USA > Iowa > Madison County > History of Madison County, Iowa, and its people, Volume II > Part 6
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Mr. Cooper exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party and has held some local offices, having been called to the position of county attorney in 1903 and serving therein until 1907. In 1908 he was made president of the school board and acted in that capacity until 1912, proving himself a stalwart friend of the cause of education. He did much to advance the interests of the schools and he was equally loyal in uphold- ing the legal interests of the county when serving as county attorney. He belongs to Lotus Lodge, No. 48, K. P., and to the Presbyterian church and his life has ever been guided by high and honorable principles, making him a man of genuine worth, whom to know is to respect and honor.
JESSE E. HESTER.
Jesse E. Hester, who is farming and raising high grade stock on sections 2 and 3, Penn township, was born in Edgar county, Illinois, on the 24th of January, 1869, a son of Thomas C. and Emeline ( Newlin) Hester, both natives of Ver- milion county, that state. The father, who was a farmer by occupation, went to Edgar county when but a boy and subsequently bought land there, which he improved and operated until he sold the place and moved back to Vermilion county, where he died. For twenty years he also bought and shipped stock. He passed away in August, 1908, and is survived by his wife, who resides in Parke county, Indiana.
Jesse E. Hester is indebted for his education to the public schools of Edgar and Vermilion counties, Illinois, and to his father's training for his early knowl- edge of agricultural work. He remained at home with his parents until he was twenty-five years of age and for a number of years of that time farmed and bought stock in partnership with his father. Upon beginning his independent business career he rented land in Vermilion county, which he operated for three years, after which he purchased land in Edgar county and cultivated it for a like period of time. He then came to Madison county, Iowa, and bought one hun- dred and fifty-four acres of land on section 2, Penn township. He concentrated his energies upon its improvement and as he prospered bought more land until he acquired title to two hundred and sixty-five acres, which he has operated for fourteen years. He devotes some of his attention to the raising of stock, special- izing in thoroughbred Duroc Jersey hogs. He feeds about two carloads of cattle per year and his stock-raising activities yield him a good income.
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Mr. Hester was married in June, 1894, to Miss Anna Holaday, and they had three children : Ethel, who is teaching school in Illinois ; and Thomas and Ralph, both attending school. Mrs. Hester passed away in March, 1900, after a short illness. In August, 1904, Mr. Hester was again married, Miss Olive M. Hockett becoming his wife. Her parents, James and Mary Hockett, were pioneers of Madison county. The father makes his home in Earlham but the mother is deceased. To Mr. Hester's second union four children have been born : Rus- sell and Wilma, who are attending school; Chalmers, aged five years; and Her- schel, who is in his second year.
Mr. Hester is a republican as he is convinced of the validity of the position of the party on the various issues in our national political life. His religious faith is that of the Friends church, of which he is a member, and his splendid qualities of character have gained him the unqualified respect of those who have come in contact with him either in business or in a social way.
WILLIAM HARTSOOK.
William Hartsook has lived upon his present fine farm in Lincoln township for about sixty-one years and in the early days in this county met and overcame all of the difficulties and obstacles that confronted the first settlers. He was born in Gallia county, Ohio, on the 28th of December, 1828, a son of Peter and Ann (Wooten) Hartsook, the former born in Frederick county, Maryland, in Octo- ber, 1792, and the latter a quarter of a mile from the birthplace of her son Wil- liam on the 17th of November, 1804. Her parents were Bell and Jane ( Gilliland ) Wooten, natives respectively of Scotland and Ireland. Our subject's paternal grandfather was William Hartsook, a native of Amsterdam, Holland, wherce he and six brothers emigrated to America, settling first in Pennsylvania and later in Maryland. The grandfather fought in the Revolutionary war and did his part in securing the independence of the United States. In 1815 he removed to Ohio and continued to reside there until called by death.
Peter and Ann (Wooten) Hartsook were married in Ohio and in 1850 re- moved to Knox county, Illinois. Three years later they drove overland to Mad- ison county, Iowa, reaching Lincoln township in October. During the first night spent in this county they were guests of Andrew H. Bertholf, who freely extended them the hospitality of his log house. As there were ten children in each of the families, there was much crowding, but that was a minor matter in pioneer days. Mr. Hartsook entered land from the government in Monroe township and set- tled upon his farm, devoting his remaining years to its cultivation. He served his country well as a soldier in the War of 1812. He passed away when seventy- two years of age, but his widow survived until she reached the advanced age of ninety. He was a member of the Lutheran church, but she was a Presbyterian. They were the parents of thirteen children: Mary Jane, the deceased wife of Paul Moore, of Knox county, Illinois; Mahala, who died when a girl of sixteen ; Amelia, who died in infancy; Sarah, deceased, who was the wife of John A. Macumber : William, of this review ; Cynthia, the deceased wife of E. R. Denny, a resident of Oklahoma: Balser, who died in Kansas; Elizabeth and Hiram,
MR. AND MRS. WILLIAM HARTSOOK
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HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY
both of whom died in infancy; Salem, who passed away while in the Union army during the Civil war ; Benjamin F., whose demise occurred in Monroe township, this county, and who is survived by a widow and three children ; David A., who passed away when twenty-two years old; and Melissa, who died in infancy.
William Hartsook spent his boyhood days in Gallia county, Ohio. At one time the family started to move to Indiana but stopped on the way somewhere near Dayton, Ohio. The mother, who was a woman of extraordinary determi- nation, felt that the move was an unwise one and prevailed upon the family to return to Gallia county. It was necessary to hire a man to take their goods back, and as the family was in most limited financial circumstances, our subject paid the moving bill by binding oats and pulling beans four or five seasons. In 1874 he made a visit to his old home county and recognized the man who had moved them back to Gallia county. The man, however, did not recognize him until he was asked if he remembered "the boy who was such a good bean puller." Before he accompanied his parents to Iowa he worked upon the river and made three trips to New Orleans, floating down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers on a flat- boat of produce and returning by steamer. In 1850 he made a trip overland to California in search of gold, driving a mule team. More than once he narrowly escaped death on the long journey and on one occasion he and a companion were lost from the train and only accidentally located it in a clump of bushes, which hid all except one corner of the covered wagon. He remained in the Golden state for two and a half years but met with indifferent success. Upon coming to Iowa in 1853 he entered one hundred and sixty acres of land from the gov- ernment, which he soon afterward traded, however, for the quarter section which had been entered by his brother-in-law, John A. Macumber. There was no sign of a building upon the place and the land was yet unbroken, but it had been his ambition for a long time to own land and he set to work to make out of this tract of wild prairie a cultivated farm. His energy and good judgment brought him success and he now owns two hundred and forty acres of land and has a splen- did set of buildings upon the place. For about ten years after his marriage he and his wife lived in a one-room log house, sixteen by eighteen feet in dimen- sions, and the first improvement was the erection of a lean-to. On Christmas Day, 1860, they moved into their present residence, which is a well appointed farm home.
In 1860 in Lincoln township Mr. Hartsook was united in marriage to Miss Catherine R. Smoot, who was born in Knox county, Illinois, on the 11th of July, 1844, a daughter of James W. and Jemima (Wight ) Smoot, the former born in Bourbon county, Kentucky, May 12, 1801, and the latter in Rush county, Indiana, January 6, 1823. They settled in Illinois but eventually removed to Madison county, Iowa, locating in Lincoln township, where the father died at the age of eighty years and the mother when seventy-eight years old. They were the par- ents of five children : Mrs. Hartsook; Adeline, now Mrs. Charles Laidley, of Madison township: Coleman, who was murdered near Montrose, Colorado ; Albert, who is unmarried and who makes his home with Mr. and Mrs. Hart- sook ; and William N., of Centerville, Iowa.
To Mr. and Mrs. Hartsook have been born nine children: A. W., a traveling salesman of Des Moines, who married Jane Seiler, by whom he has three children, Arthur, Robert and Fred; Elida, who died when twenty years of age;
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James W., a farmer of Adair county, Iowa, who married Miss Hettie Lake and has three children, Ralph, Lloyd and Fern; George, who passed away when a young man of twenty-six years; F. P., of Winterset, who married Miss Lavina Foresman, by whom he has a daughter, Helen; Nellie, the wife of Frank Bell, who is operating the farm belonging to our subject, and the mother of a son, Stanley ; Sarah, who gave her hand in marriage to Newton Newell, of Warren, Arkansas; Grace Adeline, the wife of Ralph T. Schoenenberger, a farmer of Scott township, by whom she has three children, Catherine, John and Paul; and Ben Butler, a farmer of Lincoln township, who married Miss Vernie Hann, by whom he has four children, Loraine, Howard, Curtis and Alice. Mr. and Mrs. Hartsook have fifteen grandchildren.
Mr. Hartsook and his wife have been members of the Christian Union church in the neighborhood for years and have done much to promote the spread of its influence. He also belongs to Evening Star Lodge, No. 43, A. F. & A. M., of Winterset. He cast his first vote for Franklin Pierce and continued to support the democratic party until he became one of the organizers of the granger or greenback party, but is now a progressive republican. For a number of terms he was township trustee and he lacked but one term of being school director for twenty years. He celebrated the eighty-sixth anniversary of his birth on the 28th of December, 1914, and in 1910 he and his wife celebrated their golden wedding. He is not only one of the oldest men in the county but has probably lived longer on one farm than any other man within its limits. His health is still good and he can read newspapers without the aid of glasses. He and his wife are both very hospitable and are well liked as well as highly respected in their locality. When returning from the gold fields of California Mr. Hart- sook traveled by water, sailing through Lake Nicaragua. He contracted fever in the tropics and nearly lost his life on the Caribbean sea. He not only has many interesting recollections of the life in the mining camps of California but also of conditions in Madison county in the pioneer days when the comforts and conveniences that are now taken as a matter of course were unheard of and when there was much to test a man's resolution and courage. His standard of life has always been high and the honored old age which he is enjoying is the direct result of his integrity and industry in the years gone by.
DAVID MILLS.
David Mills, deceased, was a highly esteemed citizen of Earlham and there are many who still cherish his memory. He was born in Henry county, Indiana, in 1824, a son of David and Esther Mills, natives of Ohio, who in an early day went to Indiana, where both resided until called to their reward.
David Mills of this review was reared and educated in the Hoosier state and was there married. In the '5os he removed to this county and purchased land near Earlham. He subsequently bought other land and at different times owned a number of farms in the county. He was successful as a farmer and stock- raiser and for many years followed those pursuits. At length he removed to Earlham and lived retired there for about fourteen years before his demise,
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which occurred on the 4th of July, 1906. His assiduous labor and careful man- agement had given him more than a competence and none begrudged him his leisure.
Mr. Mills was twice married, his first union being with Miss Mary A. Bal- lard who became his wife on the 26th of March, 1851. She passed away on the 20th of August, 1888, and on the 7th of October, 1889, Mr. Mills married Mrs. Ann ( Mendenhall) Wroe, a daughter of John and Mildred ( Barnett ) Menden- hall, natives of Ohio. Her father was born in 1811 and upon reaching manhood turned his attention to farming. He became a resident of Indiana when that state was largely a wild and unsettled district and there purchased one hundred and thirty acres of land, paying for the whole tract but one hundred dollars. He improved his farm and operated it until he passed away on the 8th of March, 1847, at the early age of thirty-six years. His wife died on the 7th of October, 1851. Their daughter Ann became the wife of William H. Wroe on the 7th of June, 1870. He was a pioneer of Madison county and was engaged in the nursery business here at the time of his death, which occurred in 1880. To Mr. and Mrs. Wroe were born two children: Valverda J., the wife of Allen Ken- worthy, residing in Dallas county ; and John M., who is farming in the state of Washington. Mrs. Mills has a nice home in Earlham, where she resides, and she also owns a fine residence that she rents and eighty acres of land near Earl- ham. She is a member of the Friends church and exemplifies in her life those virtues that have always been associated with the Quakers, or Friends. She is held in the highest esteem by all who know her and there are many who value highly her friendship and goodwill.
SYLVESTER RENSHAW.
Sylvester Renshaw, who is living retired in Earlham, was born in Fayette county, Pennsylvania, on the 23d of August, 1845. His parents, George S. and Martha (Evans) Renshaw, were natives of Virginia but the father became a resi- dent of Fayette county, Pennsylvania, at an early period. He was a farmer by occupation and followed agricultural pursuits in the Keystone state until 1852. when he removed with his family to Delaware county. Iowa, and for a year resided there. He then removed to Clayton county, and purchased land which he operated during the remainder of his life. He died in 1868 at the age of sixty-five years and was survived for many years by his widow, whose demise occurred in 1900, when she was eighty-five years old.
Sylvester Renshaw is indebted to the common schools of Pennsylvania and of Clayton county, Iowa, for his scholastic training and to his father for his early knowledge concerning agricultural matters. When twenty-two years of age he began farming for himself and went to Missouri, where his father-in-law gave him land. He operated his place there for a little over a year but in 1870 came to Madison county, Iowa, and purchased land in Jefferson township, which he improved and developed until 1902. He then retired from the active cultivation of the fields and removed to Earlham, building a fine residence, in which he has lived ever since. At the time of his removal here he traded his farm for two
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hundred and eighty acres near town, which he sold at one hundred and four dol- lars per acre. In less than a year thereafter the place was sold again at an increase of seven thousand, and four hundred dollars. After removing to Earl- ham he became financially interested in a flour mill here and for about a year was actively connected with its operation. At the end of that time, however, he retired from all business cares and is now enjoying a life of leisure made possible by former labor and by excellent management of his interests.
Mr. Renshaw was married in March, 1868, to Miss Sarah Hazen, a daughter of S. L. and Maria Hazen, natives of Vermont and pioneers of Clayton county, Iowa. Her father was a physician and practiced successfully for many years. He passed away in Missouri and his wife died in Florida. Mr. and Mrs. Ren- shaw had six children: Clarence L., who died March 20, 1880; Alfred S., a resident of Los Angeles, California; Mabel L., the wife of Harry Gilmore, a druggist of Vinton, Iowa; Edith E., who gave her hand in marriage to John Bunnell, a farmer of this county; Sarah R., who died on the 16th of January, 1892; and James C., a farmer of Dallas county, this state. Mrs. Renshaw died on the 23d of February, 1883, and on the 9th of January, 1884, our subject mar- ried Miss Serena Bridges, a daughter of Lawson Bridges, who was a native of Indiana and a pioneer of this county. He was a well known and successful farmer and his demise in 1907 was much regretted. His widow survived for five years and passed away on the 23d of September, 1912. Mrs. Serena Renshaw died in 1906 and on the 2d of June, 1910, Mr. Renshaw was again married, Miss Jean McDaniel becoming his wife. Her parents, Alexander and Isabelle ( McFee; McDaniel, were natives of Kentucky and Scotland respectively. Her father farmed in the Blue Grass state until 1870, when he removed to Indiana and fol- lowed agricultural pursuits there until his removal to Fort Wayne, where he lived retired until his death, which occurred in 1900. He had survived his wife for many years, as she passed away in 1869. Mrs. Renshaw was born in Boone county, Kentucky, on the 5th of June, 1854.
Mr. Renshaw is a republican and has served acceptably as township clerk of Jefferson township but has never been an office seeker in the usually accepted sense of the term. His religious affiliation is with the Methodist Episcopal church, and he takes a great interest in its work, giving both of his time and of his means to the spread of its influence. As a farmer he was industrious and pro- gressive and ranked among the leading agriculturists of his township and since removing to Earlham he has proved a valuable addition to its citizens.
JOHN W. KRELL.
On the roster of county officials of Madison county appears the name of John W. Krell, who is capably and acceptably serving in the position of county treas- urer, making his home in Winterset. He was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, October 18, 1868, a son of John Henry and Mary S. (Wissler) Krell. The father was born near Frankfort, Germany, and came to the United States with his parents in 1849, when a lad of but nine years. He was reared and married in Ohio and there learned the mason's trade, which he followed throughout the
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period of his early manhood. Following his marriage he settled on a farm, carry- ing on general agricultural pursuits in Ohio until 1875, when he came to Madison county, Iowa, and purchased land, becoming the owner of a tract in Webster township. There he again engaged in farming and also worked at his trade at intervals. His life was a busy, active and useful one and he continued to conduct his farm until 1901, when he retired from business and removed to Winterset, where his death occurred on the 3d of June, 1914.
At the time of the Civil war John H. Krell put aside all business and personal considerations and enlisted October 12, 1861, in defense of his country as a mem- ber of Company A, Seventy-third Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was on active duty for more than three years and then reenlisted in the same company. At the battle of Gettysburg he was wounded in the back of his head by a gunshot, having a very close call. He was sent to a hospital but as soon as possible rejoined his command. His regiment was always attached to the Army of the Potomac and with that command he participated in many hotly contested engagements, remain- ing loyally at the front until honorably discharged at the close of the war. He afterward became a member of Pitzer Post, No. 55, G. A. R., of Winterset, and had many warm friends among his old army comrades. Fraternally he was con- nected with Grand River Lodge, No. 406, I. O. O. F., of Macksburg, which he joined upon its organization, having previously been made an Odd Fellow at Kingston, Ohio. When a resident of the Buckeye state he held membership in the Methodist church but after coming to Iowa joined the United Evangelical Association. Later he returned to the Methodist church and passed away in that faith when seventy-four years of age. His wife was a native of Pickaway county, Ohio, and her parents were natives of Pennsylvania, of German extraction. Her father was a minister of the Evangelical church until he lost his eyesight when in middle age. He and his wife afterward made their home with Mr. Krell in Ohio and in the fall of 1875 came to Iowa with him and secured eighty acres of land adjoining the Krell farm. The maternal grandmother of our subject passed away at the advanced age of eighty-six years, while Mr. Wissler died at the very vener- able age of ninety-four years. Their daughter, who was the mother of our sub- ject, died in Webster township, February 14, 1900, when but fifty-eight years of age. She was always a consistent member of the Evangelical church and lived an earnest Christian life. In the family of John H. and Mary S. ( Wissler) Krell were seven children: Dayton W., a mail carrier of Winterset; John W .; Samuel W., who is conducting a barber shop in Winterset; Frank, who died at the age of thirty-two years ; Lewis Henry, now residing in Des Moines ; Tena, the wife of Claud W. Wight, of Winterset ; and Chauncey W., a telegraph operator at Ackley, Iowa, in the employ of the Illinois Central Railroad Company.
John W. Krell was a little lad of seven years when brought to Madison county by his parents. His boyhood days were spent upon the home farm and he at- tended the public schools, pursuing his education through the winter months, while the summer seasons were largely devoted to the work of the fields. He began teaching when twenty-two years of age and followed that profession for twenty-two terms in Webster township. He attended the Madison County Teach- ers' Normal and when not engaged in teaching he worked upon the home farm. In 1899 he suffered from a broken leg and that year he again engaged in teaching, after which he was appointed superintendent of the county poor farm, in which
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position he continued for seven years. At the end of that time he resigned and took a trip to the west. In the fall of that year he worked for the Madisonian but was later appointed deputy treasurer under C. H. Hochstetler, in which posi- tion he continued for four years. In 1912 he was elected to the office of county treasurer and filled the position so capably and acceptably to his constituents that in the fall of 1914 he was reelected and is the incumbent in that position. He is a standpat republican, giving unswerving support to the party and its principles.
On the 7th of March, 1894, Mr. Krell was united in marriage to Miss Cora B. Hart, who was born in Madison county, a daughter of A. M. and Caroline ( Welty ) Hart, who came to this county in pioneer times. The father worked at the carpenter's trade and at the time of the Civil war enlisted in the Union army with the Fourth Iowa Cavalry. Mrs. Krell was reared and educated in this county and took up the work of teaching, which she followed in Madison and Adair counties. By this marriage there has been born a daughter, Zella V., who is now attending high school.
In his fraternal relations Mr. Krell is a Mason and is loyal to the teachings and purposes of the craft. He also belongs to Grand River Lodge, No. 406, I. O. O. F., of Macksburg. Both he and his wife are connected with the Rebekah degree and with the Order of the Eastern Star at Winterset. Mr. Krell is also a member of the Woodmen of the World. Both he and his wife hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal church, in the work of which they are actively inter- ested. As a public official he has made an excellent record and his fellow towns- men have every confidence in him, knowing him to be thoroughly reliable as well as efficient.
JESSIE V. (STAUFFER) SMITH, M. D.
Dr. Jessie V. (Stauffer) Smith, a physician of Winterset, successfully prac- ticing, the value of her work being attested by many, was born on the 20th of May, 1866, in Union township, Madison county. Her father, Joseph Stauffer, was a native of Indiana and was there reared and educated. He continued his residence in that state until 1857, when he took up his abode in Iowa. He had visited Madison county in 1855 and purchased land at that time but did not remove his family to the county until two years later, when he journeyed west- ward by stage and established his home in Union township, where he secured a tract of land and engaged in farming until 1912. He then rented his farm and removed to Patterson, where he is now living retired, and although eighty-eight years of age he is still hale and hearty. In politics he is a democrat and is ever loyal to the principles of that organization. Fraternally he is a Mason, having joined the order in early manhood, and he is today one of the oldest and most loyal representatives of the craft in Madison county. His religious belief is that of the Universalist church and his life has ever been an upright and honorable one, winning for him the warm regard and friendship of those with whom he has come in contact. In early manhood he wedded Catherine Guthrie, a native of Ireland, who came to the United States when fifteen years of age. She is now more than seventy-seven years of age and a member of the Methodist church.
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