USA > Iowa > Des Moines County > History of Des Moines County, Iowa, Volume II > Part 23
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ent time, Mr. Sutter managing the Third street establishment and his partner the Jefferson street store. In 1909 William H. Waldhoff became a stockholder in the business. The present officers are: Joseph R. Sutter, president; William H. Waldhoff, vice president; and Erwin Ludman, secretary and treasurer. They handle the Rexall line of drugs at both stores and are the exclusive agents there- for in Burlington. Both establishments are well appointed and carry a large and carefully selected line of drugs and druggists' sundries, while the business methods of the firm are such as will bear the closest investigation and scrutiny.
On the 20th of June, 1895, Mr. Sutter was united in marriage to Miss Anna S. Schlachter, of Burlington, a daughter of Adrian and Sophia (Enger) Schlachter. There are four children of this mar- riage, Clarence, Gertrude, Raymond and Ursula. Mr. Sutter has membership with the Woodmen of the World, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Moose and the Eagles. His political indorse- ment is given the democratic party and his religious faith is that of the Bethany Lutheran church. He is prominently known in trade circles and in 1914 was local secretary for the Druggists Convention. On the 12th of June of that year he was elected first vice president of the Iowa Pharmaceutical Association and he is interested in all that tends to further the trade or promote its value to the community. He has made a creditable record throughout his business career, accomplish- ing what he has undertaken, and he has been both the builder and architect of his own fortunes.
JOSEPH L. GAFFORD.
Joseph L. Gafford, of Burlington, became interested in the grain trade in 1882 in Osceola, Iowa. In 1889, he was one of the organizers of the Iowa Grain & Produce Company, of which he is now the secre- tary and treasurer. Laudable ambition, energy and enterprise have been the salient traits which have led him constantly onward until he stands today among the representative business men of Burlington. He was born in Keokuk, Iowa, June 7, 1858, a son of Joseph and Sarah J. (Longly) Gafford, the former of Scotch descent, born in Baltimore, Fairfield county, Ohio, January 16, 1834. The latter was born in Errol, Lampton county, Canada West, April 4, 1837, and died in Burlington, January 3, 1887, aged forty-nine years nine months. Both became residents of Keokuk, Iowa, when young people
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and were married in that city on Dec. 4, 1855. The father was a building contractor there and later established business in Keokuk as a dealer in butter, eggs and produce. In 1871 he removed with his family to St. Louis, where he engaged in other lines of business and in the early 'Sos they came to Burlington.
When the family came to Burlington, Joseph L. Gafford went to Osceola. He had spent his youthful days under the parental roof, accompanying his parents on their various removals, and in the St. Louis schools acquired his education. His business training was re- ceived under the direction of his father, whom he assisted in connec- tion with the grain trade. He joined his father in organizing the Iowa Grain & Produce Company on the 10th of January, 1889. Of this company Joseph Gafford, Sr., became the president, George N. Culver, vice president and M. A. Williamson, secretary and treas- urer. These three constituted the board of directors, together with Joseph L. Gafford and Edward Funke. The cold storage and produce end of the business was located at Nos. 800, 802 and 804 Jef- ferson street. From the beginning the enterprise grew rapidly until the company had a line of twenty elevators along the Chicago, Bur- lington & Quincy Railroad and also a cold storage plant at Burling- ton, the first in the city. In 1899 the interests were divided and the elevators and grain business were taken over by Messrs. Culver, Funke and O. T. Hulburd, the last named of whom had become in- terested in the Iowa Grain & Produce Company and was made secre- tary and treasurer when Mr. Williamson withdrew therefrom, in January, 1895. The elevators were operated under the name of the O. T. Hulburd Company.
On the division in 1899, the Iowa Grain & Produce Company consisted of Joseph Gafford as president, Edward Funke vice presi- dent and Joseph L. Gafford secretary and treasurer. At this time J. L. Gafford moved from Osceola to Burlington with his family. The president Joseph Gafford, died June 3, 1903, and was succeeded by Mr. Funke, who is a resident of Chicago and who still retains the pres- idency of the business. The company maintains cold storage and does a wholesale business in butter and eggs. They buy all over southern Iowa, eastern Illinois and northern Missouri and employ during the busy season as many as twenty-six people. They make purchases from country merchants and ship in carload lots to the east. The company was incorporated under the laws of Iowa and its authorized capital stock is a hundred thousand dollars. The business has been a sub- stantial and growing one, not only from the organization but since the division, and the trade of the company is of value to producers,
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furnishing a market for their butter and eggs. The annual sales now reach a large figure and the success of the enterprise is attributable in large measure to Joseph L. Gafford, who is the active manager.
Mr. Gafford was united in marriage to Miss E. Ada Sturgeon, a native of Ohio, and they have become parents of three children: Gertrude, the wife of T. E. Patterson, of Dayton, Ohio; Helene; and Eugene J. Mr. Gafford is a prominent Mason, holding membership in the blue lodge, chapter, commandery and Mystic Shrine. He also belongs to the Commercial Club and is president of the Carthage Lake Club. He likewise has membership in the Presbyterian church of which he is one of the trustees and treasurer and these associations indicate something of the nature of his interests and the rules which govern his conduct. His political allegiance is given to the republi- can party but the honors and emoluments of office have no attraction for him, as he has ever preferred to give his undivided attention to his business affairs, which are of constantly growing volume and importance.
JOSEPH BOCK.
The late Joseph Bock, of Burlington, was widely known in south- eastern lowa as one of the foremost florists in that part of the state. He was a German by birth, his native province being Silesia, where he first saw the light of day on April 10, 1846, his parents being Joseph and Johanna Bock. In 1867, when twenty-one years of age, he came to Burlington, Iowa, having crossed the Atlantic in search of larger opportunities, entering the employ of Neally Brothers & Bock, on Madison street, the junior member of the firm being a brother of our subject. Later he and his brother engaged in the nursery business under a partnership contract and so continued until 1889, when Joseph Bock became entirely independent, establishing a greenhouse on Sunnyside avenue, in which location he continued in business until his death. He had an expert knowledge of the busi- ness and his natural love for nature assisted him considerably in the successful conduct of his establishment, which from a small beginning developed into one of the most important institutions of its kind in southeastern Iowa. The plant was increased until there are now thirteen greenhouses. They have two deep wells and own their own water works, supplying water for the greenhouses and for three dwel- lings. There is also a large heating plant which supplies heat to the
JOSEPH BOCK
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greenhouses and the three dwellings, and they have their own gas plant. The buildings are surrounded by a beautiful lawn adorned with fine shade trees, and there are splendid cement walks leading from one part of the grounds to another. Mr. Bock was industrious, capable and ever guided by the highest standards of integrity. He was a most likable man and had a host of friends.
On November 25, 1875, Mr. Bock was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Wiemer, a member of one of the early pioneer families of Des Moines county, where she was born. They became parents of three children : Emma, now the wife of John A. Fritz, of Burling- ton, by whom she has two children, Ralph and Mildred; Dr. Edwin C. Bock, a dentist practicing in Fairfield, Iowa, who married Clara Gregg and has two daughters, Elizabeth and Laura; and Harry Oliver, of Burlington, who married Miss Minnie Wohlwend and has one son, Joseph. Mrs. Bock still resides on Sunnyside avenue, Burlington, and is admired by a large circle of friends, who esteem in her a woman who out of the kindness of her heart does much good for her fellow beings. She not only displays all the attractive woman- ly qualities but also has marked business ability. Her husband left his property to her and she, with the assistance of her son Harry, has since had the management of the business, in which connection she employs twelve men. Her greenhouses are the most extensive in the county and she is able to supply to the trade plants and cut flowers of all kinds. There are fourteen acres in the home place and there are no more complete greenhouses with more thoroughly modern equip- ment in Chicago or other large cities than the Bock establishment in Burlington. She is acquainted with every detail of the business and her management is bringing continued and growing success to the undertaking.
Mr. Bock was a republican in his politial views and was a public- spirited citizen but not an office seeker. He was a most unselfish man and lived for others. He found his greatest happiness in pro- moting the welfare of his family and counted no personal sacrifice too great if it would advance their interests. He erected three fine residences, one for each of his children. He died August 7, 1911, when sixty-five years of age. His death brought great sorrow to his immediate family and to the many who had the honor of his closer acquaintance. Although born in Germany, he had become a thor- ough American citizen who took pride in the progress of his sec- tion and the advancement of his city, to which he contributed in no inconsiderable way.
Vol. II-15
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One of the local papers said of him at the time of his death: "He was one of the best citizens of the town, one of the most likable of men, and he could not well be spared. He will be missed and mourned by all who knew him. He was an excellent business man, he loved his calling and he exercised never-failing courtesy in his dealings with his patrons. He had worked up from small begin- nings, and there were none to envy him his possessions, while all who knew him gloried in his success. He was a self-made man in the very best sense of the word. While Mr. Bock was not a member of any church, nor so far as known any fraternal society, he was a thoroughly good man and a man who walked in the straight and narrow way all the days of his life. In his time he had employed much labor, and he was beloved by those who had been his employes as he was by all others who knew him well."
P. A. REPPERT, M. D.
Since starting out in life on his own account Dr. P. A. Reppert has made continuous advancement. For a long period he was con- nected with railway interests and in that field progressed step by step. He then determined to devote his life to professional activity and prepared for the practice of medicine, in which he has since con- tinued, his thorough preparation and ability being indicated in the fact that he ranked first in a class of two hundred and twenty-seven students.
Burlington is proud to number Dr. Reppert among her native sons, his birth having here occurred on the 10th of December, 1859, his parents being Christian and Elizabeth (Pellizzarro) Reppert, the former a native of Germany and the latter of St. Louis. The father came to Burlington in the '40s, on the memorable day on which the Hodges were hung. He and his brother, Phillip Reppert, came together and here established a blacksmith and wagon shop, being thus identified with the industrial and manufacturing interests of the city until 1850, when they went to California with Frederick Schmeig. While on the trip Phillip Reppert died and his remains were interred in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Christian Rep- pert then returned to Burlington in the early '50s and again opened the blacksmith shop which they had abandoned on starting for the Pacific coast. Later he entered the mercantile field as a grocer, becoming the proprietor of a store at the corner of Eighth and Jef-
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ferson streets, which he conducted until he retired from active busi- ness about 1874, spending his remaining days in the enjoyment of a well earned rest. He passed away in January, 1903, at the advanced age of eighty-one years, while his wife died December 25, 1910, at the age of sixty-nine years. They had a family of twelve children, nine of whom are yet living.
Dr. Reppert was the second in order of birth in that family. He is indebted to the public-school system of Burlington for the educa- tional privileges which he enjoyed in his boyhood and youth. On starting out in life on his own account he entered the employ of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company and for ten years filled the responsible position of train dispatcher, acting in that capacity until 1890, when he went to Salt Lake City to become chief dispatcher and trainmaster for the Utah division of the Union Pacific Railroad. There he continued for two years and was afterward with the Rio Grande Railroad in the same capacity for six years at Pueblo, Colorado, but in 1898 he withdrew from active connection with rail- road interests and went to Chicago, where he matriculated in Rush Medical College, for he had determined to prepare for the practice of medicine and make it his life work throughout his remaining days. He completed his course by graduation on the 18th of June, 1903, winning for the first time in the history of the institution both the Rush and Freer medals and standing first in a class of two hundred and twenty-seven students. He has since taken post-graduate work every year and there are few who keep so closely in touch with the advancement that is continually being made in the methods of medi- cal and surgical practice. He was offered and accepted the chair of preventative medicine in the University Medical College of Kansas City and in 1904 he came to Burlington, where he has since special- ized in the practice of surgery. He belongs to the Des Moines County Medical Society, the Iowa State Medical Society and the American Medical Association and is a most able and distinguished representative of the profession in Burlington, occupying a place of high professional honor.
On the 27th of October, 1886, Dr. Reppert was united in mar- riage to Miss Birdenia Gregg, a daughter of John M. and Emily Gregg, of Burlington, who came to this city from Virginia in the early '30s. Dr. Reppert exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party but has never been an office seeker. In Masonry he has attained the thirty-second degree in the Scottish Rite and is a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. The basic ยท influences of his life are further indicated in the fact that he holds
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membership in the First Methodist Episcopal church. His career has even been an upright and honorable one, winning for him dis- tinction, prominence and the favorable regard and goodwill of his fellowmen. He recognizes fully the obligations which devolve upon him in connection with the arduous duties of the profession and among the many practitioners of Burlington there are none who hold more closely to a high standard of professional ethics.
WILLIAM HUSTED.
Among those who have won success in the conduct of farming interests and now live retired is William Husted, of Mediapolis, who is numbered among the venerable citizens of Des Moines county, having passed the eighty-fourth milestone on life's journey. He is a native of Bridgeton, Cumberland county, New Jersey, born May 3, 1831, his parents being Peter and Phoebe (Wescott) Husted, who were also natives of that state. The family went to Hamilton county, Ohio, in 1833 and subsequently removed to Greensburg, Decatur county, Indiana. In the fall of 1842 they arrived in Des Moines county, Iowa, settling in Pleasant Grove township. At a later date they took up their abode in Yellow Springs township and still later, or in 1854, went to Clarke county, Iowa, where the parents spent their remaining days, the mother passing away at the age of seventy-seven years, while the father's death occurred when he was eighty-two years of age. He always followed farming as a life work and also bought and drove stock to the market. His early political allegiance was given to the democratic party, but when the new republican party was formed he joined its ranks because of his opposition to the system of slavery. His religious faith was that of the Methodist Episcopal church and to its teachings he was most loyal.
In the family were ten children: John and Hannah Saint, both of whom are now deceased; Shephard, who passed away at the age of twenty-one years; William; Mrs. Nancy Love, also deceased; Robert and Horatio, both of whom have passed away; Henry, now living in California; Franklin, a resident of Murray, Iowa; and Thomas, deceased.
William Husted has resided in Des Moines county since 1842, save for a period of a year and a half spent in California. He was a lad of but eleven years when the family came to Iowa and pioneer conditions still existed in Des Moines county. There are, indeed, few .
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who have been a witness of the growth and development of this region for as long a period-seventy-two years. He spent his youthful days upon the home farm and in 1850, when nineteen years of age, started for California, attracted by the discovery of gold on the Pacific coast. He made the journey across the plains with ox teams and on reaching the mines dug gold to an amount sufficient to enable him to start in business upon his return to this county. With the exception of a brief period spent on the Pacific coast he has always followed farming in Yellow Springs township up to the time of his retirement and is still part owner in a farm of two hundred and ten acres. He prospered as the years went on and at one time owned about five hundred acres of very valuable and productive land, but he has sold a portion of this and has also given a part of his land to his children. During the past twenty-two years he has made his home in Mediapolis and for a while engaged in buying, feeding and shipping cattle, but is now living retired, enjoying the rest which has come to him as the merited re- ward of his well directed energy and thrift in former years.
In the fall of 1856 Mr. Husted was united in marriage to Miss Nancy Harper, who was born in Ross county, Ohio, March 21, 1833, and came to this county in early childhood with her parents, William and Sarah Harper. For fifty-five years Mr. and Mrs. Husted traveled life's journey happily together but were separated in the death of the wife on the 8th of August, 1911. They had a family of six children : Oscar, who died at the age of four years ; Shephard, living on the old homestead; Mrs. Ida May Patterson, who died leaving four chil- dren; Mary, the wife of Elta Conklin, of Los Angeles, California; Cora Amanda, who died at the age of eighteen years ; and a son, who died in infancy. A granddaughter, Elsie Husted, has resided with her grandfather since the death of his wife and has managed the household for him.
Mr. Husted is still a well preserved man. He is five feet, ten inches in height and has through manhood always weighed from one hundred and seventy-five to two hundred pounds. He possesses great vitality and is very rugged, and thus he has come to old age well pre- served mentally and physically. He has a nice home at the northeast corner of the park in Mediapolis and is most pleasantly situated. In politics he is a stalwart republican, having voted for John C. Fre- mont, the first presidential candidate of the party, and for each of its national standard bearers since that time. He has served as township trustee and as school officer, yet has had no political aspirations. For the past sixty years he has been a devoted and faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church, guiding his life according to its teach-
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ings and thus commanding and enjoying the respect, confidence and goodwill of all who know him. Mr. Husted is, perhaps, the only resident of his locality who crossed the plains in 1850. He belongs to an organization known as Fremont Voters, very few of whom are left. He has lived to witness notable changes in the state. There were only about one thousand inhabitants in all Iowa territory at the time of his arrival. There was so much prairie here and so little timber that the early residents thought that the country never would be settled up. They felt that they must have timber land and did not recognize fully the value of the rich prairie country. Seventy-two years have come and gone since Mr. Husted arrived in Des Moines county, a lad of eleven summers. Many notable events have since occurred and the work of progress and improvement has been carried steadily forward. He relates many interesting incidents of the early times and the methods of life and his memory forms a connecting link between the primitive past and the progressive present.
F. W. SCHRAMM.
F. W. Schramm is proprietor of a shoe store devoted exclusively to the sale of men's and boys' shoes. This establishment was opened on the ist of August, 1913, and business has since been successfully conducted, for previous experience along commercial lines, combined with energy and laudable ambition, have made the owner one of the wide-awake and progressive merchants of the city. He was born in Burlington, October 7, 1885, a son of Arthur and Mary (Gage) Schramm, the former a native of Farmington, Iowa, and the latter of Pennsylvania. The family is of German lineage and was founded in America by Charles F. Schramm, the grandfather of our subject, who was born in Germany and when ten years of age came to the United States with his father, the family home being at that time established in Circleville, Ohio.
At an carly period in the development of Iowa Charles F. Schramm came to this state, arriving in Burlington at about the same time as Frederick Schmieg. Mr. Schramm first settled at Farmington, but afterward came to Burlington and embarked in business with Mr. Schmieg. They established a dry-goods business on Jefferson between Water and Main streets and there conducted their trade for twenty years. They afterward opened a wholesale house on North Main street and in 1903 the business was incorporated with Frederick
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Schmieg as president and Charles F. Schramm as vice president with the latter's son, Arthur Schramm, as secretary and treasurer. The business grew to extensive proportions and their trade now covers a large territory. The business methods of the house have ever been unassailable and the thorough reliability and integrity of its founders were never called into question. Mr. Schramm was for an extended period classed with the most honored and valued business men of Burlington and he remained in active connection with the wholesale dry-goods trade of which he was one of the founders until his death, which occurred in February, 1'906.
His son, Arthur Schramm, was reared in Burlington, and, endowed by nature with superior musical talent, engaged in teaching that art in the early years of his life. He then joined his father in the wholesale dry-goods business under the firm name of Schramm & Schmieg and he continued actively in the business until January, 1909, when he went to Seattle, Washington, where he now lives retired. His wife and two sons are with him in that city. In the family were three sons: F. W .; Arthur, who is now an attorney of Seattle ; and Charles Edwin, who is attending school.
The eldest son, F. W. Schramm, passed through consecutive grades in the public schools until he became a high-school pupil. He was of the third generation to become actively connected with the Schramm & Schmieg Dry Goods Company and, like his father, was associated therewith until January, 1909, when he accompanied his parents to Seattle, where he remained for a year. He then returned to Burlington and went upon the road as a traveling salesman for the Welch.Cook Company of Cedar Rapids for three years. At the end of that time he opened a shoe store at No. 208 Jefferson street, where he has a twenty-foot frontage. This was on the Ist of August, 1913. He carries an exclusive line of men's and boys' shoes and his patron- age has reached extensive and gratifying proportions. He has the business acumen and enterprise which have been a synonym of the family name through three generations in Burlington. What he un- dertakes he accomplishes, brooking no obstacles that can be overcome by persistent and honorable effort.
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