USA > Iowa > Union County > Biographical and historical record of Ringgold and Union counties, Iowa, vol. 2 > Part 1
USA > Iowa > Ringgold County > Biographical and historical record of Ringgold and Union counties, Iowa, vol. 2 > Part 1
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47
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M. L.
REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
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ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01085 5630
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2010 with funding from Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center
http://www.archive.org/details/biographicalhistru02lewi
.
BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL
I RECORD
OF
Ringgold and Union Counties, Iowa.
val. 2
CONTAINING PORTRAITS OF ALL THE PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES FROM WASHINGTON TO CLEVELAND, WITH ACCOMPANYING BIOGRAPHIES OF EACH; A CONDENSED HISTORY OF THE STATE OF IOWA; PORTRAITS AND BIOGRAPHIES OF THE GOVERNORS OF THE TERRI- TORY AND STATE; ENGRAVINGS OF PROMINENT CITIZENS IN RING- GOLD AND UNION COUNTIES, WITH PERSONAL HISTORIES OF MANY OF THE LEADING FAMILIES, AND A CONCISE HISTORY OF RINGGOLD AND UNION COUNTIES AND THEIR CITIES AND VILLAGES.
THE LEWIS PUBLISHING COMPANY, 113 ADANS STREET, CHICAGO.
1887.
8E 491274 1
1613359
-
Day Orily Hours,
PROPRIETOR OF THE RINCCOLD RECORD MT. AGE, IOWA
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
school education, after which he taught school about four years. In IS;3 he came 10 Ringgold County. In 1876 he purchased a half interest in the Ringgold Record, the Republican newspaper of the county. In about a year his partner expressed a will- ingness to buy or sell. Mr. Stephens con- cluded to buy. He has remained in this business ever since. He started without a dollar, and has made his way entirely un- aided. He has evinced that kind of perse- verance that never fails to win success. The Record, under his administration, has grown, from a poorly-printed little sheet, with a very poor outfit indeed, to the dignity of a fine-looking paper, occupying a two-story brick building of its own. Mr. Stephens was married in Litchfield, Con- necticut, in 1876, to Miss Adelia Morse, and they have one child. time for which he paid $150, receiving $12 a month. He then attended school at Bloomingdale, Indiana, where he was a fel- low student with Hon. Joe Cannon, Con- gressinan for Illinois, after which he taught a select school in Montgomery, Indiana. He went to Rock Island, Ilinois, in 1853, and taught a subscription school on Buffalo Prairie until March, 1834, and while there he saw the first train that reached the Mis- sissippi River. He then went to Oberlin College, Ohio, and while there was taken sick. On recovering his health he taught in his former school for a time. In Au- gust, 1855, he went over part of lowa on foot, and while on this tramp, was overtaken by General Crocker who took him into his buggy. He returned to Indiana in Sep- tember, 1855, where he taught till the spring of 1858. He was married June 10, 1856, to Jane E. Gilkey, a native of Mont- gomery County, Indiana, and a daughter of William Gilkey. They have had nine AMES M. SIMPSON, section 17, Jef- ferson Township, was born in Greene County, Tennessee, December 26, 1832, his father, John Simpson, being a native of Montgomery County, Virginia, and was a miller by trade. The father was a Lieu- tenant in the war of 1812. The grand- father of our subject, Allen Simpson, was a Captain during the war of the Revolution and was wounded at the battle of Mon- mouth. Our subject passed his boyhood days on a farm in Fountain County, In- diana, to which county his parents removed in 1836, his mother dying there the same children born to them, of whom six are liv- ing-Maggie, Allen, Myra, Martha, Ella and Nancy E. He went to Ford County, Illinois, in the spring of 1858, and there en- gaged in farming and stock-raising. While living in Ford County he had his barn blown down, and his horses killed by a tornado. He returned to Indiana the same year, and in the spring of 1861 returned to Ford County, Illinois, where he worked on his farm, and at nights wrote for the Craw. fordsville Journa!, of which he was editor. He helped to organize the Republican party, and was the Republican candidate year. His father died in 1844. after which i for Montgomery County, Indiana, in 1874, and although his township was largely Dem- ocratic, he carried it by eighty majority. He became a resident of Ringgold Coun- ty, Iowa, in September, 1875, when he settled on his present farm. Since coming to this county he has been very succes ful in his agricultural pursuits, and has in his home farm 480 acres of well-improved land.
he lived with a farmer, named John Starns. His education was received in the schools of Fountain County, he attending the log. cabin subscription schools, and in 1842 bc- gan attending the free schools which were organized there about that time. He be- San teaching school at the age of sixteen years, and taught till he had bought his 25
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HISTORY OF RINGGOLD COUNTY.
He is still engaged in general farming and : and in 1876 to section 6, Athens Township. stock-raising, paying special attention to | In 1879 he moved upon his present farm, graded stock. lle stiil devotes a little ! time to literary pursuits, and is at present correspondent for the Creston Gasette.
ILLIAM H. BRADLEY, farmer, section 5. Athens Township, was born in Washington County, Penn- sylvania, October 14, 1829. His parents were William H. and Maria (Bell) Bradley, the former a native of Ireland, and the lat- ter of Washington County. They reared a family of four children-William H., Mary, Ellen, Margaret. William was the oldest child, and when he was four years of age his parents removed to Brownsville, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, where he 5000 received his education. He attended the same school with James G. Blaine for a time. In 1839 the family removed to Jef- ferson, Greene County, where they re- mained until 1845, thence to Washington County, thence to Allegheny County in three years, and in 1852 removed to Wayne County, Ohio. He was married October 16, 1856, to Miss Catharine Stair, a native of Germany, and daughter of John and Christina (Mosses) Stair. In the fall of 1856 | Mr. Bradley came to Iowa, and settled in Poe Township, Ringgold County. At that time Mt. Ayr had only eight log houses. In the spring of 1857 he located on the B. . B. Dunning place, where he resided until the fall of ISGo, then removed to section 21, Poe Township, where he remained un- til the breaking out of the civil war. Hle enlisted August 10, 1862, in Company G, Twenty-ninth lowa Infantry, and was cu- gaged in the battles of Helena, Little Rock, Camden, Mobile, and several minor en- gagements. He was honorably discharged and returned to his home in Ringgold County. In 1870 he removed to section 1, ! in driving the sheep to this county. The
which was then in a wild state. He has improved it until he has brought it to its present condition. He has a fine residence, and a barn, 32 x 36 feet, an orchard of eighty treesand small fruits, and is engaged in general farming and stock-raising. Mr. and Mrs. Bradley are the parents of five children-Keziah, Joseph, Louis, Seigel and Zephina. Mr. Bradley is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic post at Mt. Ayr, and also a mem- ber of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Lodge 69. By honest deal- ing he has won the confidence and respect of all who know him. Postoffice, Keller- ton.
EORGE DICKSON, one of the early settlers of Union Township, living on . section 9, is a native of Crawford County, Ohio, born June 14, 1834, a son of George and Agnes Dickson. He was reared a farmer, and has made that the avocation of his life, and by his own efforts has acquired a competency, and become the owner of a good and comfortable home. Mr. Dickson came to Ringgold County, lowa, in April, 1859, and the same season visited Kansas, and looked over a part of that State. Ile then returned to this county where his brother John had located in 1856. He remained in Union Township until July 4, 1861, when he was married to Miss Eliza J. Ambrosier, a daughter of Ja- cob . Ambrosier, of Crawford County, Iowa. Mr. Dickson having returned to his native county for that purpose. In September following he left Crawford County with Sylvester Beaver, returning to Ringgold County with Goo sheep, which they owned between them, two months being occupied
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES,
first year of his married life was spent on ! his brother John's farm, when he removed to the farm where he has since followed 1 agricultural pursuits. When he first set- tled on his present farm nine acres had been cleared and a small cabin built. The homestead now contains 200 acres of im- proved land, with good residence and farm buildings, which is the result of years of toil and industry. Mr. and Mrs. Diekson are the parents of three sons and one daughter-Willis, married to Ruth Liles and living on part of his father's farm ; Em- ma Agnes, wife of Jerry Chitwood, of Union Township; Jacob and Homer living at home. Mr. and Mrs. Dickson are mem- bers of the Christian church. In national polities Mr. Dickson votes the Democratic tieket, but in local elections casts his vote for the man whom he considers best fitted Ior office.
RCULUS LENT, residing ou section 3, Union Township, where he has a fine farm of 120 acres, was born in Holmes County, Ohio, February 17, 1834, a son of John and Sarah (Miles) Lent. Both parents are deceased, the father dying in Creston, Iowa, and the mother in Ohio. Mr. Lent has been a resident of the Hawkeye State for thirty-one years, and for almost eighteen years has made his home in Ringgold County. In 1855 he lo- cated in Clarke County, Iowa, and the first two years worked in a saw-mill at Hope- ville. He then engaged in farming and be- fore leaving that county became the owner of two farms, and commeneed the improve- ment of both. He was married March 8, 1857, to Miss Catherine Miller, who was born in Brown County, Ohio, May 1. 1836, a daughter of Henry and Sarah Miller, who were among the carly settlers of Doyle Township, Clarke County, lowa. Of the , May 24, 1863, to Caroline Cling, who was 1
nine children born to Mr. and Mrs. Lent six are living -- John H., Thomas M., Alfred T., Charles W., Mina E. and James W., all living at home except Thomas, who resides in Kansas. Three daughters, Sarah E., Libby R. and Alice E., died in infancy. In April, 1869, Mr. Lent brought his family to Ringgold County and commenced improv- ing his present farm, which he has converted from a state of nature to one of the best farms in his neighborhood. Mr. and Mrs. Lent are members of the Christian church. In politics Mr. Lent is independent, voting for men, not party.
JOHN C. SINCO, section 1, Riley Township, was born in Greene Coun- ty, Indiana, January 12, 1839, a son of Henry and Jane Sinco, the former a native of Virginia, and the latter of South Caro- lina. They were married in Indiana, and when our subject was four years old moved to Jefferson County, lowa, being among the pioneer families of that county. Sub- sequently they moved to Decatur County, and there the father bought 300 acres of land, and laid out a town which he named Paris, but which is now called High Point. Selling that property they moved to Ring- gold County, in 1855, and settled on section 2, Riley Township, and there the father died in 1874, aged seventy-four years. The mother is now living at Kellerton. Their family consisted of seven children --- John C .; Columbus B .. who died while serving his country, in the twenty-first year of his age; Mary Ellen, wife of Frank Scott. of Decatur County; Martha, deceased, wife of Gilbert Mark; Caroline, wife of J. II. Johnson, of Nebraska; Charlotte, wife of Dell Ferguson, of Decatur County: Mar- garet, wife of William Barnes, of Riley Township. John C. Sinco was married
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HISTORY OF RINGGOLD COUNTY.
born in Huntington County, Indiana, April 27. 1846. daughter of J. W. Cling, who moved to Illinois in is50, and in 1857 to Harrison County, Missouri, and is now a resident of Decatur County, lowa. Mr. and Mrs. Sinco have seven children -- Sarah, wife of A. 1. Paullin; Lawn Dora, Florence Mary, Lulu Lillian, John H., Nancy Anna and Jessie Maud. The fine farm property of 300 acres owned by Mr. Sinco was entered and entirely improved by himself. In politics he is a Republican. He has served his township acceptably and efficiently in several public positions, and at present is school treasurer.
OHN D. MOORE was born in Greene County, Indiana, June 10, 1844, a son of Jacob and Rebecca (Sparks) Moore, natives of Virginia and Ohio respectively, the father going to Indiana when about four years of age. The parents left Indi- ana for Cedar County, Iowa, when he was about ten years old, where the father fol- lowed farming till he retired from active life. The mother is still living in Cedar County. Of the five children born to the parents only two are now living -- John D., and Sarah, wife of M. S. Gaddord, now living in Clinton County. John D. Moore, our subject, was the oldest child in his fa- ther'sfamily. Hereceived good educational advantages, attending the district schools, and later entered Oskaloosa College, where he pursued his studies for one year. On leaving school he entered the Union army, enlisting in Company E, Eleventh lowa In- fantry, and was a member of the Army of the Tennessee, Seventeenth Army Corps, under command of General Blair. HIc participated in the battles of Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta campaign, and at Ben- tonville, North Carolina, being in the serv- icc eighteen months. He was honorably
discharged, and was mustered out in July, 1865. After the war he returned to Cedar County, and engaged in agricultural pur- suits. He was married in 1867 to Miss Elizabeth C. Goodwin, of Greene County, Indiana, a daughter of Abner Goodwin. They have seven children-Jacob H., Will- iam II., Lillie B., Frank M., John A., Sadic E. and Paul R. Mr. and Mrs. Moore be- gan married life on a farm in Cedar Coun- ty, lowa, where they lived till 1874. They then came with their family to Ringgold County, and lived on a farm south of Tingley for four years. They then re- turned to Cedar County, coming again to Ringgold County in the fall of 18844, when they settled on section 10, Tingley Town- ship, their farm containing 320 acres of improved land, all under fence and seeded down to grass. He is one of the success- ful farmers of his township, where he is also engaged in the manufacture of cheesc. HIc milks thirty cows, and sends out about 400 pounds of cheese a week. He and his wife are active members of the Christian church, of which he is an elder. He was licensed as an evangelist eight years ago, and has since been engaged in the ministry, his church being at Tingley, of which he was one of the organizers.
ILLIAM QUINN, one of the old pio- neers of Ringgold County, Iowa, now living in Jefferson Township, was born in Fleming County, Ohio, the date of his birth being September 29, 1830. His father, Joseph Quinn, was a native of Kentucky, and was one of the carly settlers of Fleming County. William Quinn was reared to agricultural pursuits, receiving such education as the rude log-cabin sub- scription schools of that carly day afforded. Ile left his native State with his parents when about four years of age, they locating
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
in Shelby County, Indiana, in 1834. There be remained till the fall of 1854. when he came to lowa, living m Marion County un- til the following spring, since which he has been a resident of this county. On coming to the county he settled in Jeffer- son (then Washington) Township, on wild land, when Indians and wild animals were the principal inhabitants of the surround- ing country, and there he experienced many of the hardships and privations incident to life m a new country. He was always been a hard-working citizen, and by his per- severing industry he has converted his land into a well-cultivated farm, and is now engaged in general farming and stock-rais- ing. His farm is located on section 15, Jefferson Township, and contains 100 acres. Mr. Quinn was married May 7, 1862, to Miss Sarah J. Hunter, a daughter of An- drew Hunter. Of the eight children born to this union but three are living -William A., Clarinda B. and Minta, all at home. Mrs. Quinn died May 21, 1885. She was an earnest Christian, and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Quinn is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
JARVIS, superintendent and builder of bridges, residing on section 12, Benton Township, was born in Perry County, Ohio, August 22, 1832, son of Phillip and Mary (Woolf) Jarvis. Heresided in his native county until eighteen years of age, assisting on the farm and attending the common schools. Ile was married Febru- ary 28, 1856, to Miss Anna Lewis, after which he resided in Hocking County. The fol- lowing year he came to Clarke Coun- ty, Iowa, and later removed to Lucas County. In 1865 he came to Ringgold County and settled on section 12, Benton Township. Ile located on his farm where he now resides July 19, 1875. Ile owns
137 acres in a high state of cultivation and well improved. He has a good residence, a corn barn. orchard, small fruits, and has been engaged for several years in contract- ing for and building bridges. He has erected all the county bridges in Ringgold County for several years. Heis the invent- or of the Jarvispatent for bridges, patented March 4, 1879 ; he is also the inventor and proprietor of the Jarvis wagon-brake, pat- ented March 2, 1880. The bridges built on the Jarvis patent are considered the best in use. Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis are the parents of ten children - Rebecca, John, Ellen, Catherine, Levi, James, Phebc, Christopher, Samantha and Margaret. Moses is deceased. Mr. Jarvis is a member of the Missionary Baptist church, and politically is a Demo- crat.
TILL T. LAUGHLIN, senior mein- ber of the law firm, Laughlin & Campbell, of Mt. Ayr, Iowa, is a native of De Witt County, Illinois, born at Clinton, March 24, 1840, a son of Thomas and Nancy (Lowry) Laughlin, his father a native of North Carolina, and his mother of Kentucky. His father was a physician, practicing in Springfield and Clinton, but. died in the prime of life, in 1843, of pul- monary consumption. The mother is still living. Their family consisted of three. children-two sons and one daughter, of whom only the sous are living. The boy- hood of our subject was passed in Clinton. Illinois, where he attended the graded schools, and when seventeen years of age he began teaching, which he continued three terms, and in the meantime began the study of law with Hon. L. Weldon, of Clin- ton, now judge of the Court of Claims at Washington. He was admitted to the bar in 1861, and in the fall of the same year located in Mt. Ayr, and opened an office for the practice of his profession. Two years
376
HISTORY OF RINGGOLD COUNTY.
later be formed a partnership with I. W. Keller, which continued over five years. In 1873 he was elected district attorney for the Third District, comprising the counties of Page, Montgomery, Taylor, Adams, Ringgold, Union, Decatur and Clarke. At the expiration of three years he resigned, and resumed his practice, becoming asso- ciated with Judge Henry, under the firm name of Henry & Laughlin. Four years later this partnership was dissolved, and the firm of Laughlin & Campbell was formed. In 1863-'4 Mr. Laughlin was superinten- dent of schools of Ringgold County. He was appointed county judge in 1862, vice Judge Keller, resigned. He was married March 10, 1861, to Louisa J. Bates, daugh- ter of Ansel Bates. They have two children -- Lora B. and L. Weldon. Mr. Laughlin is a member of both the Masonic and Odd Fellows orders.
ETER A. WHEELER, farmer and stock-raiser, living on section 9, Lib- erty Township, was born in Jefferson County, New York, May 17, 1840. When he was four years of age his parents, Peter and Polly (Millard) Wheeler, removed to Fulton County, Illinois, and there he was reared on a farm, his father being a farmer EORGE W. LESAN, an early settler of Ringgold County, and an enter- prising farmer of Poe Township, is a native of Penobscot County, Maine, born February 11, 1830, a son of John and Eliz- abeth (Brooks) Lesan, also natives of Maine. In 1831 his parents moved to Ohio, and in 1836 to Illinois, where the mother died in 1852. George W. is the sixth of twelve children, six of whom are living. Hle commenced the battle of life for hit- self when twenty years of age, and in 1853 was married to Mary M. Leasure. In the spring of 1855 he came to lowa, and entered by occupation. His parents lived till their death in Fulton County, the father dying in the year 1876, and the mother in 1884. Peter AA. enlisted in the service of his coun- try at the age of eighteen years, becoming a member of Company H, Seventeenth Illinois Infantry, in which regiment he served about six months, when he was transferred to Company F. Eighth Ilinois Infantry, in which he served till receiving his discharge, a period of two years and four months. He took part in the raid from Vicksburg to Meridian, Mississippi, and was at the battle of Mobile, and had his . 235 acres of land from the Government.
clothing cut in many places, but was not wounded. He was mustered out at Baton Rouge in May, 1865, when he returned to Canton, Fulton County, Illinois, and the same fall was married to Miss Louisa J. Mariner, of Canton. They are the parents of four children-Henry E., Lewis L., Hat- tic I. and Flora Adell. Mr. Wheeler fol- lowed farming in Fulton County for three years after his marriage, when he removed to Minnesota, and after spending five years in Cottonwood County, that State, re- turned to Canton, Illinois. In the spring of 1883 Mr. Wheeler came to Ringgold County, lowa, when he located on his present farm, which contains ;So acres of well-improved land under high cultivation. He devotes considerable attention to stock-raising, mak- ing a specialty of Poland-China hogs, which are of the purest breed and are all entitled to registry. He has on his farm eighty-three head of thorough-bred cattle, and twenty-three horses, and as a stock- raiser Mr. Wheeler ranks with the best of his township. He is an active and enter- prising citizen, and during his residence in Liberty Township has won many friends by his genial manners and fair and honorable dealings.
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
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ITis first dwelling in the county, which was also the first one in Mt. Ayr, was a round- log cabin, 16 x 18 feet, covered with clap- boards, with the ground for the floor for some time, until one of puncheon could be substituted. He lived in this house ten years, and opened up his farm. His pres- ent residence is commodious, and his farm buildings are large and comfortable. Be- fore the railroad was built the town was laid out and called Lesanville, but on the advent of the railroad the name was changed, and both village and postoffice are called Lesan. He established the first store in the place, which at present is con- ducted by his nephew, Arthur L. Lesan, his son, O. L. Lesan, being postmaster, ap- pointed in April, 1884. Mr. Lesan has had a family of seven children, but four are liv- ing-Laura E., wife of A. F. Beard ; Owen L., Burrett M. and Cassius T. Mr. Lesan has served his township as justice of the peace, trustec and supervisor. Ile is an intelligent, public-spirited citizen, lending his influence to the side of law and order.
القيم: الـ HOMAS STAMPER, engaged in farming and stock-raising on sections 20 and 21, Grant Township, where he has 720 acres of good land, is a native of England, born September 30, 1832, a son of Thomas and Mary Stamper, who were also natives of England. On first coming to America Mr. Stamper located in Michigan, where he remained two years .. He then removed to lllinois, and for thirty- five years made his home in Kendall County. On leaving Illinois he came to .
of land. In connection with his general farming he is extensively engaged in feed- ing stock, and is one of the best farmers in Grant Township. Mr. Stamper was united in marriage to Miss Anna Turbey, who was born in the year 1840, a daughter of William and Mary Turbey, natives of Eng- land. They are the parents of seven chil- dren, six sons and one daughter-William, Frank, John, Edward, Richard, Minnie and Thomas. In politics Mr. Stamper casts his suffrage with the Republican party.
M. BAUMANN, engaged in farming and stock-raising on section 4, Lin- " coln Township, is a native of Penn- sylvania, born April 20, 1852, a son of J. G. and Hannah (Klingensmith) Baumann, who were natives of Germany and Penn- sylvania respectively, the father being the oldest settler of Ringgold County. Our subject was brought by his parents to Iowa in an early day, locating first in Jef- ferson County, and a short time later came to Ringgold County, and there he ex- perienced many of the privations as well as the pleasures of pioncer life. The sur- rounding country was then in a state of nature, and Indians and wild animals were the principal inhabitants. H. M. Baumann was reared to agricultural pursuits, and re- ceived his education in the district schools. IIe has lived on his present farm since coming to this county, and is the owner of 320 acres of choice land, which has been acquired by years of toil and industry, and
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