USA > Iowa > Madison County > History of Madison County, Iowa, and its people, Volume II > Part 10
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John M. Walton was reared and educated in this county, attending the district schools and the public schools of Earlham. He remained with his mother and stepfather until he was eighteen years of age and then began work as a farm hand. He was so occupied for five years, but at the end of that time, in connec- tion with a brother, assumed the management of the hotel at Earlham. After one year, however, our subject went to Adair county, Iowa, and for three years rented land there. Upon his return to Madison county he rented a farm, which he operated for two years. By the end of that time he had saved enough to enable him to purchase seventy-six acres of land on section 4, Madison township. He has since concentrated his energies upon the development of his place, the production of grain and the raising of live stock. He feeds about sixty head of cattle a year ; also keeps something over one hundred head of sheep; and raises high grade hogs. He is thoroughly familiar with the principles underlying agriculture and,. as he is progressive in his methods and uses up-to-date machinery, his labor is rewarded by excellent crops.
Mr. Walton was married on the 23d of January, 1900, to Miss Ella Belle Fry, a daughter of Benjamin F. and Martha J. (Boyd) Fry, natives of Virginia and Ohio respectively. Mr. Fry was a farmer by occupation and in 1867, when a young man of twenty-one years, came to Madison county. He worked as a farm hand for three years and then rented land for six years, after which he went to Adair county and purchased eighty acres. He operated that place for thirty
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years, or until the demise of his wife, after which he retired from active life and is now making his home with our subject. Mrs. Fry died on the 29th of August, 1901, after an eleven days' illness. Mr. and Mrs. Walton have a son, Paul Otis, ten years of age.
Mr. Walton is a republican and has served as treasurer of the school board for three years, doing much in that time to further the best interests of the pub- lic schools. He is a member of the Friends church and his daily life bears witness to the sincerity of his faith. All who have had dealings with him know him to be a man of strict integrity and honor, and those who have been admitted to his close friendship entertain for him the warmest regard.
MISS CARRIE E. LUDLOW.
Madison county has certainly given evidence of appreciation on the part of her citizens of the capability of her women as factors in public life, as several of the public offices are filled by women who have won high encomiums through the capability with which they have discharged the important duties de- volving upon them. In this connection Miss Carrie E. Ludlow is well known, being county superintendent of schools. She was born in Winterset, September 3, 1875, a daughter of William O. and Eliza A. (Fuller ) Ludlow. The father was born near Muscatine, Iowa, in 1840, and when about sixteen years of age came to Madison county with his parents, Benjamin and Rachel (Adkison) Ludlow, who were natives of Ohio and Indiana respectively. They were married in the latter state and became pioneer residents of Iowa. They cast in their lot with the early settlers of Madison county and Benjamin Ludlow purchased government land in Lincoln township, where he spent the remainder of his days. Both he and his wife have long since passed away. They bore an active and helpful part in the early development of the county and contributed to its progress along agri- cultural lines.
William O. Ludlow was reared upon the home farm and assisted his father in its cultivation until 1861, when he enlisted as a member of Company D, First Iowa Cavalry. He was with that command all through the war, being on active duty in Missouri, Tennessee, Texas and Arkansas, during which time he par- ticipated in a number of hotly contested engagements, and by his bravery and loyalty proved his unfaltering allegiance to the Union cause. After the war he returned to his farm in this county and successfully, engaged in its cultivation until he was called to the office of sheriff, being elected in 1873 on the republican ticket. He served for one term, and it was while he was acting in that capacity that the courthouse was destroyed by fire. On his retirement from office he engaged in the livery business with John Taylor, continuing along that line until 1878, when he removed to Fontanelle, Adair county, Iowa, where he engaged in the insurance business. In 1886 he went to western Nebraska and secured a homestead, living thereon for a year. He then located in Sidney, Nebraska, where he conducted a livery business until 1896. He then returned to Madison county and engaged in farming in Lincoln township until the spring of 1906, when he took up his abode in Winterset and retired from active business, there making
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his home until the 8th of June, 1907, when he was called to his final rest. He held membership in Pitzer Post, No. 55, G. A. R., and greatly enjoyed the asso- ciation with his old army comrades, proudly wearing, as well he might, the little bronze button of the organization. In politics he was an active republican, never faltering in his allegiance to that party which was the defense of the Union in the dark days of the Civil war and has ever been the party of reform and advance- ment.
Mrs. Ludlow was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, and was there reared. In early womanhood she came to the west to visit a sister in Adair county, Iowa, and there met Mr. Ludlow, who sought and won her hand in marriage. She sur- vives him and makes her home in Winterset. There were two children in the family : Carrie E .; and Ernest W., who is in the railway commissioner's office at Des Moines.
Miss Ludlow attended the public schools of Winterset and the high school at Sidney, Nebraska, and began teaching in this county in 1896, spending three years as a teacher in the rural schools of Madison township. She then secured a sit- uation in the public schools of Winterset, with which she was connected until 1912, when she became the candidate of the republican party for the office of county superintendent of schools. She assumed the duties of that position in January, 1913, and is now acting in that capacity. Her previous experience as a teacher well qualified her for her work in this connection. She has studied the needs and opportunities of the schools, keeps in touch with the advanced methods of the leading educators of the country and is doing everything in her power to improve educational conditions here. Her work has already given great satis- faction and has been attended with excellent results.
WILLIAM M. ANDERSON, M. D.
Dr. William M. Anderson, who was for many years a successful and well- known physician of St. Charles, died at his home here on the Ist of December, 1897, and in his passing the community lost a man whose life had been a factor in the advancement of many worthy projects. He was born on the 3d of Octo- ber, 1835, in Guernsey county, Ohio, and resided upon the home farm until he was sixteen years of age, when he went to Lexington, that state, and began reading medicine with his uncle, Dr. Hugh P. Anderson. After completing his course of study he became associated with his uncle in practice and thus gained an experience corresponding to the training that the medical students of today gain as internes in a hospital. In 1858 he removed to Iowa, settling first at Greenbush, Warren county, where his father then resided. For a time he taught school, but in 1859 he opened an office for the practice of medicine at Nevada, Story county. In the spring of the following year he purchased the home and business of Dr. J. S. Calaway, of St. Charles, and from that time until his death was active as a physician. He was careful in making a diagnosis and as he knew materia medica thoroughly he was usually able to prescribe the proper remedy for the disease. His knowledge and ability gained him the re- spect of his colleagues and of the general public and his unselfish devotion to the
DR. WILLIAM M. ANDERSON
AFT TIL R
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work of relieving suffering gained him a warm place in the hearts of many, To him the practice of medicine was a profession and an opportunity for service more than a business, and if his aid was needed it was given, irrespective of the ability of the patient to pay for medical attention. At his demise it was said that "the poor of this community have lost their best friend." He was a man of much energy and ambition and practiced until a few hours before his death, and so "died in the harness," which was as he himself would have wished.
Dr. Anderson was twice married, his first union being with Miss Amanda J. Ritchie, who became his wife in February, 1863. She was born in Richland county, Ohio. They were the parents of four children, a daughter and three sons, but the daughter died in infancy and A. R. passed away in the fall of 1911 in Oklahoma. E. K. is living in St. Charles, and H. P., a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work, is a merchant of St. Charles. On the 28th of December, 1871, Dr. Anderson married Miss Annie C. R. Miller, who died January 10, 1902, and to them were born seven children, four of whom died in infancy. The record of those who grew to maturity is as follows: F. R., who was a senior at the medical school of Drake University, when he passed away on the ioth of January, 1902; Susie, the wife of Rev. W. F. Graham, of Win- chester, Kansas; and J. H., a rural mail carrier living in St. Charles, who is married and has one child.
Dr. Anderson gave his allegiance to the democratic party, but was never active in politics. He was prominent in church circles, however, and in the fall of 1860 assisted in organizing the Presbyterian church in St. Charles. lle was always willing to cooperate in worthy public movements, but his greatest service to his community was as a physician, who at all times held his knowledge and skill at the disposal of those who were sick and suffering, and for forty-seven years he ministered to their needs, riding at all hours of the day and night, stopping neither for bad weather nor fatigue. Although he passed away eighteen years ago, he is still remembered and honored.
WILLIAM D. PATTERSON.
William D. Patterson, a representative and prosperous agriculturist of Mad- ison county, owns and operates a well improved farm embracing three hundred and sixty acres on section 21, Scott township. His birth occurred in Greene county, Pennsylvania, on the 27th of December, 1863, his parents being John D. and Amanda (Mahana) Patterson, who spent their entire lives in that county, the father always living on the same farm. The youngest brother of our subject represents the third generation on the old homestead farm in Greene county, Pennsylvania, which has been in possession of the family for more than a cen- tury. To John D. Patterson and his wife were born six children but only three came to Iowa ; William D., of this review ; Dr. L. S., who is a resident of Union- ville, and Bradley M., of Des Moines, Iowa. Their great-great-grandfather served under General George Washington in the Revolutionary war.
William D. Patterson acquired his early education in the public schools of his native county and subsequently pursued a course of study in the State Normal
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School at Edinboro, Pennsylvania. When not yet twenty-one years of age he came to Iowa and here worked as a farm hand for two years, on the expiration of which period he started out as an agriculturist on his own account, purchasing two hundred acres of land in Lee township, Madison county, and operating the place for fifteen years. The property had been improved to some extent when it came into his possession, but he remodeled the buildings, set out trees and an orchard and thus greatly enhanced its value. In 1901 he disposed of the place and purchased his present farm of three hundred and sixty acres in Scott town- ship, where he has carried on general agricultural pursuits continuously. Success has attended his undertakings, for he embodies the most modern and practical methods in his farm work and annually gathers golden harvests which find a ready sale on the market.
In 1891, in Madison county, Mr. Patterson was united in marriage to Miss Clyde Bird, a native of this county and a daughter of Butler Bird. Mr. and Mrs. Patterson are the parents of two children, namely : Birdie, who gave her hand in marriage to Ralph Wiley, of Winterset, Iowa; and Bradley, at home.
Mr. Patterson is a progressive in politics and in 1914 was honored by his party with the nomination for state representative. He has been influential in the development of the Farmers' Institute, acting as chairman and serving on its various committees. This institute, which since 1913 has been known as the Farmers' Short Course, meets each year at Winterset and is an important factor in the agricultural development of the county. In 1913 Mr. Patterson was elected president and has served in that capacity since, being one of the active men in Madison county associated with this institution. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Church of Christ, to which his wife also belongs. They enjoy an extensive and favorable acquaintance throughout the community and the hospitality of the best homes is cordially extended them.
FRANK B. BROCK.
Those who know Frank B. Brock, and his friends are many, have no hesitancy in predicting that he will make an excellent officer in the position of sheriff, to which he was elected in the fall of 1914, assuming his duties in January, 1915.
Mr. Brock was born in Lincoln township, March 19, 1870, his parents being Jonas F. and Elizabeth M. (Housh) Brock, of whom mention is made elsewhere in this volume. His youthful days were spent upon the home farm in the usual
manner of the lad who assists in the work of the fields and acquires his education in the public schools. He was thus occupied until he was about twenty-two years of age. He was then married and rented a farm in Webster township, upon which he lived for two years, removing at the end of that time to Warren county, Iowa, where he cultivated a rented farm for about four years. Subsequently he spent two years in Des Moines, Iowa, working for an ice company, and at the end of that time returned to his native county and rented the old home farm. For about sixteen years he continued its cultivation and then began selling road machinery in Iowa and Minnesota for the J. D. Adams Leaning Wheel Road
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Machinery Company of Indianapolis, Indiana. He traveled for several years during the summer seasons and continued in their employ even through the sum- mer and fall in which he was a candidate for office, doing very little electioneering. In June, 1912, he was appointed deputy sheriff of Madison county but continued with the Adams Company, demonstrating road machinery through the summer months. In 1914 he was made the nominee of the republican party for the office of county sheriff and won the election, so that he entered upon the duties of the position in January, 1915. During the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, held in St. Louis in 1904, he acted for six months as a member of the admission depart- ment.
On the 24th of December, 1891, Mr. Brock was married to Miss Sadie Ragan, a native of this county and a daughter of B. F. Ragan, who is mentioned elsewhere in this volume. They have four children : Esther R., now the wife of Fred Eyerly, of this county : Grace, at home; Ozro R., living in Indianola, Iowa ; and Elmo, at home.
Mr. Brock is a member of Lotus Lodge, No. 48, K. P., of Winterset, and the Iowa State Traveling Men's Association, and he belongs also to the Methodist church. He is a large, well proportioned man, whole-souled, kindly and popular. He is known throughout the county as Frank, a term which indicates his cordiality and approachableness. When occasion demands, however, he can be stern and unrelenting and this combination of qualities will insure his efficiency and fidelity in office.
ERNEST M. THOMAS.
Ernest M. Thomas, an enterprising and prosperous agriculturist residing on section 4, Madison township, owns and operates a productive farm embracing three hundred and sixty acres. This has remained his home from his birth to the present time, his natal day being December 22, 1877. His parents were Mark and Almeda ( Barnett) Thomas, natives of Indiana. In 1855 the mother came to Iowa with her parents, the family home being established in Madison township, this county. Mark Thomas came to this state in 1869 and for some years operated a farm in Guthrie county. In 1875 he came to Madison county, purchasing and improving a farm of three hundred and sixty acres on section 4, Madison township, where he carried on agricultural pursuits continuously and successfully during the remainder of his life. His demise occurred on the 18th of February, 1910, but his widow still survives and now makes her home with our subject, enjoying an extensive and favorable acquaintance throughout the community in which she has resided for six decades.
In the acquirement of an education Ernest M. Thomas attended the public schools of Earlham and Penn College of Oskaloosa, Iowa. Since putting aside his text-books he has devoted his attention to general agricultural pursuits, and the operation of the home farm has claimed his time and energies, the property comprising three hundred and sixty acres of valuable land on section 4, Madison township. In connection with the cultivation of the cereals best adapted to soil and climate he usually feeds one hundred head of cattle annually. He buys and
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sells stock continually and feeds eight hundred head of sheep and three hundred head of hogs. His undertakings as an agriculturist have been attended with a gratifying measure of success and he enjoys an enviable reputation as a repre- sentative and substantial citizen of his native county.
On the 3d of March, 1903, Mr. Thomas was united in marriage to Miss Myrtle Wilcox, a daughter of Francis M. and Harriet (Abbott) Wilcox, who were natives of North Carolina and Ohio respectively. The father removed to Kentucky as a boy and subsequently engaged in general merchandising at Grayson, that state. During the period of the Civil war he served for four years as a member of the Forty-second Kentucky Infantry. Int 1887 he took up his abode in Oskaloosa, Iowa, and there spent the remainder of his life in honorable retirement, passing away on the 22d of February, 1902. His widow still sur- vives and yet makes her home in Oskaloosa. In their family were six children, three sons and three daughters, namely : Carrie, a resident of Oskaloosa ; Myrtle, the wife of our subject ; E. B., a physician conducting a private hospital in Oska- loosa ; C. H., who is engaged in the furniture business at that place; Lida, the wife of William Mackert of Oskaloosa; and Georgia, the wife of S. H. Walling of Des Moines.
Mr. Thomas gives his political allegiance to the republican party and frater- nally is identified with the Masons, while his religious faith is that of the Friends church. He is interested in the growth and welfare of the community where he has always resided and where he is held in high esteem as a progressive agri- culturist and representative citizen.
WILLIAM O. LUCAS.
William O. Lucas, engaged in the practice of law at Winterset, has been a life- long resident of Madison county, his birth having occurred in Douglas township, January 30, 1866. He is a son of William G. and Hannah ( Bardrick) Lucas. The former was born in Xenia, Ohio, January 29, 1821, and when nine years of age went to Illinois with his parents, the family removing to Sangamon county, at which time they took up their abode upon a farm near Springfield, being pioneer settlers of that locality. There William G. Lucas was reared and he remained in that county until the spring of 1852, when he came to Madison county, Iowa. The following year he settled upon a farm in Douglas township, where he made his home for forty-six years, or until 1899, when he rented the place and removed to Winterset, where he lived retired. He made the journey west- ward with ox teams and wagon and became the owner of one hundred and sixty acres of land which he converted into a rich and valuable farm. Year after year he worked persistently and energetically in the development of his place, and it brought to him a substantial annual income. He was a member of the Grange and was interested in every plan for the improvement of agricultural conditions. He died when more than eighty years of age. His wife was born in England and came to the United States in her girlhood. She was one of the pioneer women of Madison county and died here May 5, 1867. In the family were eight children : Mary, now the deceased wife of Albert C. Mills ; Martha, deceased;
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Elizabeth, who is the widow of John Garretson, of Winterset ; George and Henry, who have passed away ; Ellen, the deceased wife of John Lovelace; Maria, the wife of Albert Guye, a resident farmer of Union township; and William O.
The last named was but an infant at the time of his mother's death. His boy- hood and youth were spent upon the home farm and he attended the public schools, acquiring his early education in the district school near his father's home and afterward pursuing his studies in the high school of Winterset. For two terms he engaged in teaching in a country school, but it was his desire to become a member of the bar and with that end in view he entered the law office of Vin- cent Wainwright, of Winterset, who directed his preliminary reading. He after- ward became a student in the State University at Iowa City and was there grad- uated upon the completion of the course in the law department with the class of 1889. He next engaged in practice with his former preceptor until Mr. Wain- wright's death six months later. For a short time he was in partnership with S. A. Hays, but since that time has been alone. In a profession where advance- ment depends solely upon individual merit he has worked his way steadily upward and is accorded a liberal clientage which has connected him with much of the im- portant litigation tried in the courts of the district.
In 1804 Mr. Lucas was married to Miss Hattie Bridges, a native of Henry county, Iowa, who came in childhood with her parents to this county. They have two children : Helen, now attending Drake University at Des Moines; and Wil- liam Robert, at home. Mr. Lucas exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the democratic party and is a recognized leader in its local ranks. He served as mayor of Winterset for two terms, from 1907 until I911, and was elected for the second term without opposition, a fact which stands as incontrovertible evidence of his ability and the confidence reposed in him by his fellow townsmen. He gave to the city a business-like administration in which he brought about various needed reforms and improvements. He is now city attorney, serving his second term, and is caring for the legal interests of Win- terset with the same fidelity which he manifested in the discharge of his duties as mayor. With the exception of one year he has continuously been secretary of the school board for twenty-six years and the cause of education has found in him a stalwart champion. He holds membership with Lotus Lodge, No. 48, K. P., of which he has been district deputy, and belongs to the Modern Woodmen camp, and he and his family are members of the Methodist church. His life work has been of signal service and benefit to his fellow townsmen along various lines. Progress and patriotism might well be termed the keynote of his character, for those qualities have guided him in all of his relations.
FRED ROY.
Fred Roy, an enterprising and successful young agriculturist of Madison county, owns and operates a farm of eighty acres on section 17, Lincoln town- ship, which has remained his home from his birth to the present time. He was born on the 11th of September, 1883, a son of John L. Roy and a grandson of Thomas Roy. More extended mention of the family is made on another page
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of this work. At the time of his father's death Fred Roy succeeded to the owner- ship of eighty acres of the home farm and has since been busily engaged in the further cultivation of the tract, annually gathering good harvests which find a ready sale on the market.
On the 8th of September, 1912, Mr. Roy was united in marriage to Miss Manda Huffman, her father being George Huffman, of Webster township, this county. General agricultural pursuits claim his attention and reward his industry, and in the community where his entire life has been spent he is well known as a representative, substantial and esteemed citizen.
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