USA > Iowa > Clay County > History of Clay County, Iowa, from its earliest settlement to 1909 > Part 67
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He served as a soldier for a short time during the Civil war and assisted in the capture of Morgan, the famous bushwhacker. He died in 1908 at the age of seventy-eight, while his wife passed away in 1885 when about fifty years of age. They were loyal to the teachings of the Methodist Episcopal church, in which they held membership and their many good traits of character made them people of the highest respectability. The members of their family were as follows: Alver- tus B., of this review; Albert W. and Alvin H., both of whom are residents of Rantoul, Champaign county, Illinois; Violet J., the wife of Arthur Crane, of Rantoul; Ulysses G., of Arcola, Illinois; Mrs. Emily Baldin, of Arcola; John 'and William, both of whom have passed away; Thomas, who makes his home in Sherburn, Minnesota ; and James Lucius, of Des Moines, Iowa.
On his father's farm in Morgan county, Ohio, Alvertus B. Rusk spent his youthful days and attended the district schools. In the school of experience he has also learned many valuable lessons and is today a well informed man. In 1876 he became a resident of Illinois, where he lived for six years and in 1882 he arrived in Iowa, locating in Spencer. Soon afterward he secured a situation on the farm of Dr. McAllister and when his industry and careful expenditure had brought him sufficient capital he began farming on his own account, making pur- chase of eighty acres of land in Summit township, where he carried on general agricultural pursuits for about ten years. He then sold that property and removed to the Hart farm south of Dickens, where he resided for a decade. He next took up his abode on the William Kenderdine farm in Freeman township south of Dickens, where he has now lived for the past five years. Here in addition to culti- vating the soil and caring for his crops he also buys and ships stock, giving his attention partly to this business for ten years. Both branches of his undertaking are now proving. profitable and he is well known as a farmer and stockman of Freeman township.
On the 20th of March, 1879, Mr. Rusk married Miss Laura C. Nicholson, who was born near Meadville, Pennsylvania, and is a daughter of John and Lydia (Trace) Nicholson. The five children of this marriage are Flora, Rosa, John, Olive and Blanche.
Mr. Rusk votes with the republican party and keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day. He belongs to Dickens Lodge, No. 583, I. O. O. F., and his wife and children are all members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
GEORGE B. BENDER.
George B. Bender, starting in business life as a drug clerk, is now the owner of five different drug stores in Iowa, including the leading enterprise of this character in Spencer. As a business man he has a talent for leading-which is one of the highest attributes of men and a necessity in these days of close com- petition. He possesses, moreover, all the characteristics that assert their force in a resolute, positive character that results in the accomplishment of any work undertaken. Today he is numbered among the most prominent and successful
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druggists of the middle west because of the extent and importance of the interests which he manages. Only about four years ago he was called the king druggist of the world, owning and operating more stores than any other individual in the world, according to the New York Pharmaceutical Era of July 25, 1904.
Mr. Bender is a native of Pennsylvania, his birth having occurred in York county. on the Ist of January, 1864. His grandfather was also born in the same state and served his country as a soldier of the war of 1812. His wife lived to be ninety years of age. Henry Bender, the father of George B. Bender, was born in the Keystone state, was there reared to manhood and eventually became well known in business circles. He figured prominently in the public life of the community because of his activity in political circles and at one time during the Civil war he served as county treasurer of York county. He married Lavina Brown, also a native of Pennsylvania. Her father was likewise a native of this state, having been a druggist in Berlin, Pennsylvania. Both he and his wife reached an advanced age, the latter being eighty-nine years of age when called to her final rest. The death of Henry Bender occurred when he was forty-six years of age. His wife long survived him. She was a member of the Congrega- tional church at Spencer, Iowa, and in that faith reared her family numbering five sons and four daughters, of whom six are yet living, as follows: Sarah, the wife of J. Raffensparger, of Spencer; Theodore P., a resident of Los Angeles, California : Jacob C., William L., George B. and Fannie G., all residents of Spencer.
George B. Bender spent the first ten years of his life in York county, Penn- sylvania, and began his education there. In 1874 he came to Spencer, Iowa, and here attended school, completing his course in 1879. The same year he entered business life, securing a clerkship in a drug store and in 1880, with I. B. McGrew, he took up the study of pharmacy. Later he went to South Dakota and engaged in the drug business at Plankinton, where he continued until 1886 when he returned to Spencer. For two years he conducted a grain business here and at Everly and for two years also engaged in railroad contract work, after which he returned to his original business pursuit and in 1890 established the Palace Pharmacy, which he conducted for sixteen years. On the expiration of that period he sold the store and since then has given his attention to his store farther north on Main street. At one time he had nine drug stores and he still owns five. He is thoroughly familiar with the drug trade, knows the demands and the wishes of the general public and. in carrying a large and well selected stock, has been able to meet the requirements of his trade. His business has developed along substantial, gratifying lines, leading to success.
In social relations Mr. Bender is connected with the Knights of Pythias and has served as colonel on the staff of the major general of the state of Iowa. He likewise belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and to the Iowa State Pharmaceutical Society. His political views are in accord with the prin- ciples of the democratic party. He is quick, positive, exacting and comprehensive of every detail of affairs that comes within the scope of his business and in both determination and feeling is thoroughly representative of the ideas of progress in these days when men are called upon to act quick and think quicker. He meets
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all men on an equal footing. in his courtesy and shows no distinction between the man highest from lowest in the scale of human effort. While modestly inclined he is thoroughly aggressive in business and has made for himself a notable place in commercial circles in western Iowa.
CHANNING WELCH.
Channing Welch, who operates a large farm in Logan township, this county, devoting his time to general agricultural pursuits and stock-raising, was born in Blue Island, Illinois, March 5, 1860, a son of Rodney and Ebbie (Stephens) Welch. The ancestry were originally from Wales, whence they went to Scotland, then to England and finally located in the United States prior to the Revolutionary war, in which several of the members of the family took part. Rodney Welch was born and reared in Monmouth, Maine, and about the year 1852 located in Kentucky, where he remained for seven years, being principal of a seminary there. Later he took up his abode in Geneva, Illinois, where he remained for some time and then lived in Blue Island, that state, in both of which places he was a promi- nent educator and principal of the schools. Upon resigning this position in the latter place he went to Irvington, Illinois, where he became professor of chemistry. The latter years of his life were spent in Chicago, where he filled the chair of chemistry at the Chicago University, and upon resigning that position became editor of the Prairie Farmer and later of the Chicago Times, remaining with the latter for fifteen years. Mr. Welch was affiliated with a number of Chicago and New York papers and enjoyed enviable reputation both as a scholar and jour- nalist. He acquired knowledge easily, had the advantages of higher education and was a graduate of Waterville College. After a long and useful career he departed this life in 1896, leaving a host of warm friends and admirers. He sur- vived his wife, a native of the state of Maine, where they were united in marriage, by ten years. They reared the following family: Helen Medora, wife of M. C. Long, a general merchant of Geneva, Illinois ; Martha T., a well known school teacher of Chicago, Illinois ; James, who passed away in New York city in 1884; Henry B., a prominent contractor of Chicago, Illinois; and Channing.
In the public schools of Chicago, Illinois, Channing Welch received his pre- liminary education and after completing his studies there entered the high school, from which he was graduated. He then remained at home until twenty-one years of age, in the meantime spending three years as a clerk in a drug store, after which he decided to follow agricultural pursuits on account of his declining health. In 1881 he launched out in the venture at Manson, Calhoun county, Iowa, where for three years he successfully pursued farming, at the termination of which time, in the year 1884, he located on section 36, Logan township, Clay county, at first owning but a portion of the section but now possessing its entire acreage. The ground was in a wild state when Mr. Welch entered it and the excellent farm with its modern improvements is the result of his industry, perseverance and good management. At the time he entered the section the district was sparsely settled, his nearest neighbor being at a distance of four miles, and within the limits of
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forty-two sections there were but nine voters to go to the polls on election day. The majority of the farmers who were located in Logan township at the time Mr. Welch settled there were well up in years, and now there is not a person alive who was in the locality when he arrived, so that he has the distinction today of being the oldest living settler here. Mr. Welch's farm is in excellent condition and worked by modern methods, and in addition to producing general crops he takes a special interest in stock-raising, particularly in breeding shorthorn cattle, of which he has one hundred and twenty-five head of the finest registered animals and also a number of head of Poland China hogs which are also of registered breeds. Sheep-raising also commands much of his attention and he raises a num- ber of head annually which he feeds and makes ready for market. He is numbered among the most proficient and successful agriculturists and stock men in the township.
In 1899 Mr. Welch wedded Miss Bernice Huff and to this union were born John and Eleanor, twins, Rodney and Martha T. His political allegiance Mr. Welch gives to the democratic party and during national elections he is enthusias- tic in his labors to aid the candidates of his party in securing the offices they seek. He enjoys an excellent reputation throughout the community for his industry, honesty and good judgment, and for fourteen years has been a trustee of the township school. His business affairs are carefully conducted and his sub- stantial qualities make him a valued citizen as well as a prosperous business man.
GEORGE W. LAFURGE.
George W. Lafurge, who is numbered among the successful, enterprising and energetic agriculturists of Logan township, was born in Fayette county, Iowa, on the 22d of February. 1872, his parents being William and Lorena (Pratt) Lafurge. The father, a native of Prince Edward Island, came to the United States in an early day, first taking up his abode in Auburn, Iowa, and later removing to Windsor township. Fayette county, this state, where he continued to make his home until called to his final rest in 1874. Throughout his active busi- ness career he was engaged in general farming, meeting with a creditable measure of prosperity in his undertakings. His political allegiance was given to the repub- lican party. His marriage was celebrated in Fayette county, Iowa, his wife being a daughter of Orren and Susan (Chesley) Pratt and a native of Bradford county, Pennsylvania, where her birth occurred February 26, 1841. The Lafurge family originally dwelt in France but later removed to England, where the name was spelled "Lefurgey," while subsequently the present spelling was adopted. Unto William and Lorena (Pratt) Lafurge were born seven children, namely: Homer, a farmer of Perry Oak; Frank, who was an agriculturist of Dexter, Iowa, and who passed away on the 8th of February, 1909; Ritta, the wife of William Burling, a farmer of Fayette county, Iowa : Hettie, the wife of Fred Mayo, who is likewise an agriculturist of Fayette county : George W., of this review ; J. W., who is a twin brother of G. W. and carries on farming. in Moody county, South Dakota; and William who is also engaged in farming in Moody county.
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In the common schools of Fayette and Clay counties, George W. Lafurge acquired his education, having removed to the latter county when fourteen years of age to live with his uncle, Milt Pratt, with whom he remained for one year. Subsequently he worked by the month until he had attained the age of eighteen years, when his mother purchased a farm on section 35, Logan township, Clay county, and during the succeeding six years he assisted in its cultivation. On the 15th of November, 1900, he was united in marriage to Miss Lora Cramott, who was born in Iroquois county, Illinois, September 11, 1879. her parents being Charles G. and Mary Frances (Thomas) Cramott, the former a native of France. Both Mr. and Mrs. Cramott still survive, being residents of Moody county, South Dakota. Mrs. Lafurge has four sisters and one brother who are likewise living in Moody county. One of her sisters died in infancy. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Lafurge have been born three children: D. Wayne, Robert L. and Roy Lester.
Following his marriage Mr. Lafurge resided in Buena Vista county for two years and in 1903 went to Norman county, Minnesota. The following year he took up his abode on his mother's farm in Logan township, Clay county, where he has since continued to reside, being successfully engaged in its cultivation and improvement. The fields annually yield golden harvests in return for the care and labor which he bestows upon them and he is well known and highly esteemed throughout the community as a progressive agriculturist and public-spirited citi- zen. Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise he has supported the republican party at the polls, while fraternally he is connected with the Yeomen. Both he and his wife are well and favorably known here, the circle of their friends being almost coextensive with the circle of their acquaintances.
REV. NATHAN C. HARVEY.
Rev. Nathan C. Harvey is devoting his life to the work of the ministry in the Friends church and also to the conduct of farming interests on section 18. Gilletts Grove township. He took up his abode upon this farm in 1900 and is now cultivating a rich tract of eighty-eight and a half acres, pleasantly located about two miles from Greenville and six miles from Spencer. In his church relations he is a man of no restricted influence, for his zeal and interest in the work is proving an element in the moral development of the community and has gained for him the respect of all who have regard for the higher. holier duties of life. His circle of friends is so extensive that his history cannot fail to prove of interest to many of the readers of this volume. He was born in Hamilton county, Indiana, near Noblesville, on the 28th of December, 1837, and is a son of Caleb and Louise (Cook) Harvey, both of whom were natives of Indiana. The father was a son of William Harvey, a native of North Carolina, who established his home in Indiana when it was still a frontier state, giving little evidence of modern development and progress. He cast in his lot with the pioneer settlers of Wayne county and later removed to Hamilton county. He became a factor in its development when much of its land was still unclaimed and uncultivated, when its forests were uncut and its streams unbridged. Ile
CLAY 34.
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assisted in the arduous task of reclaiming the wild land for the purposes of civilization and in the course of years became a thrifty farmer of his part of the state. He married Rachel Townsend, a native of Virginia, and both lived to an old age. rearing there a family of seven children. The Harveys are of English descent but little is known concerning the history of specific ancestors back of the grandfather. The Cook family is also of English lineage, and Nathan Cook, the maternal grandfather of the Rev. N. C. Harvey, was born in North Carolina. He learned and followed the cabinet-maker's trade and on leaving the south made his way to Indiana, becoming the head of the Friends church in that state. Later he removed to Wisconsin, spending his last days in Sauk county, where he died at about the age of sixty-six years. His wife, Mrs. Anna (Wickersham) Cook, died in middle life. Their family of eight children included Louisa Cook, who gave her hand in marriage to Caleb Harvey. The latter, in support of his family, followed the occupation of farming in Hamilton county, Indiana, where he settled at an early day. There he cleared a farm, brought his fields under a high state of cultivation and in connection with the raising of the cereals best adapted to soil and climate he also set out a fine orchard and raised much fruit. He was noted for his prowess as a hunter and had ample opportunity to indulge his skill in that direction, for deer, turkeys and other wild game were abundant in those days. During the early period of his residence in Indiana there were many sections of the state in which the civilization of the white race had wrought no change, for as yet the red men had been the only inhabitants. After following farming for some years in Hamilton county, during which period he assisted materially in its development and improvement, Mr. Harvey went to Wisconsin about 1859, settling in Sauk county. There he secured a tract of land and carried on general agricultural pursuits, while he also operated a grist mill on the Baraboo river. He continued there until about 1900, when he sold out and came to lowa with the intention of living with his son but following the death of his son's wife, he returned to Hamilton county. Indiana, where his remaining days were passed, his death there occurring in 1902, when he was eighty-seven years of age. His wife died in 1899, at the age of eighty-two years, passing away on the sixty-seventh anniversary of her wedding day. They were both devoted members of the Friends church and their lives were in harmony with the teachings of that sect. which labors always for peaceful relations among men, for charitable opinion and for kindliness of purpose. In community affairs Mr. Harvey figured as a representative and valued citizen, serving as township treasurer and in other town offices.
Nathan C. Harvey was reared in Indiana until twenty years of age and pursued his education in Bloomingdale Academy. The experiences of farm life early became familiar to him and through the assistance which he rendered his father he gained that broad and practical experience which constitutes a feature in his successful work as a farmer at the present time. The year 1857 witnessed his removal to Wisconsin, where for some years he engaged in farming, devoting the summer months to tilling the soil, while in the winter seasons he taught school for several terms and thus contributed to the educational progress of the community. Following the outbreak of the Civil war, when men of every walk
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of life flocked to the standard of the Union, going from the workshops, the counting rooms, the fields and the offices, Mr. Harvey also joined the army and in 1863 became a member of Company H. Twelfth Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. In January, 1864, he was mustered in, and participated in all of the battles in which his regiment took part. He was also with Sherman on the celebrated march to the sea and when with his comrades he met the enemy in battle array, he proved his loyalty to the Union by his valorous defense of the old flag. At the close of the war he was mustered out at Madison, Wisconsin. He had enlisted as a private but was promoted to corporal while at Atlanta, on the 22d of July. Among the engagements in which he participated were the battles of Peach Tree Creek, Jonesboro, Kenesaw Mountain, Savannah, and numerous skirmishes, and the story of military experience with all its attendant hardships and horrors is a familiar one to him.
When the war was over Mr. Harvey returned home with a most creditable military record, happy again to be with his family. He had been married on the 22d of October, 1856, to Miss Mary M. Kersey, a daughter of Stephen and Jemima (Leonard) Kersey. After the war the family lived on a farm in Wisconsin and in connection with the tilling of the soil Mr. Harvey operated a sawmill. He owned two hundred acres of land in the Badger state, and with characteristic energy gave his attention to the task of making it a productive and valuable property.
Mrs. Harvey was born in Parke county, Indiana, while her parents were natives of North Carolina. By her marriage she became the mother of five sons and three daughters: Clementine, now the deceased wife of E. M. Horine; Wilson B., who is a carpenter living in San Jose, California; George L., a carpenter residing in Greenville, Iowa, who married Lillie Collier, who passed away during the infancy of their only child, Nathan C .; Anna L., who became the wife of Stephen Davis, and died leaving three of their five children, Ethel, Bertha and Esther : Mary Ellen, the wife of Alfred Hanson, of Newburg, Oregon, by whom she has several children, including Edward, Nellie and Willis ; Horace G., of Sauk county, Wisconsin, who wedded Mary Mortimer, and has four children: Caleb, Lemmie, Mamie and Zella: Edward, whose home is in San Jose, California, and who married Rose Snider, by whom he has five chil- dren: Mattie, George, Myra, Jennie and Bud : and Jesse, of Zimmerman, Min- nesota, who married Cora Kinser and has four children: Lawrence, Clara. Bessie and Dewey.
In 1897 the family were called upon to mourn the loss of the wife and mother, who passed away on the 19th of September, of that year, at the age of fifty-nine. She, too, was a member of the Society of Friends and her life was in harmony with its teachings. In the meantime the family had become residents of Iowa, removing to this state in the spring of 1887. after which the Rev. Mr. Harvey preached for the Greenville church and also at the Fisk schoolhouse and at Riverton. devoting six years to the ministry in those places. He had been ordained to the ministry in the Friends church in 1886 and has since been an earnest worker in behalf of this denomination. In 1900 he removed to his present farm on section 18, Gillett Grove township. Here he at first had eighty acres of land and now has eighty-eight and a half acres, constituting a well improved
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and highly cultivated farm, pleasantly situated near Greenville. Everything about the place is indicative of his careful supervision and practical methods. In politics he is a democrat and while in Wisconsin served as supervisor of his township and also helped to locate the county poor farm in Sauk county. His life has been characterized by all that is honorable and upright in every relation and his genuine personal worth has gained for him the friendship not only of people of his denomination but of other religious faiths as well.
P. H. BOLAND.
Among the young men who are engaged with the plow in turning the soil of the Iowa prairies to their advantage and converting apparently barren lands into fertile fields is P. H. Boland, who is engaged in agricultural pursuits in Logan township. Clay county. He was born in Allamakee county, Iowa, March 17, 1870. Reared to farm life he is familiar with every phase and department of the business and his youthful energy and enterprise are fast finding wealth in the soil and leading him along the pathway of success to prosperity. He is of Irish extraction, possessing the zeal and characteristic grit of those of his nation, his parents being Michael and Anne (O'Connor) Boland, his mother having married and died in Iowa. His father came from Galway county, Ireland, to the United States in the early '50s, locating in New York city, where he remained for a brief period and then removed to Galena, Illinois, thence to Allamakee county, this state, where he remained until 1879 and then located in Webster county, where he still resides, living a retired life. Prior to locating in Webster county he successfully followed general agriculture and stock-raising for a number of years, but later engaged as section foreman on a railroad, which he followed up to the time of his retirement. He reared a large family, the surviving members being Daniel, a railroad contractor, of Pierre, South Dakota ; Joseph, who resides in Washington, and P. H., our subject. Some time after his wife had departed this life Mr. Boland was united in marriage to Miss Anne O'Brien, to which union were born Thomas F .. a railroad engineer of Fort Dodge, Iowa; Martin H., a baker of Vancouver, British Columbia : and Eleanor, who lives in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Two children passed away early in life.
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