History of Hamilton County, Iowa, Volume II, Part 4

Author: Lee, Jesse W., 1868-; S.J. Clarke Publishing Company
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago : S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 512


USA > Iowa > Hamilton County > History of Hamilton County, Iowa, Volume II > Part 4


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38


In February, 1864, occurred the marriage of Mr. Young and Miss Mary J. McFarland, a daughter of Moses and Mary (Eaton) Mc- Farland, of Hancock county, Maine. Her father was a ship carpen- ter and took part in the Aroostook war in Maine, being captain of his company and receiving from the government in addition to his pay a grant of land in Iowa, which he converted into money. Ken- dall Young, however, who was in the same company, retained his allotment of land, which in time proved to be very valuable and is


Vol. II-3


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now the property of the library board according to the terms of the will which he left. Mr. and Mrs. F. D. Young became the parents of three children. Arletta, who married W. F. Hunter, of Webster City, died in 1891. Elvin A., born January 22, 1872, married Esther Welch and now resides in Kansas City, Missouri, being editor of the Kansas City Weekly Journal. During the Spanish-American war he served as a member of the Fifty-sixth Iowa Volunteers. Alene, born June II, 1884, is the wife of Max Whitacre, formerly of New Sharon, Iowa, but now of Des Moines, where he is connected with the Des Moines Bridge & Iron Company. They have one daughter.


Mr. and Mrs. Young make their home at No. 1201 Des Moines street. Mr. Young figured for many years as a prominent business man. He did not allow commercial pursuits to monopolize his time to the exclusion of all other interests and duties. He was at one time captain of Company C of the Sixth Iowa National Guard, now the Fifty-sixth Regiment. He has been very prominent in fraternal circles, holding membership in Acacia Lodge, No. 176, F. & A. M .; Hope Chapter, No. 88, R. A. M .; and Triune Commandery, No. 4I, K. T. He is a past master of the lodge, past high priest of the chapter, and past eminent commander of the commandery. He is also a member of Elmo Lodge, No. 62, I. O. O. F., in which he has passed through all the chairs. He belongs to the Country Club and is one of Webster City's valued and esteemed residents who for thirty- eight years has made his home here and throughout the entire period has enjoyed the good-will and confidence of his fellow towns- men. His has been a well spent life in which activity and enterprise have led the way to prosperity.


OLE O. EITTREIM, JR.


Ole O. Eittreim, Jr., of the firm of Hanson, Eittreim Company, is regarded as one of the leading business men and foremost citizens of Ellsworth, where he is now serving his third term as mayor. He is a native of Norway, his birth having occurred on the 4th of March, 1868, and a son of Ole O. and Martha Eittreim. The parents, who were born, reared and married in the Norseland, came to America in 1868, locating in Illinois. Two years later they continued their jour- ney westward to Hamilton county, where the father farmed as a renter until 1876, when he bought one hundred and twenty acres of


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land in Lincoln township. He is still actively engaged in the culti- vation and improvement of this property, although he has now at- tained the age of seventy-two years, while the mother is sixty-eight.


Ole O. Eittreim, Jr., was only an infant when he accompanied his parents on their removal to the United States, and a child of two years when they located in Iowa. He was reared at home and at the usual age began his education in the common schools of this county, and completed it in the seminary at Redwing, Minnesota. Upon ter- minating his student days he engaged in teaching for two seasons and then accepted a clerkship in a general mercantile store at Radcliffe, Iowa. He continued in that employ for ten years, at the expiration of which time he resigned his position and came to Ellsworth. Here he became associated with H. L. Hanson and others in establishing the mercantile business now conducted under the firm name of the Hanson, Eittreim Company. They carry a large and well assorted stock of general merchandise, which they offer at reasonable prices, and are accorded a good patronage. The members of the firm are enterprising and progressive men and in the conduct of their business have adopted a policy which commends them to the confidence of all with whom they have dealings.


In April, 1892, Mr. Eittreim was married to Miss Celia Digerness, a daughter of A. J. and Mary Digerness, natives of Norway, and they have become the parents of three children, Oren, Myrtle and Ernest. The family affiliate with the Norwegian Lutheran church, in the faith of which Mr. and Mrs. Eittreim were reared. In politics he is a republican and is now serving his third term as mayor and he has also been a member of the council. He is highly esteemed in the community, where he has proven faithful to every trust reposed in him either in public or private life, manifesting the same promptness and efficiency in the discharge of his official duties as he exhibits in the direction of his private interests.


JAMES BRICKER TEDROW, M. D.


Dr. James Bricker Tedrow has been engaged in the practice of medicine in Williams for twenty-six years, and has the distinction of ranking first in years of continuous practice among the medical fra- ternity of Hamilton county. He was born in Somerset county, Penn- sylvania, on the 20th of May, 1856, and is a son of Jonas and Catha-


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rine (Long) Tedrow. The parents were also natives of the Keystone state, where they passed their entire lives, their deaths occurring at Glade, Somerset county. Ten children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Jonas Tedrow, as follows: Norman, deceased; Louisa, the wife of Franklin Hechler, deceased, of Somerset county, Pennsylvania; Si- mon and Savilla, also residents of Somerset county; William, on whom had been conferred the degree of Doctor of Divinity, and who held the pastorate of the English Lutheran church at Kalamazoo, Michigan, at the time of his death, which occurred February 10, 191I ; James B., the subject of this review; Lizzie, who died at Omaha, Ne- braska, February 21, 1908, the deceased wife of Milton Hamilton; Mary, who died at the age of ten years; Charlie, who is residing on the old homestead in Somerset county, Pennsylvania; and Bertha, who died in Omaha, Nebraska, February 21, 1908, the deceased wife of Edward F. Dodder. They were all born and reared in Somerset county, Pennsylvania.


The early years in the life of Dr. Tedrow were passed on the old family farm in Somerset county, and at the usual age he began his education in the common schools. He subsequently entered Mount Union College at Mount Union, Ohio, from which institution he was graduated in 1882. In considering the choice of a life vocation, he decided in favor of the medical profession, and later matriculated in the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, where he pursued his pro- fessional studies. On July 1, 1886, he was graduated with the degree of M. D. and in September of that year he came to Williams and es- tablished an office, which he has ever since maintained. Dr. Tedrow was given the advantages of a most excellent course, and in addition to his thorough preparation brought to his assistance the inherent ability and personality so essential in this of all professions. As a re- sult he has met with success and has built up a large and lucrative practice, that extends throughout the surrounding country, and to the neighboring towns.


On the 4th of June, 1890, Dr. Tedrow was married to Miss Nettie Dalbcy, who was born at Olin, Jones county, this state, on the 5th of March, 1870, and is a daughter of Jasper and Catharine (Klise) Dal- bey. The parents were both natives of Ohio, the father having been born at Athens, Athens county, on April 29, 1832, and the mother in Richland county, on September 28, 1843. They were among the early settlers of Jones county, where the father was successfully iden- tified with both agricultural and business interests, becoming one of the foremost citizens of that vicinity. He has long been living re-


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tired and now spends his summers in Iowa and his winters at Jen- nings, Louisiana. The mother, however, is deceased, having passed away in Kansas, January 13, 1895. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Dal- bey numbered five: Alice, who was born on August 5, 1862, the wife of Dr. F. W. Port, of Olin, Iowa; Carrie, whose birth occurred on the 19th of March, 1864, the deceased wife of Luther C. Brock, of Alden, Iowa; Mrs. Tedrow; Lucien, whose natal day was July 31, 1871, a resident of Jennings, Louisiana; and Laura May, who was born on May 5, 1873, and died at the age of three months. They were all born in Iowa and reared at Olin. Dr. and Mrs. Tedrow have one son, Claire DeWitt, who was born at Williams, December 10, 1891. He was graduated from the high school with the class of 1908 and .spent the following year in the Cedar Rapids Business College, and is now a student of Iowa College at Grinnell.


Fraternally Dr. Tedrow is affiliated with the Knights of Pythias, belonging to the lodge at Alden, and he also belongs to the Mystic Workers and Williams Camp, No. 1844, M. W. A. He maintains relations with his fellow practitioners through the medium of his membership in the Hamilton County and Iowa State Medical So- cieties and the American Medical Association. He gives his political support to the republican party, and has served with efficiency both as city clerk and county coroner, during the period of his residence in Williams. In matters of citizenship he is public-spirited and enter- prising and takes an active interest in every movement that will for- ward the intellectual, moral or social welfare of the community.


J. W. LEE.


Jesse W. Lee was born in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, July 16, 1868. He was the eldest son of F. Q. and Alice E. Lee, and he was five years of age when his father and mother settled in Webster City. He received his education in the public schools of Webster City and graduated from the high school in 1886. He then entered the Graphic office with his father and for six years per- formed the duties of compositor, job printer, business manager and assistant editor on the Graphic. In 1893, he commenced the study of law in the office of A. N. Boeye. Later he formed a partnership with H. G. Culp and the firm of Culp & Lee con- ducted an extensive real-estate and loan business until 1896 when


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H. G. Culp died. Mr. Lee was admitted to practice law by the supreme court of Iowa in 1896 and except during a year when he was in partnership with Rube McFerren, has conducted his business alone.


J. W. Lee enlisted as a private in Company C, Sixth Regiment Iowa National Guard, in 1888. He was advanced in rank to corporal, then second lieutenant, then first lieutenant and in 1895 was commissioned captain of his company. On May 25, 1898, he was mustered into the service of the United States as Captain of Company C, Fifty-second Regiment of Iowa Infantry Volunteers and served in this capacity through the Spanish- American war. On the reorganization of the National Guard after the close of the Spanish war, he was again elected captain of Company C, Fifty-sixth Regiment, and in June, 1899, was promoted major. He retired from military service in 1904, after serving sixteen years.


On November 19, 1890, Mr. Lee was married to Hattie E. Howell, daughter of William and Elizabeth (Eyer) Howell and on August 16, 1892, was born to them a daughter, Grace, their only child. Mr. and Mrs. Lee reside at 934 Boone street, Web- ster City, Iowa.


FLAVIUS QUINCY LEE.


Flavius Quincy Lee was born in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, in 1845. He was a son of Daniel and Mariah (Ruley) Lee. He spent his boyhood days on his father's farm. His education was ยท received at the public schools of Tuscarawas county, supple- mented by a course at an academy. When a young man, he taught school for a while, then studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1869. In 1866 he was married to Alice E. Hughes, the daughter of Elza and Mary Hughes of Tuscarawas county, and to Quincy and Alice Lee were born seven children, Jesse W., Ira Arthur, Albert Enos, John Quincy, Nora, Laura and Daniel.


F. Q. Lee moved to Iowa in 1872. He first settled in Clarion, Wright county, when he commenced the practice of law, but in 1873, moved to Webster City and formed a partnership with Judge N. B. Hyatt. The firm of Hyatt & Lee dissolved in 1876,


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after which he was associated in business with George Patton, later with James A. Snodgrass and later still with J. M. Blake. In 1882 he purchased the Webster City Advertiser and edited the paper for about eighteen months, when he sold it to George W. Shaeffer. In 1886 he bought the Webster City Graphic of Captain George W. Bell and abandoned his law practice and gave his entire time to editorial work in which he took keen delight. While editing the Graphic, he wrote a history of Ham- ilton county, which was published in serial form in his paper. In 1890, his health began to fail and in 1892 he sold the Graphic and a year later moved to Hammond, Louisiana, in hope of regain- ing his health. While living there he founded the Hammond Graphic, which he conducted until the time of his death. He died in April, 1894, at the age of forty-nine years. At the time of his death, J. D. Hunter in the Webster City Freeman, paid him the following tribute :


"Brother F. Q. Lee has gone the way of all the earth. He was a man of generous impulses and sincere convictions. He worked when other men, with such bodily afflictions, would have quit in despair. He loved contention for the truth's sake as he measured it, and never skulked when duty called. The Freeman had many a bout with him on political questions; always found him able, argumentative and sincere, manly, outspoken and courteous. He was zealous in enhancing the interests of his town and the promotion of the public weal. He wanted to do right in all things, and his daily work and conversation was that of a good man. To those who are left to mourn the death of husband and father, his memory will be a perpetual benediction, and in their hour of affliction and sorrow they will have the deep sympathy of the entire community in which he lived so long, and in which every man was a brother and friend. 'Good friend, kind heart, hail and farewell.'"


JOHN FREDERICK BERNARD SVENSON.


John F. B. Svenson, a photographer of recognized ability in Webster City, has since August, 1904, conducted a studio at No. 802 Des Moines street. His birth occurred in Holstein, Germany, on the 17th of June, 1874, his parents being John Peter and Chris-


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tine (Berlin) Svenson. He was educated in the schools of the fatherland and there studied photography for four years. In 1903, when a young man of twenty-nine years, he emigrated to the United States, remaining for seven months in New York, where he was connected with Professor Smith in the West Hoboken Art Company. Subsequently he came to Webster City, Iowa, and in August, 1904, here embarked in business as a plio- tographer, remaining a representative of that art to the present time. His brother was for a short period associated with him. He gained a thorough knowledge of photography in his native land and enjoys an enviable reputation as a painstaking artist, who carefully studies his subject so that pose and expression may be natural.


In 1909. while on a trip to Europe, Mr. Svenson was united in marriage to Miss Martha Sarcy, a daughter of Leon Sarcy, of Paris, France. Mr. Svenson has become widely known by reason of his artistic ability and both he and his wife are welcomed in social circles as people of worth and culture.


JOHN E. QUACKENBUSH.


John E. Quackenbush, who is well and prominently known as a contractor and engineer of Webster City, has devoted practically his entire life to the profession of civil and mechanical engineering. His birth occurred in Schuylerville, Saratoga county, New York, on the 16th of December, 1850, his parents being James C. and Mary J. (Shaw) Quackenbush. The father, a farmer by occupation, removed with his family to Butler county, Iowa, in 1856, and in 1870 came to Hamilton county, here spending the remainder of his life. The mother of our subject also died in this county, passing away at the age of seventy-four years.


John E. Quackenbush obtained his education in the schools of Butler and Hamilton counties and when still but a boy began assisting his father in the work of the home farm. He also commenced the study of engineering in the field and when a youth of sixteen entered the service of the firm of Ainsworth, Bradley & Brown, the chief engineers for the Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, now part of the Illinois Central Railroad. In 1866-67 he was a member of the survey- ing crew which ran the survey through Hamilton county in the inter-


JOHN E. QUACKENBUSH


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ests of the Dubuque & Sioux City Railroad, which was built in 1869. Mr. Quackenbush has always been actively at work and practically his entire life has been devoted to civil and mechanical engineering. He has been engaged principally in the building of bridges, and his serv- ices have been in demand not only throughout Hamilton county and the state of Iowa but also in Nebraska, North and South Dakota and Minnesota. In addition to the construction of highway and railroad bridges he has also erected many structures throughout the same territory. He served as county surveyor and engineer of Hamilton county for about six years and has long enjoyed an enviable reputa- tion as a prominent and able representative of his profession. He is a director of the Webster City Savings Bank and likewise owns con- siderable farm land.


On the 14th of June, 1879, Mr. Quackenbush was united in mar- riage to Miss Sarah A. Boak, her parents being Wesley and Saman- tha Boak of Hamilton county, Iowa, formerly of Tennessee. Wesley Boak passed away in 1900 but his widow still resides in Webster City. Our subject and his wife have one daughter, Lorene Madeline, who is the wife of Dr. F. F. Hall and resides in Webster City. Mr. and Mrs. Quackenbush live in a beautiful home at No. 1600 Willson avenue.


The former is a worthy exemplar of the Masonic fraternity, be- ing a member of Acacia Lodge, No. 176, F. & A. M .; Hope Chapter, . No. 88, R. A. M .; Triune Commandery, No. 41, K. T .; and Sharon Chapter, No. 148, O. E. S. High and manly principles have char- acterized his entire life, winning for him a creditable position in the regard of his fellowmen. Without special advantages at the outset of his career, he has gained an enviable position in his chosen field of endeavor and is, moreover, recognized as a valued resident of Web- ster City.


ANDREW J. BARR.


Andrew J. Barr, a retired agriculturist residing in Webster City, has lived within the borders of Hamilton county for the past forty-five years and was long identified with its farming interests. His birth occurred in Logan county, Illinois, on the 15th of Sep- tember, 1833, his parents being Thomas and Elsie (Watt) Barr. The maternal grandfather of our subject was a Methodist min-


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ister. Thomas Barr, the father of Andrew J. Barr, followed farming in Illinois throughout his active business career.


Such education as Andrew J. Barr received in his youthful years was acquired during a few short periods at school and through his own efforts while working on his father's farn. In later years, however, he continually augmented his knowledge through reading, experience and observation. He worked on his father's farm until twenty years of age, when he was married and started out as an agriculturist on his own account in Illinois. In 1856, with his wife and two children, he drove from Logan county, that state, to Minnesota, the trip consuming twenty-one days. He lived there for fourteen years, engaged in general agricultural pursuits. On February 18, 1863, he enlisted for service in the Union army as a member of Company C, Sixth Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, remaining with that command until the close of the war. He was assigned to many duties of trust, traveling between the regiment in the field and northern points, and was engaged at various times to assist in the exchange of prisoners between Camp Douglas and Richmond, Virginia. After the cessation of hostilities between the north and south he returned to Minnesota, where his wife had continued the operation of their farm, keeping the land productive during his absence and ably caring for the crops. Minnesota was at that time infested with marauding bands of Indians, many of whom frequently visited Mrs. Barr while her husband was at the front with the boys in blue. Nevertheless she bravely continued her work and cared for her children, and not only attended to the cultivation and harvesting of crops but cared for the stock and drove to town by ox team whenever her business required. On disposing of his Minnesota property Mr. Barr came to Hamilton county, Iowa, and purchased a farm in Freedom township, in the cultivation of which he was actively engaged until 1887. In that year he bought property and took up his abode in Webster City, continuing to supervise the operation of his farm, however, until a few years ago. He is now living retired, enjoying the fruits of his former toil in well earned ease.


Mr. Barr married Miss Catherine Elizabeth Hoffman, her parents being John and Catherine D. (Maricle) Hoffman, of Mechanicsburg, Ohio, the former a cooper by trade. They were born, reared and married in Maryland and later removed to Virginia, their daughter Catherine being born in Frederick


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county, that state, in 1835. In the early '50s John Hoffman liberated his slaves and removed to Ohio, where he spent the remainder of his life. Mr. and Mrs. Barr became the parents of six children and they now have seventeen grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Elsie C., who was born in 1854, gave her hand in marriage to Horace Robinson and resides in Story county, Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Robinson have seven children and four grandchildren, as follows: Nellie, who is married and has two children ; Benjamin, who is married and has one child; Maude; James : Blanche ; Hallis, who is married and has one child; and Eva. . John T. Barr, whose birth occurred in Illinois in 1856, married Miss Ann Beightol and resides near Homer, Hamilton county, Iowa. He now has four children and one grandchild : Grace, who is married and has one child; Earl; Elsie ; and Gay. Martha gave her hand in marriage to William Meeks and lives six miles east of Webster City. Mr. and Mrs. Meeks have four children and two grandchildren, namely: Grace, who is married and has one child; Merl; Ethel, who is the mother of one son; and Florence. William Marion, who wedded Martha De France, is a hotel proprietor of Brunswick, Nebraska. He has two chil- dren and two grandchildren: Ettie; and May, who is the mother of two daughters. Lafayette Barr passed away when but five years of age. Angie Barr died when seventeen montlis old. Andrew J. Barr and his wife were married when still very young -at the ages of twenty and eighteen years respectively. Their married life has been an ideal and happy one, their mutual love and confidence increasing as the years have gone by. During the early days of struggle and hardship they never lost faith in each other nor in God, and their earnest labors have been blest and rewarded, not only in worldly goods, but also in a large and happy family of children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. They reside at No. 929 Bank street in Webster City.


Since 1850, or for the past sixty-two years, Mr. Barr has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. From 1862 until 1892 he was actively identified with the Sunday school as superin- tendent and general worker. He belongs to Winfield Scott Post, No. 66, G. A. R., and served as its chaplain from 1901 until 1911. The Barr family came originally from the north of Ireland, and Mr. Barr numbers among his valued possessions a bible, printed in 1698, which was brought from that country by one of his ancestors. Andrew J. Barr had the distinction of being the oldest


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representative of his family at a reunion held in the fall of 1911 at Waynesville, Dewitt county, Illinois, where more than five hundred of the name gathered together. He has now passed the seventy-ninth milestone on life's journey and his career has ever been such that he can look back over the past without regret and forward to the future without fear.


EDWARD ACKLEY.


One of the most successful general farmers and stock-raisers in Hamilton county is Edward Ackley, who brings to the culti- vation of the soil a personal experience in practical methods of agriculture, which has enabled him to develop from a tract of raw prairie land a fertile and productive farm. His land com- prises one hundred and sixty acres and is situated on section 10, Liberty township. Mr. Ackley has his property in excellent con- dition. He was born in Fulton county, Ohio, on May 17, 1854, and is a son of Calvin and Gertrude (Walker) Ackley, the former a native of New York, born May 1, 1815, and the latter of New Jersey. Calvin Ackley went to Fulton county, Ohio, from his native state and was numbered among the pioneers in that sec- tion. He cultivated the soil and was successful in agricultura! pursuits until his death on February 1, 1906. His wife passed away in Ohio when our subject was four years of age. To their union five children were born: Leman, who resides in Hastings, Nebraska: Dr. Winfield, a practicing physician of Juniata, Nebraska ; Mrs. Ella Acker, of Fayette, Ohio; Edward, the sub- ject of this sketch; and Mrs. Josephine Snow, also a resident of Fayette. All the children born to Mr. and Mrs. Ackley were reared and educated in Ohio.




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