USA > Iowa > Madison County > History of Madison County, Iowa, and its people, Volume II > Part 47
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Emanuel Wolverton received a common-school education and during his boy- hood and youth was also trained in agricultural work. When twenty-one years of age he began farming on his own account and has continued to follow that occu- pation, operating a fine farm of one hundred acres. He is energetic and practical and his income from his land is a gratifying one.
MR. AND MRS. EMANUEL WOLVERTON
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
Mr. Wolverton has been twice married, his first union being with Miss Min- nie Johnson, who died, leaving a son, Earl, who is now farming in Madison county. He married Stella Kitt, and has three children, Merl, Roy and Daisy. For his second wife Mr. Wolverton married Miss Clara Ford, a native of this county and a daughter of William Miner and Diana ( Stickler) Ford, the former born on the 28th of July, 1832, in Virginia, and the latter on the 8th of Septem- ber, 1833. Both have passed away, the death of the mother occurring on Christ- mas Day, 1877. Mr. Ford farmed in Indiana, where in 1854 he was married, but soon after that event he and his bride came to Madison county, Iowa, making the journey with ox teams. Here they found conditions those of a pioneer region. He began farming in Jackson township and became the owner of four hundred acres of excellent land. Being very progressive, he was one of the first men to raise pure bred shorthorns, and he fed, bought, sold and shipped cattle, deriving a handsome profit from his operations in those lines, and he also raised good horses. He was one of the organizers of the West Star Methodist Episcopal church of Douglas township and took an active part in all movements that sought the welfare of the community. He had nine children, of whom Mrs. Wolver- ton is the eighth in order of birth. By her marriage she has become the mother of two sons: Ray, a farmer of Jackson township, who married Miss Elna Choate; and Ott, who is assisting his father with the farm work.
Mr. Wolverton leans toward the prohibition party but is not an aspirant for public office. He is a member of the Church of Christ and takes a great interest in furthering the work of Early Chapel. He is a native of Jackson township, in which he resides, and is a representative of one of the earliest pioneer families of the county. It is not strange, therefore, that he has identified himself with the welfare of the county and has done much to promote its development along both material and moral lines.
REV. JAMES SAWHILL.
Rev. James Sawhill was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, on the 22d day of February, 1829, and died at his home in Jackson township, this county, March 27, 1904. His early life was spent upon a farm, and in attendance at the district school of his home community. Later he became a student in Franklin College, New Athens, Ohio, from which he was graduated in 1851. He then took a theological course in the Associate Presbyterian Seminary at Canons- burg, Pennsylvania, from which he was graduated in 1854. This school was later removed to Xenia, Ohio, and is now known as the Xenia Theological Sem- inary, and is under the care and control of the United Presbyterian church. The first years of his ministry were spent in home mission work, much of his time being given to work in the states of Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa. It is inter- esting to note just here that in the course of his work as a home missionary he visited Winterset, Iowa, coming by rail to Iowa City, thence by stage to Des Moines, and from there to Winterset on foot. This was in the latter part of 1855, or the early part of 1856, some twenty years before Madison county became his home.
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In 1863 he took charge of the newly organized congregation of Cascade, in Cascade, Dubuque county, Iowa, and became its settled pastor. On February 21, 1866, he was married to Miss Martha E. Wallace of Vinton, Benton county, Iowa. She was a native of Virginia (now West Virginia), being born in Brooke county of that state, December 1, 1843. In 1851 she had removed with her par- ents to Adams county, Ohio, and in 1857 went with them to Benton county, Iowa, which was her home until her marriage. In 1876 Mr. and Mrs. Sawhill with their children came to Madison county, Iowa, and Mr. Sawhill became pastor of the Union (now Pitzer) United Presbyterian church, a relationship which continued for about fourteen years. He also purchased land and lived upon it. In 1891, because of breaking health, he retired from the active ministry, and gave considerable of his time and thought to the work on the farm. He carried on general farming and stock-raising, and was considered a well-to-do man, owning two hundred and forty acres of fine land. His political allegiance was given to the republican party, but he was not active in politics. He was, how- ever, much interested in social and civic affairs, Anything that made for the betterment of the community found in him a helper and oftentimes a leader. But the first place and the main place in his mind and heart was always given to things religious ; to the study of the Bible; to the work of the church in his own community, commonwealth and country, and to the general work of the church in all the world.
Mrs. Sawhill and four of the seven children are still living, and two of these together with the mother still have their homes in Madison county.
JOHN CLARK SAWHILL.
An excellent farm on section 24, Jackson township, is the property of John. Clark Sawhill, and its excellent condition is a testimony to the energy and ability of its owner.
Mr. Sawhill was born in Cascade, Dubuque county, this state, on the 29th of October, 1875. the fifth in a family of seven children born to Rev. James and Martha E. Sawhill. He received his education in the public schools, assisted his father upon the farm, and taught several terms of school until he reached the age of twenty-nine. He then began his independent business career and is now the owner of two hundred and fifty acres of excellent land on sections 23 and 24, Jackson township. He is not only energetic but progressive in his work, and his farm yields him a good income. He raises stock in addition to cultivating the soil, as he finds that more profitable than confining his attention to one branch of farming.
On the 22d of March, 1905, Mr. Sawhill married Miss Flora B. Ledlie. She was born upon a farm in Warren county, Iowa, a daughter of Thomas and Mary F. ( Lindsey ) Ledlie, both natives of Ireland. The father was born in Mullaglass on the 28th of September, 1844, and the mother was born near Newry, on the 14th of February, 1844. They are still living in Warren county, Iowa, and hold a high place in the estimation of those who know them. To Mr. and Mrs. Sawhill have been born four children : Harold Ledlie, whose birth occurred
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on the 21st of May, 1906; Iola Martha, born October 28, 1909: Mary Eleanor. born March 6, 1911 ; and Mabel Lenore, who was born October 30, 1913.
Mr. Sawhill is a republican and has acceptably filled the offices of township clerk and trustee. He is an influential worker in church and Sabbath-school circles, and is an elder in the Pitzer church. His life is in harmony with his religious professions, and he is sincerely respected by all who have been brought into contact with him.
LINDSEY A. MACUMBER.
Lindsey A. Macumber, a prosperous farmer of Webster township, this county. was born in Gallia county, Ohio, now Vinton county, on the 8th of October. 1846. Data concerning his parents will be found in the sketch of Andrew Macumber, of Lincoln township, which is given elsewhere in this work.
Lindsey A. Macumber attended school in his native state and following the removal of the family to Madison county, Iowa, further pursued his studies in a log schoolhouse in Lincoln township. When twenty-one years of age he returned to the Buckeye state and attended school there for three months. He then came again to this county and began farming on his father's land. He followed agricultural pursuits in Lincoln township until 1897, when he removed to St. Charles, in the vicinity of which he owned a small farm. After ten years he took up his residence upon his present farm on section I, Webster township, which is a highly improved property. He is now living practically retired, having accumulated sufficient capital to insure him of the comforts of life during the remainder of his days.
In 1870 MIr. Macumber was married, Miss Emily Church, a native of War- ren, Trumbull county, Ohio, becoming his wife. Her father, Seymour Church, was born in 1808 and died in 1902, while her mother, who bore the maiden name of Nancy Van Wy, was born in 1811 and passed away in 1847, when she was yet a young woman. The paternal grandfather of Mrs. Macumber served in the War of 1812. Her father brought his family to Iowa in 1855, settling on North river, in Douglas township, this county. He was affected by the hard times of 1856 and 1857, but did not become discouraged and was eventually rewarded by prosperity. When he settled here conditions were those of a pioneer region and game abounded. He purchased land and began farming, living in Douglas town- ship until 1880, when he removed to Steward county, Nebraska. His death occurred at Bee, that state, where he was living retired. He was the owner of considerable iand in Nebraska and was a highly esteemed resident of Bee. His church membership was held in the Christian church and he was very active in its work. He was married three times, the children of the first union numbering five girls and two boys, of whom Mrs. Anna Herron and Mrs. Macumber reside in this county.
Mr. and Mrs. Macumber have three children. Clarence, who was born October 15, 1871, is interested in the Fender Manufacturing Company of Winterset, lowa. He married Miss Caroline' Frederickson and has a son, George A. Gile E., born in 1873, is farming with his father. He married Miss Dora Holt, a rep-
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
resentative of one of the pioncer families of this county, and they have five chil- dren, Emily L., Thelma L., Dorothy V., Rex H. and Eva C. Callie E., the only daughter, married Oscar Frederickson, a farmer of Walnut township, and they have five children, Marie, Dc Verne, Dolores, Lenore and Russell.
Mr. Macumber is a prohibitionist in his political views and his religious affiliation is with the Church of Christ. His life has been rather uneventful, but has been filled with useful and efficient labor, and he has not only won a fair measure of material prosperity, but has also gained the respect of those who have been brought in contact with him.
WILLIAM S. EPPARD.
William S. Eppard, a well known farmer and stockman residing on section 9, Jackson township, was born in Page county, Virginia, on the 2d of January, 1844. His parents, John and Mary M. (Smith) Eppard, were both born in that county, the father in 1814 and the mother on the 22d of November, 1816. John Eppard was a farmer in the Old Dominion and passed away in that state in 1864. His wife survived for many years and died in this county in January, 1913.
William S. Eppard was the seventh in order of birth in a family of eleven children and as a boy assisted his father with the farm work. His education was that afforded by the district schools, which were somewhat primitive, the school- house being a log structure; the furniture very crude; the curriculum limited ; and the term but a few months in the year. When sixteen years of age Mr. Ep- pard hired out as a farm hand and when eighteen years old left Virginia with twenty-five companions on account of a conscription law which had been passed. His only effects were a blanket and a few provisions, but these sufficed him and he succeeded in slipping through the rebel and Federal lines, reaching Harpers Ferry on the 18th of February, 1864. He entered the employ of the Federal gov- ernment and drove a six-mule team by a jerk line until July, 1864. He then worked in the harvest fields in Pennsylvania and afterward entered the car shops at Harrisburg, that state. He was also employed for a time in the govern- ment warehouse there. In 1865 he joined a brother in Iowa and for a short time attended school in Madison county. He then put in one crop here, after which he returned to Virginia and worked in a colliery and at cutting timber for rail- road ties until the 20th of September, 1866, when his marriage occurred. Soon afterward he brought his bride to Iowa by boat from Wheeling to Keokuk and settled in this county a mile from his present home. In 1868 he became a land- owner and in the succeeding years added to his holdings until he now has seven hundred and fifty-two acres in Madison county, four hundred acres in Adair county and thirty acres in Dallas county, besides a number of lots in the town of Blunt, South Dakota. He has done quite a little toward raising the grade of stock raised in this county, especially horses, breeding thoroughbred Shire horses, upon which he has won prizes at the Madison county fairs. He is a member of the American Shire Horse Breeders Association of Winona, Illinois. He also raises cattle and hogs for the market. He is one of the men of affluence of his county and has other interests besides his real estate, being a stockholder in the Iowa
WILLIAM S. EPPARD
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State Live Stock Insurance Company of Des Moines and in the Crestou, Macks- burg, Des Moines & Southern Railroad.
On the 20th of September, 1866, Mr. Eppard married Miss Mary Meadows, who was born in Page county, Virginia, in 1838, a daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth (Jett) Meadows. Her father was a landowner and farmer. Mrs. Eppard was the sixth in order of birth in a family of twelve children, and by her marriage she has become the mother of eight: Evalina, who is the wife of W. S. Sulgrove, a farmer of Jackson township, by whom she has six children ; Sarah, who gave her hand in marriage to Anthony Mabbitt, a miller of Red- field, Dallas county, by whom she has four children; Jacob Henry, who died in infancy ; Lydia, the wife of Jesse Leeper, a farmer of Penn township, and the mother of three children ; Lillie V. who married Robert Young, a farmer, and has one child; Charlotta D., who died in infancy; Willard M., born June 6, 1876, who is in the ice business in Redfield, Iowa, and who has four children; and Clarence M., whose natal day was the 20th of February, 1878. He received the degrees of Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Divinity from Drake University of Des Moines and the degree of S. T. B. from Harvard. He was formerly pastor of the Christian church of Highland park, of Des Moines, and of Clarinda, Iowa, but is now assisting in the management of his father's farm. He married Leanore M. Beeney of Des Moines, and has two children, Trewa E. and Marjorie E.
Mr. Eppard supports the republican party at the polls and takes a leading part in the civic affairs of his township. For twenty years he has been presi- dent of the school board and is one of the most public-spirited and progressive men of his township. Because of failing health he is not now quite as active as he was formerly, but his interest in the general welfare has not lessened. He is not only highly esteemed because of his ability and integrity but is also popular as he has a frank, pleasing personality.
MATTHEW M. McGEE.
Matthew M. McGee, highly esteemed as one of the valued citizens of Mad- ison county for many years, contributed in large measure to the material upbuild- ing of the community and, more than that, his influence was always on the side of progress and the right. When he passed away one of the local papers said of him: "It is difficult to point out a citizen of Madison county whose death would cause a greater break in the daily life and experience of so many people as that of M. M. McGee. His extensive operations as a builder, farmer, stock- raiser and general trader, at first in Jackson township, then in Douglas and later in Winterset, his activity extending many miles in every direction, are fresh in the memory of the whole community." At the funeral service the following account of his life was given : "Matthew Miller McGee was born in the town of Mount Charles, county of Donegal, Ireland, August 25, 1829, and died in Win- terset, Iowa, August 30, 1895, at a little after nine o'clock P. M. His father was a native of Ireland, his mother was a native of Scotland, and the son inherited and developed in his life, the vigor, activity, carefulness and strict integrity for
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
which a blending of Scotch and Irish blood is so noted. When Matthew was about five years of age his parents came to America, and took up their residence in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After a short residence there, the family removed to Tuscarawas county, Ohio, where he grew to manhood. On the 24th of February, 1853, he was united in marriage to Miss Caroline Kale. On the 28th of November, 1853, he removed to Eddyville, Iowa, where he stayed one year, removing thence to Madison county, Iowa, where he continued to reside until God took him."
On the 24th of February, 1853, he wedded Caroline Kale, daughter of Reuben and Rebecca Kale, who was born in Tuscarawas county, Ohio, June 11, 1835. In the year of her marriage she accompanied her husband to Iowa, and they came to Madison county in 1854. When sixteen years of age Mrs. McGee joined the Methodist church, but in the winter of 1855 she transferred her membership to the Christian church, of which she was a most loyal and devoted adherent throughout her remaining days. Her Christian faith and fortitude sustained her through the long period of her last illness. She was highly estecmed by her friends and neighbors because of a beautiful character that reached out in kindly sympathy and helpfulness to all who knew her. Commenting upon the belief of Mr. McGee, it was said in the funeral oration: "His parents being in close sympathy with the Protestant Episcopal church of England, according to the rules of that church he was baptized in infancy. While still a young man residing in his Ohio home, he became a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and for reasons known to himself, he did not remove his membership from the church of his early choice. His name is still retained in the records of that church. Although not connecting himself with any church in Madison county, yet few men had greater respect for the church: sustained friendly and sympathetic relations with their ministers, contributed to their support, and rejoiced in the prosperity of all good works. He was a close and attentive listener to the preaching of the word of God, and being a close student of the word itself, he knew when the truth was preached, and had a keen appreciation of it. While he loved the church of his early choice, yet no man could excel Matthew McGee in the catholicity of his spirit, and in the broad fraternity of his affection for all denominations of truly Christian people. A sham, whether in religion, in politics, or in business, he despised with all the intensity of his hearty Irish nature. But true men, by whatever name they were called, or at whatever shrine they worshiped, never failed to find a true and helpful friend in the deceased.
"It is not necessary for me to enlarge upon the noble qualities of this friend's character. Many of you, even outside the circle of his children and relatives, have known him intimately for years, and the universal testimony of all who have spoken to me about him is, that but few men lived as closely to the tenets of the golden rule as did he. Honest and true in all his dealings; charitable almost to a fault, yet doing his deeds of charity so silently and unostentatiously that the recipients of his favors seldom knew from whence they came. In all my association with him, I have never heard him utter a word that would not be appropriate in any place, or in any company. As might be expected, a man of such intense energy, such industrious habits, such wise and careful planning, and such strict integrity, must be prosperous, and he was. But not a dollar,
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dishonestly procured, or gained at the expense of some one less fortunate, ever went into the pocket of Matthew McGee. Such a man, with such a long, unbroken record of honorable and successful life, cannot go out without the community from whence he has gone, being the poorer. Such men are much scarcer than they ought to be, and yet to have the record of such a man is a legacy whose value is beyond computation. His money was freely spent in building comfortable and handsome buildings, and by so much adding to the attractiveness of the town, and enhancing the valuation of all its property. lle might have used his money in such a way that it would have brought him in dollars where it brought him only cents, but his large heartedness rebelled at the idea of taking advantage of those less fortunate than himself, or those upon whom unforeseen misfortune had fallen, to add to his own wealth at the expense of those. Instead of this, his hand was often outstretched with substantial help to the needy, and ample time given for its refunding. More than one man will miss Matthew McGee when the pressure of misfortune falls upon him, because he is no longer able to extend the help he delighted to give.
"The great sorrow of his life, the shadow of which followed him to his latest hour, fell upon him, when, on the 7th day of February, 1880, his sainted, but deeply afflicted wife left his home to go to the home which Christ had prepared for her. During a long, lingering sickness he cared for her with all the tender- ness of his great heart, and when at last death relieved her of her sufferings, and he had laid her away in the grave, that 'silent village' had a larger place in his mind and heart than did the living town where his interests and activities cen- tered. How many hours of the days which make up the six and one-half years of his great sorrow and loneliness were spent in silent communion at the grave of his beloved dead, no one knows."
Everyone who knew him bears testimony to his high character and his sterling worth. His influence was invariably on the side of right and justice and he deserves mention in the history of his county.
WILLIAM WALLACE WALKER.
William Wallace Walker, cashier of the Macksburg National Bank and well known in local financial circles, was born in Susquehanna county, Pennsylvania, on the 23d of April, 1857, a son of John Wallace Walker, who was born in that state in 1816 and devoted his life to teaching and farming. He passed away in the Keystone state in 1883, when about sixty-seven years of age. His wife, who was in her maidenhood Miss Mary Foster, was born in Pennsylvania in 1817 and dicd in 1909, while on a visit to a daughter in Adair county, Iowa.
During the days of his boyhood and youth William W. Walker remained under the parental roof and attended the public schools in the acquirement of an education. Later he was a student at the Illinois State Normal school at Nor- mal, Illinois, thus fitting himself for more efficient work as a teacher. He had previously taught in Pennsylvania and was for some time a teacher in Illinois and Iowa. He was married in the Prairie state in 1880 and subsequently engaged in the mercantile business at Twin Grove, Illinois. Although he has always
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voted the republican ticket he was made postmaster of that place under Cleve- land through the solicitation of Congressman Rowell. Upon the expiration of his term in that office he became foreman of a lumber business in Des Moines and remained in that connection for three years. Subsequently he removed to Adair county, Iowa, where he purchased two hundred and forty acres of land and for five years his energies were devoted to its cultivation. He then went to Colorado and represented a Kansas City lumber firm for two years. He returned to his farm and remained there until 1904, but on the Ist of March of that year he was made cashier of the Macksburg National Bank, just seven months after it had received its charter as a national bank. During the eleven years that he has had the general supervision of the affairs of the bank the busi- ness of that institution has shown a steady growth and its policy has won the approval of the community. He is not only discreet and judicious, but he is also invariably courteous, which trait has proved a factor in his business success.
Mr. Walker married Miss Sarah McFee, a native of Illinois, and they have three children: Stella, the wife of H. D. Mitchell, who is operating the home farm in Adair county ; Nell, now the wife of F. H. Whitney, of Cumberland, Iowa ; and Ralph, who is manager of the Fullerton Company at Macksburg.
Mr. Walker is a republican and has always taken a keen interest in all mat- ters closely connected with the good of the public. He is willing to give his aid to any cause that he believes will further the civic, commercial or moral advance- ment of his community, and in the eleven years that he has resided in Macks- burg he has been a forceful factor in its progress.
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