USA > Iowa > Jefferson County > History of Jefferson County, Iowa, a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume II > Part 44
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FRED C. BRADSHAW.
Fred C. Bradshaw devotes his time and energies to the operation of an excellent farm of eighty-five acres, on section 4, Locust Grove township. His birth occurred in Wapello county, Iowa, on the 28th of January, 1870, his parents being William and Sarah Ann (Wright) Bradshaw, both of whom came of German ancestry. The father, a native of Tennessee, was a farmer by occupation and became one of the pioneer settlers of Jeffer- son county, Iowa. He assisted in hauling from Burlington the brick that was used in the construction of the first stores in Fairfield and also brought from Burlington, by wagon, the goods that went into these stores. His demise occurred on the 25th of July, 1892, on a farm a mile and a half
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west of Batavia. His wife had preceded him to the home beyond by sev- eral years. The record of their children is as follows: Sarah, who is de- ceased; Sylvester, who has also passed away; Wesley, who wedded Miss Jane Inman of Wapello county, Iowa, and is a gardener and mail trans- fer man of Athens, this state; Ona, who gave her hand in marriage to Joseph Ornduff, an agriculturist of Locust Grove township; Eugene, who married Miss Alice Craig of Wapello county, Iowa, and is a packing house employe of Des Moines : Ferdinand, a liveryman of Batavia, who wedded Miss Rachel Brooks; Laura, the wife of John Perry, the proprietor of a restaurant at St. Joseph, Missouri; and Fred C., of this review.
The last named attended school at Batavia and remained under the parental roof until he had attained his majority. He assisted in the opera- tion of the old homestead and during his last year at home worked on shares with his father. In 1891 he was married and during the following two years rented land from the administrator of his father's estate. Sub- sequently he purchased a farm in Wapello county, continuing to reside thereon for six years. On the expiration of that period he disposed of the property and bought a farm two miles southeast of Batavia, in Locust Grove township, whereon he also made his home for six years. In the spring of 1905 he purchased and took up his abode on a tract of eighty- five acres on section 4, Locust Grove township, where he has remained continuously since. He carries on general. farming and also raises, buys and feeds cattle, which he ships to Chicago. In the conduct of his agri- cultural interests he has won a measure of prosperity that entitles him to representation among the substantial and enterprising citizens of the community.
On the 2d of September, 1891, Mr. Bradshaw was united in marriage to Miss Maggie Copple, a daughter of William M. and Evohlena (Mar- lowe) Copple, who were born in Illinois and Tennessee respectively. The father, who comes of German ancestry, is a blacksmith by trade. He re- moved to Kansas from Illinois and was married in the Sunflower state. Coming to Iowa, he located in Mahaska county and there opened a black- smith shop. Subsequently he spent nine years in Ottumwa, Wapello county, and in 1889 came to Batavia, where he worked at his trade until seven years ago. Since the demise of his wife, which occurred in Batavia on the 27th of December, 1903, he has resided in the home of our subject. Mrs. Copple had been married twice, his first husband being Selvenes Harrington, by whom she had five children. Amanda, the only surviving child of this family, is the wife of J. M. Broherd, the foreman of a brick and tile company at Oskaloosa. At the time of the Civil war William M. Copple joined the cavalry at Eddyville, Iowa, and did guard duty there. Unto him and his wife were born five children, namely: Emma, the wife
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of John Kennedy of Mahaska county, who follows farming near Eddy- ville; Grant, who married Miss Clara Weider of Ottumwa and is a black- smith of that city, having learned the trade under the direction of his father; Viola, the wife of Ralph Gott, who is a coal miner of Center- ville, Iowa; William, a blacksmith and plumber of Ottumwa, who wedded Miss Nora Pancoast, of Batavia; and Mrs. Bradshaw. The last named became the mother of six children, as follows: Evohlena, the wife of John McDowell, a farmer of Locust Grove township, by whom she has two children, Edna Grace and James Frederick; Clara, who is the wife of Lee Odum, of Abingdon, and the mother of one child, Leo Monroe; Wil- liam Carl, who attends school at Abingdon, Iowa; a daughter who died in infancy ; and Joseph Monroe and Ralph Linton, both in school at Abingdon.
Mr. Bradshaw is a democrat in politics but not bitterly partisan, con- sidering the capability of a candidate rather than his party affiliation. Fraternally he is identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, belonging to the lodge at Abingdon. His wife is a devoted and consistent member of the Christian church at that place. They are widely and favorably known as people of genuine personal worth and many sterling traits of character and have gained an extensive circle of warm friends throughout the community.
JACOB J. KRITZLER.
Among the many foreign countries which have contributed to our citizenship and have had an invaluable influence in molding the character of our national life, none is more conspicuously represented than Ger- many. Among the brave men and earnest-minded workers that are num- bered among those who came from the fatherland Jacob J. Kritzler holds a worthy place. He was born in Frankfort-on-the-Main in the year 1831, his parents being Jacob J. and Harriet Kritzler, the former being a native of Germany and the latter of Switzerland. His father never left his native land where he served as a commissioner until his death, April 3, 1865.
Left motherless at the age of five years Jacob J. Kritzler was reared and educated in his native locality and remained at home until he was nineteen years old, when he set out for the new world, landing in New York in October, 1850. He made his way west as far as Ohio, locating in Cincinnati where he remained for a short time. He then returned to the east and lived for a time in New York city and in Brooklyn. In 1852 he went back to the old country to revisit the scenes of his childhood, Vol. II-26
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remaining four years, when he once more departed for America. He be- came a resident of Jefferson county, Iowa, in 1865, settling in Glasgow, Round Prairie township, where he conducted a tavern for nine years. He then paid a second visit to his native land but remained only a short time and on his return to Round Prairie township engaged in agriculture, acquir- ing a tract of land of one hundred and seventy acres. This he cleared and improved and cultivated with much success for many years. He is now retired, still making his home in Glasgow, however.
For a helpmate Mr. Kritzler chose Miss Charlotte Unkrich, to whom he was married in 1863. Mrs. Kritzler was born in Germany and is a daughter of John H. and Fredericka L. (Gerson) Unkrich, both natives of Germany, who immigrated to our shores in 1859. The father, who was of much consequence in his native community, was an agriculturist and had also served in the legislature. On his arrival in America he set- tled in Round Prairie township, Jefferson county, continuing the cultiva- tion of the soil on a farm of three hundred acres which he operated until his death, the following year. The mother passed away in 1876. Mr. and Mrs. Kritzler were the parents of one child, Gustave, who died Novem- ber 14, 1880, at the age of sixteen years. Fraternally Mr. Kritzler is con- nected with the Odd Fellows lodge, of Glasgow. In his political views he is a republican and served as township clerk for twenty years and for a long period as secretary of the school board. He and his wife worship in the German Reformed church. Although in his eightieth year Mr. Kritzler is in the possession of excellent health and a merry heart, enjoy- ing that peace of mind which comes after a long life spent in honest toil.
WILLIAM F. CUMMINGS.
William F. Cummings, an enterprising and successful farmer and stock- man of Buchanan township, is the owner of a tract of eighty acres of rich and productive land. He is numbered among the worthy native sons of Jefferson county, his birth having occurred in Buchanan township, on the 6th of February, 1867. His parents, Samuel A. and Maria (Case) Cum- mings, were natives of Virginia and Ohio respectively. It was in 1843 that Samuel A. Cummings came to Jefferson county, Iowa, with his parents, with whom he continued to reside until they were called to their final rest. He has been identified with general agricultural pursuits throughout his entire business career, purchasing the home farm after the death of his parents and having since been actively engaged in its further cultivation and improvement. He has now attained the ripe old age of eighty-one
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years and is well known and highly esteemed throughout the community, in which he has resided for almost seven decades. His wife passed away on the Ist of July, 1879.
William F. Cummings was reared to manhood in his native county, at- tending the district schools in the acquirement of an education. On attain- ing his majority he left the parental roof and began the operation of a rented farm, being thus engaged for four years. On the expiration of that period he purchased a tract of eighty acres in Buchanan township and began its improvement. The operation of that place has claimed his time and energies continuously since, and the well tilled fields annually yield golden harvests as a reward for the care and labor which he bestows upon them. In addition to the production of cereals he devotes consider- able attention to stock, raising forty head of hogs each year and keeping twenty head of cattle and eight head of horses.
On the 27th of November, 1895, Mr. Cummings was united in marriage to Miss Alva E. Barnes, a daughter of John C. and Sarah (Marshall) Barnes, both of whom are natives of Pennsylvania. The father, an agri- culturist by occupation, came to Jefferson county at an early day, purchased and improved a farm and continued its operation until 1895. In that year he disposed of the property and removed to Fairfield, where both he and his wife still reside. To Mr. and Mrs. William F. Cummings has been born a son, Charles L., who is now thirteen years of age.
Mr. Cummings is a republican in his political views and is now serving in the capacity of township trustee. Fraternally he is identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, belonging to the lodge at Fairfield, Iowa. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Presby- terian church, to which his wife also belongs. He has remained a resident of Jefferson county from his birth to the present time and enjoys an ex- tensive and favorable acquaintance within its borders.
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CLARENCE JUDSON LEECH.
For more than thirteen years Clarence Judson Leech has been engaged in general farming and stock-raising on a one hundred and twenty acre tract, on section 12, Black Hawk township. Iowa has always been the home of Mr. Leech, whose birth occurred in Richland, Keokuk county, on February 27, 1868, his parents being John and Maria (Wooley) Leech. The father, who was of Scotch extraction, was born in Ohio, where he learned and in his early manhood followed the blacksmith's trade, but later took up farming. With his wife and family he removed to Jefferson
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county in 1870, buying a farm in Black Hawk township, a mile east of District No. I school. After residing there for twenty-seven years he went to Clark, Iowa, where he lived for two years. At the expiration of that time he returned to Black Hawk township, settling on the farm adjoin- ing the one now owned by his son Clarence on the west. He lived there for four years then went to Osceola. Iowa. thence to Wyoming, locating at Sheridan, where he passed away on the 13th of July. 1910. The mother died in 1887, while the family were living in Black Hawk township.
Clarence Judson Leech in the acquirement of an education mastered the studies usually taught in the district schools. Before completing the course he became associated with his father in the operation of the home farm on a percentage basis, thus acquiring not only a thorough under- standing of agricultural but of business methods. well qualifying him for the practical duties of life. As he was ambitious, it was his desire to own property and with this end in, view he saved his earnings and in 1898 bought eighty acres of land that formed the nucleus of his present home- stead. He subsequently extended the boundaries of his farm by the addi- tion of another forty that he bought from his father. During the period of his ownership he has greatly added to the value of his property by the addition of many conveniences and facilities that bespeak a spirit of prog- ress and enterprise. Here he engages in general farming and in connec- tion with the cultivation of his fields. makes a specialty of raising stock. that he feeds for the market. Both lines have proven very remunerative under his capable direction as is manifested by the general appearance of his place. He is one of the active and highly energetic men of the com- munity and has brought his fields into a high state of cultivation, that an- nually yield him goodly dividends on the labor expended.
Pleasant Plain was the scene of the marriage of Mr. Leech, on the 21st of December, 1892, to Miss Mary L. Orr, a daughter of Robert and Sarah (Harkens) Orr. The father was a butcher by trade and was for many years engaged in business in Pleasant Plain, where he passed away in 1897. The mother is still living and continues to make her home in Pleas- ant Plain. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Leech there has been born one daugh- ter. Nellie M., who is seventeen years of age and a student in the Rich- land high school.
The family are Methodist in faith and hold membership in the McDowell chapel at Penn township. Fraternally Mr. Leech is an Odd Fellow, belonging to the lodge at Richland, while his wife is a member of the Rebekahs, also of Richland. Although a republican in his political views, Mr. Leech, on all-save national issues-votes for the man he deems most likely to give the people efficient service. He has never taken an active interest in township affairs, as he does not aspire to official honors, pre-
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ferring to give his undivided attention to his agricultural pursuits. Suc- cess is crowning his efforts and throughout the community, where he has spent practically his entire life, he is held in high esteem by reason of the upright and honorable principles that have actuated him in all of his rela- tions of life.
O. F. FRYER.
O. F. Fryer, cashier of the Iowa State Savings Bank, has always been a resident of Jefferson county and has therefore witnessed much of the growth and development of this section of the state. In later years he has borne his part in the work of public progress and has not only made for himself a creditable position in the financial world but is also popular and prominent in social and business circles. He was born in Black Hawk township, Jefferson county, August 17, 1870, and represents one of the oldest families of this part of the state. His parents were Elias and Sarah J. (Edwards) Fryer, the former born in Kentucky, December 25. 1819. and the latter in Tennessee, March 15, 1830. They were married in the latter state, March 19, 1846, and in 1852 came to Iowa, settling first in Van Buren county, but in 1857 took up their abode in Jefferson county, where they lived until called to their final rest. The father's death occurred March 28. 1874, when he was fifty-four years of age, the mother passing away on the 19th of March, 1892, when sixty-two years of age. Elias Fryer had made farming his life work and won success in his chosen occupation. Moreover, he was a public-spirited citizen, giving his coopera- tion to many movements for the general good. The Methodist Episcopal church found in him a helpful member and the democratic party a loyal supporter. To him and his wife were born eleven children, of whom one died in infancy, while two daughters passed away in early life. The others reached years of maturity and those now living are : J. S., of Clyde, Kansas ; J. W., of St. Charles. Iowa: W. E., of Long Beach, California; Isa, the wife of W. H. Chandler, of Goodland, Kansas: and O. F., who is the youngest of the entire family.
The Fryer farm was situated northwest of Fairfield and thereon O. F. Fryer remained until he reached the age of twenty-two years, aiding in the task of developing the fields when not occupied with his school books. He supplemented his early education by study in a business college and afterward engaged in clerking for one winter in Shannon City. Iowa. He entered the field of merchandising on his own account at Packwood, this county, but after eight months the town was practically destroyed by fire.
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Mr. Fryer was afterward associated with his two brothers, J. S. and W. E., in a mercantile enterprise at Hedrick, Iowa, under the style of Fryer Brothers, for two years. It was during that period that he was married, on the 12th of September, 1894, to Miss Lulu E. Roth, a native of Black Hawk township, this county, born April 15, 1875, and a daughter of Peter H. Roth, of Fairfield. A year after his marriage Mr. Fryer returned to Packwood and again entered the mercantile business at that place, where he remained until the fall of 1900. He then turned his attention to the banking business and became cashier of the Farmers Savings Bank of Packwood, with which he was connected until the fall of 1905. He came to Fairfield as assistant cashier of the Iowa State Savings Bank, and after two years was promoted to the position of cashier, which he now fills, also serving as one of the directors of the bank. His previous business training and experience qualified him for the responsibilities of banking and as one of the officers of the institution he advocates and holds to a safe, conservative policy, which, however, is not antagonistic to progress. In addition to his stock in the bank he owns a farm of one hundred and eighty-two acres, adjoining the city of Fairfield on the east, and other farm- ing interests which return him a substantial annual income.
Mr. and Mrs. Fryer have an only child, Laird Maurice. They are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and Mr. Fryer belongs to the Knights of Pythias. He is treasurer, secretary and one of the trustees of the new Armory C, likewise a director of the Fairfield Chautauqua Asso- ciation and is recognized as a man of. progressive spirit and alive to the best interests of the community, his cooperation being given to various movements which tend to promote the material, intellectual, social and moral progress of the city. He is loyal in his friendships, true in his pur- poses and his enthusiasm is contagious.
WILL A. FULTON.
The name Fulton is held in high regard among the farmers of Jef- ferson county since three generations have contributed to the agricultural growth and development in this section of the state. Will A. Fulton rep- resenting the third generation was born February 20, 1862, on the farm on section 15, Des Moines township, Jefferson county, Iowa, where his brother Joseph W. Fulton, Jr., now resides. He was a son of Joseph W. and Sarah E. (Minear) Fulton. His father was a native of Delaware county, Ohio, and was descended from Scotch-Irish ancestry ; his mother was born near Chillicothe, Ohio, being of German descent. Joseph W.
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Fulton, Sr., was a farmer and accompanied his parents to Jefferson county, Iowa, where they settled one mile west of Fairfield, in 1843. He removed to Des Moines township after his marriage, in 1858, establishing his home on a farm, which he operated until 1888 when he removed to a farm one mile west of Fairfield. There he lived during the remainder of his life, traveling extensively until his death August 7, 1904, which occurred at the home of his son, Charles J. Fulton. His wife died on the farm west of Fairfield, January 1, 1900.
After completing a course in the fundamental branches taught in the district schools of Des Moines township, Will A. Fulton attended high school at Fairfield, Iowa, and at the close of his school career remained with his parents, assisting in the work about the farm. In 1887, when twenty-five years of age, he wedded Miss Laura L. Littlefield and estab- lished his home on a farm of eighty acres that came from the estate of his grandfather and was located on section 15, Des Moines township, Jeffer- son county. This land he set about improving, adding to it in 1890 by the purchase of twenty additional acres and in 1907 by another purchase of eighty acres. On this farm he has lived ever since with the exception of three years during which he was engaged in the implement business in Libertyville, Iowa.
The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Fulton occurred May 22, 1887. Mrs. Fulton was a daughter of W. C. and Emeline (Parkhurst) Littlefield. Her father was a native of Maine, being of Yankee parentage ; her mother, born in Indiana, was of German descent. Mr. Littlefield, who was a farmer, came to Iowa before the Civil War and bought a farm near Eldon, where he followed his calling until his wife's death in 1886 when he with- drew from his farm and made his home with his children. In 1901 he met with a tragic death. Returning home after attending the Decoration Day exercises held at Batavia, Iowa, in the afternoon, he was struck by a Peavine train and injured so seriously that he succumbed in the doctor's office a short time after. Mr. Littlefield was the father of the following children : W. A. Littlefield, a farmer of Wapello county, is living near Eldon, Iowa. Mary Frances is married to Charles Nowell, a stationary engineer in Chicago. Mrs. Fulton is the wife of the subject of this biography. Alice Belle, who was the wife of Isaac Fisher living near Eldon, is deceased. John S. Littlefield is a farmer in Kansas.
By her marriage Mrs. Fulton became the mother of three children. Frank is an assistant cashier in the Libertyville Savings Bank ; Edgar died when seven years of age; Dwight is at home on the farm. In his political views Mr. Fulton is a republican giving loyal support to the men and measures of the party. He has served as member of the school board of district No. 8, Des Moines township for several years. He is a member
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of the Emmett Lodge I. O. O. F., of Libertyville, Iowa, to which organiza- tion his son Frank also belongs. Mr. and Mrs. Fulton are both actively interested in the Phoenix Lodge of Rebekahs, of Libertyville, and through their fraternal connections as well as their encouragement of sociability and neighborliness in their community have won for themselves a large circle of friends.
JOHN F. READY.
John F. Ready is filling the position of county attorney of Jefferson county and is recognized as a prominent figure in democratic circles in this part of the state. In the practice of law he has made steady advancement and the ability which he has displayed in the office that he now fills has won for him the commendation of representatives of the legal fraternity and of the general public. Fairfield numbers him among her native sons, his birth having here occurred on the 14th of November, 1872. His parents, Patrick and Mary (Collins) Ready, were both natives of Milltown, County Clare, Ireland. The mother came to the United States in 1861 when about twenty years of age, Mr. Ready having made the trip several years before. He was in the regiment that was en route for the front and which Mrs. Ready saw as it marched near the dock where she landed. He had enlisted as a member of the Fifty-first New York Infantry and served until hon- orably discharged on account of disability, his elbow having been shot off. Following the close of his military service he met and married Miss Mary Collins, the wedding being celebrated in Syracuse, New York. On their removal westward they first located in Chicago but after about a year came to Fairfield, arriving in 1866 or 1867. The father was killed, August 28, 1888, in a railroad wreck, and the mother still survives in Fairfield. In their family were three children: Morris, who was burned to death when two years of age; John F .; and W. J., at home with his mother.
Throughout his entire life John F. Ready has resided in Fairfield and after attending the public schools entered the Christian Brothers College in St. Joseph, Missouri, from which he was graduated in June, 1892. He pursued the study of law in Drake University at Des Moines, completing a course in the law department in 1896, and in May of the same year took the examination before the supreme court whereby he was admitted to prac- tice. In the meantime he had been employed in all of the printing offices of Fairfield, starting in the business world in the Journal office. He had devoted about eight years to the printing business and the money which he saved from his labors enabled him to complete his literary preparation and
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