USA > Iowa > Pottawattamie County > History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, from the earliest historic times to 1907, Vol. II > Part 7
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In the family of Mr. and Mrs. Anderson were two children. Barbara Key Anderson, whose birth occurred in Fulton, Illinois, June 17, 1863. was educated in the schools of Council Bluffs and was here married to Charles E. Tucker in 1892. He was an inspector of weights at the transfer depot in Council Bluffs for several years but passed away on June 10, 1902. Fraternally he was connected with the Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Woodmen of the World, the Rebekah lodge and the Eastern Star. His widow, who is now a teacher in the public schools of Council Bluffs, owns a substantial residence at No. 1130 Fourth avenue. She is one of the three members of the Iowa state board of examiners of the Rebekah assembly, a responsible position. She has one child, DeWitt Anderson Tucker, whose natal day was June 26, 1900. John James Anderson was born in Fulton, Illinois, March 13, 1866, acquired his education in the schools of this city and is now employed in the roundhouse of the Northwestern Rail- road Company in Council Bluffs." He makes his home with his sister, Mrs. Tucker.
Since the death of his wife Mr. Anderson has also made his home with his daughter, Mrs. Tucker. He owns some good property in Council Bluffs,
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which brings to him a desirable income, and also has shares in the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows Hall Association. In his political views he is an ardent republican but without desire for office. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and of the encampment, and wherever he is known Mr. Anderson is esteemed as a man of genuine personal worth and sterling traits of character, receiving the veneration and respect which should ever be accorded one who has traveled thus far on life's journey and whose actions have at all times been above reproach and worthy of emula- tion. As a young man he left his native country in order that he might enjoy the better business opportunities offered on this side of the Atlantic, and that he has utilized these to good advantage is shown by the fact that he has acquired a competence sufficient for his needs.
HOMER HOWARD FIELD.
Homer Howard Field, who for more than a half century has been a resi- dent of Council Bluffs, has passed the eighty-second milestone on life's journey. Few men of his years, however, have the vigor and enterprise of Mr. Field, who in spirit and interests seems yet in his prime. He has throughout this long period figured in the musical circles of the city and has been even better known because of his public service in various offices, to which he has been called by the vote of his fellow townsmen. Again and again they have thus manifested their trust in his ability, fidelity and loyal and progressive citizenship.
Mr. Field was born at Atwater, Portage county, Ohio, May 9, 1825, being the youngest of the six children of the Rev. John Field and Sarah Holt (Ens- worth) Field. His paternal grandparents were George and Prudence (Whip- ple) Field. The records concerning the ancestry in the maternal line were lost in a fire and as the parents of Homer H. Field died during his early youth he has little knowledge concerning the ancestral history of the family. His parents, who were natives of Worcester county, Massachusetts, were married in Burton, Geauga county, Ohio, in 1811. They had four sons and two daugh- - ters: Edward, Harriet, Erastus, Lucy, George and Homer.
The father died when Homer Howard Field was but three years of age and at the age of nine he was left an orphan by his mother's death. All the education he received was obtained at the little district school at the crossroads, but throughout his entire life he has been a student of the signs of the times, a keen observer of men and events and, possessing a retentive memory, he has gained a comprehensive and well defined general knowledge. When sixteen years of age he went to Pittsburg and learned the trade of chair-making. In the spring of 1845 he removed to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he worked at his trade for one year but the outbreak of the Mexican war caused him to put aside business cares. He enlisted for one year's service in Company E of the First Ohio Infantry and went to the front. After his return he worked at his trade and at the same time devoted much of his leisure outside of business hours
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to the study of the violin, for which he had acquired a passion, his instructor being the celebrated teacher, Joseph Tasso. His love of music has continued as one of the strongest characteristics of his life and his talent in musical lines had made him a valued addition to musical circles where he has lived.
On the 10th of October, 1850, Mr. Field was married to Miss Sarah Euphemia Arnold, of Covington, Kentucky. In the following spring he re- moved with his young wife to Indianapolis, where he established a chair fac- tory. After conducting it for four years, however, the business went into the hands of a receiver and in the spring of 1856 Mr. Field came to Council Bluffs, where he followed the profession of music as a side issue for twenty-five years, during much of which time he was in public office as the choice of his fellow townsmen. Over the record of his official career there falls no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil. For nine years, between 1863 and 1875, he was a member of the city council and from 1862 until 1865 he served as deputy sheriff of the county, at the same time acting as deputy provost marshal. He was a member of the board of education for three terms, between 1870 and 1893, and during the third term was president of the board. In 1865 he was elected sheriff of the county, holding the office until 1868, and from 1881 until 1884 he was chief of police. He was also justice of the peace from 1893 until 1895 and again filled that office from 1905 until 1907, his opinions, which were strictly fair and impartial, winning him "golden opinions from all sorts of people." No higher testimonial of his fidelity and capability in office could be given than the fact that he was called by popular vote to so many positions and was continued in office for so long a period.
Mrs. Field was the twelfth in order of birth in the family of thirteen chil- dren, whose parents were John R. and Margaret Arnold, of Covington, Ken- tucky. All of the number have now passed away, while Mr. Field is the only survivor of his father's family. The only son of this marriage died in 1863, while one daughter, Mrs. William M. Geddes, died in Washington, D. C., Janu- ary 10, 1900. The death of Mrs. Field occurred June 9, 1894, leaving Mr. Field with two daughters as the surviving members of the family. His daugh- ters are Mrs. T. E. Cavin, of Council Bluffs, and Mrs. H. H. Glover, of Grand Island, Nebraska. There are now eight grandchildren and two great-grand- children, the latter being Lewis Field Cavin, aged two years, and Don Cavin Merrick, aged four months, both of Chicago.
Mr. Field joined the republican party on its organization and has since followed its banners, being a firm believer in its principles as most conducive to good government. He belongs to no religious or fraternal organization but recognizes a universe governed by infallible law and only by observation of its perfection forms his conceptions of the infinite power and wisdom of its Ruler. He is a man whose honesty of opinion has never been questioned. Throughout his life he has stood for those interests and movements which have upheld the legal and political status of the county and promoted its social and intellectual development, while as a moral force his influence has always been on the side of justice, truth and right. For more than four.score years he has been a wit- ness of the world's work. Few indeed are the surviving veterans of the Mexi- can war. Mr. Field, however, served as a defender of American interests in
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that contest, witnessed the country emerge triumphantly from the greatest civil war of history and has watched as a most interested spectator the wonder- ful progress and development of the country in scientific, professional, art and commercial lines, while in the locality where he has resided for so many years he has borne his full share in the work of general upbuilding and promotion. There is perhaps no resident of the county who has more intimate knowledge of the events which have shaped its annals and thus the publishers made choice of Mr. Field as historian of this work, feeling that the record would be accurate and comprehensive.
FREDERICK MEYER.
Frederick Meyer, who departed this life in Council Bluffs in 1900, was a well known business man of the city, who had resided here since the early '60s and was closely associated with its commercial development and progress. As the name indicates, he was a German, born on the 20th of June 1838. His parents always lived in that country and there they were called to their final rest.
Mr. Meyer of this review obtained a good education in the schools of his native land and in carly manhood sailed for America with a brother in the '50s. They landed at New York city but did not tarry on the Atlantic coast, proceeding into the interior of the country. Mr. Meyer lived in Wisconsin until about 1862, when he came to Iowa, establishing his home in Council Bluffs. Here he began work for Conrad Geise, who was then engaged in the brewery business. He still continues in the same line and also has extensive bottling works here. Mr. Meyer remained in the em- ploy of Mr. Geise for some time and then began traveling for him, repre- senting the house on the road for several years. At length he retired from the road and opened a saloon and restaurant in Council Bluffs, continuing the business for some time. Eventually, however, he sold out here and took up his abode in Mineola, Iowa, a village near Council Bluffs, where he opened a hotel, which he conducted throughout his remaining days. Becoming ill, he died there October 10, 1900.
Mr. Meyer had been married in Council Bluffs to Miss Louisa Braahaus, also a native of Germany and a daughter of John Braahaus, who died in that country. Mrs. Meyer had relatives living in Council Bluffs and was thus induced to come to the new world. Unto our subject and his wife were born two children. both living with their mother. Henry A., who has recently been in ill health, has just returned from a trip to Wyoming. Since his father's death he has always resided at home, attending to the business for his mother and looking after her property interests. Gustave, also at home, is now a bookkeeper in the Hamilton Shoe store.
Mr. Meyer was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. being one of the early representatives of the lodge in this city, and he also belonged to the Knights of Pythias fraternity. His political allegiance
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was given to the republican party for some years but later he became inde- pendent voting for the best men regardless of party affiliations. He was recognized as a prominent and well-to-do German citizen making his money in his business interests here and investing extensively in real estate here. He had little capital when he arrived in America being in fact dependent upon his own resources for a living but he made good use of his opportuni- ties and through his business management, executive ability and unfalter- ing diligence he gained a large measure of success. He was a big hearted man, liberal and generous to those in need, of kindly spirit and cordial disposition. He therefore won many friends and was particularly prom- inent among the German citizens of Council Bluffs. Mrs. Meyer is a mem- ber of the German Lutheran church. Following her husband's death, she sold the property in Mineola and returned to Council Bluffs to make her home. She now owns a fine residence at No. 204 South First street, where she and her sons reside, and she also has much other valuable city prop- erty here, including a number of dwellings which she rents.
JOHN C. MARXEN.
John C. Marxen is prominently connected with industrial interests in Avoca as a contractor and builder and owner of a planing mill. He has thus contributed in substantial measure to the improvement of the town and is pre-eminently a business man, alert, energetic and progressive. He was born in Schleswig-Holstein. Germany, on the 1st of June, 1863, his parents being Hans and Anna (Monicous) Marxen, of whose family of four children three are yet living. The daughter Charlotte is a Sister in Klorice hospital at Kiel. Germany, while the brother Nicholas is quartermaster ser- geant of his regiment in the German army. The father, who was born in 1830, is still living and is a prominent farmer of Schleswig-Holstein. The mother, who was born in 1824, passed away in 1885. She had formerly been the wife of Mr. Horn and by that marriage there were five children, of whom four are yet living: Henry, Christina, the wife of a Mr. Vogst, and Marie, all in Germany; and Jacob, who is living in Jersey City. New Jersey.
As a boy and youth John C. Marxen remained under the parental roof and in the public schools acquired his preliminary education. which was supplemented by a course of study as architectural draughtsman in a pri- vate college in Schleswig. Following his graduation from the school in 1882 he came to the United States, attracted by the broader opportunities and greater possibilities for business advancement in the new world. For one year after his arrival he was employed in Davenport, Iowa. and sub- sequently went to Omaha. where for four years he worked on a salary. In 1887 he engaged in contracting and building on his own account and con- tinued in business there for ten years, while in 1897 he came to Avoca and has since been connected with building operations in this town. Here he
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has prospered, many important contracts being awarded him, so that he has added in large measure to the improvement of the city in a material way. In 1906 he erected an extensive brick building, in which he installed complete planing mill machinery, having now the only enterprise of the kind in Avoca. His financial position is in marked contrast to his condi- tion when he arrived in Davenport, Iowa, in 1882 with but seventy-five cents in his pocket. Although his capital was very limited he was well endowed with energy and laudable ambition and when on his way to his boarding house he spent a couple of hours in assisting a man in riveting a boiler, receiving for his services seventy-five cents. He has eagerly availed himself of every opportunity for advancement in business lines and is to- day one of the leading representatives of industrial life in Avoca. He always lives faithfully up to the terms of a contract and his success is the merited reward of his fidelity and skill. Many substantial buildings of the city stand as monuments to his capability and labor.
In 1889 Mr. Marxen was united in marriage to Miss Amelia Rethwith, a native of Germany but a resident of Calhoun, Nebraska, at the time of her marriage. This union has been blessed with eight children but. they lost their fifth child, Walter. The others are all living and are still at home, namely: Olga, Lilly, Paul, Frieda, Della, Ruby and Esther.
Mr. Marxen is a democrat in politics, keeping well informed on the questions and issues of the day and is a member of the town council of Avoca. He is prominent in fraternal circles, belonging to Avoca lodge, No. 220, I. O. O. F .; Mount Nebo lodge, A. F. & A. M .; Avoca camp, No. 160, M. W. A .; and Atlantic lodge, No. 45, B. P. O. E. He has never had occasion to regret his determination to seek a home in America, for here he has found the opportunities he sought-which, by the way, are always open to ambitious, energetic young men. As the years have gone by and he has put forth his efforts along well defined lines of labor where discrim- ination and sound judgment have led the way, he has gradually progressed until he has reached the goal of prosperity.
JOSIAH TRUE.
Josiah True, deceased, was for many years actively identified with the agricultural interests of Pottawattamie county, his home being in Knox town- ship. He was a native of Maine, born in Lisbon on the 5th of May, 1822, and was a son of Samuel and Jane True. He was reared and educated in the old Pine Tree state and in early manhood was employed for five years in a sawmill at Bangor, Maine.
Thinking to enjoy better opportunities in the west, where prices were lower and competition not so great, Mr. True made his way to Pottawattamie county, Iowa, where he arrived in 1857. This district was then a largely undeveloped and unimproved region and, in fact, many evidences of pioneer
JOSIAH
TRUE
THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
AS O', L'NOX AND TID N FOUNDATIONS.
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life were here to be seen. He bought a farm in Knox township, securing between four and five hundred acres, upon which he lived until his death.
On his place he erected a frame dwelling and subsequently he built a modern commodious brick residence, burning the brick on his own farm. He also added many other modern equipments and accessories, and everything about his place was indicative of careful supervision and progressive methods. He was a soldier of the Civil war and went with Sherman on his celebrated march to the sea.
In 1858 Mr. True was united in marriage to Miss Abby Plummer and to them were born seven children, namely: Frank M., a farmer of Knox township; Fred, who is engaged in the same pursuit near Parsons, Kansas; Lewis, also a farmer of Knox township, this county; Maggie, the wife of J. F. Adams, of Seattle, Washington ; Minnie, the wife of T. J. Pedicord, of Spokane, Washington ; Joseph, a farmer of Knox township, and one who died in infancy.
Prior to coming to Iowa Mr. True had been in the war west, for during the gold excitement in 1849 he went to California by way of the isthmus of Panama, and for a time was engaged in prospecting and mining with good success. He returned to the east by the overland route and took up govern- ment land in Pottawattamie county. That he ranked with the leading and influential men of his community is indicated by the fact that he was again and again called to the office of supervisor of Knox township, his long con- tinuance in the position indicating, too, his fidelity to duty. He attained a high rank in Masonry, having taken the thirty-second degree, and at all times was true and loyal to the beneficent spirit and high principles of the craft. At his death, which occurred May 12, 1902, he was laid to rest with Masonic honors. His last days were spent in Avoca, where he lived retired from business cares, surrounded by many friends.
ISAAC N. GARDNER.
Isaac N. Gardner is a veteran of the Civil war and a representative of a family noted for loyalty and patriotism. Now a resident of Oakland, he was born in Morrow county, Ohio, in 1841. His father, John L. Gardner, was born in Muskingum county, Ohio, September 4, 1806, and died December 5, 1874, at the age of sixty-nine years. He was of Scotch lineage, his father having come from Scotland to the new world at an early day. He was with the Loyalist army during the early part of the Revolutionary war, but de- serted and joined the Patriots army. He was at that time nineteen years of age.
John L. Gardner was a farmer by occupation, and in the year 1853 came to Iowa, settling in Iowa county at Marengo. There he conducted a flouring and saw mill for about ten years, and while upon a visit to his son at Atchison, Kansas, his death occurred. He was a hard-working man, at all times diligent and enterprising, and he possessed a most liberal spirit and
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kindly disposition, being generous in all of his relations to his fellowmen. In politics he was an old time whig until the dissolution of that party, when he entered the ranks of the new republican party. He was a man of large physique and great strength and this enabled him to lead a life of marked activity. He sent five of his sons to the Civil war, and had it not been for rheumatism. from which he suffered, he would undoubtedly have gone to the front himself. He had few educational advantages but throughout his entire life was a reader and kept well posted on general affairs of the day. He had a good memory and was an extensive traveler, so that his friends delighted in his companionship. He held the office of justice of the peace and other political positions in his township and throughout the community was held in high esteem. He married Sarah Goodin, who was born April 26, 1813, in Perry county, Ohio, and died November 14, 1848, at the age of thirty-five years. She was of German lineage.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Gardner were born ten children, of whom Margaret, the eldest, died in infancy. Madison, the eldest son, is a ranchman and a minister of the Methodist Episcopal church. He enlisted in the Civil war in 1862, at Marengo, becoming a member of the Twenty-fourth Iowa Volun- teer Infantry and was. mustered out at the close of the war with the rank of sergeant. He was hit by a spent bullet but was never seriously wounded. He took part in the siege of Vicksburg and was with Sheridan at Winchester and participated in other important engagements. Cravan V., a ranchman living at Piedmont, South Dakota, joined the army at Council Bluffs in August, 1862, as a member of Company A, Twenty-ninth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, and served until the close of hostilities, being raised to the rank of captain by election of his company. John died in 1849. Asa A., now living at Mount Gilead, Ohio, enlisted in October, 1861, at Mansfield, Ohio, with Company D, of the Sixty-fifth Ohio Infantry, of which he became captain. He received at Stone River what was considered at that time a death wound, .a minie-ball going clear through his body. but he managed to make his way from the scene of conflict to the field hospital and eventually recovered from his injuries. He was again wounded at the battle of Chickamauga. Both wounds were of a very serious nature but he rallied and in time regained his health. After the first wound he was shot through the breast and the bullet took off a piece of the vertebra, but he was at the head of his command again in six weeks, and after his second wound he was again soon back with his command. He served at the front until the war was ended and then re- turned home, subsequent to which he was elected probate judge of Morrow county. He held that office for two terms and filled other official positions. Rhoda A. is the wife of Harrison Rhodes, a merchant of Omaha, Nebraska. Washington, who is living in Albion, Michigan. is a graduate of Ohio Wes- Jeyan University of Delaware, Ohio, and after the completion of his school course he entered the Methodist ministry, devoting twelve years to that work. Prior to this time he was graduated from the Albany Law School and prac- ticed law at Grand Rapids, Michigan. He had fine oratorical powers and became famous in the ministry, occupying the pulpits of the Methodist church in Jackson, Kalamazoo, Iona and other cities in Michigan, and also
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in Cincinnati, Ohio. Resigning from the ministry, he became a lecturer at Albion College in Michigan, and while connected with that institution he received the unanimous nomination of the republican party for secretary of state but was defeated. He was twice again nominated by acclamation and both times elected. At the time of his first nomination the entire ticket was defeated. After his term of office had expired he was nominated and elected in the third Michigan district to the national house of congress and is now serving for the fourth term in that office, being elected by increased ma- jorities each time. He, too, has a splendid record as a soldier in the Civil war, having enlisted in October, 1861, at Mansfield, Ohio, in Company D, Sixty-fifth Ohio Infantry, with which he served as commissary sergeant. He was severely wounded in the knee cap May 14, 1864. Recovering from his injuries, he was mustered out on the expiration of his three years' term. His life has been one of intense activity and of usefulness to his fellowmen through his service on the field of battle, in behalf of moral progress and in political circles. There were five brothers in the army and all are still liv- ing. Mary D. Gardner, the ninth member of the family, became the wife of William H. Hodgson, a passenger conductor on the Texas-Pacific Rail- . road, and died February 8, 1906. Sarah, the youngest member of the family, is the wife of H. E. Goldthwaite, a land agent at Marengo, who has served as treasurer of his county.
Isaac N. Gardner, who was the sixth in order of birth in the family of John L. Gardner, was reared on the home farm and after attending the country schools in Ohio he studied at Hillsdale College, in Michigan, and in Cornell College, Iowa. He engaged in teaching school for some time and became a capable educator. At the age of twenty he enlisted for service in the Civil war at Camp Chase, in Columbus, Ohio, in 1862, becoming a mem- ber of Company C, Eighty-eighth Ohio Infantry. He was mustered out at Columbus in January, 1864, and then enlisted in the Twenty-seventh United States Colored Troops as first lieutenant. Soon after he received his com- mission as captain of the company and was ordered to report to Governor Brough at Columbus, Ohio, after which he was assigned to recruiting for a month. He then went to the front with his company and participated in the engagements of Chancellorsville, Cold Harbor. the siege of Petersburg, the battles of Fort Fisher and Goldsboro, North Carolina, and marched with Sherman to Raleigh, remaining in the service until Lee's surrender. After the war he returned to Ohio, where he spent some time, and then proceeded to Missouri, where he lived for one year. He came to Iowa in 1868, settling in Valley township, Pottawattamie county, where he bought land, upon which he resided until the spring of 1892. He has since given supervision to his farm, owning two hundred acres of rich and productive land, and in connection with its cultivation he engages in the raising of cattle and hogs.
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