USA > Iowa > Des Moines County > History of Des Moines County, Iowa, Volume II > Part 27
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was afterward with John W. Gates in the St. Louis office, and still later with the Oliver Wire Company of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, traveling from Burlington during his connection with these different firms. He was also at one time with the Hawkeye Wire Company, and as the years passed he gained comprehensive knowledge of every phase of the hardware business. In 1894 he opened an office in Bur- lington and now represents ten hardware manufacturers, selling to the jobbing trade. He calls on the trade personally, covering all the middle west, visiting the leading jobbing centers. He knows man- ufacturers and where the best goods of different kinds may be ob- tained, and his close application, unremitting diligence and well defined purpose have been the factors in bringing to him a growing success.
On the 8th of February, 1894, Mr. Gregg was united in marriage to Miss Gertrude Mauritzen, of Denmark, who after leaving her native country went to England and subsequently came to the United States. Mr. and Mrs. Gregg are widely and favorably known in this city, in which they have so long resided, having here an extensive circle of warm friends. Mr. Gregg votes with the democratic party and he holds membership with the Knights of Pythias, the Elks, the Foresters and the Woodmen. He is likewise a member of the Crystal Lake Club, the Hawkeye Natives, and the Commercial Exchange. His fellow-townsmen find him a genial, social gentleman, and these qualities have made him popular among his many patrons along the road. He is always approachable, is never too busy to be cordial, nor too cordial to be busy. In a word, his is a well balanced char- acter and he has earned and well deserves the success which has come to him. He may truly be called a self-made man, for, starting out in business on his own account at the age of fourteen years, he has since been dependent entirely upon his own resources.
AL BOECK.
Al Boeck is proprietor of one of the largest and best equipped meat markets of Burlington, in which city he was born February 7, 1874. His father, George Boeck, is a native of Germany, born in 1839, and when a young man he came to the United States, mak- ing his way first to St. Louis, where he remained for a few years. He then came to Burlington, where he has since resided, and through the intervening period he has become widely known in connection
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with business, fraternal and social circles. At the present time, however, he is living retired. Prominent in Masonry, he has at- tained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite, and he is also connected with the Eagles and the Elks. His wife bore the maiden name of Hannah Roth and was also born in Germany. She is still enjoying good health at the age of seventy-four years. In their family were three sons and two daughters.
Al Boeck acquired his education in the public and German schools of Burlington and at the age of sixteen years went to work for his father in the meat market, so that throughout his entire busi- ness life he has been connected with this line of activity. In 1897 he established a market on his own account on Jefferson street, where he is still located, and he has one of the most modern and up-to-date establishments of the city. He carries an excellent line of meats, and his promptness and reliability are elements in his growing suc- cess. He employs seven people and his trade has reached gratifying proportions.
Mr. Boeck is well known in several fraternities, holding member- ship with the Moose, the Eagles and the Red Men. He is a member of the Carthage Lake Fishing Club and greatly enjoys hunting as well as fishing, utilizing his hours of recreation in the enjoyment of those sports. His political allegiance is given the republican party, and he keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day, while in local matters his aid and influence are given on the side of those interests which are a matter of civic virtue and civic pride.
THOMAS M. HUME.
Thomas M. Hume, founder and head of the Hume Brokerage Company, began business in this line in Burlington in July, 1906. A native of Virginia, he was born in Stanardsville, March 27, 1869, a son of Q. R. and Fannie A. (Sims) Hume. The father was a physician and surgeon, devoting his entire life to the practice of medicine. The son acquired a public-school education and when a young man became connected with the drug business in Virginia, devoting four years to that line of mercantile activity. He after- ward entered railroad circles and was with the Norfolk & Western for seventeen years. He entered the employ of that corporation in a clerical capacity and was gradually advanced, becoming freight agent and afterward commercial agent. He represented the road
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at different times in Chicago, Indianapolis, Columbus, Ohio, and St. Louis, and that his services were most capable and satisfactory is in- dicated in the fact that he was retained in the service of the com- pany through almost two decades. In July, 1906, he arrived in Bur- lington and began business in merchandise brokerage, organizing the Hume Brokerage Company, in which connection he works Bur- lington and the surrounding territory. He has now secured a lib- eral patronage and in the conduct of the business has ever recognized the fact that satisfied patrons are the best advertisement. He has, therefore, ever studied to please and in all of his dealings has been thoroughly reliable, as well as energetic and progressive.
On the 3d of October, 1895, Mr. Hume was united in marriage to Miss Jennie Blanche Thomas, a native of Ohio and a daughter of Charles A. and Zilpha Thomas, who are residents of Middleport, Ohio. Mr. Hume exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the democratic party. His fraternal relations cover a wide scope. In Masonry he has attained the Knight Tem- plar degree in the commandery and is also a member of the Mystic Shrine. He likewise holds membership with the Odd Fellows, the Elks, the Moose and Eagles, and is a member of the Crystal Lake Club and of the Golf Club, being interested in the lines of recreation fostered by the two organizations. He is likewise a member of the Commercial Exchange and cooperates heartily in its well-defined plans and projects for the upbuilding of the city. Throughout his career he has never been afraid to follow the lead of his opportunities and as the years have advanced has steadily progressed, winning a fair measure of that success which is the goal of all business endeavor.
FRANK E. THOMPSON.
Frank E. Thompson, engaged in the general practice of law in Burlington, has since the outset of his professional career applied himself with such diligence and determination to the mastery of the principles of jurisprudence and to the conduct of his cases that he is now recognized as an able, skilled and successful advocate and counsellor.
Mr. Thompson was born in Grandview, Louisa county, Iowa, December 13, 1873, a son of John W. and Mary (See) Thompson. The family was established in New England at an early period in the colonization of America. The great-grandparents in the
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Thompson line settled in Ohio about the beginning of the nineteenth century and there John Thompson, the grandfather, was born in Ross county in 1810. In 1839 he accompanied his parents on their removal to Iowa, the family home being established near Grand- view, in Louisa county, at a period when the work of development and progress was then in its primitive stages. The territory had been organized only the year previously and there were no railroads connecting Iowa with other sections of the country. The Thomp- son family, however, did not have to endure some of the hardships of the early settlers, for they had wealth with which to secure com- forts and purchased large tracts of land. John Thompson began raising stock in this state and also did contract work. He married a Miss Nichols and to them were born four children. Following the death of his first wife he wedded Sarah Nichols, also a native of Ross county, Ohio, and their children were five in number. John Thompson continued an honored resident of this state for forty- seven years, passing away in 1886, while his wife died in 1880, when about fifty-five years of age.
Their son, John W. Thompson, made farming and stockraising his life work. He was born and reared in Iowa and became familiar with every phase of the state's development and progress. He con- tinued his residence in Louisa county until the early '7os and then for almost thirty years lived in Henry county. In 1900 he took up his abode near Sedalia, Missouri, where he became the owner of large landed holdings and thereon engaged extensively in dealing in horses, mules and cattle. He was united in marriage to Miss Mary See, a daughter of Rev. Michael See, and a representative of one of the old colonial families of Virginia. Her father came to the west in 1836, settling in Burlington with his parents, who entered land from the government in what is known as the Miller settlement of Des Moines county. Of the ancestry of Frank E. Thompson in the maternal line the following has been written by a contemporary biographer: "Michael See was a man of powerful and vigorous constitution. He became a circuit rider of the Methodist church, and from the age of twenty-one years devoted his life entirely to the work of the ministry. He was a very successful preacher, being gifted with eloquence and with that quality which for want of a better term we have called personal magnetism. He was logical in argument, persuasive and earnest, and his labors led to the substan- tial upbuilding of the church. He was an intimate friend of H. Clay Dean and Rev. Frank Evans, and was one of the notable figures in the early history of Iowa. He was twice married, his first
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wife being a Miss Miller, whose mother belonged to the Hanks family and was a cousin of Abraham Lincoln. He departed this life in 1899, full of years and honors, having passed the eighty- second milestone on life's journey. He had never been ill until just prior to his death, and he continued in the active work of the min- istry almost to the last."
At the usual age Frank E. Thompson began his education in the district schools and when thirteen had mastered the preliminary branches to a sufficient degree to enable him to take up high-school work in Columbus City, Iowa. He was afterward a student in the high school at Muscatine and pursued a course in a business college there. He next entered the Iowa State University for a classical training and eventually entered upon the study of law in that insti- tution, completing his law course with the class of 1896.
Mr. Thompson began practice in Burlington, where he has since remained. As the years have gone on his practice has become extensive and of an important character. He is constantly inspired by an innate love of justice and a delicate sense of personal honor. His fidelity to the interests of his clients is proverbial, yet he never forgets that he owes a still higher allegiance to the majesty of the law. His diligence and energy in the preparation of his cases as well as the earnestness, tenacity and courage with which he defends the right challenges the highest admiration of his associates 'and he invariably seeks to present his argument in the strong, clear light of common reason and sound logical principles. He had practiced at the bar of Burlington for about eight years, when, in 1904, the republican party made him its nominee for the office of county attor- ney and such was his personal popularity and the confidence reposed in him that he led the county ticket, receiving a majority of nine hundred notwithstanding his opponent was regarded as one of the strongest members of the county bar. He filled the position most acceptably for two years and in 1906 resumed the private practice of law, in which he has since engaged.
When age conferred upon him the right of franchise Mr. Thompson strongly indorsed republican principles, believing in the value of the party platform as an element in good government. He was the republican nominee for representative in the state legisla- ture in 1901 and though he ran ahead of his ticket met defeat with the other republican candidates. He has always kept abreast of the political situation of the country and his knowledge of the questions and issues of the day is by no means superficial but delves to the root of the matter. In 1902 he was made chairman of the republican
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county central committee and in different campaigns has delivered many public addresses in Des Moines and adjoining counties in sup- port of party principles. In 1914 he was elected state senator from the ninth senatorial district of lowa.
Mr. Thompson was married in 1894 to Miss Lillian Russell, a daughter of John J. Russell, a retired merchant of Columbus Junc- tion, Iowa. Their friends in Burlington and throughout this sec- tion of the state are many and Mr. Thompson is recognized as a valued member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Fraternal Order of Eagles and the Modern Woodmen of America. He is a representative of one of the old pioneer families of the state and is of the fourth generation here residing. The work instituted by his great-grandfather for the upbuilding and development of the territory was continued by his grandfather and father, and the same spirit finds expression in the public activities of Frank E. Thomp- son, who while meeting the strenuous demands of a growing law practice has always found time to perform every public duty in relation to his citizenship in his native state.
CHARLES ROESCH.
Charles Roesch, living in West Burlington, is the assistant chief clerk in the offices of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company, to which position of responsibility he has attained through his own unaided efforts. He was born in Burlington, January 5, 1863, and at the usual age became a public-school pupil, attending the old North Oak school until he reached the age of twelve years, when necessity forced him to go to work. He was first employed in a cigar factory, where he remained for three years and at the end of that time he entered railway circles by becoming an office boy for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, at which time the head office was then under the old Sixth street bridge of Burlington. He resolutely set himself to the task of mastering the duties which were intrusted to him and his industry and determination won him ad- vancement from time to time until he gradually worked his way upward to his present position as assistant chief clerk in the railway office of this city-a position that carries with it large responsibili- ties and a goodly salary.
On the 20th of October, 1885, Mr. Roesch was married to Miss Magdaline Schick, of Burlington, who was educated in the paro-
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chial schools of this city. To them have been born three children. Rose, twenty-six years of age, is now the wife of Michael Daly, of Burlington, and they have one child. Pearl, twenty-three years of age, is the wife of Herman Miller, of this city. Carl, the youngest, now nineteen years of age, was graduated from the West Burlington high school and is in the employ of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company.
Mr. Roesch is a member of the Ancient Order of United Work- men, the Knights of Pythias and the Royal Arcanum. In politics he is a democrat and keeps well informed concerning the vital and sig- nificant political problems of the age. He has been an active worker in local party ranks and was elected town clerk for West Burlington, in which position he served for eight years. He has also been school treasurer for more than seven years and the cause of education finds in him a stalwart champion. Having always lived in Burlington, he is well known and many of his warmest friends are those who have been his associates from boyhood-a fact which indicates a well spent life.
HON. LUKE PALMER.
Iowa has always been distinguished for the high rank of her bench and bar. The list of her eminent citizens contains the names of many able jurists and attorneys, some of whom have won national fame, while there is scarcely a town or city in the state but can boast of one or more lawyers capable of crossing swords in forensic combat with any of the distinguished legal lights of the country. Iowa owes much of her advancement to the influence of her lawyers and her law makers and she has reason for just pride in her attorneys and judges.
Devoting his life to the profession of law, Hon. Luke Palmer has gained distinction at the bar. Burlington numbers him among her native sons. He was born November 20, 1851, of the marriage of Luke and Mary E. (Holbrooke) Palmer, the former a native of Stonington, Connecticut, and the latter of Columbia, that state. In the year 1839 Luke Palmer, Sr., made his way westward to Bur- lington and although he had followed carpentering in the east, here turned his attention to merchandising, in which he continued from 1839 until 1850. He won notable success in his commercial pursuits and through his investments in real, estate. He erected a number of
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buildings and purchased and sold property, and in the later years of his life he was a retired capitalist of Burlington, where he con- tinued to make his home until called to his final rest, in April, 1895. He was chosen a member of the last territorial legislature but did not qualify, and for several terms he was an alderman of Burling- ton, in which connection he exercised his official prerogatives in support of many plans and measures for the public good. His political allegiance was always given to the republican party, and his religious faith was that of the Congregational church, of which he served as a trustee for many years. He likewise served on the hospital board at Mount Pleasant, Iowa, for many years and was president of that board for six or eight years. Mary E. Holbrooke came to Burlington about 1845 and opened a private school, which she conducted successfully for an extended period. On the 8th of January, 1851, she gave her hand in marriage to Luke Palmer and they became the parents of two children, the son being named for his father, while the daughter was called Sarah M. She became the wife of John S. Cameron, a civil engineer who later became assistant to the general manager of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Rail- road Company. Her death occurred in Denver, Colorado, in 1881 and she left three children, John S., Donald P. and Sadie P., all of whom are yet living.
Luke Palmer, whose name introduces this review, completed his classical education by a course in Knox College at Galesburg, Illi- nois, in which he won his Bachelor of Arts degree upon graduation in 1872. He then entered the law office of Hall & Baldwin but after reading for a time with that firm spent one year as a law student at Harvard. He was afterward in the office of N. C. Berry, an attorney of Boston, and was graduated from the Boston Law School in June, 1875. Mr. Palmer then returned to Burlington, where he remained in practice for three years, but in 1878 went to Colorado, where he spent ten years as a member of the bar of that state, during which period he served for five years as county judge of Clear Creek county. He resigned in the latter part of his second term and, retiring from' the bench, returned to Burlington in 1888 upon the death of his mother. Since that time he has maintained an office in this city and has confined his law business largely to office practice. He has given much of his attention to the management of his real-estate interests. While in Colorado he assisted R. S. Morrisson in the preparation of fifteen volumes of Mining Reports, covering all the courts of last resort and the decisions of the federal courts-in fact covering all the law of the United States and of England on the subject of min-
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ing. Later he assisted in the preparation of the Digest of Colorado Reports.
Judge Palmer was married in September, 1884, to Miss Emma A. Dunn, of Galesburg, Illinois, who died in Burlington in Janu- ary, 1893. He was married in April, 1897, to Miss Marion E. Starr, a daughter of Henry W. Starr, and her death occurred on the IIth of February, 1898. In September, 1900, he wedded Mrs. Lydia (Lewis) Gilbert, widow of James Gilbert, who by her first mar- riage had four children, Katharine, John, Charles and Mary. To Mr. and Mrs. Palmer has been born one child, Mary.
Judge Palmer gives his political allegiance to the republican party and has never been neglectful of the duties of citizenship, recognizing the obligation which the right of franchise imposes upon every individual to whom it is given. He is a member of the Beta Theta Pi, a college fraternity. His religious faith is evidenced in his membership in the Congregational church and for twenty-one years he served on the board of trustees. He has likewise been a member of the board of trustees of the Burlington Hospital and of the board of trustees of the Charity Organization. He is a man of broad sympathy which finds tangible expression in his effective efforts to relieve sorrow, distress and need. His life has been far- reaching in its activities and in its effects and the many sterling traits of his character have gained for him the warm regard and honor of his fellowmen.
CAPTAIN WILLIAM W. KINNEAR.
Captain William W. Kinnear, Burlington manager for the Blair or White Collar and Streckfus steamboat lines, has the distinction of having been at one time the youngest captain on the Mississippi river. He was born in Franklin, Pennsylvania, July 2, 1836, a son of David and Nancy (De Woodie) Kinnear. The father came to Iowa in the early '4os and took up government land seventeen miles west of Dubuque, and in 1845 he brought his family to this state. From Galena, Illinois, the trip was made by wagons westward to the farm. David Kinnear performed the arduous task of breaking the sod and developing a new farm but later sold that property and removed to Geneva Lake, Minnesota, where he continued to make his home until his death, as did his wife. The remains of both were there interred.
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Captain Kinnear acquired a public-school education and worked out one summer for a farmer by the name of Glue, who paid him with calves. This was his initial step in the cattle business and with oxen he broke prairie for settlers. He is acquainted with almost every phase of pioneer life and the attendant labors which have led to the development of this section of the country. He obtained the United States contract for carrying the mail from Dubuque to Garnaville and acted in that capacity for a year, when he sold his contract. He next went to work for James McGregor, who founded and owned the town of McGregor. He was sent by his employer to Black River Falls on an important mission to buy land from Mr. McLaughlin which Mr. McGregor wanted, but which the owner would not sell to him. Mr. Kinnear, however, was successful in making the pur- chase. On the return trip he met a man on the stage who wanted to sell a ferry boat and Captain Kinnear purchased it for seventeen hundred and fifty dollars. At that time the boat was grounded in the river, but Captain Kinnear succeeded in freeing it and ran the boat from Dubuque up the river, carrying loads of wood and later loads of hogs. He then established a woodyard at Dubuque and later sold the boat to a company in Prairie du Chien. About that time he learned the carpenter's trade, which he afterward followed for sev- eral years. Subsequently he worked in a boat yard during the period of the Civil war and afterward became assistant superintendent of the White Collar Line. He became captain of the Chippewa Falls at the age of twenty-eight years and was the youngest captain on the river. At different times he has been captain of various well known boats, including the Harry Johnson, Andy Johnson, Lady Lee, Addie Johnson and many others, representing various boat lines, sailing from Keokuk, St. Louis and other river towns. He became assistant superintendent at St. Louis of the White Collar Line in 1875 and in 1879 resigned and came to Burlington to take the general agency for the line in this city. He also had charge of coalyards and he engaged in the coal, wood and lime business on his own account for some years. In 1893 he again entered into active connection with the Blair Line, or the White Collar Line, as business manager at this point. There is no one in Burlington more familiar with navigation inter- ests on the Mississippi or who has longer been connected therewith. Captain Kinnear knows every phase of river transportation and can relate many interesting incidents concerning the days when the Mis- sissippi was not only the highroad for freight traffic but also for passenger travel.
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