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 85

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1464

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 85

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The death of the husband and father occurred October 6, 1909, and was the occasion of deep and widespread sorrow in the city. for he had endeared himself to many friends, not only by reason of his business success, but also owing to strongly marked social qualities. He ever commanded respect from those with whom he came in contact. He was a thorough-going business man and was an active factor in the promotion of new enterprises. He belonged to the Modern Woodmen camp and was an active and leading member of the local organization of Elks. He ever had a cheery word and friendly greeting for those with whom he came in contact and in his entire life there were no esoteric phases. He stood before men for what he really was and they recog- nized his worth and gave him their confidence, regard and friendship.

THOR E. THORSON.

Thor E. Thorson, a progressive and prosperous agriculturist of Lincoln township, Polk county, is one of that sturdy type of Europeans who are doing so much toward cultivating the lands of the middle and far west. He was born in Norway, on the 30th of November, 1855, a son of Erick and Agnes (Larson) Thorson, both natives of that country. The father, who was a farmer by occupation, spent his entire life in his native land, where he passed away in 1862. His wife survived until 1876.

In his native land Thor E. Thorson spent the first seventeen years of his life, and there acquired his education in the common schools, but recognizing that there were few opportunities for a successful career in his own country he decided to seek his fortune in the new world, and consequently came to the United States in 1873. Making his way direct to Illinois, he there located in Kendall county, where he was employed as a farm hand for about fifteen years. At the expiration of that period he went to Seattle, Washington, where he remained for two years, after which he returned to Illinois and for two years was engaged as a packer in a large wholesale grocery house of Chicago. He

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next came to Iowa, and for six years rented a farm in Story county, after which he came to Polk county, where he has continued to engage in general farming to the present time.

He is progressive in his business and pursues modern methods of agricul- ture, and his well directed efforts and close application to his interests have resulted in the acquirement of a substantial degree of prosperity. He raises about sixty head of hogs annually and keeps on hand about twenty head of cattle and ten head of horses. He also has outside interests, being a stock- holder in the Farmers Cooperative Creamery Company of Huxley, Iowa, and of the Independent Harvester Company of Plano, Illinois.

Mr. Thorson was married, on the 18th of January, 1893, to Miss Sarah Wagley, a daughter of John and Bertha Wagley, natives of Norway. The father, a farmer by occupation, never left his native country, but after his death his wife came to the United States, and passed away in Minnesota in 1904. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Thorson have been born six children, namely: Ber- tha, aged sixteen years; John, aged fourteen years; Erick, aged twelve years; Thelene, aged ten years; Mabel, aged six years ; and Arthur, aged four years.

The religious faith of Mr. Thorson is indicated by his membership in the Lutheran church, while his political allegiance is given to the republican party. He has been a resident of America for thirty-eight years and never feels that he has any reason to regret his determination to seek his fortune on this side of the Atlantic, for he has found a good home here, has met with creditable suc- cess in his business and has gained many friends who entertain for him high regard and good will.

REESE C. DAVIS.

While in the later years of his life Reese C. Davis lived retired, until ill health forced his cessation from labor he was connected with the business interests of Des Moines as the head of the Buckeye Coal Mining Company. He was diligent and determined and whatever success he achieved could be attributed entirely to his earnest and honorable effort. He was born August II, 1841, in Meigs county, Ohio, and his parents were pioneer settlers of that state, where they took up their abode after coming from Wales to the new world. Reese C. Davis was reared to the occupation of mining and farming, working in the fields through the summer months, while the winter seasons were devoted to the acquirement of an education until he reached the age of seventeen years. In 1858 he left school, after which his entire attention was devoted to tilling the soil for several years, but following the outbreak of the Civil war he offered his services to the government, enlisting in the Union army in 1862. He was assigned to duty with the One Hundred and Twenty-fifth Ohio Volunteers and remained at the front for three years, when at the close of the war he was honorably discharged with the rank of sergeant.

For several years after his military experience was over Mr. Davis worked upon his father's farm and during that period was married, in 1868, to Miss Margaret A. Reese, a native of Ohio. They continued residents of the Buckeye state until 1883, when, believing that better opportunities could be secured be- yond the Mississippi, they came to Des Moines. Here Mr. Davis embarked in business under the name of the Buckeye Coal Mining Company and was thus connected with the development of the rich coal fields of Iowa up to the time of his retirement. At length ill health forced him to put aside business cares and responsibilities in 1892, at which time he disposed of his business interests.

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Davis were born eight children, four sons and four daughters, who still survive. The father passed away at the family home on

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East Walnut street on the 7th of March, 1899, being at that time but fifty-seven years of age. His funeral was attended by a large concourse of friends from all parts of the county, for he had become widely and favorably known in this section of the state. He was prominent in fraternal circles, being a charter member of the Odd Fellows lodge of Altoona and also a member of the Ancient Order of Foresters in Ohio. His life in a way was quiet and uneventful yet was characterized by an appreciation and understanding of the duties and obli- gations of life which made him at all times faithful to every trust reposed in him.

COLONEL GEORGE L. GODFREY.

Few men in Iowa are more favorably known than Colonel George L. God- frey, who won his title in the Civil war and is now serving as surveyor of cus- toms at Des Moines. He has filled a number of responsible positions in public life, and in peace as in war has ably and conscientiously endeavored to perform bis duty. Born at Hardwick, Vermont, November 4, 1833. he is a son of Alba and Lydia (Martin) Godfrey, both of whom were natives of Vermont The mother died at the age of fifty-two years when her son George was fifteen years of age, but the father lived until the latter part of the '80s.

The youngest in a family of four children, George L. Godfrey received his early education in the district schools and later attended school at Barre, Ver- mont. In 1855 he came west to Iowa and spent one year, then returning to Barre Academy, Vermont, in order to attend school for another year before en- tering seriously upon the duties of life. He came west again in 1858 and taught school for six months at Boone, Boone county, Iowa. Having decided to study law, he entered the office of Judge C. C. Cole and was busily engaged in solving the perplexities of Blackstone when the Civil war aroused the nation. On the 17th of April, 1861, he enlisted at Des Moines, Iowa, and was elected corporal and assigned to Company D, Second Iowa Volunteers. He was commissioned second lieutenant June 22, and a few months later, first lieutenant, and on the same day adjutant of the regiment. The regiment was attached to the Third Brigade and served in southeastern Missouri until 1862, when it was assigned to the First Brigade of the Second Division, Army of the Tennessee. Company D took part in the memorable battle at Fort Donelson and Adjutant Godfrey was wounded in the breast. He took part in the battle of Shiloh, April 6 and 7, and on the afternoon of the first day of the battle he observed a large body of Confederates pouring down a ravine as if to surround the right flank of the Union forces. He reported this movement quickly to Colonel Mills, who ordered him to report to General Tuttle, which he did in the shortest possible time. The General replied : "Oh, you are rattled !" He responded: "You'll get rattled pretty soon if you don't get a move on you." The General soon discovered the danger to which the army was exposed and ordered the Second and Seventh Regiments to fall back. The Confederates, seeing their plan frustrated, with- drew, and thus the day was saved. As adjutant of the regiment George L. Godfrey was in the thickest of the fight and stood where he could have placed his hand on General W. H. L. Wallace when that gallant officer fell.

He was in the battle of Corinth, October 3 and 4, 1862, which was one of the most decisive engagements in that critical period of the war. In the final charge of that great battle Lieutenant Colonel Mills, of the Second Iowa Regi- ment, was killed. General J. B. Weaver, at that time major of the Second Regiment, in his official report said: "Among those who distinguished them- selves was Adjutant George L. Godfrey, who could always be seen and heard charging along the line upon his horse, shouting to the men to be cool and steady. He is one of the most valuable young officers whom I have ever met." Adju-

GEORGE L. GODFREY

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tant Godfrey had two horses shot from under him in the battle and narrowly escaped many times with his life. He took part in the expedition to intercept General Forrest and in General Dodge's expedition in north Alabama in 1863. In October of the same year he was commissioned major of a regiment form- ing in Alabama, which was attached to the First Brigade of Cavalry, Sixteenth Army Corps, Army of the Tennessee, participating in engagements at Memphis and Charleston in November and December ; against Forrest in Tennessee, Feb- ruary 6 to April 14, 1864; in the advance on Dallas; the two days' battle of Resaca ; the operations about Kenesaw mountain; in the siege of Atlanta, July 22 to August 25 ; in the battle of Jonesboro, August 31 ; in the celebrated march to the sea in November and December, 1864; and the campaign of the Carolinas until the surrender of Johnson's army, April 28, 1865.

On May 1, 1864, during the siege of Atlanta, Major Godfrey was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel, and in April, 1865, was commissioned to carry a message from General Sherman to General Johnson. Arriving at Johnson's line with a flag of truce he was tendered a messenger to convey the letter to General Johnson, but this proffer he refused, declaring that he would carry the message in person to General Johnson or return it to General Sherman. He was then offered as an escort a lieutenant, whom he also refused. But when Colonel Rhett, who subsequently became a strong Union man, appeared he proceeded to Johnson, being received by him with the greatest courtesy. He returned to the picket line with a reply to General Sherman, Colonel Rhett be- ing his escort. When the Confederacy collapsed Colonel Godfrey was in front of Raleigh, North Carolina, and General Wade Hampton moving out of the city, sent word that he might enter and thus protect the citizens and their property. Selecting a few of his staff officers, he proceeded with the advance column and soon the stars and stripes were floating over the statehouse of the capital of North Carolina. The war being ended, the men in the regiment preferred to go home rather than to participate in the final review at Washington. The con- sent of General Sherman having been given the company, they marched to Huntsville, Alabama, where the regiment was mustered out of service.

While at Huntsville, closing up the affairs of his regiment, Colonel Godfrey was elected from Polk county, Iowa, as a member of the Iowa general assem- bly, and although political preferment was offered him in Alabama, he preferred to serve at his old home and he arrived in Des Moines October 20, 1865. He took an active part in the legislature and secured the passage of a bill provid- ing for the erection of a state arsenal and headquarters of the adjutant general, which stood for many years at the corner of First and Walnut streets in Des Moines. He was also the author of a bill for the erection of a home for sol- diers and orphans at Des Moines, which is now located at Burlington, Iowa, and in support of this measure made the first public speech of his life. There was strong opposition to the bill on the ground that the expenditure was ex- travagant and unnecessary and after a few years there would be no use for the building. However, the home was established and experience proved that it was a wise investment. Colonel Godfrey engaged in the practice of law and served as city attorney and city solicitor in the latter part of the '6os, filling the office of assistant United States district attorney for four years, from 1881-1884. He was a member of the Utah Commission from 1882-9, and was for four years recorder of the land office at Des Moines. He has occupied the office of sur- veyor of customs at Des Moines since 1903.

In 1867 Colonel Godfrey was married to Miss Carrie Corning, whose father. was one of the pioneer shoe merchants of Des Moines. Three children were born of this union: William Sherman, who now lives in Colorado; Charles A., of Oskaloosa, Iowa; and Walter M., a resident of Utah. The mother died in 1879 and Colonel Godfrey was married in 1880 to Miss Ella Fisher, a native of Winterset, Iowa. Two daughters have been born of this union: Anna, who

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married Grover Hubbell, of Des Moines, and has two daughters; and Arabella, the wife of Jefferson Polk, also of Des Moines, by whom she has one daughter.

Politically Colonel Godfrey is an upholder of the principles of the republican party and in his younger manhood was a very active worker in its behalf. He is a valued member of the Grand Army of the Republic and the Loyal Legion. He is also identified with the Congregational church and the Grant Club, and although he has reached the advanced age of seventy-eight years, he retains a large measure of his mental and physical strength and capably administers the affairs of his office. As a true soldier and a patriotic citizen, he deserves the great respect in which he is held by the people of all parties and creeds in Des Moines and Polk county.

CHARLES CRAIG.

The grain business is of large importance in a great agricultural state like Iowa, and the men who receive and handle the grain are in many instances leaders in the community. Charles Craig, of Mitchellville, who operates two elevators with a capacity of fifteen thousand bushels, occupies a position of responsibility, as Mitchellville is one of the leading grain centers of Iowa out- side of Des Moines. He is a native of Polk county, and was born in the old town of Mitchellville. He is the youngest living of nine children of James and Fianna (Blyler) Craig, record of whom appears under the caption of Frank H., and W. O. Craig elsewhere in this work.

Charles Craig, of this review, was reared on the home farm and received his education in the public schools and the Mitchellville high school. After arriv- ing at the age of manhood he rented land upon his own account, which he culti- vated with a goodly measure of success for eleven years. In 1910 he purchased the grain business of B. R. Patterson of Mitchellville, which he has since con- ducted, also dealing extensively in coal. He keeps in constant touch with the markets and is always ready to answer questions pertaining to prices in the leading centers of the grain trade. As he is recognized as being perfectly im- partial and fair in all his dealings and has a wide personal acquaintance in this section his business from the start has been prosperous and shows steady gains. He and a partner own about a thousand acres of wild land near Redlake in Beltrami county, Minnesota, and he is also the owner of valuable property in Mitchellville.

On the 26th day of February, 1902, Mr. Craig was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Rosenberger, daughter of George R. and Sarah E. (Rumple) Rosenberger. The father was a well known farmer of Iowa and died November 22, 1897. Mrs. Rosenberger is still living and makes her home at Oskaloosa and Mitchellville, being a property owner of the latter place. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Craig, namely : Esther, Raymond and Elsie.

Bert Craig, the fourth in order of birth in the family of James and Fianna Craig was born in 1867. He was reared in the parental home under conditions highly favorable for a successful career. He received his preliminary education in the public schools and later attended the high school at Mitchellville. After laying his books aside he devoted his attention to farming and for thirteen years rented land in Polk county. In 1906 he became a partner in the hard- ware business at Mitchellville under the title of the McKee Craig Company, but sold his interest in February, 1910, and has since engaged with his brother as bookkeeper. He is the owner of a beautiful home in Mitchellville which he erected in 1907. It is thoroughly modern and is one of the most attractive residences in this part of the county. He also owns two hundred and twenty- one and one half acres of land near Houston, Texas. On February 7, 1894,

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Mr. Craig was married to Miss Clara Seiberling, daughter of Charles Seiber- ling, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work. Two children came to bless the union of Mr. and Mrs. Craig, namely : Myrland J., and Charles Mc- Kinley. Mr. Craig and his wife are both identified with the Congregational church, and fraternally, he holds membership in the Odd Fellows and Rebekahs. He is greatly respected in a community where he has been known almost since his birth, and is recognized as a man of comprehensive business ability.

Charles Craig, whose name introduces this sketch, has ever since arriving at manhood given his support to the republican party. He is a valued member of the Modern Woodmen of America and the Royal Neighbors and has many warm friends in those organizations. He and his estimable wife are mem- bers of the Congregational church, to which he is a liberal contributor. A man of kindly disposition and genial nature, he ranks among the successful citizens of Polk county. He has shown marked ability in business affairs and is, there- fore, a prominent and growing factor in commercial circles.

WILLIAM S. HAZARD, SR.

Among the early settlers of Iowa now residing in Des Moines must be in- cluded William S. Hazard, who for more than fifty years has been a resident of this state. Mr. Hazard is a native of Mississippi, although of English extraction, his ancestors migrating from the mother country and locating in Rhode Island in 1630. He was born on a plantation about twenty miles from Jackson, on the 29th of December, 1840, a son of Silas H. and a grandson of William Hazard, who was a cousin of Oliver Hazard Perry, the famous hero of the battle of Lake Erie. The grandfather, who was a sea captain and an officer in the war of 1812, sailed from Norwich, Connecticut, for the West Indies in 1816, and supposedly was either the victim of pirates or was lost at sea, as his boat was never heard of again. On the maternal side William S. Hazard, Sr. is a descendant of Colonel Ford of Morristown, New Jersey, of Revolutionary war fame, whose house twice served as winter headquarters for General Washington and is now preserved as nearly as possible as it was then. Another ancestor in the maternal line was Jacob Ford, who was a colonel in the war for independence. The mother of Silas H. Hazard dying when he was a lad, he was reared by an uncle, Silas Holmes, of Rhode Island, who wished him to follow the sea, that having been the vocation of the majority of his father's family. It did not seem to be alluring to the young man, however, and he began teaching school in the winter, also promoting his own education by further study. He taught several years in New Jersey, where he was mar- ried and afterward attended Princeton University. Subsequently he removed to Delaware, where he was principal of the school until about 1827. He next went to New Orleans, where he engaged in school teaching for a short time. Possessing strong scholarly instincts and having a predilection for the min- istry, he devoted all of his spare time to the study of theology, being ordained in 1828. In addition to his ministerial duties Mr. Hazard at different times served as steward or manager of the plantations of members of his congregation. He remained in the south until about 1844 and preached in Louisiana and Mis- sissippi. In the meantime he married Miss Delia H. Beach, a member of an old Holland family, the first members coming here in 1643. On leaving the south Mr. and Mrs. Hazard removed to New Jersey and later went to Penn- sylvania for a time. Subsequently they went to La Fayette, Indiana, and two years later removed south to Mississippi, Rev. Hazard accepting a pastorate call, but remained there for only a brief period. In 1848 they became residents of Iowa City, where Rev. Hazard filled the pulpit of the Presbyterian church until 1853,

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when the state of his health required his retirement. He then took up his abode upon a farm, hoping that the outdoor life would prove beneficial, but passed away about three months later.

The educational opportunities of William S. Hazard were somewhat limited owing to the fact of the frequent change of habitation occasioned by his fa- ther's profession. At the age of fourteen years, however, he became a student in a Presbyterian school in Dubuque, Iowa, and subsequently was matriculated in the Iowa State University of Iowa City, where he remained for a year. On the expiration of that period he secured a position in a drug store, where he spent several months, but when the news of the discovery of gold in the Rocky Mountains caused a wave of excitement to sweep over the country he, too, left home in the hope of attaining a fortune in the west. After spending eighteen months in unfruitful prospecting he returned to Iowa and took up farming, which he followed until 1899, when owing to ill health occasioned by an acci- dent he retired.

On the 27th of August, 1868, Mr. Hazard was united in marriage to Miss Mary W. True, a daughter of James K. True and a granddaughter of Zebulon True, who was a soldier of the Revolutionary war and a descendant of Wil- liam True, who emigrated from England and settled in Massachusetts in 1642. Some of his descendants are now living in Maine. Mr. and Mrs. Hazard have four surviving children: Delia E., the wife of John H. Stout, of West- bourne, Canada; William S., of Des Moines; James T., of Minneapolis; and Zenas A., living in Sioux Falls. The family attend the Presbyterian church and in his younger days Mr. Hazard was a very active worker in the Sunday school. In politics he has always been liberal yet never neglectful of his duties of citizenship. He was long a prominent representative of agricultural inter- ests in Iowa and is numbered among the respected and worthy residents of Des Moines, where since his retirement he has made his home.

LEVI S. ROTHFUS.

Levi S. Rothfus, trustee of Allen township, is an agriculturist by occupa- tion, owning and operating one hundred and thirty acres of rich and productive land on section 20. His birth occurred in Warren county, Iowa, on the 15th of May, 1866, his parents being Gottlob and Johanna Rothfus, both of whom were natives of Germany. The father, who was born in 1822, emigrated to America in June, 1864, establishing his home in Warren county, Iowa. The year 1869 witnessed his arrival in Polk county. Both he and his wife are now deceased.

Levi S. Rothfus, who was the youngest of a family of ten children, obtained his early education in the common schools and subsequently attended Drake University at Des Moines. The pursuits of farming and stock-raising have claimed his attention throughout his entire business career and have returned to him a gratifying annual income. He also devotes considerable attention to the growing of fruit, this branch of his business likewise proving profitable. His farm embraces one hundred and thirty acres of land on section 20, Allen township, and has been brought under a high state of cultivation and improve- ment. He was one of the promoters of the levee drainage district, the work of which was prosecuted at a cost of eighteen thousand dollars, thereby protecting thirteen hundred and ninety acres of land. The prosperity which he now en- joys, entitling him to recognition among the substantial and representative cit- izens of the community, is attributable entirely to his own efforts, so that he well merits the proud American title of a self-made man.

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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 85

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 1464

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1464