USA > Iowa > Cedar County > A topical history of Cedar County, Iowa, Volume II > Part 8
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
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 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74
Mr. Hecht joined the Knights of Pythias lodge in Clarence and is now a member of the Tipton lodge. He has filled all the chairs in the local organiza- tion, is a past chancellor and has been representative to the grand lodge of the state. Politically a democrat, he has never sought office yet was officially iden- tified with the Clarence schools for thirty years and was town treasurer for a
94
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
number of years. Through his long residence in this section of the state Mr. Hecht has become well known in Cedar, Jones and Clinton counties. He has always stood for progress and improvement and has cooperated in many meas- ures that have been directly beneficial to the community. In his business affairs he has displayed marked enterprise and ready adaptability, and the results which have crowned his efforts indicate sound judgment, clear discernment and in- defatigable energy.
ELMER B. HOYMAN.
Adjoining Clarence is an excellent farm of two hundred and forty acres. Its fields are well kept, its buildings are modern and the stock seen there is of good grades. In the midst of the farm stands a large residence built in attractive style of architecture, and the place in its entirety constitutes one of the attractive features of this part of the county. It is the property of Elmer B. Hoyman, who is a well known agriculturist and business man, whom Iowa claims as a native son. His birth occurred in Jones county, February 1, 1868.
His father, William Hoyman, was born in Ohio, where he spent the days of his boyhood and youth amid pioneer surroundings. The mother, who bore the maiden name of Julia Kerr, was also born and reared in Ohio. While living in the Buckeye state William Hoyman followed farming save that through the period of the Civil war he espoused the cause of the Union, serving for three and a half years in defense of the old flag and the cause which it represented. He was then honorably discharged and returned to his Ohio home, where he lived until about 1866, when he came to Iowa, settling in Jones county, where he purchased a farm that he cultivated for two years. He then sold that property and came to Cedar county, taking up his abode upon a farm in Dayton township. He spent his last years here and died September 14, 1882, when forty-nine years of age. His wife survives him and is now a resident of Chicago.
Elmer B. Hoyman was reared in Cedar county and after mastering the branches of learning taught in the district schools became a pupil in the Clarence high school. He also pursued a course in a commercial school and for two years was a student in Cornell College. He was thus well qualified by liberal advan- tages for the onerous and responsible duties which have since devolved upon him. He remained with his mother until he had attained his majority, after which he pursued a course in civil engineering, which he followed for a year. At the end of that time he took charge of the old home farm, which he cultivated until the spring of 1904, when he sold the property and removed to his present farm, com- prising two hundred and forty acres of rich and arable land adjoining the cor- poration limits of Clarence. Here he erected a fine large residence, also built two good barns, one of which was destroyed by fire. He put up a machine house, scale house and hog house, put in a wind pump and enclosed his land and divided it into fields of convenient size by woven wire fences. In addition to the cultivation of crops he raises and feeds stock, making a specialty of buying and
95
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
fattening western sheep. He feeds several carloads each year and also a large number of hogs annually, and raises some pure blooded Collie dogs.
In Cedar county, in the fall of 1892, Mr. Hoyman was married to Miss Jeanette Greig, who was born and reared in this county and is a daughter of John Greig, one of the well known farmers of the county, of whom mention is made elsewhere in this volume. Unto them have been born four children: Alice M., Isabelle Pauline, Alberta Elizabeth and William G.
In consideration of the chief political problems that have engaged the atten- tion of the country, Mr. Hoyman has come to the conclusion that the republican party stands more largely for improvement and progress, and therefore casts his ballot for its candidates when questions of national importance are involved. At local elections, however, where the only issue is the capability of the candi- date, he does not hesitate to scratch his ballot, voting always independently. He is a well known friend and champion of the cause of education and for years has been officially identified with the schools of Clarence. He served as president of the school board for one year and endorses every movement that he believes will promote educational interests. A life-long resident of this state, he possesses the enterprising spirit which has been a dominant factor in the upbuilding of this section of the country. He is thoroughly identified with the people and pros- perity of Cedar county, and he is spoken of only in terms of praise and warm regard by those who are well acquainted with him.
FRANK JAMES CASTERLINE.
Frank James Casterline, a member of the Tipton bar, was born in Carroll county, Illinois, January 10, 1866. His parents were Thomas E. and Martha J. (Miller) Casterline, both of whom were natives of New York, the former of French lineage and the latter of English descent. The mother, who was born January 6, 1838, died in Lincoln county, Nebraska, in November, 1893. The father now resides at Edgar, Nebraska, at the age of seventy-six years. He was in the army hospital during the war and since the close of hostilities between the north and south has engaged in the practice of medicine. In the family were two sons, Floyd Walter and Frank James, both residents of Tipton.
The latter spent the first eight years of his life in the place of his nativity upon the old home farm and then was brought to Cedar county, Iowa, locating about ten miles north of Tipton, in Dayton township. There Frank J. Caster- line remained until seventeen years of age, when he removed to Edgar, Ne- braska. In the latter place and in Omaha, Nebraska, he was a pupil in the high school and business college. He afterward pursued a course in stenography at Omaha and secured a position as court reporter in the thirty-fourth district of Kansas. While reporting he took up the study of law and in 1895, in Kansas, was admitted to the bar. He resigned his position as court reporter after about seven years service, and removed to Des Moines, Iowa, where he became asso- ciated with the law firm of Gatch, Connor & Weaver, with whom he remained for a year and a half. He then passed an examination before the supreme
96
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
court of Iowa and was admitted to practice in the Iowa courts in May, 1898. The same year he opened an office in Tipton, where he has since engaged in gen- eral practice. He served as city attorney of Tipton for two terms and was the republican candidate for county attorney in the fall of 1909. He has served as a commissioner on the board of insanity of the county for twelve years. His defeat for county attorney is attributable to the fact that he stood for the enforce- ment of the liquor law. He has also been superintendent of the city water- works for the past five years and in every public office has proven himself loyal to duty and to the trust reposed in him. He has continued for twelve years an active member of the Tipton bar and in the practice of his profession has proven his worth in the courts. He prepares his cases with great thoroughness, qualify- ing for defense as well as attack, and his arguments are strong and forceful, his deductions clear and logical.
On the 24th of June, 1888, Mr. Casterline was married to Miss Linnie Almeda Gano, who was born in Cedar county, Iowa, March 26, 1868, and is a daughter of James W. and Leah (Ayres) Gano, who are now residing in Cedar county, near Wilton Junction. Mr. and Mrs. Casterline have one child, Lloyd Eugene, who was born July 23, 1889, and is now in his fourth year in the State University at Iowa City.
In his fraternal relations Mr. Casterline is an Odd Fellow and in his religious belief a Presbyterian, holding membership in the church at Tipton and serving as church treasurer and as one of the board of trustees. He is well known as a man fearless in his defense of his honest convictions and his influence is always on the side of right, progress and improvement. He has made many friends during his residence in Tipton, for he has those qualities which win popularity and high regard.
JOHN MCCLELLAN.
When Cedar county was a frontier district and all the conditions of pioneer life were to be here met and endured, John McClellan came to this section of the state, dating his residence in this county from 1848. He was then a young man of sixteen years, his birth having occurred near Perth, Canada, on the 7th of May, 1832. His father, William McClellan, was born in the north of Ireland and was of Scotch parentage. He came to the new world with his parents when a lad of sixteen years and was reared in Canada. In that country he married Anna Dennison, after which he devoted his attention to farming in Canada until 1848, when he crossed the border into the United States, where competition is greater but where advancement is more quickly secured. The op- portunities of the new but growing west attracted him and he made his way to Cedar county, Iowa, casting in his lot with its first settlers. He entered land near the present site of Lowden and performed the arduous task of developing a new farm, breaking the sod and turning the first furrows upon the prairie, his labors resulting in the development of highly cultivated fields. Later he owned four hundred acres of land for, as his financial resources increased, he made fur-
-
JOHN MCCLELLAN AND FAMILY
99
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
ther investments in property. He had lost his wife in Canada but his last days were spent in Cedar county, where his sterling worth won him a position with the most highly respected and esteemed residents of this part of the state. His family numbered two sons and four daughters: Samuel, a resident of Clarence, Iowa; Lizzie, the wife of George Corey of Des Moines, Iowa; Sarah, the wife of Edward Corey of Auburn, Iowa; Alice, the wife of Benjamin Dilworth of Pasadena, California ; and Anna, of California.
The other member of the family is John McClellan, whose name introduces this record. Coming to Iowa when a young man, he assisted his father in developing and improving the home farm. His educational privileges were some- what limited so that he is largely self-educated. In the school of experience, however, he has learned many valuable lessons that have made him a practical business man and a progressive, public-spirited citizen. He fitted up a breaking team and broke hundreds of acres of prairie land, thus contributing in a large measure to the substantial improvement of this section of the state. For some years he and his brother cultivated the old home farm together and each day saw them busily employed in the fields, their labors bringing that success which can be attained only by earnest and unremitting labor and perseverance.
That he might establish a home of his own Mr. McClellan was married in Springfield township, June 17, 1868, to Miss Mary Arlington, who was born in Ohio and came to Iowa when a maiden of sixteen summers. She is a daugh- ter of Henry Arlington, a native of England, having been born, reared and edu- cated in London. He was afterward employed in a bank there but, believing that better opportunities were offered in the new world, he crossed the Atlantic in early manhood. Previous to leaving London, however, he was married there to Miss Lucy Wordsworth, a native of that city, and after coming to the United States they settled in Huron county, Ohio, where they resided for a few years. They removed to Iowa in 1853, at which time Mr. Arlington purchased land in Cedar county and developed a farm, upon which he reared his family. He served in several public positions of honor and trust, his fellow townsmen recognizing his fitness for office.
After his marriage Mr. McClellan located in Springfield township, about four miles from Lowden. He began there with two hundred acres of land, which he afterward sold, and invested in two hundred acres in Fairfield town- ship. At different times he purchased and sold land, becoming the owner of several hundred acres. Mrs. McClellan received an inheritance from England with which she bought land, investing in eighty acres which she afterward dis- posed of and made further investments, becoming the owner of one hundred and seventy acres in Plymouth county. Mr. McClellan also purchased another place of two hundred acres near Clarence, erecting thereon a large residence together with two or three barns, commodious sheds and outbuildings, and developing a fine place. He likewise owns a farm near Mechanicsville, while his wife has a one hundred and seventy acre tract in Plymouth county. His possessions further include one hundred and sixty acres at Stanwood and altogether he has seven hundred acres in well improved farms. He has always given considerable attention to the breeding of high grade stock, making a specialty of Durham shorthorn cattle, Poland China hogs and Percheron horses. He commenced
100
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
life empty-handed and his possessions are the proof of his industry, perseverance and capable management and the assistance which he has received from his estimable wife. In 1906 they removed to Mechanicsville, where they own and occupy a good home that is supplied with all of the comforts and some of the luxuries of life. Unto Mr. and Mrs. McClellan have been born three chil- dren: W. H., who resides on the Clarence farm, is married and has three chil- dren; J. F., who occupies the Stanwood farm, is married and has two children; and Eunice L., who is the widow of John Nicoll of Mechanicsville and has three children.
Mr. McClellan formerly gave his political support to the republican party but is now an advocate of prohibition principles, his support of the latter party indicating his position on the temperance question. He and his wife are con- sistent and faithful members of the Mechanicsville Methodist Episcopal church and take an active and helpful part in the work of the church and Sunday school. Mrs. McClellan has served as assistant superintendent of the Sunday school and the children are also members of the Methodist church. For sixty- two years Mr. McClellan has lived in this county and is one of its most honored and worthy pioneer settlers. He has been closely identified with the growth and development of the region throughout the period, has seen all of the towns built and the railroads put through. His labors have been a valuable element in the work of general progress for he has broken hundreds of acres of prairie land and has made and improved three farms. He possesses excellent business abil- ity, keen discrimination and unfaltering enterprise and carries forward to suc- cessful completion whatever he undertakes. He has ever stood for progress and while actively engaged in farming was ever among the first to adopt new agri- cultural implements or to accept improved methods that would advance the interests of the place. He is one of the widely known citizens of Cedar county and no history of this region would be complete without mention of John McClellan, who is honored and respected wherever known and most of all where he is best known.
EDIE S. TEMPLETON.
Edie S. Templeton, who was called to his final rest on the 16th of October, 1907, when seventy-six years of age, was for many years an active factor in the agricultural and industrial circles of Cedar county, successfully carrying on farming and carpentering. At the time of his demise, however, he was living retired in Bennett. His birth occurred in Blair county, Pennsylvania, on the 6th of November, 1831, his parents being James and Elizabeth (Russell) Temple- ton, who were likewise natives of that county. The father was successfully en- gaged in general agricultural pursuits there until the time of his death. In 1853 his widow came west in company with her son and two daughters, locating in Inland township, Cedar county, Iowa.
Edie S. Templeton attended the district schools of his native county in the acquirement of an education and also assisted his father in the operation of the
101
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
home farm. He likewise learned the carpenter's trade in early life, working at that occupation in Blair county until he came to this county. Here he entered one hundred and sixty acres of land from the government and the cultivation and improvement of that property claimed his attention until the time of his re- tirement in 1890, when his son David took charge of the farm. In addition to raising the cereals best adapted to soil and climate he also worked at carpentering to some extent. The first schoolhouse in district No. 2, Inland township, was erected by him. During the last seventeen years of his life he lived retired in Bennett save for one term's service as postmaster of the town. A man of excel- lent business ability and unfaltering integrity, he won a well merited measure of success in his undertakings and was long numbered among the prosperous and esteemed citizens of his community.
In 1851, at Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, Mr. Templeton was united in mar- riage to Miss Elizabeth Hamer, her parents being Samuel and Maria (Itinger) Hamer, the former a wagon-maker of Alexandria, Pennsylvania. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Templeton were born three sons and one daughter, as follows: Mrs. Clara M. Cryder, a widow residing in Bennett; Samuel E., who is at home with his mother ; J. C., living in Cedar Rapids ; and David E., who makes his home in Colorado.
Mr. Templeton gave his political allegiance to the republican party but the honors and emoluments of office had no attraction for him. The cause of edu- cation, however, found in him a stanch champion and he did valuable service in its behalf as a school director. In religious faith he was a Presbyterian. The period of his residence in Cedar county covered more than a half century and he is well entitled to a place among its substantial and representative citizens.
EDWARD W. CRYDER.
Edward W. Cryder, who passed away in Bennett on the 2d of March, 1899, was long and actively identified with the agricultural interests of Cedar county, owning and operating a well improved farm of eighty acres. His birth occurred in Blair county, Pennsylvania, on the 8th day of July, 1847, his parents being Jacob and Margaret (Lewis) Cryder, who spent their entire lives in the Key- stone state. The father followed farming in Blair county throughout his active business career.
Edward W. Cryder obtained his education in the district schools of his na- tive couny and when not busy with his text-books assisted his father in the work of the fields, thus early becoming familiar with the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agriculturist. In 1870, when a young man of twenty-three years, he came direct to Cedar county, Iowa, here working as a farm hand for four years. On the expiration of that period he rented sixty acres of land and de- voted his attention to its cultivation for eight years, when he purchased a farm of eighty acres. In the operation of that property he was busily engaged until the time of his demise, annually gathering rich crops which found a ready sale on
102
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
the market. The farm is still in possession of his widow and returns to her a gratifying annual income.
In 1874 Mr. Cryder was united in marriage to Miss Clara M. Templeton, by whom he had two children. Edie J., who manages the home farm for his mother, wedded Miss Fannie Willey and has two children, Clara Belle and Earl Edward. Mae, a public-school teacher of Cedar county, resides at home with her mother.
Politically Mr. Cryder was a republican, ever giving loyal support to the men and measures of that party. He held membership in the Baptist church and was an active and valued worker in the Sunday school. His widow is a devoted member of the Lutheran church and her many good qualities of heart and mind have endeared her to all with whom she has come in contact.
FRANK D. WINGERT.
No matter in how much fantastic theorizing one may indulge concerning success, careful consideration must eventually bring one to the fact that progress and prosperity in the business world are the direct and legitimate outcome of unflagging industry, unfaltering perseverance and unabating energy. The life record of Frank D. Wingert is another proof of this assertion. Giving the closest attention to business and watching his opportunities for judicious invest- ment, he is now one of the wealthiest men of Cedar county with extensive land- holdings and also large financial interests.
He was born in Springfield township, about seven miles east of Tipton, April 18, 1857, his parents being Peter and Isabelle (Garey) Wingert. Both parents were born and reared near the boundary line that separates Pennsyl- vania and Maryland and in that district were married, after which they emi- grated westward to Peoria county, Illinois. The father was born in Allegany county, Maryland, October 9, 1814, and first made his way to Peoria county in 1839. It was three years afterward, in 1842, that he was married in Maryland and brought his bride to the Mississippi valley. In 1856 they removed from Illinois to Cedar county and their remaining days were spent upon the farm on which they located when they first took up their abode within the borders of this state. Mr. Wingert donated to the York Prairie church the land upon which it stands and also contributed generously toward the building of the house of worship. He was one of the most active, earnest and helpful members in the church and was interested in all public affairs whereby the welfare and progress of the community are conserved. He held a number of township offices, the duties of which he discharged with promptness and fidelity. He died upon the old homestead, November 14, 1896, after which his widow re- moved to Tipton and there passed away May 27, 1909, at the venerable age of eighty-seven years, three months and six days. She was a native of Cumber- land, Maryland, and like her husband held membership in the Methodist Epis- copal church, to which both were loyal throughout their entire lives. Their family numbered ten children: Ellen, the wife of Charles Evans of Clinton, Iowa; John, living in Tipton; George, a resident of Cedar Rapids ; Mrs. Sarah
Frank D. Wingert
Emma Wingert
107
HISTORY OF CEDAR COUNTY
West Focht, who died in 1910; Frank D .; Alice, the wife of Dr. W. E. Whitney. of Eldora, Iowa; Annie, the wife of James Walkins of Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Albert, deceased, and two who died in infancy.
Frank D. Wingert resided on the old homestead until he came to Tipton, save for a period of six years spent in Montgomery county, Iowa. He became the owner of a half-section of land included within the old homestead property and retained possession thereof until about five years ago. He now owns three hundred acres two and one-half miles southeast of Tipton, eighty acres one mile south of the town and three hundred and twenty acres two miles north of Bennett. In January, 1898, he took up his abode in Tipton, purchasing the large and beautiful residence which he now occupies and which is situated on the boulevard. Turning his attention to agricultural pursuits, for many years he continued to engage in farming, and his careful management of his land and his practical methods in cultivating the fields brought to him substantial and well merited success. He did not limit his efforts to one line, however, but ex- tended his activities, becoming a prominent factor in financial circles. He was one of the organizers and was chosen president of the Bennett State Bank, in which connection he remained for a number of years. At present he is vice president of the City National Bank of Tipton and has so continued for the past ten years. He engaged in the real-estate business for two or three years and for many years was known as the leading live-stock man of this county, engaged in buying and selling stock on an extensive scale. He has owned over two thou- sand acres of land in South Dakota since he began dealing in property in that state and has about two sections there at the present time.
On the 29th of November, 1877, Mr. Wingert was united in marriage to Miss Emma Stubblefield, who was born four miles east of Tipton, Iowa, Feb- ruary 4, 1860, and resided there up to the time of her marriage. Her parents were John B. and Elizabeth (McClain) Stubblefield. The father was born in Champaign county, Ohio, November 15, 1827, and the mother's birth occurred in Center county, Pennsylvania, November 25, 1833. Mr. Stubblefield arrived in Cedar county in the fall of 1842 when a youth of fifteen years. He after- ward entered land here and became a successful farmer, carrying on the work of tilling the soil until he retired to Tipton in his later years, there enjoying a well earned rest up to the time of his death, March 9, 1906. He had survived his wife for a number of years for she passed away in Tipton, December 2, 1897. Both were devoted members of the Methodist Protestant church and he as- sisted in building the Virginia Grove church and also the church in Bennett. In the family were ten children: James W., now deceased; Ann, the wife of J. H. McDonald of Cedar Rapids; Cerilda, the wife of E. A. Marks of Ortonville, Minnesota ; Mrs. Wingert; Luella, the wife of H. P. Lee of South Dakota; Alice, the wife of T. H. Ocheltree of South Dakota; Flora, the wife of George J. Suess of Milwaukee, Wisconsin ; and three who died in infancy.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.