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 87
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On the 29th of January, 1895, occurred the marriage of Felix E. Haley and Miss Katherine A. Norton, and unto them were born four children, Mary, Katherine, Felix and Edward. Mr. Haley held membership in St. Ambrose Catholic church and at the time of his death was state secretary for the Knights of Columbus. He passed away August 22, 1905, and his death was the occa- sion of deep sorrow to all with whom he had been associated. He had high ap- preciation for good comradeship, for sterling worth on the part of his fellow- men and for the expression of the qualities of truth and upright manhood. He was ever ready to extend a helping hand or speak an encouraging word and through his life in all of his business connections he wrought not only for his own advancement but for the welfare and upbuilding of the interests with which he was associated.
WILLIAM A. SCHLOSSER.
A successful farmer and a public citizen who recognizes his obligations to the county and state William A. Schlosser ranks as one of the highly useful men of Camp township, whose influence may always be counted upon in behalf of the best interests of the community. He is a native of Jasper county, Iowa, and was born March 6, 1873, a son of John and Barbara (Volk) Schlosser, both of whom were born in Germany. The mother arrived in America with her parents when she was eight years of age and the father came to this country at the age of sixteen. He located at Pella, Iowa, and went to work as a farm hand, later renting land north of Pella on his own account, which he cultivated for several years. Having acquired the necessary capital, he purchased one hundred and sixty acres near Prairie City, Iowa, which he greatly improved.
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His wife died in 1894 and in 1900 he retired and moved to Colfax where he now lives, having reached the age of eighty-three years. He owns a farm near Colfax which he is renting.
William A. Schlosser attended the district schools of Jasper county and assisted his father in farm work until after arriving at his majority. He then associated with his brother-in-law and they rented a farm for two years, at the end of which time Mr. Schlosser was married and rented a place near Mitchell- ville on his own account. After one year he moved upon two hundred and forty acres in Camp township, which he has since cultivated to excellent advan- tage. He raises about sixty head of hogs each year and keeps about forty head of cattle and seventeen head of horses. In addition to his farming interests in Polk county he owns six hundred and forty acres of good land in Canada and is a stockholder in the Farmers Cooperative Mercantile Company of Runnells, Iowa.
In September, 1901, Mr. Schlosser was married to Miss Lilly Strain, a daughter of David and Eliza (Meyers) Strain, the former of whom was born in Ohio and the latter in Indiana. The father came to Iowa in his boyhood with his parents and has ever since been identified with agriculture and stock-rais- ing in this state. He lived for about ten years in Polk county but is now making his home in Jasper county. He is sixty-five years of age and his wife has arrived at the age of sixty-four. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Schlosser, namely: Leta E., who is eight years of age; Mildred G., aged five years; and William E., five months old.
Politically Mr. Schlosser supports the democratic party and he is now serv- ing as trustee of Camp township. Religiously he and his family affiliate with the Christian church. Modest and unassuming in his manner, he has never sought notoriety, but his aim from boyhood has been to win a competency by straightforward and honorable methods and to merit the respect of his fellow- men. He has found in his wife a worthy assistant and they have many friends and acquaintances who are attracted by those qualities which the world over indicate genuine personal worth.
CLYDE L. HERRING.
Clyde L. Herring, handling the Ford, Rambler, and Detroit Electric automo- biles, is the proprietor of a splendidly equipped garage at Nos. 912 and 914 Locust street in Des Moines. His birth occurred in Jackson county, Michigan, on the 3d of May, 1879. His paternal grandparents emigrated from England to the United States, settling in Michigan. James G. Herring, the father of our sub- ject, is engaged in the automobile business at Atlantic, Iowa, conducting a branch store under the name of the Herring Motor Company. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Stella M. Addison, is also yet living. They have three chil- dren, as follows: Clyde L., of this review; Ernest E., who is a resident of At- lantic ; and Mabel J., the wife of W. E. Wissler, a banker of Atlantic.
Clyde L. Herring obtained his education in the common schools of his native state and after putting aside his text-books learned the watchmaker's trade, at which he worked in Detroit for ten years. Subsequently, because of failing health, he spent four years on a ranch in Colorado. In 1904 he came to Iowa, locating in Cass county, where he purchased a farm of twelve hundred acres .and made his home for three years. On the expiration of that period he em- barked in the automobile business at Atlantic, there remaining for two years. In February, 1910, he began the sale of motor cars in Des Moines, opening a store at Nos. 912 and 914 Locust street, where he has since built up a success- ful business as a dealer in Ford, Rambler and Detroit Electric automobiles. He
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also conducts a supply and repair department and furnishes employment to about seventeen men.
In February, 1901, Mr. Herring was united in marriage to Miss Emma Pearl Spinney, a daughter of Dr. Anson B. Spinney, of Denver. They now have two children: La Verne, who was born in 1904; and Lawrence, whose birth occurred in 1908.
In politics Mr. Herring is a republican, while fraternally he is identified with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He is also a member of the Commercial Club and the Hyperion Club. He is a young man but has already attained a creditable place in the business world and, judging from the past, his friends readily prophesy a still more prosperous and progressive future.
GEORGE COSSON.
The position of attorney general of Iowa came to George Cosson as a rec- ognition of his superior fitness for the office. He had previously been con- nected with the work of framing Iowa's laws and had left his impress upon . several enactments whereby the interests of the state have been promoted; he had proved his knowledge of the law in the capable conduct of a private prac- tice and had given demonstration of his fidelity to a public trust by previous service as county attorney and as special counsel under Attorney General Byers. The course which he has pursued has fully justified the confidence and trust reposed in him by the voters of the state and his record is a credit and honor to the people who have honored him.
Mr. Cosson is a native of Missouri, his birth having occurred in Laclede county, January 21, 1876. His parents were George Willis and Mary Ann (McEnturff) Cosson, the former of French lineage, although born in St. Louis, and the latter a native of Tennessee, descended from English and German ancestry.
George Cosson resided with his parents in Missouri until about five years of age, when a removal was made to Manning, Carroll county, Iowa, where he. acquired his early education. During the latter part of his school days there he took up the study of telegraphy and soon afterward accepted a position as operator for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad Company at Man- ning. He continued at that place for about a year, and later occupied a similar position at Dedham. He was subsequently appointed station agent at Dawson and was the youngest agent between Omaha and that point, being only nineteen years of age when he was given the position. He continued in railroad work for about five years, or until 1896, when he took up the study of law, reading in the office and under the direction of B. I. Salinger, who was at one time supreme court reporter. Later he attended the Northern Indiana Normal Col- lege at Valparaiso, Indiana, pursuing a thirty weeks' course in 1896. He finished his law studies at the State University of Iowa, being graduated from the law department with the class of 1898. The same year he located for practice in Audubon, Iowa, and since that time has been a representative of the bar there, being now senior partner of the law firm of Cosson & Ross. His ability as a practitioner before the courts received public recognition in his election to the office of county attorney of Audubon county, which position he filled from 1904 until 1906. His private practice steadily grew and his developing powers gave him rank with the leading lawyers of his section of the state.
In 1908 Mr. Cosson was called upon to aid in framing the laws of Iowa, being elected by the seventeenth senatorial district to the upper house of the state legislature. As state senator he was the author of several important meas- ures generally known as the Cosson laws, these being a series of law enforcing
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measures which have not only had a marked effect on conditions in Iowa but which have furnished an example that has been followed in the introduction of similar measures in many other states of the Union. His position has never been a doubtful one. He has always stood firm for what he has believed to be right and would sacrifice personal interests and aggrandizement any time to the good of the commonwealth. He has a most high sense of honor in regard to public office and the obligations that devolve upon him. In 1910 the repub- lican party nominated him for the position of attorney general and the public indorsed this nomination in election. He had previously served as special counsel under Attorney General Byers for three years, from 1907 until 1909, and this gave him familiarity with the duties of the office that enabled him to readily take up the work that now devolves upon him.
On the 28th of December, 1904, Mr. Cosson was married to Miss Jennie F. Riggs, of Indianola, a daughter of N. H. and Catharine (Elliott) Riggs, the former a retired farmer and both pioneer settlers of Decatur county, Iowa. Unto this union were born three children: Clarence Lyman, Mary Katharine and Jennie Eleanor.
Mr. Cosson is a member of the Grant Club and belongs to the Modern Wood- . men of America and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He has a wide ac- quaintance among the prominent men of the state and wherever he goes com- mands confidence and respect, but his high character is evidenced most strongly by the fact that in his home community his fellowmen entertain for him sincere friendship. He is a strong and able lawyer. The limitations which are im- posed by the constitution on federal powers are well understood by him. With the long line of decisions from Marshall down, by which the constitution has been expounded, he is familiar, as are all thoroughly skilled lawyers. He is at home in all departments of the law, from the minutiæ in practice to the greater topics wherein are involved the consideration of the ethics and the philosophy of jurisprudence and the higher concerns of public policy. But he is not learned in the law alone, for he has studied long and carefully the sub- jects that are to the statesman and the man of affairs of the greatest import- the questions of finance, political economy, sociology-and has kept abreast of the best thinking men of the age.
JAMES ADELBERT MERRITT.
Earnest application, intuitive wisdom and logical analysis have been the crowning points in the success of James A. Merritt as a practitioner at the bar of Polk county. He is a native of Livingston county, New York, born October 10, 1853. His father, James Brewster Merritt, was born near Newburg, New York, and after arriving at years of maturity married Laura Culver Wing, a native of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. In early manhood James B. Merritt served an apprenticeship to the trade of ornamental masonry. Thinking to find better business opportunities in the middle west than could be obtained in the east, he came to Iowa in 1855 and settled upon a farm in Tama county, where he car- ried on agricultural pursuits for many years. His wife died in 1876 and he long survived her, passing away in February, 1897.
James A. Merritt was educated in the common schools of pioneer times and in the Iowa College at Grinnell, after which he entered the Ames Agri- cultural College, wherein he spent three years. He was also for one year a student in the State University, and for one year in the Leander Clark College, then known as Western College, where he prepared for the study of law. He was graduated from that institution with the Bachelor of Philosophy degree and then began his law reading under the direction of Struble & Kinney, the
WEBSTER
JAMES A. MERRITT
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senior partner being Judge Struble, speaker of the house of representatives, while the junior partner was Judge Kinney, afterward supreme justice of Iowa. He continued his study at Toledo for a time and in March, 1878, was admitted to the bar in Tama county. He afterward practiced in Toledo for some time alone and subsequently was associated with W. G. Sears, formerly a schoolmate, under the firm name of Merritt & Sears. In 1887 this partner- ship was dissolved, Mr. Sears removing to Sioux City, and Mr. Merritt coming to Des Moines. He had long been ambitious to begin practice in a larger city, believing that it would afford him better opportunity and give him ample scope for his energy and determination-his dominant qualities. He removed to the capital, but retained an office in Toledo for a time, a subsequent partner looking after the business in Toledo where the practice was conducted under the firm style of Merritt & Louthan. After a short time, however, this partnership was dissolved and Mr. Merritt has since been alone in his professional work. He prepares his cases with thoroughness, losing sight of no point bearing upon its cause and marshaling the facts in his case with the precision of a military commander.
On the 9th of August, 1882, Mr. Merritt was united in marriage in Marion, Linn county, Iowa, to Miss Ida L. McClain, a daughter of James and Elizabeth McClain, and a native of Rock Island, Illinois. The children are: Hazel Es- tella, now the wife of R. A. Gaynor, of Sioux City; Claud W., at home; and Luetta Mae, who is now attending Drake University.
Mr. Merritt has been a member of the Masonic fraternity since 1885. He also holds membership with the American Patriots and the Homesteaders. In politics he is an active republican, but has never been an office seeker. He served as city attorney of Toledo, Iowa, for a year, and at one time was a can- didate for the office of city attorney of Des Moines, but was defeated. Earnest effort, close application and the exercise of his native talents have won him pres- tige as an able lawyer at the bar which has numbered many eminent and prom- inent men. His clientage is now large and of a distinctively representative character.
R. PHILLIP THURTLE, JR.
R. Phillip Thurtle, Jr., a well known and successful farmer and stockman of Walnut township, also enjoys an extensive practice as a veterinary surgeon. His birth occurred in Orleans county, New York, in February, 1866, his parents being Robert P. and Sarah (Cannon) Thurtle, both of whom are natives of England. When a young man of eighteen the father crossed the Atlantic to the United States, locating in Orleans county, New York, where he worked as a farm hand by the month for eight years. On the expiration of that period he rented a farm, being actively engaged in its operation for nine years. In 1873 he came to Polk county, Iowa, locating in Walnut township, where he purchased an improved farm of eighty acres, paying forty-five dollars an acre for the property. As his financial resources increased, owing to his unremitting industry and good management, he extended the boundaries of his farm by addi- tional purchase from time to time until it embraced five hundred and sixty acres. The operation of that place claimed his time and energies until 1902, when he put aside the active work of the fields and took up his abode in Valley Junction, where he and his wife are now living in honorable retirement. The period of their residence in this county covers almost four decades and they enjoy a wide and favorable acquaintance within its borders.
R. Phillip Thurtle, who was a lad of seven years when he came to Polk county with his parents, obtained his early education in Walnut township and subsequently entered Ames College, being graduated from that institution with
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the class of 1887, after pursuing a general course for one year and completing the three years course in veterinary surgery in two years. He then practiced his profession in association with Dr. Howell of Des Moines for three years but on the expiration of that period returned to his father's farm in Walnut township and has since been actively engaged in its operation. In connection with his agricultural interests he has also devoted considerable attention to veterinary surgery, now enjoying an enviable practice. Dr. Thurtle is also quite extensively engaged in the stock business, keeping twenty-eight head of horses and from eighty to one hundred and fifty head of hogs. He feeds from one to three carloads of cattle annually and is joint owner of one hundred and five acres of land on section 7, Walnut township. In his various undertakings he has won a gratifying measure of success and is widely recognized as one of the substantial and respected citizens of the community.
On the 8th of January, 1895, Dr. Thurtle was joined in wedlock to Miss Martha E. Askew, a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Entwistle) Askew, the former a native of England and the latter of Illinois. The father, who came to Iowa about 1857, here devoted his attention to general agricultural pursuits throughout the remainder of his life. His demise occurred in 1900, while his wife was called to her final rest in 1907. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Thurtle have been born four children, namely: Alene F., born in October, 1897; Robert J., born in October, 1904; Mabel, born in June, 1908; and Helen, who passed away in 1903.
Dr. Thurtle is a democrat in politics and has served as school director and road supervisor of Walnut township. Fraternally he is identified with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks at Des Moines and the Modern Woodmen of America. Mrs. Thurtle is a member of the Christian church, but he is not affiliated with any church, although he contributes to and supports all denom- inations. He is a man of many friends and has long been numbered among the valued citizens of Walnut township.
CHARLES COMMINS NYE.
One of the greatest factors in the success of a man filling a position of public trust is a competent and at the same time discreet, tactful and trust- worthy private secretary. In recognition of this fact Governor Carroll gave much consideration to the merits of the various men brought to his notice for the position, finally deciding upon the young political writer of the Des Moines Capital, Charles Commins Nye. That his choice was to his satisfaction is evi- denced by the fact that for a period of three years Mr. Nye has continued in the capacity of secretary to Iowa's governor. A native of Iowa, he was born in Fontanelle on the 3d of February, 1879, his parents being the Rev. C. L. and Ada (Commins) Nye, the father originally coming from Massachusetts and the mother from Connecticut. The parents are both representatives of old New England families, however, the early paternal ancestors of Mr. Nye having come to Massachusetts in the Abigail in 1635, some of their descendants later participating in the Revolution. The Rev. C. L. Nye, who is a minister of the Methodist Episcopal denomination, is a member of the upper Iowa conference and has for many years filled the pulpits of the principal towns of southwestern Iowa, his present charge being at Toledo, this state.
Owing to the frequent change of his father's pastorate Mr. Nye pursued his education in the common schools of the various towns and counties where the family resided during his boyhood and youth, being graduated from the high school at Perry in 1896. Subsequently he matriculated at Cornell College at Mount Vernon by which institution he was awarded the degree of bachelor of
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philosophy with the class of 1901. Immediately following the completion of his education he engaged in newspaper work, his first efforts in this direction having been on one of the Perry papers in 1896 just after he left high school. That in the choice of a vocation he decided upon something to which he was fitted by nature is indicated by the fact that at the age of twenty-five he came from Sioux City, where he occupied a place on the staff of the Sioux City Jour- nal, to Des Moines to become city editor of the Register and Leader, which po- sition he most ably filled for three years, following which he became city editor and political writer of the Des Moines Capital from which position he withdrew to enter the service of Governor Carroll.
While in college Mr. Nye joined Sigma Nu fraternity in which he at present holds a national office and he also belongs to the Grand View Golf and Country Club and the Sons of the American Revolution. Needless to say his political views coincide with the old-time principals of the republican party. He was married in 1911 to Miss Ethel Eckert of Northwood, Iowa, a member of one of the prominent families of northern Iowa. During the period of his residence in Des Moines Mr. Nye has become recognized as one of the young men with a future, as his mental endowments, personality and determination of purpose must make for success in any venture upon which he may concentrate his efforts.
GEORGE V. MOWEN.
George V. Mowen, the owner of two hundred acres of land in Washington township, is actively and successfully engaged in the pursuits of farming and stock-raising. His birth occurred in Ogle county, Illinois, on the 25th of Feb- ruary, 1866, his parents being Emanuel and Charlotte (Nalley) Mowen, who are natives of Pennsylvania and Maryland respectively. The father, an agricultur- ist by occupation, took up his abode in Ogle county, Illinois, at an early day and was there married. He followed farming in that county until 1873, when he came to Polk county, Iowa, and purchased a tract of land in Washington town- ship, cultivating the same for one year. On the expiration of that period he disposed of the property and bought an improved farm of eighty acres in the same township, later buying another eighty, the operation of which claimed his time and energies until 1899. In that year he sold the home place of eighty acres and took up his abode at Maxwell, Iowa, where he has since resided. After putting aside the active work of the fields he sold the second tract of cighty acres to our subject. He has now attained the age of eighty-two, while his wife is seventy-three years old.
George V. Mowen attended school in Ogle county, Illinois, for one term and when a lad of eight years came to Polk county, Iowa, with his parents, con- tinuing his studies in the district schools of Washington township. After at- taining his majority he started out as an agriculturist on his own account, operating a rented farm for two seasons and boarding with his parents. He was then married and continued farming as a renter for two more years. On the expiration of that period he purchased a partly improved tract of eighty acres and has since brought the place under a high state of cultivation. As his finan- cial resources increased, owing to his untiring industry and capable manage- ment, he augmented his holdings by additional purchase until they now embrace two hundred acres of rich and productive land. In connection with the tilling of the soil he raises fifty head of hogs annually and keeps about forty head of cattle and ten head of horses. He is practical in his methods and his intense and well directed activity constitutes the basis of the gratifying success which has crowned his efforts as a farmer and stockman. The People's State Bank at Maxwell numbers him among its stockholders.
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On the 7th of October, 1888, Mr. Mowen was united in marriage to Miss Anna B. Hartung, a daughter of William and Mary (Kopf) Hartung, both of whom were natives of Germany. The father crossed the Atlantic to the United States in 1858, locating in Washington township, Polk county, where he pur- chased a farm in association with his brother, improving the property and op- erating the same until 1892. In that year he put aside the active work of the fields and took up his abode at Colfax, Iowa, where he resided for six years. The remainder of his life was spent in Des Moines, where he passed away in March, 19II. His widow now makes her home with her children.
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