USA > Iowa > Poweshiek County > History of Poweshiek County, Iowa: a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Vol. II > Part 41
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George and Leonidas, while the daughter, Sarah M. Antoinette, became the wife of George L. Nutting.
George W. Royce accompanied his parents on their various removals and was a young man of twenty-three years of age when the family home was estab- lished in Poweshick county. He and his three brothers located on farms on section 4. Pleasant township, each having a quarter section. Later Mr. Royce purchased eighty acres on section 33. Malcom township. He made farming his life work and not only sought his own individual success but was ever ready to assist in any movement or measure for public improvement and welfare. He took a deep interest in agricultural affairs and believed in following ad- vanced and modern methods in this as in all other lines of business. He was one of the first directors of the Poweshiek County Agricultural Association and for many years served as its president, filling that position at the time of his death. He and his brother, Horace, were likewise large stockholders in the County Fair Association.
Mr. Royce was married December 24, 1874, to Miss Nellie B. Jones, who was born in Charleston, Massachusetts, May 6, 1853, a daughter of Hon. Albin Jones, of Montezuma. She was fourteen years of age when, in 1867, the fam- ily home was established in Iowa and after reaching mature years she was, for several years prior to her marriage, a successful teacher in this county. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Royce was blessed with four daughters : Lillian MI .. the wife of G. E. Wheeler, who lives on the home farm in Pleasant township : Irma G., the wife of J. A. Hargrave, a resident of Scott township: and Addie B. and Isabelle B., who are with their mother.
Mr. Royce was a stanch supporter of democratic principles and was reared in the faith of the Universalist church. He stood as a high type of American manhood, who won success in a useful field of business and gained the respect and honor of his fellowmen by his public service and private life. However. he found his greatest social enjoyment at his own fireside in the companionship of his wife and children and it is there that he is missed most of all. As before stated, his death occurred November 29. 1905, when he was sixty-eight years of age.
JOHN C. REHBERG.
It is almost twenty-three years since John C. Rehberg, who was engaged in the cultivation of a farm of one hundred and twenty acres in Sheridan town- ship, passed away.
He was born in Pumman, Germany, on the 18th of February, 1832. The first twenty-two years of his life were spent in his native land, in which coun- try his parents passed away during his early childhood. In 1854 he decided to become a citizen of the United States, so in company with some relatives he crossed the Atlantic, locating in Princeton, Bureau county, Illinois. Upon his arrival there he obtained employment as a farm hand with which occupation he continued to be identified for a year. Ambitious and thrifty he carefully saved his earnings in order to buy a farm, so that he was able when he came to Powe-
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shiek county the following year to purchase forty acres of land in Sheridan township. Later he added to this another eighty acres on section 33, thus in- creasing his holdings to one hundred and twenty acres, in the cultivation of which he engaged until the 18th of October. 1888, at which time he passed away.
Mr. Rehberg was united in marriage on the 27th of March, 1858, to Miss Susan Harmon, a native of Crawford county, Missouri, who was born on the 27th of September, 1841. She was a daughter of Jacob and Frances ( Powers ) Harmon, who migrated to Iowa in 1854, locating on a farm in Sheridan town- ship, Poweshiek county. There the father passed away on the 20th of March, 1881 ; the mother, however, survived him until the 18th of March, 1905. Six children were born unto Mr. and Mrs. Rehberg, four of whom are surviving as follows: Mary, the wife of August Schroeder, a retired farmer residing in Grinnell, and with whom Mrs. Rehberg now makes her home; Fred, an agri- culturist of Sheridan township : Clarence, a farmer residing in Sioux county, Iowa ; and Henry. a farmer of Grinnell township. Those deceased are: Nettie. the wife of Henry Baustian, a farmer of Sheridan township; and John. who passed away at the age of ten months.
Mr. Rehberg affiliated with the German Lutheran church of Malcom town- ship, and his wife with the Methodist Episcopal church of Grinnell. In politics he was a Jeffersonian democrat, but not being an office seeker he never actively participated in civil affairs, and fraternally he was identified with the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows of Brooklyn. Mr. Rehberg possessed the domi- nant characteristics of the Teuton, energy and thrift, by means of which he at- tained a position which entitled him to the respect which was accorded him by the community.
BENJAMIN W. GRIER.
Benjamin W. Grier, an enterprising young resident of Poweshiek county, is the well known and popular cashier of the Savings Bank at Hartwick. His birth occurred on the old family homestead in Lincoln township, this county, on the 21st of July, 1883, his parents being Benton and Mary J. (Sanders) Grier. both of whom were natives of Ohio. Benton Grier was born in Guernsey county on the 14th of July. 1842, but was reared and educated in Coshocton county, Ohio. When twenty-one years of age he came to lowa with his father and for two years thereafter continued to remain at home, assisting in the operation of the farm in Lincoln township. In 1865 he purchased eighty acres of land on section 33 from his brother Reuben, the papers being signed on the 10th of Jan- uary. The further cultivation and improvement of that property claimed his attention throughout the remainder of his life, his demise occurring in 1890. Both he and his wife were devoted and consistent members of the United Pres- byterian church. Their union was blessed with seven children.
Benjamin W. Grier attended the common schools in the acquirement of an education and also pursued a course of study in the Capital City Commercial College at Des Moines. After putting aside his text-books he entered the State
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Bank at Deep River, being employed in a clerical capacity for three years. In 1908 he became cashier of the Savings Bank at Hartwick and has since dis- charged the duties devolving upon him in that connection in a most commenda- ble and efficient manner.
On the 21st of September, 1909, Mr. Grier was united in marriage to Miss Jennie L. Hakeman, a daughter of William and Mary Hakeman. Her father, a retired agriculturist, now makes his home at Hartwick. Unto our subject and his wife has been born one child, Mildred Thelma.
Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise Mr. Grier has sup- ported the men and measures of the republican party, believing that its princi- ples are most conducive to good government. His religions faith is indicated by his membership in the Congregational church at Hartwick. Mr. Grier has already won a gratifying measure of success for one of his years and his many friends believe that a bright future lies before him.
WESLEY ALEXANDER PALMER.
One of the native farmers of Malcom township who has advanced steadily with the progress of the times is Wesley Alexander Palmer. He was born on the farm on which he now resides, March 16, 1868, a son of Alexander F. and Sarah J. ( Milliman) Palmer. His parents were born in Tompkins county, New York, the father on the 21st of August, 1825, and the mother on the 10th of October, 1829. They were there married, after which they went to Ohio, where they resided for four or five years. In 1855 Mr. Palmer came to Pow- eshiek county. Iowa, which made so favorable an impression upon him as a place for location that he brought his family here the next year, establishing their home first in Pleasant township. There he entered land, which he later sold, and in 1860 came to Malcom township, purchasing the farm upon which our subject now resides. Here he carried on agricultural pursuits until 1894, when he retired from active life, taking up his abode in Malcom. Later he sold one hundred and forty acres of the homestead to his son Wesley Alexander Pal- mer, but still retains the ownership of forty acres in this township. In early life, ere leaving New York, he had engaged in teaching school. During the lifetime of the greenback party he had supported that organization, but later gave his allegiance to the democratic party. Both he and his wife are still living, having reached a ripe old age, and are loyal and faithful members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Their family of nine children include the fol- lowing: Hiram M., of Oregon; Ellis M., also of that state; Flora E., who married F. G. Benefield, and passed away in 1910; John H., a traveling man ; Eva J., the widow of L. P. Lewis, and now residing with her parents ; Mary J., the wife of the Rev. D. C. Bevan, of Oregon ; Almira, who wedded J. S. Stoaks, of Grinnell township; Ruth Adel, who passed away at the age of ten years ; and Wesley Alexander, of this review.
Upon the old homestead, which has ever remained his place of residence, our subject passed the period of his boyhood and youth, and in the schools of
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the neighborhood acquired a good common school education. Upon his gradu- ation he began teaching school and was engaged in that profession for seven winters, five of which were devoted to teaching in his home school and two in a school two miles south. in Pleasant township. He proved himself a cap- able instructor, clearly and readily imparting to others the knowledge which he had himself acquired, and his services in educational fields in Poweshiek county were highly satisfactory.
Subsequently he withdrew from that profession, however, thinking to find more congenial and remunerative labor in agricultural lines, and, purchasing one hundred and forty acres of the homestead farm from his father, has since given his attention to farming interests. He is now the owner of two hundred and twenty acres on section 31. Malcom township, where he carries on general farming and stock-raising, and in both branches he is proving successful, his close application to business interests, his wise management of his affairs and his progressive methods proving resultant forces in the acquirement of a goodly prosperity.
On the 7th of June, 1894, Mr. Palmer was united in marriage to Miss Luna Belle Wheeler, who was born in Bureau county, Illinois, on the 15th of April. 1866. In 1874 she came to Poweshiek county with her parents, W. W. and Sarah Jane ( Keller) Wheeler, natives of Vermont and Ohio respectively. The mother is now deceased but the father sugyives and now makes his home in Erie, Kansas. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Palmeshas been born one child, Arlo Wheeler, whose birth occurred on the 28th of December, 1895, and who is now in his sophomore year at the Malcom high school. 1:
Mr. Palmer holds membership in the Methodist - Episcopal church of Malcom and in polities is an independent democrat, supporting the men and measures of the democratic party in national elections, but when casting a local ballot voting for the best men and most desirable measures. He has not taken any part in public affairs, however, but is nevertheless highly regarded as a man and citizen, at all times being guided by sound judgment and honorable principles. Having passed his entire life in this community he has won for himself a circle of friends which is almost coextensive with the circle of his acquaintanceship. possessing those qualities which at once command respect, confidence and good will.
JACOB F. JONES.
One of the highly regarded and capable agriculturists of Madison township is Jacob F. Jones, who is engaged in the cultivation of two hundred acres of land on sections 17 and 20.
He was born in the homestead upon which he now resides on the 22d of February, 1856, a son of Uriah and Elizabeth (Boyle) Jones, the father of Trish and the mother of German descent. Uriah Jones, who was a carpenter and farmer, was born in Greene county, Pennsylvania, on the IIth of April, 1813. In his early manhood he migrated to Virginia, where he resided for a short time, then went to Clinton county, Indiana, and there he met the lady who Vol. II-21
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subsequently became his wife. Mrs. Jones was a native of Virginia, her birth having occurred in Tazewell county on the 8th of July, 1819. They began their domestic life in Indiana, continuing to reside there until 1851, at which time they removed to Illinois, locating on a farm in the vicinity of Peoria. In 1852 they came to Iowa, residing for a year on a farm near Mount Vernon, Linn county. They then came to Poweshiek county, where Mr. Jones entered one hundred and sixty acres of government land which he cleared and improved. He later added to his tract another forty acres which adjoined it on the north. Mr. Jones was the first white settler in Madison township and his son, Jacob F., was the second white child born there. He continued to engage in the culti- vation of his farm until his demise, which occurred on the 3d of April, 1894. Mrs. Jones survived him until the 24th of October, 1910, making her home with her son after her husband passed away.
After the completion of his education, in the acquirement of which he at- tended the public schools, Jacob F. Jones gave his entire time and attention to the cultivation of the homestead under the supervision of his father. After the latter's death he rented the land from the estate, continuing its operation until the division of the property subsequent to the death of his mother. Having spent his entire life on the place he desired to retain possession of it and so purchased the interest of the other heirs. In addition to the cultivation of the fields, which are sowed almost entirely in grains, he breeds and raises a high grade of stock and feeds hogs for the market. Fifty acres of the land is in natural timber but the remainder, which is well drained, rolling prairie, is under cultivation.
Mr. Jones was married on the 24th of December, 1876, to Miss Eva I. Sher- win, a daughter of William and Abi ( Kimball) Sherwin. The father, who was a farmer and miller, was born in Chester county, Virginia, on the 26th of Feb- ruary, 1814, but the mother was a daughter of New England, her birth having occurred in Vermont in 1815. They first migrated to Wisconsin, coming from there to Madison township, Poweshiek county, where they resided for many years. Later they went to Pulaski county, Missouri, and there the father passed away on the 28th of October, 1896. He had survived Mrs. Sherwin for many years, her death having occurred on the 15th of June, 1888, while they were re- siding at Dysart, Tama county. Of the ten children born unto Mr. and Mrs. Jones but seven are living : Harlan S., a farmer of Madison township, who mar- ried Miss Mary Tezar and has two children ; Warren H., a clerk of the court of Tama county, who married Zae Cannon, of Toledo, lowa ; Daisy, who married S. M. Littrell, a farmer of Nemaha, Nebraska, and who has one child: Frank C., a dealer in automobiles in Toledo, lowa ; Lester L., who is at home; Anna, a music teacher, living at home ; and Dorothy, who is also at home. Of the three who are deceased two died in infancy and the other was a son, Clifton S .. who was crushed to death by an engine in the roundhouse at Marshalltown, Towa, when he was twenty-one years of age.
Mr. Jones has always prominently participated in local political activities, giving his support to the candidates of the democratic party. He was president of the school board of Madison township for ten years and director in district No. 4 for ten years, while he served for two terms in both the offices of justice
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of the peace and constable. Although not a member of any church he attends the services of the Methodist Episcopal, with which Mrs. Jones is affiliated. A man of high principles and sound integrity Mr. Jones' motives are ever actil- ated by worthy purposes which govern his every relation in life, both public and private.
THOMAS P. SCOTT.
Thomas P. Scott, now deceased, was at the time of his death numbered among the extensive landowners of Poweshiek county. He was one of Scot- land's native sons, his birth occurring in New Castleton, in October, 1839, and was the only child of William and Isabelle Scott, lifelong residents of that coun- try. He spent the first seventeen years of his life in the land of hills and heather, and then, as a poor boy, came to the United States, taking up his abode in Illinois with an uncle. There he remained until his marriage in 1869, when he started for Iowa, establishing his home on a farm about four miles north- west of Brooklyn, in Poweshiek county, which he had purchased before he left Illinois.
This farm, consisting of one hundred and sixty acres, remained his home throughout his active business life, and constituted the nucleus of the large prop- erty holdings which were later his. He engaged in general agricultural pur- suits and throughout his active career manifested the sturdy Scotch elements of industry, perseverance and thrift, qualities which proved salient forces in the acquirement of a success which eventually made it possible for him to withdraw from active labor and seek the comforts and conveniences of city life. From time to time as he prospered he had wisely invested in more land, until at the time of his retirement he was the owner of four hundred and eighty acres of valuable land, all lying in one body. About 1900 he took up his abode in Brook- lyn and later purchased two hundred and forty acres, so that at the time of his demise he was the owner of over seven hundred acres of excellent farm land all highly improved and developed, thus constituting him one of the substantial landowners of his part of Poweshiek county. Less than a year after his retire- ment, however, he was called to his final rest, his death occurring on the 5th of February, 1901, at which time his property was divided among his children.
On the ist of July, 1869, Mr. Scott was united in marriage to Miss Jane Douglass, who was born in Glasgow, Scotland, July 2, 1840, and about 1850 came with her parents to the United States, landing at Boston. The family home was first established in Vermont, where they resided for about six years, when they made their way west to Stark county, Illinois, where the father passed away in 1868. Later the mother resided at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Scott, where her death occurred. In their family were three sons who served in the Civil war. Of this number John resides in Poweshiek county, Andrew in Mitchell, Nebraska, and William, in Quincy, Illinois. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Scott were born four children, as follows: Helen, the wife of Robert Moore, a farmer of Bear Creek township: Catharine M., who married John A. Lang, of
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Grinnell: Albert W., also carrying on general agriculture in this township ; and Sadie E., who passed away at the age of sixteen years. Since the death of the daughter, which occurred in 1896, a niece, Rose Douglass, has made her home with Mrs. Scott.
In his religious belief Mr. Scott was a member of the Presbyterian church and politically he gave his support to the republican party, although he never sought nor desired office as a reward for party fealty. He preferred to devote his entire time and attention to the conduct of his private affairs, and to his close attention to his interests is due, doubtless, the high degree of prosperity which he attained in agricultural lines. He well deserved the proud American title of a self-made man, for he came to this country a poor lad, with no especial advantages to assist him in the outset of his career. He early recognized, how- ever. that success in life must be purchased at the price of earnest, well defined labor, and as the years passed by his record was one of indefatigable effort and unfaltering perseverance, guided by a sturdy common sense which is a birth- right of the Scottish race.
ELIAS L. JAMES.
Elias L. James, who has been successfully identified with the commercial activities of Searsboro for the past eight years, was born in Union township, Poweshiek county, Iowa, on the 12th of December, 1860.
Mr. James is a son of Henry B. and Mary Ann ( Stilwell ) James, both na- tives of Indiana. The father migrated to Poweshiek county with his parents and here his father, Thomas James, filed on some government land which he improved and cultivated until his demise. Mr. James also engaged in agricul- tural pursuits for a time but the last thirty years of his active career were de- voted to carpenter work and contracting in Carroll county, lowa. He is now living retired in Nebraska, Mrs. James having passed away in Searsboro in January, 1909. Politically he is a democrat and in matters religious he affiliates with the Baptist church, of which his wife was also a member. Unto the union of Mr. and Mrs. James were born four children, of whom the son Elias L. is the eldest, the others according to the order of birth being as follows: Mathilda, who is the wife of Hanley Burbank, of Nebraska: Margaret, deceased ; and Susan, who married Leed De Secor, both of whom are engaged as missionaries in Central America.
The boyhood and youth of Elias L. James were spent on the old homestead of his grandfather in Sugar Creek township. while he pursued his education in the district schools of the vicinity. He early became familiar with the best methods of tilling the fields and caring for the crops, having from his childhood been accustomed to assisting with the work of the homestead. After complet- ing his education he continued to follow agricultural pursuits, finally purchas- ing the old homestead, which he cultivated for about six years. Disposing of it at the expiration of that period he removed to Scarsboro. In 1903 he opened a meat market, which he conducted for four years and then sold and went into
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the general merchandise business, with which he continues to be identified. The business is conducted under the firm name of James & Company, Mrs. James being a silent partner.
On the 29th of July, 1879, Mr. James was united in marriage to Miss Min- erva English, a daughter of John and May (Stanley) English, residents of Su- gar Creek township. Of this union there have been born five children : Elias, who is deceased: Ona, the wife of John Davis, of Sugar Creek township; Inez, deceased ; Ruby, the wife of Howard Davis, of Searsboro; and Fay, who is at home.
His political support Mr. James accords the prohibition party, thus voicing his opinion on the temperance question, and in matters religious he and his wife affiliate with the Society of Friends. In matters of citizenship he is progressive but never prominently participates in governmental matters, always having pre- ferred to give his undivided attention to the development of his personal in- terests.
ROBERT WYLIE, JR.
A well improved and highly cultivated farm of one hundred and sixty acres, located on section (, Bear Creek township, is the property of Robert Wylie, Jr., who is one of the enterprising young farmers of Poweshiek county.
He was born in Belfast, Ireland, March 12, 1877, a son of Robert and Mary (MeMullen) Wylie, and was a lad of five years of age when he was brought to the new world by his parents. Landing in New York city they at once made their way to Poweshiek county, lowa, establishing their home upon a farm in Jefferson township, eight miles northeast of Brooklyn. In the old country the father had been a day laborer and had also worked on the ship docks, but since coming to Iowa he has engaged in farming. For the first year after his arrival here he worked for his brother John, and during the succeeding two years worked for his sister, Mrs. Agnes Mellrath, in Jefferson township. As time passed and he prospered in his undertakings, he accumulated a sum of money that enabled him to purchase a farm in Jefferson township, which is better known as the M. Caklerwood property, and today he is giving his time and at- tention to the further development and improvement of this place.
Robert Wylie acquired his education in the district schools of Poweshiek county and assisted his father in his farm work until he had attained his ma- jority. At that period in his life he started upon an independent business ven- ture, renting land from his father, and when he had reached the age of twenty- six years he had saved a sufficient sum of money to permit him to farm on a larger scale and he accordingly operated rented land in Bear Creek township for three years. He then purchased a farm of one hundred and sixty acres on section 9, Bear Creek township, and has here since made his home with the exception of the year 1910, when he lived in Brooklyn, during which time he was having extensive improvements made upon his place. He has a fine modern country home, substantial outbuildings and all equipments for the successful conduct of his farm. He has tiled his fields and there is no waste land, all be-
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