USA > Iowa > Page County > History of Page County, Iowa : also biographical sketches of some prominent citizens of the county, Vol. II > Part 54
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Mr. Behm is a member of Tricentum Lodge. No. 300, A. F. & A. M .; Sheshbazzar Chapter, No. 82, R. A. M .: Clarinda Lodge, No. 139, K. P .; and Page Camp, No. 1049. M. W. A. In his political views he is a stalwart democrat, taking an active and helpful interest in the work of the party, and at the present writing is serving as a member of the senatorial com- mittee from his district. He belongs to the Shenandoah Commercial Club and is one of the city's representative business men.
ELMAS JAMES.
Elmas James is one of the extensive landowners of the county but is now practically living retired from the active work of the farm, making his home in College Springs. That he is one of the honored and representa- tive citizens here is indicated in the fact that he is now serving for the third year as mayor, in which connection he is giving a public-spirited and bus- inesslike administration characteristic of practical reform and improvement. What he undertakes he accomplishes and this is evident in his official service as well as in his business life.
Mr. James was born near Zanesville, Muskingum county, Ohio, June 10. 1851, and was the eldest of four children, whose parents were Charles F. and Emily L. (Welch) James, natives of Maryland and of Muskingum county. Ohio, respectively. The father removed to the latter state and they were married in Muskingum county. On leaving Ohio they went to Mc- Donough county, Illinois, about 1858 and subsequently they established
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their home in Nodaway county, Missouri, where the father died in 1898 at the age of seventy-one years. He was the owner of three hundred acres of land in that county and capably and successfully carried on general farm- ing. His widow still survives and now resides in Elmo, Missouri. They were the parents of four children : Elmas; L. W., who is living in Elmo, Missouri ; Frank and Emma, who are also residents of Elmo.
A youth of seven years at the time of the removal to Illinois, Elmas James was reared in McDonough county, early becoming familiar with all of the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agriculturist. He acquired his education by attending the common schools and year by year he aided more and more largely in the work of the farm as his years and strength increased.
At length he determined upon having a home of his own and to this end he was united in marriage on the Ist of July, 1871, to Miss Sidney Wheeler, who was born in Muskingum county, Ohio, December 13, 1851, and in 1856 was taken to McDonough county, Illinois, by her parents, Wesley D. and Mary Ann (Hawkins) Wheeler. Her father was a native of Virginia and the battle of Bull Run was fought upon the farm which the Wheeler family formerly occupied. The mother was born near Har- risburg, West Virginia. Removing westward, they took up their abode in Illinois, and the father died in that state in 1864, while the mother passed away in Page county, Iowa, in the fall of 1874. They were the parents of six children, Mrs. James being the fourth in order of birth. Her girlhood days were largely passed in McDonough county, where she remained up to the time of her marriage.
In the same year Mr. and Mrs. James removed westward to Missouri, settling in Nodaway county. When they reached their destination they had a cash capital of but five dollars but they possessed determination and energy and resolved to win success if it could be achieved by honorable methods. Mr. James then cultivated a rented farm for two years, after which he erected a house on eighty acres of land belonging to his father in Lincoln township, Nodaway county, Missouri, near Elmo. As his financial re- sources increased he bought forty acres and with this as a nucleus he has added to his holdings from time to time until he is now the owner of six hundred and fifty acres in Lincoln township, being one of the extensive landowners of this part of the state. His time and energies were devoted continuously to general agricultural pursuits until 1902, when he left the farm and removed to College Springs, purchasing his present home, which stands in the midst of four acres of land, or an entire village block. While he was tilling the soil he also made a specialty of stock raising, and both branches of his business proved profitable. His intelligent direction of all his labor and his wise and judicious investment constitute sources of suc- cess that have placed him with the men of affluence in the county.
As the years went by three children were added to the James household, but Cora A., who was born December 24, 1874, died in 1886. Ola, born June II, 1879, married Clara Hopper, by whom he has one child, Myrlin, and they reside upon one of his father's farms in Lincoln township.
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Clarence, born in December, 1884, and also living upon one of his father's farms, married Blanche Montague and they have one child, Geraldine C.
In his political views Mr. James is a stalwart republican and ever keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day. He is now serving for the third year as mayor of College Springs, to which office he was called by a vote of his fellow townsmen, who recognized in him a loyal and progressive citizen, unfaltering in his allegiance to the public welfare. In his administration he has tangible evidence of his devotion to the city as the champion of many measures for the public good. He belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church and a life of business integrity, of enterprise and of loyalty in friendship have gained him a high place in the regard of his fellowmen.
W. E. KEISTER.
Early realizing that there is no royal road to wealth, W. E. Keister in his business career has put forth strenuous and consecutive effort for the attainment of that success which is the goal of all laudable endeavor. He is now a member of the firm of Keister, Collins & Company, lumber dealers of Essex. His life record began on the 2nd of April, 1856, in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, his parents being David and Anna (Lauffer ) Keister. both of whom were natives of Westmoreland county, and were of German lineage. The father spent his entire life in his native county, where he fol- lowed the occupation of farming. The mother still survives and makes her home with her children.
At the usual age W. E. Keister was sent to the public schools and sup- plemented his preliminary course by an academic course in the Laird Insti- tute. At twenty years of age he left the parental roof and came to Iowa, working for one year as a farm hand at Randolph, Fremont county. He then went to Imogene in the same county, where he secured a position as yard man in connection with the lumber business. He remained there, how- ever, for only one year, after which he came to Essex and found employ- ment in the lumberyard of Mr. Poe, with whom he remained for seventeen years. At that time Mr. Poe failed in business and for two years thereafter Mr. Keister was employed by other parties. In company with A. M. Stearns he then purchased the lumber business of Beach & Sederburg and started out upon an independent business venture, conducting the enterprise under the firm name of Keister & Stearns. They remained together for two years, at the end of which time Mr. Keister purchased Mr. Stearn's interest and for six months conducted the business alone. He then sold a half interest to A. D. Collins, since which time the firm has been Keister & Collins. They have a large and well equipped lumberyard, in which they carry all kinds of lum- ber and building supplies. In January, 1909, they purchased the lumber- yards of Frank Weidman, of Coburg, Iowa, and Mr. Keister's son-in-law, W. J. Parrott, bought a third interest in the firm at that time. The name
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was then changed to Keister, Collins & Company and they own and control a business at Essex and at Coburg. Mr. Keister is also the owner of a quarter section of land in Sully county, South Dakota. The years have chronicled his success which comes from his ability to correctly judge of life's contacts and its experiences and to utilize every favoring opportunity.
In 18So Mr. Keister was united in marriage to Miss Ida M. Baird of Essex, and unto them have been born eight children, of whom five are living. These are: Muriel J., the wife of W. J. Parrott of Coburg, who is third partner in the business and has charge of the lumberyards of the firm of Keister, Collins & Company at Coburg ; Delmont C., of Omaha, Nebraska ; James D., who is living in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Frank D., who is an assis- tant in the Coburg lumberyards ; and Baird V., at home.
In his political views Mr. Keister is a stalwart republican where national issues are involved but at local elections casts an independent ballot but his fellow townsmen's appreciation of his public-spirited citizenship and his de- votion to the general good is indicated in the fact that he was elected to the office of mayor, in which connection he gave a public-spirited and bene- ficial administration. He belongs to Mountain Lodge, No. 360, A. F. & A. M., and is a member of the Presbyterian church, in which he is serving as elder. His success has followed as the logical sequence of his close appli- cation and business probity and in other relations of life as well he has en- joyed the unqualified esteem and confidence of his associates and colleagues.
JOHN H. WALKINSHAW.
Each community has a certain number of citizens to whom they point with pride as leaders in the activities which are foremost in the upbuilding and progress of the locality. In Blanchard John H. Walkinshaw is ac- counted one of the number for he is a man of unfaltering integrity, un- abating industry and energy that never flags. These qualities have gained him success and leadership in business circles. He is now owner of the grain elevator and also the vice president of the First National Bank of Blanchard.
His birth occurred in Guernsey county, Ohio, May 9, 1843, his par- ents being John and Margaret (Glasgow) Walkinshaw, who were early settlers of that county. His father was born in Ireland and when about three years of age was brought to the United States by his parents, John and Mary (Henry) Walkinshaw, who settled in Guernsey county, Ohio, where they resided until the fall of 1857, when they removed to Des Moines county, Iowa. Rcared in the Buckeye state, John Walkinshaw, the father of our subject, there acquired his education and learned the miller's trade. After coming to Iowa he turned his attention to farming, which he con- tinued to follow until called to his final rest, his death occurring at Morning Sun, Iowa, when he was seventy-five years of age. His wife, who was born in Scotland, came to the United States with her parents, Mr. and Mrs.
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Arthur Glasgow and died at the age of forty-two years. By her marriage she became the mother of the following children: James, deceased ; Jane, who is the widow of Andrew McConaughy and lives in Superior, Nebraska ; Maria, the wife of John Kilpatrick, of Des Moines county, Iowa; Hugh W .. a resident of Page county ; John H. ; Margaret. the wife of Thomas Read, of California : Adam, who is living in Nebraska; Lemuel, whose home is in Stockton, California ; Mary Ann, the wife of James Baird, of Des Moines county, lowa; Arthur G., who lives at Santa Anna, California ; and three who died in infancy.
John H. Walkinshaw resided in Guernsey county, Ohio, until about four- teen years of age and during that period mastered the elementary branches of learning as a pupil in the district schools. Subsequently he accompanied his parents to Iowa and in 1869 became a resident of Harlan township, Page county. He bought raw land there at five dollars per acre, improved it and built a house thereon, hauling the lumber from Hamburg. He lived there for about six years and on the expiration of that period sold his property for thirty dollars per acre. Removing to Atchinson county, Missouri, he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of raw land at seven dollars and a half per acre, improved the place and built thereon a house, hauling the lum- ber from Clarinda. There he lived for about twenty-six years and as his financial resources increased he extended the boundaries of his farm from time to time until it comprised three hundred and sixty acres. The ex- tent of his possessions was the indication of the success which came to him and which was the direct result of close application and unabating energy.
Following the death of his wife Mr. Walkinshaw removed to Blanchard and about a year later became owner of a grain elevator. In 1898 he be- came associated with James C. McKee in establishing the present business which they conducted together until 1905 and then admitted Joseph D. Mc- Kee, a brother of James C. McKee, to a partnership. They handle grain and coal under the firm name of the Walkinshaw & McKee Brothers Elevator Company, of Blanchard and Elmo, Missouri. At the latter place they have another elevator and are closely and actively associated with the grain in- terests of this part of the country. A man of resourceful business ability, Mr. Walkinshaw has extended his efforts into other fields. He is a stock- holder in the First National Bank of Blanchard and is now its vice presi- dent. He never allows ordinary obstacles or difficulties to block his path but overcomes them by determined effort and perseverance, which ulti- mately enables him to reach the goal for which he is striving.
It was on the 29th of July, 1869, that Mr. Walkinshaw was married to Miss Sarah McCiellan, a daughter of William and Elizabeth Mcclellan, of Page county. They became the parents of the following children: Wil- liam A., who is now living on a farm on the lowa and Missouri state line, near Blanchard, is married and has five children. John A., who lives about a mile south of Blanchard in Missouri, married Sarah Henning and they have three children. Elizabeth C. is the wife of Orra Duncan, of Taylor county, Iowa, and they have five children. Jennie is the wife of John Mc- Knight, of Kansas, and they have two children. Hannah is the wife of Wil-
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liam Henning, a resident of Blanchard, Missouri. Lois married Thomas Copeland and they reside in Nodaway county, Missouri. James I .. married Hattie Cain and is living in Denver, Colorado, and Frank makes his home with his father. There were other children of that marriage who died in infancy. After losing his first wife Mr. Walkinshaw married again, his second union being with Margaret Watson.
Mr. Walkinshaw is a member of the Reformed Presbyterian church, in which he is serving as one of the elders. He was also one of its organizers, the church being established in 1877. Throughout the intervening years he has done good work as one of its faithful advocates, cooperating in every movement that tends to promote its growth and extend its influence. He has always been a public-spirited citizen and is entitled to wear the Grand Army button from the fact that he was a soldier in the Civil war, enlisting in Des Moines county, Iowa, on the 29th of July, 1863, as a member of Com- pany D, Eighth Iowa Cavalry. He joined his regiment at Davenport, where he was mustered into the United States service. He was in camp there for about three months and then went to Nashville, Tennessee. The regiment was sent into winter quarters at Waverly. Tennessee, and did guard dutty on railroads in that vicinity until February, 1864. He was then at Chatta- nooga and joined Sherman's "bummers" at Cleveland, Tennessee, on the At- lantic campaign. The troops remained with that command until Atlanta was captured and then returned to Waterloo, where they continued until the Ist of April. They afterward did considerable skirmishing and finally arrived at Macon, Georgia, where they continued until the Ist of August, after which they were sent back to Clinton, Iowa. There Mr. Walkinshaw was mtistered out August 13, 1865. He was never wounded but was injured at Waverly. Tennessee. when a team went over an embankment. In days of peace he has been equally as loyal to his country as when he followed the old flag on southern battlefields and his cooperation can always be counted upon to further any movement for the general good. His interests have never been self-centered but have extended to various movements and measures which have insured the continuous progress and upbuilding of the town and county.
T. E. BURTON.
On the roll of Tarkio's citizens appears the name of no man who more justly merits the esteem in which he is held than T. E. Burton, for the rules which govern his conduct and have molded his life history are such as every- where awaken confidence and trust. His business affairs have been so capably conducted as to win substantial success and have been so honorably managed that his name has become a synonym in the community for busi- ness integrity. Ilis home is on section 34. Tarkio township.
He is one of Ofiio's native sons, his birth having occurred in Belmont county, that state, on the 16th of August, 1851, his parents being George and Margaret (Cummins) Burton. The father was a native of Loudoun
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county, Virginia, and when a young man removed to Ohio, where he mar- ried. establishing his home in Belmont county. For many years he was identified with merchandising at Burton station, where he conducted a suc- cessful business, and he was also extensively engaged in the buying and shipping of tobacco for some years and also in the cultivation of that plant. He became one of the prominent, energetic and forceful business men of that section, his activity contributing in substantial measure to its growth and progress. A busy and useful life was terminated when, in 1888, in his eightieth year he was called to his final rest.
T. E. Burton was reared at home, where he was trained to habits of in- dustry, economy and perseverance. He received instruction in business methods from his father whom he assisted in his various lines of com- mercial and agricultural activity. He was a youth of fourteen years when, in 1865. in company with a brother, he went to Clark county, Illinois, where he remained for more than a year. But he was afflicted with ague there and in the fall of 1866 returned to his Ohio home. In the spring of 1868, how- ever, he once more went to Illinois and spent a year as a farm hand in Clark and Putnam counties. In the winter of 1869 and 1870 he again returned to his native county, where he spent five years, during which period he was engaged in teaching and in farming. During the latter portion of that time he purchased an interest in his father's mercantile business but after de- voting a year or more to commercial pursuits he found that the business was uncongenial and sold out.
The spring of 1876 witnessed Mr. Burton's arrival in Iowa, at which time he made his way to Page county and engaged in farming as a renter. For five years he cultivated land belonging to others and during that period carefully saved his earnings until his capital was sufficient to enable him to purchase land in 1881. This was his first investment in real estate and there- by he became owner of one hundred and sixty acres of his present home place on section 34. He at once took up his abode thereon and it has since been his home. He has, however, extended its boundaries until he now has two hundred and sixty acres in one body, constituting one of the more valuable farms of Page county. It is equipped with all modern conveniences and accessories and is devoted to general agricultural pursuits and stock raising. In this work he has been quite successful, the sale of his crops bringing him a substantial income which is also materially increased by his sale of live stock.
On the IIth of November. 1873, Mr. Burton was married to Miss Eliza Coffland, of Muskingum county, Ohio, who was born, however, in Bel- mont county, that state. The children of this marriage are as follows : Clif- ford Edgar, who is superintendent of schools at Odebolt, Sac county, Iowa ; Lillian, who is a teacher in the Shenandoah public schools and lives at home ; Estella, the wife of Herbert Dutton, of Lincoln township: Elsie May, who is a teacher in the district schools; and Milton George, who is attending the Valparaiso University at Valparaiso, Indiana.
In his political views Mr. Burton is a democrat but has never been an office seeker. He has been a liberal contributor to churches and charitable
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work and a cooperant factor in many measures for the public good, desiring to see the progress of the community in material, intellectual, social and moral lines. He early came to a realization of the fact that success is not a matter of genius as held by some but is rather the outcome of clear judg- ment, experience and indefatigable labor. He has sought to cultivate these qualities and in their employment has gained a place among the men of affluence in Tarkio township.
SAMUEL STEELE FINLEY.
Among Page county's citizens who have passed the Psalmist's allotted span of three score years and ten is Samuel Steele Finley, who, living in College Springs, is one of the respected and honored residents of the town. In the intervening years since his arrival he has taken an active and helpful part in the work of general improvement and progress, and his labor has been of signal service to the community and thus made it imperative that mention be made of him in this volume.
Mr. Finley was born at Cherry Fork in Adams county, Ohio, April 12, 1836, and in the paternal line comes of an old southern family, while on the distaff side he is of Pennsylvania ancestry. His parents were Robert and Mary (Barr) Finley, the former born in Augusta county, Virginia, Feb- ruary 14, 1790, and the latter on the Ist of March, 1800, in Washington county, Pennsylvania. They were married in Clermont county, Ohio, and their last days were spent in the vicinity of Monmouth county, Illinois, where the father died in August, 1864, and the mother in 1874. Mr. Fin- ley was a farmer throughout his entire life and bought a thousand acres of land in Peoria county, Illinois, which he divided among his children. In connection with the tilling of the soil he also engaged largely in raising stock and was one of the leading representatives of agricultural interests in the state of his adoption. Both he and his wife were active lifelong members of the United Presbyterian church. Mr. Finley had nine children by a former marriage, while Mrs. Finley had eight children by her first husband. By their marriage three children were born: Samuel Steele, of this review ; Mrs. Sarah Elizabeth Miller, now living in Los Angeles, Cal- ifornia ; and William Washington, who became a member of the Eighty- third Volunteer Infantry during the Civil war and was killed near Fort Donelson, Tennessee, in August, 1864.
Samuel Steele Finley spent the first ten years of his life in the place of his nativity and in the fall of 1846 accompanied his parents on their re- moval to Peoria county, Illinois. There the family lived until 1853, when they went to Fulton county and in 1856 established their home near Mon- mouth in Warren county, Illinois. Mr. Finley, of this review, resided in the last mentioned county until January. 1876, when he came to Page county and settled in Amity township. His entire life has been devoted to general farming and at one time he was the owner of two hundred acres of valuable
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land two and a half miles east of College Springs. He improved one hun- dred and twenty acres of this from a wild state and later he disposed of the entire tract except eighty acres. Since March, 1905, he has resided in College Springs, where he owns a fine old home, which was formerly oc- cupied by J. B. Laughlin, a nurseryman, who set out many beautiful trees, including many fine varieties not only on this place but also along the entire street and through the town. Mr. Finley, appreciative of the beauty of the place, made the purchase of the property which covers three blocks.
On the 29th of March, 1861, occurred the marriage of Mr. Finley and Miss M. Angeline Massey, who was born near Princeton, Indiana, June 17, 1840, and removed to Warren county, Illinois, with her parents in 1846. She was a daughter of Alfred and Esther Jane ( Paul) Massey, who were natives of Lincoln county, Tennessee. After crossing the Mason & Dixon line to become residents of the north, they lived for a short time in Indiana and then went to Monmouth, Illinois, where the father conducted a wagon- shop. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Finley have been born two sons and a daughter : Alfred M., living in College Springs : Dr. Mary Angeline Finley, who for ten years engaged in teaching and then attended the Still Osteopathic Col- lege at Des Moines, from which she was graduated in 1900. after which she practiced until her death which occurred August 15. 1907, when she was in her forty-second year ; and Robert Steele. Both sons are mentioned elsewhere in this volume.
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