Stoker, residing in Mills County; Alice J., 
born January 20, 1858, the wife of Edward 
P. Mclntyre, of Harrison County, Iowa; 
Hepsie E., born September 16, 1865, is a 
teacher in the public schools of Council 
Bluffs; Elvira, deceased; Guy E., born July 
28, 1873, is at home. 



[EORQE PLUMB, a popular citizen of 
Belknap Township, was born in Lin- 
colnshire, England, May 20, 1842, a son 
of William and Sarah (Grey) Plumb, who 
were also natives of England. The father 
was born in February, 1811, and died in his 
native country May 12, 1884; the mother 
was born February 25, 1821. They reared a 
family of six children, five sons and one 
daughter. 



George Plumb, our subject, was reared on 
a farm in England, and also for three years 
worked in the dock-yard at Chatham. In 
1871 he sailed from Liverpool to New York, 
and then went to Mills County, Iowa, where 
his two brothers, Valentine and Frank, then 
resided. He remained in that county until 
1881, when he came to his present farm 
in Pottawattamie County. Politically Mr. 
Plumb is a Republican, and he has also 
served three years as a member of tho School 
Board. He and his wife are members of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. He was mar- 
ried in Lincolnshire, England, May 14, 1867, 
to Miss Ann Coy, who was born in that 
country, and the daughter of Thomas and 
Ann (Thurby) Coy, both natives of England. 
Mr. and Mrs. Plumb have four sons: Thomas 
William, who was born in England, is now 
fanning for himself; Henry Reloy, Arthur 
Wesley and Walter Howard. 

g '3 "t - g -- 



fAMES P. ALLEN SWORTII is one of 
the prominent citizens of Silver Creek 
Township. He came to Pottawattamie 
County in 1882, and has since made this 
place his home. Mr. Allensworth was born 
in Jefferson County, Ohio, November 15, 
1835. His father, John Allensworth, a na- 
tive of Pennsylvania, was a son of Emmanuel 
Allensworth. John Allensworth was married 
in Jefferson County, Ohio, to Miss Lydia 
Bartholomew, who died when James P. was 
a small child, in 1841. The family subse- 
quently removed to Muskingum County, 
Ohio, where they resided several years. The 
father came to Mills County, Iowa, and died 
in 1874. He was by trade a cabinet-maker 
and wood-turner, and was a good mechanic 
in his younger days, but in later life turned 





& M£^ 




RECTOR, ST. FRANCIS CHURCH 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE OOWNTT 



217 



his attention to agricultural pursuits. Polit- 
ically he was a Democrat. 

The subject of this sketch was reared on 
his father's farm in Jefferson County, received 
his education in a log school-house, and, at 
the age of twenty-one years, went to Mus- 
kino-uin County, Ohio. Four years later he 
moved to Morgan County, same State, where 
lie lived until 1872. In that year he came 
to Iowa and settled in Mills County. Upon 
his arrival there he had but little money, hut 
had great faith in Iowa, and with a willing 
hand he went to work. He bought 120 acres 
of land, which he improved and which he sold 
in the fall of 1881. He then purchased 240 
acres of prairie land where he now resides, to 
which he afterward added five acres of tim- 
ber land. The soil had been broken and the 
land fenced, but no buildings had been 
erected. Mr. Allensworth has improved thi* 
property and it is now considered one of the 
best farms in the township. He put up a 
good frame house on a natural building site 
and surrounded it with a grove and orchard 
of four acres, and built a barn 34 x 48 x 16 
feet. He also has a granary, cribs, cattle 
yards, sheds for stock, and a modern wind- 
mill. In short, every thing about the farm 
indicates thrift and prosperity. He is ex- 
tensively engaged in stock-raising, in which 
he has met with eminent success. 

Mr. Allensworth was married in Morgan 
County, Ohio, February 26, 1860, to Miss 
Malinda Sowers, a lady of intelligence and 
refinement, who was reared and educated in 
that county. Her father, William Sowers, 
was a native of Maryland, and her mother, 
nee Mary Ann Thnrsh, was born in Ohio. 
They lived in the latter State until their 
death, the mother dying when Mrs. Allens- 
worth was fifteen years old. Her father died 
in September, 1889, at the age of eighty-five 
years. He was an active member of the 



Methodist Church, and for many years was a 
class-leader and exhorter. Mr. and Mrs. 
Allensworth have four children, viz.: Alle- 
thea, wife of J. P. Boyleau, Belknap Town- 
ship, Pottawattamie County, Iowa; George 
C. married Cora Tipton, and lesides on a 
farm adjoining his father's; "William, at 
home; Edith, a successf id and popular teacher. 
In his political views Mr. Allensworth is 
independent, casting his vote for whom he 
considers the best man for the position. He 
is a worthy member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, a steward and a liberal sup- 
porter of the same. During the civil war he 
served 100 days in the National Home 
Guards of Ohio. He has always been inter- 
ested in educational matters, and lias given 
his children the benefit of good schooling and 
fitted them for respectable positions in life. 
He is ranked among the enterprising, suc- 
cessful and popular citizens of his community. 



»HE ST. FRANCIS XAVIER CATH- 
OLIC CHURCH, of Council Bluffs, 
^ was one of the first societies formed 
in this part of the country, even so far in the 
past as when the jndians had full sway here; 
and the first priest or pastor was Father De 
Smet, the great missionary'. His people 
erected a small log church on the bluffs, 
where the first priest in charge was Father 
James Powers. Father Doxacher succeeded 
him. They resided at Omaha, to which dior 
cese the congregation at the Bluffs belonged. 
The first Iowa resident priest at Council 
Bluffs was Ltev. Bernard P. McMenomy, 
who came in November, 1869, from George- 
town, Monroe County, Iowa, but previously 
from Missouri. He is a native of County 
Donegal, Ireland, born in August, 1830; was 
educated at St. Colnmb's College, at London- 



348 



BiooiiM-iiii'M. jfiymwr 



derry, Ireland, which institution he entered 
at the a;re of fifteen years, continuing there 
until within a short time before he emigrated 
to America in 1849. He first settled at St. 
Louis, and continued his studies there for 
four years in a seminary under Archbishop 
Peter it. Kenrick. Then, February 24, 1854, 
lie was ordained and sent to North Santa Fe, 
in northeast Missouri, where he took charge 
of a parish. Ho laid out the town of St. 
Marysville, and by his own efforts obtained 
the establishment of a postoffico there, which 
he named St. Patrick. After an engagement 
there of four years he was removed to Edina, 
Knox County, Missouri, where he had charge 
of a parish for seven and a half years. Then 
he came to Georgetown, this State, and from 
there, in 18G9, to Council Bluffs, as before 
stated. While at Georgetown he erected 
some four or five churches, the principal one 
being the Georgetown church, a large stone 
building. The others were at Melrose, Chari- 
ton (Lucas County), Woodburn (Clark Coun- 
ty), and one near Leon in Decatur County; 
and along the line of the Chicago, Burling- 
ton & Quincy Railroad for some 200 miles 
he erected many churches. 

He has been very zealous in church work. 
Since his residence in Council Blnifs he has 
erected the St. Francis Xavier Church, at the 
corner of Sixth street and Fifth a venue, a large 
and handsome edifice 60x120 feet in dimen- 
sions, completing it in 1888, at a cost of 
over $50,000. Also he built the St. Francis 
.Xavier Academy, in the rear of the church, 
where there are twenty-five Sisters in charge 
of a large number of pupils, — about sixty-five 
hoarding pupils and 250 day pupils. lie 
also erected the St. Joseph Academy, for 
boys, a good brick building opposite the 
church. The St. Bernard's Hospital, con- 
ducted by the Sisters of Mercy, is a large, 
substantial brick building, where the sick 



and infirm are received without distinction 
of creed or color. The priest's residence is 
a handsome brick structure erected also by 
him, between the church and the Sisters' 
Academy. Under Father McMenomy's ad- 
ministration here the membership of the par- 
ish has increased from about 500 to over 
2,000. His assistant in parish work is Rev. 
T. A. Maloy. 



fQ. ROLLINS, section 21, Center Town- 
ship, Pottawattamie County, is one of 
° the early settlers and well-known citi- 
zens of the township. He came hero in 
1865, and has since made this place his 
home. 

He was born twenty miles from Augusta, 
Maine, in Kennebec County, February 10, 
1838, a son of Levi Rollins, a native of 
Maine. His grandfather, Mark Rollins, was 
born in New Hampshire, July 4, 1776. He 
was a carpenter by trade, at which he was 
6till able to work when he was eighty years 
old. He lived to be ninety-nine. The Rol- 
lins family trace their ancestry to three 
brothers who came from England to America 
and settled in the New England States. The 
mother of our subject was nee Julia Ann 
Smart. The Smarts were descendants of an 
old New England family. Levi Rollins and 
his wife reared a family of eight children, as 
follows: Sarah, deceased; James, at Grin- 
nell, a soldier of the Twenty-fourth Iowa In- 
fantry in the late war; J. Q., our subject; 
Mary Hussey, a resident of Maine; Calvin, 
who resides in New Hampshire. He was in the 
Seventh Maine Infantry, but was transferred 
to the Thirteenth Maine Infantry. He was 
in the battle of Cedar Creek, where General 
Sheridan made his famous ride. Calvin was 
wounded in that battle. Oscar was also in 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



249 



the Seventh Maine Infantry, and died of dis- 
ease in the army; Harriet, deceased; Edward 
resides in Maine. Mr. and Mrs. Rollins 
lived in Maine until their death. The mother 
was a faithful member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church. Her death occurred 
when J.Q. was twelve years old. The father 
died at the age of seventy-three years. He 
was a farmer all his life. Politically he was 
formerly a Democrat, but later a Republican. 

Mr. Rollins was reared on a farm and re- 
ceived a common-school education in Maine. 
In 1860 he came to Iowa and settled in Cedar 
County, where he lived until lie came to 
Pottawattamie County. He was married in 
Cedar County, December 2, 1863, to Miss 
Mary Viena Fuller, daughter of Ezra and 
Arloa (Turner) Fuller. A sketch of her 
father appears on another page of this work. 
She was born in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, 
and lived there until she was thirteen years 
of age, when she came with her parents to 
Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Rollins have eight chil- 
dren living, viz.: Mary Ellen, wife of J. B. 
Wills, of Butler County, Nebraska, has four 
children; Edward Elsworth and James Levi, 
both of Belknap Township, this county; Julia 
Eva, Herbert Henry, Arthur Garfield, Olive 
Pearl, Benjamin Harrison — all at home. 
Jessie Mary died in her seventh year. 

In 1865 Mr. Rollins came to Pottawatta- 
mie County and purchased forty acres of land 
in Center Township. This he afterward sold 
to A. L. Brown. He then rented land of 
Mrs. Fuller for one year, after which he 
bought eighty acres in Valley Township. 
That farm he exchanged for eighty acres in 
section 15, Center Township. After im- 
proving it to some extent he sold it and again 
rented land. In 1886 he purchased his pres- 
ent farm of eighty acres. The soil had been 
broken, but there were no buildings on 
the place. He has since made many im- 



provements, has erected a good house and 
barn, and everything about the premises 
shows thrift and prosperity. Mr. Rollins is 
engaged in general farming and some car- 
pentering, and during a portion of the year 
he operates a thresher and corn-sheller. He 
is a Republican; has served as Constable, 
Justice of the Peace, and as a member of the 
School Board. 




— "- • ■ S ' S"* • ,£ '•— — 

A.LTER I. SMITH, one of the young- 
est, though most prominent members 
of the bar of Council Bluffs, is a na- 
tive of this city, born July 10, 1862. His 
father, George F. Smith, was an early resi- 
dent of Council Bluffs. Mr. Smith was 
educated in the public schools of this city, 
graduating at the high-school, in the class of 
1878. He began the study of law in August, 
1881, in the office of Colonel D. B. Dailey, 
and was admitted in December, 1882. After 
his admission he continued with Colonel 
Dailey until 1885, since which time he has 
been alone in practice. Mr. Smith, though 
one of the youngest members of the bar of 
Pottawattamie County, has already taken 
high rank as a lawyer, and is recognized as a 
young man of marked ability, whose future 
gives promise of a most successful and useful 
career. Mr. Smith is a most industrious 
student of his profession, and a gentleman of 
extensive and varied reading, and is num- 
bered among the progressive and enterprising 
citizens of Council Bluffs, where all his life, 
thus far, has been passed. June 19, 1890, at 
the age of twenty-seven, he was unanimously 
nominated for the office of District Judge by 
the Republican Judicial Convention of the 
Fifteenth District of Iowa, composed of the 
counties of Audubon, Shelby, Pottawattamie, 
Cass, Mills, Montgomery, Fremont and Pacre, 



250 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



and was elected November 4th following, 
running 667 votes ahead id his ticket in 
Pottawattamie County. 



^yfeTEAKKEN DEAN, an early settler and 
'■'\ \\) prominent citizen of \Vrigbl Town- 
l*"§trrj ship. Pottawattamie County, was 
horn in Rhode Island, March 8, 1843. His 
father, Edward Dean, formerly a worthy citi- 
zen and pioneer of Wright Township, now 
resides in Griuwold, Cass County, Iowa, both 
he and his wife being past eighty years old. 
He was born at Taunton, Massachusetts, in 
1810. and his wife, in, Mary Ann West, was 
born in Massachusetts in 1809. She is a 
daughter of Amos and Avis (Horton) West, 
who lived as man and wife for sixty-eight 
years. Her father was a soldier in the war 
of 1812, and lived to lie ninety-six years old. 
The Deans were of an old Now England 
family. Edward Dean married his present 
wife in Rhode Island, and in 1856 came to 
Iowa, settling in Wright Township, this 
county, being the third family to locate in 
the township. Here they lived until 1884, 
when they removed to Griswold. 

Warren Dean was a lad of thirteen years 
when his parents came West. His youth was 
spent on a farm in this frontier district, and 
his education was obtained in a log school 
house. During the civil war he tendered his 
services to his country, enlisting in August, 
1862, in Company I, Twenty-third Iowa In- 
fantry Volunteers, William Dewey being his 
first Colonel. Mr. Dean was a brave soldier 
and participated in many of the important 
engagements of the war. lie was first under 
lire at Port Gibson; was at the siege and sur- 
render of Vicksburg; went with General 

Hanks up the Red River; was at the siege of 
Mobile; and finally received an honorable 



discharge at llarrishnrg, Texas, whither he 
had been ordered from Mobile. 

After the war he returned to Pottawatta- 
mie County and engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits on his father's farm. April 3, 1867, 
near where Atlantic now stands, Cass County, 
Iowa, Mr. Dean wedded Miss Georgians 
Hardenbergh, who had been a successful 
teacher of Cass and Pottawattamie counties. 
She was born in Ulster County, New York, 
July 6, 1844, and was a young giri when her 
parents moved to Lee County, Illinois. From 
there the family moved to Cass County, Iowa, 
in 1859. Her father and mother, Thomas 
II. and Fanny (Niver) Hardenbergh, both na- 
tives of New York State, now reside near 
Atlantic, where they have made their home 
for many years. After his marriage, Mr. 
Dean lived on the old farm for four years. 
In L871 he moved to a portion of his present 
farm. He now owns 380 acres of as good 
land as there is in this county. His com- 
fortable home and surroundings indicate the 
taste and refinement of its occupants and also 
the prosperity which has attended them. He 
is engaged in general farming and stock- 
raising, and has been eminently successful. 

He and his wile are the parents of four 
children: Carrie M., who was educated at 
Simpson College, Indianola, is a popular 
teacher and an artist of rare ability; Ada L., 
George W. and Rae L. Mr. Dean's political 
views are in harmony with Republican prin- 
ciples, lie lias served as Township Clerk and 
as a member of the School Board. He lias 
been identified with the Christian Church, 
but, as thai society has no organization in his 
vicinity, he worships at the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church of Whipple, and is a liberal 
Bupporter of the same. His wife is an active 
and zealous member of that church, and is 
Superintendent of the Sabbat h school. M r. 

Dean is a member of the (i. A. R., and is 



of roTrAW.irrA.vrE county. 



251 



associated with Worthington Post, No. 9, 
Griswold. 



AMUEL B. PASSMORE was horn in 
West Nottingham Township, Chester 
County, Pennsylvania, December 13, 
1827, son of John W. Passmore, a native of 
the same county. His grandfather and his 
great-grandfather, Ellisand George Passmore, 
were also natives of Pennsylvania. The first 
Passmore who landed in this country was a 
Friend, came here with William Penn and 
settled in Pennsylvania. All his descendants 
down to the present generation have belonged 
to the Society of Friends. The wife of John 
W. and the mother of Samuel P. Passmore 
was nee Deborah Brown, a native of Chester 
County, Pennsylvania. She is a daughter of 
Samuel and Elizabeth (Brown) Brown, also 
natives of the Keystone State. John W. and 
Deborah Passmore reared four children, as 
follows: Ellis P., a resident of Rising Sun, 
Cecil County, Maryland; Samuel B., whose 
name heads this article; Elizabeth Ruth, 
widow of Eliphaz Cheyney, Westchester, 
Pennsylvania, and Colonel John Andrew- 
Moore Passmore, No. 318 South Forty-second 
street, Philadelphia, a prominent resident of 
that place. He was an officer in the late war, 
and is now manager at Philadelphia for D. 
Appleton & Co. John W. Passmore died in 
June, 1848, at the age of forty -six years. His 
relict has been for forty-four years a widow. 
She is now ninety years of age and resides 
with her son Ellis in Cecil County, Mary- 
land. When she made a visit to her son in 
Iowa, in 1881, she was in good health and 
quite active. 

Samuel B. Passmore was reared on his 
father's farm in Chester County, Pennsyl- 
vania, and received his education in the pub- 



lic schools. March 28, 1850, he wedded Miss 
Hannah M. Jackson, a native of that county. 
Her parents, Joshua and Sarah (Cook) Jack- 
son, were also born in Chester County, Penn- 
sylvania. Mr. Passmore and his wife 
remained in their native county until May 
22, 1855, when they moved to Bureau County, 
Illinois. There he rented land and lived 
until 1870, when he came to Wright Town- 
ship, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, and bought 
100 acres of land ; this was all wild prairie 
land. He also bought ten acres of timber, 
situated three miles from his farm. He was 
among the early settlers of this part of the 
country, and at that time deer were frequently 
seen on his premises or in view of his dwell- 
ing. He has since developed his farm and 
it is now under a good state of cultivation. 
Maple Grove, as he is pleased to call it, is 
considered one of the finest farms in Wright 
Township. Mr. Passmore erected a com- 
fortable one-and-a-half-story house, which, 
surrounded with beautiful evergreens and 
shrubs, makes an attractive home. In 1874 
he purchased 160 acres of prairie land which 
adjoined his farm, making 320 acres in one 
body. He has an artificial grove of thirteen 
acres and an orchard comprising three acres. 
His barn is 44x46 feet, with eighteen feet 
posts, and a rock foundation. His farm is 
divided into five fields for pasture, meadow 
and grain; and among other improvements 
made by Mr. Passmore are two windmills and 
1,600 rods of osage-orange and 200 rods of 
willow hedge. He has some line specimens 
of stock, both cattle and hogs. Maple Grove 
is, indeed, a beautiful home, and one of which 
the owner should be justly proud. 

Mr. Passmore and his wife have ten chil- 
dren, viz.: Amor C, of Aurora, Buchanan 
County , Iowa; Ella Deborah, wife of A. J. 
Lipp, Wright Township; Orlando C. resides 
near Linden, Dallas County, Iowa; Ida A., 



-'5J 



IHOdllAPUICAL HISTORY 



wife of J. C. Morris, Guthrie County, Iowa; 
Ellwood Lovejoy, at home; Anna Mary, wife 
of II. Nolta, Dexter, Dallas County, Iowa; 
Ellis P., iu the nursery business at Cloverdale, 
California; Willie T., Dallas County, Iowa; 
Emma L., wife of N. Q. Brown, Cass County, 
Iowa; and Lincoln G., at home. 

Like his worthy ancestors, Mr. Passmoro is 
a Quaker. He, however, attends the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church of Whipple; has been 
a trustee for several years and is a liberal 
supporter of that church, lie is one of the 
leading Republicans of his township, and is 
chairman of the Republican Central Com- 
mittee. He was formerly a Free Soiler, and 
was one of the three in his township who 
voted that ticket in 1852, the township cast- 
ing 200 votes. He has served in most of the 
tow nship offices, is at present Township Trus- 
tee, and has always used his influence for the 
best interests of the community. 

Mr. Passmoro is past sixty, but bears his 
age lightly. He is frank and cordial in his 
manner, with a vein of humor in his make- 
up, and he is highly esteemed by all wdio know 
him. His family are refined and cultured, 
and are ranked with the best society of the 
community. 

— -.. go . n . 3 — 



[ELSON LEWIS, of Lewis Township, is 
a native of Monroe, Michigan, born 
December 25, 1838, the son of Silas 
and Lydia Lewis. He was the ninth in a 
family of ten children. He was reared to 
farm life in his native State, and received his 
education in tho public schools. When he 
was fifteen years of age he commenced work- 
ing for himself, and in his seventeenth year 
came to Pottawattamie County, Iowa, where 
he has -inee made his home. He was en- 
gaged in various pursuits during his younger 



days, and in 1856 he made a trip to Texas, 
where he remained during the winter, lie 
then returned to Pottawattamie County, and 
during the years 1861-'62 was engaged in 
freighting across the plains from Council 
Bluffs to Denver, and in 1863 he freighted 
from Council Bluffs to Fort Randall. April 
12, 1864, Mr. Lewis was married to Miss 
Emily Jane Musser, who was born in Knox 
County, Ohio, August 26, 1846, the daughter 
of John and Caroline A. (Souls) Musser. 
The parents were natives of Pennsylvania, 
and came to Ohio previous to their marriage. 
From that State they came to Pottawattamie 
County, Iowa, and purchased a farm iu what 
is now Garner Township, where they made 
their home until the death of Mr. Musser, 
which occurred October 21, 1868. The 
father was a cabinet-maker and house-joiner 
by occupation. They had a family of nine 
children, viz.: William A., of Indianapolis, 
Indiana; Charles O., of Nebraska; Frances 
L., wife of Henry Palmer, residing in Coun- 
cil Bluffs; Emily J., wife of the subject of 
this sketch; Hester A., wife of Samuel 
Underwood, of Garner Township; Mary E., 
wife of Charles Green, residing in Neola 
Township; Martha E., wife of John Flam- 
ming, of Dakota; Abbie M., wife of George 
W. Ballinger, of Dawson County, Nebraska; 
Julia A., wife of William Ballinger, of 
Omaha. Mrs. Musser is still a resident of 
Garner Township. 

Nelson Lewis, our subject, purchased a 
farm shortly after his marriage, in Lewis 
Township, consisting of eighty acres on sec- 
tion 16, where he commenced making improve- 
ments, lie erected a good frame residence, 
24x32 feet, and also barns for stock and 
grain; he has the finest stock barn in this 
part of the county, which is 56 x 104 feet, 
and contains a steam mill for grinding meal 
and feed. He has fine groves and eight 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



acres of orchard. Mr. Lewis has added to 
his first purchase until he now possesses 280 
acres, on sections 16 and 21, Lewis Town- 
ship, and forty acres in Mills County. His 
home and surroundings denote thrift and 
prosperity. In April, 1884, he engaged in 
the dairy business, and now he has one of 
the most extensive dairies in the county, 
keeping 150 cows, and milking daily about 
175 gallons. He is a live, energetic man, 
who has by his honesty and integrity won a 
large circle of friends. In his political views 
he is a Prohibitionist, and has represented 
his township in most of its various offices. 
He was also instrumental in organizing Lewis 
Township. 

Mr. and Mrs. Lewis are the parents of 
twelve children, viz.: Lydia May, Charles 
W., Edwin J., Frank N., Jessie A., Eva E., 
Harry B. and Walter S. (deceased), Freddie 
O., Bertie A., Vernon S. and an infant son. 



JM OOSTER FAY, of Lewis Township, 

wall ■ 
i* n 




is a native of Franklin County, Ver- 
mont, born November 18, 1819, the 
son of Jonathan and liuth (Elsworth) Fay. 
The parents were natives of Massachusetts 
and New Hampshire, and of Scotch and Eng- 
lish origin. They had three children: Ad- 
dison, a resident of Bowling Green, Ohio; 
Wooster, our subject; and Hollis, deceased in 
1868. 

Wooster Fay, our subject, was reared in his 
native State until he was fifteen years of age, 
when his family removed to Wood County, 
Ohio. He was reared to farm life, and re- 
ceived his education in the common schools. 
When the family went to Wood County it 
was a new country, they being among the 
.pioneers. They improved a farm which they 
entered from the Government, and here he 



lost his parents. He remained in Wood 
County twenty-one years, and in 1855 came 
west to Iowa. In the spring of 1856 he 
came to Pottawattamie County and purchased 
a farm of 200 acres of partially improved 
land, in what is now Keg Creek Township. 
In the fall of 1856 he removed with his 
family to Pottawattamie County, where they 
commenced life again in a new country, and 
for the second time became a pioneer. He 
remained in Keg Creek Township until 
April, 1889, when he removed to his present 
home, on section 4, Lewis Township. He has 
a comfortable little home with three acres 
of land, and here he expects to spend his 
remaining days. He has labored hard in 
assisting in the development of Pottawatta- 
mie County, having improved 176 acres of 
prairie land, which he disposed of at various 
times, and has also purchased other land. 
The home farm is on sections 20, 28 and 29, 
Keg Creek. This he improved and made 
his home until he removed to his present 
place. He dealt in stock principally, in con- 
nection with his farming, and the last twelve 
or thirteen years he has taken special pride 
in the rearing of a better grade of stock, in 
the short-horn class. Politically he is a Re- 
publican, and has represented his county as 
a member of the Board of Supervisors for six 
years, from 1874 to 1880. He represented 
his township in the State Legislature for 
three terms and a half, and in all of his politi- 
cal career he has never asked a man to vote 
for him. 

Mr. Fay was married in Wood County, 
Ohio, November 9, 1846, to Charlotte M. 
McMillan, who was born in Seneca County, 
Ohio, March 10, 1826. She was the daugh- 
ter of Morrison and Clarissa (Brown) McMil- 
lan, natives of New York and Canada, and of 
Scotch origin. Mr. and Mrs. Fay have four 
children, namely: Emma, born October 15, 



•J51 



lilOCUAPUWAL UiyiOliY 




lvlT. is the wife of Samuel II. HopkinB, re- 
Biding in Macedonia, Pottawattamie County: 
Morrison M., a resident of Franklin County, 
Nebraska, born August 27, 1840; Jane, born 
July 10, 1851, thf wife of Logan Reynolds; 
Isoletta, born June 8, 1866, wife of James 
Pershell, resitting in Lincoln County, Wash- 
ington. The family are among the most 
worthy and respected citizens of the county, 
and have by their honesty and integrity 
won a large circle of friends. 



HLLIAM L. DEAN came to Wright 
Township, Pottawattamie County, 
Iowa, in 1850, and has since made 
tin- place his home. He was born in Rhode 
Island, December 18, 1848, son of Edward 
and Mary A. (West) Dean, prominent and 
early citizens of this township. A further 
account of them will l>e found on another 
page of this work, in the sketch of Warren 
Dean. 

The subject of this sketch is the j-oungest 
of the family and was only seven years of age 
when his parents came West and located in 
this township, being among the pioneer set- 
tlers here. lie attended the public schools 
and grew to manhood on the frontier. To the 
rudiments of an education thus obtained he 
added a larger knowledge by private study 
and reading at home. lie was married, No- 
veinber 2, 1808, in Cass County, Iowa, to 
Miss Emily Wright, daughter of Simeon and 
Emeline (Arnold) Wright, the former a native 
of Massachusetts and the latter of New York. 
Her father is a prominent pioneer of this 
township, it having been named in honor of 
him. For several years he \v:is a member of 
the County Board of Supervisors. 

Mr. Dean remained on the home farm for live 
yens after his marriage and then came to his 



present farm, which he had partly improved 
before removing to it. He first purchased 
eighty acres, and from time to time, as for- 
tune favored him, he bought more land until 
he is now the owner of 500 acres, one of the 
best farms in the eastern part of the county. 
Hi6 residence, a modern frame house with 
bay windows and porches, was built in 1881, 
at a cost of (2,100. It is surrounded by a 
beautiful lawn, dotted over with evergreens 
ami shrubs, and makes a cosy and attractive 
home. Mr. Dean lias a good barn with a rock 
foundation, other farm buildings and con- 
veniences, and a supply of water near the 
surface of the ground. His farm is divided 
into ten different fields, separated by good 
fences. Twenty acres of river bottom are in 
timber, and he also has a ten-acre grove of 
thrifty young trees. 

Mr. and Mrs. Dean have five children, 
namely: Augusta M., who has been a teacher 
and is now attending Si in p.- on College 
at Indianola; Charlotte B., Edward A., 
Georgia May and Alice Etlie, all at home. 
Mr. Dean was a member of the Christian 
Church when that society had an organiza- 
tion in this vicinity, but more recently lie has 
taken an active interest in the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, of Whipple, of which his 
wife and two daughters are members. He is 
a Republican, and is the present Trustee of 
Wright Township. He has also served sev- 
eral years on the School Board. 



— -~. g . MI ' g «~- 



f% W. PIEUCE, one of the enterprising 
and successful citizens of Washington 
* Township, came to Iowa in 1870, first 
Bottling in Mills County. He was born in 
Windsor County, Vermont, April 22, 1852, 
a son of Albert A., who was a native of N w. 
Hampshire, and a sou of Alpheus Pierce, 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



^55 



who was born in Vermont The Pierce 
family is of Puritan ancestry, and one of the 
ancestors was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
war. The mother of our subject was Mary 
(McCollough) Pierce, who was born in New 
Hampshire, a daughter of John McCollough, 
a native of southwestern Scotland, and of 
Scotch- Irish descent. Albert A. Pierce and 
wife made their home in New York until 
their death, the mother dying in 1873, at the 
age of about thirty-eight years, and the father 
in North Carolina, while there on business. 
He was a tanner and currier by trade, but 
later in life was engaged a» a traveling solic- 
itor. Politically he was a Republican, and 
in religion was a member of tlie Presbyterian 
Church. The mother was a member of the 
Episcopal Church. They were the parents 
of two children: O. W., our subject, and 
Etta, who died at the age of twenty-six years. 

0. W. Pierce was reared in Vermont until 
thirteen years of age, when he went to New 
York city and remained five years. At the 
age of eighteen he came West to Iowa. 
While in New York city he was engaged as 
clerk in a wholesale Louse, and his education 
was received mostly by attending a night 
school in that city. In 1870 he settled in 
Mills County, Anderson Township, Iowa, and 
was engaged in farming there until 1877, 
when he purchased 120 acres of wild land in 
Washington Township, Pottawattamie Coun- 
ty, where he has since resided. He now 
owns 280 acres, 200 of which is in one body, 
and the remainder is located a half mile 
north of section 12, and all is under a cood 
state of cultivation. He is ensured in yen- 
eral farming and stock-raising, and has some 
thoroughbred stock of the highest grades. 

Mr. Pierce was married in Mills County, 
Iowa, in 1877, to Miss Frances M. Wilson, a 
native of that county, and daughter of Will- 
iam B. and Ann (Watson) Wilson. The 




parents now reside in Mills County, near 
Hastings. Mrs. Pierce was a successful 
teacher before her marriage. They have had 
six children, viz.: Fred Wilson, Edith May, 
Arthur Wintield, Edna Jenny, Leonard Al- 
bert, and William C, who died when a babe- 
Mrs. Pierce died February 15, 1889; she 
was an affectionate wife and mother, and her 
death was a great loss to her family and 
friends. She was reared in, and was for 
several years connected with, the Methodist 
Church. Politically Mr. Pierce is a Repub- 
lican, and has served as Township Clerk and 
Assessor with credit to himself and the best 
interests of the township. 



EjILLARD F. ROIIRER.— Mr. Roh- 
rer has been a resident of Council 
Bluffs, Iowa, since July, 1871, arriv- 
ing before he had attained the age of twenty- 
one. He Ciine originally from Rohrersville, 
Washington County, Maryland, where he 
was born on the old family farm, August 30, 
1850, the family of which they are represent- 
atives having been natives of Pennsylvania, 
and of German ancestry. 

The greatest excitement during his boy- 
hood days was that created by " Old John 
Brown," at Harper's Ferry, Virginia, in 
1859, which was only twelve miles distant. 
Pie received a common-school education in 
the private and public schools of Boonsboro, 
and Keedysville, Maryland. During the late 
war, his home was on the border of the bat- 
tle-field of Antietam, the battle having been 
fought September 17, 1862. He was at that 
time aged twelve years. 

Even at this age he was pressed into service 
as a nurse, as his father's house, barn and 
wood-house were turned into hospitals, and all 
possible aid rendered by the lamiiy to the 



256 



BIOGHAVUICAL HISTORY 



wonaded soldiers of the " Federal Army." 
He Left bis native State and homo to begin 
life for himself in 1870, to accept an engage- 
ment to travel for a wholesale glove house in 
Chicacro, and, having closed this enjra;jem°nt 
in the fall, he then located for the winter near 
Avalon, Livingston County, Missouri, at 
which place he engaged in teaching school. 

In the spring of 1870 he selected their 
present family farm of 280 acres in said 
county, and immediately wrote for his father 
and family, and upon their arrival from 
Maryland he assisted in putting in the 
spring crops. 

As stated before, in July, 1871, he made 
his first appearance in Council Bluffs, to in- 
troduce a fall wheat brand of flour manufact- 
ured by Snively & Hedges, of Wathena, Kan- 
s a-. At the expiration of three months he 
was ordered to Texas to introduce the same 
Hour, and on account of being pleased with 
the business outlook in Council Bluffs he 
resigned his position and decided to make 
this city his home. 

lie found immediate employment as clerk 
of the Brings House, which was then one of 
the leading hotels. Lie was next employed 
in the I'ostoffiee Bookstore of Brackett & 
Goulden as a clerk, which position he held 
until D. W. Bushnell succeeded J. P. Goul- 
den, at which time he was appointed Deputy 
Sheriff bj ex-Sheriff George Doughty, de- 
ceased. 

In the discharge of his duties as Sheriff it 
was necessary for him to ride over the entire 
county: inasmuch as only about one-half of 
the farm land was occupied and fenced at 
that time, he rode in every direction over the 
grand prairies that now constitute many of 
the most valuable farms. Following this he 
was employed by J. M. Palmer to assist in 
opening the first frame hotel and depot on 
the identical ground now occupied by the 



brick and stone Union (Pacific) Passencrer 
Depot. 

Subsequently he was appointed agent of 
the Burlington ec Missouri River Railroad in 
Nebraska, and bill clerk of the Chicago, Bur- 
lington & Quiucy Railroad in this city, by J. 
W. Morse, late general passenger agent of 
the Union Pacific Railroad. 

In 1875 he formed a partnership with 
Thomas Bowman, the present Congressman 
elect, in the insurance business, having pur- 
chased the large fire insurance agency of J. 
P. & J. N. Casady. About three mouths 
after forming this partnership Mr. Bowman 
was elected County Treasurer, and after Jan- 
uary 1, 1878, Mr. Rohrer conducted the 
business alone. 

In 1S81 he became a member of the com- 
mercial storage and agricultural implement 
firm composed of Thomas Bowman, George 
F. Wright and himself, and known as the 
firm of Bowman, Rohrer & Co. The firm 
closed out their business on January 1, 1885, 
to Shephard, Field & Cook. At this time 
Mr. Rohrer was appointed general agent of 
the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New 
York for the State of Iowa. 

On December 31, 1887, he was elected 
Mayor of the city of Council Bluffs by the 
City Council, to succeed ex- Mayor William 
Groneweg, who resigned the office on account 
of being elected State Senator. At the fob 
lowing city election in March, 1888, he was 
the Democratic candidate for Mayor, and 
David J. Rockwell the Republican nominee 
for the same office. Mr. Rockwell being a 
popular gentleman polled the full strenth of 
his party; nevertheless Mr. Rohrer was 
elected by between 700 and 800 majority, his 
term expiring March 17, 1890. 

During his continuous term of twenty-six 
and one-half months a> Mayor of the city. 
Council Bluffs made more substantial prog- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



257 



ress as a city than during any previous 
term, viz.: the paving with cedar blocks of 
Broadway from Twelfth street to Omaha, a 
distance of three miles, connecting with the 
(second) great iron and steel bridge over the 
Missouri Rive;, uniting the cities of Council 
Bluffs and Omaha by the first electric street 
railway introduced in the great West; open- 
ing up the Lake Manawa steam street rail- 
way; opening up the Council Bluffs and 
Omaha Chautauqua grounds, etc., etc. Dur- 
ing his term of office eight miles of streets 
were paved with cedar blocks, and brick and 
other public and private improvements were 
made in keeping with the same. 

In his final message to the City Council 
on March 17, 1890, he made the following 
valuable recommendations in reference to 
that portion of the city which is now appar- 
ently (to the eye) in Omaha: 

" My attention has but recently been called 
to some facts to which in this parting mes- 
sage I deem it my duty to call your attention. 
I am informed by able lawyers and also by 
officials who are in a position to know ihat 
the long neglected body of land known as 
"Cut-off Island," and sometimes slightingly 
referred to as " No Man's Land," is within 
the corporate limits of the city of Council 
Bluffs, and it seems that in five or six suits 
which have been had concerning this land 
it has been conceded on all hands, by law- 
yers and judges, that such is the case. 

" Heretofore this land has been almost of 
no consequence, but the marvelous growth of 
our city and its sister across the river has at- 
tracted the attention of capitalists to this 
tract of land which is in Iowa, but contigu- 
ous to Omaha. This point settled, impor- 
tant consequences ensue therefrom. 

"The Union Pacific Railway Company has 
built its tracks on this island, bridges are 
being built, streets opened up; arrangements 



are being made to fill up the unoccupied 
ground with factories, warehouses and busy 
industries. 

" I have only recently learned these facts, 
but should consider myself derelict in duty 
were I to fail to call your attention to the 
same upon this particular occasion. 

"The island in extent embraces nearly 
2,000 acres of valuable land; and if I under- 
stand the matter aright, this is all subject to 
taxation by the council of the city of Council 
Bluffs, and the trackage of the railroads as 
well. This should be looked into and at- 
tended to. 

" We, in turn, aiming to give to the public 
as good governmont as possible, and watch- 
ful of the interests of all within our jurisdic- 
tion, should see to it that the right of fran- 
chise so dear to the American heart should 
be accorded to the residents of that district, 
who are in fact citizens of Council Bluffs. 

" The children of these parents have a right 
to attend our public schools. The census- 
taker must not omit to include this popula- 
tion in his list. 

" The importance of the right to tax this 
large body of land is liable to be underesti- 
mated, as, in my opinion, but very few years 
will pass before a large revenue will be de- 
rived therefrom, and steps should be taken, 
at the next real-estate assessment in the 
spring of 1891, to get the same property 
upon the books." 

His recommendations were acted upon 
promptly by the present city administration, 
and at this writing the exact boundary lines 
between the cities of Council Bluffs and 
Omaha, in the vicinity of this valuable tract 
of ground constitutes a case in the Supreme 
Court of the United States. 

His parents, Judge George C. Rohrer and 
Sophia E. (Deaner) Rohrer, were born in 
Washington County, Maryland; however, as 



258 



BIOGRAPHICAL UISTORY 



before stated, they have resided on their farm 
near Avalon, Livingston County, Missouri, 
since 1871, his mother having died on May 
19, 1889, at the ago of sixty-two. Twelve 
children were in their family; of these, Wiu- 
lield Scott, Susan Maria, Emma Alice and 
Laura Ellen, died when quite young — from 
infancy to ageof seven. Harry Crytzman died 
at home. August 30, 1889, at the age of 
twenty-seven. 

Ida Florence is the wife or Irwin F. Rob- 
inson, and resides at Chillicothe, Missouri. 
Samuel Leaner resides in Council Bluffs, and 
is at present a member of the city engineer's 
force, while Luella Dinah, Christian Frank- 
lin, and Julia Elizabeth, reside on the farm, 
which is now and has been for years farmed 
in partnership by the subject of this sketch, 
Millard Fillmore, and his brother C. Frank- 
lin. Mary Catharine is the wife of Noah 
W. Cronise, who resides at Rohrersville, 
Maryland, and is a half-sister, being the only 
child of his father's first wife. 

On September 11, 1877, Mr. Rohrer was 
married to Sarah Beach Beers, the only child 
of John B. Beers and Eliza (Beers) Crawford. 

Tiiey have had three children: the first 
burn, John Beach Beers, died February 8, 
1880, at the age of thirteen months. The 
remaining two children: Isaac Beers is ten 
years old, and Carrie Test is seven years of age. 

Mrs. Rohrer's parents were among the 
early settlers of Council Bluffs, her father 
having been engaged in the wholesale gro- 
cery business, and very extensively in real 
estate in western Iowa, and in Omaha and 
Nebraska City in Nebraska. In Council 
Bluffs Beers' Addition and Beers' Subdivis- 
ion bear his name. .Mrs. Rohrer is an act- 
ive member of the Presbyterian Church, and 

takes a greal interest in the Woman's Chris- 
tian Association Hospital, having been one 
of the first officers. 



Mr. Rohrer is engaged in the real estate 
and fire insurance business. His real inter- 
ests are very large in Council Bluff's, and 
likewise at Blue Hill, in Webster County, 
Nebraska. He is a stockholder in the Coun- 
cil Bluffs Savings Bunk, one of the Un- 
commercial savings and general binkiot 
houses in western Iowa. 

... , , K . ; , t r . m 

I1RISTIAN II. BECK, a farmer of 
Lewis Township, Pottawattamie Coun- 
ty, was horn in Holstein, Germany, 

August 22, 1827, and came to America with 
his parents. His father, Asmes Henry Beck, 
was a native of Holstein, Germany. He was 
a tailor by trade, and also owned a small 
farm. He was married to Elsebee Kiekbust 
whose family were great land -holders in Ger- 
many. In 1S53 they came to America and 
landed in Davenport, Iowa, where they re- 
mained about four yeirs. Then they came 
to Pottawattamie County, Lewis Township, 
where they purchased eighty acres of •• raw " 
land in the Plumer settlement, which they 
improved. They afterward rented this land, 
and lived with their daughter, Mrs. Whitland, 
of Lewis Township. The mother died on the 
old home farm in the Plumer settlement, and 
the father died at Whitland's. They had a 
family often children, viz. : Christian Henry, 
our subject; Margaret, deceased, wife of 
Henry Schworts; Catharine M., the wife of 
II. II. Spettnan,of Lewis Township; Fred K., 
residing with his brother, C. IL; Elsie N., 
wife of John Spetman, residing in Nebraska; 
Asmes II.. deceased; Hans, deceased; Henry, 
deceased; Christina, wife of Dick Messinan, 
of Lewis Township. The parents were mem- 
ber- of the Lutheran Church. 

Christian II. . our subject, was reared to 
farm life, and engaged in the war of 1848 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



259 



against Denmark, serving three years. He 
also engaged in horse-trading while in the 
old country, and traveled a great deal. He 
was second sergeant in the war in Germany, 
served faithfully and was a gallant soldier. 
After he came to Davenport, he spent some 
two years, and then came to Lewis Township, 
Pottawattamie County, where he purchased 
a farm of eighty acres on section 35, which 
he improved and used for a pasture-farm. 
He remained on this place about ten years, 
when he and his brother, Asmes, bought 240 
acres of unimproved land on sections 3 and 
10, Lewis Township. They built a small 
frame house, 16x16, where they lived one 
summer, and which they now use for a gran- 
ary. Mr. Beck then built his present home, 
also a frame residence, 32 x 34 feet, and has 
erected a number of good barns for stock and 
grain, the main one being 62x40 feet, which 
is one of the finest barns in this part of the 
county. He has planted five acres of orchard 
and groves. He has added to his first pur- 
chase until he has now 520 acres, on sections 
9, 10 and 11, and eighty acres on section 35, 
making in all 600 acres. He lias made all 
the improvements the farm contains, and has 
done a vast amount of labor in this county. 
He devotes himself to farming and stock- 
raising; also buys feed and ships a large 
amount of stock. He is a Democrat, always 
taking an active part in the political work of 
his county. He has represented his township 
as Trustee and School Director. 

Mr. Beck was married in June, 1859, to 
Sarah Young, daughter of Jacob and Sarah 
(Seaman) Young, who came from Alsace, 
Germany, about 1853 or 1854, and located 
for a time in Ohio, and then came to Potta- 
wattamie County. The father died in Mills 
County, Iowa, in 1886, and the mother still 
resides there. The father was a farmer and 
also owned a large vineyard and made large 



quantities of wine, but after coming to this 
country he followed farming. They were 
members of the Lutheran Church, and had a 
family of eight children: Jacob, deceased in 
the old country; Hans, also deceased in the 
old country; Catharine, deceased in Loudon- 
ville, Ohio; Sarah, wife of the subject of this 
sketch; Jacob, deceased; George, residing 
in Pottawattamie County, Iowa; Margaret, 
wife of Adolph Guise, residing in Potta- 
wattamie County, Iowa; John, a resident of 
Mills County, Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Beck 
have eleven children: Ferdinand, born July 
25, 1862, died April 20, 1888; Laura, born 
June 9, 1864, died April 1, 1868; Margaret, 
born May 22, 1866, is the wife of Ferdinand 
Plumer, near Sioux City, Iowa; Rosa, born 
July 25, 1868, is at home; Freddie, born 
June 9, 1871; Christina, born September 1, 
1872, died in October, 1874; Gotlieb, born 
December 14, 1874; John, born August 6, 
1877; Adolph, bora January 13, 1861; Al- 
vina. born October 8, 1883, died May 29, 
1888; and Dickie, born October 11, 1885. 

Mr. and Mrs. Beck are members of the 
German Lutheran Church. 



fAMES BOILER.— Among the promi- 
nent and well-known citizens of Wright 
Township, Pottawattamie County, we 
find the name that heads this sketch. Mr. 
Boiler has been a resident of this place since 
1873. He was born in Pike County, Ohio, 
March 26, 1848, son of William and Caro- 
line (Kincaid) Boiler, both natives of Ohio. 
Grandfather David Boiler was born in Ger- 
many. 

In 1851 William Boiler and wife moved 
from Ohio to Iowa and settled in Muscatine 
County, becoming pioneers of that place. 
They made their home in Muscatine County 



260 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



until 1865, when they moved to Marshall 
County, name State. After remaining in the 
latter place three years they returned to Mus- 
eatine County. Then, in 1873, they came to 
Wright Township. Three years later they 
moved to Walnut, Iowa, where the father 
died April 25, 1886, at the age of seventy- 
six years. He was a farmer all his life. In 
polities he was a Democrat. His widow, now 
sixty-eight years of age, resides at Walnut. 
On a frontier farm in Muscatine County 
James Boiler grew to manhood. He was 
educated in the pioneer schools, and early in 
life was taught that industry, economy and 
honesty were necessary elements for the 
foundation of a successful life. At the age 
of seventeen he entered xipon a three years' 
apprenticeship to the carpenter's trade, and 
was afterwards engaged in contracting and 
building in Marshalltown, Iowa. In 1873 he 
came to this township and bought 160 acres 
of wild prairie land, and was one of the first 
settlers in his neighborhood. He has since 
added to his first purchase until he is now 
the owner of 320 acres of valuable, well im- 
proved land. He also owns 160 acres which 
he uses for pasture, and which is located two 
miles from his home farm. He has a fine 
two-story residence which was enlarged and 
remodeled in 1884. It is beautifully located 
and is surrounded with shade trees, making 
an attractive place and a comfortable home. 
A grove and orchard of five acres are near 
the house. lie has a large barn, stock scales 
and other buildings, two modern wind pumps 
and good fences; in short, this farm is con- 
sidered one of the best improved ones in the 
neighborhood. Mr. Boiler keeps annually 
from fifty to 150 head of cattle, and from 200 
to 300 hogs. 

Mi-. Boiler was married in Muscatine 
County, Iowa. January 25, lsTii, to Miss 
Sarah Jane Nolte, a native of Jefferson 



County, Indiana, daughter of Herman and 
Sarah (Padgett) N'olte. She was reared in 
Indiana, and at the age of sixteen years came 
with her parents to Muscatine County, where 
they now reside. Mr. and Mrs. Boiler have 
three children, namely: Orpha Lola, born 
November 1, 1876; Glen Ira, bom May 22, 
1878, and Grover Cleveland, born February 
2, 1885. 

Mr. Boiler is one of the leading Democrats 
in the eastern part of Pottawattamie County. 
In 1885 he was elected County Supervisor 
and served three years. During his term of 
office the Court House was erected, and other 
important business was transacted. Mr. 
Boiler was an efficient and popular officer. 
He has also served in township offices, and 
has acted as Chairman of the Democratic 
Central Committee. He is a man well in- 
formed on all general topics and current 
literature, and has broad and progressive 
views, lie is honorable in all his business 
dealings, and is regarded as one of the solid 
men of Pottawattamie County. His wife is 
a member of the Baptist Church. 

In regard to Mr. Boiler's family history, it 
should be further stated that of the five sons 
born to bis parents, four areliving: Joseph isa 
prominent real -estate dealer at Walnut, Iowa. 
Benjamin and Cyrus also live at that place, 
the latter being a contractor and builder. 
Wesley Boiler, next to the eldest, lives in 
Muscatine County, Iowa. Besides the above 
there was one sister. 



~-%~>'-*^*"-— — 

'UK CITIZENS' BANK OF OAK- 
LAND was first organized by S. S. 
Rust in October, 1883; succeeded by 
Rnsl & Potter in March, 1884. Tho Bank 
of Oakland, organized in January, 1882, by 
W. II. and B. F. Freeman, continued until 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



261 



February, 1885, when it was consolidated 
with the Citizens' Hank, and called by the 
latter name, under the present, firm of W. H. 
Freeman, President; S. S. Rust, Vice-Presi- 
dent; L. F. Potter, Cashier, B. F. Freeman 
retiring, and with a capital stock of $30,000. 
They have increased their stock and real- 
estate loans, and in 1885 erected a fine brick 
block, 22J x 50 feet, and two stories high, in 
which they now carry on their business. 
They ha% T e a fine time-lock and automatic 
bolt-work on their safe, and also all the latest 
improvements that make a commodious and 
a thorough banking outfit. They exchange 
with Council Bluffs, Davenport. Chicago and 
New York, and have at the present time a 
cash capital of $36,000, with a surplus of 
$15,000, making a working capital of $51,- 
000. They are live, energetic and self-made 
men, and by their honesty and integrity have 
won the high place in the hearts of their 
many friends, both in business and social 
relations. As a firm they started in their 
youth, and have raised their business to the 
enviable rank and file of their fellow bankers. 
W. H. Freeman, the president, was born 
on a farm in the vicinity of Rockford, Illi- 
nois, October 11, 1841, the son of Daniel 
and Mary (Waller) Freeman, natives of St. 
Louis, Missouri, and Kentucky, and of Eng- 
lish extraction. The father was a farmer by 
occupation, and our subject was also reared 
to that calling. At the age of twenty-one 
years he left home and came West. He was 
first engaged in taking contracts on the rail- 
road until he came to Oakland, where he en- 
gaged in the lumber and grain business. He 
was the first Mayor of the town, and was 
instrumental in allot' the leading enterprises. 
He deals quite extensively in cattle, horses 
hogs. Mr. Freeman started with nothing 
but pluck and ambition, which have won for 
him success. 



L. F. Potter, the cashier, was born on a 
farm near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, March 27, 
1855, the son of L. B. and Hitty (Wenzel) 
Potter, natives of New Hampshire and Mas- 
sachusetts, and of Scotch-English extraction. 
Our subject was educated in the Wauwatosa 
village schools, and completed his education 
in the Bipon and Beloit (Wisconsin) colleges. 
He taught school several terms, and in 1879 
came to Oakland, Iowa, and bought a one- 
half interest in a general store for $488, 
making the firm of Caldwell & Potter, which 
later became Potter & De Graff. This ven- 
ture, though small, proved very successful, 
and resulted in a rapidly increasing trade. 
In March, 1884, Mr. Potter sold his interest 
in the store to his partner, and became a 
partner and cashier in the Citizens' Bank of 
Oakland, which position he still occupies- 
He has been the active manager of the busi- 
ness since his connection with it, and the 
prosperity of the institution is due to his un- 
tiring energy. Under his management the 
bank has never lost a dollar on discounts or 
in any other way, a record unequaled perhaps 
by any other bank in Iowa. He has been 
Mayor of the town, and takes a great interest 
in her prosperity. 

S. S. Rust, the vice-president of the Bauk, 
was born in Henderson County, Illinois 
February 23, 1848, the son of Jacob and Eda 
(Palmer) Rust, natives of Kentucky and 
South Carolina. He was reared to the pro- 
fession of his father, a farmer and merchant. 
He came to Pottawattamie County with his 
parents in 1855, locating in Valley Town- 
ship. He left home when he was thirteen 
years old, and was engaged in working by 
the month for several years. In 1865 he 
married Mary N. Strong, to whom his success 
in life in a large measure is due. He pur- 
chased his first land in 1872, and in 1880 
came to Oakland, and engaged in the grain 



002 



BIOGRAPHICAL I1ISTORT 



and lumber business, in which he was veiy 
successful. Mr. Rust then started in the 
banking business, on his own responsibility, 
and has made the different changes until he 
now occupies his present place. He also has 
a fine farm, where he raises stock, and to 
which he gives a great deal of attention. He 
is a live, energetic and self-made man, and is 
interested in the advancement of the county 
as well as community, and is esteemed and 
respected by his many friends, both in social 
and Inisiness relations. 

These men have been residents, the prin- 
cipal bankers, and identified with the best 
enterprises and improvements of the town 
since its beginning. The bank went through 
the disastrous fire of May 28, 1887, without 
loss, and they immediately erected a brick 
block, sixty-six feet front, for the benefit of 
those who were burned out, and did not feel 
able to rebuild. They have also in various 
other ways aided the people to recover from 
their losses. 



«£-frf-2~- 



fACOB SIMS, attorney at law, of the firm 
of Sims & Saunders, is one of the rep- 
resentative members of the bar of Coun- 
cil lJlnffs. The present firm was formed 
September 1, 1890, but Mr. Sims has been a 
member of the bar of Pottawattamie County 
since January 1, 1879. His partner is Mr. 
C. (J. Saunders. 

Mr. Sims is a native of Wisconsin, bavins 
been born in Dodgeville, that State, Novem- 
ber HO, is.jO. His father, Kev. James Sims, 
a well known pioneer Methodist clergyman 
of that State, within whose borders he has 
preached for forty years, was until Septem- 
ber, 1S90, the minister in charge* at Prairie 
du Chien, but is now a resident of Council 
Bluffs, having retired from active work in 



the ministry, lie is a native of Cornwall, 
England, but came to America when a young 
man. Mr. Sims' mother is also a native of 
England. lie is the oldest of eight surviv- 
ing children, and is also the only son. Two 
brothers died in early life. 

Mr. Sims entered Lawrence University at 
Appleton, his native State, at the age of 
eighteen years. After spending one year in 
the preparatory department of this institu- 
tion, he entered upon the regular classical 
college course, graduating in 1874. lie then 
entered upon the profession of teaching, and 
was for a year principal of the Oconto High- 
School. Deciding to enter the newspaper 
field, he went to Milwaukee, and was for 
some time on the editorial staff' of a paper in 
that city. Then going to Minneapolis, he 
was engaged in the newspaper business for 
two and a half years; he then came to Coun- 
cil Bluffs ami entered the law office of B. F. 
Montgomery, Esq., a well-known lawyer of 
that city, and was admitted January 4, 1879. 
He was for nearly four years associated with 
Hon. J. Y. Stone, under the firm name of 
Stone & Sims. Mr. Stone is the present At- 
torney General for the Sta'e of Iowa. The 
firm of Sims it Saunders is one of the promi- 
nent law firms of Council Bluffs. 

Mi-. Sims is a finely educated gentleman, 
and was ever an earnest student. He took 
first honors of his class at college, being hon- 
ored with the valedictory. He ever mani- 
fests the same earnest industry in his profes- 
sional calling that characterized his career at 
college. On January 11, 1887, Mr. Sims 
was united in marriage with Miss Anna II. 
Squire, who before her marriage was a suc- 
cessful teacher for a number of years. Mrs. 
Sims is a daughter of the late Daniel Squire, 

of Ottnmwa, Iowa, who died in February, 
1890. He was formerly of Iiockford, Illinois, 
where his body lies buried. Mrs. Sims was 



r _.- 



OF POTT 'AW ATI 'AM IE COUNT T. 



2C : 



born and educated in Rockt'ord. Her mother 
is still a resident of Ottutnwa. Mr. and Mrs. 
Sims have three children, a son and two 
daughters — James Daniel, Mariana and Kath- 
arine. 

— - ■ ■$; ■ : ■ n - S H- — 



C. SMITH, Agency Director of the 
New York Life Insurance Company 
1° for Iowa and a portion of Nebraska, 
has his office at rooms 305 and 306, Sapp 
Block, Council Bluffs. This branch of the 
business was established here by him in 
1883, since which time he has had it under 
his control, having at the present time over 
twenty-five men in his employ; and he has in- 
creased the yearly new business in Iowa from 
$1,000,000, written in 1S83, to over $4,- 
600,000, new business written in 18y0, largely 
outstripping all competitors. This, however, 
is only one of the evidences of his activity 
and of the amount of work he has done. He 
has been associated with this company for 
over sixteen years, commencing in Vermont 
and operating afterward in New York State 
before coming here. 

Mr. Smith was born in St. Lawrence Coun- 
ty, New York, February 13, 1841, the son of 
Harrison and Caroline (Kennedy) Smith, 
natives respectively of New York and Ver- 
mont. His ancestry has been American for 
several generations. He was eighteen years 
of age when he went to Castleton, Vermont, 
to attend school, graduating at Castleton 
Seminary ahout two years later. The five 
years following he was engaged in the live- 
stock business in New York State, Vermont 
and Canada, shipping to Boston and other 
Mew England markets. The six years fol- 
lowing this he was engaged in general mer- 

o COO 

chandising at Waterbury, Vermont. Finding 
that business too confining and circura- 

22 



scribed for his natural inclinations, he sold 
his store and connected himself with the New 
York Life. Being a live, energetic man, he 
stands at the head of his profession in the 
West. 

He also owns and manages a large stock- 
farm of about 1,500 acres in Monona County, 
this State, where he has about fifty head of 
horses, 700 head of cattle and as many hogs. 
His start at this farm occurred in this man- 
ner: In 1878 he came to Iowa in the interest 
of the company with which he is now con- 
nected; his family came in 1880, locating 
near Onawa, where he purchased a tract of 
land with the proceeds of an endowment 
policy, which he had taken out fifteen years 
previously. At different times he added to 
this tract until it reached its present dimen- 
sions. He now looks back, attributing his 
success in acquiring this farm to that endow- 
ment policy taken early in life. His success 
in business is a sufficient guaranty not alone 
of his integrity and ability, but of the great 
company he represents. The best evidence, 
however, of its standing and worth, is its 
yearly increasing patronage, having issued 
over $175,000,000 new insurance in the year 
1890, which is more than all it had in force 
at the end of its first thirty years of existence. 
Politically Mr. Smith is a Republican; re- 
ligiously a member of the Congregational 
Church; and socially a member of Ivanhoe 
Commandery, No. 17, K. T. ; also a member 
of the Scottish-rite order of Masonry. 



fll. SCHULTZ, a farmer of Lewis Town- 
ship, is a native of Schleswig, Germany, 
° born January 13, 1838, the son of J. 
F. and A. M. (Rasacker) Schultz. The parents 
came to this country in 16'66, to Scott County, 
Iowa. The father, a shoemaker by trade, 



204 



lUiXlHM'IinWL III.^TdliY 



died in Cass County, Iowa, in 1886, anil the 
mother in Chariton County, Missouri, in 
1870. They had a family of seven children, 
viz.: Maggie, wife of Cliris Leckbent, resid- 
ing in Cass County, Iowa; J. U., our subject; 
Fred, a resident of Council Bluffs, Rudolph, 
of Cass County, Iowa; .Nicholas, a farmer of 
Pottawattamie County; Dora, wife of Henry 
Koch, residing in Nebraska, and Augusta, 
deceased; also Christ, residing in Pottawat- 
tamie County. 

J. II. Schultz, our subject, was reared in 
hi- native county until he was nineteen years 
of age. He received his education in the 
common schools, and learned the trade of car- 
penter, after which he came to America and 
located at Davenport, Iowa, where he spent 
about twelve years. He first worked in a 
machine shop one year, and was then engaged 
in farming and carpenter work. He had a 
farm of 190 acres about twelve miles from 
Davenport, which he sold, and in 1870 re- 
moved to Missouri. Here he purchased a 
• arm of 160 acres in Chariton County, where 
he made his home for ten years, but owing to 
a failure of Crops he disposed of his farm and 
came to Pottawattamie County in 1880. He 
rented land for about two years, and then 
purchased his present farm of 160 acres, on 
section 15, Lewis Township. When Mr. 
Schultz took possession of this place it was 
in a wild condition, but he went to work with 
a will to make a comfortable home, and to- 
day has one of the best farms in this part of 
the county. His home is surrounded with 
shade and ornamental trees, and he has erected 
good barns for stock and grain. He has a 
double granary for corn, capable of holding 
5,000 bushels of corn, and he also has a barn 
which will shelter 100 hogs, built on the 
latest improved plan, furnished with a fur- 
nace and rook-pan For cooking h'vt\. He has, 
in connection with his farming, done con- 



siderable carpenter work in the county; he 
now devotes most of his time to the raising 
of cattle and hogs. In political matters he 
is a stanch Democrat. 

Mr. Schultz was married January 13, 1860, 
to Mary Hansen, who was born in Schleswig, 
Germany, December 14, 1830, the daughter 
of Dudley and Sophia (Nachdigall) Hansen. 
The father died in Germany about 1863, and 
the mother died in Scott County, Iowa, in 

1868. Mr. and Mrs. Hansen were the par- 
ents of eight children, of whom six died in 
the old country, and two came to America, — 
George, born in 1833, and is a resident of 
Cass County, Iowa, and Mrs. Schultz, the 
wife of our subject. Mr. and Mrs. Schultz 
are the parents of eight children, viz: John 
P., born October 19, 1859, and is a resident 
of Council Bluffs; Julius, born July 17, 1861, 
and is a fanner of Pottawattamie County ; 
George, born November 15, 1863, and is a 
farmer of Mills County, Iowa: Anna, born 
September 15. 1865, and is the wife of Charles 
Schnor, residing in Pottawattamie County; 
Edward, lioru December 17, 1866, residing 
at home; Margaretta, born November 25. 

1869, at home; and Henry, born June 28, 
1872, also at home. Mr. and Mrs. Schultz 
are members of the German Lutheran Church, 
and are among the worthy and most respected 
citizens of the county. 

-~*HhH»— 



I.KXANDER VALUER, of Hazel 
Dell Township, is a native of Lobor- 
ough Township, London District, Up- 
per Canada, and was born June 26, 1807, the 
son ot Alexander and Mary (Marion) Vallier, 
uativea of France. When young they came 
to Upper Canada, where they were married, 
lived and died. The father was a manufact- 
urer of potash. They bad a family of seven 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNT T. 



2G5 



children, of whom our subject was the eldest. 
He and his brother Lewis are the only ones 
surviving. Mr. Vallier was reared in his 
native country until he was seventeen years 
of age, when he came to New York, where he 
spent some five years, and where he received 
his naturaliztti m papers. He then visited 
Canada, where he spent three years, and then 
came to Ohio, where he spent five years, en- 
gaged in farming. He afterward removed 
to Pike County, Illinois, where he was en- 
gaged live years in farming. He then moved 
to Decatur County, Iowa, where he also spent 
five years. He moved a man from that 
county to Florence, Nebraska. In 1849 he 
was on the Nishnabotna, and while there at- 
tended an Indian war dance, when, not being 
acquainted with their cu stems, he feared every 
moment that his scalp would be taken. They 
had just killed seven Omaha Indians. 

In the spring of 1851 he came to Potta- 
wattamie County, Iowa, which he has since 
made his home. When he first came to this 
county he farmed one year on the Little Mos- 
quito, in Garner Township, and then removed 
to Hazel Dell Township, where he also en- 
gaged in farming one year. Mr. Vallier then 
removed to his present farm on section 28, 
Hazel Dell Township, where he entered forty 
acres, and erected a log house, 14 x 16 feet, 
where he lived for several years. He then 
huilt a good frame house, 30 x 34 feet, which 
was afterward destroyed by fire, and he built 
his present home 18 x 24 feet. He has added 
to his first purchase of land until he now pos- 
sesses 300 acres, the most of which is in sec- 
tions 27 and 28, and nearly all under good 
cultivation. He has always devoted himself 
to farming and stock-raising, and in con- 
structiii" his buildings he has assisted in the 
carpenter work. His home and surround- 
ings denote thrift and prosperity. He strug- 
gled through the early days of Pottawatta- 



mie County with the other pioneers, and 
withstood the storms and hardships and is 
now reaping his reward. He has always 
labored hard for the best interests of this 
county ( and in its social and moral welfare, 
and has by his honesty and integrity won a 
large circle of friends. He was instrumental 
in organizing the first district school in 
Hazel Dell Township, and has always been a 
lover of law and order. He is a stanch He- 
publican, having wheeled into line from the 
old Whig party. He at one time, with R. 
Bortan, cast the only Republican vote in the 
township. He has represented his township 
as School Director. 

Mr. Vallier was married in October, 1830, 
to Mary Draper, who was born in 1810, in 
Earnestans, Canada, and died in Pottawatta- 
mie County, May 20, 1886. They had a 
family of eight children, namely: Jane, wife 
of Virgil Mefford, residing in Harrison 
County, Iowa. They have a family of five 
children; Thomas, a resident of Hazel Dell 
Township, who has a family of five children; 
Hannah, wife of Alex. Ellison, residing in 
Harrison County: they have a family of 
seven children; Ruth, wife of Gus Fillmore, 
also residing in Harrison County, and have a 
family of eight children; Emily, wife of 
James Robinson, residing in Monona County, 
Iowa; they have a family of eight children; 
Rozilla, wife of Amasa Bybee, residing in 
Rock Township: they have a family of nine 
children ; Daniel, a resident of Harrison 
County, and has a family of four children; 
and Lewis, residing in Pottawattamie County, 
and they have a family of two children Mr. 
Vallier again married, for his present wife, 
March 15, 1887, Mrs. Maggie Wootton, who 
was born in Sc. Louis, Missouri, May 29, 
1848, the daughter of George W. and Mary 
(Hayes) Martin, natives of England; they are 
both deceased. The mother died in 1848 



266 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



and the father in 1860. They had a family 
of four children: Hannah ML, Maggie, Isa- 
bella and Joseph. Maggie was reared in St. 
Louis, Missouri, and was first married to 
Henry Roberts. They had one child, Thomas 
Roberts, a resident of Hazel Dell Township. 
She was again married to John Wootton, and 
they have three children, namely: Anna, 
Emma and Harry. 

S - : " t ' 3 «~ — 



.LEXANDER L. FPJZZELL is one of 

the well-known pioneers of Center 
Township, Pottawattamie County, Iowa. 
He came to his present location in 1870, 
when this country was in its wild estate, and 
has since continued his residence here. As 
an early settler and a worthy citizen of this 
part of the county, a sketch of his life will he 
found of interest to many. 

He was born in Vermont, May 6, 1833. 
His father, Michael Frizzell, a native of 
Essex, Massachusetts, was a son of Elijah 
Frizzell, a descendant of French ancestors 
and a soldier in the Revolutionary war. The 
mother of our subject was nee Orpha Oiee, a 
native of Vermont. His parents were mar- 
ried in the Green Mountain State, and when 
he was eighteen months old they removed to 
Medina County, Ohio, where the mother died 
in L837. In 183'J his father wedded Char- 
lotte Deen. They removed to Bureau County, 
Illinois, in December, 1845, before there was 
any railroad there, making the journey in a 
wagon in the dead of winter, and were among 
arly settlers of that county. The father's 
second wife died in 1881. In 1883 he mar- 
ried Louisa Seely, and lived there until a Bhorl 
time before his death. He died at Firth, 
Lancaster County, Nebraska, at the age of 
eighty-three years, lie had been a farmer all 
his life. In politics he was a Republican, 



and in religion a member of the Christian 
Church 

Alexander grew to manhood on his lather's 
farm and received his education in the public 
schools of Bureau County. In 1800 he came 
to Iowa and for some time was variously em- 
ployed in Mills County. He operated a 
threshing machine, ran a saw-mill and, being 
a natural mechanic, was never at a loss for 
work. It was in Mills County that he be- 
came acquainted with Miss Annie McXurlin, 
whom he married August 20, 1863. She 
was born in Huntingdon County. Pennsyl- 
vania, in 1S30, the daughter of James and 
Rachel (Jeffrey) McXurlin, both natives of 
Pennsylvania, the former of Irish extraction 
and the latter of English. Mrs. Frizzell was 
an infant when her parents moved to Ohio. 
From there they went to Indiana and settled 
in Wabash County, where they lived some 
years and where Mrs. Frizzell was educated 
and reared. The family subsequently re- 
moved to Mills County, Iowa. The parents 
afterward went to Cass County. Nebraska, 
where they spent the rest of their lives, both 
dying at the age of seventy-live The father 
was an active member of the Methodist 
Church and a class- leader in the 6ame. Polit- 
ically he was a Democrat. 

In 1807 Mr. Frizzell moved to Cass County, 
Nebraska. Three years later, however, he 
returned to Iowa, and settled in Center Town- 
ship, Pottawattamie County, on eighty acres 
of wild land, where he continues to reside. 
He bought a log house which had been built 
by Mormons. The logs are oak, the best 
quality in the county. Mr. Frizzell moved 
this house to its present location, and here he 
has a home which for comfort and convenience 
is not surpassed by many a more pretentions 
looking structure. Here he and his good 
wife dispense hospitality in a generous way to 
friend and stranger, regardless of creed or 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



267 



doctrine. Mr. Frizzell lias a tine orchard and 
grove, good stables, cribs, etc., and is engaged 
in general farming and stock-raising. His 
farm comprises 160 acres, all under a splen- 
did state of cultivation. 

Thechildrenborn to Mr. and Mrs. Frizzell are 
as follows: Richard Ellsworth; Caroline, wife 
of Hugh Brown, of CenteiyTownship, has two 
children; Minnie, wife of Warren Newton, 
Mills County, Iowa, has one child; Rachel 
Charlotte, who makes the old home more 
pleasant by her presence. 

Politically Mr. Frizzell is a Democrat. 
For four years he has served as Justice of the 
Peace, dealing out justice in an impartial 
manner to all who come before his court. 
He has also served the public as a member of 
the School Board. He is noted for his in 
tegrity, his cordiality and his hospitality. 



L. ALDRIDGE, a prominent farmer of 
Rockford Township, was born in Put 
•° nam County, Indiana, November 23, 
1846, a son of John Sanford and America 
(Jones) Aldridge, also natives of Indiana and 
of English and Welsh ancestry. The first 
immigration to this country was in an early 
day, locating first in North Carolina and then 
in Indiana; were farmers. In the family of 
the father of John S. Aldridge were six chil- 
dren: Ruth, John, Elizabeth, Mary Ann, 
Betty and Josiah. John S., the second child, 
was born in North Carolina, June 15, 1819, 
but when young his father died. In the 
winter of 1846 he moved to Illinois, taking 
with him his mother, wdio afterward died, in 
1880, at the advanced age of eighty-eight 
years. Her husband, John S. Aldridge, had 
died March 16, 1849, leaving two children: 
II. L., our subject, and Mary E., now the wife 
of George Frazier. Mrs. John S. Aldridge, 



in 1853, after her husband's death, married 
Josiah Skelton, a native of Tennessee. In 
1854 they came to Pottawattamie County, 
and located upon Honey Creek, where they 
lived until his death in 1885, and are the 
parents of eleven children: John, Lewis, 
Josiah, Jane, Albert, Alice, Allen, Margaret, 
Jonas and Eddie, the two last deceased. 

Mr. Aldridge, our present subject, was 
brought up by his mother to farm life. A 
little after he was twenty years of age. April 
14, 1867, he married Margaret F. Selvy, a 
daughter of William and Mary (Foster) 
Selvy, natives of Tennessee and of Irish and 
German extraction. Her parents came to 
Missouri, and after some years moved to this 
county (Pottawattamie), and finally to Har- 
rison County, this State, where the father 
died, April 10, 1885, leaving eleven children: 
Frank M., George W., Martha, Margaret E., 
Eliza Ann, Susan, Mary, Amanda, William, 
James Edwin, and one who died in infancy. 
Margaret, the fourth child, was born in Mis- 
souri, July 6, 1850, brought upas a farmer's 
daughter, and was married at the age of 
seventeen years. After his marriage, Mr. 
Aldridge purchased forty acres of rough, 
wild land in the Missouri River bottom, in 
Harrison County, erected a log house 14x16 
feet in dimensions, and began to make the 
improvements essential to a complete home; 
but at the end of eight years, in 1875, he sold 
out and came down to Pottawattamie County 
and bought 150 acres of wild land, except- 
ing that there was a small farm house upon 
it; remained there eight years also, and then 
purchased forty-four acres of land on section 
1, Rockford Township, where he now resides. 
At that time some improvements had been 
made here, but they had greatly deteriorated. 
He went to work and has made out of the 
place a fine home. He has now a good frame 
house, two stories high, 24x38 feet in ground 



268 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



area, including porches, verandas, etc., agood 
orchard containing both large and small 
fruits; indeed it is one of the finest orchards 
in the county. He lias dealt also in live 
stock to a considerable extent, taking special 
interest in horses and in Poland-China hogs. 
He has added to his first purchase of land 
until he now has 290 acres, all but ten of 
which is in fine cultivation, 100 acres being 
in pasture, lie has also a quantity of bees, 
doine well. He first started out in life here 
with almost nothing, but his ambition and 
energy has won for him success. Both his 
mother and his wife's mother are living with 
him, at an advanced age. Willis A. Selvy, 
a nephew of theirs, was born Angust 3,1868, 
and left an orphan when young, was brought 
up by Mr. Aldridge and now resides upon an 
eighty-acre farm in Harrison County. Also 
a niece, Annie Jones, born August 26, 1872, 
was reared by him. Mr. Aldridge is a reli- 
able gentleman, independent on local issues. 
Ho has been Township Trustee twelve years, 
and is now Road Supervisor. He is an 
honored member of Missouri Valley Lodge, 
No. 232, F. & A. M.; also a member of the 
Mutual Protective Association, of St. John, 
of which he has been treasurer ever since its 
organization. 

SILLIAM WHITNEY, one of the 
representative citizens of Center 
p-fejfcTj Township, Pottawattamie County, 
came to his present location in 1881. He 
was born in Ontario, March 25, 1836. His 
father, William E. Whitney, was born near 
Rochester, New York, the son of Jeremiah 
Whitney, a native of New England The 
mother of our subject, nee Mary Scott, was 
born in Niagara County, New York, Septem- 
ber 7. 1815. Her father, William Scott, 




was born in Connecticut, and her mother, 
Joanna (Crane) Scott, was a native of Eliza- 
beth, New Jersey. Mrs. Scott was a daugh- 
ter of Colonel Jacob Crane, an officer under 
Washington in the Revolutionary war. Mr. 
Whitney has in his possession a pewter pan 
that was owned and used by Colonel Crane 
during the struggle for independence. It has 
been handed down to him by his ancestors, 
and is highly prized. Colonel Crane had a 
son-in-law, Crowell Wilson, a Captain in the 
British army, who received a grant of land 
in Ontario, whore he settled and where 
others of the relatives also located. Colouel 
Crane also had a son-in-law in the American 
army. 

Mr. Whitney lived in Ontario until thir- 
teen years of age, when the family moved to 
Jackson County, Michigan, and later to 
Ingham County, same State. His father and 
mother had ten children, two of whom died 
in childhood. The names of those who 
reached adult age are Lucy A., William, 
Martha, F. S., Hannah E., Joanna O, D. A. 
and Sarah O. The father was a mechanic by 
trade. He was a minister of the Gospel in 
the Free-will Baptist Church, and was a zeal- 
ous and faithful worker in the cause of his 
Master. He enlisted in the service of his 
country during the late war, and at the siege 
of Savannah lost a leg, having been shot 
through the knee. From the effects of the 
wound he died, in September, 1873, at the 
age of seventy-three years. His widow now 
receives a pension. 

The subject of this sketch was reared on a 
farm and educated in the public schools of 
St. Thomas, Ontario, Jackson and Ingham 
counties. Michigan. When a young man ha 
went to Whiteside County, Illinois, where, 
in 1862, he entered the service of ltis conn- 
try, enlisting in Company B, Seventy fifth 
Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He participated 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



269 



in the battles of Perry vi lie, Chickamauga, 
Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge, Re- 
saca, Marietta, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta, 
Georgia, Franklin, and Nashville, Tennessee, 
and many other battles and skirmishes. 
After a service of three years he was honor- 
ably discharged at Camp Harper, Tennessee, 
He then returned to Illinois and settled in 
Bureau County, where he lived until 1867. 
In that year he moved to Franklin County, 
Iowa. After a residence of six years there 
he went to Cass County, same State; in 
1881, he came to Pottawattamie County. 
Here he bought eighty acres of wild prairie 
land, on which he has since made many im- 
provements. He has a good house and barn 
and suitable buildings for grain and stock, 
and a tine orchard and grove. In fact, every- 
thing about the place indicates the push and 
enterprise of the owner. Mr. Whitney has a 
good graded stock of cattle, horses and hogs. 

In Whiteside County, Illinois, October 3, 
1858, Mr. Whitney wedded Miss Elizabeth 
C. Berry, a native of Darke County, Ohio, 
and a lady of intelligence and refinement. 
Her parents were Joseph and Jane (Harbi- 
son) Berry, the t'oimer a native of New Jer- 
sey and the latter of Ohio. They subse- 
quently removed to Bureau County, Illinois, 
where the father died, November 5, 1876, at 
the age of sixty-three years. The mother re- 
turned to Darke County and died there, in 
1883, at the age of sixty-five years. Mr. and 
Mrs. Whitney have three children: Ada L., 
Mary A., a successuful teacher of Center 
Township, and William B. 

Politically our subject affiliates with the 
Republican party. He is a member of Rob- 
ert Provard Post, No. 414, of Carson, and 
has served as chaplain of the post. He and 
his wife and two daughters are members of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church of Spring 
Creek. He has served as class-leader and 



also as superintendent of the Sunday-school. 
Mr. Whitney takes an active interest in both 
religious and educational matters. He is 
one of the esteemed citizens of the township. 



W. SCOTT, of Hazel Dell Township, 
is a native of Cambridgeshire, Eng- 
° land, born July 16, 1843, the son of 
George and Ann (Cooper) Scott, both natives 
of England. They were married in their 
native country, came to America in 1856, 
and located in Kane Township, Pottawatta- 
mie County, where they made their home for 
twenty years, but died in Hazel Dell Town- 
ship. The father was a farmer by occupa- 
tion, having improved 160 acres of land in 
this county. They were associated with the 
Reorganized Church of the Latter-Day 
Saints. They had a family of twelve chil- 
dren, only five of whom still survive, and of 
whom G. W. is the second oldest child liv- 
ing. 

He was reared on a farm, and received his 
education in the common schools. He came 
to this county with his parents, and has since 
made it his home. He has assisted largely 
in building up and developing this section. 
When he was nineteen years of age he started 
out in life for himself, working out by the 
month. Mr. Scott made his first purchase of 
real estate in 1873, on section 22, Hazel Dell 
Township, consisting of eighty acres of raw 
prairie, lie then took up eighty acres ad- 
joining, on the same section, as a homestead, 
and on which was a small frame residence, 
which now does duty as a poultry house. In 
1883 he erected his present handsome resi- 
dence, a dwelling 28x16x18 feet, and also 
erected good barns for stock and grain and 
made many other improvements. He has 
planted three acres of grove and two and a 



27<J 



BIOOIiAJ'lllC.lL HISTORY 



half acres of orchard, and the entire place 
denotes thrift and energy. He has added t<> 
his first purchase until he now owns 245i 
acres of the best land in the county. He 
devotes himself to farming and stock-raising, 
and takes an interest in all the better grades 
of stock. Politically Mr. Scott is a stanch 
Republican, taking an active part in the polit- 
ical work of the county, State anil nation. 
He is also a member of the Mutual Protec- 
tion Society of Hazel Dell Township, and of 
the Farmers' Alliance. He is one of the 
wide-awake men of the county, and has by 
his honesty and integrity won a large circle 
of friends, and his life is a good example of 
what a man can accomplish who has the 
pluck to carry him through. 

Mr. Scott was married, December 31, 
1863, to Miss Frances G. Horn, who was 
born in England, July 22, 1844, and who 
came to America when quite young. They 
have a family of nine children, viz.: Anna 
R., deceased; Ida B., at home; Olive G., 
Lillie I., May K., Walter G., deceased, Henry 
T., at home, John F., Ivy Pearl. His grand- 
daughter, Bessie F. Barnes, the daughter of 
Anna R., resides with her grandparents, Mr. 
and Mrs. Scott. 

-~* g-*«*S—- 




tMlLLlAM S. EDIE, section 32, Center 
Township, Pottawattamie County, 
Iowa, is one of the enterprising and 
popular citizens of his section of the country. 
He came bere in 1873, and has since made 
this place his home. 

Mr. Edie was born in Lewis County, New 
Fork, November 2!), 1838. His father, 
William Edie, was lorn in New York State, 
of German extraction, and his mother was nee 
Onor Sinkston, also a Dative of New York. 
When William S. was a lad ot eight years 



his parents moved to Lake County, Illinois, 
near Waukegan. The father improved two 
farms in that county, and died there at the 
age of forty-six years. Mr. Edie's mother is 
now eighty years old, and is a resident of 
W.iukegan. They reared three children, 
viz.: Sarah Sanders, of Friend, Nebraska; 
William S., the subject of this sketch, and 
Marcelhi8 Brenton, who died in Ohio. The 
father was a cooper by trade, but a farmer 
the greater part of his life, lie also worked 
some at the carpenter's trade, being a natural 
mechanic. Politically he was a Democrat, 
and religiously a Baptist. 

William S. was reared on his father's farm 
in Lake County, and educated in the public 
schools. During the great Rebellion he en- 
listed, in 1864, in Company D, One Hundred 
and Forty-sixth Illinois Infantry, and served 
to the close of the war. When the conflict 
ended he returned to Lake County, and re- 
mained there until 1873. In that year he 
came to Iowa, and settled in Center Town- 
ship, Pottawattamie County. He bought his 
preseut farm of 110 acres, which at that time 
was wild prairie land. It is now under a 
good state of cultivation, and is devoted to 
general farming and stock-raising. Mr. Edie 
has a comfortable frame house, good barn, 
other suitable out-buildings, and a thrifty 
orchard. A modern wind-mill furnishes the 
power by which water is forced through pipes 
to the barn and teed lots, a distance of 550 
feet. In fact, everything about the place 
indicates the prosperous and enterprising 
farmer. 

Mr. Edie has been twice married. He 
first wedded Miss Lotta Synn in Lake Couu- 
ty, Illinois, March 2, 1874. She was a 
daughter of A brain Synn. By her he had 
three children : .lay Sylvester, Motming Abrain 
ami Cora Louisa. Mrs. Edie died March 21, 
1881. February 12, 1885, Mr. Edie married 







/ 




c^fex^T^O 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



271 



Miss Nannie Cahoon, an intelligent and re- 
fined lady and a native of Gallia County, 
Ohio. Her father, William C. Cahoon, was 
born in New Jersey, and her mother, Eveline 
Wood, in Virginia. 

Mr. Edie is one of the leading Republicans 
in the county. At present he is serving as 
Township Trustee of Center Township. He 
is a charter member of Robert Provard Post, 
No. 414, of Carson. He is also a member 
of the I. O. O. F. lodge, No. 444, of Carson. 
Both he and his wife are members of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Edie is a 
gentleman well informed on all general topics, 
and takes a deep interest in educational and 
religious matters. 



H?%ONALD MACRAE, one of the oldest 
' practicing physicians and surgeons of 
Council Bluffs, — his professional labor 
dating from 1861, — is a native of Scotland, 
born in Rosshire, October 3, 1839, a son of 
Rev. Donald Macrae, of the Free Church of 
Scotland. His mother was Jessie Russell, a 
daughter of the Rev. James Russell, of Gair- 
loch, Rosshire, Scotland. Dr. Macrae's edu- 
cation was received at the University of 
Edinburgh, where he graduated from the 
medical department, in August, 1861. He 
practiced in the Edinburgh Royal Infirm- 
ary for a year and a half, after which he ac- 
cepted a position as surgeon for the Cunard 
Steamship Company, and during his four 
years' service he crossed the Atlantic Ocean 
seventy-five times! His last trip landed him 
in New York city, where he was united in 
marriage with Miss Charlotte, daughter of 
the late Joseph Douchette, Surveyor General 
of Canada, who died in 1881, at the age of 
eighty-six years. Mrs. Macrae is a native 
of Canada, as above stated. 



Dr. Macrae came to Council Bluffs in 
March, 1867, and engaged in the practice of 
his profession, and soon built up a successful 
and lucrative practice, and has won the con- 
fidence of all who know him. In connection 
with his extensive practice he has been iden- 
tified with the Omaha Medical College since 
1881, where he is Professor of the Principles 
and Practice of Medicine, and also Dean of the 
faculty. In 1887-'88 he was President of 
the Iowa State Medical Society and of the 
Medical Society of the Missouri Valley as 
well. At the meeting of the International 
Medical Congress held at Washington, Dis- 
trict of Columbia, he was Vice-President of 
the surgical section. He is a member of the 
A. F. & A. M., Council Bluffs Lodge, and is 
Past Master of the A. O. U. W., and a mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian Church. Mrs. Mac- 
rae is a member of the Episcopal Church. 
Dr. and Mrs. Macrae are the parents of one 
son, Donald, born January 24, 1870, who is 
now studying medicine at the University of 
Michigan. Dr. Macrae is a Democrat, but 
has had little time to attend to political issues. 
He served as a member of the School Board 
for two years, and in 1890 was elected on 
the citizens' non-partisan ticket as Mayor of 
Council Bluffs, by a large majority. 



fACOB ZAHNER, a prosperous farmer 
of Rockford Township, was born in 
Switzerland, October 2, 1819, the son of 
Jacob and Mary Ann (Kane) Zahner, natives 
also of that country. The father was a lum- 
ber merchant, and died in 1828. His wife, 
also a native of Switzerland, was the daughter 
of a blacksmith who died shortly after Napo- 
leon passed with his army through that 
country. In their family were six children: 
Casper Joseph, Josephine and Ilersence, born 



272 



BIOGRAl'lIWAL HISTORT 



in Switzerland; Jacob, our subject, besides a 
son and a daughter deceased. Jacob, the 
eldest, was brought up to the trade of li i-s 
father. At the age of twenty-nine years hc> 
sailed from the port of Havre de Grace for 
America, landing in New York in 1847, and 
visited or resided for a short time at the fol- 
lowing points: Sandusky, Ohio, until the 
next spring; in Michigan, in the pineries, 
one year; New T Orleans a short time; Vicks- 
burg, Mississippi, until March; Sandusky 
again a short time; Michigan again, working 
for the same lumber company as before, for 
five years; and while there, September, 1849, 
he married Catharine Mondinger, a daughter 
of Jacob and Catharine Mondinger, natives 
of Wirtemburg, Germany. She was but a 
child when her parents died. She was born 
October 29. 1820, and came to America in 
1848, — residing in New York for a time, and 
then in Sandusky, and then in Michigan 
until she was married. A year afterward 
Mr. Zahner moved to Dubuque, Iowa, bought 
a tract of land and resided upon it three 
years; selling out he came to Pottawattamie 
County, crossing the State by ox teams, and, 
after remaining in Council Bluffs a few weeks 
in order to look around, on both sides of the 
Missouri, he finally selected his present 
locality on section 1, Rock ford Township, 
buying eighty acres of wild prairie, covered 
in a great part with plum brush. Here he 
passed through the almost uniform experi- 
ences of pioneer life, — dwelling in a log 
house, cutting off the brush, breaking the 
prairie with oxen and Buffering all the priva- 
tions and tedious monotonies of the frontiers- 
man in establishing a comfortable home Eor 
himself and family, and he has been thus led 
to witness all the changes in which he nas 
been an BCtor, and in which his neighbors 
have also participated in developing the 
country to its present high standing. He 



now has a fine residence, barns and out-build- 
ings, orchards aud shade trees, etc. But in 
order to produce these grand results he had 
had to exercise his pluck and energy, with 
at least fair health. 

He is a Republican on national issues, but 
of course in the local elections he votes in- 
dependently. He has been School Director 
for a number of years. He and his family 
are membersof the Catholic Church of Honey 
Creek, being zealous in the cause of religiou, 
morality and education. His children are: 
Josephine, wife of Thomas Wilson, of Rock- 
ford Township; Frances, residing in Harrison 
County; Catharine, wife of Thomas Kinyon, 
and residing in Harrison County; Elizabeth, 
at home; Mary, Mrs. Ed Ryne, residing 
in Boomer Township, and John, a resident of 
Rockford County. 



toi «| . 



> 3 " i ' g '*~ 



EARLESH. PINNEY, M. D., of Coun- 
cil Bluffs, first established his practice 
in Omaha, March, 18G6, and in Council 
Bbiffs in 1875. He was born in Elvria, Lorain 
County, Ohio, August 30, 1842. His father, 
Ilurlbert Piuney, was born near Hartford, 
Connecticut, January 19, 1807. Originally 
three brothers came from Scotland long before 
the Revolution, and participated in our war 
for independence. One of them, John Pinney. 
was the great-grandfather of our subject. 
The Doctor's grandfather was also named 
John Pinney. There are numerous descend- 
ant- of this name, many of whom reside at 
Farmington, and Windsor, Connecticut. 
Ilurlbert H. Pinney married Malina Abbey, 
a native of Herkimer, Herkimer County, 
New York. In April, 1832, he went to Lo- 
rain County, Ohio, when that State was still 
a pari of the Northwest Territory, in com- 
pany with his younger and only brother, Al- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



273 



bert, their father having died from the effects 
of a horse falling upon him while they were 
small boys. Three married sisters remained 
in Connecticut. Mr. H. H. Pinney married 
his wife, who had moved to Lorain County, 
Ohio, from the State of New York with her 
parents. They had six children, four sons and 
two daughters, all of whom are still living, 
namely: Carrie M., wife of Hon. R. G. Horr, 
a prominent statesman of Michigan, was born 
December 7, 1834; Laura M., born Septem- 
ber 3, 1837, is the wife of Rev. Samuel L. 
Alexander, now of Council Bluffs; Allen W., 
a fruit-grower near Council Bluffs, was born 
August 21, 1839; the next in order of birth 
was Charles II., whose name heads this bio- 
graphical sketch, born August 30, 1842; An- 
son E., born November 4, 1847, is a hardware 
merchant in Ithaca, Michigan; John H., 
born January 26, 1850, now resides near 
Akron, Nebraska, engaged in farming and 
stock-raising. The Doctor's parents are now 
living at East Saginaw, Michigan. 

Dr. Pinney was brought up on the home 
farm until the age of fourteen, when he en- 
tered the Clarkson (Michigan) Academy, and 
afterward entered the scientific department of 
the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, 
having in view ultimately a medical educa- 
tion at that university; and on graduating 
in the medical department, in March, 1864, 
and, satisfying his first ambition, he entered 
the army as a Surgeon in the Ninth Ohio 
Cavalry, joining his regiment at Decatur, 
Alabama, and serving until the close of the 
war. That regiment participated in the en- 
gagement at Decatur with Chalmers and 
Wheeler's Cavalry; then it did scouting duty 
until July 10, 1864; next it was transferred 
to the army of General Rousseau and was 
taken on a raid through central Alabama, cut- 
ting railroads, etc., and then to Borne and 
Marietta, Georgia, and then took part in the 



siege of Atlanta, and inarched to the sea in 
Sherman's army, in the Third Cavalry Divis- 
ion, Third Brigade, under Kilpatrick. It 
returned with Sherman through the Caro- 
linas, driving Wheeler and Ilampton from 
Bentonville to Raleigh. The regiment was 
engaged in many hard fights, both on the 
march to the sea and through the Carolinas. 
It particpated in the very last battle of the 
war east of the Mississippi, which was after 
the surrender of Joseph E. Johnston, and on 
New Hope Creek, near Chapel Hill, North 
Carolina. In that engagement Adjutant Gen- 
eral Jenkins was mortally wounded. Dr. 
Pinney's regiment was retained in the South 
to aid in the reconstruction of the State, and 
assisted the Provisional Governor of North 
Carolina in this work, rendezvousing at Con- 
cord. He was mustered out in September, 
1865, at Camp Dennison, Ohio. 

After visiting his old home in Ohio and 
also his uncle in Michigan, with whom he 
had studied medicine, he went, in the fall of 
1865, to Philadelphia, and continued his 
studies in the medical department of the 
University of Pennsylvania, graduating there 
the next spring. He then came West to 
locate in Omaha and "grow up with the 
town." In compliance with his wife's de- 
sire, he afterward transferred his residence to 
Council Bluffs, where he also has a fine prac- 
tice. He was married September 15, 1870, 
to Miss Ella O. Pusey, a daughter of the 
Hon. William II. M. Pusey, born in Pitts- 
burg, Pennsylvania, and they have had three 
sons and a daughter: Hurlbert II., Lucile 
and Frank L. Their eldest child, William 
Henry, died at the age of four years. 

On account of his superior qualifications, 
which he acquired by his surgical practice in 
the army, he has been very successful as a 
piactitioner. He has been medical exam- 
iner and medical referee for the Mutual Life 



M 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



In-unuice Company of New York, since 
1880. lie is a member of the Council 
Bluffs Medical Society, of which he has been 
President, and is a member of the State 
Medical Society, and the Medical Society of 
Missouri Valley, and is the local surgeon for 
the Chicago, Rock Island .& Pacific Railway 
Company. lie is one of the leadiug physi- 
cians and surgeons of western Iowa. 

' ■ ' "S ' 3 ' 't ' a" ' " ' 



IURMAN MORRIS, a popular and pros- 
perous citizen of Center Township, Pot- 
tawattamie County, Iowa, came to his 
present location in 1872, when this part of 
the country was thinly settled. A sketch of 
his life will be found of interest and is as 
follows: 

Mr. Morris was horn in Middlesex County, 
New Jersey, October 3. 1837. His father, 
Aaron Morris, a native of the same vicinity, 
was a son of David Morris, who was also a 
native of New Jersey and who served in the 
Revolutionary war as a drummer boy. He 
was a son of Reno Morris, who was killed on 
the old Morris homestead by a falling tree. 
They were of Scotch extraction. Our sub- 
ject's mother, nee Sarah Randolph, was born 
in Middlesex County, New Jersey, the daugh- 
ter of Richard Randolph, also a native of 
that State. Her grandfather Randolph was 
born in Virginia, a descendant of the well- 
known Randolph family of the Old Dominion. 

Aanm Morris and Sarah, his wife, emi- 
grated to Lee County, Illinois, in 1855, 
where they spent the rest of their lives, the 
father dying in June. 1889, at the age of 
eighty-two years. The Morrises are a long- 
lived people, though the Randolphs usually 
died in middle life. Aaron Morris was a 
Democrat before the war. He voted for 
General Fremont, and was a strong Union 



man. He was a member of the Baptist 
Church. By his first wife the following 
children were born to him: Joel W., a resi- 
dent of Franklin County, Kansas; Richard 
R., and Furman, both of the same township; 
Aaron F.. who died in infancy; Sarah, widow 
of II. A. Jeffs, a Lieutenant of the Thirty- 
fourth Illinois Infantry. She resides at El- 
dena, Lee County, Illinois; Rachel J., wife 
of Jerry Mostellar, a grain merchant of El- 
dena. Some time after the death of his first 
wife Mr. Morris married Alvira Smith, a na- 
tive of Massachusetts, and by her had one 
daughter. Amanda Morris. This daughter 
resides with her mother at Dixon. 

Furman Morris was reared on a New Jer- 
sey farm and received his education in the 
public schools of his native State. He was 
eighteen years of age when he went to Illi- 
nois and settled in Lee County. In 1861, in 
answer to President Lincoln's call for volun- 
teers, he enlisted in Company D, Thirty- 
fourth Illinois Infantry. He was in the 
battles of Shiloh, Stone River, J Perry vi lie, 
Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge and 
Ringgold, Georgia. Mr. Morris was taken 
ill with a chronic disease which disabled him 
from active duty in the field, and he was sent 
to Nashville, where he was honorably dis- 
charged. From there he returned to his 
home in Illinois. He bought a farm near 
Dixon, which he cultivated until 1872, in 
which year he came to his present location. 
He bought 100 acres of wild land and after- 
ward acquired more, now being the owner of 
240 acres. It is wed improved and is de- 
voted to general farming and stock-raising. 
.Mr. Morris has a comfortable frame house, a 
good barn and all necessary farm equipments. 
lie has been twice married, first, Febru- 
ary 20, 1800, in Ogle County, Illinois, to 
Miss Sarah Putnam, a daughter of (ieorge 
and Elizabeth (Perkins) Putnam. The Put- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



275 



nams are relatives of old Israel Putnam of 
Revolutionary tame. The family came from 
Vermont when Mrs. Morris was eight or nine 
years old and settled in Illinois. She died 
January 26, 1868. Mr. Morris subsequently 
wedded her sister, Miss Ellen R. Putnam, 
who, previous to her marriage, was a popular 
and successful teacher. Nine children have 
been born to them, viz.: Charles L., Louie B., 
Winnie P., Jennie M., Roy F., Clara Vio- 
let, and Ada Pearl. Two are deceased — 
Mabel and Ida. 

Mr. Morris, his wife and two of their chil- 
dren are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. He is a steward of the church and 
his family are workers in the Sunday-school. 
Mr. Morris is a member of Robert Provard 
Post, No. 414, of Carson. 

— -~ «■ £ • ]■ H ' S '"" — 



fX. RISS, contractor and builder, No. 
410 North Sixth street, Council Bluffs, 
° is a native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 
He was born April 14, 1850, the son of An- 
thony and Anna Riss, who were of German 
descent. Mr. Riss remained in his native 
city until he was twelve years old. At that 
time, having lost his parents when he was 
quite young, he quitted Milwaukee and came 
to Council Bluffs with his uncle, Joseph 
Probstle, a harness-maker. With this uncle 
young Riss learned the trade of harness- 
making, and worked at it three years. Then 
he turned his attention to the carpenter's 
trade, which was more congenial to his taste, 
and which he has since followed. He has 
assisted in the erection of many of the houses 
of Council Bluffs, and, in 1881, he com- 
menced contracting and building for himself. 
He has owned several pieces of property, 
buying and selling as opportunity offered. 



His annual business averages $5,000. Mr. 
Riss is a Republican. 

In 1881 Mr. Riss wedded Mary Ryan, who 
was born March 13, 1859. By his second 
marriage he has theee children, Nellie, Ed- 
ward and Florence. The family are mem- 
bers of the Catholic Church. He is also a 
member of the Catholic Knights. 

— -~ fr: . * - g- - — 



TACY EWINGS BEVAN was born in 
Belmont County, Ohio, January 19, 
1834. His father, Stacy Bevan, and 
his grandfather, Samuel Bevan, were both 
natives of Virginia and descendants of an 
old Virginia family. Mr. Bevan's mother, 
nee Jane Robberts, was born in Lancaster 
County, Pennsylvania. Her father, Aaron 
Robberts, also a native of Pennsylvania, was a 
merchant during the war of 1812. He was 
of English extraction. His ancestors came 
to America with William Penn and were a 
prominent family in early days. Stacy 
Bevan was twice married. His first wife was 
nee Eunice Fosset, a native of Ohio. By his 
subsequent marriage, in Belmont County, 
Ohio, to Jane Roberts, he had seven chil- 
dren, four sons and three daughters, Stacy E. 
being the oldest. The father was a brick- 
layer by trade, but much of his life was passed 
on a farm. He was a Whig during the 
balmy days of that party, and he and his 
lamily were Friends. He died in Belmont 
County, Ohio, in 1842, at the age of fifty 
years. His widow is now a resident of Argo- 
nia, Sumner County, Kansas. She is eighty- 
three years old and is very active for one of 
her age. 

Stacy E. lived in his native county until 
he reached his twelfth year, when he w T ent to 
Logan County, Ohio, and remained there till 
he was twenty years old. He was reared on 



276 



IilijURAPUWAL HISTORY 



a farm and attended the common schools, 
finishing his education at Ilarkness Semi- 
nary, alter which he was engaged in teaching 
for a time. In 1854 he came to Marshall 
County, Iowa, where he farmed in summer 
and taught school in winter. He was mar- 
ried in Jasper County, Iowa, November 7, 
1856, to Miss Sarah Beals, a lady of intelli- 
gence and refinement, who has proved her- 
self a faithful helpmate. She was born and 
reared in Tennessee, the daughter of David 
and Rachel (Hammer) Beals, both natives of 
east Tennessee. The family came to Iowa in 
1854 and located in Jefferson County. The 
next year they moved to Jasper County. 
Her mother died in this county August 20, 
1870 Her father is still living here, and, 
at this writing, is in his eighty-seventh year. 
Stacy E. and Sarah Bevan have had ten chil- 
dren, namely: Arwilda C. and Lindley (>., 
residents of Kiowa County, Kansas; Joseph 
Addison and James E., at home; Elma J., a 
successful and popular teacher; Aaron L. 
and Arthur B., at home. Three of their 
children are deceased: David W., a young 
man in the prime of life, left a widow and 
one child; Charles, at the ago of ten years, 
and Julia Ann, a babe of six months. 

Our subject lived in Marshall County 
until 1809, when he removed to Clay Coun- 
ty, this State, and bought a large tract of 
prairie and timber land at Gillett's Grove. 
He improved the farm and lived on it for 
seven years; but blizzards in winter, mosqui- 
to;-. in summer, and the rainy seasons so com- 
mon there were great drawbacks to the laud, 
and he sold out and came to his present loca- 
tion. Here lie bought 160 acres of land and 
has siuce added to it 160 acres more, now 
having a tine farm of 320 acre- ol rich land, 
Weil watered and well adapted for both stock 
and grain. lie has (food farm buildings, au 
orchard and gruve and other improvements, 



everything about the place indicating the 
prosperity of the owner. Mr. Bevan also 
owns 640 acres of valuable land in Kiowa 
County, Kansas, and eighty acres in Sumner 
County, that State, which is well adapted for 
wheat. 

Like his worthy ancestors, Stacy Bevan 
is a Friend, and a minister of the gospel in 
that church, both he and his daughter, Elma 
J., having been authorized by the Ilaviland 
Church of Kansas to preach and explain the 
word of God, and also to do missionary work, 
not only in Kansas but also in Missouri and 
Iowa. They are active workers in the cause 
of the Master and have done much toward 
the advancement of his kingdom here. Mr. 
Bevan has had many years of experience in 
Iowa, is well informed on all general topics, 
and is broad and progressive in his views. 
Financially, socially and religiously, he is 
numbered among the first citizens of Potta- 
wattamie County. 

— - •■ ; • ! > < - fr " — 



fREDERICK FORD, a native of Cam- 
bridgeshire, England, was born August 
23, 1836, the son of James and Eliza- 
beth (Chandler) Ford, both natives of Eng- 
land, who came to America in 1S55, landing 
in New York city December 31, 1855. 
They immediately started for the West, by 
rail, via Cleveland and Chicago to St. Louis, 
where Mr. Ford, Br., died, January 17,1856, 
at the age of forty-five years. The care of 
the family then fell upon the eldest child, 
Frederick, the subject of this sketch. They 
remained in St. Louis until May, when they 
came north to Council Bluffs, Iowa, where 
Frederick Ford rented a Bmall farm on the 
Little Mosquito, in what is now Garner 
Township. Here he left the family while he 
went to Omaha, Nebraska, and engaged to 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



277 



work by the month in a saw-mill. The fam- 
ily consisted of the mother and fonr children, 
only two of whom survive. The mother and 
daughter died in Utah, where they removed 
in 1860, the former in 1875, and the latter, 
who was the wife of Peter Lowe, the year 
previous. Thomas, the second child, died 
about 1874, in Utah. The two remaining 
children are Frederick, our subject, and 
Joseph, who resides in .Boomer Township on 
a farm. 

Frederick worked in Omaha about six 
months, when he returned to this tide of the 
river and rented a farm for six years. He 
then purchased a tract of eighty acres in 
Missouri, in Crescent Township, where he 
remained one year, but on account of sickness 
he disposed of this farm and rented for two 
years. He then purchased 120 acres on sec- 
tions 28 and 27, Hazel Dell Township. This 
was a wild tract of land, with no improve- 
ments, and only two families within neigh- 
boring distance; but he went to work to 
make a home, and in 1865 erected a small 
frame house, 14 x 18 feet, which did duty for 
a home until he could erect a larger one. In 
a couple of years he made an addition to his 
house, and in 1878 erected his present home, 
a fine frame building 14x24 and 16x20, 
with a good brick cellar. His home is sur- 
rounded with shade and ornamental trees, 
and he also has two acres in orchard. He 
has good barns for stock and grain, and one 
of the best stock -yards, being well shedded, 
in this part of the county. Mr. Ford has 
added to his first purchase of land, and now 
possesses 350 acres, on sections 21, 22, 27 
and 28, Hazel Dtll Township, all of which 
he has improved through his own efforts. 
He has undergone the hardships of pioneer 
life, and has seen the growth and develop- 
ment of Pottawattamie County from a wild 
and uncultivated state to one of the best in 



the United States. He has notonly stood by 
and witnessed it, but has put his shoulder to 
the wheel and assisted largely by his honesty 
and integrity in its development. He is a 
self -made man, and was left with a family to 
care for when he was only nineteen years of 
age, but he had the pluck and energy to 
carry him through. 

Mr. Ford was married October 23, 1861, 
to Rebecca B. Horn, who was born in Eng- 
land, and came to this country with her par- 
ents. She was killed August 10, 1878, by a 
team running away. They had a family of 
seven children, viz.: Hester E., deceased; 
Fannie E., the wife of Frost Nusuni, of 
Boomer Township; John J.; Joseph W., 
deceased; Amy E., deceased; Beriha H. and 
George T., at home. Mr. Ford was married 
the second time in 1879, to Hannah M. Gra- 
ham, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth 
Hayes. She was born in England, and came 
to this country when small with her parents. 

Mr. Ford has always supported the Re- 
publican party, and has represented his town- 
ship as School Directorate. He is a member 
of the Farmers' Alliance. 

— ■• "■! * S MS*!*""' — 

D. PUTNAM, Commander of Robert 
Provard Post, No. 414, G. A. R., of 
° Carson, is one of the early settlers and 
representative citizens of Center Township, 
Pottawattamie County, Iowa. 

Hewas born in New Hampshire, August 19, 
1834, a great nephew of the illustrious Israel 
Putnam of Revolutionary fame. His par- 
ents, George Putnam and nee Elizabeth Per- 
kins, the former a native of Haverhill, Mass- 
achusetts, and the latter of New Hamshire, 
reared nine children, the subject of this 
sketch being the oldest. When he was eleven 
years old the family removed to Vermont, 



L'78 



i:iui;liAPniCAL HISTORY 



where lie lived on a farm and grew to man- 
hood. He received his education in the pub- 
lic schools. Later, he engaged in teaching 
and became a prominent and successful edu- 
cator. In 1852 he came West and settled in 
Lee County, Illinois, where he remained 
until the war broke out. 

In September, 1861, at the time President 
Lincoln called for " 300,000 more," he en- 
listed in Fremont's Rangers, or body guards 
for General Fremont. But when General 
Fremont was removed from his command the 
men were assigned to the Third Missouri 
(. avalry. This was one of the noted Missouri 
cavalry regiments, and the record it made 
was an honorable one. Mr. Putnam partici- 
pated in the battles of Pea Ridge. Arkansas; 
Ilartsville, Missouri; Cotton Plant, White 
River Junction, Little Rock and Camden, 
Arkansas; and went up the Red River with 
General Banks. He also participated in 
many minor engagements and skirmishes. 
He was captured three times, but always, 
like his noted kinsman, made his escape, 
lie was honorably discharged June 22, 1865, 
at Little Rock. Arkansas, as Second Lieuten- 
ant. He then returned to his home in 
Illinois. 

Mr. Putnam engaged in farming near 
Dixon, remaining there until 1871. In that 
year he came to Cen er Township, Pottawat- 
tamie County, Iowa, and was with his broth- 
!•!. I.. U., who for live years made his home 
in this county. Our subject afterward bought 
his present farm of (ieorge Race. He owns 
eighty acres of rich land, well located and 
will adapted for stock and grain purposes. 

At Ambuv, Illinois, in 1872, Mr. Putnam 
wedded Miss Emtio Stephens, a lady of cult- 
ure and refinement, who, for thirteen years 
previous to her marriage, was a successful 
• rin Illinois. She was bom in England 
(.t English parents, John and Peggy (Daw) 



Stephens, with whom she came to this coun- 
try at the age of four years. She was edu- 
cated at Mount Morris, Illinois. By this 
union three children were born: Arthur L., 
Katie J. and Emma. The latter died at the 
age of fifteen months. The great loss of Mr. 
Putnam's life was when his loving compan- 
ion was called away by death, March 14, 
1879. She was a worthy member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. Her loss was 
deeply felt by her husband, her little ones 
and her many friends. 

Mr. Putnam is a Republican. lie has 
served as Assessor of the township. He is a 
friend of education and religion, and is a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
of Spring Creek, being trustee of the same. 



fOHN JACKSON RODENBOUGH, 
one of the well known pioneers of Potta- 
wattamie County, Iowa, came here in 
1866. A sketch of his life will be found of 
interest and is as follows: 

II is father was George S. Roden bough, who 
married, in New Jersey, Miss Elizabeth Jack- 
son, and had twelve children, six sons and six 
daughters. Mr. Rodenboogh has always been 
a great admirer of Mr. Jackson, and when, 
June 10, 1*3:3. the subject of this sketch was 
born he was given the name of that hero. 
He was reared in his native State, receiving 
a common-school education, and learned the 
shoemaker's trade from his father. When he 
was twentj one years of age the entire family 
removed to Wan-en County, Illinois. There 
the parents spent the rest of their lives, the 
mother dying at the age of seventy years and 
the father at eighty four. 

Mr. Rodenbough served [or a time in the 
State militia, but was not accepted by the 




ddi/k Rutik 



v^Uc 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



879 



United States into regimental service. He 
was married, September 4, 1859, to Mary 
Ann Axtell, a native of Warren County, 
Illinois, and a daughter of Thomas and Sarah 
(Robb) Axtell, natives of Pennsylvania. Four 
children were born to them, three of whom 
are living, viz.: Willbert E., who resides in 
Washington; George, of the same State; 
Flora, wife of Nathan Moore, Grove Town- 
ship, this county. Mrs. Rodenbough died 
January 29, 1873. Two years later, Decem- 
ber 25, 1874, Mr. Rodenbough married his 
present wife, Miss Eunice Dilly, a native of 
Mercer County, Pennsylvania, and a daughter 
of William and Mary (Axtell) Dilly, also of 
Pennsylvania. She was two years of age 
when her parents located in Warren County, 
Illinois, where she was reared. Her father 
was a strong Abolitionist, and was a delegate 
to Springfield, Illinois, at the time Abraham 
Lincoln was nominated for President. Mr. 
Dilly now resides at Sterling, Kansas. By 
his second marriage Mr. Rodenbough has 
three children: Mary Elizabeth, William 
Herbert and Nettie May. 

Mr. Rodenboncrh came to Pottawattamie 

o 

County in 1866, as already stated at the be- 
ginning of this article, and first settled at 
Silver Creek. He subsequently came to Grove 
Township, and was employed for a time on 
the R. R. I. Railroad. Previous to his 
coming West he had helped to build one of 
the first railroads in the United States, in 
New Jersey. After the death of his wife he 
returned to Illinois and remained a year, 
when he came back to this county. He is 
the owner of 140 acres of good land, which is 
w r ell watered. 

Politically our subject is a Republican. 
He voted for General Fremont and all the 
Republican candidates for President since 
that time. He and his wife and two of their 
children are members of the Methodist 

23 



Church. Mr. Rodenbough is firm in his 
convictions of right and wrong, plain in his 
speech and manner, and honest in all his 
business dealings. 



f™ OHN N. BALDWIN was born in Coun- 
cil Bluffs, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, 
^' on the 9th day of July, 1857. His 
father was the Hon. Caleb Baldwin, whose 
biography is the first under head of Potta- 
wattamie County. His mother was Jane 
Baldwin, whose maiden name was Jane Barr. 
Mr. Baldwin attended the public schools 
of Council Bluffs, and in 1873, when sixteen 
years of age, went to the State University at 
Iowa City. He wSs in the collegiate depart- 
ment of this institution three years. In the 
fall of 1875 he entered the Columbia Law 
School at Washington, District of Columbia, 
where he had gone to remain with his father, 
who at that time was a member of the Court 
of Commissioners of Alabama Claims. Aftor 
remaining there one year he again returned 
to Iowa City and entered the law depart, 
ment there in the fall of 1876, and graduated 
therefrom with some distinction in June, 
1877. He immediately began the practice 
of law at Council Bluffs, becoming the junior 
member of the firm of Rising, Wright & 
Baldwin, the senior members of the firm being 
A. J. Rising and the Hon. George F. Wright. 
Mr. Baldwin soon engaged actively in the 
practice and in a short time became one of 
the leading members of the bar of Potta- 
wattamie County, Iowa. In 1880 Mr. Rising 
left the firm and went to Colorado, ami the 
firm of Wright & Baldwin was then organ- 
ized, and continued until 1889, when the 
two sons of Mr. Wright were taken into the 
firm. 

Mr. Baldwin was married in December, 1878, 



28.1 



HAPBWAL BISTORT 



to Miss Lilla G. Solcomb, of Cedar Rapid-. 

Iowa. They have two children, a girl named 
Genevieve, and a boj named John X., Jr. 



►*-*■ 



(). GAULT was born in Wooster 
(now Wicomico) County, Maryland, 
° November 7, 1849. His father, 
Archibald Gault, and his grandfather, Obed 
Gault, were both natives of Maryland, and 
the latter was a soldier in the war of 1812. 
The wife of Archibald and the mother of T. 
0. was nee Eliza Littleton. She was a native 
of Maryland, as also was her father, Thomas 
Littleton. The subject of this sketch was 
seven years old when his mother died. Three 
years later his father mofed to Ripley Coun- 
ty, Indiana, where he lived until 1862. In 
that year he moved hack to Maryland, but 
returned to Ripley County in 1865. He 
is now a resident of Maryland. 

T. O. Gault was reared on a farm and edu- 
cated in the public schools of Maryland and 
Indiana. At the age of twenty-one he came 
to lowa and located in Marshall County, 
where lie was engaged in farm work the most 
of the time until 1878. In that year he 
came to Pottawattamie County and bought 
160 acres of wild prairie land in Center 
Township. This is now well improved, is 
fenced into two fields, and 150 acres are 
under cultivation. Mr. Gault devotes his 
attention to general farming and also to 
stock-raising. His residence was built in 
1888, at a cost of $650, and is well fur- 
nished. It is located on a natural building 
Bite and commands an extended view of the 
surrounding country. He has about three 
acres in shade trees, orchard and small fruits. 

Mi-. Gault was married March 4, 1888, 
in Drury, Rock Island County, Illinois, to 
Miss Melissa Drury, a lady of education 



and culture and a native of that place. She 
is a daughter of Eli Drury, an old settler 
and a promiuent citizen of Rock Island 
County. He lias been Postmaster for over 
thirty-five years at Drury, in the above 
county. Her mother was Margaret Hub- 
bert before her marriage, a native of Bedford 
County, Pennsylvania; and her father, Eli 
Drury, was a native of Wayne County, Indi- 
ana. Both parents are now residents of 
Drury, Rock Island County, Illinois. Mr. 
and Mrs. Gault have one daughter, Essie 
Alice. 

Politically Mr. Gault is a Republican. 
He is a member of the I. O. O. F., having 
been made such in Marshall County, Iowa, 
at Eden Lodge, No. 316, Gilbnan. He is 
a man well informed on all current topics, 
and is regarded as a representative citizen 
of his township. 



- - " 



fll. GEEGG, of Hazel Dell Township, 
is a native of Belmont County, Ohio, 
° horn December 19, 1831, the son of 
II. II. and Amy (Hoge) Gregg. They were 
reared in Loudoun and Fauquier counties, 
Virginia, and were of Scotch and English 
origin. They were married in Virginia and 
came to Ohio in an early day. locating in 
Belmont County, where they resided until 
their death. The father was born February 
4, 1803, and died June 30, 1861, and the 
mother was born October 7, 1807, and died 
January 7, 1874. The father was a farmer 
and merchant and abo a buyer and packer of 
tobacco; his lather before him was also a 
merchant. They were the parents of ten 
children, of whom eight grew to maturity, 
namely: Mary E., wife of l\oah J. Hatcher, 
of Belmont County, Ohio; Joshua 11.. the 
subject of this sketch; Samuel II.. who died 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY 



,'S1 



in Warren County, Iowa, February 14, 1890; 
Hendley II., a resident of Belmont County, 
on the old homestead; Francis, a resident of 
Belmont County; Henrietta, also of Belmont 
County; William S. died February 5, 1890, 
in Benton County, Iowa; and Victoria, the 
wife of Thomas Rogers, and residing in 
Barnesville, Belmont County, Ohio; two chil- 
dren died in infancy. The father was reared 
in the Friends' or Quaker Church. 

J. H. Gregg, the subject of this sketch, was 
reared on a farm in Belmont County, and re- 
ceived his education in the public schools. 
He remained at home with his parents until 
he was twenty-five years of age. October 
22, 1850, he was married, in Grundy County, 
Illinois, to Amy G. Hoge, daughter of Wil- 
liam and Rachel (Boles) Hoge, natives of 
Virginia and of Scotch and German descent. 
She was born in Fauquier County, Virginia, 
July 24, 1830, but when a child removed 
with her parents to Illinois, where she was 
reared. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
Gregg started for Pottawattamie County, 
Iowa, arriving November 18, 1856, at Coun- 
cil Bluffs. They immediately went to work 
to make improvements on his farm of 432 
acres, which he had purchased in January 
previous; 400 acres are on section 33 — the 
south-half — and the south-half of the north- 
west quarter of section — , Hazel Dell Town- 
ship and the northwest quarter of the north- 
east quarter of section 4, Garner Township. 
This was all uncultivated land when he pur- 
chased it, excepting about twenty -live or thirty 
acres which had been broken out. Here he 
went to work to make a home, and in the fall 
of 1857 he erected a small frame residence, 
18 x 24 feet, and in 1878 they built an ad- 
dition, and they now have a neat and com- 
modious dwelling; the addition is 18x30 
feet and fourteen feet front, he has also 
erected barns for stock and grain, a stable for 



his cows, which is eighty feet long, and a 
good hay shed ninety-four feet long. Mr. 
Gregg has eight acres of orchard on his home 
place, and three acres on his farm in James 
Township, where he has 236| acres, which he 
has improved. He entered from the Gov- 
ernment 560 acres and now possesses almost 
1,400 acres, all under good cultivation. He 
has done much toward building up and im- 
proving Pottawattamie County, and is de- 
serving of all the honor and esteem which is 
accorded him by his many friends. He is a 
self-made man, having made the most of 
what he now possesses through his own 
efforts. In his political views he is a standi 
Republican, having wheeled into line from 
the old Whig party. He has been T'-easurer 
of the School Board for a number of years. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gregg are the parents of ten 
children, viz.: Ida A., deceased; Amanda V., 
residing at home; Mary E., deceased; Georgia 
A., wife of William T. Harris, of Hazel Dell 
Township; Amy E., wife of J. D. Harris, of 
Norwalk Township; Anna, deceased; William 
A., deceased; Clara A., at home; Alcinda M., 
deceased; Henrietta A., also at home. 



fOHN ROD WELL was born in Cam- 
bridgeshire, England, January 21, 1846, 
the son of John and Mary (Goodge) 
Rodwell, both natives of England. He was 
a babe when his parents emigrated to this 
country and settled in Bureau County, Illi- 
nois, near Arlington. There they spent the 
residue of their lives, the father dying in 
1850 and the mother in 1882. Mrs. Rodwell 
was a worthy member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church. They reared a family of three 
children: Mary, John and Thomas. They 
were reared on a farm, the father having 
been a farmer all his life, and early in child- 



282 



r.hiilUAPlIICAL HISTORY 



hood were taught that industry aud honest] 
were necessary to a useful and successful life. 

John received his education in the public 
schools. When the great war of the Rebel- 
lion came on he went forth in the defense of 
his country, enlisting in February, 1864, in 
Company B, Fifty-seventh Illinois Volunteer 
Infantry. He participated in the battles of 
Resaca, Altoona, Bentonville, and others of 
less importance. After receiving an honor- 
able discharge at Louisville, Kentucky, he 
returned to his home in Bureau County, 
Illinois, where he remained until 1876. 

In February of that year became to Potta- 
wattamie County and located on section 22, 
Center Township. He purchased eighty 
acres of wild prairie land, which he improved, 
and as he prospered he added to his landed 
estate. In 1880 he bought forty acres in 
section 21, and four years later, 160 acres in 
section 15, both having been broken at the 
time of purchase, and the latter fenced. In 
1888 he bought 120 acres in section 8, which 
had been improved and on which was a house 
and other buildings. On this property his 
brother Thomas resides. Mr. Rodwell is the 
owner of 4<>0 acres of land. On his home 
farm, which is well improved and under a 
splendid state of cultivation, he has a tine 
residence built in modern style at a cost of 
$2,000. This home, beautifully located and 
surrounded liy ornamental trees and shrubs, 
forms one of the attractive features of the 
neighborhood. Mr. Rodwell has a nice grove 
and orchard, suitable barn and out-buildings 
and wind-mill; in fact, everything about the 
place attests the thrift and enterprise of the 
proprietor, from sixty to seventy-five head 
of cattle and a large number of hogs and 
horses are usually kept on the farm. 

December 20, 1800, Mr. Rodwell married 
Miss Caroline Frizzell, a native of Bureau 
County, Illinois, and one of the ten children 



of Michael and Charlotte (Dean) Frizzell. 
The father was a Dative of Massachusetts, and 
died in Firth, Lancaster County, Nebraska, 
at the age of eighty-three; the mother, a 
native of Connecticut, died in Bureau County, 
Illinois, in June, 1880, at the age of si\t\- 
Beven. J. O. Frizzell is a brother of Mrs. 
Rodwell and A. L. Frizzell is her half- 
brother. Mr. and Mrs. Rodwell have five 
children: Michael Eugene, Wilbert, Mary, 
Luella and Tracy Melvin. 

Politically our subject is a strong and radi- 
cal Republican. He hao served with credit 
as Township Trustee, as a member of the 
School Board, and is at present Township 
Clerk, lie is also the present treasurer of 
the School Foard. Mr. Rodwell is a charter 
member id' the William Laton Post, No. 
358, C A. R., Oakland, and has served as 
Chaplain of the Post and Officer of the Day. 
He is a member of the Spring Creek Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, and is one of its 
liberal supporters. His family are members 
of the Center Union Sabbath school. 

Mr. Rodwell is a gentleman in the prime 
of life. In a financial way he has met with 
eminent success, and his prosperity may all 
be attributed to his enterprise, integrity and 
well directed efforts. He is regarded by all 
who know him as a worthy and upright 
citizen. 

"'g - * ' fS' ■ — 

iHJ§}RS. ELIZABETH MACK LAND, of 
''fhvml! Boomer Township, was born in 
2 3S&T' Cheshire, England, October 24, 1832, 
a daughter of Joseph and Hannah (Harrison) 
Bardsley, parents also natives of the Albion 
Isle. Her father was a weaver by trade. 
The family comprised eight children: 
Thomas, William. Mary, Martha, Joseph, 
Robert, Margaret and John, all of whom are 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



283 



now deceased. Mr. Bardsley, being the fifth 
child, was born July 15, 1800, was brought 
up in the trade of his father, but as soon as 
convenient he learned the trade of boot and 
shoe making. His wife, born July 10,1810, 
was the daughter of John and Martha Har- 
rison, natives of England. Mr. Harrison 
was a mechanic and machinist, and his chil- 
dren were: Samuel, Hannah, John, Mary, 
Elizabeth, William and Joseph, besides one 
deceased. Mrs. M. Bardsley, being the sec- 
ond child, was married in 1880, and remained 
a resident of the old home until she died, 
March 7, 1844, leaving three children, — 
Mary and Martha, both deceased, and Eliza- 
beth, the subject of this sketch. After the 
death of the mother, the father remained in 
England until 1850, when he sailed from 
Liverpool for America, landing at New Or- 
leans, after a voyage of eleven weeks. He 
proceeded to St. Louis, and to Kanesville (now 
Council Bluffs), and finally located in Keg 
Creek, where he was a resident until 1855; 
but in 1852 he married Mrs. Bettie Hand- 
bury, and in 1854 bought 200 acres of land 
in Neola Township, and began to make a 
home. After making many improvements 
he died, December 20, 1860, leaving his wife 
and three children: John is a merchant in 
Neola Township; Charles is still on the old 
home place, and a thrifty farmer; and 
Thomas is practicing law in Walnut. Mrs. 
Bardsley is still living, near her eldest daugh- 
ter, and she has accumulated considerable 
property. 

Marcli 26, 1852, when twenty years of 
age, Elizabeth married John Mackland, the 
son of Thomas and Ann (Union) Mackland, 
natives of England: father a brick-maker by 
trade, and in his family were ten children: 
Maria, John, Eliza, Ellen, Henry, Elizabeth, 
Phoebe and three others. John Mackland 
was born in 1829, brought up in his father's 



trade, which he followed to some extent after 
his arrival in this country. Purchasing 160 
acres of land in Neola Township, he continued 
to make many valuable improvements as a 
foundation for a comfortable home; but in 
1865 he moved into Boomer Township and 
bought a tract of land on section 34, which is 
now the old home place. Here he began 
anew, in a wild, unbroken prairie, with only 
a log cabin and a few acres of sod turned. 
In a few years he was enabled to put up a 
gi'od frame house. He planted shade trees, 
etc., and made a tine residence. He died 
October 4, 1876, leaving a wife and eight 
children. The latter are: Anna, born in 
1853, now the wife of John Lay them, and 
residing in Neola; Joseph, born in 1855, and 
now. residing in Boomer; Emma, born in 
1858, is now Mrs. John McGill, of Council 
Bluffs; Thomas, born in 1860, and residing 
in Boomer; William Henry, born in 1862, 
still at home; Mary Ellen, born in 1865, is 
the wife of Henry Page, and living in Boom- 
er; Elizabeth, born in 1868, now at home; 
and Phoebe, bom in 1870, is married to Jef- 
ferson Sigler, a resident of Boomer Township. 
Mr. Mackland was a decided Democrat, a 
man who took an interest in benevolent 
societies, and earned a good reputation by his 
integrity of character. He was, as Mrs. 
Mackland still is, a member of the Church 
of Latter- Day Saints, being zealous in the 
principles of that denomination. 



+*-& 



A RON W. PEAECE is one of the well 
known citizens of Grove Township, 
having been a resident of Pottawatta- 
mie County since 1874. 

He was born in Richland County, Ohio, 
September 22, 1840. His father, Dennis 
Pearce, also a native of Ohio, was a sou of 



384 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



Aaron Pearce, wlio was of Irish extraction. 
In |iu]itics the Pearcea have been Whigs and 
Repnblicans; in religion tliey liave been as- 
sociated with the Christian Church. Dennis 
Pearce wedded Mary Pollock, a native of 
Richland County. Ohio, by whom he had 
nine children, four sons and five daughters. 
Three of the daughters are deceased. Mrs. 
George Bolton and the subject of this sketch 
are the only ones living in Pottawattamie 
County. James II., a twin brother of Aaron, 
resides in Adair County, Iowa. In 1852 or 
1853 the family removed from Ohio to Cedar 
County, Iowa, and were early settlers in that 
section of the country. They had been there 
only a year when the father died, leav- 
ing his widow and children to battle for life 
in a new country. The mother afterward 
married Mr. H. C. Paxson, who died in 
1870. 

Aaron W. Pearce received his education in 
Richland County, Ohio, and in Cedar Coun- 
ty, Iowa. During the late war, in answer to 
Lincoln's call for " 300,000 more," lie en- 
listed, in September, 1861, in Company E, 
Eleventh Iowa Infantry. He enlisted under 
Colonel Abraham Hare, of Muscatine, 
who was some time afterward succeeded by 
Colonel "William Hall, of Davenport. Mr. 
Pearce was a brave soldier, and with his 
regiment took an active part in many of the 
prominent engagements of the war. He was 
returned home on a veteran furlough, and 
after it expired he joined his regiment on the 
Tennessee River. He was afterward with 
Sherman before Atlanta, duly 22, 1864, he 
was made a prisoner and taken to Anderson- 
ville, marching a portion of the way and fin- 
ishing the journey by rail, arriving at the 
prison early in August. A portion of the 
time Mr. Pearce was at Andersonville there 
were 30,000 prisoners there in a held of only 
thirty acres. About one hundred dead sol- 



diers were carried out of tie stockade daily. 
Much has been said and written of the hor- 
rors of that prison, but the half has never 
been told, nor can it be realized by any save 
those who passed through the terrible 
ordeal of prison life. About the mid- 
dle of September Mr. Pearce was moved 
from Andersonville to Charleston, South 
Carolina, remaining there a short time, 
lie was taken to Florence, South Carolina, 
where he was held until February, when the 
near approach of Sherman's army made an- 
other move necessary, and, being placed on 
the cars, was started toward Wilmington, 
North Carolina, and on to Goldsboro, where 
with other prisoners he was paroled and re- 
turned toward Wilmington, passing into the 
Union lines near that place February 26, 
1865. Leaving Wilmington by steamer for 
Annapolis, Maryland, they went to Baltimore, 
where he shed his prison rags and put on the 
blue again. He soon left for St. Louis, but 
was unable to travel, and was placed in the 
hospital at Grafton, West Virginia, remain- 
ing there one month. Then he again re- 
turned home on a furlough, and rejoined his 
regiment the last day of the general review aj 
Washington. 

After the war he came back to Cedar 
County, where he resided for some time. In 
the spring of 1872 he removed to Polk Coun- 
ty, Nebraska, and took up a soldier's claim 
of 160 acres. After remaining there sixteen 
months he came to this county and located in 
Grove Township. At that time ho settledon 
section 33, near where he now lives. He 
afterward traded with Thomas Conner for his 
present farm. It is in section 28 and con- 
tains 108 acres, forty of which are in timber. 
It is well adapted for stock and grain pur- 
poses, and is well supplied with all necessary 
farm buildings. A good resilience situated 
on a natural building site, surrounded by 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



285 



shade and ornamental trees, makes a comfort- 
able and attractive home. 

September 11, 1866, Mr. Pearce married 
Agnes Polton, a native of Cedar County, 
Iowa, and a daughter of William and Sarah 
(Southern) Bolton, natives of Virginia. Her 
grandfather, Henry Bolton, was a native of 
Virginia and a soldier in the Revolutionary 
war. Mrs. Pearce was reared and educated 
in Cedar County. They have seven chil- 
dren, namely: Merrill Edson, Myrtie C, Es- 
tella Kate, Dessie Irene, Ethel Grace, Laura 
Jane and Mary Ida. Miss Estella is a suc- 
cessful teacher in the schools of Pottawatta- 
mie County. Mr. and Mrs. Pearce lost one 
child by death, Eva L., at the age of three 
years. 

In politics our subject is a Republican. 
For the last ten years he has served as Town- 
ship Clerk. He has also served as a member 
of the School Board. He and his wife and 
three of their daughters are members of the 
Methodist Protestant Church. Mr. Pearce 
is a man of integrity, and is highly respected 
by all who know him. 

-••< l ' l >> t - l»« " 




fINFIELD SCOTT MAYNE, one of 
H the well-known lawyers of Council 
Bluffs, has been a member of the 
bar of Pottawattamie County, since 1875. 
Mr. Mayne is a native of Clark County, 
Ohio, where he was born October 15, 1833. 
His grandfather, Adam Mayne, was a pio- 
neer of Clark County where he settled in 
1819. He was a native of Maryland, and 
represented an old family of that State. He 
was a soldier of the war of 1812. He was 
a wholesale grocer at Georgetown when that 
war broke out, and his property was burned 
by the British troops. As stated he settled 
in Clark County, Ohio, in 1819, where he 



continued to live until his death. The father 
of the subject of this sketch was Emmanuel 
Mayne, born at Georgetown, .Maryland, in 
1805, having been about fourteen years of 
age when his father removed with his family 
to Ohio. He married Miss McGruder, of 
Scotch-Irish ancestry. She was born in Lou- 
doun County. Maryland. Her father, NInian 
McGruder, was a native of the north of Ire- 
land, coming to the United States when a 
young man and settling in Loudoun County. 
He married Grace Townsend, born in Entr- 
land, who died when her daughter, the 
mother of our subject, was but eleven years 
old. The maternal grandfather of Mr. 
Mayne lived to an advanced age, dying in 
Loudoun County. Emmanuel Mayne obtained 
a good education in early life, and was for a 
time engaged in teaching. He settled down 
to the business of merchandising, which he 
followed for a number of years. He emi- 
grated with his family to Iowa in 1848, but 
two years after it became a State, remaining 
in Ottumwa until the following spring. He 
settled down on a tract of land in Van 
Bnren County. Here, as a pioneer, he did 
much toward opening up and developing 
that new country. He was a prominent and 
well-known citizen. In 1851 he was elected 
County Judge, and remained in that capacity 
six years, doing all the county business as 
was customary at that time. When the war 
of the Rebellion came on, though then fifty- 
seven years of age, he resolved to enter the 
service in defense of the old flag. He ac- 
cordingly entered the army as Captain, in 
the Third Iowa Cavalry, and was killed in a 
battle with the Rebels at Kirksville, Missouri, 
August 6, 1862. His wife survived her hus- 
band until 1870, when she died at the home 
of her son, the subject of this sketch, who 
was then residing at Keosauqua, Van Buren 
County. Emmanuel Mayne and wife were 



•-MJ 



HIOURAPIUCM. HISTORY 



the parents of iive children, tliree sons and 
two daughters. The eldest in the family, 
Virginia, became the wife of B. C. Long, 
and resides at London, Madison County, 
Ohio; she never removed to Iowa. Philan- 
der T. is a resident of Salt Lake, Utah. The 
subject of this sketch is the next in the order 
of birth. Leroy was a member of the Second 
Volunteer Infantry early in the war of the 
Rebellion, and later was transferred to the 
Third Iowa Cavalry, where his father was 
serving. In January, 1863, he was trans- 
ferred to the Mississippi Marine brigade, as 
Adjutant, with the rank of First Lieutenant. 
In April of the same year, while in com- 
mand of a flotilla and passing up the river, 
the boat of which he was aboard ran on an 
obstruction in the river, and while he was 
assisting to free the boat, he was thrown 
into the river, and, falling between two boats, 
which were nearly in contact, was drowned. 
U is body was never found, or if found was 
never identified. Thus the father and brother 
of Mr. Mayne lost their lives in the service 
of their country. The next in the family in 
order of birth is Carrie, wife of J. E. Pol- 
lock, a well-known lawyer of Bloomington, 
Illinois. 

The subject of this sketch received his 
early education in the public schools of Van 
Buren County, and later entered the Iowa 
Wesleyan University at Bit, Pleasant, where 
he graduated in 1856, having been the first 
graduate of that institution. lie began the 
study of law under Judge C. C. Nourse, and 
later with Judge G. G. Wright, now also of 
Des Moines. lie was admitted to the bar in 
October, 1858. He began practice at Keo- 
saiKjua, where he continued until 1S7~, when 
he located at Red Oak, where he practiced 
his profession until he came to Council 
Bluffs. At lied Oak he was associated with 
Smith Mel'hersoti. On coming to Council 



Bluffs he became associated with George F. 
Wright, and subsequently was a co-partner 
of Marshall Key. lie was more recently as- 
sociated with the Hon. L. W. Ross, and 
when that gentleman was elected Chancellor, 
he took full charge of the legal business of 
the firm. Since 1884 he has been associated 
with F. M. Hunter, but since 1886 the linn 
name has been Mayne & Ilazelton. 

Mr. Mayne was married in Van Buren 
County, to Miss Ruth Ellen Mangum. daugh- 
ter of A. W. Mangum, who settled in Van 
Buren County, in 1836, where Mrs. Mayne 
was born in 1837. Mr. Mangum is still a 
resident of Van Buren County, but the 
mother of Mrs. Mayne 'lie 1 when the latter 
was a child. Mr. and Mrs. Mayne have 
live children, three sons and two daughters. 
Joel II. is the eldest of the children; 
George H. was born in September, 1869. 
He studied law with his father, and grad- 
uated in the law department of the Iowa 
State University in 1889. The younger 
children are Grace, Carl and Ruth. Polit- 
ically Mr. Mayne is a Republican, and has 
always affiliated with that great political or- 
ganization, his first presidential vote having 
been cast for John C. Fremont in 1856. Mr. 
Mayne was Assistant Revenue Collector for 
Van Buren County from 1863 to 1866. He 
is by all esteemed a9 an able lawyer and a 
progressive citizen. While in Keosauqua he 
joined the Masons and attained to the Royal 
Arch decree. 



£, ' 3 ' K < £ 

C. BISBEE is one of the intelligent 
and enterprising citizens of Grove 
,a Township, Pottawattamie County. 
He was bom and reared oil the farm where 
he now lives, the date of his birth being 
February 8, 1867. He is a son of Franklin 





>U9tuku><v44 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



287 



Elijah and Hannah P. (Winsor) Bisbee. His 
father came to this county in an early day 
and spent the remainder of his life here, his 
death occurring .November 28, 1880, at 
about the age of fifty-six years. He was a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
had served as steward of the same, and was 
regarded by all who knew him as a man of 
integrity and a true Christian. Mr. Bisbee 
has been twice married, and had five chil- 
dren: Frank, the only child by his first 
wife, now resides in the "West; Louis H., 
died at the age of twenty-five years at Mace- 
donia, Iowa; Fanny Florence, wife of H. T. 
Thomas, of Red Oak, Iowa; A. C, the sub- 
ject of this sketch; and Charles A., who lives 
with his mother at Macedonia, where she 
has a good home surrounded with all the 
comforts of life, and where she also owns 
other town property. 

A. C. Bisbee was reared a farmer. His 
education was obtained in the public schools 
of Grove Township and in the graded school 
at Macedonia. March 14, 1889, he was mar- 
ried, in Grove Township, to Miss Mary 
Chillanna Rolfe, a lady of culture and educa- 
tion and a successful and popular teacher of 
the county. She was born in Webster 
County, Iowa, and received her education 
there and at the Western Normal College at 
Shenandoah. Her parents, Aaron and Emily 
(Beem) Rolfe, are now residents of Lehigh, 
Iowa. Her father was born in Cleveland, 
Ohio, and was reared in New York. Her 
mother, a native of Indiana, came with her 
parents to Webster County, Iowa, when she 
wa6 eight years old. Mr. and Mrs. Bisbee 
have a daughter, born August 2, 1890, named 
Hattie Florence. Mrs. Bisbee is a member 
of the Christian Church. 

Our subject is engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits on the old home farm, which contains 200 
acres, and which is well improved. Socially 



and financially he is regarded as a representa- 
tive citizen. In politics he is a Republican. 

— ■■ £ ■ ] ■ - t - 3 



AMUEL B. WADSWORTH, a promi- 
nent business man of Council Bluff's, 
was born in Grand Detour Township, 
Ogle County, Illinois, February 22, 1851, 
and lived with his father, Christopher Wads- 
worth, on the old homestead until 1868. He 
then commenced the study of law in Dixon, 
Illinois, with the law firm of Eustace, Barge 
& Dixon, but, after two years' study, in order 
to earn a little money, he taught school 
in the country for. the next three years. 
During the years 1873-'75 he attended the 
Illinois State Normal University, and at the 
same time acted as night ticket agent for the 
Illinois Central Railroad at Bloomington, Illi- 
nois. In this way he paid the expenses of his 
schooling at the university. After leaving 
the university he was appointed Superintend- 
ent of the schools at Ueyworth, Illinois, 
where he taught for one year, and was then 
elected Superintendent of the city schools 
of Oregon, Illinois, which position he held 
twelve years, and until he was elected Super- 
intendent of schools in Ogle County, Illinois, 
having defeated the Republican nominee, 
who had a political majority in his favor of 
2,300 votes. After serving for about one 
year in this latter capacity he moved to Coun- 
cil Bluffs, Iowa, where he still resides. 

Mr. Wadsworth is now actiDg as the gen- 
eral manager of the Union Abstract and 
Trust Company, in which capacity he has 
won the confidence of the business public. 
He is also Secretary of the Council Blufls 
Board of Trade, and one of the Bark Com- 
missioners of the city of Council Bluffs. 
During the year 1883 he traveled extensively 
in Europe, and on his return was married to 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISToUY 



Anna E. Etnyre, at Oregon, Illinois, October 
11, 1883. Mr. ami Mrs. Wadsworth have 
two children, viz.: Mary M., bora February 

17, 1887, and Paul E., born November 12, 
1889. 

Religiously Mr. Wadsworth is a Unita 
rian, and in politics is a Democrat; he is the 
chairman of the Democratic Central Com- 
mittee. 

■"■'£•!■ ■ ! • § ■•- 



flloMAS LEONARD, a farmer of 
Bazel Dell Township, was born and 
reared in County Roscommon, Ireland, 
upon a farm. At the age of seventeen or 
eigbteen years he came to America, landing 
in Boston, where be resided fourteen or fif- 
teen years. In 1867 he came to Jackson 
County, Iowa, where he remained until 1875, 
when be came to Pottawattamie County. 
While in Boston be was engaged in tbe 
manufacture of brick, and in Jackson County, 
Iowa, be was a farmer; and be also afterward 
was engaged in farming at Silver City, Mills 
County, Iowa. On coming to this county in 
1875 he purchased a tract of 2-40 acres on 
section 15, Hazel Dell Township. It was 
but partially improved, and he has devoted 
bis earnest attention to the improvement of 
the place until he has made it one of the 
finest in that part of the county. He has a 
good frame residence 20x30 and 18x30, 
also a fine barn 40 x 64, etc. Every feature 
of bis place evinces good taste as well as a 
great amount of labor. In bis political prin- 
ciples be is a thorough Democrat, casting bis 
first vote for James Buchanan, and ever 
since then taking an active part in tbe poli- 
tical welfare of the county, State and nation. 
He has been Township Trustee, and is now 
chairman of the 1 )e cratic Township Com- 
mittee. He has made all he owns by bis 



industry, having bad lint fifty cunts when he 
first landed on American shores. 

He was first married to Catherine Hoer, 
who died in 1864, in Massachusetts. Of 
their six children two are living: Thomas W., 
at home, and James, a resident of Neola 
Township. Mr. Leonard was married, this 
time, to Mrs. Margaret Turner, the widow of 
Edward Turner and daughter of Mr. fiiagee, 
February 14, 1867; by her first marriage she 
was the mother of three children: John, de- 
ceased; Patrick, a resident of Harrison 
County, Iowa, and Anna, tbe wife of Thomas 
M. Leonard, and tbe mother of one child, 
Mary E., born December 24, 1889. They 
are members of the Catholic Church. 




ILLIAM GUSTIN, one of the in- 
telligent and progressive citizens 
of Grove Township, Pottawattamie 
County, came to his present location in Jan- 
uary, 1881. 

He was born in Brown County, Ohio, May 
1, 1846. His parents are Alpheus and Polly 
(Edington) Gustin, both natives of Ohio. 
The Gnstins are of Scotch extraction, and 
grandfather Gustin was a soldier in the Rev- 
olutionary war. Tbe Edington family trace 
their lineage back to Ireland, their ancestors 
having lived near the Rhine. Mr. and Mrs. 
Gustin reared eight children, five sons and 
three daughters, William being the fourth. 
Six of them are residents of Pottawattamie 
County, namely: Edward and A. B., Wave- 
land Township; A. J., Isaac, William, and 
Eveline, wife of Crawford Cary, Grove Town- 
ship. Two sisters, Sarah and Massie Ann, 
live in Mills County, Iowa. 

When William was a lad of nine years his 
parents moved to Illinois, remaining in that 
State one year. Prom there they removed to 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNT T. 



289 



what was then called the far West, Mills 
County, Iowa, and settled near where Emer- 
son is now located. The Gustins were among 
the early pioneers of that district. There the 
parents spent the remainder of their lives, 
the mother dying at the age of fifty-six years 
and the father at sixty-three. William was 
ten years old when the family went to Mills 
County, and in that frontier district he grew 
np, inured to hard work and received only a 
meagre education in the common schools. 
He there engaged in farming until 1881, 
when he came to this county and settled on 
120 acres of wild prairie land. On it he 
built a comfortable frame house and barn 
and made other improvements, fencing, etc. 
He also acquired more land and now has 200 
acres in one body. 

Mr. Gustin was married March 20, 1865, 
to Miss Phoebe Jane Hutchings. She was 
born in Delaware County, Indiana, and was 
ten years old when she came with her parents 
to Mills County, Iowa. Her father and 
mother, William and Nancy (Cicle) Hutch- 
ings, both natives of Ohio, were among the 
first settlers of Mills County, where they still 
live. Mr. and Mrs. Gustin have reared six 
children, two sons and four daughters: Emma 
Olive, wife of John L. Bradley, Grove Town- 
ship; Rose Ann, wife of W. L. Holliday, of 
Montgomery County, Iowa; Nancy Eveline, 
Theodosia Adella, William Otis and Abra- 
ham Sirvetns. They lost two children by 
death in infancy — Edward Iven and Artie 
Clifford. 

In politics Mr. Gustin is a Democrat. 



—' V3"! V *" 

^ILLIAM NIXON, deceased, late 
proprietor of the Nixon farm, of Pot- 
tawattamie County, was born in Fay- 
ette County, Pennsylvania, October 20, 1802, 




and died in Pottawattamie County, at the 
residence of his son David, in Hazel Dell 
Township, February 3, 1885. He was the 
son of Moses and Jane (Winn) Nixon, who 
were among the old families of Pennsylvania. 
He was reared to the vocation of a miller, 
which business he followed for a number of 
years, but previous to leaving Pennsylvania he 
engaged in farming, which he followed the 
remainder of his days. He was married 
March 8, 1824, to Eliza Collins, who was 
born in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, March 
2, 1807, and died May 20, 1878. She was 
the daughter of Joseph »nd Margaret (Allen) 
Collins, the former of Irish and the latter of 
English extraction; the mother was the 
daughter of Colonel Ethan Allen. Mr. and 
Mrs. Nixon were the parents of nine children, 
viz.: Margaret, who died July 1, 1828; Jo- 
seph, who died October 2, 1828; Mary, wife 
of Joseph Meginess, residing in Nebraska; 
John, who died in prison during the war of 
the Rebellion: he was in Company A, Twenty- 
ninth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, and died April 
29, 1864; Hannah, widow of Benjamin Me- 
giness residing in Hazel Dell Township: he 
was in Company A, Twenty-ninth Iowa Vol- 
unteer Infantry, and served two years; Moses. 
deceased, who served in the same Company, 
and lost an arm at the battle of Helena, Ar- 
kansas, he served about one year and died 
November 25, 1883; Frances, who died 
August 23, 1883, the wife of Caleb Kimball; 
Sarah, wife of W. H. Meginess, residing in 
California; he served in Company A, Twenty- 
ninth Iowa Volunteer Infantry for three 
years, and was discharged as Orderly Ser- 
geant; and David, the subject of this sketch 
and the youngest child. 

In 1853 William Nixon removed with his 
family to Pottawattamie County, locating for 
a few days near Council Bluffs, at what was 
then known as Kanesville. They had started 



290 



mOGUAPHICAL HISTORY 



for California but concluded to remain in this 
county. His first permanent location in the 
county was on sections 33 and 34, of what is 
now Hazel Dell Township, where he secured 
120 acres, which was a claim purchased of a 
Mr. Scott. This land contained a log cabin 
and a few acres broken, but naturally was an 
unimproved farm. Ilere he lived and reared 
his family until 1878, when he removed to 
liis son David's, and where the mother died, 
and where the father spent his remaining 
days. He improved some 240 acres of land 
in the county, and assisted largely in its de- 
velopment, encountering the many hardships 
of pioneer life. He was a stanch Repub- 
lican. 

David Nixon, the youngest child, was born 
in Pennsylvania, June 22, 1848, and came to 
Pottawattamie County with his parents, 
where he has since made his home. He was 
reared to the life of a farmer, and received 
his education in the subscription schools. He 
remained at home until he was eighteen years 
of acre, and was then married June 24, 1866, 
to Margaret J. Williams, who was born in 
South Wales, December 25, 1849. She was 
the daughter of Daniel and Margaret (Evans) 
Williams, natives of South Wales, who came 
to Pennsylvania, where they spent a few 
years, and then moved to Utah, remaining 
one winter, and then came to Pottawattamie 
County, Iowa. Mrs. Nixon was reared in 
Wales until she was six years of age, and then 
came to this country with her parents. They 
are the parents of four children, viz.: John, 
who was born June 4, 1867, and died August 
August 3, L867; Eliza J., bom June 29. 1869, 
and was married February 6, 1887, to Alex- 
ander Vallier, and now resides in Hazel Dell 
Township; William, born October 3, 1871, is 
a graduate ill hook-keeping at the Pottawat- 
tamie Normal College; Ira, born March 29, 
L874, ia at home. After their marriage Mr. 



and Mrs. Nixon located on their present 
farm, a tract of eighty acres of raw prairie. 
He first erected a stable in which they lived 
until they had completed their home, a neat 
frame residence 16x28 and 12x28 feet. 
Here they commenced life for themselves, 
after having spent some two years at the 
home of Mr. Nixon's parents. They have a 
beautiful home, surrounded by shade and 
ornamental trees, and with good barns for 
stock and grain. He also has three acres of 
orchard. He now has in Pottawattamie 
County 280 acres of well improved land, 
which he has brought to its present state of 
perfection through his own efforts mainly. 
He affiliates with the Republican party, and 
and takes a great interest in the welfare of 
his county, State and nation. 

- t ' i >' t • *" — 




1LLIAM PETERS, a citizen of 
Boomer Township, was horn in Prus- 
sia, March 15, 1818, a son of Nicho- 
las and Hannah (Barrent) Peters, natives also 
of that country. Mr. Nicholas Peters was a 
farmer by occupation; was aid-de-camp for 
General Blucher in the Napoleon army dur- 
ing the Prussian war. There were nine sons 
from one family in this war, of whom five 
were killed. A maternal grandfather came 
to America and fought in the Revolutionary 
war under General Washington, and lived af- 
terward to the advanced age of 104 year-. 
lie was in the employ iif the Government, in 
connection with farming, and accumulated a 
large fortune. On his death ho left a wife 
and five children. The children were: 
Catharine, now Mrs. Frederick, residing in 
Prussia; Christoph, deceased; William, our 
subject; and Lewie, residing in Prussia. 
Frederick and Lewie are officers in the army. 
Their grandfather served thirty six years mi- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



291 



der Frederick the Great, and the generations 
following have ranked high in the esteem of 
the royal families. 

Mr. William Peters was reared at home 
until he was twenty-four years of age, when 
he also entered the army, as Orderly, and 
served eight years 'at Berlin and Potsdam. 
At the age of forty years he married Marga- 
ret Armstrong, a native of Scotland and a 
daughter of William and Catharine Arm- 
strong, natives of England. Mr. Armstrong 
was a chemist by profession in England, but 
on coming to America he located in Utah, 
where he now lives, at the age of eighty- 
eight years. His first wife died early after 
her marriage, and by his second wife there 
are the following eight children : John, Joseph 
Wilhelm, James, residing in Utah; Mary, wife 
of Lewis Stuersbaugh, in Utah; Margaret, the 
next in order of birth, is the wife of Mr. Peters ; 
Jane, now Mrs. John Williams, of Utah; 
and Kate, the wife of Mr. Chadwick, in 
Utah. Mrs. Peters was born in England, 
November 3, 1843, received a good educa- 
tion and came to America with her parents. 
In November, 1849, Mr. Peters sailed from 
London, England, to New Orleans, went up 
the river to St. Louis, but in a short time, 
finding business dull there on account of 
Asiatic cholera, he returned to the ocean and 
was a sailor along the Atlantic coast of the 
Americas, until he obtained money enough 
to go to California. He went to the gold 
fields, followed mining about five years, and 
then was one of the first to enter Colorado 
as a miner, and was there three years mining 
and freighting. Then he spent two years in 
similar occupations in Montana; next he was 
employed for over two years freighting with 

provision wagons under General , of 

theCalifornia Volunteers. He helped to build 
Fort Douglas, in Utah. While he was in 
Salt Lake, President Lincoln was assassin- 



ated, and while operating in Utah he suffered 
many hardships and privations. He came 
thence to Council Bluffs, and four years 
afterward, namely, in 1870, he located upon 
his present farm, buying forty acres of un- 
broken prairie land. He built a frame house, 
broke and fenced the land, planted a fine or- 
chard of one and a half acres, set out shade 
and ornamental trees, etc., and has made a 
comfortable residence. His orchard is one 
of the best in the township, and every feature 
of the premises gives evidence of good taste 
as well as of much labor. Mr. Peters deals in 
a tine grade of cattle and horses, taking special 
interest in the improvement of live-stock. 
He has added to his first purchase of land 
until he now has 240 acres of land of first-rate 
order. He has also upon his premises three 
running streams of water. In fact, he has 
one of the finest farms in tlie county, and in 
it takes great pride. 

Politically Mr. Peters is a well settled 
Republican, taking an active interest in the 
principles of his party. He is a member of 
the Farmers' Alliance, and of the M. P. S. 
He has had fifteen children, namely: William 
and Louis, farmers in Boomer Township; 
Fred, Nicholas, Bernhart, James and Charles, 
at home; Maggie, wife of Samuel Bateman, 

in Nebraska; Mary Ann, who married 

Burbridge, and resides in Boomer; Jane, 
wife of La Fayette Hatcher, is a resident of 
Harrison County; Caroline, Kate and Tilda. 
at home; Dora May, the next, is deceased, 
as is also Isaac, the youngest son. 



■ ■V* » ! ■ § '•■ 



lOLUMBUS REYNOLDS is another 

one of the enterprising and successful 
men of Pottawattamie County. A 
brief outline of his life is herewith given. 
Mr. Reynolds is a native of North Caro- 



292 



BIOORAPniCAL niSTOIlY 



lina, liorn near Sparta, the county-seat of 
Alleghany County, November 12, 1S48. His 
father, Willson Reynolds, and his grand- 
father, Thomas Reynolds, were both natives 
of that State. II is mother, wee Nancy Spur- 
ling, was born in North Carolina, as also was 
her father, William Sparling. Her grand- 
hither Spurling was a soldier in the Revolu- 
tionary war. Willson and Nancy Reynolds 
reared five children, four sons and one daugh- 
ter: Columbus is the only one in Iowa; the 
oldest brother resides in Nebraska; two are 
in North Carolina; and the sister died in 
that State. Willson Reynolds was a farmer 
all his life, and his death occurred at the age 
of seventy years. His wife was a devoted 
Christian and a member of the Baptist 
Church. She died at the age of sixty-eight. 
The subject of this sketch was reared on a 
farm, and in early life was taught those les- 
sons of honesty, industry and economy which 
have been so useful to him in after iife. His 
early educational advantages were limited, 
but by reading, observation, and by the prac- 
tical knowledge learned in the school of ex- 
perience he has amply supplied the deficiency 
of an early education. At the age of nine- 
teen he bade adien to his native State and 
started out in the world to make a home and 
a fortune. He located in Whiteside County, 
Illinois, and after remaining there a year he 
came to Iowa, and worked on a farm in liar- 
din County a year. In 1868 he came to 
(Move Township, Pottawattamie County, and 
first worked by the month. Then he broke 
prairie for two seasons, which at that time 
was profitable business. In 1874 he bought 
eighty acres of raw prairie land, on which he 
now resides, lie broke it the same season, 
and has made many improvements on the 

place. He built a comfortable Btory-and-a- 
half house, at a cost of $1,200; planted Bhade 

and ornamental trees, a grove and an orchard; 



built a good barn and fenced his land. From 
time to time he purchased other lands until 
at this writing (1890) he is the owner of 240 
acres. One hundred and sixty acres are iu a 
body in sections 17 and 18. The other 
eighty acres, which he uses as a pasture for 
his stock, are a half mile northwest from his 
home. He is engaged in general farming 
and stock-raising, feeding all the corn he 
raises to his stock and frequently buying 
more from his neighbors. 

Mr, Reynolds was married, September 10, 
1872, at Red Oak, Iowa, to Miss Sarah E. 
Wilson, a lady of culture and refinement and 
a successful teacher. She was born in Sulli- 
van County, Indiana, and was reared and 
educated in Lee County, Iowa. Her parents, 
William and Anna (Pemberton) Wilson, the 
former a native of North Carolina and the 
latter of Ohio, now reside in Nebraska. 
Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds have four children, 
viz.: Rosalie, Laura Jane, Anna Ethel and 
Isom Guy. Mr. Reynolds is a Republican and 
cast his first vote for General Grant. He 
and his wife are worthy members of the 
Christian Church, and take an active part in 
religions and educational matters. Mr. Rey- 
nolds is a member of the I. O. O. P., Lodge 
No. 444, Carson, Iowa. Mr. Reynolds lost 
a brother in the Southern army, and .Mis. 
Reynolds a brother in the Northern army. 



-3«-*j- 



I'AUISII, a prominent citizen of Ila- 
fil. zel Dell Township, was born in Can- 
° ada West, October 9, 1841, the sixth 
child of nine in the family of Hiram and 
Anna (l'.ullard) Parish, the former a native 
of Vermont and the latter of Canada. He 
was eighl years of age when bis parents came 
with him to Lee County, Iowa, where they 
passed the remainder of their lives. Brought 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE VOUNTT. 



291 



up to the arts of agriculture, he was at the 
early age of thirteen years compelled in a 
great measure to look out for himself. He 
was in Knox County, Illinois, from the age 
of fifteen to twenty, when, during the war, 
lie enlisted, in October, 1861, in Company L, 
Eighth Missouri Volunteer Infantry, but was 
soon transferred to Company I. After faith- 
ful service for three years, participating in 
the noted battles of Fort Henry, Fort Donel- 
son, Shiloh, Corinth, Holly Springs, Lookout 
Mountain, Mission .Ridge, Kenesaw Moun- 
tain, Russell House, Atlanta, Jonesboro, and 
a number of shirmishes, he was honorably 
discharged, at East Point, Georgia. He was 
married October 30, 1866, to Miss Jane, 
daughter of Josiah and Margaret Nelson, who 
was born in Knox County, Illinois, in No- 
vember, 1848. After a three years' residence 
in Illinois he came to Pottawattamie County 
and purchased a tract of •' raw " prairie on 
section 3, Hazel Dell Township, of forty 
acres. Here he erected a small frame resi- 
dence, 14 x 16, in which he made his home 
for five or six years, while he was subduing 
his land to cultivation. He now possesses 
159 acres, all of which has been improved. 
He has now a neat frame residence, 26x24 
and 16 x 20, and barns, etc., in good style. 
He. is particularly interested in improved 
breeds of stock, making a specialty of Dur- 
ham cattle. He is a self-made man, having 
risen by his own efforts to his present high 
standing, and he has also done much for the 
public welfare. He is a Republican in his 
political sympathies; he has served his town- 
ship as Constable and member of the School 
Board, Road Supervisor, and is now Town- 
ship Clerk. 

He has bad twelve children, viz.: John N., 
at home; Dora B., wife of George Smith, 
and residing in Boomer Township; Peter, 
Minnie, Mary and George, at home; Cyrus, 



deceased; Etta, Bertha, Elmer, Cora and Ella 
Myrtle. 



HARLES F. HEAGNEY, a retired 
farmer of Boomer Township, was born 
in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, Oc- 
tober 4, 1848, a son of Dominick and Hannah 
(Scott) Heagney. Mr. Heagneys's paternal 
grandfather was married first to Catherine 
McBride, a native of Ireland, and had seven 
children: Margaret, Bridget, Rosanna, Mar- 
tha, Mary, John and Catherine. Afterward, 
in 1817, he married Miss Sarah Brookhouser, 
who was born July 4, 1800, the first-born 
child of Adam and Keziah (Mason) Brook- 
houser, natives of Pennslyvania and of Ger- 
man descent. She had five brothers and 
three sisters: Mary, Adam, Margaret, Will- 
iam, Esther, Elderson, Hiram and Isaac. The 
Heagney family remained in Pennsylvania 
until 1849 and then moved to Dubuque 
County, Iowa, settling upon a partially im- 
proved farm, where the father finally died, in 
1851, leaving a wife and nine children. The 
children are: Adam, who resides in Califor- 
nia; Dominick, the father of Charles F. ; 
the next one died in infancy; William and 
Andrew J. reside in California; the next 
born is also deceased; Sarah, residing in 
Sioux City; George W., living in Missouri 
Valley, this State; and James K., also de- 
ceased. In 1858 the remainder of the fam- 
ily came to Pottawattamie County and 
located upon a piece of rough, unimproved 
prairie, made a fine home and lived there 
twenty years. In 1878 the widow disposed 
of the farm and went to Dakota, where she 
remained until 1888, and, returning, settled 
in the vicinity of Missouri Valley, with her 
son George. She is now ninety years of age. 
Mr. Dominick Heagney was born March 



29* 



BI0ORAPI1ICAL UISTORT 



2, 1828, and December 31, 1847, married 
Miss Hannah, daughter of Isaac and Cath- 
erine Scott, natives of New York State, and 
farmers, who lived in Pennsylvania in 1844- 
'49. The mother died and the remainder of 
the family came to Iowa. In the family 
were five children: Phoebe, Hannah, Henry, 
Henrietta and Catherine. After his father 
died Mr. Heagney remained on the farm 
about seven years and then came to Potta- 
wattamie County and purchased eighty acres 
of rough, unimproved land, and made of it 
a good home. lie built a residence 32x44 
feet and a story and a half in height. Farm- 
ing and stock-raising were his specialties, 
and he dealt in hogs, horses and cattle, es- 
pecially the latter. He disposed of that 
farm and bought property in Missouri Val- 
ley, where he now lives a somewhat retired 
life. He has been ai industrious and ex- 
emplary citizen. 

In his political views he is a lively Democrat. 
August 7, 1862, he enlisted in Company A, 
Twenty ninth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, under 
Captain John T. Williams and General Fiske, 
in the Department of the Gulf. He partici- 
pated in the siege of Vickshurg, was stationed 
at Helena; was in the campaign from Little 
Rock t<> Camden, when he was under con- 
tinual fire for sixteen days; was also at Jen- 
kins' Ferry, where there was some hard 
fighting, and in the siege of Mobile. In 
1865 he was stationed at the mouth of the 
Rio Grande. On the 10th of August that 
vear lie was mustered out, at New Orleans, 
There were four brothers in the war, of whom 
one was killed and the other three returned 
home. Mr. Heagney, though not wounded, 
contracted a disease of the eye and rheuma- 
tism, from which he still suffers. He had 
seven children, namely: Charles F., our sub- 
ject; Robo, the wife W. E. Laughery and re- 
Biding in Missouri Valley; Mary, the wife of 



Fred McCollough and living also in Missouri 
Valley; Catherine, now Mrs. John Fisher; 
Addie, wife of William E. Baldwin and re- 
siding in Fremont, Nebraska; two died in 
infancy. 

Mr. Charles F. Heagney, reared to farm 
life, at the age of twenty-one years went to 
Kansas and entered a tract of land, returned 
to Pottawattamie County, visited Dakota 
awhile and returned home again, where he 
remained until he was married, April 24, 
1877. to Miss Maggie, daughter of David 
and Mary (Phillips) Roberts, parents natives 
of Wales. Mr. Roberts, a carpenter, was 
born in March, 1808, and reared to farm life; 
lie came to the United States in the summer 
of 1855, resided four years in Iowa City and 
then located upon his farm in this county. 
By his first wife he had one child, Bessie, 
who is now living in Wales. By his present 
wife he had eight children, as follows: Will- 
iam, at home; David and Emma, dead; 
Rosa, at home; and Mary, wife of Thomas 
French and residing in Boomer; Margaret; 
Samuel, at home; and Harriet, the wife of 
Joseph Cusworth and residing in Boomer. 
Margaret was born August 15, 1853, and 
completed her school education in the high 
school of Council Bluffs. 

Air. Heagney bought his present place of 
eighty acres on section 5, Boomer Township, 
when there were but few improvements upon 
it. He has continued to add other improve- 
ments until he has made of the place an ex- 
cellent residence, lie had also added to his 
land area until he now has 120 acres of tine 
land, half of which is devoted to plowed 
crops. At present he is renting the farm 
and enjoying the fruits of his labor at ease. 
He has formerly boon a very hard working 
man but for the past live years be has not 
had perfect health. Principally lor the sake 
of recovering his health, he went in 1886 to 





/ > / 7/£^^/f/ 




OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



29J 



the Black Hills of Dakota and for four 
months was engaged in building the Fre- 
mont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad. 
He returned with his health considerably 
improved. 

He is a well-settled and intelligent Dem- 
ocrat. He has been Road Supervisor two 
years. He is a member of St. John Lodge 
of the Mutual Protection Society. "Was 
reared in the Roman Catholic Church, tie 
has had two children, Mary Emma, born 
January 19, 1878, and Edna, November 6, 
1887. 



lEORGE FRANKLIN WRIGHT, of 
Council Bluffs, Iowa, was born in War- 
ren, Washington County, Vermont, 
December 5, 1833, and was the eldest son of 
a family of four children, lie alone surviving, 
of the late Franklin Asher Wright, born in 
Hanover, New Hampshire, September 17, 
1801, died in Council Bluffs, October 5, 
1876, — he was of English descent, — and of 
Caroline Susannah Wright, nee Tillotson, 
born in Berlin. Vermont, November 3, 1807. 
She was of Scotch and English parentage. 
They were married in Berlin, Vermont, Feb- 
ruary 27, 1833. Franklin A. Wright was 
the son of Asher Wright, of English descent, 
and of Irene Wright, nee Curtis, of English 
descent. Caroline S. Wright was a daugh- 
ter of Samuel Tillotson, of English descent, 
and of Betsey Tillotson, nee Wallace, of 
Scotch descent. 

George F. Wright was reared and spent 
life boyhood on a farm in his native town, 
and in early life, when a mere boy, was, by 
his father, whose large business interests re- 
quired his continued absence from home, 
held largely responsible for the successful 
carrying on and working of his farms, the 

24 



labor of which was performed exclusively by 
hired help. This training, and the respons- 
ibility incident thereto, became in after 
years of great service to him when he became 
engrossed in the active operation of his own 
business career. At the age of seventeen he 
co nmenced his academic education at West 
Randolph, Vermont, under the tutorage of 
the late Hon. Austin Adams, of Dubuque, 
Iowa, who was twice Chief Justice of the 
State. During his academic training, teach- 
ing district school winters, as was customary 
with many New England boys, he completed 
his preparatory studies for, and one year of, 
his college course. He did not enter col- 
lege, however; but the spring following his 
majority, in 1855, he came to Iowa and set- 
tled in Keosauqua, Van Buren County, when 
he at once commenced the study of the law 
with the law firm of Wright, Knapp & Cald- 
well, composed of ex-United States Senator 
George G. "Wright, of Des Moines, the late 
Hon. Joseph C. Knapp, of Keosauqua, who 
was his uncle, and his honor, Judge Henry 
C. Caldwell, of Little Rock, Arkansas, now 
Circuit Judge for the Eighth Circuit of the 
United States. His law studies were pursued 
under the tutorage of Senator Wright, and as 
a member of a large class of law students 
then under his charge his advancement was 
such that he was admitted to the Van Buren 
County bar in 1857, Judge H. B. Hender- 
shott then presiding judge of the District 
Court of said county. The same year, Senator 
"Wright going upon the Supreme Bench of 
Iowa, George F., as he was familiarly known, 
was admitted to partnership with his uncle, 
Judge Knapp, and Judge Caldwell, under 
the firm name of Knapp, Caldwell & Wright, 
and so continued until Judge Caldwell was 
called to the bench at Little Rock. His edu- 
cation, founded in the old-fashioned New 
England schools, and in the old-fashioned 



•296 



BIOQRAPfllCAL III STORY 



New England ways, was rounded not under 
the training received from these eminent law- 
yers ami jurist-. Aided by their ripe busi- 
experience, by bis extensive acquaint- 
ance with business affairs, and with men of 
affairs, lie became a good lawyer, as well as 
an active, persevering and successful business 
man. It was in this practical way that he 
acquired the educational elements which in- 
sured his success much more effectually than 
could have been attained by a university or 
college course or both combined. 

Early in 1861 he enlisted in response to 
President Lincoln's call tor 75.(100 volun- 
teer.-, and in connection with Captain, after- 
ward General, J. M. Tuttle, raised a company 
of volunteers in Van Buren County, of which 
he was elected the First Lieutenant, receiv- 
ing his commission from the hands of Gov- 
ernor Kirkwood at Davenport, Iowa. His 
company rendezvoused at Keokuk, and after 
being some time in camp, the first call being 
full, the company was accepted in the second 
call for volunteers and became a part of the 
Second Regiment of Iowa Volunteers. Im- 
mediately before this occurred, Judge Cald- 
well having enlisted and having been elected 
Major of the Third Iowa Cavalry, the busi- 
ness of their firm demanded his return to 
Keosanqna. Immediately on Ins return he 
raised a company of State militia, was elected 
Captain thereof, and tendered the same to 
Governor Klrkwood for the protection of the 
Iowa border in Van Buren County. His 
company was accepted, was equipped with 
Springfield rifles and furnished with the 
necessary munitions of war. This organiza- 
tion was kept intact, being frequently called 
to the border and into the State of Missouri, 
until the rebels were driven out of that State, 
when most of his company enlisted in and 
became a part of the Fifteenth Regiment of 
Iowa Volunteers. 



On October 26. 1863. he was married ,in 
the city of Chicago, to Ellen E. Wright, net 
Brooks, of Northfield, Vermont, born in 
Hancock, Vermont, September 21, 1830. She 
was the daughter of the late Josiah Prentice 
Brooks, horn April 5, 1797, in Alstead, New 
Hampshire, died in Northfield, January 10, 
1883, of English descent, and the late Bet- 
sey Parker Brooks, nte Robbins, horn Au- 
gust 16, 1797, in Hancock, Vermont, died in 
Northfield, Vermont, November 4, 1885, and 
was of English descent. 

During their resilience in Keosauqua there 
"ere born to them three sons, the oldest dy- 
ing in infancy, and after their removal there- 
from, two daughters, all now living, viz.: 
Franklin Prentice Wright, born March 2, 
1866; George Spencer Wright, born Janu- 
ary 21, 1868; Eliza Caroline Wright, born 
June 1, 1870, and Ellen Elizabeth Wright, 
born December 7, 1872. 

In the spring of 1868 he moved with his 
family to Council Bluffs and formed a law 
partnership with the late Judge Caleb Bald- 
win, and the law firm of Baldwin & Wright 
at once became one of the leading law firms 
of the State. The firm at once took high 
rank among the profession as practicing at- 
torneys, and as the several railway companies 
representing the trunk lines made their ter 
mini in Council Bluffs, this firm became 
their local attorneys, and has ever since re- 
tained that relation toward them. This law 
connection continued up to the time when 
Judge Baldwin was appointed by President 
Grant as one of the Judges of the Court of 
Commissioners of Alabama claims, requiring 
his residence in the city of Washington, 

- o 

when the firm was dissolved. 

lie then associated with himself lion. 
Amos J. Rising, now Judge of the District 
Court of Arapahoe County, Denver, Colo- 
rado, and John N. Baldwin, Esq., the second 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



2Ui 



son of the late Judge Caleb Baldwin. After 
several years of successful practice J udge 
Rising retired from the firm, removing to 
Colorado, and the firm became and has since 
remained as Wright & Baldwin, they having 
lately associated with themselves the two sons 
of Mr. Wright. 

He early identified himself with the poli- 
tics of his county, the State and the nation, 
and has always been a stanch and active Re- 
publican, and for many years a leading worker 
in his party. During his residence in Van 
Buren County he was repeatedly tendered 
the nomination for member of the Legisla- 
ture from that county, which was then equiv- 
alent to an election, but invariably declined 
the honor. In 1875 he was elected Senator 
from the Ninth Senatorial District of Iowa, 
composed of the counties of Pottawattamie 
and Mills. After serving as Senator in the 
Sixteenth and Seventeenth General Assem- 
blies lie was again elected Senator, |in 1879, 
in the Nineteenth Senatorial District of Iowa, 
comprising Pottawattamie County, his place 
of residence. He served as Senator of the 
Nineteenth District in the Eighteenth and 
the Nineteenth General Assemblies. During 
his Senatorial career, his reputation as a law- 
yer, and his energy and ability won for him 
substantial influence in that body. He was 
from the first a member of the Judiciary 
Committee, and being an earnest, industri- 
ous worker, he was enabled to prevent the 
enactment of many bad laws, as well as to aid 
the passage of good ones. He was ever vig- 
ilant and faithful to the trust imposed on 
him, never allowing personal feelings to 
swerve him from the path of duty and strict 
justice. He rendered the State and his con- 
stituency faithful and competent service, 
and in such manner as to reflect great credit 
on himself and honor to his State. 

Soon after taking up his residence in Coun- 



cil Bluffs he began to engage in active busi- 
ness affairs outside of his profession, and in 
1870 and immediately following, he, with 
his associates, organized companies and con- 
structed and put in successful operation large 
plants for the manufacture and supply of 
coal illuminating gas in the cities of Council 
Bluffs, Ottumwa, Mt. Pleasant, Cedar Rapids 
and Sioux City, in Iowa, and in the cities of 
Elirin and Evanston in Illinois. He was 
elected President of the Council Bluffs com- 
pany, which position he held for over twenty 
years. In 1868 he, with Judge Baldwin and 
associates, constructed and operated the 
Council Bluffs Street Railway lines, the tirst 
street railway in Council Bluffs, and was the 
President of said company until it passed 
under the control of the Union Pacific Rait- 
way Company. In 1881 he was elected Sec- 
retary and Treasurer of the Union Elevator 
Company, of Council Bluffs, composed of 
six trunk line railway companies terminating 
therein, and had the supervision and con- 
struction of its Union Elevator building in 
said city, which has the largest capacity of 
any grain elevator west of the city of Chicago. 
In 1883, as one of the originators, in connec- 
tion with Ills associates, he organized and put 
in successful operation the Nebraska & Iowa 
Fire Insurance Company, of Omaha, Ne 
braska, now known as the Nebraska Fire In- 
surance Company, of Omaha, and at the 
same time organized and became president of 
the Iowa & Nebraska Fire Insurance Coin, 
pany, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, which in 1885 
removed to Sioux City, Iowa, and is now 
known as the Western Home Insurance Com- 
pany of that place. He is still largely inter- 
ested in both of said parties. 

In 1886, in connection with his asso- 
ciates, he organized the Omaha & Council 
Bluffs Railway &, Bridge Company, procured 
from Conoress a franchise for a combined 



2U8 



BIOUHAl'lllCAL U1S10RT 



railway anil wagon bridge across the Mis-ouri 
River between the cities of Council Bluffs and 
Omaha; and during the next two years the 
Omaha & Council Bluffs Railway it Bridge 
Company, of which he was elected Secretary, 
erected one of the finest and most expensive 
6teel bridges over said river, and in connec- 
tion therewith constructed and put in suc- 
cessful operation over said bridge between 
said cities the first Electric Street Railway 
line ever constructed in the States of Iowa 
and Nebraska. 

In 1889, in connection with his associates, 
he organized a company and constructed and 
put in operation in the city of Ottawa, Illinois, 
the first Electric Street Railway ever con- 
structed in said State. 

As a lawyer Mr. Wright is prominent, 
leading and able, never seeking to deceive 
court or jury, but in an open, manly, earnest 
contest endeavoring to secure the rights of 
his clients. Gifted with sound judgment, 
endowed with great, good common sense, ami 
being a fine analyzer of character and the 
motives of men, he is ever ready to meet his 
adversary on compromise grounds, confident 
in his resources and ability to secure better 
results for his clients by negotiation than by 
prolonged and expensive litigation. 

As a business man, he is possessed of fine 
executive ability, is untiring and energetic, 
continually adding to the cares and burdens 
of his life new enterprises, which by his con- 
tinued activity and the vigor of his never 
faltering energy he pushes to successful pro- 
portions and satisfactory results. 

As a citizen, he is active, progressive, pub- 
lic-spirited and liberal, and since lie came to 
Council Bluffs he has ever been loyal to her 
best material interests, advocating all meas- 
ures that the best elements therein strove to 
establish. Of strict and npright manhood, 
he constantly labors for her welfare and is 



always found in the line of the best citizen- 
ship. 

As a friend, he is true, honest, faithful and 
sacrificing to all who show themselves worthy 
<>f his friendship, generous in his praises, 
slow in his criticisms, and happy in contrib- 
uting to the wants and needs of his fellows. 

A> a man, he is amiable, temperate, hon- 
orable, benevolent, just and upright, with 
fine literary tastes and broad culture. 



L. RANKIN is one of the intelligent, 

enterprising and successful citizens of 
(wove Township. lie has been a 
resilient of Pottawattamie County and iden- 
tified with its best interests for the past sev- 
enteen years, having come to this place in 
1873. 

He was born in Allegheny County, Penn- 
sylvania, February 27, 1849. His father, 
Archibald Rankin, was born in Pennsyl- 
vania, and grandfather Rankin was a native 
of Ireland, born of Irish parents. His 
mother, nee Jane Brewster, also a native of 
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, was of 
Irish ancestry. Mr. and Mrs. Rankin were 
the parents of nine children, three sons and 
six daughters, all of whom are now (1890) 
living except two daughters, and all are in 
Allegheny County except John and S. L., 
who are in Grove Township, this county. 
The parents passed their lives in Pennsyl- 
vania and died there, the father at the ace of 
lift] two and the mother at the age of si.ty- 
four years. Mr. Elan kin was an honest tiller 
of the soil all his life, and in politics he was 
a Democrat. His wife was a member of the 
United Presbyterian Church and roared her 
children in the Christian faith. 

S. L. Rankin worked on the farm and re- 
ceived his education in the public schools of 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



2U9 



his native county. In 1868, at the age of 
nineteen years, he came West and settled in 
Iroquois County, Illinois, where he engaged 
in farm work. In that county he married 
Miss Linda Downey, a lady of intelligence 
and refinement, who was horn in Wayne 
County, New York. Her parents, Titus and 
Sally (Cole) Downey, hoth natives of Ver- 
mont, were married in the Green Mountain 
State and subsequently removed to St. Law- 
rence County, New York, and afterward 
went to Wayne County. When Mrs. Ran- 
kin was about six years of age they removed 
to Oneida County, same State, where they 
passed the rest of their lives, the mother dy- 
ing at the age of forty-eight years and the 
father at sixty-seven. The Downey family 
were Methodists. Mr. Downey was an iron 
manufacturer, and in politics he was a Re- 
publican. Mrs. Rankin removed to Illinois 
one year previous to her marriage. 

In 1873 the subject of this sketch settled 
on his present farm when the land was wild. 
Here he has since resided and has made many 
improvements in his property. He now owns 
213 acres of land, of which 143 acres are in 
Grove Township and the rest in Carson 
Township. His comfortable frame house is 
situated on a natural building site and is 
surrounded by shade trees. He is engaged 
in general farming and stock-raising, and his 
farm is well supplied with suitable out- 
buildings and modern improvements for con- 
ducting agricultural pursuits in the most ap- 
proved manner. 

Mr. and Mrs. Rankin have four children: 
Warren, Edna J., Lulu May and Edith Belle. 
May Eleanor, their first born, died at the 
ape of three years and seven months; and 
Samuel, the second child, at the age of six- 
teen months. 

Mr. Rankin is a man in the prime of life; 
is frank and cordial in manner and address 



and honorable in all his business transactions. 
Politically he is a Democrat. 



EORGE BOLTON was horn in the 
Territory of Wisconsin (now Iowa), De- 
cember 9, 1840. His father, William 
Bolton, was one of the seven men who first 
settled in Cedar County, in 1836. His grand- 
father, Henry Bolton, when a lad in his teens, 
was kidnaped and brought to America from 
his native country, Germany. He made his 
escape and a short time afterward enlisted in 
the cause of the colonies and fought in the 
Revolutionary war under General Washing- 
ton. His son, William Bolton, was born in 
Virginia, and was married in that State to 
Sarah Southern, also a native of the Old 
Dominion and a descendant of one of the old 
Virginia families. He subsequently became 
a pioneer of Cedar County, Iowa, as already 
stated, and there passed the remainder of his 
life, his death occurring at the age of fifty- 
seven years. His wife lived to be eighty 
years old and died at the home of her son 
George in Pottawattamie County. Mr. Bol- 
ton and his wife were earnest Christian people, 
and were members of the Methodist Church. 
He spent his life as an honest tiller of the 
soil; was a Jackson Democrat, a strong Un- 
ion man during the war, and cast his vote 
for President Lincoln. This worthy pioneer 
couple reared a family of eight children, viz.: 
J. A., a resident of Jasper County, Iowa; 
Oliva, of Oregon; Louisa, who is deceased; 
Virginia Vanmeter, of Cass County, Iowa; 
George, the subject of this sketch; John, 
Cedar County, Iowa; Agnes, wife of A. W. 
Pierce, Grove Township, this county; and 
Grace, wife of Frank Emmons, aho of Grove 
Township. 

The sou of a pioneer farmer, George was 



800 



BIOQRAPHIOAL HISTORY 



early in life inured to hard work, and was 
taught those lessons of industry and honesty 
which have served him so well in after life. 
His early advantages were limited. What 
education he received was obtained in the 
primitive log school-house of that period, 
lie was married November 8. 18G0, to Miss 
Hannah M. Pierce, who was born and reared 
in Ohio, the daughter of Dennis and Mary 
(Polick) Pierce, both natives of Pennsyl- 
vania. The following children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Bolton: Charles E., 
who is married and lives in Grove Township; 
A. W., also married and a resident of the 
same township; Ida M., wife of D. W. Magee, 
sheriff of Banner County, Nebraska; Nellie 
G., Albert, and James A., at home. Three 
of their children died of diphtheria, — -Luke, at 
the age of eight years; Minnie, ten years of 
age; and Frank, six. 

Mr. Bolton lived in Cedar County, Iowa, 
until 1877, when he came to his present loca- 
tion and bought the farm on which he resides 
of Isaac Denton. Some improvements had 
been made on the place previous to its pur- 
chase by Mr. Bolton, but he has since en- 
hanced its value by building, fencing, etc 
He built a comfortable residence, a story and 
a half high, surrounded it with shade and 
ornamental trees, and also planted a grove and 
orchard. He built a commodious barn, 40 x 
66 Feet, which is well arranged for grain, hay 
and stock. A modern wind-mill furnishes 
the power, by which water is forced through 
pipes up to the yards and feed lots, a distance 
of forty rods. This farm contains 320 acres, 
and its flourishing condition at once indicates 
tin- thrift and prosperity of the owner. Mr. 
Bolton is engaged in general farming and 
stock-raising. Among his stock are Short- 
horn cattle and Clydesdale horses. 

Our subject is one of the wheel-horses of 
the Republican parly in Grove Township. 



He has served nearly fifteen rears as Town- 
ship Trustee. He has also served with credit 
86 a member of the School Board. He is an 
active worker in and a trustee of the Chris- 
tian Church, of which his wife and two of 
their children are also members. Socially 
Mr. Bolton is connected with 1. O. O. F., 
Lodge, No. 421, of Macedonia. He is re- 
garded by all who know him as an honorable 
and worthy citizen. Since he took up his 
residence here he has identified himself with 
the best interests of the community, and 
every enterprise that has for its object the 
promotion of good finds in him an earnest 
supporter. 



foiIN E. WILLIAMS, a farmer and 
stock-raiser of Hazel Dell Township, was 
born in South Wales, October 22, 1841, 
theson of Daniel and Margaret (Evans) Will- 
iams, of Welsh extraction. The parents, 
natives of Wales, came to America in 1856, 
sailing from Liverpool February 14, and lo- 
cating in Luzern County, Pennsylvania, at 
Pitts ton, and four years afterward they re- 
moved to Utah, but remained there only one 
year; then they located in Audubon County, 
Iowa, for one year, and finally, in 1863, they 
settled in Pottawattamie County. The father 
died in September, 1862, at the age of forty- 
eight years, in Audubon County. The widow 
and her children then moved to this county, 
locating near the Bluffs, in Kane Township, 
where they spent a year, and then moved to 
what is now Garner Township and resided 
there four years. During this latter period 
Mr. Williams married Elizabeth Peterson, a 
native of Sweden, who was but four years of 
age when brought to America. His mother 
now resides in Merrick County, Nebraska. 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



301 



and is now seventy-four years of age. In her 
family were eleven children; five died in 
Wales, and six came to this country, namely: 
Daniel J., a resident of Hazel Dell Township; 
John E. was the next; Ruth, a resident of the 
Pacific slope; Margaret, wife of David Nixon; 
Samuel, now residing at Grand Island, Ne- 
braska; Annie, now Mrs. John Robinson, of 
Clarkesville, Nebraska. Their father was a 
stone and brick mason by trade, but turned 
hie attention to various occupations. 

Mr. Williams, our subject, remained but a 
short time in Garner Township, when he 
came to Hazel Dell Township, April 18, 
1867, and purchased 120 acres on sections 7 
and 18, then absolutely wild land Upon this 
place he moved a small dwelling about 14 x 16 
feet in dimensions and occupied it one sum- 
mer. In the fall he erected a residence 
14 x 15, in which, with some additions, he 
resided until he erected his present dwelling, 
in 1884, a two-story frame 16 x 28 and 
18 x 15, on a modern plan. It is one of the 
nicest residences in that part of the country. 
Good barns and other neat enclosures orna- 
ment and add value to the place. There is also 
an orchard of about 150 good trees, besides 
shade and ornamental trees. Mr. Williams 
now owns 200 acres of fine land, all in one 
body, which he has been enabled to purchase 
by his own industrious efforts. By his first 
marriao-e he had five children: Mary, now the 
wife of Jacob Konkler, and residing at Coun- 
cil Bluffs; Samuel E., a resident of Garner 
Township; Josephine, wife of Edward Jones, 
of Council Bluffs; George, residing in Garner 
Township; and Daniel, residing in Boomer 
Township. Mr. Williams lost his first wife 
in May 18, 1872, and he was married a third 
time January 23, 1887, to Mrs. Rachel How- 
land, widow of II. II. Howland and daughter 
of John and Cincinnati (Dunkerson) Ballew, 
natives of Kentucky and of French and Ger- 



man origin. Her father died April 7,1882, 
at the age of sixty-two years, and her mother 
is still living near KansasCity, Missouri. Mrs. 
Williams was born in Mercer County, Missouri, 
December 18, 1848. By her first marriage 
she was the mother of two children: Hattie, 
wife of C. C. Greene, of Council Bluffs; and 
Frank, at home. By the present marriage of 
Mr. Williams there is one child, John A., 
who was born September 16, 1888. 

Mr. Williams is a Democrat, and he has 
served as a member of the School Board. 

ra . . " 

LAY D. REEL, a miller on Pigeon 
Creek, Pottawattamie County, was born 
in Crescent Township, this county, July 
21, 1867. His grandparents came from Vir- 
ginia to Indiana in 1822, were farmers by 
occupation and remained resident in Indiana 
the rest of their days. Mr. Perry Reel, 
Clay's father, was born in Putman County, 
that State, Jnly 9, 1839, and came to Potta- 
wattamie County with his parents in 1852, 
they having taken up claims which they 
afterward bought. Mr. Reel remained here 
until his death, leaving seven children, viz.: 
Mary, Martha, Ella, Nancy (deceased), Sarah, 
Perry and William, who resides in Montana. 
Mr. Reel was married in 1862, to Mis3 Mil- 
lie, daughter of Jonathan Branson; she was 
born in 1846. Leaving home, Mr. Reel 
bought a grist-mill an Pigeon Creek, which 
he ran in connection with his farm. The old 
home place he brought to its present perfec- 
tion. He held all the offices of the township 
with satisfaction to his fellow-citizens, was a 
straight Democrat, was elected Sheriff and 
re-elected in 1869. His term expiring in 
1872 he returned to his farm, and in 1873 
was elected County Treasurer, and re-elected 
once. In 1877 he was again elected Sheriff, 



302 



HIOGUAFIIICAL HISTORY 



and re-elected to tliis office again. He was 
without exception the most prominent man 
in the county, upright in his dealings and 
liberal, and too much cannot be said in his 
praise. He had a fine farm, well stocked. 
He died in political life, December 10, 1889, 
having had five children: Dora, Emma, (May, 
Rose and Perry. 

Mr. Clay D. Reel completed his school 
course in Councill Bluffs. At the age of 
twenty-two years, April 1, 1890, he mar- 
ried Miss Annie, daughter of William L. 
Walker, a native of Pennsylvania, who ulti- 
mately removed to Iowa. He had eight 
children: Annie, John, Harry, Maria, Effie, 
Orval, Bessie and Kittie; the last mentioned 
is deceased. Mrs. Reel was born August 15, 
1869, finished her education in the high 
school at Des Moines and taught school three 
year6. After his marriage, Mr. Reel rented 
a house in Crescent Township near the old 
home place, where he now lives. He is en- 
gaged in running a fiouring-mill on Pigeon 
Creek, which now has the roller process and 
all the latest improvements. At the time of 
his father's death he was enjoying a private 
retired life where there was a fine orchard of 
four acres. Lately a postoffice named Reel 
has been established at that point. Mr. Reel 
is a high-minded and popular citizen. 



W. BORUFF is one of the leading 
citizens of Macedonia Township, Pot- 
tawattamie County. He was born 
near Hlnoinington, in .Monroe County, Indi- 
ana, April 18, 1845. His father, Samuel 
Boruff, was of German extraction and a na- 
tive of Tennessee. He married Elizabeth 
Butcher, also a native of Tennessee, and Boon 
after his marriage came with his wile to 
Monroe County, Indiana. In the midst of 




the forest he cleared and improved a farm, on 
which he and his wife reared a large family 
of children and on which they spent the re- 
mainder of their days, his wife dying at the 
age of fifty-four years and he at the ripe old 
age of eighty-five. In politics he was a Jack- 
son Democrat, and he and his wife were con- 
sistent members of the Christian Church. 
Of the sixteen children born to this worthy 
couple the subject of this sketch is the young- 
est of the fifteen who grew to adult age. 

He was reared on the farm and received 
his education in the public schools of Mon- 
roe County. At the age of eighteen he went 
to Logan County, Illinois, where he worked 
at farm work. In May, 18C4, lie enlisted in 
Company C, One Hundred and Thirty-Third 
Illinois Infantry, and served about four 
months the regiment being stationed at Rock 
Island, guarding rebel prisoners. After his 
discharge he returned to Logan County, 
where he remained until 1876. In that year 
he came to this county and bought eighty 
acres of wild land, where he now lives, pay- 
ing $12.50 per acre. Here he built a good 
one-story-and-a-half house, surrounded it 
with pines and other evergreens; planted a 
grove and orchard; built a barn 30 x 40 feet; 
has a modern wind pump; in fact, everything 
about the place indicates the good taste, the 
thrift and the enterprise of the owner. Mr. 
Boruff owns 120 acres of land located a half 
mile from the village of Macedonia. Among 
his cattle are some fine Holsteins and Jerseys. 
He also has so me graded hogs. 

Mr. Boruff was married in Logan County, 
Illinois, January 16, 1873, to Miss Josie 
Hoblit, a lady of intelligence and refinement, 
who was born, reared and educated in that 
place. Her parents, L. M. and Eveline 
(Hanghey) Elolbit, came from Ohio to Illi- 
nois and settled in Logan County previous to 
her birth. Mr. and Mrs. Boruff have one 





<iarhi^ 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



303 



child, Otis D., born March 2, 1887. Mr. 
Boruff is a Democrat, and is one of the lead- 
ing members of that party in his township. 
He has served the public as Township Trus- 
tee. He is a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, associated with Ruby Lodge, No. 415, 
of Macedonia; and Chapter No. 159, of 
Glenwood. He is also a member of the An- 
cient and Accepted Scottish Rite for U. S. of 
A. T. T. and D. thirty-second degree. 



JRVING M. TREINOR, the present 
fj Postmaster of Council Bluffe, Iowa, was 
W born in this city, on the 26th day of 
November, 1857, and is the second son of 
Thomas P. Treynor, now a prominent and 
successful farmer of Pottawattamie County. 
Mr. Treynor's earlier years were spent in 
the old log cabin where he was born, his 
father having moved to this county at an 
early date, in fact, when the now thriving 
city of Council Bluffs was only a straggling 
village, known as Kanesville. 

At the age of four years the subject of 
this sketch began his educational career in 
the public schools of this city, and remained 
until he had attained the age of fourteen, 
when he entered the Iowa State University, 
at Iowa City. There he remained for three 
years, and, returning home, assumed the 
position of assistant to his father, who was 
postmaster of Council Bluffs, from March, 
1869 to May, 1877. Here he remained for 
two years, when, having received a flat- 
tering offer from the Chicago, Rock Island 
& Pacific Railway, be entered the service of 
that company as freight clerk. His recog- 
nized ability brought him rapidly to the 
front, and in a comparatively short space of 
time he had reached the responsible position 
of cashier and chief clerk at this point. 



In 1884, desiring to embark in business 
for himself, he severed his connection with 
the railroad company, and with Messrs. Or- 
cutt and French, organized the Council 
Bluffs Carpet Company. By common con- 
sent, he was made the financial manager of 
the concern, and the successful building up 
of a large and well-established business at- 
tests the wisdom of the choice which the 
members of the firm made in this direction. 

Mr. Treynor has always taken a lively in- 
terest in musical matters, and the reputation 
which Council Bluffs now enjoys in this line 
is in no small measure due to his untiring 
energy and unselfish devotion, as well as to 
his generous contributions of time and 
money toward the development of a high 
order of musical culture. He has given 
much of his leisure time to the study of 
vocal music, and his voice (a robusto tenor), 
has been heard quite frequently, in church, 
on the stage, and in various gatherings in 
this and other places. He has sung the 
leading tenor roles in a number of light 
operas and oratorios. At the present time, he 
is a member of the Apollo Club of Omaha, 
Nebraska; is a trustee of that organization, 
and holds the responsible position of chairman 
of the musical committee of that society. 

Mr. Treynor is a prominent member of 
the Royal Arcanum; one of the founders 
and a trustee of the Council Bluffs and 
Omaha Chautauqua; an active member of 
the Rowing Association, and one of the 
leaders of the Board of Trade. Religiously 
he believes in the doctrines of the Episcopal 
Church, is a member of St. Paul's, and has 
served in the vestry of that religions organ- 
ization. Politically lie is a Republican of 
the stalwart type, and has been a delegate to 
nearly every Republican State, Congressional 
and Judicial convention which has been held 
during the past twelve years 



304 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



In Sptember, 18S9, ho was appointed 
Postmaster of Council Bluffs by President 
Harrison, succeeding Hon. Thomas Bowman. 

Mr. Treynor was married on the 4th day 
of November, 1880, to Miss Kittio E. Ob- 
linger, daughter of Captain U. G. P. Oblin- 
ger, of this city. Albert McKune Treynor, 
is the only issue of this union. 



►**H 



< |«. «0« — ■ 



fAMES KILLPACK, a prominent farmer 
and stock-raiser of Neola Township, was 
born in Leicestershire, England, Sep- 
tember 6, 1830. His father, John Killpack, 
was a wheelwright and marble-cutter, and 
had a brother and sister, Martha and Fannie, 
who are now deceased. On attaining man- 
hood Mr. John Killpack established himself 
in the mercantile business, including drugs, 
and continued therein ten or twelve years, 
and then was in the marble trade the remain- 
der of his days. His wife, whose maiden 
name was Elizabeth Day. died some ten years 
previously, in 1841, leaving twelve children, 
as follows: John, born, October 2, 1824,died 
August 2, 1851; Mary Ann, born August 
29, 1826, died October 21, 1847; Elizabeth, 
born November 6, 1828, resides in England; 
James, our subject, is the next; William J., 
born February 6, 1832, resides in Utah; 
Jonathan, born October 2, 1833, died July 1, 
1890, in California: Charles, born February 
7, 1835, died March 16, 1836; Rachel, born 
August 16, 1836, lives in England; David, 
born October 25, 1838, resides also in Eng- 
land; Emma and Edward are deceased. 

James, the subject of this sketch, was 
brought up to the profession of his lather. 
At the age of twenty-three years he left 
home and sailed on the International from 
Liverpool to New Orleans, being ten weeks 

on the voyage. Lauding soon at Keokuk, he 



came thence by ox teams to Conncil Bluffs 
and went on to Utah, being eleven weeks in 
crossing the plains to that Territory. In 
Manti City, Utah, he was engaged in farm- 
ing, but, the grasshoppers destroying his 
crops, he entered the Government Survey in 
1855-'56. August 15, 1855, he married 
Miss Salina, daughter of Samuel and Sarah 
Ilarcott, natives of England, and born re- 
spectively in 1801 and 1800. They had 
seven children: Mary, Lucy, Rosa, Sarah, 
Louisa, William and Salina. The last men- 
tioned was born December 15, 1839. Their 
father, a fashionable dyer, died at the age of 
forty-six years. Their mother afterward 
married Jacob Pochin, a native of England 
and a carpenter by trade, who came to Amer- 
ica in 1851, to New Orleans, and thence to St. 
Louis and to Utah in 1S51, and died there in 
August, 1854. The widow then returned to 
this county, and remained with her daughter 
in Hazel Dell Township until her death, 
March 19, 1870. 

After his marriage Mr. Killpack returned 
to Council Bluffs in June, 1857, clerked in 
a grocery store, then followed the same busi- 
ness in St. Louis; afterward was engaged in 
a furniture and wagon establishment; next 
he moved to Maries County, Missouri, took 
up eighty acres of land; but the bushwackers 
were so bad that he returned again to Coun- 
cil Bluffs, by means of ox teams. Here he 
was in the employ of a grocery firm. April 
7, 1864, he moved upon his farm in Boomer 
Township. A year afterward he purchased 
forty acres in the same township, where there 
were but few improvements. He added by 
further purchases until he had a total of 220 
acres of good land, most of which was in 
meadow and pasture, and the premises were 
equipped with a good outfit of the usual ap- 
purtenances. Desiring to increase his facili- 
ties for raising live stock, he sold this place 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



305 



and purchased 320 acres of rough, unimproved 
land, prairie and hazel brnsh, and be- 
gan anew. He put up a line two-story 
frame house 18x36, with kitchen 16x15, 
porches, etc. In orchard and ornamental 
trees he has a total of abont ten acres. 
Among his cattle the choice breeds are the 
Jersey and Red Poll. He has now 200 acres 
of fine land, mostly in Neola Township; 
eighty acres are in Boomer Township. 

Mr. Killpack is a thorough-going Repub- 
lican. Was once elected a Justice of the 
Peace, but would not serve, lest he might 
make an enemy. He has been a School Di- 
rector. 

His children are: Emma E. born in Salt 
Lake, December 23, 1856, and now the wife 
of Moulder Clark, in Boomer Township; 
Rachel Alice, born in St. Louis, January 5, 
1859, died December 2, 1863; Mary Ann, 
born September 7, 1861, died September 28 
following; John James, born in Council 
Bluffs, May 20, 1863; William Henry, born 
in Boomer Township, July 9, 1865; Lucy 
Ann, born November 17, 1867, died April 3, 
1874; Charles, born January, 1870, died in 
infancy; Louisa Alice, born in Boomer Town- 
ship, May 17, 1871; Grace May, born also in 
Boomer, May 9, 1873; David Marion, born 
in Boomer, July 18, 1876, and George Frank- 
lin, born also in Boomer, January 27, 1880. 



— ... g . ]■■ ! ■ ; ■■ - — 

IHARLES M. HARL, of the law firm 
of Harl & McCabe, of Council Bluffs, 
was admitted to the bar of Pottawatta- 
mie County in 1876. Hr. Harl was born in 
Sandusky City. Ohio, November 13, 1856, the 
son of John W. and Margaret (Smith) Harl. 
The former was born in Virginia, and the 
latter was a native of Ohio. The Harl family 
were early Virginians, having settled in that 



then British colony prior to the Revolutionary 
war. The family is of Irish origin. The 
maternal ancestry of the subject of this 
sketch removed from the State of New York 
to Ohio during the early settlement of the 
latter State, but previous to their residence in 
New York they had resided in Canada. John 
W. Harl went to Ohio from his native State 
when a young man, and after marriage settled 
at Mt. Vernon, where the family of his wife 
had lived for many years. Later Mr. Harl 
removed with hi6 family to Sandusky. In 
1858 they went to Council Bluffs, where the 
father died April 6, 1881. His wife survived 
until February 6, 1886. The subject of this 
sketch is the only survivor of five children; 
three died in childhood, a son and two daugh- 
ters. Edward, the second of the family in 
order of birth, enlisted early in the war of 
the Rebellion in an Iowa battery; after serv- 
ing for a time and becoming broken in 
health, lie was discharged for disability; but 
recovering his health he again enlisted in the 
service of his country, becoming a member of 
Company A, Twenty-ninth Iowa Infantry, 
and was killed at Helena, Arkansas, July 4, 
1863. 

The subject of this sketch was educated in 
the public schools of Council Bluffs, gradu- 
ating in the high school of this city in the 
class of 1874. He began studying law im- 
mediately after leaving school, with Judge 
Caleb Baldwin, and was admitted February 
18, 1876. In June following he formed a 
partnership with Smith & Carson, which con- 
tinued until 1886, when Carson was elected 
District Judge, and the firm became Smith 
& Harl, which continued for two years, when 
Mr. Smith retired to become President of 
the State Board of Railroad Commissioners, 
and was succeeded by James McCabe. 

Mr. Harl was married in Council Bluffs, 
to Miss Lottie Oblinger, a native of Indiana. 



306 



BIOORAPniOAL HISTORY 



They have two daughters: Nellie and Ruth. 

They lost their eldest daughter, Margaret. 
Mr. Harl is a Republican in politics. lie has 
a fine practice and is recognized as one of 
the leading members of the bar of Potta- 
wattamie County. 

M r. Harl was for five years, 1882 to 1887, 
Secretary of the Board of Education, of Coun- 
cil Bluffs. In 1888 he was presented to the 
Republican Congressional Convention of the 
Ninth Congressional District as a candidate 
of Pottawattamie County for Congress, de- 
feating Mr. Lyman, the then Congressman, 
in the Pottawattamie convention. A number 
of candidates were presented by other coun- 
ties, and as a result and compromise Judge 
J. R. Reed was nominated, he being sup- 
ported by Mr. Harl and friends when the 
nomination of the latter was found to be im- 
possible. 

Mr. Harl is the Past Master of Excelsior 
Lodge, No. 259, A. F. &. A. M.; First High 
Priest of Star Chapter, No. 47, R. A. M.; 
and the present Eminent Commander of 
Ivan hoe Commandery, No. 17, K. T., all of 
Council Bluffs; also First Vice President of 
League and delegate to the last National 
Convention of said clubs at Nashville, of Re- 
publican clubs of Iowa; and member of the 
board of trustees of the Broadway Methodist 
Episcopal Church. 



fOSEPB P. BOULDEN, a farmer of 
Hazel Dell Township, was born in Piqua, 
Miami Comity. Ohio, August 11, 1819, 
the son of William L. and Nancy (Patterson) 
Boulden, natives of Delaware and of Scotch 
and [risL extraction. lie was the third in 
order of birth in a family of seven children, 

only three of whom are still living. The 
Other two are John R., of Ruck ford Town 



ship, and Mary J., widow of Levi G. Bran- 
don, living in Des Moines. 

On attaining his majority Mr. Boulden 
married, in November, 1839, Susan Lee, who 
was born in Licking County, Ohio, in 1822. 
They had two children: John W., now re- 
siding in Calif or ma^and Mary E., residing in 
St. Louis, Missouri. Mr. Boulden was mar- 
ried again in 1848, to Mary Lee, who was 
born in Licking County, Ohio, August 13, 
1826, and died February 25, 1887. There 
were two children by this marriage also, 
namely: Joseph P., a resident of Hazel Dell 
Township, and Benjamin F., deceased. Mr. 
Boulden made his home in Ohio until 1849. 
The first business in which he was engaged 
after he arrived at the age of twenty-one 
years was that of boating on the Miami Canal 
for some five years. In 1849 he came to 
Illinois, where he was a miller for three years. 
May 14, 1853, he arrived here in Pottawatta- 
mie, locating first at Council Bluffs, where he 
engaged as a mill-sawyer, manufacturing the 
first lumber that was ever turned out at this 
point, as 'he operated the first 6aw-mill here. 
At the end of about two years he went to 
Omaha and engaged in saw-milling there a 
year, turning out also the first lumber at that 
point. Returning to this side of the river he 
operated a mill for the Jeffrey Brothers, 
northwest of Council Bluffs, for about half a 
year, when he located upon his present farm. 
He first purchased 200 acres of unimproved 
land on section 32 of what is now Hazel Dell 
Township; and here he has since resided with 
the exception of two years in Utah and 
Nevada. He was one of the first settlers in 
that partof the county, and suffered the usual 
privations and hardships of pioneer life. 
Courage, guided by cool judgment, has 
guided him on in the improvement of his 
place until he now has a comfortable 
home, where he can spend the remainder of 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



307 



his life in contentment. His first dwelling 
was a structure 1(3x22 feet; and his present 
residence, also a frame, 18 x 24 and 16 x 20) 
was erected in the midst of a natural grove. 
General farming and stock-raising are Mr. 
Boulden's specialties. He takes pride in the 
rearing of the better grades of live-stock. 
He now possesses one of the finest horses in 
the county, a Morgan. He has also done 
much for the material interest of his com- 
munity, and his dealings ever command the 
highest respect. He has disposed of his real- 
estate by a distribution to his children, and 
lie now makes his home with his ton J. P. on 
the old home place. 

Politically Mr. Boulden is a decided Re- 
publican, ever taking a leading part in the 
political affairs of the county. He was 
Coroner four years, member of the Board of 
County Supervisors three years, Justice of 
the Peace, Township Trustee, member of the 
School Board, etc. In his manner he is cor- 
dial and affable, in disposition kind. 

His son, J. P., was married to Miss Mag- 
gie Dial, and they had two children: Ida M., 
deceased, and Benjamin F., a resident of Cali- 
fornia. He was again married March 10, 
1887, to Anna Anderson, who was born in 
Sweden in 1870, and they have one child, 
Mary G. 

— ■ — g • : ■ < ■ $ ~ - — 



I IIARCOURT is the proprietor of the 
Harcourt Nursery, which is becoming 
well known, reliable and popular. It 
is located in Grove Township, in the eastern 
part of Pottawattamie County, and was start- 
ed in 1885. At present twenty acres are de- 
voted to nursery stock and small fruits. By 
care, observation, experiments and the ex- 
penditure of much time and money, Mr. Har- 
court has been successful in placing before 



the people of this county hardy and product- 
ive nursery stock, which is well adapted for 
the soil and climate of southwestern Iowa. 
For the earnest efforts put forth in this di- 
rection he is entitled not only to a large 
patronage but also to the grateful thanks of 
all who are interested in fruit culture in 
this part of the State. Mr. Harcourt bas 
10,000 trees of the best and most popular 
varieties ready for spring trade. The fact 
is an assured one that southwestern Iowa for 
fruit is not excelled in the West. 

Mr. Harcourt was born in Green County, 
Wisconsin, April 2, 1846, the son of Daniel 
and Margaret (Conner) Harcourt, both na- 
tives of Indiana. In 1850, when be was 
four years old, the family moved to Jasper 
County, Iowa, and were early settlers there. 
At that place he was reared on a farm, and 
received his education in the public schools. 
In 1871 Mr, Harcourt removed from Jasper 
County to Pottawattamie County, and set- 
tled in Grove Township, where be has since 
resided. He had bought the land on which 
he resides in 1870. At that time there were 
but two bouses between this point and Wal- 
nut, and to the nortb but one house could be 
seen for miles. Mr. Harcourt owns eighty 
acres, a fourth of which is devoted to his 
nursery. It is his intention to increase the 
size of bis nursery and give his whole atten- 
tion to it. His farm is well improved. He 
has a comfortable cottage home, a barn, trood 
fences, etc. 

In 18G6, in Jasper County, Iowa, Mr. liar- 
court wedded Miss Sarah Hill, a native of 
Indiana. They have eight children, viz.: 
Frank E. ; Arthur W., a successful teacher 
of Grove Township; Joshua J., John R., 
Katty, Jessie, Inez and Ward. Three of 
their children died in infancy. 

Politically Mr. Harcourt is a Republican, 
lie is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 



yos 



ISIOHIlM'lllCAL UISTORT 



Church, and is an earnest and active worker 
in the cause of religion. It was by his 
efforts and labor that Spring Creek Church 
was organized and established in Center 
Township. He has served as class-leader, 
Bteward and trustee of the church. Mr. 
Har court is a man in the prime of life, is 
a good converser, a pleasant companion and 
a popular citizen. 

-~ ^*4-Sh— 



HARRISON MONTGOMERY, section 
10. Grove Township, is one of the well- 
known and much respected citizens of 
Pottawattamie County, Iowa. He came to 
this place in 1870 and has since made it his 
home. Mr. Montgomery was born in Picka- 
way County. Ohio, September 27, 183'J, the 
6on of Moses and Elizabeth (Jones) Mont- 
gomery, the latter a native of Pennsylvania. 
His father was a strong and radical Whig 
and a great admirer of General Harrison, 
and when the subject of this sketch was 
born he was named after the hero of Tippe- 
canoe. Mr. Montgomery was a babe when 
the family removed to Wells County, Indiana, 
and when lie was seven years old his father 
died. His mother and her children subse- 
quently removed to Winnebago County, Illi- 
nois. At the age of twelve years Mr. Mont- 
gomery came to Jasper County, Iowa, where 
be grew to manhood, and received a fair edu- 
cation in the public schools. Of bis brothers 
aud sisters we state that John went overland 
to California, and died in the land of gold; 
James E., who served four years during the 
war in Company I, Tenth Iowa Infantry, 
lives ill Cheyenne County Kansas; Delphia 
Dewitte lives in Grove Township, Pottawat- 
tamie County, Iowa; Eliza Seek resides at 

Rockford, Illinois; Anna died when a child. 



Their mother is now ninety years of age and 
lives in Kansas with her son James. 

The subject of this sketcli was married in 
Jasper County in 1857, to Miss Mary Jane 
Mills, who was born in Indiana and reared 
and educated in Jasper County, Iowa. She 
is a daughter of William and Elizabeth 
(Burkhalter) Mills. Her mother died in 
Jasper County, and her father lives in Sher- 
man County, Kansas. The following named 
children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Montgomery: Ella, wife of John Walker, of 
Carson Township; Emma, wife of Thomas 
Marshall, Lincoln, Nebraska; Hatty, wife of 
Charles Wood, Grove Township; Irvin, who 
lives in Sarpy County, Nebraska; Casin, 
Sadie, Tillie May, John, Pearly, Laura and 
Clarence L., all at home. Two of their chil- 
dren died in infancy. 

Mr. Montgomery came to this county in 
1870 aud bought forty acres of land. He 
now has a well improved farm, a story and a 
half house, suitable out-buildings and good 
fences. His house is situated on a natural 
building site, and is surrounded by shade and 
ornamental trees. He has an orchard and 
grove. Mr. Montgomery is a trustee and 
steward of the Christian Church. His wife 
and two of their children are also members. 
Politically he is a Republican. Mr. Mont- 
gomery is a man in the prime of life, and by 
all who know him he is regarded as an up- 
right and worthy citizen. 



RT1IUR S. UAZLETON, attorney at 
law, and of the firm of Mayne «V Ila- 
zelton, has been a member of the bar 
of Council Bluffs since April 6, 1886. Mr. 

Ha/.leton is a native of Plymouth. New 
Hampshire, where he was born November 7, 
1855. His father, Charles Hazleton, died at 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



309 



Plymouth, April 1, 1881, where the mother 
of the subject of this sketch still live*. The 
family consists of three sons and one daugh- 
ter. The eldest of the family, Martha P., 
resides at Plymouth, New Hampshire. The 
eldest of the brothers, Charles W., is a civil 
engineer, and resides at Turner's Falls, 
Massachusetts. Henry is teller in the Coun- 
cil Bluffs Savings Bank. 

The subject of this sketch is the youngest 
of the family. He prepared for college at 
Kimball Academy, and entered Dartmouth 
College in 1877, graduating in 1881. He 
studied law in the office of Blair, Burling & 
Adams, the first mentioned being the Hon. 
Henry N. Blair, United States Senator from 
New Hampshire. He attended law school at 
Boston University, and at Columbia Law 
School in New York city. 

Mr. Hazleton paved the way through col- 
lege with money which he earned, and met 
the expenses of a law course while in New 
York by teaching during the forenoons, and 
attending lectures in the after part of the 
day. On September 5, 1884, Mr. Hazleton 
arrived in Council Bluffs, and for one year 
was principal of the high school in that city. 
As he was obliged to read law one year in 
Iowa before engaging in practice, he entered 
the office of Jacob Sims, Esq., where he pur- 
sued a year's course of study in law before his 
admission to the bar. The present partnership 
was formed on May 1, 188G. Mr. Hazleton, 
by his own energy and industry, has obtained 
a liberal literary education, and his legal at- 
tainments have been reached by the same 
means, and they are very thorough. He is 
still a young man, but has already taken a 
prominent place at the bar of Pottawattamie 
County, and is esteemed as an enterprising 
and progressive citizen. Politically he is a 
Republican, and is a worthy member of the 
order of A.F.& A.M.. 



He was married May 16, 1888, to Miss 
Emma Higham, of Keokuk, and they have 
one son, Charles S. 




ILLARD DeWITT is one of the 
representative and enterprising cit- 
izens of Grove Township. He came 
here in 1876, and has since made this place 
his home. 

Mr. DeWitt was born in Montgomery 
County, New York, November 29, 1826. 
His father, Willard DeWitt, Sr., was born in 
Massachusetts and lived to be 105 years old. 
He was of French ancestry, and fought in 
the war of 1812. His mother, nee Eliza- 
beth Mosier, was also a native of Mont- 
gomery County, New York. Mr. DeWitt is 
one of a family of twelve children, six sons 
and six daughters. When he was seventeen 
years of age the family removed to De Kalb 
County, Indiana, where his parents spent the 
remainder of their lives, the mother dying 
at the age of seventy-six years. Mr. DeWitt, 
Sr., was politically a Whig but subsequently 
became a Republican and Abolitionist. For 
twenty-five years he was a strong and zealous 
Methodist class-leader. 

Willard DeWitt, Jr., was reared to farm 
life, and was early taught those lessons of in- 
dustry and honesty which were so useful to 
hi in in after life. At the age of twenty-one 
he removed to Winnebago County, Illinois, 
where he resided several years and where he 
became acquainted with the lady whom he 
afterward married. January 18, 1850, he 
wedded Miss Delphia Montgomery, who was 
born in Springfield, Ohio, March 9, 1834, 
and was reared in Wells County, Indiana. 
She was the daughter of William and Eliza- 
beth (Jones) Montgomery, who were natives 
of Pennsylvania. For several years the father 



310 



I3IOGRAPIIICAL HISTORY 



was a successful teacher, and he afterward 

became a hotel manager. He died in La 
Porte, Indiana, at the age of forty years. 
The mother, who is now over ninety years of 
age, resides with her son in Cheyenne County, 
Kansas. Mr. and Mrs. DeWitt lived in Win- 
nebago County, until 1855, when they re- 
moved to Charles City, Floyd County, Iowa. 
In 1861 they removed to Jasper County, 
same State. They lived in Monroe five 
years, Mr. DeWitt being engaged in team- 
ing and freighting, which at that time was a 
profitable business. 1866 lie moved on a farm 
which he improved and on which be lived 
until 1876. In that year he sold out and 
bought 160 acres of Sam Osier, where he 
now resides. This place was improved by 
Silas Wheeler, an old pioneer of the town- 
ship, it being one of the first farms settled 
on in this part of the county. At the time 
of its purchase by Mr. DeWitt about the 
only buildings on it were an old house and a 
small granary. In 1884, at a cost of $1,600, 
he erected a comfortable two-story house 
with porches and bay windows. It is sit- 
uated on a natural building site and is sur- 
rounded by shade and ornamental trees. Mr. 
DeWitt has a fine grove of three acres and 
an orchard containing between 600 and 700 
fruit trees: apples, plums and small fruits. 
He has good fences and suitable out-build- 
ings for his stock. His farm is devoted to 
general agricultural pursuits and stock-rais- 
ing. Among his stock are some fine spec- 
imens. 

Mr. and Mrs. DeWitt have five children, 
viz.: James Willard, who is married, bus 
three children, and lives in Cedar County, 
Nebraska, George Lincoln, at home; Leti- 
cia, wife of M. F. Price, of Center Town- 
ship, this county, has two children ; I'. Grant, 
who is married, lias one child, ami lives in 
Grove Township; and John Harrison, at 



home. Four of their children died in in- 
fancy, namely: Antionica, in her twelfth 
year; John H., in his tenth year; William 
H., in his fifth year; and Cora May, at the 
age of thirteen months. 

Politically Mr. DeWitt was rocked in a 
Whig and Abolitionist cradle, and under such 
teaching grew to be a strong and radical Re- 
publican. He never aspired for public office, 
although he has served as president of the 
School Board. He is a man well informed 
on general topics and is one of the respected 
and honorable citizens of the township, lly 
good management and industry he has ac- 
quired a good property. He owns 2-40 acres 
of land in Grove Township, all under good 
state of cultivation. 

-... g . l M t .g...— 



5SAAC HANSEN, a native of Lillehedinge, 
Denmark, was born August 2, 1838, the 
son of Hans and Kesten (Anderson) Han- 
sen. The father died in Denmark, and the 
mother is still living, at the age of ninety- 
one years. They bad a family of eight chil- 
dren, of whom Isaac was the sixth child. He 
was reared to farm life, and received his 
education in the public schools. He remained 
at home nntil he was thirty-one years of age, 
when he left his native country for America, 
in 1869. lie came direct to Pottawattamie 
County, Iowa, which he has since made his 
home. He at once made a purchase of sixty- 
four acres of unimproved land, on section 6, 
Hazel Dell Township. He afterward pur- 
chased 130 acres of land in Roomer Town- 
ship, but has disposed of all this land except 
forty-four acres which he still retains. After 
his marriage Mr. Hansen purchased a farm 
of 160 acres on section 1, Hazel Dell Town- 
ship, to which he has since added until he 
now possesses 820 acres. In 1887 he erected 




^ 

4 










1 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COl'NTV. 



311 



a tine frame building, 26 x 34 feet, two stories 
high, with an annex 20 x 34, one story high, 
and also barns for stock and grain, the main 
one being 42 x 50 feet, and erected in 1883. 
II is house is surrounded by shade and orna- 
mental trees, etc. He is principally engaged 
in farming and stock-raising, and in the lat- 
ter quite extensively. Mr. Hansen has done 
much toward the building up and improve- 
ment of this county, and he stands among 
the well-to-do citizens of this community. 
He is a trustee of the Farmers' Alliance of 
Weston. In his political views he is non- 
partisan. 

Mr. Hansen was married, November 1, 
1875, to Maria Peterson, who was born in 
St. Taaroie, Denmark, June 2, 1842. They 
have four children, namely: Victoria M., 
born September 2, 1876; Vig^o, born March 
21, 1879; Peter, January 15, 1881, and Carl, 
September 9, 1884. The family are members 
of the Lutheran Church of Boomer Town- 
ship, and Mr. Hansen is a trustee of the 
same. 



;ANIEL B. CLARK, of Council Bluffs, 
is numbered among the early ssttlers of 
Pottawattamie County, the date of his 
location being May 10, 1852. He at that 
time settled on a claim which he purchased 
of a Mormon in Kane Township before the 
land was in market A few improvements 
had been made, a log cabin having been 
built and a small part broken, but no essen- 
tial improvements had been made. In 1853 
the land came into market. Mr. Clark en- 
tered the land and resided on it about thirty- 
two years. 

He was born near Batavia, Genesee County, 
New York, January 4, 1819. His parents 
were Eli K. and Eunice (Brown) Clark, both 

U5 



born in Connecticut The paternal grand- 
father of the subject of this sketch was also a 
native of Connecticut, and of English origin. 
He was a shoemaker by trade. Our subject 
possesses a memento or heirloom, consisting 
of a shoe-hammer used by his grandfather, 
and by request was given to the father of our 
subject as the eldest son of his father, and for 
the same reason Daniel B. Clark, being the 
eldest son of his father, came into possession 
of this heirloom, and it will thus descend to 
the eldest son of our subject. The mother of 
Mr. Clark also descended from an early Con- 
necticut family. The maternal grandfather 
of Mr. Clark was Daniel Brown, after whom 
he was named. Eli K. Clark and wife were 
married in their native State, in 1817, and 
the following year emigrated to Genesee 
County, New York, which was then regarded 
as the " far West." There he settled on a 
farm, where he continued to live until 1832 
or 1833, when they removed to Ashtabula 
County, Ohio, and settled on a farm, where 
they remained until death. The father was 
born June 22, 1794, and died October 14, 
1868, at the age of seventy-four years. The 
mother was born December 24, 1799, and 
died April 30, 1852. They were the parents 
of eleven children, ten of whom attained 
mature years: a son, Jerome, died at the acre 
of eight years. Six of their children are still 
living, at this writing. The subject of this 
sketch is the eldest. The second of the family, 
William II., died September 21, 1872; Piercy 
Ann is the wife of Thomas Lyman, and re- 
sides at Downer's Grove, Illinois; Huldah L. 
became the wife of Joseph Carpenter, and 
died March 29, 1864; Willard F. died April 
6, I860; OraE.,the second surviving brother, 
resides in Michigan; Jerome W. was the. 
next in order of birth; Phebe J. married, and 
died March 7, 1856; Altyn D., who resides 
in Iowa: Lois married Rev. Lyman Catlin, 



312 



BIOORAPIIICAL II I STORY 



now of Waterloo, [owa; Arista O., ia married 
and resides in Michigan. 

Daniel 1!. Clark, the Bnbjectof this notice. 
was reared to the occupation of farmer. He 
lived in Orleans County, New York, for about 
eight years, and then removed to Peoria 
County, Illinois, where he continued to reside 
until he came to Iowa in 1852, as already 
Stated. Mr. Clark has long been one of the 
well-known citizens of Pottawattamie County. 
He enlarged the place where he first settled, 
and made of it a beautiful home, where he 
lived tor many years. He became the owner 
of much valuable land elsewhere, and although 
he has sold the homestead he still owns a fine 
farm of 300 acres near the city of Council 
Bluffs. In the spring of 1884 Mr. Clark 
retired from the active duties of farm life 
and removed to this city, where he and his 
wile have a pleasant home. Politically he is 
a Republican, and is an esteemed and worthy 
citizen of Pottawattamie County. lie served 
his country in the war of the Rebellion, en- 
tering the army in 1861. He raised a com- 
pany of which he was commissioned Captain 
by Governor Kirk wood. II is command became 
Company II, of the Fifteenth Regiment Iowa 
Volunteer Infantry. He served his country 
faithfully until his health failed, and he was 
discharged for disability at Corinth, Missis- 
sippi, in dune, 18(32. II is eldest son was a 
soldier in Company D, Forty-fourth Regi- 
ment Iowa Volunteer Infantry. Three broth- 
ers of Mr. Clark also served in the war oi 
the Rebellion, viz.: Ora E., who was a mem- 
ber of liattery G, First Michigan Artillery; 
Altyn D. served in Company 1), First Regi- 
ment Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry; Aresta 
I)., a member of Company 1'.. Twenty-third 
Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. 

Mr. Clark was married at Ridgeway, Or- 
leans County, New York, October!, 184-0, to 
Miss Eleanor Pates, who was born in Madi- 



son County. New York. December 22. 1819. 
and they have had ten children, four only 
of whom attained mature years. The eldest, 
Edwin J., died January 30, 1873, in the 
thirty-second year ol his age; Ora is a farmer 
of Red Willow County, Nebraska; Emma J. 
is the wife of George W. Bartlett, of Red 
Willow County, Nebraska; and Samuel W. 
is a resident of the same county. Mr. and 
Mrs. Clark are faithful and consistent mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 



\ > > " £ • ! » 



m 



P. PETERSON was born in Sweden, 
I June 13, 1841, the only son and 
Jh° one of the four children of Peter 
and Hannah (Hawkins) Peterson. He at- 
tendee! school until he was thirteen years old 
and then worked at farming for a time. 
When he was eighteen he attended college 
one year. Having received a good education 
in bis native language, be again turned his 
attention to farming, at which he worked 
until he was twenty-two. Then he bade good 
by to home and friends and started for Amer- 
ica. Leaving Malmo be sailed for Copen- 
hagen, thence to Hull. England, thence to 
Liverpool, and from there across the ocean to 
Quebec, Canada. He came by rail and 
steamer to Chicago, then on to Henry County, 
Illinois, arriving at the latter place in 1864. 
In October of this year he enlisted in Com- 
pany I, Eighth Illinois Infantry, and joined 
his regiment at Memphis, Tennessee, from 
which place they marched to White Liver 
Landing. He was taken sick and confined in 
the hospital for some time. The latter part of 
February, 1865, he was removed from New 
Orleans by hospital boat to New York, and 
from there was sent West. Again he was 
taken sick, and he remained in hospital at 
Columbus, Ohio, for a time. 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



313 



After an honorable discharge he returned 
to Henry County, Illinois, from whence, in 
1867, lie came to Council Bluffs, Iowa. 
Here he was variously employed until the 
spring of 1874, when he obtained a position 
on the C. B. & Q. Railroad, as a labor and der- 
rick hand. He was soon promoted, and con- 
tinued work as a stone mason for several 
years. In 1880 he bought his farm of 160 
acres, which was then partly improved. 

March 7, 1882, Mr. Peterson married 
Nellie Anderson, daughter of Andrew and 
Blanda (Rombeck) Anderson. Five children 
have been born to them, viz.: Hannah Pau- 
line, Robert Henry, Harry Martinus, Lilly 
Ann and Clara Amelia. Mr. Peterson and 
his wife were reared Lutherans and to this 
faith they still cling. He is a man well 
informed on all general topics; is kind and 
affable in his manner; and is highly respected 
by all who know him. Politically he is a 
Republican. 

In connection with Mr. Peterson's family 
history it should be further stated that he 
and his sister, who resides at the old home 
in Sweden, are the only surviving members 
of the family, his father and mother having 
passed their lives and died in their native 
land. 

fRANK COLLARD, one of the substan- 
tial farmers of Valley Township, was 
born at Mineral Point, Wisconsin, Au- 
gust 25, 1855, a son of Royal Collard, who 
came from England to America in 1848, and 
settled on a farm in "Wisconsin. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Collard were born four children: Eliza- 
beth, who was born in England; Walter, born 
in Wisconsin; Frank and Charles. Politi- 
cally Mr. Collard was a Republican, and 
religiously a member of the Methodist Epis- 



copal Church. He died at the age of forty- 
Iwo years, and was a hard-working and indus- 
trious man, respected by all who knew him. 
Frank Collard, our subject, was reared to 
farm life, and in 1876 came to Iowa, settling 
on his present farm, then consisting of 240 
acres, and on which his brother Walter had 
made some improvements three years before. 
He has since added to this place until he now 
owns 320 acres of fine farm land. He is a 
practical farmer and stock-raiser. He was 
married in the fall of 1880 to Lizzie Martin, 
and they have two children: Irvin R. and 
Zella L. Politically Mr. Collard is a Repub- 
lican. 

- ^.g . Mt . g. 

M. ROBBINS is the owner of 160 
acres of land in section 13, Washing- 
^ ° ton Township, Pottawattamie County, 
where he has resided since 1878. An out- 
line of his life is herewith given : 

He was born in Herefordshire, England, 
February 19, 1853, son of Thomas and 
Georgenia (Morgan) Robbins, the former a 
native of Herefordshire and the latter of 
Gloucestershire. His mother died when he 
was six years old, and his father still lives in 
England. Our subject was educated in the 
common schools of his native land and re- 
mained thereuntil he was eighteen years old. 
While a boy he was for two years employed 
as a florist. At fourteen he engaged in the 
stock business, and continued to buy and sell 
stock for four years. In 1872 he came to 
America and settled near Davenport, in Scott 
County, Iowa, where he conducted a meat 
market for some time. Later, he engaged in 
farming near Davenport. In 1878, as already 
stated, he came here and purchased his pres- 
ent farm. It was then wild prairie land, but 
under his, judicious management and well 



;i i 



BIOGRAPHICAL iilsTnUY 



directed efforts it has assumed a different 
appearance, now being one of the l>est farms 
in the vicinity. He lias a good story and a 
half house, 16x24 feet, located on a natural 
building site, surrounded by a grove and 
orchard. His stables, fences, modern wind 
pump, and the whole premises all denote the 
prosperity of the owner. Big Silver Creek 
flows through his farm, affording an abund- 
ant supply of water for stock. This season 
Mr. Robbina is feeding forty-one head of 
steers, and has some tine cattle and good 
horses. 

Mr. Bobbins was married, in Scott County, 
Iowa, December 21, 1876, to Miss Maggie 
Harris, a native of Washington County, Iowa, 
reared and educated there. Her father, 
Henry Harris, was a native of the South, was 
a soldier in the late war, and died at Mem- 
phis, Tennessee, of disease contracted in the 
service. Her mother, nee Mary Tucker, was 
born in Des Moines County, Iowa, daughter 
of Hon. B. F. Tucker, one of Iowa's first 
Representatives. She is now a resident of 
Wichita, Kansas. Mr. and Mrs. Bobbins 
have one son, Eddy K. Mr. Robbins is a 
member and trustee of the Evangelical 
Church, and teacher of the Sabbath-school. 
Politically he affiliates with the Republican 
party. 

— ... ,i ? . 3n; . g 



[EORGE WRIGHT, deceased, formerly 
a farmer of Hazel Dell Township, was 
horn in Th.ircaston, Leicestershire, En- 
gland, April 12, 1819, learned the trades of 
brick- mason and plasterer, was married Jan- 
uary 16, 1842, to Elizabeth Woolen ton, who 
was born in the town of Thrusinton, Leices- 
tershire, May 30, 1821, and after hid mar- 
riage was employed as gardener and florist. 
In December, 1847, he emigrated to Amer- 



ica, locating first at St. Louis; in a few years 
he removed to Genoa, Nebraska, whence he 
was driven two years later by the Indians 
back to the Missouri River. In the spring 
of 1860 he settled on eighty acres of wild 
prairie land on section 3, Hazel Dell Town- 
ship, this county, improved it and remained 
upon it until his death, which occurred Octo- 
ber 13, 1876. Mrs. Wright is still living 
on the old home place. Mr. Wright was, 
and Mrs. Wright still is, a member of the 
Reorganized Church of the Latter- Day Saints. 
In their family are six children, namely: 
Frederick, who was born January 2, 1843; 
Emma E., born November 18, 1844, now the 
wife of A. 13. Smith, residing in Pottawatta- 
mie County, Iowa; George, born March 11, 
1847, also residing in this county; William, 
born October 2, 1852, is also a resident of 
Pottawattamie County; Sarah A., born Jan- 
uary 18, 1857, died August 15, 1858; and 
Mary J., born September 13, 1860, now the 
wife of George Duncan, of this county. 

George Wright, Jr., the subject of this 
paragraph, the third born in the above fam- 
ily, is a native of Leicestershire, England, 
came with his parents to this country and 
was brought upon a farm, assisting in open- 
ing up the home place just mentioned. Alter 
his marriage he located upon his farm on 
sections 3 and 4, consisting of 116 acres of 
uncultivated land, which he has since greatly 
improved, making a tine place, where he is 
devoted to general fanning and stock- raising. 
He is a self-made man, having risen from 
the bottom round of the ladder to the present 
comfortable station which he enjoys, by his 
own unaided efforts. He is a zealous Demo- 
crat, and has served as a member of the 
School Board, etc. He and his wife are 
members of the Reorganized Church of the 
Latter- Day Saints. October 'J, 1S72, he 
married Miss Alice E., daughter of William 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



315 



and Elizabeth (Holder) Gilson, who was 
born in Pennsylvania, May 11, 1852, and 
came to Iowa with her parents. In this 
family are five children: Lydia A., born 
August 5, 1873; George W., February 16, 
1876, and died April 1, 1878; Frank B., 
June 30, 1878; Adolph B., July 9, 1884; 
and Gracie E., March 5, 1890. 



— -- £ . } ■ . ffr ~- — 

§M. COONS, proprietor of the Willow 
Dale Farm on section 18, Macedonia 
9 Township, is one of the most enter- 
prising and successful farmers in that com- 
munity. He was born in Marion County, 
Iowa, January 20, 1853, a son of Lindsey 
Coons, a native of Highland County, Ohio, 
and of German ancestry. The mother of 
J. M. was before marriage R. J. Connaughey, 
of Irish ancestry. Mr. Lindsey Coons and 
wife were married in Highland County, 
Ohio, and in 1851 came to Marion County, 
Iowa, locating there as early settlers. The 
father resided in that county until his death 
in Ohio, while on a visit in 1867. He was a 
merchant for many years in Knoxville, 
Marion County, where his widow still re- 
sides. 

Mr. Coons, our subject, received a good 
education at Knoxville, served in his father's 
store for a time, and in 1875 came West to 
Mills County, this State, and engaged in 
farming, as that vocation was better suited 
to his nature than in-door work or even an 
out-door trade. At first he was employed 
by the month; then he rented land and fol- 
lowed agriculture upon his own account for 
awhile, and in 1880 bought sixty-two acres 
of wild prairie. This he has improved, and 
he has also purchased more land until ho 
now owns 300 acres, all well improved and 
furnished with the necessary and convenient 



buildings and enclosures. He is engaged in 
general farming and the rearing of live- 
stock, and enjoys success in these callings. 

Mr. Coons is a Democrat in his political 
principles. Has served as Township Trustee 
with acceptability. Is a member of Ruby 
Lodge, No. 415, of Macedonia. Both him- 
self and wife are members of the Christian 
Church at Lone Star, in Silver Creek Town- 
ship. He was married March 16, 1879, in 
Mills County, Iowa, to Miss C. E. Harbert, 
a lady of culture, who was born and reared 
in Mills County, and they have five children, 
viz.: Harbert Clive, Mary J., James Ray, 
Leona J. and Lindsey D. Mrs. Coons is a 
daughter of Parous and Mary (Uulick) Har- 
bert. 



F. HARBERT, a worthy citizen re- 
siding on section 18, Macedonia Town - 
9 ship, first came to this county and 
settled upon that place in 1881. He was 
born July 6, 1853, in Peoria County, Illi- 
nois, a son of Parens Harbert, a native of 
.Johnson County, Indiana, and of English 
and Scotch ancestry. Parens Harbert mar 
ried Mary Ann Hulick, a native of Indiana, 
and moved to Illinois in 1853. Some time 
afterward he returned to Indiana on a visit, 
and then in 1854 he came West with his 
family and settled in Mills County, Iowa, in 
pioneer times. He died in Glenwood, in 
1865, and his widow is now residing with 
her son, the subject of this sketch. They 
reared five children: America, now the wife 
of Joseph Cramer, of Wayne County, Ne- 
braska; B. F. was the next born; Katie, now 
the wife of J. M. Coons, of Macedonia Town- 
ship; Michael, who lives in Mills County; 
and John, a resident of Carson Township. 
Mr. Harbert was brought up a farmer; 



316 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



was but ten years of age when hie father 
died, and, being the eldest son, greater re- 
sponsibilities fell upon him. He now owns 
a fine farm of 180 acres. In politics he is a 
Democrat, and in religion a member of the 
Christian Church. He was married March 
4, 1880, to Miss Cynthia A. Cramer, who 
was born and roared in Mills County, a 
daughter of John and Elizabeth (McMullin) 
Cramer. 

t^ol - 1"" 



N. COPELAND, a prominent farmer 
of Eockford Township, was born in 
« North Carolina, April 27, 1811, son 
of Hugh and Martha (Wilson) Copeland, 
natives also of North Carolina and of Irish 
ancestry. Hugh Copeland, left an orphan 
when young, was reared by a tanner, whose 
trade he learned. At the age of twenty- 
one years he was married, given a set 
of tools, bought a piece of property and 
commenced business for himself, which he 
followed for a number of years. He after- 
ward moved to Jackson County, Indiana, 
where his wife died in 1820, leaving five 
children: T. N. (our subject), Tirzah, Soph- 
ronia, Elizabeth and Armstrong; all deceased 
excepting our subject. After the death of 
his wife Mr. Hugh Copeland resided at sev- 
eral places in Indiana, then settled in Bu- 
chanan County, Missouri, taking up claims. 
In the spring of 1853 he bought a farm in 
Fremont County, Iowa, and lived upon it 
several years. In the meantime he married 
his second wife, who died in 1&75, leaving 
nine children: \V. B.,John F., Hiram, Hugh, 
Abner, Hester, Asenath, Martha and Amos. 
After her death Mr. Copeland sold the farm 
and made hia home ill Sidney, Iowa, where 
his daughter kepi house for him until bis 
death in 1880. 



Mr. T. N. Copeland, the subject of this 
sketch, was brought up on a farm. From 
the age of twenty-two years he worked font 
years in a mill, in the meantime being mar- 
ried. He next bought a tract of heavy tim- 
ber land, which he improved for fifteen years; 
and then, in 1852, he came to Pottawattamie 
County, and has ever since resided in Rock- 
ford Township. There he first bought a 
claim and entered 800 acre6 of the present 
place, which was then wild land, prairie and 
timber; but a few acres were cleared, and 
here he began anew, built a residence thirty- 
two feet square and two-stories high and 
making all the buildings necessary for a com- 
fortable and convenient home, including an 
orchard of two acres, a fine grove of orna- 
mental trees, etc. The premises denote pros- 
perity and good judgment. At the present 
time be has 240 acres of fine land, on section 
3, township 77 north and range 44 we6t, in 
the vicinity of Loveland. In actual culti- 
vation there are 150 acres, while the remain- 
der is in hay, pasture and timber. He gave 
the site for a grist-mill, afterward bought a 
half interest in the mill and ran it for ten 
years. He also dealt extensively in cattle, 
horses and hogs, but not recently. Also he 
was for a time an extensive dealer in grain, 
with considerable profit. Now, in his old 
age, he is enjoying the well-earned results of 
an industrious and honorable life. 

Politically bis first vote was cast for the 
old Whig leader, Henry Clay, for President 
of the United States, and he has been a re- 
liable Republican since the organization of 
that party, having done much efficient work for 
the advancement of its primary principles. 
He has been treasurer of his township twenty 
years, and school director for a number of 
years. 

October 15. 1835, Mr. Copeland married 
Mies Barbara, daughter of Thomas and Mary 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



ai7 



(Shafer) Frazier, parents natives of Tennes 
see and Pennsylvania, respectively, ami of 
German and Irish ancestry. They had eight 
children, as follows: Chapman, who resides 
in Harrison County, this State; Levina; 
Lewis Christian, residing in Buchanan, Mis- 
souri; James, in this county; John, deceased; 
Sarah, wife of Francis Freud, in Illinois; 
Malinda, wife of W. B. Copeland; and Eliz- 
abeth, now Mrs. Reuben Coffee. Mrs. Cope- 
land, the third child in the above family, 
was born Ma}' 12, 1816, and was married 
when past nineteen years of age. The chil- 
dren of Mr. and Mrs. Copeland have been 
ten in number, namely: John Fletcher, who 
died in infancy; Mary Sophronia, now Mrs. 
John Goss, in Harrison County; James Arm- 
strong, now deceased; Sarah, wife of David 
Henderson, in Harrison County; William 
Mead, deceased; Tirzah, married Jay Hutch- 
inson and resides in Rockford Township; 
Henry Clay, a resident of this county; and 
Hugh and Martha, deceased. The family 
are members of the Methodist Episcopal and 
Baptist churches. All the children are set- 
tled in the vicinity, and all the grandchildren 
attend the same school. 



■% 



a 



fREDERICK WRIGHT, the first child 
of George and Elizabeth Wright, noticed 
elsewhere, was born in Leicestershire, 
England, January 2, 1842, and came to this 
country with his parents in 1846. He was 
brought up to farm life in the pioneer West. 
On attainingto manhood he engaged injvarious 
occupations at Council Bluffs for seven years, 
saving up some money, with which he pur- 
chased a small farm in Boomer Township, of 
forty acres of wild prairie. There lie erected 
a residence, but soon after .vard he returned 
to Council Bluffs and November 25, 1868, 



married Miss Francis E. Hough, a daughter 
of J. R. and Cedelia Hough, and born in 
this county September 30, 1848, supposed 
to be the first white female child born in 
Pottawattamie County. After his marriage 
lie settled upon his farm, where he made his 
home until 1883, when he came to his pres- 
ent place on section 3, Hazel Dell Township. 
This fine place comprises 120 acres. He 
also owns a tract of six acres of timber land 
in Rockford Township. His farm he lias im- 
proved from a wild condition; has erected a 
neat frame residence 26x38 feet, with barns, 
etc. His place is devoted to general farm- 
ing and the rearing of live-stock. He is an 
energetic farmer, standing in the front ranks 
of the yeomanry of this enterprising section 
of the country. Politically he is not a part- 
izan, as he casts his vote for the best man of 
any party. He is a member of the Mutual 
Protection Society, is always ready to assist 
in anything tending to the public welfare, 
and is a popular man. His two children are: 
Ada, born August 21, 1870, and Joel R., 
born May 14, 1876. 



tOVRIDGE SAMUEL AXTELL, now 
a prominent farmer of Boomer Town- 
ship, was born November 24, 1832, at 
Sheakleyville, Mercer County, Pennsylvania. 
His grandfather was Thomas Axtell, born in 
New Jersey in 1750, was a Revolutionary 
soldier, and settled soon after the war in 
Washington County, Pennsylvania. He first 
married Mary Tuttle, and they had eight 
children: Nathan, Hannah, Sally, Cecilia, 
Polly, Phoebe, Ruth and Samuel. After his 
wife's death he was again married, to Nelly 
McLain, and they had two sons: Charles and 
Thomas. Samuel Axtell, above mentioned, 
the father of the subject of our biography, 



318 



BIOQRAPHIOAL HISTORY 



was born about 1794, was reared on a farm, 
graduated at Washington College, and then 
took a thorough course in the profession of 
medicine. He married Mary Lovridge, the 
youngest ot three daughters (the only chil- 
dren) of John Lovridge, a German farmer of 
Washington County, Pennsylvania. Soon 
after their marriage they moved to Sheakley- 
villr, Pennsylvania, where the Doctor had a 
large and successful practice for nearly fifty 
years. They raised ten children, namely: 
Bethsheba (a mute), who married Peter Bur- 
nett (also a mute); William Harvey, a physi- 
cian of Sheakleyville, Pennsylvania; Permelia, 
wife of G. W. Lord, of Meadville, Pennsyl- 
vania; Jane, wife of Louis Burson, of Spar- 
land, Illinois; Hannah, wife of Dr. J. M. 
Dillie, of Cooperstown, Pennsylvania; Milton 
Blochley, M. D., of Pepin, Wisconsin; Ahijah 
Clinton, M. D., of Youngsville, Pennsyl- 
vania; Lovridge Samuel, the subject of this 
sketch; Nathan Hutton, minister of a Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church at Chicago, Illinois; 
Joseph Monroe, whose biography will be 
found elsewhere in this volume. Of this large 
family all but one, Permelia, have raised 
large families, and are at this date still living. 
L. S. Axtell had the advantage of a good 
common-school education, and also attended 
Allegheny College during the seasons of 
1850-'51-'52, teaching during the winters. 
In 1854 he was chosen, in connection with 
Dr. Owens, of Conneautville, Pennsylvania, 
as agent for a colony of about 200 families in 
Western Pennsylvania, who proposed remov- 
ing to Kansas, and as such agent he made an 
extensive tour through Kansas in the fall of 
that year. He was one of the judges of 
election appointed by Governor Reader at the 
first general election ever held in Kansas, 
March 30, 1855, when the polls of his pre- 
cinct, now Burlingame, were forcibly taken 
possession of by a bordeof Missourians, and 



Colonel Younger, of Jackson County, Mis- 
souri, a relative of the notorious Younger 
brothers, was elected to the Kansas Le<ris- 
lature. During 1855 Mr. Axtell taught 
school at Lee's j^postoffice), now Lee's Summit, 
in Jackson County, Missouri. September 
14 of that year he married Sarah, daughter 
of Ira Ilalloway, a farmer of New Ver- 
non, Pennsylvania, and both were employed 
at the school abovo referred to until July, 
1850, when they removed to Council Bluffs, 
Iowa. Here Mr. Axtell was employed about 
a year by J. P. Williams at carpenter work, 
a trade he had partially acquired during his 
minority. 

At Council Bluffs a daughter, Flora, was 
born, and a few months later, April 24, 1857, 
the mother died, to be followed the succeed 
ing fall by her babe. After the death of his 
wife and child, Mr. Axtell commenced teach- 
ing the public school, then the only oiif, in 
Council Bluffs. It was taught in a large losr 

O DO 

building on Madison, now First street, that 
had been erected by the Mormons as a church, 
and afterward appropriated by the gentiles as 
a court-house. There Mr. Axtell labored 
hard, and under the circumstances success- 
fully, with an average daily attendance of 
eighty-five pupils and a highest daily attend- 
ance of 105. April 17, 18G2, Mr. Axtell 
married Frances Sarah Wade, daughter ot* 
Henry and Mary (Carter) Wade. Her parents 
were natives of England, emigrating in 1850 
to St. Louis, Missouri, and removing in 1854 
to Council Bluff's. Mr. Wade raised five 
children, all daughters, namely: Mary Ann, 
Frances, Boseanna, Isabella and Elizabeth. 
Frances, with whom we are esjiecially inter- 
ested, was born January 16, 1841. 

With the exception of about a year spent 
in the Colorado gold mines, near Black Hawk, 
Mr. Axtell taught almost continuously in 
Council Bluffs until the spring of 1805. 







i?jGL ^^^t 






$JM 



■ 





cJtpClS^-L CL, cs ■f(fQfs t l / c/&4^' 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



319 



During the latter portion of this time he 
taught the high school, and was also Superin- 
tendent of schools for the county. His 
health being seriously impaired by his long 
confinement in the school-room, he removed, 
in April, 1865, to his present place of resi- 
dence in Boomer Township, arid commenced 
his farm life. Mr. Axtell has been more than 
ordinarily successful. His original farm of 
120 acres has grown to about 400, and sup- 
ports a large stock of hogs, cattle and horses. 
His buildings, reared by his own hands, are 
large, neat and commodious. Mr. Axtell has 
been very successful, too, as a fruit-grower. 
His orchard, commenced over twenty years 
ago, has by later additions grown to be over 
ten acres and has never failed for a single 
season, since large enough to bear, to yield a 
plentiful supply of fruit. 

Politically Mr. Axtell has from early man- 
hood, especially since his Kansas experience, 
acted witli the Republican party. He repre- 
sented this county in the Legislature of 
1873-'74, and was very appropriately made 
Chairman of the Committee on Schools. 
July 30, 1874, he was stricken with paralysis 
of the right side, subsiding gradually into 
the risrht lejr. From this attack he has hut 
partially recovered, going about with diffi- 
culty by the help of a cane. 

In religious matters Mr. Axtell, though for- 
merly a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, is now considered liberal, or skep- 
tical. While retaining a reverent belief in 
the existence and beneficence of God and a 
strong hope of future life, he has lost all 
confidence in so-called revelation or proph- 
ecy and the conflicting dogmas of human 
creeds. 

Mr. Axtell aud his estimable wife are enjoy- 
ing in comfort the quiet evening of their 
active lives, surrounded by a pleasant family 
to whom their highest ambition is to leave a 



character unsullied and an example worthy 
of their imitation. They have eight children, 
born and named as follows: Lovridge Hutton, 
born April 9, 1864; Charles Monroe, May 7, 
1866; Ida Permelia, October 4, 1868; 
Aggie Jane, January 4, 1871; Henry Wade, 
September 25, 1874; Frank, February 13, 
1876, died one year later; Walter Gar- 
field, born May 7, 1879; and Spencer Bur- 
son, August 27, 1882. 



HRISTOPHER O. MYNSTER, a pio- 
neer of Pottawattamie County, was born 
in the city of Copenhagen, Denmark, 
June 24, 1796. He was reared to the busi- 
ness of merchandising, and married Miss 
Maria Jensen, wdio was also born in the capi- 
tal city of Denmark. Their son, Wilhelm, 
was born in 1843. In 1846 Mr. and Mrs. 
Mynster, with their only child, came to 
America and located in the city of Washing- 
ton, District of Columbia, where Mr. Myn- 
ster engaged in merchandising. When the 
gold fever in California broke out, Mr. Myn- 
ster formed plans for going to the Pacific 
coast, and started westward in the summer of 
1850. Reaching Council Bluffs, he was 
favorably impressed with the appearance of 
the country, and with the promises that real 
estate gave he decided to stop here. He 
accordingly bought a large number of claims 
of Mormon residents who were about to 
leave. Returning to Washington, he brought 
out his family in the spring of 1851, and 
settled at Council Bluffs. But he did not 
long survive, becoming a victim of that fatal 
disease, cholera, his death occurring on the 
16th of August, 1852. The sudden death 
of Mr. Mynster and the consequent unsettled 
state of his business served as an opportunity 



820 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



for unprincipled men, who, taking advantage 
of circumstances, "jumped 1 ' most of the 
claims that Mr. Mynster had purchased, and 
deprived the family of much of the lands 
that properly belonged to them. Mrs. Myn- 
Bter, however, deprived by the death of her 
husband, took charge of his business and 
soon proved that she possessed remarkable 
business capacity, although not able to retain 
much of the land that her husband had pur- 
chased. She bought the land that now con- 
stitutes the Mynster Addition tu the city of 
Council Bluffs, which she laid out and real- 
ized much therefrom. In 1882 she erected 
in the city what is known as the Mynster 
Blocks, on each side of Broadway. 

The Mynster Park, where she now resides, 
is a most beautiful locality. The place com- 
prises several hundred acres of timber land, 
which she obtained in 1860, and also a num- 
ber of beautiful and remarkable springs, 
some of which contain valuable medicinal 
properties; and they, together with the 
beautiful surrounding scenery, promise in 
the near future to make a popular resort. At 
this writing she is about to lay out Mynster 
Park into lots, with an avenue 100 feet wide, 
and has obtained from the city a charter for 
a street car or motor line through the same, 
and by the time this sketch is published it 
will be built ami many handsome residences 
erected on the same. W. A. Mynster, her 
only son, is a very prominent lawyer of 
Council Bluffs, and the father of four sons 
and one daughter. 

Mrs. Mynster was much younger than her 
husband, having been born in 1823, and is 
certainly a lady of marked ability and busi- 
ness capacity. Though Mr. Mynster did not 
long survive after his removal to Iowa, yet 
he lived long enough to establish the charac- 
ter of an upright, honest anil energetic citi- 
zen, lie was a COnsisteiit member of the 



Lutheran Chinch, a kind husband and father, 
and in all respects an estimable citizen. 

£ ■ ! » ■ { • % ■•« - 



LEX. OSLER, a member of the Board 
of Supervisors of Pottawattamie County, 
is a popular and esteemed resident of 
Grove Township and an early settler of the 
county. He came here in 1864 and has since 
made this place his home. 

Mr. Osier was born in Randolph County, 
Indiana, February 6, 1850, the son of Or- 
man and Louisa (Banta) Osier. His father 
was born in Maryland, near Baltimore, of 
German extraction, and his mother was a 
native of the Buckeye State. They were 
married in Randolph County, Indiana, and, 
in 1856, moved to Benton County, Iowa. 
They made their home in that county until 
1864, when they came to this place. Here 
the father improved a farm and here they 
both >pent the remainder of their days, both 
dying in the spring of 1872, the father at 
the age of fifty and the mother forty-tive. 
They left eight children, five sons and three 
daughters. Alex, spent his youth at farm 
work and obtained his education in the pub- 
lic schools of Benton and Pottawattamie 
counties, lowa. In 1873 he located on the 
land which he has since improved and which 
is now under an excellent state of cultivation. 
Mr. Osier erected a good frame house on a 
natural building site, planted a grove aud 
orchard, built a barn, has a modern wind- 
mill, and his farm is well fenced. He is 
here engaged in general farming and stock- 
raising. 

Mr. Osier was married, April 22, 1872, to 
Miss Hannah E. Johnson, a native of Ohio. 
Her father, John R. Johnson, came to this 
county in 1871, and resided here until his 
death oecurrcd , 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



321 



Mr. and Mrs. Osier have two children: 
Benjamin Adrian and Ethel Louisa. Their 
first born, Orraan, died at the age of six 
years. Politically the subject of this sketch 
is a Republican. He is one of the stanch 
members of that party in his county. He 
has served as a Justice of the Peace and in 
other minor county offices. As a member of 
the Board of Supervisors he is an efficient 
and popular officer, filling the position with 
credit to himself and also to his constituents. 
Mr. Osier is a gentleman in the prime of life. 
He is frank and cordial in his manner, is 
noted for his integrity, and is honored and 
respected by all who know hiin. 



fR. HOUGH, a farmer and raiser of live- 
stock in Hazel Dell Township, was 
13 born in Oswego County, New York, 
August 7, 1821, the son of Joel and Sally 
(Stillson) Hough, natives of Connecticut, and 
of Irish and German ancestry. After their 
marriage the parents moved from Connecti- 
cut into the State of New York; in 1841 
they came to Lee County, Iowa, where they 
spent the remainder of their days, the mother 
dying October 19, 1842, and the father about 
1844. J. P., the youngest of their children, 
and the only one now living, was reared in 
his native State, and was nineteen years of 
age when he came to Iowa with his parents. 
April 5, 1842, he married Miss Cedilia P. 
Spinnings, who was born in Oneida County, 
New York, June 30, 1824, the daughter of 
Edward H. and Eliza (Darling) Spinnings, 
natives of the Empire State and of German 
and Irish descent. Mrs. Hough is the eldest 
of their three children. She has one brother 
and one sister, the former in Colorado and the 
latter in California. After his marriage Mr. 
Hough located in Lee County, just men- 



tioned, and in 1848 he removed to Pottawat- 
tamie County, locating in what is now Hazel 
Dell Township. Two years afterward he 
moved into Harrison County, and two years 
after that again he returned to this county, 
residing near Council Bluffs a year,and finally 
he purchased a claim of about eighty acres 
on section 8, Hazel Dell Township. He has 
since entered 120 acres adjoining and pur- 
chased more, until he now has a total of 326 
acres, on sections 8, 9, 4 and 5. When he 
first settled there the only improvement was 
a log cabin and five acres fenced, and he has 
since thoroughly improved the place and 
made a home as attractive as any in that part 
of the county; but he had to undergo many 
hardships and suffer much and long before 
he reached the topmost round of the ladder. 
Besides thus earning his own prosperity he 
has also done much toward the improvement 
of the community. His present commodious 
residence, a frame 28 x 20 with an addition 
of fourteen feet square, was erected in 1867. 
Beautiful shade trees ornament the grounds, 
and good barns, etc., which he has erected for 
his stock and grain. 

Politically he has been an active Demo- 
crat, taking a zealous and intelligent interest 
in public affairs. He has been Township 
Trustee, member of the School Board, etc. 
Not only has he witnessed the growth of the 
county from its primeval state to its present 
high stage, but he has put his own " shoulder 
to the wheel " and aided in the processes 
which have been so effectual, and thus has 
won for himself a large circle of friends. He 
is a member of the Farmers' Alliance. He 
has had eight children, namely: Morris A., 
George R., Frances and Adelbert, all residents 
of Hazel Dell Township, Frances being the 
wife of Frederick Wright; Edgar B. and 
Laura Ellen, both deceased. The latter was 
the wife of Henry Cafftrty, a resident of this 



;J22 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



township; Seraph C, also deceased, the wife 
of Epliraiin Ross, of Harrison County; Ida 
A., wife of Isaac Goodwin, of Colorado. 



-3~H 



II. KELLER is one of the intelligent, 
enterprising and successful citizens of 
* Grove Township, Pottawattamie 
County, Iowa. He came to this place in the 
fall of 1880, and has since made it his home. 
Mr. Keller was born near Newark, Licking 
County, Ohio, February 4, 1848. His fath- 
er, H. M. Keller, also a native of Licking 
County, is a son of Jacob Keller, a Pennsyl- 
vania Dutchman, who came to Ohio from 
Pennsylvania in 1796, and was one of the 
early settlers of eastern Ohio. The mother 
of our subject, nee Anna Henton, was born 
in Fairfield County, Ohio. Her father, John 
Henton, was a native of Virginia and a de- 
scendant of an old family of that State. Mr. 
and Mrs. Keller still reside in Licking Coun- 
ty, where they have a competence. They 
reared a family of three sons and three 
daughters, the subject of this sketch being 
the third born, and the only one in the State 
of Iowa. He was reared on a farm and re- 
ceived his education in the public schools. 
He learned the trade of plasterer, at which 
he worked at intervals for a number of years. 
In 1880 Mr. Keller came to this county 
and bought his present farm of Henry Eise- 
mau. Since that time he has spent much 
money in the improvement of his place, hav- 
ing built B house and (lone a large amount of 
fencing. His house is situated on a beauti- 
ful building site; is 1(5 x 30 feet, two stories 
high, and has an addition 20 x 2(3 feet. It is 
surrounded by a grove and orchard compris- 
ing four acres. The whole farm is well cul- 
tivated mid everything about the place shows 
the thrift and good ta8te of the owner. ( )f 



the 200 acres in his farm, 160 acres are in 

section 8 and forty acres are in section 20. 

Mr. Keller feeds to his stoi:k all the grain he 

raises, usually keeping about forty head of 

cattle besides hogs. 

September 29, 1870, is the date of Mr. 

Keller's marriage with Miss Emma R. De- 
ri 

holt, a native of Licking County, Ohio. She 

is the daughter of William and Barbara 
o 

(Moore) Debolt, the former a native of Penn- 
sylvania and the latter of Virginia. To them 
were born Biz daughters and four sons. Mrs. 
Debolt died in Ohio, and Mr. Debolt is still 
living in that State. Mr. and Mrs. Keller 
have six children, viz.: Maud, Benjamin, Ina, 
Viola, Clyde and Oliver. Mr. Keller, his 
wife and eldest daughter are members of the 
Christian Church. He is a Republican and 
lias served the public as a member of the 
School Board. He is a man of the strictest 
integrity, and is frank and open in his man- 
ner. He is considered socially, morally and 
financially one of the best citizens of Grove 
Township. 



fG. GARNER, of section 33, Macedonia 
Township, was born in Carroll County, 
a Illinois, near Cherry Grove, March 16, 
1859, the son of J. F. and Mary (Curry) Gar- 
ner; the former was born in Jackson Count}', 
Illinois, and was the son of Frank Garner, 
one of the first settlers of Cherry Grove. Illi- 
nois; the latter was born in Missouri, but was 
reared in G rant Count v. Wisconsin, near 
White Oak Springs. They reared ten chil- 
dren, of whom F. G. was the fourth child of 
six sons and six daughters. Our subject re- 
sided for twenty two yoars in the same house, 
engaged at farm work, receiving his educa- 
tion in the public schools and at Georgetown, 
Illinois. lie came here in 1SS2, and pur- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY 



;!:>;: 



chased his present farm of 1G0 acres of his 
uncle, 1. G. Garner, who had partly improved 
the land. It is located two and one-fourth 
miles west of Macedonia. 

He was married, March 19, 1889, to Miss 
Nettie A. Wright, who was born in Grant 
County, Wisconsin, the daughter of David J. 
and Nettie M. (Park) Wright, the former a 
native of New York, and the latter of Ches- 
ter, Randolph Comity, Illinois. The mother 
was one year old when her father died, and 
she was a graduate of theMt. Morris schools. 
Mrs. Garner was seven years of age when her 
parents removed to Chicago, Illinois, where 
they resided four years, and then removed to 
Dubuque. The father died there in April, 
1890, and the mother still resides at that 
place. Mr. and Mrs. Garner have one son, 
Charles W., who was born May 7, 1890. 
Politically Mr. Garner is a Democrat. Mrs. 
Garner is a member of the Baptist Church, 
having been connected with the Second 
Baptist Church at Dubuque. 



►*Mf< 



fAMES ROBINSON, on section 30, 
Macedonia Township, is a native of 
Yorkshire, England, horn April 3, 1848, 
the son of James and Martha (Rainbow) 
Robinson. He was a boy of four years when 
his parents first came to America and settled 
in Wayne County, New York, where they 
resided four years, and then moved to John- 
son County, Iowa, in 1856, where they set- 
tled and resided eight years, and then moved 
to Iowa County. The father died May 12, 
1886, and the mother died June 20, 1886. 
They raised nine children, six sons and three 
daughters, of whom James was the sixth 
child. In 1875 our subject visited the Paci- 
fic coast at Oregon, Washington and Califor- 
nia, and remained until 1876, when he 



returned home. He bought 120 acres of 
wild land in this county, and in 1877 moved 
on the same. He is one of the pioneer 
threshers of the county, and was one of the 
first to use a steam thresher, and is a prac- 
tical and experienced engineer. 

Mr. Robinson was married in Jefferson 
County, Iowa, February 1, 1882, to Emma 
Summers, who was born and reared in Iowa, 
and was the daughter of William Summers. 
They have four chldren : Grace Ethel, James 
Walter, Benjamin Roy and Inez Beryl. 
Politically Mr. Robinson is a Republican, and 
is a member of the I. O. (). F., lodge No. 
421, and of the Ruby Lodge, No. 415, F. & 
A. M., at Macedonia. 



W. SN YDER, business manager of 
the Council Bluffs Nonpareil, was 
1° born in Luzerne County, Pennsylva- 
nia, in 1841, and in 1859 emigrated to Dixon, 
Illinois. At the breaking out of the war he 
enlisted in the Thirteenth Illinois Volunteer 
Infantry, the first three-years, regiment sworn 
into service for the war. He had a continu- 
ous service of five years lacking only twenty- 
six days. In the first attack on Vicksburo-, 
lasting three days, which was ended by the 
charge at Chickasaw Bayou, he was wounded 
and taken prisoner, and was dropped from the 
rolls of his regiment for four months as 
" killed in action." He was made Brevet 
Major for meritorious service in the field. 

Returning from the war in March, 1866, 
he came to Iowa and located in Cedar Falls, 
where he engaged in journalism, becoming 
editor of the Cedar Falls Gazette, and retain- 
ing that position for thirteen years. He was 
also Postmaster for over eight years, resign- 
ing the office in 1883. He then moved to 
Red Oak, where he was publisher of the Ex- 



324 



BIOGRAPHICAL U1ST011Y 



press for seven years; and finally, in Decem- 
ber, 1889, he purchased an interest in the 
Council Bluffs Nonpareil and became its 
manager. This paper wae established thirty- 
six years ago. It is the only morning paper 
in the city, and has the associated morning 
and evening franchise, It is one of the lead- 
ing dailies of Iowa, is widely read, and is 
known as a progressive, enterprising paper. 
It is edited by Carl Snyder. 

The subject of this sketch married Miss 
Fannie Knott at Waterloo, and they have one 
son, named Carl. 

— ~-§~*-Hs~~ — 



;R. C. B. JUDD, of Council Bluffs, is 
perhaps best known abroad by the great 
success to which he has attained in the 
manufacture of voltaic and galvanic belts, 
which from their intrinsic value and remark- 
able curative properties have attained a wide 
reputation. Dr. Judd is known at home, 
both for the fact above mentioned and as a 
successful business man and enterprising 
citizen. Re was born at Loudon, New 
Hampshire, lie has made his own way in 
life from early boyhood. He lost his mother 
when a young lad, and left the parental roof 
when but nine years of age. He was pos- 
sessed of a somewhat roving disposition, and 
at the age of fourteen years we find him on 
the Pacific coast, struggling to secure a liveli- 

h 1 and also to obtain some knowledge of 

books, as he even then had an ambition to 
qualify himself for the medical profession. 
lie succeeded by unceasing ctl'ort, and in 1875 

graduated at the Pacific Medical College. 
Soon after entering upon the practice of his 
profession his health failed, ami he therefore 

el to give up his practice and resume 

travel. Going to old Mexico, lie was so un- 
fortunate as to lose what capital he had 



accumulated, and also suffered from an attack 
of yellow lever. It was there he conceived 
the idea of manufacturing electric bells, for 
which he has since become so noted. He is 
quite an inventor, having originated thirteen 
different devices. He came to Council Bluffs 
in 1882, and immediately began the manu- 
facture of electric goods. It is safe to say 
that his electric belts are second to none 
manufactured. Their use is not confined to 
our own country, but he also sends many to 
Europe. He makes four kinds of belts, as 
well as trusses, e.tc. Dr. Judd has also an 
office in Chicago, the location being at 70 
Madison Street. He employs about 200 
agents to introduce and sell his goods, all of 
which is manufactured at his work-rooms in 
Council Bluffs. Dr. Judd is also one of the 
leading real-estate dealers of this city. The 
firm in that branch of business being Judd, 
Wells & Co., of which Dr. Judd is president; 
and he is also president of the Real-estate Ex- 
change, and is engaged in many other enter- 
prises. Not less than 200 houses were erected 
by this firm in 1889. The success to which 
Dr. Judd has attained is due to his inherent 
energy and enterprise. 

Dr. Judd was married in Council Bluffs, 
to Miss Anna Bryant, of this city. 

& » 3"£ ' "s — 



,LBERT NORDYKE is one of the well- 
known citizens of Grove Township, 
Pottawattamie County, Iowa. He was 
born near Ivokoino, 1 Ioward County, Indiana, 
June 27, 1850, son of John Nordyke, a 
native of Ohio. His grandfather, Daniel 
Nordyke, was born in Tennessee, and was of 
German extract ion. Mr. Nordyke's mother, 
u, , Anna Moon, was born and reared in 
Ohio, the daughter of Jesse Moon, a native 
of Tennessee. When Albert was five years 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



325 



of age his parents removed to Clinton 
County, Ohio, and when he was sixteen years 
old they went to Lewis County. Missouri. 
From that place they removed to Macon 
County, Missouri; thence to Caldwell County, 
same State; and thence to Marshall County, 
Iowa. The father was a farmer all his life, 
and died in Marshall County. His widow, 
a well preserved lady for her years, makes 
her home with her son, Albert. 

The subject of this sketch was reared to 
farm life, and obtained his education in the 
public schools. In the spring of 1879 he 
came from Marshall County to his present 
location. In 1883 he purchased from Rev. 
Samuel Smith the farm on which he now 
lives. It consists of seventy-seven and a 
half acres of rich prairie soil. Fifteen acres 
are in timber. A school-house is located on 
the southeast corner of the farm, which is 
four miles and a half east of Carson. Mr. 
Nordyke is here engaged in general farming 
and stock-raising, and also makes a specialty 
of the manufacture of sorghum, having suc- 
cessfully operated a mill for fourteen seasons. 
His factory is well arranged with all the 
modern conveniences — brick fire- vault and 
modern pans for boiling and skimming. He 
is able to manufacture as good syrup as can 
be made in western Iowa, and his output is 
from 1,100 to 2,000 gallons per annum. He 
finds local sale at good prices for all he can 
make. 

Mr. Nordyke was married in Caldwell 
County, Missouri, December 29, 1875, to 
Miss Mary E. Moorman, a native of Green 
County, Ohio, and a daughter of Thomas 
and Rebecca Moorman. Six children have 
blessed this union, namely: Myrtle, Carrie, 
Dalton L., Alma, Ada, and babe, Ralph A. 
Mrs. Nordyke is a member of the Christian 
Church. Politically Mr. Nordyke affiliates 
with the Republican party. He is a man in 



the prime of life, and is regarded by all who 
know him as an honorable and upright 
citizen. 

■■■■■ £ ■ >«' ■ & ■■■■ 



fOHN GREEN JONES, a prominent 
farmer of Rockford Township, was born 
in Putnam County, Indiana, March 28, 
1834. His parents, Hardin and Asenath 
(Deweese) Jones, were natives of Kentucky, 
whose ancestry remotely were Dutch, Irish 
and Welsh. Hardin Jones was born in 
Kentucky, September 17, 1810, and removed 
to Indiana, where his father died in 1853, 
leaving a wife and fourteen children. The 
children were: Malinda, married Hugh 
Adams, and afterward died; Hardin was the 
second; Lucinda, married Hugh Adams, and 
afterward died; Ewing G., deceased; Sarah, 
who married Luke Sales, and died in Illinois; 
Rebecca, now the widow of Thomas Sales, 
and residing in Appanoose County, Iowa; 
William M. and Jonathan, both deceased; 
Leanna, who married Luke Sailes, and is now 
deceased; Allen, who lives in Mills County, 
this State; Elizabeth, who married Joseph 
Skelton, and both are now dead; America, 
now the widow of Josiah Skelton, and re- 
siding in Pottawattamie County; James S., 
a resident of Rockford Township; and Har- 
riet, who died in infancy. 

Mr. Hardin Jones in 1832 married Asenath 
Deweese, a native of Kentucky, who was 
born January 1, 1810, the daughter of David 
and Elizabeth Deweese, who were the parents 
of a large family, and moved to Indiana, 
where they both died. Mrs. Jones was the 
youngest of their children. After marriage 
he purchased a farm of 100 acres, heavy 
timber land, and improved it until the fall 
of 1855, which he sold and moved to Iowa, 
when he settled iu Rockford Township, this 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



comity, upon 230 acres of prairie and timber 
land, which lie purchased of G. Beebe, which 
had a cabin on it and twenty-five acres broken, 
and then proceeded to improve it. He after- 
ward erected a frame house, 28x32, and one 
and a half stories high, built substantial out- 
houses, etc., and followed both grain and 
stock farming until his death. His first 
wife, already mentioned, died in 1859, and 
he then married Mary Skelton, in October, 
that year, and she died March 9, 1881; and 
he next married, in October, same year, Bru- 
notta Moss, who survived her marriage only 
about eighteen months. In February, 1883, 
he married Eliza Mnllennix, and she died 
July 10, 1886; but he survived her death 
hut a short time, dying March 20, 1887. 
He was Judge of Pottawattamie County, 
and took an active part in the political affairs 
of the community. Was Justice of the Peace 
twenty-one years. Deputy Sheriff for several 
terms, and held other official relations. He 
was a member of the regular Primitive Bap- 
tist Church, and the clerk for forty years. 

In his family were the following children: 
Malinda Jane, horn May 20, 1833, and since 
died; John G., the subject of this sketch; 
Martha E., horn January 11, 1836, married 
A. L. Jones (since deceased), and now resides 
in Harrison County, this State; Amanda A 
E., born April 29, 1837, married John A. 
Keel, and they reside in Harrison County; 
Mary J., born November 16, 1838. married 
Joseph Mosb, and they live in Rock ford 
Township, this county; Ruth A., burn Feb- 
ruary 6, 1M1, married John A. Mace, and 
died, leaving five children; and Silas H., 
horn July 26, 1847, and died in infancy. 

John G. Jones, with whose name the 
sketch opens, is the second child in the above 
family, and the oldest living; was married 
at the age of twenty years, December 7, 1854, 
to Mary Ann Mace, the daughter of Nicholas 



and Cynthia (Luster) Mace, natives of Ten- 
nessee. Nicholas Mace was born in Tennes- 
see, January 25, 1808, of English, Welsh, 
Irish and German extraction, and at the age 
of twenty-four married a lady who was born 
in Tennessee in 1811, and whose parents 
died when she was very young, when the 
daughter was brought up by an acquaint- 
ance. She was married at the age of twenty- 
one years. After that Mr. and Mrs. Mace 
moved to Indiana and resided until 1856, 
and then came to Rockford Township, this 
county, settling upon a quarter section of 
wild prairie. Here she died, April 18,1863, 
leaving live children, as follows: Mary Ann, 
John A., who resides in Oklahoma; Millie 
Jane, wite of Benjamin Spencer, in Boomer 
Township; David A., a resident of Harrison 
County; Elias M., now deceased. Mary Ann 
was born in Tennessee, November 12, 1833, 
and was married at the age of twenty-one 
years. Mr. Jones, after his marriage, was 
deeded by his father ninety acres of land on 
sections 14 and 15, partially improved; and 
he set out vigorously to work in completing 
improvements. He first erected a log house, 
18x20 feet, farm buildings, built fences, 
etc., ami followed grain and stock farming. 
Ee also set out an orchard of large and small 
fruits, planted shade and ornamental trees, 
and beautified the premises generally. He 
prospered and in 1872 he erected a fine two- 
Btory frame bouse, 28 x 28 feet, including a 
veranda in front. He has added to his first 
purchase until he now has 700 acres of tine 
land, of which 400 are under cultivation and 
the remainder is in timber, meadow and 
pasture. He has been a hard-working and 
energetic farmer. 

As to political issues he is a stanch Demo- 
crat, taking a zealous interest in national 
affairs; of course in local matters he votes 
for the candidates whom he judges personally 



■_ : - 




4* *& 






& 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



8^7 



to he the best fitted. Be lias been [toad 
Supervisor, Township Trustee, a member of 
the Board of Education, etc. He and his 
wife are members of the Primitive Baptist 
Church of Loveland. 

Mr. Jones' children are ten in number, 
born and named as follows: Nelson, horn 
February 17, 1856, married Martha A. Mat- 
tox. and Theodore, September 1, 1859, mar- 
ried Mary A. West, both residing in this 
county; Parks D., May 20, 1861, still at 
home; Elias A., May 8, 1863, married Sarah 
J. Case; and John G., September 19, 1865, 
married Martha A. Deal, both in this county; 
the next two died in infancy; Emery and 
Anna (twins), born August 20, 1870, — Emery 
died November 8 following, and Anna Feb- 
ruary 27, 1871; and Clarissa Jane, born 
June 25, 1873. 

~ "g ' » » C ' g" '« 



[AVID DEVOL was born in Chatham, 
New York, November 27, 1805, son of 
Joshua and Martha (Gifford) Devol, of 
French extraction, and natives of Massachu- 
setts. David was the youngest of a family 
of five children, and is the only one now liv- 
ine. His father died when he was a small 
child, and at the age of eleven he began to 
learn the trade of carding wool and dyeing 
and dressing cloth, at which he worked until 
after he was married. October 20, 1830, in 
Canaan, New York, he wedded Delia Toby, 
who was born in that State, January 12, 
1812. They located in Chatham, and a year 
later he engaged in the general mercantile 
business, which he continued nine years in 
that town and in West Stockbridge, Massa- 
chusetts. After that he came West and set- 
tled at Nauvoo, Illinois, where he made his 
home five years. In 1846 he continued his 
way westward, spent the first winter on the 

26 



Des Moines River, and in 1847 came to 
Council Bluffs, where he has since continued 
to reside. The first two years of his resi- 
dence here lie was variously employed, then 
clerked three years, after which, until 1861, 
his occupation was diversified. In that year 
liis son, P. C, opened a stove and tinware 
store, and he has been associated with him 
since that time. 

Mr. Devol has officiated in various capaci- 
ties: as Justice of the Peace, Assessor, Dep- 
uty District Clerk, etc. He was elected Jus- 
tice of the Peace in 1852. He affiliates with 
the Republican party. 

To him and his wife ten children were 
born, five of whom grew to maturity. Their 
names are as follows: George, deceased; 
Harriet wife of William N.Green, of Coun- 
cil Bluffs, died in 1889; P. C, a sketch of 
whom appears below; Emily, Martha, David, 
Charles, all deceased; Delia, wife of W. R. 
Vaughan of Omaha, Nebraska; and William, 
deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Devol have reached 
an advanced age, but are well preserved con- 
sidering their many years of pioneer life and 
the hardships through which they have 
passed. 

P. C. DpvoL, one of the oldest business 
men of Council Bluffs, is a native of New 
York State, born January 10, 1836, son of 
of David and Delia (Toby) Devol. He was 
five or six years old when the family removed 
to Illinois. Three or four years later, after 
a short stay in eastern Iowa, they crossed the 
State with ox teams and located at Kanes- 
ville, or what is now Council Bluffs, which 
has since been the home of our subject. He 
was educated in the public schools, and has 
since acquired much valuable information in 
the school of experience. Until eighteen his 
time was variously employed. At that time 
he beo-an to learn the tinner's trade, which 
he followed until 1861, when, in company 



::•> 



BIOGHAPHiCAL IhSTOUY 



witli Milton Rodger.-, he opened a stove and 
tin store at the stand be now occupies. They 
continued in business together for two years, 

at the end of which time Mr. Devol pur- 
chased his partner's interest and conducted 
the business alone until 1883. Then he 
formed a partnership with W. S. Wright. 
They opened a jobbing house, which they 
conducted two years, alter which they entered 
into a stock company under the firm name 
of Rector. Wilhelmie & Co., at Omaha, Ne- 
braska, transferring their jobbing department 
from Council Bluffs to Omaha, and leaving 
the tin and stove store in this city. Mr. 
Devol is president of the company and Mr. 
Wrighl is the secretary. They carry a large 
stock of hardware, tinware and stamped ware, 
to the value 01 some $125,000, and employ a 
large force of men in the house and on the 
road, while the business of Mr. Devol, 504 
Broadway and 10 Main street. Council Bluffs, 
has grown from a small establishment, of 
§1,300 or §1,400 to its present magnificent 
size, some §20,000. He carries a full line of 
hardware, tinware, stoves, etc. He has a 
shop connected with his store, employs eight 
or nine men all the time, and does an annual 
business of about §75,000. 

Mr. Devol is a self-made man, having 
started at the very bottom. Shortly after 
coming to Council Blulfs he was ambitions 
to earn and save something, so he went 
about it in this way: He secured a space of 
some six feet in width between two buildings 
and kept a small stand, selling pies, cider, 
etc., lo the emigrants who were on their way 
West, ilis life for a time was varied, and 
he saw some of the rough side of pioneer 
experiences. 

'I'lic Bnbject of our sketch was married in 
1868. to Miss Catharine Swobe, who was 
born in New York State, daughter of 
Michael Swobe. They have had live chil- 



dren: Ilattie, Mary, Paul C, William Roy 
an«l Arthur. The last named is deceased. 
Politically Mr. Devol is a staunch Republi- 
can. He is a member of the I. O. O. F.. IS'o. 
49, Council Bluffs Lodge, having passed all 
the chairs. The family are associated with 
the Presbyterian Church. Previous to her 
marriage Mrs. Devol was engaged in teach- 
ing school in this county two or three years. 

■«■* ii » I t l [ » ' i» «»■ 



fOHN DOHA NY" was born in Lebanon, 
Pennsylvania, in 1826, the son ot John 
and Margaret (English) Dohany, natives 
of Ireland, who came to America about 1820, 
locating tirst in Pennsylvania, and afterward 
removed to New Jersey, where the father 
died in 1833; the mother died in Pennsyl- 
vania in 1836. 

Our subject came west to Indiana in 
1837, where he made his home until he was 
seventeen. Then in 1842 he came west to 
St. Louis. In 1846 he went to Dubuque, 
Iowa, spending the time until 1851 in Du- 
buque and Jackson counties. In the spring 
of 1852 he went to southern and central 
Missouri. In 1856 he came to Council 
Bluffs, and he has done as much as any other 
man in the city toward building it up. He 
was one of the few who were instrumental in 
having the terminus of the Union Pacific 
Railroad in Council Bluffs, and in many 
way- has done much to his credit that will 
stand as a monument of his true worth long 
after he is gone. 

He has always been associated with the 
Democratic party. 

He was married December 31, 1849, to 
Clara Noble, of Bellevue, Iowa, born in Illi- 
nois in 1828, of Puritan extraction, and died 
in Council Bluffs in 1885. They had five 
children: Ada. wife of Martin (J. (iritlin. of 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



S2i) 



Portland, Oregon; Margaret, wife of W. H. 
Maurer, of Council Bluffs; Adella, at home; 
Julia, wife of William A. Keelind, of Coun- 
cil Bluffs; John, a resident of Portland, Ore- 
gon. They are members of the Catholic 
Church. 

■». ■? . ; ■ i f . ? .,,^, 



S. PLEAK, of section 32, Macedonia 
Township, was born in DecaturCounty, 
° Indiana, October 14, 1857, and was 
the third son of Stuban Pleak, who was also 
born in Decatur County, and was reared and 
married there. His grandparents were early 
settlers in that portion of Indiana, and were 
of German origin, and when they first came 
to America they spelled their name Blake. 
The wife of Stuban, and mother of D. S., 
was Elizabeth (Woolverton) Pleak, who was 
born in Decatur County, and was a daughter 
of John Woolverton, of Scotch ancestry. 
They reared six children. The parents lived 
until their death in Decatur County. 

D. S. Pleak resided in Indiana until 1879 
when he came to Pottawattamie County, and 
the same fall bought his farm of Ely Carter, 
which had been improved by his son, Elijah 
Carter. The farm consists of 160 acres, and 
contains a grove, orchard, buildings for stock 
and grain, feed lots, yards and stock scales. 
It is divided into cultivated fields of pasture 
and meadow. His horses are of a high 
grade, and among them are five Dilliard 
colts which give promise of being valuable 
horses, lie owns a one-fourth interest in an 
imported Percheron-Norman horse. 

Mr. Pleak was married August 29, 1889, 
to Miss Alice Olney, a daughter of J. J. and 
Mary (Morrison) Olney. She was educated 
at the Iowa Normal at Shenandoah, and was 
a successful and popular teacher prior to her 
marriage. She was born in this county in 



1866. Politically Mr. Pleak is a Republi- 
can, and is at present Township Supervisor. 
He is a member of Ruby Lodge, No. 415, 
F. & A. M., at Macedonia. 






W. JOHNSON, a farmer and worthy 
citizen of Hazel Dell Township, was 
° born at Hillsboro, Washington County, 
Pennsylvania, June 25, 1832, the son of 
William and Mary (McFadden) Johnson, 
natives of Virginia and Pennsylvania re- 
spectively, and of Puritan and Irish an- 
cestry. The father belonged to the old 
Johnson family of Indian war fame, and was 
a soldier in the war of 1812, in the Commis- 
sary department. He served through the 
entire war. At one time he was surrounded 
by the Indians, and was relieved by his kins- 
man, Colonel Richard M. Johnson, of his- 
torical fame. 

During his younger days Mr. Johnson 
was engaged in freighting by wagon train 
from New York to Baltimore and other 
points, and after his service in the war of 
1812 he was engaged in taking contracts for 
building and in the construction of pikes, 
including the national pike. About 1839 or 
1840 the family removed to Ohio, spent one 
winter in Knox County, and then removed 
to Licking County, same State, where the 
parents finally died. Mr. Johnson, the sub- 
ject of this sketch, was the ninth of the ten 
children of the above family. At the age of 
fifteen years he began the trade of glove- 
making, and continued in the same for three 
years, meanwhile devoting a part of his 
time to the art of tanning, and these trades 
he followed until 1869, at Mt. Vernon, Ohio. 
In 1870 he came to Council Bluffs, arriving 
March 23. Renting land in Hazel Dell 
Township, he followed farming there for 



SM 



BlOUllAI'lllCAL UISTOUr 



three years, and then purchased a tract of 
eighty acres on sections 29 ar.d 32 of that 
Township, all unimproved prairie, built a 
bouse there and began improvements which 
he has continued up to date, thus making a 
beautiful home. On the premises is a good 
orchard of about 125 trees, and there are 
also man}' shade trees. Mr. Johnson is an 
industrious and judicious fanner and stock 
raiser; has also done much in building up 
the interests of this county; is a decided Re- 
publican, and has held the office of Constable, 
lit- is a self-made man, having risen to hie 
present position by his own unaided efforts. 
lie and his wife are exemplary members of 
the Weslevan Methodist Church. 

lie was married in Ohio, October 4, 1854, 
to Miss Ellen Harl, a daughter of Trainel 
and Elizabeth (Wilson) Harl, natives of Vir- 
ginia, and of English and Scotch origin. 
Her mother died in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, and 
her father in 1S85 in Pottawattamie. They 
had a family of eleven children, Mrs. John- 
son being the fourth. She was born in Mt. 
Vernon, Ohio, October 10,1836. Mr. and 
Mrs. Johnson are the parents of six children, 
namely: Hamilton, deceased; Richard M., 
who died at the age of nineteen years, March 
15, 1874; George W., born December 27, 
1858, and is now a resident of this county; 
William T., born June 17, 1861, and now 
also a resident of this county; Charles M.. 
born May 15, 1865, and now residing in 
Custer County. Nebraska; and Mary E., 
born February 14, 1876, and is at her 
parental home. 



■ '■■ ; ■ »< ■ ! ■■ « — 

jNDREW MARTIN, lumber merchant, 
and the agent of the Green Kay Lum- 
ber Company, of Dos MoineB, Iowa, is 

one "f the reliable business men of Walnut. 



He was born in Schleswig-Holstein, Ger- 
many. July 11, 1858. His father, Captain 
Andrew Martin, is a naval officer of Ger- 
many, and is now on the retired list, lie 
was the father of two children, Andrew and 
Almo. 

Andrew Martin, the subject of this sketch, 
received a high-school education in Ger- 
many. At the age of twenty-three, in 18S9, 
he came to America, and having learned the 
English language in Germany, he soon ac- 
quired the correct speech. Mr. Martin came 
directly to Davenport, Iowa, and the same 
year to Walnut, and purchased a farm of 130 
acres of land in Monroe Township, Shelby 
County, and tanned for two years, and then 
he engaged in his pre.-ent business, owning 
an interest. 

In 1884 be married Margaretta Kleingarn, 
a native of Germany, and they are the par- 
ents of three children: Bertha, Waldmar and 
Otto. In religious belief Mr. and Mrs. Mar- 
tin are Lutherans. In political opinion Mr. 
Martin is a Democrat, and socially a member 
of the Odd Fellows and United Workmen. 
He is a man well known as a straight-forward 
business man of integrity and ability, and 
has the confidence of the business men of the 
county. 

— - . .g . i . ■ ! • ; ■■■ — 



3Ti G. JON ES. a fanner of Rockford Town- 
f]ty» ship, was born in Piitman County, 
=5F^° Indiana, August 8, 1841, the son of 
Nathan and Abigail, Dewese (Jones). The 
parents were natives of Kentucky and of 
Dutch, Irish and Welsh extraction. Nathan 
was lii-ouglit up in Kentucky as a farmer's 
son, moved to Indiana and bought a farm of 
200 acre", one-half improved and the re- 
mainder in heavy timber. There be built a 
house and made many valuable improvements. 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



331 



In 1856 he sold out and moved by emigrant 
wa<Ton to Appanoose County, this State, 
driving a herd of cattle, and locating upon a 
tract of 340 acres of prairie and timber, 
which lie subsequently divided up among his 
sons and son-in-law, keeping 120 acres for 
himself. He resided there nine years, making 
improvements, and then sold out, and in the 
fall of 1865 settled where he now resides, 
upon 150 acres of land. There the next 
autumn his wife died, leaving seven children, 
namely: W. L., who now resides in Harrison 
County; Mary Jane, who married Henley 
Mullenix, and is now deceased; David A., of 
Nebraska; Parks, who died in infancy, L. G., 
the subject of this sketch; Cenif and Cerina, 
twins; Cenif is the wife of William Williams, 
Rocktord Township, and Cerina, of Newton 
Moreland, in the same township. 

L. G. Jones, the fifth child and youngest 
son in the above family, was brought up to 
farm life. At the age of twenty-one years, 
he married Miss Elizabeth Martin, June 18, 
1863. She was the daughter of Raleigh and 
Elizabeth Martin, natives of Indiana, who re- 
reinoved to Adair County, Missouri, and died 
there. They had seven children: French, who 
resides in Missouri; Nancy, wife of John 
South, and now residing in Lee County, Iowa; 
Henry, deceased; George, in Missouri; Eliza- 
beth was the next; Lucinda, wife of James 
Heinline, of Missouri; and Coleman, a resi- 
dent of Council Bluffs. Mrs. Elizabeth Jones 
was born September 5, 1841, and was married 
at the age of twenty. 

After his marriage Mr. Jones rented a 
farm and raised one crop, and then came to 
Rockford Township, remained one winter, 
and the next spring purchased a farm of 120 
acres in Harrison County of laud entirely 
unimproved, and remained upon it four years. 
Selling it, he purchased a saw-mill, which he 
successfully ran for six years; next lie rented 



another farm for one year, and then bought 
200 acres of wild, rough prairie, which be 
now occupies as a highly developed farm, all 
the improvements being his own design and 
execution. His house is a frame 26x28 
feet, and a story and a half in height, with 
verandas. He has also a fine barn and other 
out-buildings, about two and a half acres of 
orchard, in fruit both large and small, has 
fine shade and ornamental trees, all of which 
bespeak thrift, prosperity and energy. He 
follows both grain and stock-farming. 

On national questions Mr. Jones is a well 
settled Democrat, taking an interest in public 
affairs. He has been Township Trustee for 
eleven years, excepting an interval of one 
year, serving the people satisfactorily. His 
three children are: Elizabeth; Abigail, now 
the wife of O. L. Lucas, in Clay Center, Clay 
County, Nebraska: she was born October 21, 
1866; David Walter, born February 29, 1876, 
died seven weeks afterward; Melvil Curtice, 
born January 3, 1879. 



-'■• ■g>3"i ' g '»" — 

fOHN G. TIPTON, attorney at law 
Council Bluffs and Omaha, has been a 
resident of Pottawattamie County since 
February, 1878. He was born in Fulton 
County, Illinois, in 1849. He was educated 
at Abingdon, in his native State, graduating 
at the college at that place in 1871. He then 
engaged in teaching and reading law. He 
also read law with Robert G. Ingersoll, was 
admitted by the Supreme Court of Illinois 
at Ottawa, October 20, 1874, and practiced 
at Bloomington until 1876. In that year 
he was the Democratic candidate for State 
Attorney, His opponent being the present 
Governor of that State, Fifer. He was de- 
feated by but 386 votes in a district that was 
largely Republican. In 1877 he went to the 



BWOIIAPIIICAL U1ST0I17 



Black Hills, and was there when the first 
court was held in that district, at which court 
Judge Bennett presided. lie located at Coun- 
cil Bluff's immediately on his return, and has 
been engaged in law in this city since that 
time, and is now also practicing in Omaha. 

The father of the subject of this notice was 
John Tipton, who was killed by a falling tree 
March 23, 1869. His mother died while on 
a visit to her children in Pottawattamie 
County, July 21, 1879. Samuel S. Tipton, 
the elder, is a publisher and resides in New 
York city. Thompson is in the live-stock and 
commission business in Chicago. He has five 
sisters, viz.: Mrs. Mary Swigert, the eldest, 
resides near the old homestead in Illinois; 
Mrs. Hannah Combs resides at Burlington, 
Kansas; Mrs. Sarah Swigert and Mrs. Lydia 
C. Ramsey are residents of Illinois; Mrs. N. 
H. Meeker lives at Greenwood, Nebraska. 

Mr. Tipton was married in Council Bluffs, 
to Miss Annetta Bryant, daughter of Wil- 
liam Bryant, of Edina, Knox County, Mis- 
souri, and a niece of Judge A. S. Bryant. 
Mr. and Mrs. Tipton have two sons: Thomp- 
son E. and John W. Mr. Tipton has a 
tine residence at 1027 Fifth avenue, where 
he resides. He has done much toward pro- 
moting the growth and progress of Council 
Bluffs since he has been a resident of this 
city, and is esteemed as a worthy and enter- 
prising citizen. 

The father of the subject of this sketch was 
B native of Maryland and of Scotch- Irish an- 
cestry. When an infant he was taken by his 
parents to what is now Columbus, Ohio, 
where he was reared and learned the trade of 
a carpenter. I Io assisted in building the first 
State llmi.-e in the city of Columbus. There 
he married his wife, whose maiden name was 
Eliza Crawford. In 1840 he removed to 
Fulton County, Illinois, where he took up a 
homestead, which he improved and on which 



he lived until his death, which occurred as 
already stated. He was an honest, upright 
man and a worthy citizen, and, while not a 
member of any religious body, was ever lib- 
eral in the support of the church. lie was a 
man of decided views on the chief issues of the 
day, and was much in public life. He was at 
one time Treasurer of Fulton County, and 
was for many years a member of the County 
Board of Supervisors. Besides the surviving 
children of John Tipton and wife already 
mentioned, several are deceased: Thomas, at 
Columbus, Ohio, before the family removed 
West, dying at the age of nine years; Eliza 
Jane and Elizabeth in infancy. Isabel mar- 
ried John Dyer, and died in Fulton County. 
Samuel, the eldest son, was a soldier in the 
war of the Rebellion, as a member of the One 
Hundred and Third Regiment, Illinois Vol- 
unteer Infantry. He was Adjutant, and for a 
time served on the stall' of General Grant. 



fOHN R. BOULDEN, a farmer of Rock- 
ford Township, was born in Miami 
County, Ohio, November 20, 1825, the 
son of William L. and Nancy (Patterson) 
Boulden. The parents were natives respect- 
ively of Maryland and Delaware, and of 
Scotch and Irish ancestry. The father was 
born and brought up on a farm. On attain- 
iiio- the stature of manhood he drove a stage 
coach between Baltimore .'111(1 Philadelphia. 
In 1811 he was detailed liv the Government 
to take his team to Fort Mcllenry, where be 
was made wagon-master, and was there dur- 
ing the bombardment. He served through 
the war of 1812-14. In 1817 he came 
Westward over the mountains by wagon to 
Wheeling, Virginia, where he placed his 
family on a tlat boat and floated down to 
Cincinnati, while he with the horses came 



'OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



333 



overland through Ohio to that point. In 
1810, in Philadelphia, he had married the 
daughter of Joseph Patterson, who had 
served in the Revolutionary war, and was 
engaged in thirty-two different battles. Out 
of 700 of the regiment he was one of only 
thirty-five who came out under command of 
General De Kalb, who fell at the battle of 
Camden. He had marched from Delaware 
to engage in the siege of Boston; he was also 
at the battle of Brandywine and many other 
hard-fought battles of the Revolution. Af- 
terward he was sent South under the com- 
mand of Gates. After the war was over he 
returned to his native home in Elktown, 
Delaware, where he died July 4, 1798. He 
was intimately acquainted with General 
Washington. At his death he left his wife 
and five children, ot whom Abraham, Jemi- 
ma and Benjamin are dead, and Nancy was 
the wife of the late Mr. Boulden, and Sida- 
vant was the wife of Jerome Bonaparte. She 
was known as Lady Bonaparte in Baltimore, 
where she survived the death of her husband 
a short time. Mr. William L. Boulden had 
but one sister, Rachel, who married Robert 
Moody, both of whom are now deceased. 
When he moved to Miami County he bought 
a tract of heavy timbered land there and 
cleared and made many valuable improve- 
ments; and there he made his home until his 
death, September 18, 1830, leaving a wife 
and five children, namely: Lewis, born in 
1813, died in March, 1866; William H., 
born March 16, 1816, and died in October, 
1857; Joseph P., born August 11, 1819, 
residing now in Pottawattamie County; 
Mary Ann, born September 7, 1822, and died 
a year afterward; John R., the subject of 
this sketch; Maria, now the widow of Levi 
G. Brandon, horn November 27, 1828, and 
now residing in Des Moines. 

Mr. John R. Boulden, brought up in farm 



life, at the age of nineteen went to Piqua and 
learned the shoemaker's trade. At the age 
of twenty-four he married Mary Miller, 
daughter of Elias and Catherine (Moore) 
Miller, natives of New Jersey, who came to 
Ohio in 1803. Mrs. Catherine Miller was a 
native of Kentucky and came to Ohio at an 
early day. Mr. and Mrs. Miller were of 
German and Irish extraction, and were the 
parents of nine children: Rebecca and Ellis, 
deceased; Lucretia, residing in Ohio; Han- 
nah, wife of Solomon Winters, and living in 
Indiana; Philetha, widow of Adam Schaeffer, 
in Piqua, Ohio; Philip, in the West; Mary, 
the wife of Mr. Boulden; John, residing in 
Ohio, and Elias, in Lafayette, Indiana. Mrs. 
Boulden was horn February 18, 1829, and 
brought up in farm life, and married at the 
age of twenty years. Mr. Boulden remained 
in Miami County on a farm until 1871, when 
he moved by emigrant wagon to this State, 
being six weeks on the road. He purchased 
a quarter section of land in Wayne County, 
but sold it and bought the present place of 
125 acres of heavy timber land on section 36, 
range 44, and here he began clearing and 
breaking and starting the many improve- 
ments essential to a complete home in the 
country. He has a fine orchard of about six 
acres, besides a nice vineyard. He raises all 
the small fruits. The residence is beautiful 
and the locality healthful. During a period 
of nineteen years the family has resided here, 
wich no sickness worth mentioning. Fifty 
acres of the place is cultivated to grain, while 
the rest remains in pasture and timber. 
Having learned the trade after he was mar- 
ried, Mr. Boulden has done a great deal of 
carpenter work in connection with farming; 
and also, for some years past, has made about 
1,000 bushels of charcoal per year. He is a 
live, energetic man. 

Politically he is a zealous Democrat, tak- 



334 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



ing an active part in the interests of Democ- 
racy, and as such he enlisted in the service 
of his country, in the One Hundred and 
Forty-Seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry, at 
Piqua, being mustered in at Camp Dennison. 
Being taken to Washington he was placed in 
the First Brigade, under General Derusa, in 
the Twenty -Second Army Corps, and fought 
in many hotly contested liattles. He was 
advanced to the position of Sergeant, and was 
finally mustered out as such September 4, 
1854, at Camp Dennisou. He also enlisted 
in the Mexican war, but was held for orders at 
Cincinnati, Ohio, in readiness for a call. He 
has also been connected with the township in 
its various offices, of which he has been Jus- 
tice of the Peace for three terms. He is now 
officiating on the Board of Education, taking 
a leading part. He is a member of the 
Farmers' Alliance, of which he is now presi- 
dent. He was elected to represent Miami 
County, Ohio, in 1867, in the Legislature, 
with the overwhelming majority of 440, over 
a Republican majority of 1,600, being on the 
ticket with Allen G. Thurman when he ran 
for Governor of Ohio; and he was on the 
stand when Vallandiidiain made the famous 
speech for which he was taken captive and 
banished. 

Mr. ami Mrs. Boulden are the parents of 
twelve children: Charles W., born October 1, 
lNoO, and now residing in Missouri Valley; 
John F., born February 19, 1852, at home; 
George W., born November 15, 1853, and is 
now living in Seattle, Washington; Man ha 
O, born June 15, 1855, is the wife of .lames 
Garrison in Los Angeles, California; Cather- 
ine A., born February 20, 1862, is the wife 
of Charles Wiltfong, in Council Bluffs; Eva, 
born June 16, 1865, is now Mrs. Richard 
Thornton, in Fremont, Nebraska; Benjamin 
Thurman, born August 20, 186S; Emma, 
bom November 15, 1870; Maggie M., born 



June 15, 1877, the last three at home; Al- 
dezara, born May 10, 1857, died July 8, 
1858; Joseph Orra, born September 10, 
1859, died June 14, 1860, and Louis E., 
born September 12, 1863, died March 16, 
1865. 

g . l M l . g -.. 



DWAKD II. CATER, of section 1, 
Carson Township, was born in Bel- 
mont County, Ohio, August 7, 1855, 
the son of James Cater, a native of the same 
place, whose family were early settlers of thai 
part of Ohio. They were formerly Quakers 
or Friends. Our subject's mother, nee Susan 
Perry, was a daughter of Jesse and Malinda 
(Poole) Perry, the former a native of Ohio, 
and a relative of Commodore Perry, and the 
latter was a native of Virginia, born in 18 — . 
The parents moved to Bureau County, where 
they lived until their death. They reared 
seven children. Edward, the eldest of four 
sons and three daughters, was about two years 
of age when his parents moved to Bureau 
County, in the spring of 1857, settling north- 
east of Princeton, on the Chicago, Burlington 
ifc Qnincy Railroad, near Maiden. The father 
lived there until his death, which occurred in 
1868, and the mother still lives on the same 
farm where they first settled in 1857. The 
subject of this sketch resided in Bureau 
County until he came to Pottawattamie 
County, and bought his present farm of 
eighty acres of the Chicago, Burlington & 
Quincy Company, which is located one and a 
half miles east of Carson. He built a good 
frame house in 1889, ami everything about 
the place shows the thrift and energy of the 
proprietor. 

He was married in December, 1877, to 
Miss Maty L. Belknap, who was born and 
educated in Bureau County, Illinois, and the 



* 




%9k & 




rC^ 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



335 



daughter of Eli and Mary (Belknap); the 
father was a native of New York, and the 
mother of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Cater have 
three children: Hoy Austin, Claude Gaston 
and Edna Mary. They lost their first-horn, 
Lena Leota, by death, when an infant. Polit- 
ically Mr. Cater is a Republican, and he and 
his wife are members of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, and he is a teacher and assistant 
superintendent of the Sabbath school, in 
which he takes an active interest. 



||SON. THOMAS BOWMAN, Congress- 
man-elect from the Ninth Congres- 
sional District of Iowa, was born in 
Wiscasset, in the State of Maine, May 25, 
1848, and derives his descent from Nathaniel 
Bowman, who came from England in 1630 in 
the fleet with Winthrop. During his boy- 
hood he made his home at that place, and was 
educated at Oak Grove Seminary at Vassal- 
boro, Maine. In 1868 he decided to follow 
the course of empire, and he bid adieu to 
home and friends in the old Pine Tree State 
and started for the West. That same year 
he landed in Council Bluffs, and being im- 
pressed with its surroundings, though at that 
time much in the crude, he decided to cast 
his lot there. He has been a continued 
resident in Council Bluffs ever since. During 
the intervening period, from 1868 to the 
present time, he has held several important 
offices of trust, among them being Treasurer 
of Pottawattamie County, Mayor of the city 
of Council Bluff's, and Postmaster of Council 
Bluffs under President Cleveland's adminis- 
tration. He was one of the organizers of the 
volunteer fire department in 1868, and was 
an active member of the department until 
1883, when the paid system was inaugurated. 
Fie has been connected witli the Council 



Bluffs Globe for twelve years, and for the 
past seven years he has been general manager 
for The Globe Publishing Company. Mr. 
Bowman is a man who will make friends 
wherever he goes. He is a man of sterling 
qualities, and his loyalty to friends and prin- 
ciple has been a potent factor in his advance- 
ment in life. 



►*wf- 



YRUS BOILER, of Walnut, is one of 
the early settlers of this part of the 
county. He is from an old American 
family of German descent. David Boiler, 
the great-grandfather of our subject, came 
from Germany and settled on a farm in Vir- 
ginia, about 1775. Joseph Boiler, son of the 
above and grandfather of our subject, was 
born in Virginia, married Miss Nancy Colli- 
son, and reared a family of thirteen children, 
seven boys and six girls, who all lived to 
years of maturity. Mr. Boiler moved to Pike 
County, Ohio, about 1800, one of the pio- 
neers of that county, and lived there until his 
death. William Boiler, son of the above and 
father of our subject, was born in Pike 
County, Ohio, in 1810, and married, in Ohio, 
Miss Almira Daniels, daughter of Benjamin 
Daniels, a mayor of the town. Mr. and Mrs. 
Boiler had four children: Joseph, Benjamin, 
Wesley, and one who died young. Mr. Boiler 
remained on his farm until he was forty years 
of age, and then, in 1850, moved to Mus- 
catine County, Iowa, and entered a farm, and 
four years after sold that farm and bought 
another in the same county, and selling this 
afterward he moved to Marshalltown, Iowa, 
and after a short residence there he returned 
to Muscatine County, Iowa. In 1873 he came 
and settled on 160 acres of land in Potta- 
wattamie County, Wright Township, where 
he died, in 1886. Mr Boiler was a substau- 



BIOGRAPHICAL DISTORT 



tial farmer and an industrious, honest man. 
His first wife died in Ohio, and June 1, 1843, 
he married Miss Caroline lvineaid, daughter 
of Robert and Martha (Humphrey) Kincaid. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Boiler were born two chil- 
dren: Cyrus and James. Mr. Boiler was an 
honorable American citizen, and a man who 
provided well for his family, 

Cyrus Boiler, son of the above and subject 
of this sketch, was born July 6, 1844, in Rice 
County, Ohio, received a common-school 
education, and was six years of age when his 
father moved to Iowa. He learned the car- 
penter's trade when young. In 1873 he 
came to Pottawattamie County, !owa, and 
improved a claim for his father. In 1876 
he married Mary R. Osborn, daughter of 
Solomon and Lydia (Paris) Osborn. The 
Osborns were an old American family from 
Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Osborn have three chil- 
dren: Ina M., Georgians and Charles C. In 
1879 Mr. Boiler went to Leadville, and was 
in the silver mines, where he remained five 
years and nine months, and since then he has 
resided in Walnut. Mr. Boiler is a man who 
has the respect of his fellow townsmen; in 
Colorado he was Justice of the Peace and in 
Walnut has been constable. He is a man 
who stands well as an honorable citizen and a 
man of integrity. 

-~~* g . 3"[ - 2' 

[ANIEL B. McMASTER, of Hancock, 
is one of our "old soldier" citizens 
who served his country in her hour of 
need, and then settled down in the great 
State of Iowa, to the peaceful pursnit of 
agriculture. His father, William McMaster, 
came from Scotland, near the coast, in sight 
of Ireland. He was well educated for his 
day, a great reader and a lover of books, and 
possessed a considerable library. He learned 



the tailor's trade, and married, in Ireland, 
Mi6s Sarah Boyd, daughter of James Boyd 
of the city of Belfast, who was a drover and 
dealer in cattle, driving and shipping cattle 
from Scotland to Ireland. He was the father 
of nine children: James, Thomas, Henry, 
William, Daniel, Robert, Jane, Sarah and 
Esther, all born in Ireland. Ho emigrated 
with his large family to America, and settled 
in Boston. In William McMaster's father's 
family there were four children: Archie, 
William, Bettie and Margaret. The two 
girls lived and died in Scotland, unmarried. 
William and his wife came to America soon 
after their marriage, in 1820, and settled in 
New Brunswick, where his two eldest chil- 
dren were born, and then removed to 
Boston, where the remainder of their family 
were born. There were twelve children: 
Archie, William, Hugh, John, James, Daniel, 
Walter, Samuel, Margaret, Mary, Matilda 
and Jennie. Mr. McMaster followed his 
trade, tailoring, in New Brunswick and also 
in Boston for many years. In 1850 he 
moved with his family to Michigan, and set- 
tled in Schoolcraft. Kalamazoo County, on 
what was called Big Prairie Ronde (Round 
Prairie), and on the farm bought by Mr. Mc- 
Master his widow still lives. Mr. McMaster 
was a member of the Presbyterian Church, 
and Mrs. McMaster was a strong Baptist. 
He was a prominent Odd Fellow and insti 
tuted the first lodge in Schoolcraft. While 
in Boston Mr. McMaster was a wealthy man, 
but he lost his property and therefore moved 
to Michigan. He was a man of very indus- 
trious habits, and with strict integrity of 
character, made many friends and held them, 
and had no enemies. He was noted for be- 
ing a close-mouthed man, always attending 
to his own business. Ho lived to the age of 
seventy-three years, and died on his farm in 
Schoolcraft, Michigan. Three of his sons 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



337 



were in the civil war. John H. and Daniel 
B. were in the Union army, and William was 
in the Confederate service. He went to 
New Orleans when quite a young man and 
became a merchant there, owned a plantation 
in Texas and was a slaveholder. He was an 
officer in the Confederate army. John H. 
was in a Massachusetts regiment. 

Daniel B. was born July 3, 1842, and re- 
ceived a common-school education, and was 
but eight years old when his father moved to 
Michigan. He learned farming and also the 
iron-niolder's trade. Young Daniel was but 
twenty years of age when the civil war broke 
out, and, filled with patriotism and the thoughts 
and glory of a soldier's life, he enlisted in 
Company I, First Michigan Volunteer Cav- 
alry, August 21, 1861, and went directly 
with his regiment to Washington. He was in 
the battles of Harper's Ferry, Charlestown, 
Virginia; Berryville, Winchester, Strasburg, 
Piedmont, Markham Station, Manassas Gap, 
Happy Creek, Front Royal, May 23, 1862; 
Haymarket, Rapidan, Orange, July, 1862; 
Madison Court House, July, 1862; Orange 
Court House, July, 1862; Stannardsville, 
Barnett's Ford, Louisa Court House, Cul- 
peper, Kelly's Mills, Rappahannock Station, 
Rappahannock Ford, Waterloo Bridge, Sa- 
lem, White Plains, Thoroughfare Junction, 
Bull Run, August 30, 1862 (at which Mr. 
Mc Master had his horse shot under him), 
Chantilly, Ashley's Gap, Snicker's Ferry, 
Wolf Run, Shoals, December, 1862, and Bris- 
tow, January, 1863. At the second battle at 
Culpeper Court House he was taken sick with 
typhoid fever and was left on the battle-field 
for two days and nights. He was taken at 
night to Culpeper and lay in the court-house 
one hour, then taken to Warrenton Junction, 
where he lay several hours, and the same day 
was taken to Mt. Pleasant hospital. Wash- 
ington, District of Columbia, where lie was 



sick for six weeks, coming very near death 
On September 15, 1864, he was honorably 
discharged, three months after reaching the 
hospital, on account of expiration of his 
term of service, having served his country 
faithfully for three years and fifteen days, 
and engaged in a large number of battles, 
which constitute a roll of honor of which 
his children and descendants may well feel 
proud. His name will be transmitted to pos- 
terity as one of those brave sons of America 
who risked their lives to preserve their coun- 
try. After the war Mr. McMaster returned 
to Michigan and resumed the occupation of 
farming, also working at his trade. 

January 1, 1866, he married Miss Loretta 
Thayer, daughter of Simon and Almira (Tiff- 
any) Thayer. Mr. Thayer was from Living- 
ston County, State of New York, and was a 
carpenter by trade. He was from an old 
American family and moved to Michigan in 
1850, settling in Vieksburg, Kalamazoo 
County, and later on a farm near this place. 
In 1875 he came to Iowa and settled in Val- 
ley Township, Pottawattamie County, where 
he died, in January, 1880, at the age of 
sixty-nine years. His widow still lives in 
Vieksburg, Michigan. Mrs. Thayer is a 
member of the Congregational Church. Mr. 
Thayer was much respected as a citizen. He 
had a good education, was well read, and 
sometimes contributed articles to the news- 
papers. He held the office of Justice of the 
Peace for many years, and was also Town- 
ship Commissioner, and was a man of intel- 
ligence and active temperament, and was an 
honorable man. Mr. and Mrs. Thayer were 
the parents of two chilren: Fairfield and 
Loretta. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
McMaster lived in Schoolcraft, Michigan, 
until 1874, and Mr. McMaster followed his 
trade. They then moved to Iowa and settled 
on a farm in Audubon County, remaining 



BIOOIiAPniCAL HISTORY 



there but two years, when they came to their 
present home in Pottawattamie County. In 
1879 Mr. McMaster went to Cass County, 
and ran a large farm for six years, and then 
returned to his home in Pottawatta nie 
County. Mr. and Mrs. McMaster are the 
parents of five children: Kate, Clara, Becton 
(deceased at two years), Bell and "Walter. 
Mr. McMaster is a man who has the con- 
fidence of the community in which he lives. 
He is a Justice of the Peace, and socially is an 
Odd Fellow, and is a member of the G. A. 
R., of William Layton Post, No. 358, Oak- 
land. In politics he is a stanch Democrat, 
lie has an honorable record as a soldier and 
citizen, and has always been a law-abiding 
and moral man. He is temperate in his 
habits and is interested in the cause of tem- 
perance. His children and descendants will 
reverence his noble record as a soldier. Mrs. 
McMaster is secretary of the Woman's Re- 
lief Corps of Oakland, Iowa,— an auxiliary 
of the G. A. R. Their daughter Kate mar- 
ried Elmer Lambert, and they have two chil- 
dren: Libbie and Alderman. Mr. Lambert 
is a farmer in Woodbury County, Iowa; 
Clara married James Livingston, Jr., a 
butcher in Hancock. They have one child, 
Hugh. 



|ITY ROLLER MILLS, of Council 
Bluffs, was erec'od in 1856 by Mr. 
Jackson, and was then known as the 
"City Mills." It was the largest mill in the 

West at that time, having a capacity of 
ninety barrels a day. It has changed hands 
a number of times, and is now in the posses- 
sion of J. C. Hoffmayr & Co. The capacity 
has been increased to L50 barrels a day. the 
roller system with Hungarian process being 
introduced in November, L882, under the di- 
rection of its present owner. The original 



mill was but three 6tories high: it is now 
four stories high, and there are added an 
iron-clad elevator, warerooms, etc., with a 
storage capacity of 1,500 barrels of flour and 
10,000 bushels of wheat. The brands of flour 
manufactured here are Fancy Patent, White 
Loaf, Early Riser and Rough Diamond. 

Julius C. Hoffmayr was born in the east- 
ern part of Prussia, February 17, 1834, the 
son of Charles J. and Emma (Von Tres- 
kow) Hoffmayr. Both the parents are de- 
ceased. He was educated at home by private 
tutors until the age of ten years; then he at- 
tended schools in Frankfurt until his four- 
teenth year, when he entered the machine 
shop of Stoeckart & Co., at Landsberg, one 
year, and the locomotive works at Borsig, 
the largest works of the kind in that country, 
at Berlin. He was there six months. At 
the age of sixteen years he was employed by 
the Berlin & Stettin Railroad, learning the 
art of running locomotives; was also em- 
ployed in the drafting office of the company 
six months. He then passed examination as 
locomotive engineer, and was employed on 
the eastern division of the Government rail- 
road system, between Berlin and St. Peters- 
burg; was also employed in the location and 
erection of the railroad bridges over the delta 
of the Vistula River at Dirschau and Marien- 
burg, and surveying and locating the railroad 
to Koenigsberg. On the completion of the 
road to Koenigsberg he was given control of 
the first engine over the road; and at the age 
of seventeen years, a few days after that ap- 
pointment, he was given the first train — the 
inauguration train— with the King of Prus- 
sia on board, who opened the road. This 
was a conspicuous honor extended to so young 
a man over all the old engineers in the conn- 
try, he being the youngest engineer on the 
Government roads, having eained this honor 
by his punctuality. 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



After this lie entered the Polytechnic 
School at Frankfurt; next the Royal Poly- 
technic Institute at Berlin; next, in his 
nineteenth year, he was sent bv the Govern- 
ment to Manchester, England, and worked in 
the large locomotive works of Sharp Brothers, 
to gain a knowledge of the construction of the 
same by English makers. In a few months 
he was placed in the engineer corps of the 
Koyal Navy and cruised along the Mediter- 
ranean coast, subduing pirates on the north 
African coast, and around Cape of Good Hope 
to the East Indies, when he returned home. 
His father then presented him a steam flour- 
ing and saw mill, which he operated some 
nine months, when in June, 1855, he came 
to America, with the chief engineer of the 
eastern division of Prussian railroads, 
Charles Seeger, landing at St. Mary's, Mills 
County, Iowa. He assisted him, and erected 
mills in the timbered lands of the company, 
and attended to their management until Mr. 
Seeger's return. He claims the honor of 
blowing the first whistle en land in this part 
of the country. 

In 1857 he returned to Prussia, spent a 
year there, was married, and in 1858 came 
again to this country, stopping at St. Mary's, 
Mills County, Iowa. The mills which he 
had built before his departure for Europe had 
been sold to Colonel Peter A. Sarpy, the old 
fur trader of the American Fur Company, 
and Mr. Hoffmayr managed the mills for 
him. Some of the men employed at that 
mill at that time are to-day our most wealthy 
farmers and prominent citizens in Mills and 
Pottawattamie counties. In 1859 he re- 
moved the mill to the left bank of the Mis- 
souri River, opposite Plattsmouth, Nebraska. 
After a time he returned to St. Mary's and 
erected a saw-mill, transformed a wind-flour- 
ing- mill, belonging to Shakespeare & Boyes, 
into a steam mill, and attached circular saws 



for the lumber business, and here he con- 
tinued until 1862, when the mill was sold. 
He then built flat-boats and floated the ma- 
chinery of the mill on the Missouri River to 
Plattsmouth, Nebraska, where he erected the 
same and set it running for Peter A. Sarpy. 

At that period (1855) the Indians, Pawnee 
and Omaha tribes, lived and were abundant 
in the vicinity. In 1867, while on the plains 
with the Pawnee scouts, he was made an 
honorary member of the Pawnee tribe, and 
named Co-ka-tits-ta-kah. In 1862 he came to 
Council Bluffs, where he took charge of the 
City Mills for Officer & Pusey, for six 
months, and then, in 1863, he assumed full 
control, which he maintained until 1865, 
when he sold to Hon. J. T. Baldwin and vis- 
ited Europe again, returning the same year 
to Council Bluffs. From 1865 to 1870 he 
was engaged in contracting to furnish the 
ties and car timbers for the construction of 
the Union Pacific Railroad, operating steam 
saw-mills, and from 150 to 200 men and as 
many teams, and thus consuming several 
thousand acres of the best timber in Potta- 
wattamie County, near Honey Creek, for al- 
most five years. In 1870 he bought back the 
City Mills and ran it alone until 1882, when 
he took as partner Hon. J. T. Baldwin, with 
whom he was associated until the death of 
the latter. During the rush of the early 
days of emigration this mill supplied most of 
the flour from this point west, — in Colora- 
do, Utah, Wyoming and Montana, where 
some train loads were sold at $1.00 per pound 
in gold. Its present owner, Mr. Ilofl'mayr, 
is the oldest miller in this part of the West, 
— that is, has been the longest in the service, 
and is feeding the hungry yet. 

Politically he is independent, but acting 
mostly with the Democratic party. He is an 
old member of Bluff City Lodge, No. 71, 
A. F. & A. M., of Star Chapter, No. 48, and 



840 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



of Ivanhoe Comniamlery, No. 17, K. T, 
being P. E. Commander, and, as Bach, a life 
member of the Grand Commandery of the 
State of Iowa. Be is also a member of the 
Council Bluffs Rifle and Council Bluffs Gun 
clubs. He won the State championship 
honors, and the best aggregate score in all 
matches at the State tournament of the 
State Association for the Protection of Fish 
and Game, of 1880, held at Des Moines. 
He was the first president of the Turn-Ve- 
rein of Council Bluffs, in 18G3. During the 
war, in 1864, Gov. W. M. Stone called out 
three regiments of State troops to protect the 
southern border of the State, and commis- 
sioned him First Lieutenant of Company A, 
First Regiment, and on April 1, 1865, he 
was promoted, and commissioned Lieutenant- 
Colonel of the same regiment, the late Colonel 
W. F. Sapp commanding the same. 

While on a visit to his native country, on 
the 21st of April, 1858, he married Miss 
Antonia Wolfram, who died at Council Bluffs 
July 8, 1876, leaving three children: Ellen 
II., who died July 23, 1876, and Harry J. 
and Arthur T., both now residing in Council 
Bluffs. He was married again February 7, 
1878, to Miss Clara Tzschuck, daughter of 
Hon. Bruno Tzschuck, ex-Secretary of the 
State of Nebraska. She was born in St. 
Mary's, Mills County, Iowa, and died Febru- 
ary 8, 1883, leaving one child, Julia May. 




"* ■ "| * 2"i * |" «" 

jICKELWAIT & YOUNG, grain- 
dealers at Macedonia, is one of the 
leading and solid business firms of 
that place. Their elevator, having a capacity 
of 30,000 bnsbelB, was built by Mr. T. .1. 
Young, the junior member of the firm, and 
T. J. Evans. The present firm have 10(1,01)1) 
bushels of grain annually; aho do a large 



flour and coal business. Mr. Young is the 
business manager at this place, while Mr. 
Mickelwait resides at Glenwood, Mills 
County. 

Mr. Young was born in Pern, La Salle 
County, Illinois, February 8, 1855, a son of 
Nason Young, a native of Ireland, and of 
Susanna (Kirby) Young. Nason Young 
settled in La Salle County in 1845, long be- 
fore the day of railroads, and for a number of 
years was engaged in the lumber trade. 
The first business in which our subject en- 
gaged was in 1878, in grain,' in which he 
was in partnership with his brother. Then, 
removing to Omaha, he was employed in 
meat-canning for a year. In 1SS0 he came 
to Macedonia, resuming the grain trade. He 
is an experienced and popular business man, 
and has taken an active interest in the wel- 
fare of the community; has served on the 
School Board nine years. In politics he is a 
Republican. He is a member of Lodge No- 
421, I. O. O. F., having filled all the chairs. 

He was married in 1887, at Bloomington, 
Indiana, to Miss Lizzie Belle Pitman, who 
died July 19, 1888. 



+*-%■ 



ARTHUR I. MITCHELL, a well-known 
physician and surgeon of Macedonia, 
Iowa, was born in Decatur County, In- 
diana, February 13, 1847, the son of Dr. 
James II. and Nancy (Irmlay) Mitchell; the 
former is a well-known physician of that 
place, and the latter is of a prominent family; 
her brother was once Sheriff of Decatur 
County. The father was horn in Bourbon 
County, Kentucky, and at the age of four 
years his parents removed to Decatur County, 
Indiana. He and his father edited the first 

paper published at Greensburg, Indiana. 
lie was a personal friend of ex-Governor 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



341 



Cnmback and intimately acquainted with 
Mills & Co., ex-State printers of Des Moines, 
Iowa. He afterward commenced the study 
of medicine, and when he was twenty-seven 
years of age practiced in Decatur County. 
In the spring of 1853 he journeyed We6t 
with his family to Iowa, where he settled at 
Twin Groves, Keokuk County, Iowa, where he 
remained thirteen years. He then removed 
to Washington County, Iowa, and three years 
after from there to Seward County, Nebraska, 
where he remained three years, and then came 
to Pottawattamie County, settling at old 
Macedonia, and when the new town of Mace- 
donia was built he moved there, in 1880. He 
resided there until 1885-'86. When visiting 
his son, Brutus Mitchell, at Axtell, Kearney 
County, Nebraska, he died, at about sixty- 
six years of age. His widow still resides in 
Macedonia. They had six children, four sons 
and two daughters: A. I., our subject; Mary, 
wife of Henry Davison, of Axtell, Nebraska, 
who is in the livery and harness business; 
Brutus I., also in the livery business at Wil- 
cox, Kearney County; Lewis E. Stryker, in 
company with Brutus I., at Wilcox; E. Sum- 
mer, who died at the age of nineteeen years 
at old Macedonia; and Delia, the wife of 
Henry Kennedy, of Macedonia. 

Tho subject of this sketch enlisted at 
Keokuk, Iowa, in May, 1864, in the Forty- 
seventh Iowa Infantry Volunteers, Colonel J. 
P. Sanford, the well-known Iowa lecturer, 
and Captain Harrison E. Havens, now editor 
of the Sigourney News, in command. The 
regiment was stationed at Helena, Arkansas. 
In 1872 Mr. Mitchell lived at Crete, Nebraska, 
where he studied medicine witli Dr. A. D. 
Root, a well-known physician of that place, 
and after three years of study he attended 
the Rush Medical College, at Chicago, Illi- 
nois, in the winter of 1876-'77. He then 
practiced in Wheeler, Pottawattamie County, 



Iowa, for three years, and then, in 1880, at- 
tended another year at the Rush Medical 
College, where be graduated February 22, 
1881. He was for a year in company with 
his father and brother, Brutus, in the drug 
business at Macedonia. He was a registered 
pharmacist, the firm being A. I. Mitchell & 
Co. In 1882 the Doctor removed to Wheeler, 
where he resided for five years and then 
located at Macedonia, where he has since 
resided. His extensive acquaintance in this 
part of the county and his success in busi- 
ness, insures him an extensive and paying 
practice. 

He was married April 10, 1869, to Miss 
Annie Efner, who was born in Brighton, 
Iowa, the daughter of Dr. William H. and 
Sarah C. (Johnston) Efner; the mother still 
resides with Mrs. Mitchell, at the advanced 
age of eighty-two years. Dr. and Mrs. 
Mitchell have one son, Sumner, who was born 
August 2, 1879. They lost one child, Frank, 
by death, when an infant. Politically the 
Doctor is a Republican. His father was an 
old Abolitionist, and was a conductor on the 
"underground railroad." The Doctor is a 
member of Botna Valley Medical Association, 
and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, of which he is a class-leader, and is 
also licensed to preach; his wife is a member 
of the order of the Eastern Star, and her 
father was a Master Mason. Dr. Mitchell is 
also member of the 1. O. O. F., Macedonia 
Lodge, No. 421, of which he is secretary. 



IMON REYNOLDS, one of the best 
known and early pioneers of Potta- 
wattamie County, was born in Chau- 
tauqua County, New York, July 10, 1837, 
the son of Lewis and Alitha (Worster) Rey- 
nolds, both natives of New York State. 



342 



BIOGRAPHICAL II I STORY 



Simon was but three years of age when his 
parents moved to LaPorte County, Indiana, 
whore they remained sixteen years. They 
then moved to Kankakee County, Illinois. 
Simon was reared and educated in LaPorte 
County, Indiana. The parents then came to 
Pottawattamie County, Iowa, in 1860, where 
they lived until their death. The father had 
been a farmer all his life, and in his political 
views was a Democrat. lie died at the age 
of eighty-four years; the mother was a mem- 
ber of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 
and died at the age of seventy-three years. 
In 1860 Simon Reynolds came to James 
Township, Pottawattamie County, and im- 
proved a farm of fifty acres in section 10, 
but which he afterward sold. In 1878 he 
bought his present farm of 120 acres, which 
he has since improved until he now has one 
of the best farms in the county. lie was one 
of the early settlers here, his nearest neighbor 
being seven or eight miles distant. Besides 
his general farming, he is also engaged in 
stock-raising. 

Mr. Reynolds came to Iowa in 1854; was 
married August 24, 1862, to Miss Amanda 
Redman, who was born at Dayton, Ohio. 
She was four years of age when her parents 
moved to Elkhart County, Indiana, at which 
place her father died. She was the daughter 
of Silas and Catharine (Bunner) Redman, 
both natives of Virginia. When Mrs. Rey- 
nolds was ten years of age her mother moved 
to Polk County, Iowa, where her daughter 
was reared and educated. The mother is still 
living jn that county, at the age of seventy- 
four years; religiously she is a member of the 
Methodist Church. Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds 
have five children, viz.: Monroe I''., a graduate 
ot the Iowa Western Normal School, and 
formerly a successful teacher, now holds a 
position in Swift's packing house in Omaha; 
Arthur L., a carpenter of Oregon; < >rpha C, 




wife of William Warnke, of Belknap Town- 
ship; Effie L. and Clarence, both at home. 
Politically Mr. Reynolds is a Republican, and 
has served in most of his county's offices with 
credit. He and his wife and eldest son are 
members of the Christian Church. Mr. 
Reynolds is still in the prime of life, and 
takes an active interest in education and re- 
ligion, in which he is ably encouraged by his 
faithful wife, who has proved a worthy help- 
mate and partner to her husband. 



S. ROOP, contractor and builder, 
No. 520 East Broadway, has been 
a resident of Council Bluffs since 
1878. He was born in Fulton County, Ohio, 
May 16, 1851, son of John and Mary (Mills) 
Roop, natives of Pennsylvania, and descend- 
ants of the old Dutch settlers of that State. 
When he was four years old his parents 
moved to Carson City, Michigan, where he 
was reared and educated in the public schools. 
When a mere lad of twelve or thirteen he 
entered a sash, door and blind factory, in 
which he worked for a number of years. He 
was subsequently employed in the lumber, 
shingles and lath business. In January, 
1878, he came to Council Bluffs, and has 
since been identified with the best interests 
of this city. His parents have since died, 
the father at the age of eighty-four years, 
and the mother at the age of seventy-eight. 

After coming to this city Mr. Roop has 
been variously employed. He spent some 
time in Nebraska in the stock business. In 
1884 he engaged in milling, and previous to 
that time, for two or three years, ho was in 
the second-hand merchandise business. In 
1887 he turned his attention to contracting 
ami building, which he has since followed. 
In connection with this business he also 



mwMnon 




^ Axr^^z, 



OF rOTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



343 



keeps a quantity of, and is prepared to manu- 
facture, all kinds of bee supplies, sncli as 
bee veils, comb foundations, hives, honey 
knives, smokers, etc. 

Mr. Roop resides at No. 320 Oak avenue. 
He was married at Carson. City, Michigan, 
in January, 1874, to Nellie J. Dolson, who 
was born in Dubuque County, Iowa, in 
March, 1851. They have four children: 
Cortez Leo, Francis Ethel, Miles Archie 
and Raymond Wilber. Mrs. Rcop is a 
member of the Catholic Church. He is a 
Republican. 



fOIIN P. F. WEAVER, contractor and 
builder, brick manufacturer, president 
of the Globe Publishing Company, and 
vice-president of the Ogden Iron Works, is 
one of the most enterprising men of Council 
Bluffs. 

Mr. Weaver was born in Adams County, 
Pennsylvania, September 7, 1846, and was 
reared near Gettysburg. His parents, J. G. 
and Maria (Fisher) Weaver, were both na- 
tives of Pennsylvania. He traces his family 
history back five generations on both sides, 
the original ancestors being German and 
English. Both parents are still living at the 
old home in Adams County, Pennsylvania. 
John P. F. was reared on a farm, and by virtue 
of his father being a plasterer he learned that 
trade. 

At the age of seventeen Mr. Weaver en- 
tered the service of his country, enlisting in 
February, 1863, in Company II, Twenty-first 
Pennsylvania Cavalry, and served till the close 
of the war. He was mustered out at Lynch- 
burg, Virginia, and received his discharge 
at Harrisburg, July 14, 1865. Mr. Weaver 
was in seventeen engagements, at the siege 

of Petersburg, and, in fact, all the princi- 
a7 



pal battles from 1863 until the close of the 
war. 

The war over, he returned to his old 
home, and there engaged in agricultural 
pursuits until the spring cf 1866. Then he 
completed his trade. May 31, 1869, he 
started West, landing in Council Bluffs on 
the fourth of June. He has since made this 
city his home. In 1870 he entered into a 
partner.-hip with George A. Jacobs, with 
whom he was associated until the fall of 
1876, when Mr. Jacobs withdrew from the 
company. Mr. Weaver continued the busi- 
ness alone, and as time moved along he grad- 
ually enlarged his operations and made many 
other business ventures, meeting with decided 
success in all his undertakings. He has been 
in the brick business since 1S80, now manu- 
facturing from 3,000,000 to 4,000,000 brick 
annually, employing an average of fifty men 
and doing a $50,000 business. In December, 
1888, he entered into partnership with 
Thomas Bowman, in the Globe Publishing 
Company, he being the president. In 1887 
he associated himself with the Ogden Iron 
Works, of which he is vice president. Mr. 
Weaver was one of the founders of the Coun- 
cil Bluffs Canning Works, also one of the 
founders of the Council Bluffs Driving Park, 
and is a member of the Board of Trade. He 
is a stanch Democrat, and during the years 
1888-'89 was a member of the City Council. 
He is a member of the I. O. O. F., No. 184, 
Hawkeye Lodge. 

Mr. Weaver was married May 1, 1878, to 
Miss Mary Hilferty, who was born May 6, 
1856. Her father, Charles Hilferty, came to 
Iowa when she was quite young and she was 
reared in this State. Mr. and Mrs. Weaver, 
have four children: Laura, May, Howard 
and John, all at home. 

Mr. Weaver is a self made man \n every 
respect: his education was obtained through 



344 



BU "•■ /.'. I I'lIICAL UlSTOR Y 



his own efforts, anil his success is due to his 
honesty, pluck and perseverance. 

S ' * ' I ' S ' 

fOIIN COOL, one of the pioneer settlers 
of Avium, was horn in Coburg, Province 
of Ontario, April 2, 1824, the son of 
Benjamin Cool, who was born in 1795 on the 
Mohawk River, and was of Holland Dutch 
descent. His ancestors were among the old 
pioneer settlers of New York State, and were 
called the Mohawk Dutch. Benjamin Cool 
participated in the war of 1812 on the Amer- 
ican side, and fought at tlie battle of Sack- 
ett's Harbor. He was a tanner, currier and 
shoemaker t>v trade, and after emigrating to 
Canada was engaged at his trade in Coburg. 
He was married there to Phoebe, daughter 
of Adolphus Ilillenboldt, who was from the 
some locality on the Mohawk. Mr. Ilillen- 
boldt was a farmer by occupation, and cleared 
his place from the heavy timber. Mr. and 
Mrs. Cool were the parents of nine children: 
Lucinda, John, Richard, William, Ellizabeth, 
Albert, Charles, Seymour, and one who died 
in infancy. The parents lived in Coburg 
about ten yearB, and then, in 1833 or 183-1, 
moved to New Fork State, settling hear Buf- 
falo on the canal at Shelby Basin, where 
he followed the business of shoemaking for 
some years. In 1844 he removed to Illinois 
and settled on a farm in Kane County, 
Hampshire Township. In 1868 he came to 
Avoca, Iowa, where he died in 1878, at the 

:i._re ..f eighty three years. Mrs. Cool is Still 
living, at the age of ninety years, with her 
son Albert in Nebraska. Mr. Cool was an 
industrious, honorable and upright man. 

John Cool, a son of the above and subject of 
this sketch, received a common-school educa- 
tion, and Learned blacksmi thing in early life. 
He was nine years of age when his father re- 



turned to New York State, and at the age of 

twenty-one, in 1845, he went to Elgin, I Hi 
nois, where lie was engaged at his trade a 
short time. In 184b' he opened a shop in 
Hampshire Township, Kane County, which 
he conducted until the breaking out of the 
war. He enlisted in Company J, Eighth 
Illinois Volunteer Cavalry, being mustered 
in at St. Charles, Illinois, September 18, 
1801. He was immediately promoted to be 
Second Lieutenant, was in the Army of the 
Potomac, and was in the battle of Mcchan- 
icsville, Virginia, the seven days' fight before 
Richmond, White Oak Swamp, Harrison's 
Landing, at the Second battle of Bull Run, 
Antietam, and in several skirmishes. He 
was badly ruptured at Harrison's Landing by 
the fall of his horse. After the battle of 
Antietam he returned home, and resided at 
Hampshire, where he was Collector of the 
township and Constable, for twelve years, his 
time expiring while he was in the army. In 
1809 he came by wagon to Avoca, in com- 
pany with his brother-in-law, Isaac Vande- 
borgart, and his family, and Thomas E. 
Fowler and family. Mr. Cool is the pioneer 
blacksmith of this city, having built the first 
shop and struck the first blow as a black- 
smith. He also started the first livery busi- 
ness, using a straw shed foi his stable. He 
also began carrying the mail and express the 
same winter to Harlem. 

Mr. Cool was a charter member of the 
first Masonic lodge, Mount Nebo, the rooms 
of which was over his blacksmith shop, which 
was built for that purpose, being one of the 
first buildings of Avoca. He has held all the 
offices in this lodge. lie has served :is 
Deputy Sheriff three times, and is a member 
of the U. S. Post, of which he has held the 
otliees of Deputy (fraud Master and Quaran- 
tine Master. Mr. Cool has erected geven 
dwelling-houses, two shops and a livery 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY 



340 



stable, the latter being destroyed by fire in 
1880. 

He was married in 1817 to Sarah Carleton, 
daughter of James and Julia Carleton, and 
by this marriage there was one child, Mary, 
now the wife of Malcolm Howe, of Hamp- 
shire, Illinois. The mother died in 1865, 
and in 1867 Mr. Cool married Margaret 
Fowler, daughter of Dr. Thomas E. and Marilla 
Fowler, and by this marriage there were two 
6ons — Benton and Daniel. Dr. Thomas 
Fowler was one of the pioneers of Hamp- 
shire, Illinois, settling there in 1846, where 
he was engaged in the practice of medicine 
many years. In 1869 he came to Avoca, 
where lie became a well-known physician. 
He was one of the charter members of the 
Mount Nebo Lodge, No. 297. He died and 
was buried with Masonic honors. His wife 
died in 1889. 



I1LLIAM CHARLES has made his 
home in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, 
p&i since 1876. He was born in Corn- 
wall, England, October 15, 1837, son of 
Richard Charles, a native of the same county. 
His grandfather, Philip Charles, was also 
born in that portion of England. Richard 
Charles married Mary Otis, a native of Corn- 
wall, and by her had twelve children, seven 
sons and five daughters, William being the 
youngest save one. Our subject served his 
time as a miller until he had acquired a 
thorough knowledge of that business. In 
1857 the Charles family came to America 
and located at Buffalo, New York, where 
they remained two years. At the end of 
that time they continued their way west- 
ward, and took up their abode near Marion, 
Grant County, Indiana. The father died in 
that county, at the age of seventy-nine years, 




and the mother, who has now reached the 
advanced age of ninety-three years, is a resi- 
dent of Chicago, Illinois. Mr. Charles was 
a miller all his life. He was a member of 
the Church of England. 

William Charles worked at milling in 
Grant County, Indiana, until 1876. In that 
year he came to Iowa and purchased eighty 
acres of land in section 13, Wright Town- 
ship, Pottawattamie County. Since that time 
he has been identified with the best interests 
of this community. He has made many im- 
provements on his farm; has built a good 
frame house and dher out buildings, and 
has a grove of three acres and an orchard of 
two acres. 

Mr. Charles has been twice married. At 
the age of twenty-six he wedded Miss Mary 
Woolman, a native of Grant County, Indi- 
ana, danghter of S. N. Woolman. By her 
he had one daughter, Clara, now the wife of 
II. L. Bales, of Wright Township, Pottawat- 
tamie County. Mrs. Charles was a worthy 
member of the United Brethren Church. 
Her death occurred in 186L In 1866 Mr. 
Charles took for his second wife E. Jane 
Woolman, a sister of his former companion. 
She was also born and reared in Grant County, 
Indiana. This union has been blessed with 
four children, three of whom are living — 
Salmon P., Jessie and Willie. They lost one 
sou, Burr, at the age of nine years. 

In connection with his general farming, 
Mr. Charles carries on the manufacture of 
sorghum, having a local reputation as an ex- 
pert manufacturer of that article. 

For ten years he has been a faithful and 
zealous worker in the cause of his Master; 
is a deacon in the Methodist Episcopal Church 
of Lewis, and is also a local preacher, ex- 
pounding the word of God every alternate 
Sabbath. He is an efficient worker in the 
Sunday-school. Mr. Charles is well posted 



340 



lU(,ai{Al>IIlCM. HISTORY 



on all current topics, and is a great reader of 
history and the Bible. He is broad and 
progressive in his view-, is earnest in his 
labors for the advancement of religion, and 
16 regarded by all who know him a> an 
honorable and upright citizen and a true 
Christian. 

In connection with the family history of 
his wife, it should be further stated that her 
father, S. N. Woolman, was a native of New 
Jersey, and her mother, Elizabeth (Bond) 
Woolman. was born in Virginia, a descend- 
ant of an old family of that State. Both 
parents were members of the United Brethren 
Church. 



fOUN M. PHILLIPS, born March 15, 
IS 20, in Rowley, Essex County, Massa- 
chusetts, died in Council Bluffs, Iowa, 
September 10, 1888. His early life was 
spent on a farm, but when a young man he 
ensraeed in the boot and shoe business. First 
he employed several men manufacturing 
goods on contract for various large houses in 
Georngtown, Massachusetts, his shop being 
on the old homestead farm. Afterward, in 
1852, he removed to South Danvers, Massa- 
chusetts, now Peabody, and engaged with his 
brother in the manufacture of boots and 
shoes under the firm name of A. P. Phillips 
& Co. 

He was early attracted to the West, and 
in L856 they opened a store in Council Bluffs 
under the firm name of J. M. Phillips &Co., 
his brother, A. P. Phillips, taking charge of 
the same until 1858, when he returned East 
and J. M. Phillips came West to take charge 

of the interests here; and in 1860 removed 
his family to Council Bluffs, consisting of his 
wife, olive N. Phillips, nee Cressey, whom 
he married in Rowley, Massachusetts, in 



1845. Nathan C Phillips. Mary O. Phillips 
and John M. Phillips, Jr., are hi- children. 
Other children born at Council Bluffs are 
Emma C. Phillips, who married V. W. Vos- 
winkel, and now lives at Eolton, Kansas; 
Uuth M. Phillips, who married U. L. Shep- 
herd, and lives at Council Bluffs; Granville 
D. Phillips, who is unmarried and resides in 
Seattle, Washington. Of the others. Na- 
than G. Phillips is married and resides in 
Council Bluffs; Mary O. Phillips, unmarried 
and resides with her sister, Mrs. Shepherd, 
in the family residence, and John M. Phil- 
lips, now engaged in railroad surveys in 
Washington. In 1860 the firm of J. M. 
Phillips & Co. started a boot and shoe store 
in Omaha and put it in charge of Albert 
Tucker, an old employe of the firm both in 
Massachusetts and at Council Bluffs. After- 
ward he was admitted to partnership in the 
Omaha house, the firm name being changed 
to Tucker, Phillips & Co. Some few years 
later, in 1866 or 1867, there was a general 
dissolution of partnership between the mem- 
bers of the firm of A. P. Phillips & Co., of 
Peabody, Massachusetts, engage 1 in the 
manufacture of shoes, and J. M. Phillips & 
Co., of Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Tucker, 
Phillips & Co., of Omaha. Nebraska, also 
ensrao-ed in the wholesale and retail hoot and 
shoe business. The members of the two first 
firms at that time were A. P. Phillips. J. M. 
Phillips and Oscar Phillips, a son of A. P. 
and nephew of J. M., who had been admitted 
into the firm, and in the Omaha house the 
three named and Albert Tucker. In this 
dissolution ,L M. Phillips sold out his inter- 
ests in the other places and bought the in- 
terests of the others and became Bole owner 
of the Council Bluffs store, and continued it 
until his death under the name of J. M. 
Phillips, except for two years when hi- Bona 
Nathan C. and John M. were in partnership 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE OOUNTY. 



317 



with him, afterward retiring from the tirm 
He early engaged in the wholesale business, 
and for years had a very extensive trade, 
but retired from the wholesale business in 
1885, owing to advanced age. 

He from the first took an active interest in 
the affairs of the county, uniting with the 
Republican party in its infancy. He held 
various positions; was Alderman for two 
years; member of the Board of County Su- 
pervisors four years. He with others organ- 
ized the Fairview Cemetery Association, the 
first cemetery in the county, and continued a 
director of the same until his death. He was 
troubled with deafness, which caused him to 
decliue several positions offered hi in. He was 
one of the organizers of the Council Bluffs 
Savings Bank and a director of the same for 
several years. 

■ " • '£ • 3"t ' % 



[AVID DUNKLE, a pioneer farmer near 
Crescent City, was born in Fayette 
County, Ohio. March 14, 1834, a son of 
William and Mary (McMullen) Dunkle, na- 
tives of Virginia who emigrated to Ohio and 
were married there. The senior Mr. Dunkle, 
a farmer, moved in the summer of 1840 to 
Greene County, Missouri, and thence to Dade 
County, that State, and -'n 1848 to Buchanan 
County. His wife died in Missouri, in April, 
1844, and he came to Iowa in the spring of 
1852, locating on a farm a mile east of Cres- 
cent City, — this village being then called 
Pigeon City, — and on section 30, Hazel Dell 
Township. This land — 160 acres, just broken 
— Mr- Dunkle purchased of Solomon Free- 
man, and here he lived with his son until the 
end of his life, December 29, 1873, when he 
was about ninety-two years of age. 

David, our subject, remained upon the 
home farm until 1885, when he moved to 



Crescent City. He bought eighty acres on 
sections 14 and 22, Crescent Township, which 
he afterward sold; and he still owns a por- 
tion of the original 160 acres, which he has 
placed under cultivation and substantial im- 
provements. Being one of the pioneers of 
the county he had to undergo most of the 
hardships incident to pioneer life, but he 
faced them with determination and is now 
reaping his reward. He brought the first 
horses to this part of the county that were 
put to general use; previous to that time 
oxen had been universally employed. He 
was elected the first County Supervisor from 
this district in 1860, and was re-elected twice 
afterward. In 1860 he was elected Justice 
of the Peace, m which official relation he has 
since served continuously with the exception 
of one year in the service of the late war. 
lie has also he'd the varions township offices. 
He has served his town and county faithfully 
and well, as is indicated by the persistent de- 
sire of his fellow-citizens to continue him in 
office. He was instrumental in bringing 
about the organization of the first independ- 
ent school district in this part of the county, 
it being the second one organized in the 
county; the one at Kanesville, now Council 
Bluffs, was the first. He has done a great 
deal for the cause of education, and this is 
the best evidence of his patriotism. 

November 4, 1864, he enlisted in Com- 
pany II, Thirteenth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, 
and was discharged at Davenport, Iowa, May 
22, 1865, on account of disability. He par- 
ticipated in the battle of Nashville between 
Hood and Thomas, December 22 and 23, 
1864. He is now a member of Abraham 
Lincoln Post, No. 29, G. A. R., at Council 
Bluffs. He is a high-minded Democrat on 
national questions, in which he takes an 
active interest, and was generally a delegate 
to county and State conventions. 



348 



BIOGRAPHICAL II I STOUT 



He was married December 22, 1852, to 
Margaret McMullen, daughter of William 
and Catharine McMullen, natives of Vir- 
ginia. She was born in Fayette County, 
Ohio, in 1834, and died July 25, 1883, leav- 
ing four children, as follows: David William, 
who resides in Florence, Nebraska; Martha 
A., now the wife of W. H. Cafferty, in 
Omaha; Sarah A., now Mrs. John Daggett 
in Florence; and John W., at home. 

-■■£• » ' ! •£»" 



fM. LEWIS, one of the prominent citi 
zens of Washington Township, was 
° born in Franklin Courty, Indiana, Sep- 
tember 23, 184.6, the son of Samuel Lewis, 
who was born in the same county in 1812, 
and was a son of Daniel Lewis, a native of 
Pennsylvania, and of English descent. Our 
subject's mother was Martha (Richardson) 
Lewis, who was born in Ohio, and the daugh- 
ter of Nathaniel Richardson, a native of Con- 
necticut. In 1853, when the subject of this 
sketch was but seven years of age, the family 
moved to Marion County, Iowa, where the 
father lived until 1S79, and then in Potta- 
wattamie County till his death, which oc- 
curred in 1882, at the age of seventy years. 
He had been a farmer all his life; politically 
he was a Republican; and religiously a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Church. The mother 
now lives in Madison County, Nebraska. 
They had a family of twelve children, seven 
sons and five daughters, all of whom grew to 
maturity. 

F. M. Lewis remained on the farm in 
Marion County until 1877, when he settled 
six miles from Council Bl tiffs, and later 
bought eighty acres of land, where he now 
lives. He was one of the early settlers in his 
neighborhood, and has been very successful 

in all hi* undertakings, being now the owner 



of 200 acres of well improved land. He was 
married in Marion County, Iowa, February 
1, 1877, to Miss Lizzie Devore, who was born 
in Bartholomew County, Indiana, the daugh- 
ter of Levi and Rosetta (Osborne) Devore, 
the former a native of Indiana, and the son 
of Ben Devore, and the latter was the daughter 
of Jonathan Osborne, a native of New Eng- 
land. Mrs. Lewis was but two years of age 
when her parents moved to Marion County, 
where she grew to maturity and was edu- 
cated. Her mother died in 1881, in Potta- 
wattamie County, and the father now lives 
six miles north of Council Bluffs, near Cres- 
cent. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis have tour chil- 
dren: Tonny Benton, Mary Elva, Charles 
Earl and Irvin. Politically Mr. Lewis is a 
Republican; and religiously both himself 
and wife are members of the Evangelical 
Church. 

■■>„ <? ■. ; ,« ; . ? ,., «^ 




ILLIAM BROWN, one of the sub- 

| stantial fanners of James Township, 
is the son of Nathan Brown, who 
was born in Pike County, Ohio, in 1S13. 
He was from an old American family, and 
was reared to farm life. In 1839, at the age 
of twenty-six years, became to Bloomington, 
Iowa, where he settled on a tract of wild 
land, remaining on the same farm for thirty 
years. In the spring of 1872 he came to 
Pottawattamie County, where he bought a 
farm of 640 acres in James Township, which 
lie improved. From the effects of blood- 
poisoning occasioned by a wound from a 
needle of a self-binder running through his 
hand, he died, in 1879, at the age of sixty-six 
years. Religiously both Mr. and Mrs. Brown 
were United Brethren. Mr. Brown was a 
hard working and industrious man, and ac- 
cumulated a handsome fortune. He was of 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY 



349 



a quiet disposition and took but little interest 
in politics, 1>ut was a stanch Democrat. He 
had the respect of his fellow-citizens and had 
served as Trustee of his township. He took 
an active interest as School Director, and 
built the school-house at District No. 6. He 
was married to Filinda Odell, daughter of 
Thomas Odell, and to them were born eight 
children, of whom the two eldest, Johnnie 
and Sarah, died in infancy; Alvira died at 
the age of twenty-six years; Hattie is the 
Wife of Dr. James Welsh, a mining expert 
of New York city, and they have one child, 
Bertie; Johnson is still unmarried; Minor 
married Fannie Parker, of James Township, 
and they have two children, Eva and one un- 
named; William, our subject; and Jessie, 
who married Henry Crommett, deceased, 
formerly a real-estate dealer in Omaha. 

William Brown, a son of the above and 
the subject of this sketch, was born in Mus- 
catine, August 8, 1858, and was reared to 
farm life. He was but sixteen years of age 
when his father came to James Township, 
Pottawattamie County. In 1882 he married 
Allie Irwin, daughter of J. D. and Emily 
(Downs) Irwin, and they have had four chil- 
dren: Leslie, Ira, Jessie and William. Since 
the death of his father Mr. Brown has been 
managing the farm. He is a practical farmer 
and stands deservedly high as one of the 
young and enterprising citizens of Pottawat- 
tamie County. He owns 240 acres of good 
farm land. Politically he is a Democrat. 



fcWEN W. JONES, a Crescent Town- 
ship farmer, was born in Dembershire, 
North Wales, January 18, 1831, a son 
of William and Ann Jones, also natives of 
the same place, occupants of a farm and the 
parents of six children: Avon. David, John, 



Owen W., Ann (wife of Mr. Williams and 
residing in Wales), and William W., deceased. 
When nine years of age Owen was hired out 
on a farm by the year, and remained there 
four years. Then he went to sea on an Eng- 
lish vessel hailing from Conway, Wales, and 
followed a seafaring life for six years, suffer- 
ing many hardships, and being then laid up 
for nine months with a broken leg. In his 
twentieth year he sailed for America on the 
ship Orient, landing at New York some two 
months later, January 3, 1852. After visit- 
ing Cincinnati, Philadelphia and Pittsburg, 
he returned to Cincinnati and was engaged 
there two years as a machinist in a cabinet 
factory. Next he went to Illinois, and was 
soon called to Alton, that State, to vis.it his 
sick brother, who shortly afterward died. 
After working in a coal mine a few years he 
removed in the spring of 1859 to the Alma 
(Illinois) mines, and then went to St. Louis, 
made several changes and finally landed at 
Council Bluffs, July 4, 1861, after a tedious 
trip up the. Missouri. He visited several 
points and finally settled at Big Grove on the 
banks of the river. A flood came and he 
moved out to higher land in skiffs, going into 
a house belonging to John Bird. He began 
trading and got some live-stock together and 
then moved into Garner Township. There 
he cut wood and hauled it to town with the 
oxen that he had raised. Subsequently he 
sold the oxen and purchased a team of horses, 
and followed farming and stock-raising on 
different rented places until in 1866 he bought 
his present farm of sixty acres on section 26, 
land entirely unimproved; and here he has 
made for himself and companion a comfort- 
able home, with a nice frame house, farm 
buildings, orchard, shade trees, flowerino- 
plants, etc. It is indeed a cosy retreat for 
him and his companion in their old age. 
Politically he is a true Democrat, taking 



350 



BIOUllAPUICAJ; HISTORY 



great interest in the public affairs of the 
county. They are zealous adherents to the 
faith of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- 
day Saints. 

September 29, 1858, while engagedjn the 
coal mines in Illinois, lie married Mrs. 
Hannah Jones, widow of Samuel Jones, who 
came to America in the spring of 1855, 
settling in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, 
and came thence to Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. 
Samuel Jones have hud two children, both of 
whom are deceased. 



OJEtENZO D. SEWARD, one of the 
well-known citizens of Pottawattamie 
County, was horn in Adams County, 
Illinois, in 1841, the son of Pitney Seward, 
who was a pioneer in that county. When he 
landed at Quincy there was but one house 
there, 1'yruin Seward, the grandfather of 
our subject, was a pioneer of Butler County, 
Ohio, and a cousin of Secretary Seward, of 
Lincoln's administration. He served in the 
war of 1812. Pitney Seward was twice mar- 
ried, iirst to Mahala Case, and they had eight 
children: Byrum, Julia, Harriet, Franklin, 
Lorenzo, Stephen, Elizabeth and Alice. Mr. 
Seward's second wife was Harriet Case, a 
Bister of the first, and they had five children, 
only two of whom grew to maturity, Ilattie 
and Sallie. Mr. Seward moved to Clark 
County, Missouri, about 1866, where he died 
at the age of seventy-two years; was born in 
1811, and died in 1883; was a member of the 
Christian Church, a substantial farmer, and 
was respected by all who knew him. He 
and his lather were among the iirst pioneers 
to the Western country. 

Lorenzo D. was but ten years of age when 
he went to < >h io to live with hi^ uncle, and 
but fourteen years of age when he came to 



Iowa in 1855 with his two brothers, Franklin 
and Stephen, landing at Keokuk, where he 
remained until 1858. In that year he went 
to Story County and worked on a farm until 
1859, when he went to Colorado, when Den- 
ver was but a small town, and worked in the 
mines and also at teaming. He drove a team 
across the plains from Leavenworth, Kansas, 
to Denver and other points. In 1863 he 
returned to Iowa and married Carrie F. 
Long, of Fremont County, Iowa. The father 
was an old pioneer of that county, having 
settled there in 1859. He was from Wiscon- 
sin, but was a native of Germany. He was 
the father of eleven children, viz.: Charles, 
Rosanna, Catharine, Mary, Maggie, Jacob, 
Carrie, Julia, Rachel, Henry and Clara. The 
father was a substantial farmer, and died in 
Fremont County. Mr. and Mrs. Lorenzo 
Seward are the parents of four children: 
Minnie, Henry, Katie and Ettie L., who died 
in infancy. After marriage Mr. Seward set- 
tled in Mills County, Iowa, where he worked 
in a saw-mill for two years. He resided in 
that county until 1878, when he came to 
Pottawattamie County and settled on a farm. 
lie purchased his present farm in 1880. He 
is a member of Hancock Valley Lodge, No. 
i'.iU, I. O. O. F. In his political views he is 
a Democrat, and is Chairman of the Town- 
ship Democratic Committee. lie stands 
high in the community as an honorable man, 
and one who has had a wide experience in 
Western life. 

- -• ■g -i" t - 2 



.OKACE G. LOWE, of section 9. Car- 
son Township, was born in Decatur 
County, Indiana, October .'5. 1854, the 
Mm of Franklin and Julia (Spurling) Lowe; 
the father is a well-known and prominent 
citizen of Carson. They reared a family of six 




A/1^^-C<7 &JrK. 



o-*z>c/ 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNT T. 



351 



children. Horace, the eldest child, was reared 
in Decatur County, Indiana, until fourteen 
years of age, when, in the fall of 1870, the 
family removed to Glenwood, Mills County, 
Iowa, where they lived until the nest spring. 
They then moved on the land where the 
home farm now is. Here he has since re- 
sided with the exception of two years. In 
1879 he accepted a situation as salesman in 
the mercantile house of Ohio Knox, of Mace- 
donia; and the next year he accepted a posi- 
tion in the mercantile business of L. D. 
Woodmansie, of Wheeler's Grove. In 1881 
he returned to the farm, where he has since 
resided, which consists of 240 acres of land, 
under a high state of cuLivation. 

He was married April 17, 1881, to Miss 
Hattie A. Woodmansie, of Logan County, 
Illinois, who was a child of five years when 
her father, L. D. Woodmansie, came to this 
county. He was a native of .New Jersey, 
and her mother, Mary (Niswonger) Wood- 
mansie, was a native of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. 
Lowe have two children. Mabel and Loren. 
Politically Mr. Lowe is a Republican, and 
he and his wife are members of the Presby- 
terian Church. Mr. Lowe is an honored and 
esteemed citizen of the county, where he has 
resided for so many years. 



tEWIS W. ROSS, attorney at law, Coun- 
cil Bluffs, was born of Scotch lineage, 
October 15, 1827, in Hanover Town- 
ship, Butler County, Ohio. His grandfather, 
Eze*kiel Ross, and his father, Amos Ross, 
natives of Essex County, New Jersey, settled 
in Butler County, Ohio, in 1814. Ezekiel 
died in 1845, in his eighty-ninth year, and 
was buried in the Bethel burying ground 
near his homestead. Amosdied in his seventy- 
ninth year, in Jersey County, Illinois, and 



was buried in the Jerseyville cemetery. 
Lewis W. Ross remained on the Lome farm 
until his twentieth year. May 1, 1848, he 
entered Farmer's College, near Cincinnati, 
and continued there until the winter of 1850, 
when he changed to Miami University, lo- 
cated at Oxford, Ohio, graduating from that 
institution in the month of June, 1852. At 
Farmer's College he had among his instructors 
Robert H. Bishop, D. D., and numbered 
among his student acquaintences Oliver W. 
Nixon, of the Inter-Ocean; William C. Gray, 
of the Interior; Murat Halsted, late of the 
Commercial Gazette; Lewis B. Gunkle, law- 
yer and capitalist, Dayton, Ohio; Joseph M. 
Gregory, lawyer, Memphis, Tennessee; Jacob 
C. Denise, M. D., Omaha, Nebraska; and 
Benjamin Harrison, the present occupant of 
the White House at Washington. In Miami 
University, he had among his class-mates 
Milton Saylor, twice elected to Congress from 
a Cincinnati district; David Swing, now of 
Chicago; and Benjamin Harrison, already 
mentioned. Saylor received the first, and 
Swing the second, honors of the class. 

After leaving college, Mr. Ross read law 
in Hamilton, Ohio, for two full years, pass- 
ing to the bar in the summer of 1854. His 
law preceptors were Joseph Scott, a notable 
example of the advocate and court lawyer in 
the same person; and N.C. McFarland, a man 
of excellent common sense, and untiring in- 
dustry. Scott was afterward, for many years, 
one of the Supreme Judges of the State of 
Ohio; and McFarland served under President 
Arthur as Commissioner of the General Land 
Office. After coming to the bar Mr. Ross 
located in Hamilton. Ohio, remaining there 
in practice for a period of two years. In the 
month of August, 1856, he removed to Cass 
County, Iowa. 

On the 3d day of January, 1861, he settled 
in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie County, 



352 



BIOQiiATHICAL HISTORY 



Iowa, which placo has always since been his 
home, except a temporary absence, extending 
through seven years, whilst employed in the 
State University. It is fair to say that he has 
given his life to the study and practice of his 
profession. He was State Senator in the 10th 
and 11th General Assemblies. Being a mem- 
ber of the Judiciary and Public Land Com- 
mittees, his legal knowledge and professional 
experience were in constant demand and ex- 
ercise. In 1804 he was elected a Trustee of 
the State University tor four years, and re- 
elected in 1868. In 1874 he was elected a 
Regent of the University for six years. In 

1880 he was made Resident Professor of the 
Law Department of the University, and in 

1881 was promoted to the office of Chancellor 
of that Department. As Trustee and Regent 
he labored earnestly and successfully in 
strengthening and developing the University. 
He was especially active and largely instru- 
mental in organizing and establishing the 
Law, Medical, and Homeopathic- Medical 
Departments. During the seven years of his 
service as Professor and Chancellor, he taught 
with other subjects, Equity, Real Property, 
Torts, and Common Law and Code Pleading. 
During this period the faculty and lecturers 
consisted of James M. Love, George G. 
Wright, Austin Adams, John N. Rogers, 
John V. Duncombe, Emlin McClain and J. 
L. Pickard. As Chancellor the subject of 
this sketch was the responsible head of the 
faculty, composed of men eminent as jurists, 
lawyers and teachers. It is worthy of notice 
that during all the years of this headship, the 
most perfect harmony prevailed between the 
faculty and himself, and between the several 
persons composing the faculty. In author- 
Bhip Mr. Rosa has i reduced but little of per- 
manenl value. While in the law school he 
published, in aid of liis platform work, " An 
Outline of Common Law ami Code Pleading," 



also, » An Outline of the Law of Real Prop- 
erty," and other fragmentary works. These, 
though valuable to himself and to his pupils 
at the time they were issued and used, were 
not designed for the active jurist, or the 
practicing lawyer. At the bar Mr. Ross 
ranks high as an equity and real-estate law- 
yer. To him causes of this character have all 
the charm of rotnauce. 

In his domestic relations he is fortunate 
and happy. In 1855 he was married to Miss 
Zoe M. Brown, in Lebanon, Ohio. Five chil- 
dren, all living, to-wit: Charles, Hester, 
Edith, Anna, and Dillon, are the fruit of this 
union. Mrs. Ross is now in mature womau- 
hood, and very active in promoting Christian 
and charitable enterprises. 



fOHN W. BUROKTI ALTER, one of the 
prominent farmers of Lincoln Town- 
ship, is of an old American family of 
German descent. Abraham Burckhalter, his 
grandfather, came from South Carolina to 
Ohio about 1811, and then removed to Union 
County, Indiana, then to Boone County, 
same State, in 1831. When lie first came to 
Ohio his wife rode a horse and lie walked, 
lie was the father of nine children, viz.: 
Cason, Jeremiah, James S., Joseph, Thomas, 
Fannie, Rebecca, Sarah, and a daughter whose 
name is unknown, who married and reared a 
family. Abraham Burckhalter lived to the 
age of seventy years, and died in Boone 
County, Indiana. Ho was a prominent farmer 
of that county, and was able to give each of 
his children eighty acres of land. James S., 
the son of the above and the father of our 
subject, was born in L818, on a farm in 
Union County, Indiana, and was married in 
Boone County to Leah Belles, daughter of 
William and Mary (Ilolf) Belles. The Father 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



353 



was born in New Jersey, and is said to have 
royal blood in his veins. He was married 
in that State at an early day, and then moved 
to Cincinnati, Ohio, when that city was a 
small village, and where he worked at the 
carpenter's trade. He afterward settled in 
Boone County, Indiana. He was the father 
of ten children, all of wbom lived to years of 
maturity, namely: Isaac, Elisha, Eliza, Cath- 
erine, Jacob, Peter, Ann, Leah and two others. 
Mr. William Kelles died in Boone County, at 
the age of sixty-two years, and his wife, nee 
Mary Hoff, lived to the great age of 104 
years, dying in Pottawattamie County, Iowa, 
in 1888. To Mr. and Mrs. James Burck- 
halter were born eight children: Daniel A., 
John W., Thomas W., Abijah C, Eliza J., 
Cynthia A., Mary F. and Laura A. Mr. 
Burckhalter remained in Boone County until 
the year 1854, when he came to Marion 
County, Iowa, and settled on a tine farm 
of 300 acres. At the age of forty-four 
years he enlisted in the war, serving one 
year, but died on the steamboat on his way 
home, and was bnried at St. Louis. His son 
Daniel was also in the war, and served three 
years in Company K, Third Iowa Cavalry, 
and was in the battle of Salina, Arkansas; 
was taken prisoner by the Confederates, but 
soon made his escape. 

John W. Burckhalter, our subject, was 
born September 23, 1845, and at the age of 
nine years he came with his father to Marion 
County, Iowa, where he has grown to man- 
hood. In 1873 he came to Lincoln Town- 
ship, where he remained one year, and next 
removed to Cass County, where he also re- 
sided one year, returning to Marion, where 
he resided four years. In 1879 he returned 
to Lincoln Township and settled on his 
present farm, then consisting of eighty acres 
of wild land, but to which he has since 
added until he now owns 240 acres of im- 



proved land. Politically he is a Republican. 
He was married in Marion County, Iowa, 
February 25, 1872, by Rev. C. M. Bingham, 
pastor of the Congregational Church of 
Otley, Marion County, Iowa, to Sabinah 
Roberts, daughter of Simon S. and Nancy 
(Donnoll) Roberts. Simon S. Roberts was 
born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, October 9, 
1808; taken when ten years of age by his 
parents to Ohio; at twenty-one learned the 
trade of carpenter and millwright; moved to 
Indiana, thence to Missouri, where he was 
building water mills for ten years. Then he 
returned to Ohio and was married, to Miss 
Elizabeth Conrad, in 1844, and they were 
the parents of three children: James P., 
George and Charles. They removed to Iowa 
in 1846. He was again married, to Nancy 
M. Donne'l, daughter of John C. and Nancy 
(Mc Roberts) Donnell, September 22, 1850, 
and they had the following children: Orin, 
Sabinah, Eva, Ethel, Millie, Mary E., Sarah, 
Elsie, Edwin and Maggie. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Burckhalter have been born seven children, 
all of whom are still living, namely: Thomas 
W., born February 11, 1875; Simon R., Au- 
gust 28, 1876; James H., January 22, 1879; 
Mary E., November 1, 1882; Bertha E., 
April 27, 1885; George C, May 28, 1888; 
and an infant, Eva Irene, born September 
22, 1890. 

Nancy M. Donnell was born in Seneca 
County, Ohio, February 12, 1828, came with 
her parents to Marion County, Iowa, in 
1848, and married Mr. Roberts, as above men- 
tioned. 

The grandparents of Nancy M. Donnell, 
on her mother's side, were McRoberts. Her 
grandfather, of Scotch descent, was a Revo- 
lutionary soldier, was at the surrender of 
Lord Cornwallis, and saw the Hritish stack 
their arms. Mrs. Mc Roberts, nee Nancy 
Hyland, was born in Virginia in 1757. 



854 



BIOORAPIIWAL HISTORY 



Grandfather John Donnell married Mary 
Boyd, died in Pennsylvania, and his widow 
moved to Ohio witli her son, John C, when 
be was twelve years of age. Born in the 
Keystone State in 1801, he was married Au- 
gust 4, 1825, to Nancy McRoberts, and they 
had eight children. In 1848 they moved to 
Iowa, where they resided until their death, 
his taking place December 14, 1887, and 
hers February 24, 1888. 

— g . im . fr .- 



jLBERT STONE, a farmer of section 
29, Carson Township, has been a resi- 
dent of this county since October, 1883. 
He was born in Mahoning County, Ohio, 
October 7, 1843, a son of Orman Stone, a 
n.it ive of Connecticut, and a farmer all his 
life. Albert's mother, whose maiden name 
was Polly Minard, was a native of Connecti- 
cut. The parents moved first to New York 
State, and finally to Mahoning County, Ohio, 
being among the first settlers there, and re- 
mained there until their death, bringing up 
four sons and four daughters. 

Albert, the youngest of the family, of 
course was reared upon a farm. During the 
war, under the first call for 300,000 men, 
August 22, 18G2, be enlisted in Company A, 
One Hundred and Twenty-fifth Ohio Volun- 
teer Infantry, and served until the close of 
the war. The first battle in which his regi- 
ment engaged was at Franklin, Tennessee, 
and afterward in the battles of Chickamauga, 
Missionary Ridge, Dandridge, and was with 
General Sherman in his Georgia campaign, 
participating in the battles of Resaca, Rene- 
saw Mountain, Peach-Tree Creek, New Hope 
Church, Buzzard's Roost, Chickopee River, 
siege of Atlanta, Jonesboro, pursuit of 
Hood fi'iini Nashville, Spring Hill and 



Franklin again, besides many skirmishes. 
He was honorably discharged in June, 1865. 
In 1^72. in Hancock County, Ohio, he 
married Miss Leticia Eckert, who was born 
and reared in that county, the daughter of 
natives of Ohio. Mr. Stone then moved to 
Putnam County, Ohio, where he lived eleven 
years. In 1883 he came to Pottawattamie 
County and purchased his present farm of 
the Furgeson Brothers (G. M. and J. L.) 
The first improvements on this farm were 
made by Charles German. It contains 110 
acres, and is good land, in a good condition. 
Mr. Stone is a radical Republican. The 
children are: Sullivan, John W., William E.. 
Emma L., Edna I!. and Mabel M. 



ENKY GITTENS, a fanner of Boomer 
Township, was born in Shropshire, 
England, November 27, 1821, a 6on of 
Watkin and Hannah (Edwards) Gittens, par- 
ents, also natives of the same shire. Watkin 
Gittens was born in March, 1S00, brought 
up on a farm, and at the age of twenty years 
married the affluent Lady Jane Edwards, and 
engaged in the mercantile trade at West 
Bromwich, five miles from Birmingham. lie 
accumulated a little fortune. His wife died 
in January, 1839, leaving one child, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. He afterward married 
again. 

Henry left home at the age of thirteen 
years, was employed on a farm, and was also 
wood-ranger for Earl of Dartmouth, Sand- 
well Hall. During this period, May 1, 1849, 
he married Miss Jane, daughter of William 
and Ann Walton, natives of England. In 
the Walton family were seven childron: 
Jane, John, Ann, Catharine, .lames, William 
and Sarah. Mrs. Gittens was born January 

29, L820, and on reaching womanhood be- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



855 



came housekeeper for a man named Lee, a 
cabinet- maker, and while there, at the age of 
twenty-eight years, she was married. 

A few years afterward, February 15, 1853, 
Mr. Gittens emigrated to America, landing 
at New Orleans. Five weeks later he came 
on to Council Bluff's, landing here with only 
50 cents in purse, and with a sick wife and 
child! Owing $3, he first paid this debt by 
selling a sack of flour which he had brought 
from St. Louis. The first two years he fol- 
lowed agriculture on a farm in Paine's Hoi- 
low, and then took up 120 acres of land on 
section 34, which constitute a part of his 
present place, at the Government price of 
$1.25 per acre. On the money he borrowed 
to pay for the place he had to pay 40 to 60 
per cent. He built a large log house, 16 x 18 
feet, and made the usual improvements. He 
also began raising sheep, but dogs and wolves 
consumed the profits. At present he has a 
total of 320 acres of land, 200 in cultiva- 
tion. Being industrious and economical he 
has established a comfortable home, although 
he has suffered many hardships of pioneer- 
mar. In 1875 he erected a brick house, 
thirty-eight feet square and two stories high. 

The greater part of the last four years he 
has spent in taking care of his invalid wife, 
who died in March, 1889. They were the 
parents of six children, namely: Sarah A., 
born in England, September 7, 1851, and is 
now the wife of Andrew C. Peterson, in 
Boomer Township; Catharine, born April 
23, 1853, died in December following; 
llenry William, born September 20, 1855, 
now a resident of this county; Kate Walton, 
born February 4, 1857, and is now the wife 
of Lawrence H. Hanson, in this county; 
Richard A., born July 8, 1858, and also a 
resident of this county; and James Watkin, 
born September 19, 1860, and a resident 
also of Pottawattamie County. 



April 19, 1890, Mr. Gittens married Miss 
Martha Dahl, a daughter of Nels and Mar- 
garet (Nelson) Dahl, natives of Denmark, in 
whose family were the following named 
children: Louisa Maria, the wife of Gasper 
Clemenson, and residing in Denmark, a 
captain of a line of vessels; Emma Nicholina, 
wife of Shumaker Jacobson, in Denmark; 
Martha Christina was the next; James An- 
drew, in Council Bluffs; Bartel C. and Nel- 
sena, both deceased; Olinda, a milliner of 
California, who died in Nevada Township 
while on her way to visit her sister, Mrs. 
Gittens; Caroline, wife of C. Nelson, and 
residing in Chicago. Mrs. Gittens was born 
March 28, 1842, and was reared at home, 
where her mother kept a millinery store. 
She thus acquired a taste for trimming hats, 
which business she has followed to some ex- 
tent since coming here with her parents in 
1874, when she located first at Ogden, Utah 
Territory, April 6. A year afterward they 
sold out their nice home there and came to 
Boomer Township, locating upon a farm. By 
the first marriage there has been one child 
born, which died young. Mrs. Gittens is a 
woman of great ability and has helped 
materially to win a fortune. She has two 
good pieces of property in Council Bluffs, 
where she made her home previous to the 
last marriage. 

Mr. Gittens is a stanch Democrat, voting, 
however, for the best man in local elections, 
and taking an active interest in public affairs. 
He has occasionally been sent as a delegate 
to county and State conventions. He has 
been Justice of the Peace for Boomer Town- 
ship for twenty-eight successive yeai - 6, and 
Notary Public, and has held various other 
township offices. He was one of the men 
who organized Boomer Township in 1859. 
Was one of the appraisers of ihe right of way 
for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Rail- 



850 



BIOQRAPHIC;iL HISTORY 




road through the county. lie retains in his 
possession an interesting diary, which lie 
kept for twenty years. 



!ILLIAM McKEOWN, farmer, was 
horn in Upper Canada, March 7, 
1828, the son of William and Jane 
(Lucas) MeKeown, natives of Ireland hut of 
Scotch ancestry. The senior MeKeown was 
a millwright by trade and went to Ireland to 
work, where he was eventually killed. His 
son, the fatlier of the subject of this sketch, 
was left in the world at an early age as au 
orphan. In 1815 he came to America, land- 
ing in Quebec, Canada. He was married to 
Jane Lucas, daughter of Andrew and Eliza- 
beth (Edwards) Lucas, natives of Ireland, 
who came to America in 1818, landing also 
at Quebec. Mr. Andrew Lucas was also a 
farmer, and in his family were thirteen chil- 
dren, viz.: Jane, the mother of the subject 
of tliis sketch; John, who resided in Upper 
Canada; James, Mary and five others are de- 
ceased; George resides in Upper Canada; 
Ann is the wife of James Edwards in Mich- 
igan; Andrew is in Canada; and Elizabeth is 
the wife of George Fuller, also in that Do- 
minion. Jane was born in 1800, brought up 
as a farmer's daughter and was married at 
the age of twenty years. They settled on a 
homestead, where they remained eight years, 
and where Mr. MeKeown died, in October, 
1827, leaving his wife and four children, 
namely: Thomas, deceased; Jane, the wife 
of Robert Gardner, and residing in Utah; 
Elizabeth, the wife of Robert Brier and 
living in Canada; and William, the subject 
of this notice. 

The latter, born after his father's death, 

had never known parental care and protection, 
and when he Was one year old his mother 



married .James Kilfoyle, a native of Ireland 
who came to America in 1824 and was a 
farmer. After that marriage they moved to 
Canada West, and in 184S came to Pottawat- 
tamie County, where his wife died, April 18, 
1853. They were the parents of nine chil- 
dren, thus: Francis, deceased; Andrew, re- 
siding in Utah Territory; Mary Ann (1), 
who died in infancy; Mary Ann (2), who 
married James Day and has since died; 
Caroline, who married George Snyder and 
has since died; Martha, deceased; Rachel, 
the wife of Johu Winegar and residing in 
Utah; Wesley, residing in Orleans; and 
James, also a resident of Utah. After Mrs. 
Kilfoyle's death, Mr. Kilfoyle married again, 
in Utah, and remained in that Territory 
until his death in 1871 or 1872. 

Mr. MeKeown, whose name heads this 
Bketch, left home at the age of twelve years 
with the consent of his mother and worked 
as a laborer, his earnings going to her sup- 
port. In 1847 he came to Pottawattamie 
County and settled on 280 acres of wild and 
rough prairie land in Bloomer Township, the 
following May. He married Eliza Jane 
Hall, May 9, 1S4S, who was the daughter of 
Joseph and Johanna (Chillis) Hall, natives 
of New York State and the parents of eleven 
children, viz.: Joshua, Mary, Alfred, de- 
ceased; Joseph, residing in Missouri; Mark, 
in Utah; five died in infancy. Mrs. Eliza 
MeKeown was born in Indiana July 10, 1826, 
and came to Iowa in 1846 and the next year 
to this county. She was married in 1848, at 
the age of twenty-two years. Mr. MeKeown 
began to improve his laud by erecting a log 
cabin 14x14, building the usual barns, 
fences, etc., and breaking the land with oxen 
which he had himself reared; and here he 
experienced many of the hardships of pio- 
neer life in a wild country. When he reaped 
his first little harvest his parents came and 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



357 



he gave up his home and farm once more. 
After a number of changes from place to 
place, he, in 1853, bought forty acres of his 
present place, and spent a year with his wife's 
father in Missouri. Since then he has added 
to that h>bt purchase until he now has 280 
acres on sections 31 and 32; he lias sold 
forty acres. He has made many valuable im- 
provements, in the way of barn, sheds, etc., 
and erected a fine frame house 16 x 36 feet, 
two-stories high, with cellar 16 x 36. Orna- 
mental trees and an orchard add value to the 
premises. He has a good farm, of which 
240 acres are in cultivation, and the remain 
der in hay, pasture and timber. He has been 
a hardTWorking and industrious man, and 
now in his old days he has a comfortable 
home to enjoy. 

He takes an active interest in Democracy; 
has been the Trustee, Road Supervisor and 
on the Board of Education, and is zealously 
interested in the promotion of the welfare of 
his community. 

He is a member of the Church of Latter- 
Day Saints, as was also his wife, and is 
highly respected by his fellow-citizens. Mrs. 
McKeown died February 4, 1870, leaving 
eleven children, born and named as follows: 
William Alfred, born March 26, 1850, re- 
sides in Pottawattamie County; Thomas Al- 
len, born in Indiana, January 9, 1852, now 
living in Nebraska; Jotepli Hall, born in 
Missouri, June 7, 1854, and now residing in 
Pottawattamie County; Mary Elizabeth, wife 
of William Brotherton, was born June 12, 
1856, and resides in Harrison County, Iowa; 
Robert Henry, born May 2, 1858, now lives 
in Nebraska; a girl was next born, Novem- 
ber 12, 1859, died in infancy; Martha Jane, 
wife of Peter Acton, was born February 20, 
1861, and resides in Pottawattamie County; 
Johanna, born July 30, 1863, is now living 
in Nebraska; Eliza Ellen, born June 3, 1865, 



died March 16, 1880; David Albeit, born 
February 16, 1867, resides in Utah; George 
Wesley, born January 13, 1870, also resides 
in Utah. 

After the death of his wife, February 11, 
1873, Mr. McKeown married Jennet Kirk- 
wood, the daughter of Robert and Mary 
(Muir) Kirkwood, whose history will be 
fonnd on another page. By the last marriage 
there are nine children, as follows: Arthur 
Lee, born May 22, 1874; Agnes Belle, Au- 
gust 27, 1875; John Robert, April 7, 1877; 
Grace May, August 22, 1879: Susan Janet, 
March 9, 1880; Violet, December 11, 1884; 
Margaret, November 7, 1885: Alice Annye, 
July 30, 1887, and Emma Melissa, March 10, 
1889. All these children are still at home ; 
two are members of the Church of the Latter- 
Day Saints. 

tOGAN McREYNOLDS, one of the in- 
telligent and successful fanners of Pot- 
tawattamie County, was born in Saline 
County, Missouri, November 28, 1842, the 
son of John M. McReynolds, who was a son 
of Joseph McReynolds, and a native of Ten- 
nessee. He was married in Saline County, 
Missouri, to Lucinda Meadows, a native of 
Virginia, and they were the parents of seven 
children, five now living. The mother is still 
living in Missouri, at the age of seventy-five 
years. She is a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church. 

Our subject's father died when he was but 
thirteen years of age, and as he was the eldest 
son he was obliged to take care of his mother 
and the younger children, and he therefore 
i received but a limited education. In 1863 
he went to Colorado, where he was engaged 
in freighting until 1865, when he returned 
to Missouri and remained until 1875. in 



•;:,s 



BIOGRAPHICAL BISTORT 



that year he came tn Pottawattamie County, 
Iowa, where he bought 100 acres of wild 
prairie laud, but which lie has since im- 
proved until he has now a tine, large farm. 
On this place he has a good cottage 14 x 24 
and 1G x 16 feet, which is surrounded by 
shade and ornamental trees and a fine grove 
of four acres. Mr. McKeynolds is engaged 
in general farming and stock-raising. 

lie was married August 28, 1870, to Miss 
Lydia Schanll, who was born near Charles- 
ton, Jefferson County, Virginia, and is the 
daughter of John B. and Rebecca (Bell) 
Shaul 1, who were also natives of Virginia. 
The parents came to Missouri and resided for 
a time in Fayette County, and then moved 
to Vernon County, where they still reside. 
Mr. and Mrs. McKeynolds have an adopted 
daughter named Katie. Mr. McReynolds is 
a Democrat politically, and both he and his 
wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church at Oakland. Our subject is yet in 
the prime of life, is frank and honest in his 
manner, and is respected and esteemed by 
all who know him. 




HLLIAM J. WHEELER, of section 
7, Carson Township, was born in 
Decatur County, Indiana, May 3, 
1S37, the son of Josephus Wheeler, a native 
of Kentucky, and the son of Thomas 
Wheeler, a native of Virginia. The Wheel- 
ers were early settlers in Kentucky, and Jo- 
Bephus was reared in Nicholas County. lie 
was sixteen years of age when he came to 
Decatur County, Indiana, with his parents, 
when that place was then a wilderness. Our 

subject's mother was Rebecca 1 1 k) Wheeler, 

■a native of Kentucky. They had twelve chil 

dren, of whom five sons and three daughters 



grew up to maturity. The family next 
moved to Howard County, Indiana, in 1866, 
and there resided until their death. The father 
died at the advanced age of seventy-four years, 
and the mother at seventy-one or seventy-two. 
The father was a farmer all his life, and in 
his political principles ho was first a Whig 
and afterward a Republican. 

W. J. Wheeler was reared on an Indiana 
farm, and in his youth he was engaged in 
chopping, grubbing and clearing the land. 
He taught school three terms, teaching the 
first term in his own district. At the 
time of the great Rebellion he left the farm, 
at Lincoln's call for 300,000 more men, 
for the army, anil enlisted in the Seventh In- 
diana Regiment, which was among the first 
that went out as a recruit, August 28, 1861, 
and returned with the regiment to the Army 
of the Potomac. He was in the battles of 
Pull Run, Cedar Mountain and several other 
slight skirmishes. He was honorably dis- 
charged in December, 1862, and returned to 
Decatur County, Indiana. 

He was married March 11, 1864, in Carl- 
isle, the county-seat of Nicholas County, 
Kentucky, to Miss II. T. Clayton, a native 
of that county, and a daughter of William 
M. Clayton, Sr., who was a soldier and was 
wounded in the war of 1812; she was a sis- 
ter of Hon. B. F. Clayton of Macedonia. 
After his marriage Mr. Wheeler resided in 
Decatur County until 1869, when he moved 
to southwestern Missouri, Jasper County, 
near Carthage, where he lived five years, en- 
gaged in farming and general work. He 
then returned to Indiana and resided in 
Howard County three years. He then re- 
moved to Pottawattamie County, Iowa, first 
settling near Macedonia, where he resided three 
years. He then purchased his present farm 
of seventy acres, which was then wild" land. 
and has since added to it until he now has 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



3M 



140 acres, or one-fourth of section 7. He is 
engaged in general farming and stock-raising. 
Politically Mr. Wheeler is a Republican, 
his first vote being cast for Fremont, lie is 
a member of Robert Provard Post of Carson. 
Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler have been identified 
with the Christian Church for many years. 

H. WIND is the proprietor and man- 
ager of the sash and door factory and 
9 pianino-mill at the corner of Broad 
and Thirteenth streets, which lie erected last 
spring (1890). It is 48 x 60 feet in ground 
area and two-stories high. Previous to his 
erection of this mill Mr. Wind operated a 
similar factory at 255 Vine Street, four years, 
and prior to that he was engaged in contract- 
ing and building, etc., which he has followed 
in connection with the business already men- 
tioned for the past sixteen years in this city. 
He first came to Council Bluffs about 1867, 
first becoming employed as foreman by one 
of the leading contractors for about seven 
years. He has erected many of the principal 
buildings of the city. Was contractor for 
the Masonic Temple, the Chautauqua Taber- 
nacle, the Sapp building, Marcus block and 
many other business blocks and residences. 
He came here from Nebraska City, where lie 
had been residing about a year. He has also 
resided at Chicago, St. Louis and other points, 
engaged at his trade. He is part owner of 
the Council Bluffs Handle Factory and vice- 
president of the company. 

He was born December 10, 1844, in Den- 
mark, was educated for the teachers' 1 profes- 
sion, of which his father was a member, but 
after his eighteenth year he preferred a 
mechanical trade, which he began to learn, 
and in the spring of 1865 he came to Amer- 
ica, and since 1867 he has been a resident of 

28 



Council Bluffs, figuring conspicuously i" the 
history of the city. Being a zealous Repub- 
lican, he has taken an active part, in political 
affairs. In March, 1890, he was elected 
Alderman of the second ward. He is Mas- 
ter of Excelsior Lodge, No. 259, F. & A. M., 
and is Past High Priest of the Star Chapter, 
No. 47, and member of Ivanhoe Command- 
ery, No. 17, K. T. He is also a member of 
Hazel Camp, Modern Woodmen. He is one 
of the directors of the State Savings Bank, 
and President of the Masonic Temple As- 
sociation. Owning two farms in Hardin 
Township, of 120 and 160 acres, he has also 
been engaged in agricultural pursuits. One 
of these he has himself improved from its 
original wild condition. He also owns con- 
siderable real estate in the city, — about twelve 
houses in different parts, eight of which are 
dwelling-houses on Washington avenue, and 
he has dealt some in real estate. His resi- 
dence is at 738 Washington avenue, corner 
of Curtice street. It is difficult to estimate 
the number of buildings he has erected, lie 
put up thirty-seven last year. 

He was married in 1867, in Council Bluffs, 
to Mary Hansen, who was born in Denmark, 
October 10, 1849, and was brought to this 
country when seven years of age. They have 
nine children, namely: Lena B., Andrew M., 
Harvey P., Rose M., Nellie M., Evarts H., 
Floy M., and Viva and Vera (twins), — all at 
home. Mr. Wind's parents were Andrew I 
and Magdalin K. (Erickson) Wind ; the 
mother is deceased. 



*>» *t * » S i <3 * y * « » 

i F. JONES, of section 3, Carson Town- 
| ship, was born in Ross County, Ohio, 

'° July 12, 1846, the son of Joseph 
and Mary Elizabeth (Dickey) Jones, the 
former a native of Bedford County, Virginia, 



3W> 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



an old Virginian settler, who was tlio son of 
Jesse Jones, who served in the war of 1812; 
the latter was born in Bedford County, and 
was also the daughter of an old Virginia 

settler. They had nine children, all of whom 
are now living. 

R. F. Jones, the eighth child of seven sons 
and two daughters, was three years of age 
when he moved with his parents to Davis 
County, Iowa, where he grew to manhood, 
engaged at farm work and attending school. 
At the age (if nineteen he came to Pottawat- 
tamie County, where he lived for four and a 
half years. He first l'ought land in this 
county, in 1872, in Cart-on Township, section 
11, which consisted of forty acres, which he 
afterward broke and sold. In 1874 he 
bought 120 acres of wild land, which he suc- 
eessl'ully broke, and builtagood frame house. 
This was part of his present farm, and he 
now has 310 acres in rich bottom land along 
the Nishnabotna River, adjoining the town 
plat of Carson, and is second to none in loca- 
tion in the eastern part of the county. 
Sh ad eland, the home, is a beautiful place, and 
will compare favorably with any in western 
Iowa. Here Mr. Jones raises trotting and 
road horses of the Ilambletonian breed, and 
he also has a fine herd of red-polled cattle. 
He was one of the pioneers in the raising of 
fine horses and cattle in the county, and his 
herds are as tine as any that can be found in 
this part of the State. 

Mr. Jones was married to Miss Cora ('rain, 
of Macedonia Township, at Council Bluffs, 
Iowa, September -13, 1870, the daughter of 
John E. ami Talitha (Thompson) Grain: the 
former was born in Ohio, and was reared at 
Fairfield, Jefferson County, Iowa, and was 
edncated at Philadelphia; the latter was a 
native of Lancaster, Ohio, anil died when 
Mrs. Jones was eighteen months old. Mr. 
and Mrs. .lones have six children: Edith, 



Laura. .lames Arthur, Robert Franklin. Al- 
bert Lea, Lulu Way and Rolland Roscoe. 
Politically Mr. .lones is a Republican, and in 
1884 was elected Supervisor of the county by 
a large majority; the court- house was built 
during his term. He has also been Township 
Trustee for six years, and is a member of the 
1. ().(). F.. Carson Lodge. No. 444. Mrs. 
Jones is a member of the Presbyterian 
Church, of which Mr. Jones has been Trus- 
tee, and is a supporter. 



• ■ ♦ - 



fl). HOOKER, of section 11, Carson 
Township, was born in Chautauqua 
9 County, New York, July 10. 1837, the 
son of II. M. and Nancy (Palmeter) Hooker; 
the father was a native of Oenesee County, 
New York, ami a relative of the General, 
" Fighting Joe Hooker." The family were of 
English ancestry, and descendants of two 
brothers, who were among the early emi- 
grants to the northeastern States. The 
parents reared a family of ten children. The 
father was born in 1810, and came to Iowa, 
settling in Delaware County in 1854. being 
one of the first settlers in that county. 
He lived there until his death, which took 
place in March, 1874. The mother resides 
in this county, at the age of seventy-four 
years. 

J. D. Hooker first worked in a saw-mill in 
Pennsylvania, having been brought up in the 
lumber regions of southern New York, anil 
was well fitted for that situation. He came 
to Iowa in the spring of 1S,"J5, when quite a 
young man, and his experience in the saw- 
mill made him quite a desirable man to serve 
in the capacity of foreman, and he easily ob- 
tained a situation. He remained here five 
years ami then purchased a farm in Delaware 
County, Iowa, which he sold in 1869. Here 



Of POTTAWATTAMIE CUUJXTY. 



3H1 



be first commenced the study of veterinary 
surgery, practicing occasionally while he car- 
ried on his farm. Pie removed to Webster 
County, south of Fort Dodge, where be lived 
for two years, and in May, 1871, first came 
to Pottawattamie County, and settled on 
prairie land, when all was new and wild in 
that county. Mr. Ilouker now owns a valu- 
able farm situated about one mile from Car- 
sou. He has a blacksmith shop run by his 
sons, and his home, called Pleasant Valley, is 
a beautiful place. 

He carries a full line of instruments of 
all kinds, especially those required in horse 
dentistry and surgery, having over $200 
worth altogether. He is also the inventor of 
Hooker's Cure for Flatulent ("wind") Colic, 
one of the most prevalent and fatal diseases 
of'the horse, and he contemplates beginning 
soon to manufacture the medicine. 

He was married in Delaware County, Iowa, 
July 10, 1861, to Miss T. J. Wilson, the 
daughter of John and Jane (Crelling) Wilson; 
the former was born of Scotch parents, who 
had settled in Ireland, where he was born; 
and the latter was born in Northumberland, 
England; the family came to the United 
States in 1848, and settled in Iowa County, 
Wisconsin, and in 1858 came to Delaware 
County, Iowa. The father died in 1876 in 
Delaware County, and the mother still lives 
at Sioux City, Iowa, at the age of seventy- 
three years. Mr. and Mrs. Hooker have 
nine children, namely: J. M., a contractor 
and builder in Chase County, Nebraska; C. 
M., at home; Edward D., residing in Chase 
County, Nebraska; James D.. residing at the 
same place; Jenny L., the wife of Frank 
Perry, of Washington Township; Lewis J., 
at home; Shockey E., Jennie E., Frederick S. 
They lost one child, Leander Vera, by death, 
when two and a half years old. Politically 
Mr. Hooker is a Democrat, and has served 



in some of the minor offices of the township. 
lie is a skilled veterinary surgeon, having 
had about thirty years 1 experience, and is 
considered one of the leading authorities in 
the eastern part of the county. 



fOHN A. FRANK, a prominent farmer 
of Lincoln Township, was born on a farm 
in the mountains of Switzerland, De- 
cember 18, 1845, the son of Jacob Joseph 
Frank, who was a farmer of Tyrol, Switzer- 
land. He was married to Ursula Platz, and to 
them were born five children: Marion, Frank, 
Joseph, John A. and Ursula. The grand- 
father was in the war with Napoleon. The 
ancestors of the family were natives of Swit- 
zerland, where they have resided for gen- 
erations, and they possess the sterling 
characteristics of the liberty -loving Swiss 
people in a marked degree. Mr. Frank was 
a member of the Catholic Church, and lived 
to the age of sixty-five years. 

John A. Frank, a son of the above and the 
subject of this sketch, was reared to farm 
life, and in 1866, at the cage of twenty-one 
years, came to America. He landed in New 
York, and then went to Washington city, 
where he worked in a brewery for two years. 
In 1868 he went to LaFayette County, Wis- 
consin, where he worked on a farm, and 
where he remained until 1873. He then 
came to Pottawattamie County and bought 
240 acres of wild land, which he has since 
improved, and to which he has wisely added 
until he now owns a magnificent farm of 915 
acres. He was married in Wisconsin, July 
5, 1870, to Elizabeth Hart, who was born in 
Clarion County, Pennsylvania, February 6, 
1840, the daughter of August and Kate Hart, 
who were natives of France. The father was 
a Clarion County farmer in comfortable cir- 



362 



Bi'iau.M'iiiCM. history 



cumstances, and was the Eatber of six chil- 
dren: Martini, Mary. Elizabeth, Kate, Harry 
and Louise. Mr. artd Mrs. Frank are the 
parents of two children: Joseph, horn April 
20, 1872, in Grant County, Wisconsin; and 
Jes-ie E., horn Ainnist 1, 1870, on the home- 
stead in Pottawattamie County, Lincoln Town- 
ship. Joseph is attending the Drake Univer- 
sity at Dv* Moines, Iowa, and is obtaining a 
liberal education. Mr. Frank believes in 
giving his children a liberal education. He 
has the respect and the confidence of the 
people; has held the office of Township Trustee 
tor nine years; has also been School Eirector 
for a number of years, and has also held the 
office of Road Supervisor. In politics he was 
a Republican for years, but now votes for the 
party who believes in the greatest good for 
the greatest number — the Democratic. 

Mr. Frank can truly be said to be a self- 
made man, as he began life with nothing, 
and by hard work, economy and wisdom has 
made his handsome farm. He ha6 set out 
tine trees, and his grounds and house present 
a tasteful and attractive appearance. He is 
yet a young man, of strong constitution, in- 
herited from an ancestry of good stock, and 
the children inherit from both mother and 
father their sterling traits of character. Mrs. 
Frank is a worthy lady, and has faithfully 
assisted her husband in every way to make a 
Bncceee in life. Mr. Frank is the founder of 
a new family in America, and the ci niing 
generation should take an honest pride in 
banding down his name to other generations. 



■-•-'<- 



C. SCHMOOCK, architect and super- 
intendent of building, came to Coun- 
'" cil Bluffs in March. L889, and opened 
an office in rooms 3 anil 4, Marcus block. 
and in Augiir-t Following he established an 



office also in Hunt's block. South < >inaha. He 
has erected some very tine buildings, among 
which we may mention the double residences 
of Mrs. S. A. Stillman, and the residences of 
O. W. Butts, L. Hendricks. C. L. Gillette, 
M. Callahan, J. Btrock, Mrs. E. Wegener's 
block. Porter Pros.' Iruit warehouses, the 
residence of 0. M. Hunt in South Omaha, 
the cottages of J. L. Paxton, the residence of 
P. Cockrell, South Omaha, and William 
Kelly, etc., etc. 

Mr. Schmouck was born in Detroit, Michi- 
gan, August 3, 1804, the son of William 
and Louisa (Otto) Schmoock, natives of Ger- 
many, who are still residents of Detroit. He 
was reared in that city. For two years he 
studied drawing under the instruction of 
Mr. Melehers, the sculptor of Detroit, and 
while in that city he made the charts for the 
school statistics and institutions of the State 
of Michigan, which were exhibited at the 
New Orleans exposition in 1884, and are now 
in the State library at Lansing, Michigan. 
He was only nineteen years of age when he 
drew these charts. He spent five years in 
the office of Hess & Racemen, architects and 
superintendents in Detroit. In July, 1888, 
he came to Council Bluffs. He is Democrat ie 
in his politics, is a member of the I. O. O. F., 
and is destined to make his mark in the 
business circles of this city. 



^ENUY KISHTON, one of the promi- 
nent citizens of York Township, was 
born in Lancashire, England, April 21, 
1838, the son of Henry and Mary (Bland) 
Uishton, both natives of Lancashire, England. 
The father was born April 4, 1*10, and died 
in Council Bluffs in 1885. He was the son 
of James Rishton, who died in England at a 
ripe old age, and was a chemist by ocenpa- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



363 



tioi). His son learned the block-printer's 
trade when a young man, which he followed 
until he came to America in 1844, wdiere he, 
in company with eleven others, was induced 
to come to Rhode Island and start a print 
works. He was one of the very first block- 
printers to come to America, and in fact he 
and his companions were the very first. The 
family remained a year and a half in Rhode 
Island, and then went to Fall River, Massa- 
chusetts. In 1850, with his family, he came 
to Council Bluffs, which was then known as 
Kanesville, and which was then a very small 
hamlet or trading post, made up of a few 
shanties. He bought a claim on Little Mos- 
quito Creek, then called Macedonia Camp, 
live miles east of Council Bluffs. In 1857 
he and his family came to where our subject 
now resides, and enclosed a half section of 
wild land, which he afterward improved. 
He was trustee of York Township, and when 
a yonng ican in England he was a member 
of the Odd Fellows' Lodge. He and his wife 
were members of the church of the Latter- 
Day Saints, but on coming to Council Bluffs 
he changed his religion on account of po- 
lygamy. In politics he was a stanch Demo- 
crat, and since reaching their majority his 
sons have all voted the Democratic ticket. 

His wife, Mary (Bland) Rishton, was born 
May 9, 1815, and is still living in Council 
Bluffs, and not over a year ago danced with 
the subject of this sketch at a party given 
at his house. Her father was Miles Bland, 
who died in England. He was a dealer in 
boots and shoes, and died in the same house 
where he was born, when eighty-one years of 
age. The family were members of the Bap- 
tist Church. Mr. and Mrs. Rishton have 
eight children living, viz.: Edward, a farmer 
of Riverton, South Jordan, eighteen miles 
from Salt Lake City; Bland, a merchant of 
Council Bluffs; Thomas, a merchant of Coun- 



cil Bluffs; Emma, wife of William H. Max- 
lirl'l; James, a farmer and stock-raiser of 
York Township; Eliza Jane, wife of William 
Alton, a rancher of Denison, Iowa; John, a 
rancher near the city of Spokane. 

Henry Rishton, our subject, spent his 
school days in Massachusetts and a short time 
in Pottawattamie County. He remained at 
home until twenty-one years of age, and then 
rented a farm in this township for a number 
of years. In 1806 he bought 120 acres of 
the land where he now lives, to which he has 
since added the remainder of 280 acres, of 
as good land as lies in the county. It is 
improved with a good residence, barns, and 
surrounded with shade and ornamental trees, 
fruit and flowers, and all that tends to make 
a home happy. He has served as Justice of 
the Peace three years and a half, twelve years 
as Road Supervisor, one year as Trustee, 
twenty years as School Director, and in 1884 
was elected one of the County Commissioners, 
during the time the court-house was built, 
which is one of the finest in the State. He 
is now Clerk of this township. His success 
in life is the result of his energy and business 
ability. 

March 1, 1860, he married Miss Adeline 
Clougli, a daughter of Calvin Clough. She 
was born in Lorain County, Ohio, May 5, 
1842, and died September 19, 1884. Her 
father was one of the first settlers, and came 
from Cleveland, Ohio, to Council Bluffs, 
where he kept a grocery store in 1853. He 
was a native of New Hampshire, and died 
in this county when sixty-three years of age. 
Mr. and Mrs. Rishton have seven children, 
of whom six are still living: Fred, the eldest; 
Belle, a teacher in York Township; Alpha, 
Howard II., Lida, and Corinne, at home. 
Florence May died when sixteen years of age, 
September 17, 1877. April 8, 1886, Mr. 
Rishton married Agnes Forsyth, a daughter 



:;o4 



HloGItAl'IfWA I, HISTORY 



of John and Susan Forsyth. She was born 
in Dundee, Scotland, October 17, 1841, and 
came with her parents to Manchester, Eng- 
land, and when ten years of age came to the 
United States, locating in St. Louis one win- 
ter, and in 1851 came to Council Bluffs. 
She taught school in Council Bluffs over 
twenty years, and was principal for fourteen 
years. She has been a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church for quite a num- 
ber of years. Mr. Rishton is a Mason in 
good standing of Neola Lodge, No. 423. 
He has crossed the Rocky Mountains six 
times, and in 18B4 had a number of hair- 
breadth escapes from the Indians. 

— "*•» ! ♦ ?" £ »|' - * — 

fM. AXTELL, a farmer of Boomer 
Township, was born in Mercer County, 
9 Pennsylvania, July 4, 1838. (For par- 
entage and ancestry see sketch of L. S. Ax- 
tell.) Being the youngest child, he remained 
at home until his father died. In 1857 he 
married Miss Sarah Franklin, daughter of 
Leander and Sarah (Barker) Franklin, natives 
of New York State who after her birth 
moved to Pennsylvania. Mr. J. M. Axtell 
after his marriage moved to Sparland, Mar- 
shall County, Illinois, where he took charge 
of a farm for Lewis B arson two years, and 
there his wife died, February 19, 18G6, leav- 
ing five children, namely: Samuel Albert, 
who resides in Harrison County, Iowa; Leona, 
wife of <i. W. [lowland, residing in Harrison 
County, also; Charles and Oscar died in 
infancy. June 6, 18<i7, Mr. Axtell married 
Miss Mary, daughter of Daniel and .Maria 
(Frwin) Graham, natives of Pennsylvania, 
who afterward moved to Illinois and finally 
to Missouri, where they both now live. The 
Qrahams were the parents of twelve children, 
viz.: Elizabeth, wifeof Mr. Elliott, and resid- 



ing in Illinois; Mary, the second in order of 
birth; Luther and Henrietta, deceased ; Find- 
lay, at home; Ann, wife of Dr. Sherman, re- 
siding at Coffeeville, Kansas; Jesse, living in 
Harrison County; Frvin, in Shell City, Mis- 
souri; Laura and Emma, twins, the former at 
home and the latter in Colorado; Albert and 
Alice, twins, the latter the wife of Richard 
Newton and both residing in Colorado. Mrs. 
Axtell was born October 9, 1845, brought up 
as a farmer's daughter, and was married at 
the age of twenty-two years. After his sec- 
ond marriage Mr. Axtell came to Pottawatta- 
mie County and purchased sixty acres of un- 
improved prairie and began to make the 
necessary improvements thereon, and also, in 
connection with his farm work, continued at 
his trade as carpenter, which he had learned 
in younger days. At the end of five years 
he sold out, bought forty acres elsewhere, 
built a house and made valuable improve- 
ments upon the tract, and remained there ten 
years, dealing also extensively in live-stock. 
Selling this place, he finally bought his pres- 
ent farm, of eighty acres of wild land, on sec- 
tion 10, and this now is the third home he 
has made. Sixty acres is under cultivation, 
while the remainder is in meadow and pas- 
ture, lie has a comfortable residence and 
surroundings, with shade trees, orchard, etc. 
While his sons manage the farm he is engaged 
by the Pottawattamie County Mutual Insur- 
ance Company, for whom he began to operate 
about three years ago. 

He is an active and influential Republican. 
Has held the various offices of his township, 
especially in school matters, and is now Jus- 
tice of the Peace. He is also a member of 
the Mutual Protection Association of Hazel 
Dell, and of the !.(>.< ). F. In Pennsylvania 
and Illinois he and his wife were members 
respectively of the Methodist Episcopal and 
Baptist churches. They are the parents of 






OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



305 



ten children, namely: Milton, born Septem- 
ber 8, 1868, resides in Harrison County; 
John, October 7, 1870; Lutellis, September 
20, 1872; Gertrude, October 20, 1874; James, 
August 25, 1876; Daniel, November 22, 
1878; Mary Alma and Maria, twins, born 
March 28, 1881: Maria died a month after- 
ward; George, born September 9, 1883; and 
Blanch, born January 20, 1886, died March 
20, 1886. All those who are living, except 
the first mentioned, are still at their parental 
home. 



,,-^R. JAMES CARSON ROBERTSON, 
M. D., was born in Washington Coun- 
ty, Iowa, June 6, 1845, the son of John 
D. and Eliza (Carson) Robertson. The former 
was born in the State of Pennsylvania, but 
the latter is a native of County Tyrone, Ire- 
land. John D. Robertson is of Scotch de- 
scent, his lather having been a native of 
Scotland. The father of our subject went to 
Stark County, Ohio, with his parents when a 
child, where he was reared and married. In 
1842 he settled in Washington County on a 
farm, where he still lives. They were the 
parents of six sons who grew to maturity, 
four of whom are still living. The eldest 
brother, William U., was a member of Com- 
pany H, Seventh Iowa Infantry, in the war 
of the Rebellion, and served during that war. 
He then married and settled on a farm in 
Washington County. He was several years 
a Justice of the Peace, and was well known 
throughout the county, taking much interest 
in politics. He died in June, 1875, leaving 
a wife and daughter, who still survive him, 
and both are engaged in the occupation of 
teaching. The other son was Samuel A., 
who died in 1879, at the age of about thirty 
years, leaving a wife. He was a merchant 



and druggist at the time of his death, and a 
resident of Bull City, Kansas. The subject 
of this sketch is the second in order of birth. 
John D., the fourth, is a farmer of Washing- 
ton County; George F. resides at the old 
homestead with his parents; De Witt C, 
the youngest, also resides in Washington 
County. 

Dr. Robertson was reared on the old home- 
stead farm. He received his education at 
the public schools, and in 1868, at the age of 
twenty-two years, he entered the State Uni- 
versity at Iowa City, and remained a student 
in the literary department of that institution 
tor three years. He then entered the medi- 
cal department of that institution, and took 
his medical degree in March, 1873. He 
tausrht several terms of school during his 
college course, and also taught a term before 
entering: college. The Doctor at once located 
at his old home in Washington County, and 
continued in practice until he came to this 
city. In 1883 the Doctor went to New York 
city, where he took a course at the Bellevue 
Hospital, and where he also received the de- 
gree of M. D. Dr. Robertson is getting a 
good practice, and is a member of the Iowa 
Medical Society and of the American Medi- 
cal Society. He owns a pleasant home at 
1006 Fiftli avenue. 

He was married in Washington County to 
Miss Helen Houck, who is a native of that 
county, and they have two sons, — -Andrew 
A. and Ralph D. 



fOSEPH HEADLEE, the oldest living 
settler of Valley Township, is descended 
from an old American family, who came 
to Pennsylvania from England in an early 
day. Joshua Ileadlee, the grandfather of 
Joseph, was a pioneer settler in Greene 



B66 



BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY 



County. Pennsylvania, and was the father of 
four children: Elisha, Thomas, Amos and 
Susan. The father moved to Indiana about 
1830, settling in Rnshville, where he bought 
a farm and remained twelve years. In 1840 
lie settled in Lee County, Iowa, where lie 
died at the age of eighty years, lie was an 
industrious and honorable man, and was re- 
spected by the community in which he lived. 
His son Elisha, the father of our subject, was 
born in Greene County, Pennsylvania, and in 
early life became a farmer, but like most 
American farmers was accustomed to the use 
of tools, and could do almost any kind of 
work. He was married in his native State 
to Dorothea Johns, daughter of James Johns, 
ot Greene County, and of Scotch-Irish ances- 
try. Mr. Johns was a wealthy farmer of 
Greene County, and was a member of the 
Methodist Church. Mr. and Mrs. Elisha 
Head lee were the parents of eight children: 
George, Joseph, James, Jackson, William, 
Sarah J., Nancy A. and Dorothea. The 
father moved to Indiana with his father and 
their family, and settled on a farm near Rnsh- 
ville, whero they remained until 18-10, when 
they came to Iowa. 

Joshua II cad lee, the subject of this sketch, 
was born in Greene County, Pennsylvania, 
December 17, 1826, and was but eight years 
of aire when his father moved to Indiana, ami 
about fifteen years old when they came to 
Lee County, Iowa, then a wilderness. He 
became accustomed to all the vicissitudes and 
hardships of pioneer life, and was brought up 
on a farm. In 1852 he came to Pottawatta- 
mie County, settling in Valley Township, 
which was then unnamed, and the whole 
country was a wilderness. There was one 
store at Council Bluffs, and Omaha was still 
in the •• State of Nature." Joshua Lewins 
settled in Knox Town-hip about six months 
before Mr. Bead lee. Joshua Ileadlee and 



his son George, and Wash Lewins were the 
three first settlers in Knox Township; Mr. 
Ileadlee preceded Mr. Lewins about two 
weeks. The Indians frequently visited Mr. 
Headlee's log cabin, which was built on Jim 
Creek, Knox County, where he lived about 
two years. Deer, elk and smaller game fur- 
nished these families with plenty of meat 
during the winters, which were long and 
cold. The first season after leaving Jim 
Creek, Mr. Ileadlee plowed up eighty 
acres of land on the farm now owned by 
William Pierce. He settled on his pres- 
ent farm in 1855, which contains 100 acres, 
and which is now in a fine state of cultiva- 
tion. He has lived to see the whole of Pot- 
tawattamie County thickly settled, with a 
population of 1-10,000, in a radius of five 
miles from Omaha. He is truly an old pio- 
neer citizen, has brought up a large family 
of children, and has the reputation of always 
being interested in every good work and 
cause. The first school was established in 
1856, at a place called New Town, two miles 
from the present site of A voca, in a log school- 
house, where preaching Was also held by 
John Wilson, a Methodist Episcopal minister. 
Mr. Ileadlee always went to Council Iilulfs 
to market, a distance of thirty-five miles. 

He was married in Lee County, to Esther 
Lewis, daughter of Hugh and Phoebe 
(Bailey) Lewis. The father was a native id' 
Kentucky, of Irish descent, and was an early 
pioneer of Johnson County, Indiana. He 
died in that State, and is remembered as an 
honorable and upright citizen. They were 

the parents of nine children: Jacob, G -ge, 

Levina, John, Esther, Prudence J., the re- 
mainder dying in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. 
Ileadlee have had eleven children: William, 
deceased in infancy; Sarah, Martha, Mary, 
who died at the age of fourteen; Andrew, 
Maggie, Alice, Franco, Abraham, Joseph 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



367 



and James. Sarah A. is now the wife of 
Lewis Mark, of Avoca, and they have eight 
children, viz.: Nettie V., Kosie M., Lillie 
M., Martha B., John W., Phoebe E., Joseph 
A. and Lewis M. Martha J. married David 
Cleamens, and they have two children living, 
Clara G. and Ilolley A. Frances married 
Milo Miles, of Avoca, and they have three 
children— Altha B., William F. and Stella. 
Andrew married Mary Charleston, and is 
now a farmer in Woodbury County, Iowa; 
Maggie married Fleck Kinraman, also a 
farmer in Woodbury County, and they have 
two children — Dorothy E. and Maynard A.; 
Alice married Joel Jones, and they have two 
children — James, and an infant unnamed. 

• - »■ "&• 3"! 'a" ■•' 



^ON. WILLIAM H. WARE, of Coun- 
cil Bluffs, attorney and counsellor at 
law and member of the House of Rep- 
resentatives of the State of Iowa for 1890-'91, 
was born at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 
March 3, 1850. 

The family of which Mr. Ware is a de- 
scendant came to Pennsylvania from England 
and settled at the latter place prior to the 
Revolution of 1776, and many of them were 
soldiers in the American array during the 
struggle for independence. 

When Mr. Ware was a lad his father with 
his family removed from Pennsylvania to 
Illinois, where the subject of this sketch 
remained until 1809, at which date he came 
to Iowa. His father was a fanner by occupa- 
tion and the early life of the subject of this 
sketch was spent on his father's farm, and he 
was engaged in the occupations incident 
thereto. Soon after coming to Iowa Mr. 
Ware was engaged as a teacher in the public 
schools of that State. In 1874 he removed 
to Nebraska where he published a paper for 



a time, returning from that State to Council 
Bluffs, where he now resides, and is engaged 
in the practice of the law. He studied law 
in the office of the late Robert Percival, and 
was admitted to practice in the State and 
Federal courts at Council Bluffs, in 1880. 
In 1882 he was married to Miss Ingleetta F. 
Smith, a sister of Judge Walter I. Smith, of 
Council Bluffs. Mr. Ware is an able lawyer 
and enjoys the confidence and respect of his 
fellow-practitioners. Mr. Ware has always 
been an advocate of low tariff, and has been 
for a number of years an active member of 
the Democratic party. In 1889 he was 
elected, as a Democrat, to represent Potta- 
wattamie County in the Twenty-third General 
Assembly of the State of Iowa. His term of 
office will expire in 1891. 



HHINFIELD S. WILLIAMS, a promi- 
nent farmer of Valley Township, is 
the son of Sumner G. Williams, who 
was born in Bangor, Maine, and who received 
a common-school education, attending the 
same school with one of our eminent states- 
men. His father was a farmer near Bangor, 
and there were nine children in his family, 
only three of whom, except his father, our 
subject remembers, namely: Charles, Sam- 
uel and Otis. Mr. Williams left his native 
State at the age of twenty five years and went 
to New York city, where he resided for sev- 
eral years. He was there married to Ann 
Wood, and they were the parents of five chil- 
dren: Gertrude V., Albion A., Winfield S., 
Joseph and Mable. Immediately after his 
marriage he moved to Indiana, settling on a 
farm in St. Joseph County, near South Bend. 
He was in that county before the Indians 
were removed beyond the Mississippi River. 
He worked on his farm and followed his 




368 



MOO HA I'll IV AL HISTOli Y 



trade, carpentering, fur many years. He now 
resides in South Bend, where he owns city 
property. Mr. ami Mrs. Williams are mem- 
bers of the Methodist Church, and Mr. Wil- 
liams was one of the early Masons of South 
Bend, a pioneer who took pride in the prog- 
ress of the county. He has always been an 
honorable and industrious man. 

Win field S., the subject of this sketch, 
was born in St. Joseph County, Indiana, four- 
teen miles south of South Bend, and was 
reared to the lite of a farmer. In 1872 he 
came to Pottawattamie County, Iowa, set- 
tling on his present farm of eighty acres, a 
part of which he has since laid off in town 
lots. He was married in Avoca to Miss 
Eliza Sanders, daughter of W. II. and Sarah 
(Wakeman) Sanders. The father went to 
Michigan in an early day, and settled at 
Ypsilanti, and then, when Iowa was a new 
State, he came to Davenport, where lie re- 
mained until 1870, when he settled in Avoca. 
lie was the father of six children: Wake- 
man, Stephen, Frank Sarah E., Lynos and 
Linn. Mr. Sanders is yet living in Avoca. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Williams have been born 
eight children, viz.: Mabel, Frank, Winfield 
S., Grove, Clara (deceased at seven years), 
Earl (died at six years), Joseph and Kay. In 
politics Mr. Williams is a stanch Republican. 
He is one of the pioneer settlers of Hancock, 
a part of which is on his farm. He was the 
Brat Postmaster. Socially he is an Odd 
Fellow. 



|.\ LEB KIMBALL, of section 3, Garner 
Township, came to this county in 1852, 
and has since made it his home, lie 
was born in Greene Connty, Pennsylvania, 
March 20, 1838, the son of Caleb Kimball, 
of Marblehead, Massachusetts, who served in 



the Revolutionary war, and later he and his 
son, Thomas Kimball, both served in the war 
of 1812. The subject's mother was Margaret 
(Richie) Kimball, a native of Loudoun 
County, Virginia, and of German descent. 
The parents were married in Loudoun Coun- 
ty, and afterward settled in Greene County, 
Pennsylvania. When Caleb was twelve years 
of ago his mother died, leaving eight chil- 
dren, two sons and six daughters, of whom 
Caleb was the fifth son, his only brother 
dying at the age of two years. In 1846 the 
father moved from Pennsylvania to Dubuque, 
Iowa, which was then a Territory, and Du- 
buque could not boast of a brick house, most 
of the residences being log cabins. He re- 
mained here three years, and then engaged at 
the carpenter's trade near where Dyersville 
now stands, the country being new and wild, 
and containing no railroads. He soon sold 
his land to Judge James Dyer, to found a 
colony for people from Somersetshire, Eng- 
laud. He then removed to Delaware County, 
where he lived until his death. 

Caleb, our subject, worked on the farm in 
his youth, and in the fall of 1852, in company 
with Lemuel Barrett and family, he started 
on a journey to California, but decided to 
spend the winter in camp near Council BlulFs. 
He afterward changed his mind and bought 
some Mormuu claims near this place, and 
became a resident of this county. He bought 
land in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, in 1861; 
but this was never improved, ami was sold in 
1866, when he bought eighty acres of Hale- 
man & Rauhu, N. P. Dodge acting as agent; 
this was first improved by Isaac Cooper. 
Mr. Kimball has lived on his farm for twenty- 
four years, and has made many improvements; 
it is located eight miles east of the city of 
Council Bluffs. He works at the carpenter's 
trade most of the time, having received his 
first lessons in that trade in his youth, taught 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



him by his father. He is a thorough me- 
chanic, as all his work in Harrison, Monona 
and this county will show. 

Mr. Kimball was married December 12, 
1856, to Miss Frances Nixon, of Council 
Bluffs, the daughter of William and Eliza 
(Collins) .Nixon. Both were natives of Fay- 
ette County, Pennsylvania, and came here in 
1853, where they resided until their death. 
Mr. and Mrs. Kimball have eleven children, 
namely: John W., residing at Ncola, Iowa; 
Eliza, wife of T. J. Nnsun, of Harrison 
County, near Woodbine; Margaret, wife of 
J. E. Jefferys, residing in Washington Town- 
ship; Moses N., at Sacramento, California, 
in the real-estate and loan business; Ella, 
wife of John Dial, of Garner Township; 
Minnie, the widow of Martin Lee, residing 
in the same township; Fanny, at home; 
Caleb, Thomas J., Mary C, and Hugh L. 
They have lost three children by death: 
Benjamin F., the seventh child, at two years 
of age; George, at two years of age; and 
Grace, also at two years of age. Mr. Kim- 
ball's son, Moses N., has received a good 
education, first in Pottawattamie County, then 
in California, and lastly at the Bainbridge 
Business College, Stockton, California. The 
great loss of Mr. Kim ball's life was in the 
death of his beloved wife, who died August 
27, 1883. 



fREDERIC S. THOMAS, a physician 
and surgeon, of Council Bluffs, has been 
identified with the interests of Potta- 
wattamie County since 1872. He is a native 
of New York, born at Chatham, Columbia 
County, September 23, 1845, the youngest 
of six children of Caleb J. and Catherine 
(Smith) Thomas. The father was a native of 
Clinton County, New York, born March 10, 



1807, a son of Caleb Thomas, who came from 
Lime, Connecticut, and served as a soldier 
during the Revolutionary war, entering the 
army when seventeen years old, first as a 
drummer, and then serving in the ranks for 
seven years. After the war he located in 
New York State. He was of Welsh descent, 
and married a Miss Roland, who was a niece 
of Richard Lightfoot Lee, of Virginia. They 
reared six children, of whom the father of 
our subject was the fourth child. Caleb J. 
Thomas was reared in New York, and his 
early youth was spent on his father's farm 
and later in the factories, of that State. His 
father died when lie was seventeen years old. 
He subsequently became a manufacturer in 
Kinderhook, New York, but on account of 
the free-trade law he was obliged to abandon 
a profitable business and start in life anew. 
He became a brakeman on the Boston & 
Albany Railroad, and from that was promoted 
as conductor, where he remained for a period 
of years. In 1848 he came West to seek his 
fortune, locating near Warsaw, Hancock 
County, Illinois, where he engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits, which he followed until 
1861, when he removed to Warsaw. 

He was married in 1831, to Miss Catharine 
Smith, a native of Columbia County, New 
York, and a daughter of William Smith, who 
was a native of New York and of German 
descent. They reared a family of six chil- 
dren, of whom our subject was the youngest, 
and [he only one now living. The father 
died at the home of our subject, August 29, 
1880, and the mother survived until Septem- 
ber 3, 1881. 

The subject of this sketch received his 
education in the schools of Warsaw, and 
during the late civil war went into the army, 
serving in Company A, One Hundred and 
Thirty-Seventh Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
as a private until nearly the close of the war. 



370 



liKUUiM'IIIVAL HISTORY 



After this he began the study of medicine 
uuiler the preceptorship of Dr. Collin G. 
Strong, now of San Francisco, California, 
with whom he remained for four years. lie 
graduated at the State University of Iowa, 
at Keokuk, now known as the College of 
Physicians and Surgeons, February 21, 1870. 
He first located at Bentonsport, Van Bnren 
County, remaining tor one year. He then 
went to Atlantic, Cass County, and engaged 
in the drug business one year, and in 1872 
he came to this county, engaging in the 
practice of medicine at Macedonia. Dr. 
Thomas remained in the '-east end" of the 
comity until he came to Council Bluffs, in 
1887, where he formed his present partner- 
ship with Dr. D. Macrae. 

He was married October 15, 1873, to Miss 
Mary Ella P^errier, a native of Missouri, and 
daughter of John and Jane (Walker) Ferrier, 
of old Virginia families. They have three 
children: Ethyl, Edyth, and Evelyn. The 
Doctor has served as Coroner of this county 
from 1873 to 1875, and has also served on 
the School Board at Carson for several years. 
He is ex-president of the Council Bluffs 
Medical Society, a member and secretary of 
the Medical Society of the Missouri Valley, 
a member of the Iowa State Medical Society, 
and the American Medical Association. lie 
is Professor of Diseases of the Mind in the 
Omaha State Medical College; President of 
the Board of Examining Surgeons of Pen- 
sions at Council Blnifs; is Medical Director 
ul' the National Fraternal Association of that 
city. lie is a member of the G. A. It., and 
served as Medical Director of the State De- 
partment in 1889; is a member of the A. F. 
& A. M.., (oral Lodge. No. 130. at Carson, 
and the Chapter and the Scottish Rite bodies 
at Council Blull's. He is a member of the 
I. (>.(). I' - , and the A. 0. U. W. He and his 
wife are members of the Presbyterian Church. 



Mrs. Thomas' father died in Cass County in 
1886; her mother died in 1867. 






HE LONDON BROS. (E. T. and 
W. D.) are the proprietors of the 
London Livery, Sale and Feed stables 
at Carson, on Commercial Street, convenient 
to both the business part of town and the 
depot. They purchased this establishment 
in 1888, and keep in stock a goodly number 
of driving horses, roadsters and all kinds of 
vehicles for which there is any demand. 
They are experienced and practical livery 
men, and are popular. Their barn is the 
leading one in the town. They came to 
Pottawattamie County in 1884. E. T., the 
elder brother and the senior member of the 
firm was born at Knoxville, Marion County, 
Iowa, in 1858. His father, W. M. London, 
was a native of Morgan County, Illinois, 
served in the Fortieth Iowa Infantry during 
the war; and his mother, whose name before 
marriage was Narcisses Cloe, a native of Illi- 
nois. He was reared on the farm in Iowa. 
In 1876 he went to Chautauqua County, 
Kansas, and a year afterward to Johnson 
County, Missouri, and finally he came to 
Pottawattamie County, settling on a farm in 
Silver Creek Township. lie was married, 
November 20, 1883, to Miss Mary London, 
a native of Marion County, Iowa, and they 
have two children: Ernest Wesley and Car- 
rie. In his political sympathies Mr. London 

is a De crat, and is a member of the Camp 

of the Sons of Veterans. 

W. I >. London, the junior member of the 
above firm and a brother of ,1. ('., was born 
August 31, 1862, in Marion County, Iowa, 
and was reared there on a farm. In 1876 lie 
went to Kansas, and a rear afterward to Mis 
souri, where he resided until he came to Car- 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



371 



son; and there he has since been engaged in 
the livery business. He was married in 
Johnson County, Missouri, January 10, 1884, 
to Miss Sallie Douthit, a native of that 
county and a daughter of George Douthit. 
Their children are Goldie and Eula. Mr. 
London is a Democrat in his political prin- 
ciples and a genial citizen. 



>M< 




J. CADY, proprietor of the Council 
Bluffs Veterinary Infirmary, at No. 
135 Broadway, at the livery, feed and 
6ale stables there, of which establishment he 
took possession in 1880, is a graduate of the 
Boston Veterinary Academy. 

He was born in Lake County, Indiana, 
January 14, 1840, the son of Samuel J. and 
Elmira (Beebe) Cady, and of Puritan an- 
cestry. When he was three years of age the 
family removed to Chicago, where he grew 
up and was educated. He attended the Iowa 
College at Grinnell two terms, and then went 
to Boston, where he studied veterinary sci- 
ence, as already stated. In 1861, in August, 
he enlisted in Company B, Second Iowa Cav- 
alry, as a private; in 1862 he was commis- 
sioned Veterinary Surgeon, and as such 
served until the close of the war, being dis- 
charged as Chief of Cavalry on General 
Wilson's 6taff. The principal battles in 
which he participated were those of Farming- 
ton, Corinth (including siege), Stone River, 
Nashville, Murfreesboro, Holly Springs, Tu- 
pelo, Oxford, Booneville, etc. 

After the war he spent one winter at 
Boonesboro, Iowa, doctoring horses; next he 
was a vear in Council Bluff's, then in Kansas 
City and finally he returned to Council Bluffs, 
where he has since resided. The year 1872 
lie spent in Texas. He treats all diseases of 
horses, cattle, sheep and hogs; and his place 



is well fitted up for the care of animals. He 
also owns a good piece of property at 2201 
Broadway. 

He is a Republican, a member of the 
Union Veteran Legion, Surgeon of Abraham 
Lincoln post, No. 29, G. A. R., and Chaplain 
of the V. A. S. 

He was married in 1867, to Miss Ellen 
Reynoldson, born in England in 1849, and 
they had three children: Fred, residing in 
Nebraska; Nellie and Mary. His wife died 
in 1879, and he was married again, in August, 
1880, to Mrs. Liddie Harris, of Craig, Mis- 
souri, and by this marriage there is one child, 
T. Jackson by name. In 1890 Mrs. Dr. T. J. 
Cady, of the Berean Baptist Church at Coun- 
cil Bluffs, organized the young ladies of that 
church and congregation into a society to 
work for the " Christian Home," an unsec- 
tarian institution of that city established for 
the care of destitute and orphan children. 
This auxiliary organization, named the Be- 
rean Temple Society, gave its first public 
entertainment in October last (1890), under 
the leadership of Mrs. Cady,. netting her 
$28.10 for the Home. 



fAMES M. DORTON, of section 34, 
Carson Township, was born in Decatur 
County, Indiana, March 29, 1847, the 
son of Harrison and Nancy (Mullin) Dorton, 
the former a native of Union County, In- 
diana, whose father was born in New Jersey, 
and the mother was also a native of Indiana. 
They reared five children, of whom James 
M. was the third of three sons and two 
daughters. He resided in Decatur County, 
Indiana, until 1874, when he removed to 
Woodford County, Illinois, and then moved 
upon his present farm of eighty acres, which 
was then partly improved. He has since 



872 



i:l(ii;i:M'llWAL history 



made many improvements, and everything 
about the farm shows the enterprise of the 
proprietor. 

He was married in Decatur County, In- 
diana, August 29, 1870, to Miss Elizabeth 
E. Harding, who was born and educated in 
that county, and the daughter of Israel and 
Jane (Hawkens) Harding, both natives of 
Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Dorton have two 
children: Nellie May and James Arthur. 
They have lost one by death, who died at the 
age of one year and nine months. Politically 
Mr. Dorton is a Republican, and has served 
the township as Assessor and as a member 
and president of the School Board. Tlie fam- 
ily are members of the Presbyterian Church 
of Carson. He is a member of the I.O. O. F., 
Lodge No. -444, at Carson, Iowa. He is 
numbered socially, politically and financially 
among the soli 1 men of the township. 

|AMUEL It. READ, of section 31, Car- 
son Township, came to this county in 
1881. lie was born in the Hoosier 
State, October 12, 1850, the son of Nathan 
and Malir.da (Van Scoy) Read, the former a 
native of Virginia and the latter of Ohio. 
They had five sons and two daughters, of 
whom S. U. was the fourth child; two of his 
brothers, Smith and Jesse Read, are promi- 
nent and well-known business men of Dun- 
lap, Iowa. Our subject was a small boy when 
hi- father settled in Bureau County, Illi- 
nois, and was fifteen years of age when his 
father moved to Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, 
where they were early settlers. The mother 
died when Samuel was but seven or eight 
years old, in Illinois, and the father is now a 
resident of Iowa, making his home in Mai 
vera with his bod Carson. The Eubjecl of 
this sketch passed his youth in Cerro Gordo 



County. They moved in 1871 to Mills 
County, near Malvern, where he lived until 
1881. In that year he came to Pottawatta- 
mie County, and purchased eighty acres of 
wild land, which he has since improved. 
He is engaged in general farming and stock- 
raising, making a specialty of thoroughbred 
stock. He has a thoroughbred Clyde horse, 
which is among the best draft horses in the 
county. It was brought from Canada and 
weighs 1,835 pounds; he has also a Mam- 
moth Jack, which is one of the best in 
western Iowa. Mr. Read is a practical farm- 
er and a successful horseman. 

He married Miss Julia M., a daughter of 
Robert L. and Margaretta (La Fever) Bun- 
nell. She was born in Rock County. Wis- 
consin, and her parents were natives of New 
York city. Mr. and Mrs. Read have five 
children: Alice L, Ervin E., Nettie, Mar- 
garetta and a baby, Joy. They have lost 
one by death, Minard, who died when a babe 
of eleven months; he was the fourth child. 
Politically Mr. Read is a Republican, and 
both he and his wife are members of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, of which they 
are active workers, and Mrs. Read is a 
teacher in the Sabbath -school. 



J1INEAS J. MONTGOMERY, M. D., 

homeopathic physician and surgeon, is 
'one of the leading physicians of his 
school in western Iowa. Dr. Montgomery 
yvas born in Delaware County, New Zork, 
December 1, 18-11. His father is Charles 
Fowler Montgomery. The family was origi- 
nally from Vermont and of Scotch ancestry. 
The mother of the subject of this sketch was 
formerly Emetine E. St. John, and descended 
directly from the St. Johns and Abbotts of 
England, her mother having been an Abbott. 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



873 



Her family were early settlers of Connecti- 
cut. The parents of Dr. Montgomery emi- 
grated from the State of New York to Wis- 
consin in 1852 and settled in Rock County, 
and later removed to Jefferson County, and 
are still residents of Waterloo in that county. 
The Doctor is the third in order of birth of 
six sons. There were also three daughters in 
the family. 

The subject of this sketch was educated at 
Albion Academy, Wisconsin, and was for two 
years engaged in teaching, and for a time 
had charge of Waterloo Academy. He had 
contemplated from early life fitting himself 
for the medical profession, and entered upon 
a regular course of medical study in 1862, 
at which he continued until 1864, when he 
entered the army as assistant physician and 
surgeon in the hospital of the quartermas- 
ter's department. He continued in the army 
until after the destruction of the Confederate 
General Hood's army by the army under 
General Thomas; his Held of service being 
with the army of the Tennessee. On his 
return from the army he entered the Hahne- 
mann Medical College at Chicago, at which 
he graduated in 1866. After his graduation 
he located in Medina County, Ohio, where he 
remained three years, when he returned to 
Wisconsin and located at Watertown. There 
he continued in the practice of his profession 
until 1872, when he came to Iowa and located 
at Osage, where he practiced until 1879. In 
the winter of that year he took a special 
course of lectures at Hahnemann College, 
Chicago, and also in the College of Physi- 
cians and Surgeons in that city. In 1880 he 
came to Council Bluffs, where he has built up 
a large practice and is one of the leading 
physicians of the city. 

Dr. Montgomery was married in Wiscon- 
sin in 1864, to Miss Helen A. Castle, a na- 
tive of Ohio. They have two children: 




Charles Frederick, born in Ohio in 1869, and 
now a student of Grinnell College, and a 
daughter, Ruth Evangeline, born in Council 
Bluffs in 1881. 



|ICHAEL MINAHAN, a merchant of 
Neola, was born in County Cork, 
Ireland, September 1, 1845, the son 
of Jeremiah and Mary (McCarty) Minahan, 
natives of the same county. At the age of 
twenty-six years Mr. Jeremiah Minahan, a 
farmer by vocation, was married, and in 1874 
he came to America, sailing from Queens- 
town on the vessel named Berlin, and ten 
days later landed at New York. A few days 
afterward he came on to this county, locating 
in York Township, where he made his home 
with his son (our subject) until his death, 
October 13, 1878, but spending his last days 
with another son. He left a wife and four 
children. The children are: Dennis, residing 
in Neola Township; Michael, the second 
born; Hannah, the wife of Frank McManus, 
in Norwalk Township, and James, a resident 
of Chicago. The mother survives, and is 
living with her daughter, Mrs. McManus. 

Mr. Michael Minahan was brought up in 
farm life. At the age of eighteen years he 
came to America, landing at New York in 
May, 1868. In a short time he went to 
Franklin, Venango County, Pennsylvania, 
where he remained a year and a half, working 
for the Lake Shore Railroad Company. Next 
he was in Cleveland, Ohio, until the spring 
of 1871, when he came to Iowa; and finally 
he came by stage, by way of Grand Junction, 
to Council Bluffs, and went to Atlantic, 
Iowa, and was employed by the Chicago, 
Rock Island & Pacific Railroad Company 
until the fall of 1872. In the spring of 1873 
he bought eighty acres of land but very little 



374 



BIOGRAPHICAL II I STORY 



improved, in York Township, this county, 
lie built thereon a frame house 18x24 feet 
and a story and a half high, and the usual 
farm buildings, and began and carried for- 
ward a thorough improvement of the prem- 
ises. To his ordinary work as a farmer and 
stock-raiser he dealt extensively in cattle, 
Durham stock. He has added to his original 
purchase of land until he now lias 200 acres 
of fine land, well improved, 120 being 
under the plow. In the fall of 1887 he 
rented the farm and moved into Neola, en- 
gaging in the grocery trade. Here he bought 
a home, which he now occupies; and in the 
store he includes dry- goods in his trade, and 
carries on a general mercantile business. He 
has a good stock, and his reputation stands 
high for honesty and liberality. He now has 
a partner named Pogge. They do a business 
of about $20,000 yearly, being live and ener- 
getic men. 

Mr. Minahan was married January 17, 
1878, to Mary Stewart, who was the daughter 
of Benjamin F. and Ellen (Crampton) Stew- 
art, natives respectively of Ohio and Ireland. 
Mr. Stewart was a fireman and a policeman 
in Cincinnati for many years. In 1878 he 
came to Iowa and lived in Neola until his 
death, July 23, 1886, leaving his wife and 
five children. The children are: Morris, re- 
siding in Council Bluffs; Mary, the second 
born, and wife of Mr. Minahan; Ellen, wife 
of Barney Jungerinan, and living in Neola 
Township; Francis, residing in Omaha; and 
Eva, now the wife of William Tanner, and 
living in Wyoming Territory. Mrs. Mina- 
han was married at the age of twenty years, 
and there arc nowin the family the following 
children: James, who was born in York Town- 
ship, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, February 
18, 1879; Kate, born duly 10, ls-vi; Nellie, 
October 11. lss.j; Annie. October 12, l^sT: 
fiances was horn in Neola, March 10, 1890. 



Mr. Minahan in his political views is a 
straight Democrat. He has been Clerk of 
York Township for eight successive years, 
and School Treasurer two years. At present 
he is City Councilman, and takes great inter- 
est in the advancement of the interests of 
the town. He and his wife are members of 
the Roman Catholic Church of Neola, and 
stand high in the estimation of the com- 
munity 



fC. ELSW1CK, of section 36, Carson 
Township, is one of the enterprising 
9 and successful citizens of the county, 
and one who has been a resident of Pottawat- 
tamie County all his life. He was born in 
Grove Township, January 18, 1859, the son 
of William Elswick, who was born in Rush 
County. Indiana, about 1826. He was the 
son of Andrew Elswick, of German descent, 
and Elizabeth (Castle) Elswick. The father 
was reared in Rush County, Indiana and 
came to Iowa some years before his marriage. 
He was among the early pioneers of Monroe 
County, Iowa. In 1851 he was married to 
Martha S. Sagers, who was horn in Bourbon 
County, Kentucky, March 4, 18)53. the daugh- 
ter of Henry Sagers, a native of Pennsylva- 
nia. The same year they were married they 
came to Pottawattamie County, with an ox 
team. They had a serious time crossing the 
sloughs, rivers and streams. They settled in 
Grove Township, where Mr. Elswick resided 
until his death. In 1859 he went to Pike's 
Peak hut returned the same year. He died 
in March, 1861. Politically he was a Dem- 
ocrat, and had served as member of Pot- 
tawattamie's first Iioard of Supervisors. He 
left a widow, three sons and one daughter; 
hi.- three son- -Marshall, Marion and John 
C, our subject — reside in ('arson Township; 



OF POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY. 



373 



and his daughter, Arabelle, is the wife of 
Charles Clise of Atlantic, Jowa. Mrs. Els- 
wick was married to (). P. Mace, March 29, 
1864. 

J. C. Elswick was reared at farm work in 
the early days of Pottawattamie County. 
Arriving at the age of majority he went to 
Colorado in 1880, where lie spent three years 
engaged in mining, lie was successful, and 
after he returned to this county he purchased 
his present farm of eighty acres. Its im- 
provements consisted mostly in the land be- 
ing broken out and one crop had been raised 
on it. All the buildings Mr. Elswick has 
since erected. Everything about the Els- 
wick farm shows the thrift of the proprietor. 

He was married, February 22, 1883, in 
this county, to Miss Rhoda Durham, a daugh- 
ter of William Durham, a prominent and 
well-known citizen of Carson Township, 
whose sketch appears on another page. Mr. 
Elswick and wife have three children: Ira 
Carl, Mabel G. and Etbelinda M. Politically 
Mr. Elswick is a Democrat, and is a member 
of the I. O. O. F. Lodge, No. 444, of Carson 
Township. Both he and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Church of Christ. 

— •°~*6 H ,, t , I"~~ — 



[EORGE A. HOLMES, attorney and 
counsellor at law, Council Bluffs, is one 
of the leading members of the bar of 
this city and one of its representative citizens. 
He became established here in his profession 
in December, 1873. He has been continu- 
ously alone in practice, and has occupied his 
present office at 332 Broadway during all the 
years of his residence here. Mr. Holmes is 
a native of Illinois, born in Tazewell County, 
that State, in 1849. His father, George W. 
Holmes, was a pioneer of that county, and a 
native of Charleston, West Virginia. The 

29 



mother of the subject of this notice, formerly 
Sarah A. Allen, was born in Schenectady, 
New York. Her mother dying when she 
was an infant, she was adopted into the 
family of Elavel Bascom, and taken by her 
adopted parents to the town of Groveland, 
Tazewell County, Illinois. 

George W. Ho