USA > Iowa > Polk County > Des Moines > Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume II > Part 57
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Colonel Reeve was a native of Ashtabula county, Ohio. He was born Decem- ber 29, 1834, and was reared as a farmer, later becoming a lawyer and a dis- tinguished soldier. He came to Iowa in 1854, and in the early stages of the Civil war enlisted September 6. 1861, in Captain John Brown, Jr's., company of the Seventh Kansas Cavalry. Later he was transferred as captain of Company D, Fifty-fifth United States Colored Infantry, and during the battle of Gun- town, Mississippi, when the regiment was almost annihilated and the commanding officer, Major Lowe, after about twenty minutes of fighting, was wounded, Captain Reeve was in charge during the remainder of the battle and the retreat He was promoted to major, and later to colonel of the Eighty-eighth United States Colored Regiment, which he helped to organize, and after the war was made first chief of the Freedmen's Bureau, with headquarters at Memphis, Ten- nessee. He served for many years as a member of the board of regents of the Iowa State University, and was greatly respected as one of the most prominent men in the state. At the time of his death, October 26, 1889. he was chief of the seed division of the United States Agricultural Department at Washington. His brother, James Reeve, was the first settler of Franklin county, Iowa, locating there in 1852. Luther Reeve, an early ancestor, fought in the Revolutionary war in the Connecticut regiment. The original progenitor of the family came to this country in 1646, and located on Long Island. Representatives of the family are now to be found in almost every state of the Union.
There were seven children in the family of Colonel and Mrs. Reeve, namely : T. Brown, the subject of this review : Theron, who died at the age of five years ; Effie A., now the wife of E. A. Mallory, of Hampton. Iowa; Etta G., wife of Rev. William D. King, of Aurora, Nebraska : Delos M., who is married and is
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a practicing physician at Bristol, Iowa; Lulu M. and Lena A., twins, the former wife of William D. Hoover, president of the National Trust & Savings Bank of Washington, D. C. She is now serving her second term as treasurer general of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Lena A., became the wife of A. W. Shunk, chief of division of adjutant general's office of Washington, D. C., and she died November 26, 1910.
J. Brown Reeve received his early education in the public schools of Hamp- ton, Iowa, later attending the Hampton high school. He began his active career as a dealer in stock and continued in that business for ten years, then taking the road as traveling salesman for fifteen years. After giving up this position he entered the real-estate business at Omaha, and in December, 1901, removed to Des Moines, where he has since lived. He handles city property upon an extensive scale and also deals largely in Iowa lands with which, from long acquaintance, he is thoroughly familiar. He has exercised good judgment and, as his energy has never flagged, he has built up a large and growing bus- iness and one that yields a handsome revenue.
On the 12th day of June, 1888, Mr. Reeve was united in marriage to Miss Eliza McGonigle, born in Linn county, Iowa, February 17, 1870, daughter of William and Honora (Burns) McGonigle both of whom were natives of Ire- land. Mr. McGonigle became a well known farmer of Linn county. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Reeve, namely: Leona, who was born November 27, 1893, and is now a student in the junior class of the North high school; Geraldine, born March 29, 1899, and who is attending the Henry Sabin school; and Arthur T., born February 20, 1905.
Mr. Reeve gives his support to the republican party, and fraternally is identified with the Modern Brotherhood of America and the Iowa State Trav- eling Men's Association. Coming of a noted family he has loyally performed his part in sustaining its reputation unimpaired. By his pleasing address and interest in others he has gained many friends, who are bound to him by ties of mutual sympathy. His success in business may be ascribed to the thorough prep- aration he made by years of association with business men and natural adapt- ability to a calling which requires keen judgment and sound discrimination. He is clearly entitled to the place which he occupies as an esteemed and highly respected member of the community.
ALFRED HAMMER.
Prominent among the energetic, enterprising and progressive citizens of Des Moines stands Alfred Hammer, and his position is due to the fact that he has ever seemed cognizant of the truth that the present and not the future holds the opportunity. To this end he has made use of every passing moment and seemed to have accomplished at any one point in his career the possibility for successful accomplishment at that point. There have been no unusual incidents or esoteric phases in his career but a steady progression toward the goal, and it has been the logical sequence of his labors that has brought him to his present position at the head of one of the leading drug establishments of the city and the president of the Valley Savings Bank.
He was born in Germany in February, 1848, and represents one of the old and prominent families of that country to whom kingly authority accorded a coat of arms. The device includes a figure of a man, his upraised right arm bearing aloft a hammer-an indication of strength. Gustavus Hammer, the father, was born in Germany, December 9, 1818, and for some time followed merchandising. Later he served as an officer in the German army and in the year 1848 he sailed for the United States with Winconsin as his destination.
ALFRED HAMMER
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In that state he followed merchandising and manufacturing. He arrived in Wisconsin when the country was largely covered with a dense forest. The trees were cut down by the early settlers and the stumps burned. Mr. Hammer then purchased the ashes which the farmers hauled to him by wagon loads and which he converted into potash and from that product manufactured saleratus. This he hauled from Mayville, Dodge county, to Milwaukee, a distance of fifty miles. Ofttimes the Indians would attack the wagons and steal the horses, leaving the driver stranded. Mr. Hammer prospered in his business under- taking, however, until after the outbreak of the Civil war, when he responded to President Lincoln's first call for seventy-five thousand volunteers, and at Mayville raised Company E, which in a few days became a part of the Third Wisconsin Infantry and later was attached to the Army of the Potomac, Mr. Hammer being in command of the company. He participated in all of the battles of that army until Winchester, where, in June, 1862, he was captured. He was first sent to Libby Prison and afterward to the officers prison at Salis- bury, North Carolina, from which he was exchanged for a southern captain who had been captured by the Union troops. Captain Hammer had been held a prisoner for nearly a year and while incarcerated at Stanton, Virginia, General Jackson gave him a permit to pass from Stanton to Harrisburg at his pleasure. This was an unusual privilege but Jackson recognized in Captain Hammer a man of honor, feeling that he could trust him perfectly. After being released from prison the latter returned home. Prior to the war he had filled the office of United States marshal and both before and after the war he served as justice of the peace at Mayville. Subsequently he removed to Beaver Dam, where he en- gaged in the practice of law for some time and later was again chosen justice of the peace, filling the office from 1866 until his death in September, 1885. His tombstone bears the record that he was captain of Company E, Third Wisconsin Infantry. He was always a lover of music and possessed considerable talent in that line. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Henrietta Juliana Werner, was born in Germany, April 8, 1811, and passed away May 26, 1891. In their family were three children, of whom the daughter, Antonia, died in 1861 at the age of sixteen years. The younger son, Alvin G. Hammer, is engaged in the drug business in East Des Moines.
The elder son, Alfred Hammer, was brought to America during his infancy and was educated in the public schools of Mayville, Wisconsin, until 1866, when he took up the study of chemistry at Milwaukee under Gustavus Bode, state chemist. In 1870 he came to Iowa, settling in Council Bluffs, where he estab- lished a chemical laboratory and began the manufacture of photographer's chemicals and also the reduction of gold and silver in conjunction with the con- duct of a drug store. In 1872 he disposed of his business there to his partner and came to Des Moines, where he accepted a position with Dr. William Baker, then the oldest druggist in Des Moines, with whom he continued for two years. In 1874 he established a business of his own at the southeast corner of Court avenue and Second street, in a building vacated by George M. Hippee & Company, druggists. In 1881 he removed to No. 302 Walnut street, where he remained until 1901, when he purchased the building of Carter & Hussey and remodeled it into a modern drug store. He has a splendidly equipped establishment at this point and enjoys a very extensive trade by reason of his honorable methods, fair prices and earnest effort to please his patrons. This by no means limits the extent of his business, however, for he is president of the Valley Savings Bank, a director of the Valley National Bank and a director of the Valley In, vestment Company.
On the 15th of September, 1875, Mr. Hammer was married to Mrs. Mary E. (Frantz) Childs, a daughter of Levi and Caroline (Miller) Frantz. By her former marriage she had two children, Edward and Clifford. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Hammer was born a son, Werner Wallace, whose natal day was December Vol. II-24
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12, 1876, and who died December 20, 1881. The Hammer home is a hospitable one, its good cheer being greatly enjoyed by their many friends.
In politics Mr. Hammer is a democrat and keeps well informed on the ques- tions and issues of the day but has never been an aspirant for office. He be- longs to Capital City Lodge, No. 110, F. & A. M., and is also a Royal Arch and Knight Templar Mason. There is an interesting military chapter in his life record. Aroused by the spirit of patriotism and emulating his father's example, he joined the army at the age of seventeen years and was assistant hospital steward of the Fiftieth Wisconsin Regiment. His previous two years' expe- rience in the drug business made him very useful in the hospital work. His regiment was sent to Missouri to check the guerrilla warfare following the close of hostilities between the north and south and from that point was sent to Da- kota against the Indians and saw some severe service on the plains. They marched from Fort Sulley, a distance of three hundred and fifty miles through the hostile country, to Fort Rice on the Missouri river. There the regiment rebuilt the fort which had been begun by the Thirtieth Wisconsin to protect the frontier. That winter they were surrounded by fifteen thousand Sioux Indians but kept peace with them by issuing flour and other rations, Fort Rice being the largest commissary station for western troops. John C. Spooner, now con- gressman from Wisconsin, was captain of Company A of this regiment. The troops remained at Fort Rice until the return by steamer to Madison, Wiscon- sin, June 22, 1866, and were there mustered out. Mr. Hammer has always manifested a public-spirited devotion to his country and has maintained a help- ful attitude toward municipal interests and his cooperation can be counted upon at all times to aid in matters of public progress. His business career has been a successful one owing to his close application, his unfaltering energy and his initiative spirit, and today he occupies a prominent position in the commercial and financial circles of Des Moines.
ARTHUR G. BAGG.
For a period of more than twenty-five years Arthur G. Bagg has been iden- tified with the commercial interests of Des Moines. A native of Polk county his birth occurred on the 26th of February, 1865, his parents being William G. and Persis (Brooks) Bagg of Massachusetts. Migrating to Iowa in 1856 they located upon a farm which Mr. Bagg had bought in Adair county, engaging in its cultivation until 1864, at which time he came to Polk county. They first resided upon an eighty acre tract in Bloomfield township, which Mr. Bagg ope- rated for seven years, at the end of which period they removed to a thirty-five acre fruit farm. After cultivating this for several years he engaged in the manu- facture of brick, continuing in this until he passed away on the Ioth of January, 1888. During this period he speculated in real-estate, buying lots upon which he erected brick residences for sale. Mrs. Bagg survived her husband several years, her demise occurring on the 6th of June, 1892.
After completing the course of the district schools of Bloomfield township Arthur G. Bagg entered the West high school of Des Moines, remaining a member of the paternal household until he was twenty-three years of age. In 1884 he bought an interest in the Western White Bronze Company, of which . his father was one of the organizers, later known as the White Bronze Monu- ment Company. He was identified with this firm in the capacity of superin- tendent for a period of twenty-three years, at the end of which time he dis- posed of his interest in order to engage in the grocery business with his brothers Charles P. and Harry D., at the corner of Ninth street and Park avenue. This firm is meeting with marked success, their business having grown very rapidly
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during the past few years. They own their building, which is a nice two-story brick structure, containing a large and well selected stock of merchandise. They conduct their business in accordance with the most highly approved principles governing modern trade transactions, the result being a large and constantly increasing patronage among the most desirable class of residents in the community.
On the 25th of April, 1889, Mr. Bagg was united in marriage to Miss May Boganwright, a daughter of George and Elizabeth (Gilbrath) Boganwright, natives of Ohio. Migrating to Iowa in a very early day Mr. Boganwright located upon a farm in Polk county, in the cultivation of which he engaged until 1902, when he retired and removed to Des Moines, where he resided until he passed away on the 24th of February, 1906. Mrs. Boganwright, who is eighty years of age, makes her home with her daughter, Mrs. Bagg. One child has been born unto Mr. and Mrs. Bagg, Lela May, who is nineteen years of age and a senior in the high school. They reside at the corner of south Ninth street and Pleasant View, where they own a very pleasant home. In matters of re- ligion the views of the family conform to those of the Church of Christ, with which they affiliate, while fraternally Mr. Bagg is identified with the Modern Woodmen of America.
In politics Mr. Bagg does not confine himself to party principles, always casting his ballot for the support of such men and measures as he feels are best adapted to meet the exigencies of the situation.
JOSEPH E. MEYER.
Joseph E. Meyer, who since 1905 has been identified with the legal profes- sion of Des Moines, was born in Elkader, Iowa, on the 23d of July, 1883, be- ing a son of Renke E. and Emma (Trumbold) Meyer, natives of Germany. Mr. Meyer came to this country in the early sixties, locating in Clayton county, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits until his demise on the 5th of Sep- tember, 1899. Mrs. Meyer is still living and continues to make her home upon the old farm.
The preliminary education of Joseph E. Meyer was obtained in the common schools of Clayton county, his course being completed in the high school of Elkader, from which he graduated with the class of 1899. Immediately follow- ing he engaged in teaching in the district schools for two years, but having de- cided to adopt the legal profession for his life vocation he, in 1901, matriculated in the law department of Drake University, being awarded his degree with the class of 1904. He subsequently returned to the home farm, in the cultivation of which he assisted for one year, and then returned to the capital city. Arriv- ing in Des Moines in November, 1905, he established an office and engaged in general law practice until September, 1907, at which time he formed a partner- ship with George W. Graeser, under the firm name of Graeser & Meyer. They are recognized as being among the leading young practitioners of the city and have succeeded in building up a very nice business, numbering among their clients some of the leading people of Des Moines.
Mr. Meyer's religious views are evidenced through his membership with the Christian church, in the work of which he takes an earnest and helpful part. being a member of the official board. Fraternally he is affiliated with the blue lodge of the Masonic order, the Knights of Pythias (of which he is chancellor), and the Modern Woodmen of America. Being very fond of all out-door sports, particularly golf, Mr. Meyer is a member of the Grand View Golf Club and devotes as much time as he can spare from his practice to this delightful game. Ever since acquiring the right of franchise Mr. Meyer has given his political allegiance to the republican party, his fealty having been rewarded by his
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constituency appointing him chairman of the Polk County Republican Com- mittee in 1907, which position he still continues to fill. He always takes an active interest in all governmental affairs, but has never been identified with any official position save in 1907 and 1908, when he acted as assistant secretary of the senate during the thirty-second, thirty-third and thirty-fourth general assemblies. A good organizer and forceful public speaker Mr. Meyer possesses the salient qualities to make him a leader, having a personality which not only wins, but retains the regard of those with whom he comes in contact.
WILLIAM H. BAILY.
Perhaps the active practice of no other lawyer of Des Moines has been of such municipal worth as that of William H. Baily, who as the legal defender of the interests of the city and its people brought about the adoption of many plans and projects whereby the interests and welfare of Des Moines have been greatly promoted. His understanding of the law enabled him to appreciate every legal phase of questions that came up for consideration and to know when, where and how effort should be put forth whereby the interests of the general public would be conserved. There is no dissenting voice to the value of his service to the capital city. Not seeking honor but simply endeavoring to do his duty, honors were yet multiplied to him and prosperity followed him in his un- dertakings.
Mr. Baily was born April 5, 1850, in Mallory township, Clayton county, Iowa. The Bailys were of Norman descent and of Quaker faith. The first ancestor of the family on this side the Atlantic was Joel Baily, who came from England and settled in Middletown township, Chester county, Pennsylvania, in the latter part of the seventeenth century. He is named as one of the per- sons assessed in Middletown in 1696 and became prominent as a citizen of that place. He married Ann Short and they became the progenitors of the family in the new world, the ancestral line being traced down through Daniel, William, Eli (I) and Eli (II). The last named was the grandfather of William H. Baily. He was born September 27, 1788, and was married on the 24th of January, 1815, to Perry Gregg, whose birth occurred May 10, 1793. Their son, Presley Gregg Baily, was born in Carmichael, Pennsylvania, February 9, 1819. Having arrived at years of maturity he was married, December 27, 1848, to Harriet C. Clark, who was born in St. Charles, Missouri, December 6, 1827, and was a de- scendant of Hugh Clark, who, on coming to this country prior to 1641, settled at Watertown, Massachusetts. Presley G. Baily and his ancestors were all prominent and well-to-do citizens in their community and were highly respected for their honor and ability. Following his removal to the middle west he served as a member of the Iowa house of representatives from Clayton county in 1868 and voted for the appropriation for the capitol building. Among the maternal ancestors of William H. Baily were those who fought in the colonial wars and in the war of the Revolution, an ardent patriotism being one of the salient char- acteristics of the Clark family.
William H. Baily, the eldest son of Presley G. and Harriet (Clark) Baily, began his education in the common schools of his native county and afterward attended the high school of Chatfield, Minnesota. Later he was a student of the college at Fayette, Iowa, and in 1869 matriculated in the University of Wis- consin, from which he was graduated with the class of 1873, receiving the degree of Ph. B. In preparation for the bar, after he had determined to make the practice of law his life work, he became a student in the office and under the direction of John H. Stoneman, of McGregor, Iowa, and later entered the Iowa State University, being graduated from the law department with the LL. B.
W. H. BAILY
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degree on the 29th of June, 1875. He was graduated with honors from both the University of Wisconsin and the Iowa University Law School, and in the latter won a prize for his notes on lectures.
Following his graduation he settled at Independence, Iowa, in November, 1875, and soon afterward formed a law partnership with Frank D. Jackson, afterward governor of the state. In August, 1876, however, the partnership was dissolved and Mr. Baily removed to Spirit Lake, where he remained in active practice for twelve years or until 1888, when he came to Des Moines. His pro- fessional career was here attended with gratifying success. His ability was soon recognized, and a large and important clientage was accorded him. He made a close study of municipal and corporation law and soon after his removal from Spirit Lake was made city solicitor for the city of North Des Moines. When the municipalities of Des Moines and North Des Moines were consolidated in 1890 he was appointed assistant city solicitor in April of that year and so served until September 1, 1893. Later he was again assistant city solicitor and when the Des Moines plan was adopted he was appointed the first corporation counsel for the city under that plan and continued thus to serve until 1909, when he resigned. He was one of those who acted as chief counsel for the city in all its corporation litigations for twenty or more years prior to his death. He had the largest library on municipal law and usage of any attorney of the state and presented much of this as a gift to the city law library. About 1895 he formed a partnership with N. T. Guernsey and subsequently became a member of the law firm of Baily, Balreich & Preston. He afterward practiced in partnership with Harley H. Stipp, and in every connection was accorded a place among the prominent lawyers of Des Moines.
He defended the city on the famous waterworks litigation and the street car cases and became recognized as. the leading lawyer in Iowa on questions of this character. In January, 1892, he read an opinion upon the right of the city to regulate water rates and gas rates in response to a resolution introduced in the council by the late C. C. Lane. This opinion, which asserted the right of the city to regulate, notwithstanding supposed contracts, was followed by the coun- cil and ordinances were passed regulating, first, the gas rates in March, 1892, and second, the water rates in January, 1893. These regulations were bitterly received but Mr. Baily's opinion has been vindicated and rates both for water and gas have been reduced some thirty-three per cent with a saving of about one hundred thousand dollars a year to the city and its inhabitants. Mr. Baily sim- ilarly defended the city in the long litigation extending over several years be- tween the city and the Des Moines City Railway Company and gained many notable victories for the city in the state and the United Sates supreme courts. He drew up many of the bills for the legislature that were the basis of many of the best laws of the city, protecting the rights of citizens at large and of chil- dren. His professional knowledge was used again and again without compensation for the benefit of his fellowmen. He stood at all times as a supporter of law and order and as the opponent of anything like misrule in municipal affairs or to legislation of municipal enactment unduly favorable to corporate or private interests. Aside from his practice he was a large stockholder in the Waterbury Chemical Company and was a heavy investor in real estate, leaving at his death valuable property in Des Moines and farm lands in the state.
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