USA > Iowa > Des Moines County > History of Des Moines County, Iowa, Volume II > Part 35
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At the time of the Civil war Mr. Troxel put aside all business and personal considerations, for his patriotic spirit was aroused by the attempt of the south to overthrow the Union. Accordingly he enlisted in 1861, joining Company K of the Ninety-third Pennsyl- vania Regiment and went to the front, but he became afflicted with inflammatory rheumatism and was honorably discharged in 1862 because of physical disability. In politics he is a republican and his first presidential ballot was cast for Abraham Lincoln in 1864. He has since marched under the party's banners and has seen no reason to change his allegiance. He and his family are members of the Con- gregational church and his has been an upright life fraught with many good deeds and characterized by noble purposes.
There has been nothing spectacular in his career. It does not show up with the brilliancy of the military or political leader, but it is the substantial business man who constitutes the real bone and sinew of the nation. They are the ones who can be counted upon in every emergency and who are accustomed to judge in an impartial and therefore beneficial way concerning the problems which confront the country. Mr. Troxel has lived to see wonderful changes not only in Burlington but in all sections of America. The nineteenth century has well been termed the age of invention and it is within his memory that most of the railroads of the country have been built, that its tele- graph and telephone lines have been established, and that the work
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of improvement and development has been carried on along many other lines. Unlike many others he does not sigh for the "good old days" but has ever kept in touch with modern thought and progress, and in spirit and interests seems yet in his prime.
CHARLES SCHWARZ.
Charles Schwarz is the oldest coal merchant of Burlington con- tinuously engaged in business. For twenty-six years he has been identified with the coal trade and his enterprise and reliable methods have been the salient factors in winning for him the substantial suc- cess which he now enjoys. As is indicated by his name he is of Ger- man birth, his natal day being June 12, 1855. His parents, John and Elizabeth (Beemer) Schwarz, also natives of the fatherland, re- mained residents of that country until 1866, when they crossed the Atlantic to the new world and made their way to Burlington. The father devoted his life to farming and both he and his wife have passed away. In their family were four sons and a daughter, of whom one is deceased.
Charles Schwarz acquired a public-school education, which was begun in Germany and continued in the schools of Des Moines county. His time was divided between his studies, the pleasures of the playground and the work of the fields, for as soon as old enough he began to assist his father in the further development and improve- ment of the home farm. When a young man he began working out as a farm hand and afterward rented land which he cultivated for a few years. In carly manhood he also learned the butcher's trade and became manager of a meat market at Winfield, Iowa. Liking the business, he later bought out his employer but in 1882 he disposed of his interests at Winfield and came to Burlington, where he engaged in teaming until 1884. He then took up his abode in West Burlington and built the first butcher shop in the town, continuing in that line of business until he sold out and began dealing in coal, being, as pre- viously stated, the oldest merchant in years of continuous connection with the coal trade in West Burlington. His identification with the business covers twenty-six years and for a time he maintained an office in Burlington in addition to his plant in West Burlington. His busi- ness has grown with the passing years and his trade has now assumed extensive and gratifying proportions, bringing to him very desirable and well earned success.
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In 1878 Mr. Schwarz was united in marriage to Miss Kate Beck, of Mount Pleasant, a daughter of John and Eva Beck, farming peo- ple, who became early settlers of Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Schwarz have become the parents of five children : Katie, at home; Otto, a farmer residing near Salem, Iowa; Pearl, the wife of Alexander Peterson, who carries on general farming near Mount Pleasant; John, who is engaged in teaming at West Burlington ; and Carrie, at home.
Mr. Schwarz and his family are members of the Lutheran church, and his political indorsement is given to the republican party. He keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day and is ever ready to support his position by intelligent argument. In 1908 he was made postmaster of West Burlington and he has also been street com- missioner, filling the position for two years. His public service, like his business career, has at all times been creditable and it is well known that his influence in matters of citizenship is always on the side of progress and improvement.
THOMAS RICHARD RANKIN.
Death called Thomas Richard Rankin on the 17th of December, 1913, just after he had passed the eighty-sixth milestone on life's journey. His was indeed a commendable life. His well formulated plans had been carried forward to fruition and every duty that devolved upon him in the various connections of home and public life was faithfully met and performed. He agreed with Lincoln that "there is something better than making a living-making a life;" and he therefore directed his energies in accordance with the highest standards of manhood and of citizenship. He remained in active connection with business affairs long after he had entered the ranks of the octogenarians.
The birth of Mr. Rankin occurred in Sevier county, Tennessee, December 11, 1827, his parents being William and Catherine (Gault) Rankin. His ancestral history shows that the family was established in America during colonial days. His grandfather, Richard Rankin, had a family of ten sons and one daughter and four of the number, Thomas, David, William and Samuel Steele, enlisted for service in the War of 1812 under General Jackson. One of these, David, was killed in the battle with the Indians in Alabama, at Horseshoe Bend, on the Tallahassee river. Descendants of Richard Rankin to the number of forty-two participated in the Civil war.
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Six of these belonged to the family of John Rankin, who was called the father of abolition. He was the author of a volume, "Rankin's Letters on Slavery," which it is said converted Wendell Phillips and William Lloyd Garrison to the cause of abolition. Mr. Rankin studied the question of slavery first hand. He talked with the slaves, noted their treatment and with wide vision saw not only individual wrongs but the criminality of the entire system, and he wrote these letters to his brother Thomas, entreating him to free all slaves in his possession. This John Rankin was a Presbyterian minister and it was he who furnished most of the characters to Harriet Beecher Stowe for the story of Uncle Tom's Cabin. It was at his home in Ripley, on the Ohio river, that Eliza Harris, who figures in the story, sought refuge after making the perilous trip over cakes of floating ice to the northern shore. The Rankin family was not only notable because of the strength of its loyalty during the Civil war but also by reason of high moral principle which has ever dominated its representatives. The grandfather of Thomas R. Rankin had four sons, John, William, Alexander T. and Robert H., who became ministers of the Pres- byterian church, and four other sons who were elders in that church.
The Rev. William Rankin was born in East Tennessee, June I, 1795, and there remained until 1833, when he went to North Caro- lina, where he spent four years. In 1837 he became a resident of Indiana and four years later came to Iowa, arriving in this state in 1841. He engaged in preaching as pastor of a Presbyterian church in Yellow Springs township, Des Moines county, until 1842, and later spent two years in pastoral work at Marion, Linn county. He was for a year at Plymouth, Hancock county, Illinois, and afterward spent many years in Quincy, Illinois, whence he came to Burlington in 1872. His remaining days were passed in this state, his death occur- ring in Farmington, March 7, 1889, when he had reached the ad- vanced age of ninety-four years. He was married five times. His first wife, by whom he had seven children, was of Scotch-Irish descent, as were the Rankins, and died when their son Thomas was but six months old.
Thomas Richard Rankin pursued his education in the Mission Institute at Quincy, Illinois. A cracker factory was conducted in connection with the school in order that the boys might have work if they were unable in other ways to meet their expenses, and it was there that Mr. Rankin learned the baker's trade, which he followed in Quincy from 1844 until 1852. In the fall of the latter year he ar- rived in Burlington and built a bake shop on Main street. S. C. Treat became associated with him, making candy and bread, while
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Mr. Rankin made the crackers. In 1855 they removed to North Third street and the partnership was continued until 1857, when Mr. Treat sold out to S. E. Taylor. They made several changes of location and extended the scope of their business to include the shipping of fruit and vegetables. In 1870 they disposed of their bakery and Mr. Rankin formed a partnership with Gus Dodge in the fruit business on West Jefferson street and at the same time bought out the Richey interest in the ice business, thus becoming a partner of Mr. Dunn. When in 1874 Mr. Dodge purchased Mr. Dunn's interests, the firm of Rankin & Dodge was thus formed and continued to deal in fruit and ice. The partnership was maintained until 1890, when Mr. Ran- kin became sole proprietor and remained alone until 1900, when he admitted Forest F. Houston to a partnership under the firm style of T. R. Rankin & Company. Mr. Rankin also became a partner of Mr. Dunn in the ice, wood and coal business and his commercial interests are yet maintained in concrete form under the style of the Rankin Coal & Ice Company, being carried on by three of his nephews. For more than a half century he was actively connected with commercial interests in Burlington and at his death there was no other resident of the city so long identified with its business affairs.
On the 10th of April, 1851, in Rushville, Schuyler county, Illi- nois, was celebrated the marriage of Thomas R. Rankin and Miss Elizabeth A. Houston, a daughter of Caleb and Elizabeth (Purdy) Houston. Her father, a native of New Hampshire, removed west- ward to Columbus, Ohio, where he conducted business as a carpenter and builder. He was married there in 1815 and in 1830 removed westward to Beardstown, Illinois, and soon afterward took up his abode on a farm near Rushville, Illinois, where he passed away in 1855. His wife survived him for twenty years, dying in 1875. Mr. and Mrs. Rankin had no children of their own but reared an adopted daughter, Emma G., who became the wife of J. W. Cornic, of Los Angeles, California. Mrs. Rankin passed away August 21, 1893, and on the 11th of November, 1896, Mr. Rankin wedded Miss Harriet Houston, a daughter of John P. and Elizabeth (Gray) Houston.
Mrs. Rankin is a member of the Congregational church, to which Mr. Rankin also belonged and in the work of the church she has taken d'eep interest and a helpful part. Mr. Rankin was in charge of the benevolent work of the church from 1870 and for many years served as one of the deacons. He voted with the republican party but was never an aspirant for public office. Fraternally he was connected with the Royal Arcanum but he preferred outside of business hours to spend his time in his home and among his friends, who were many.
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His life was indeed honorable and upright and gained for him the high regard, confidence and goodwill of all with whom he came in contact. He never deviated from high standards in any relation, nor was he ever content to choose the second best. His ideals were high and he embraced every opportunity to secure their accomplishment. He had, too, that kindly nature which made him ever approachable and in his life justice was tempered with mercy.
RALPH F. HOLMES.
Ralph F. Holmes, an energetic, wide-awake business man, stim- ulated always by the spirit of progress and advancement, is now man- ager of the Grand Opera House and of the Iowa Posting Service Company. He was born in Burlington, August 13, 1887, and ac- quired a public-school education while spending his youthful days under the parental roof. His father, George V. Holmes, now fifty- five years of age, is engaged in the express business in Burlington. The mother, who bore the maiden name of Wilhelmina Aschhoff, was born in Burlington and is now fifty years of age. They are mem- bers of the Zion German church.
Ralph F. Holmes, an only child, after pursuing the high-school course in Burlington attended Elliott's Business College and his first work was with the Rock Island Railroad, with which he remained for three years. It was after leaving that position that he took his business course and subsequently he secured a position in the office of the division superintendent of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, spending a year there. Having acted in the capacity of usher at the Grand Opera House and thinking that he would like to follow that line for a business, he applied for a position to M. S. Scovill, who was then manager of the Grand, and was taken into the office as treasurer and ticket seller. At that time the office of the Grand was the general office for the entire circuit of some twenty or more towns and all of the bookings and the auditing were done here. Mr. Holmes, as he anticipated, found the work congenial and in No- vember, 1910, he became manager. He is well known and popular, not only among the theatrical people, but in Burlington as a business man. As the manager of the Grand he has given to the city an at- tractive line of entertainments, holding to high standards in that con- nection. This is the leading theater of the city and has a seating capacity of thirteen hundred. It is beautifully equipped in every
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particular and presents the best theatrical attractions upon the road. On the 3d of September, 1910, after the opening play, "Miss Nobody of Starland," someone placed a bomb on the stage and blew up a part of the building, doing considerable damage, but fortunately no per- son was injured as this occurred after one o'clock in the morning. They never found the culprit. The work of repair was at once in- stituted and the Grand has always maintained its position as the lead- ing theatrical house of Burlington. Mr. Holmes is also at the head of the Iowa Posting Service Company, in which connection he is con- ducting a profitable and growing business.
Mr. Holmes is well known in fraternal circles as a member of the Elks, the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Moose and is fond of outdoor life as indicated by his membership in the Golf Club. He is a very energetic and enterprising young man and is meeting with well merited success in his chosen undertaking.
HON. LYMAN COOK.
There was much that was remarkable and noteworthy in the career of the Hon. Lyman Cook, one of Burlington's pioneers of the year 1840. Remarkable was his advent in this section, for he ar- rived here after a horseback ride of twenty-three days from Ohio. Remarkably small were his business beginnings and remarkably im- portant the position he attained in the financial world as president of the First National Bank. Moreover, Mr. Cook did extraordinary work in connection with railroad building, serving as a director of most of the local roads and also being one of the commission which met in Chicago in 1862 in order to organize the Union Pacific. All of these vast business interests, however, did not exhaust Mr. Cook's vitality and energy, for he yet found time to enter into political and governmental affairs and for a number of years not only held the office of mayor of Burlington during the most active days in its con- struction period but also represented his district in the state senate and served during Civil war times as commissary to provide equip- ment for the troops at the front. He was intimately associated with all of the great movements of his time within the state, and some without the state, and he was acquainted with nearly all of the great men of Iowa who made history that affected the nation.
Mr. Cook passed away October 1, 1898, in his seventy-ninth year, his birth having occurred on his father's farm in Bennington, Lick-
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ing county, Ohio, June 6, 1820. In the acquirement of an education he attended the public schools and also Denison University at Gran- ville, Ohio, from which he graduated at the age of eighteen years. He then secured a position as bookkeeper in the iron works at Zoar, Ohio, which he held for two years. In the spring of 1840 he came to Burlington, Iowa, in search of those opportunities which he was sure the middle west presented to an enterprising and ambitious young man. He made the trip from the Buckeye state on horseback and it took him twenty-three days to cover the distance. After set- tling in Burlington he engaged in the commission and produce busi-
ness for a short time and then turned his attention to the hardware trade, in which he soon associated himself with John Prugh. After Mr. Prugh's death, in 1851, John W. White bought an interest in the business, which was conducted as Cook & White until 1854. Even in this early venture along commercial lines more than ordi- nary success came to Mr. Cook, who readily demonstrated his ability to cope with conditions and situations that were entirely new to him. He could see farther into the future than many of the men around him, and his ability to grasp each opportunity that presented itself was the secret of his success.
Having accumulated some means, Mr. Cook entered the private banking business in 1854 as a member of the newly formed firm of White, Cook & Company, which successfully continued the business until 1858, when our subject formed a partnership with John M. Baxter to conduct a business along the same line. The firm of Cook & Baxter existed as such until 1861, in which year Mr. Cook suc- ceeded W. F. Coolbaugh as president of the Burlington branch of the State Bank of Iowa. He had become one of the most able finan- ciers of this part of the state, readily understanding the banking situa- tion that prevailed, and in the important position to which he was called in 1861 gathered further experience. He served as president of the local branch of the State Bank until January, 1864, when he organized the First National Bank of Burlington, of which he be- came president and which under his able management and careful control became one of the most formidable institutions of its kind within the state. While Mr. Cook would never lose sight of the great interests under his care he had a capacity for detail which was remarkable. He kept in touch with the least important of his em- ployees and was ever ready to receive valuable suggestions. The safety of the bank's deposits were his greatest care and yet he would judiciously extend credit and in that way contributed in a very large measure toward the industrial growth of Burlington. He was a rare
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judge of human nature and this ability, in combination with his long experience as a banker and business man, made it practically impos- sible for him to commit a serious error.
Lyman Cook had many other interests which were of the utmost importance in the development of the district which centers around Burlington. He was a director of the Iowa State Savings Bank; of the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad Company of Iowa; of the old Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Missouri Railway Company; and of the Burlington & Northwestern Railway Company. Mr. Cook was also a member of the commission which in 1862 met in Chicago in order to organize the Union Pacific Railway Company. From these connections and judged by the important position which he held in the financial world it is unnecessary to mention the part which he played in the history of the development of the state. He was one of those big men who did many things effectively yet quietly. Many benefits deriving from his activities are enjoyed by the present gen- eration and will be a boon to generations to come.
Apart from Mr. Cook's business career as outlined above stands his political success. He was a stalwart whig and later naturally turned to the republican party. From 1846 to 1850 he served as alderman of Burlington and in 1851 was called upon to fill the mayor's chair. He was reelected in 1852 and 1853 and, what means more, was reelected without opposition. In 1856 yet greater honors came to him when the voters of his district called upon him to repre- sent their interests in the state senate. He served until 1860 and was a force for good in the upper house of the legislative assembly. He was active in committee rooms in the interests of his constituents and from the floor of the house gave his support to important measures which found their way upon the statutes of the state. During the Civil war Governor Kirkwood appointed Mr. Cook commissary and he was particularly designated to look after the provision of equip- ment for the troops at the front. In his political life Lyman Cook came in contact with the foremost men of his time and all of them appreciated that quiet yet forceful individuality which could do so much with seemingly so little effort. His work during the days of development in the city of Burlington and during the critical times of the Civil war is not forgotten to this day.
Lyman Cook was twice married. In 1846 he wedded Miss Oc- tavia Lorrain, who died in 1856, after ten years of married life, leav- ing two children : H. T. Cook, who died in Colorado Springs, Colo- rado, in 1887; and Mary Frances, the wife of the Hon. Thomas Hedge, ex-member of congress and president of Gilbert, Hedge &
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Company of Burlington. In 1861 Mr. Cook married Mrs. Lucia St. John, who died in 1897, leaving one child, Louise, the wife of Wil- liam Carson, of Burlington. In the annals of the history of Bur- lington there can be found the names of but few men who did as much for the welfare of their city as Lyman Cook, a force in the commercial world of his day, a public servant of the most unselfish character and a builder for the future.
ERNST BOCK.
In a history of Burlington it is imperative that mention should be made of Ernst Bock, for his life record is inseparably interwoven with the annals of this city. The beauty of Crapo Park is largely attributable to his untiring energies and in various public connec- tions he largely furthered the general welfare. He was born in Silesia, Germany, on the 28th of August, 1848, a son of Joseph and Johanna (Reichelt) Bock. The mother died in Germany and in later life the father came to the new world and spent his last three years with his sons, passing away January 6, 1897, at the venerable age of eighty-one years. He was a florist and landscape gardener of high repute in his chosen calling, and he had charge of the green- houses of a German baron. In the family were five children: Joseph and Ernst, both of whom were valued and prominent citizens of Burlington but are now deceased; William, who died in this city, February 20, 1913; Anna, who died in Germany; and Oscar, who is still living in the fatherland.
Ernst Bock spent the first seventeen years of his life in his native land and then in company with his brother Joseph embarked for the new world, making his way direct to Burlington, where the two brothers joined an uncle, Jerome Bock, who was then conducting a nursery business on Madison avenue. Both were connected with the nursery and florist business throughout their entire lives. Their father had been engaged in that line and thus they acquired con- siderable knowledge of the business in youth. They spent about ten years in the employ of their uncle and during that time Ernst Bock made a trip back to Europe for the benefit of his health, which had become impaired through injuries sustained in a railroad accident. After a few months, however, he again came to the United States. In 1873 he purchased what is now the present home place of four- teen acres and for a time kept bachelor's hall, building on his land a
C
ERNST BOCK
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house of three rooms which is now a part of the present fine family residence. He embarked in the florist and nursery business on his own account and his brother Joseph later became his partner and purchased adjoining property. From the beginning their business grew and developed along substantial lines and the partnership was continued for about a decade, at the end of which time they severed their business connections, Joseph taking over the greenhouses and continuing in business as a florist, while Ernst Bock became proprie- tor of the nurseries. He engaged in the cultivation and sale of gen- eral nursery stock and in that connection built up a business of extensive proportions. Under his careful management it became one of the best enterprises of the kind in the state. As he prospered in his undertakings he made judicious investments and became one of the extensive property owners, holding a large amount of realty within the city limits, much of it being along Sunnyside avenue. His business was known as the Sunnyside Nursery-a name which be- came widely known not only in Burlington but throughout the state, for his patronage covered a wide territory.
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