USA > Iowa > Sac County > History of Sac County, Iowa > Part 38
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was a well educated man and broad minded. During the years 1878 to 1882, inclusive, he served the county as superintendent of schools; he held several township offices and was very prominent in county civic affairs. He was the father of three children, namely: Mrs. Sadie J. Elwood, of Sac City, and Charles S. These two are twins. One child died in infancy.
Charles S. Darling, with whom the reviewer is more intimately con- cerned, was educated at home and studied under his gifted father, there be- ing no schools of any consequence in the neighborhood in which they re- sided. The children received practically the equivalent of an academic edu- cation, the father being well read in the classics, languages and history.
When he attained young manhood he purchased eighty-nine acres of land in Calhoun county which was located across the dividing road from the home farm. He paid four dollars an acre for this land and met his obliga- tion out of his earnings and savings. He resided on his Calhoun county farm for one year and has lived the remainder of his time in Sac county on the old homestead. Mr. Darling has recently removed to the nearby town of Lytton and the family home is now occupied by his son, who is working the farm in partnership with his father.
Politically, Mr. Darling is a Republican. He has held several township offices and has several times refused the proffer of county office, for so great is his love for his home that he did not care for county political preferment. His family and ancestry were of the Scotch Presbyterian faith, of which re- ligious organization his father was a ruling elder. Charles S. and wife are members of the Lytton Presbyterian church, of which he is a ruling elder.
Mr. Darling has been twice married. His first marriage occurred in 1870, to Anna E. Parker, of Calhoun county, a daughter of W. D. Parker. She died on April 10, 1895, leaving four children : James, born in 1880, a farmer with his father; John, born in 1882, formerly superintendent of the farm of eight hundred acres connected with the Northern Hospital at Redfield. South Dakota, but is now operating the farm with his father; Eugene Drennen, born in 1885, a graduate of the College of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry at AAmes, łowa, in the class of 1909, and is now located at Graettinger, Palo Alto county, engaged in the breeding of live stock; Annabelle, born April 5. 1895, a graduate of the Lytton high school in the class of 1013.
The second marriage of Mr. Darling occurred December 12, 1896, with Julia Fitch, a daughter of Henry Howell Fitch, an early settler of Sac county, and who was a former well known teacher of Sac county ; there are many people residing in Sac county who have cause to remember Mrs. Dar-
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ling favorably and kindly as their teacher. Mr. Fitch was born October 14. 1836, and died July 24, 1907. His place of birth was on a farm near Mount Vision, Otsego county, New York. He was educated in the Delaware Literary Institute, of Franklin, New York. At the age of twenty-one years, he migrated to Grant county, Wisconsin, and taught school for some time. He was married in March of 1859 to Elizabeth Huntington, who still re- sides in Sac City. He farmed in Grant and Lafayette counties, Wisconsin, until 1878, when he removed to Sac county. He settled on a farmi in Cedar township where he resided until 1894 and then took up his residence in Sac City. Mr. Fitch was a lifelong Republican and was elected county super- visor of the county in 1886, serving eight years in all, and it was during his term that the court house was erected. However, he changed his political convictions in 1896 and supported W. J. Bryan for President, remaining a Democrat to the end of his days. He was affiliated with the Presbyterian church. Mr. Fitch was the father of the following children: Linus E .; Mrs. Nellie Calvert, of Lucerne, Missouri; Mrs. Julia Darling; Mary E .; John H .: Eva L .; Harry H., and Theodore.
Great changes have taken place in Sac county and the western Iowa country since Mr. Darling first came to the county. One of the particular improvements worth noticing is the fact during his boyhood days it was necessary for him to walk a distance of thirteen miles for the mail. whereas. now two mail routes pass his home and they have practically two mail de- liveries at their door each day. Educational facilities have been vastly im- proved ; whereas, he secured his education sitting by his father's side in the evenings and on cold winter days when ontside work was impossible, he has given his children every opportunity to secure a thorough and complete edu- cation. His son, Eugene Drennen, has become a skilled agriculturist and has been educated in agriculture from a scientific standpoint. He was super- intendent of the Redfield, South Dakota, state farm for three years, and later was superintendent of the lowa farm at Davenport previous to en- gaging in farming for himself. In the short space of three years he saved sufficient money to embark in farming for himself. This modern way is quite different from the older and more laborions methods of our forefa- thers and more remunerative.
No one individual is more worthy of specific mention in these memoirs of Sae county than Charles S. Darling and his family. This record is in- tended for perusal by his friends and to serve as a lasting memorial for the members of his family.
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REV. M. C. DALY.
Ilicic can be no question but that the men who minister to the spiritual wants and needs of our people are men of high character who are solely devoted to the great work which they are doing. Their whole duty is to prepare men to live better lives, freer lives and prepare them to perform their duties better on this earth in order that they may be the better pre- pared to meet the world to come. These men are self-sacrificing, and the re- ward which comes to the business man in this world is often denied those of the ministerial profession. Among the men of Sac county who have contributed to the spiritual welfare of the citizens of the county there is no one who has performed more conscientious work in the field of the Master than has the Rev. M. C. Daly, pastor of the St. Joseph church at Wall Lake
Rev. M. C. Daly, the son of T. J. and Catherine ( De Barry ) Daly, of Ireland, was born in Queenstown, Ireland. November 1, 1850. From his earliest boyhood he was inclined toward the church and as he grew in years his determination to devote his life to the service of his Master was the controlling passion with him. Receiving the elements of a common school education in his home country, he left Ireland in young manhood and for the next eleven years was in the schools of the continent, preparing himself for the priesthood, spending seven years in Rome, where he received his collegiate training.
In 1875 Father Daly came to America and at once located in Dubuque, Iowa, his first mission being Rickersville. Here he remained for the next seven years, performing all those multitudinous duties which fall to the lot of the Catholic priest. In 1882 he went to Sioux City, Iowa, and served not only the church in that place, but also missions in the surrounding country. He built a church at Salix. near Sioux City, and also superintended the erection of a parsonage at that place. He assisted all the missions along the Missouri Valley on the Iowa side. In 1886 he founded St. Joseph's church at Sioux City and labored diligently to get it in a good working condition. In fact, so arduous were his labors that his health became in- paired and in 1880 he returned to his native country in order to recuperate. A year later he returned, and was stationed at Manson, Iowa, where he erected the mission house and rebuilt the church at that place. Here he remained until 1903, doing splendid work and buikling up the church in every way. At the beginning of his ministry at Manson there were but four families under his charge and before he left he had the satisfaction of
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seeing his parishioners largely augmented and the church in a prosperous condition. While at Manson he also attended the missions of Pomeroy and Great Barnum, and built churches at each place. At Pomeroy the church was unfortunate in having to rebuildl their edifice no less than twice because of destruction by storms and fire. The storm which destroyed the church at Pomeroy killed and maimed one hundred and ten people and was one of the most destructive cyclones which ever swept over this part of the state. At the time of this unfortunate catastrophe Father Daly worked a whole week without sleep, doing everything he possibly could to alleviate the suffering of the unfortunate people.
In 1903 Father Daly came to Sioux City and took charge of St. Joseph's Hospital, and was made chaplain of the Good Shepherd's Home. Here he labored for the next three years, after which he was transferred to Wall Lake, in Sac county, and placed in charge of St. Joseph's church. He completed the church, which was in the course of erection, and cleared off a debt of three thousand dollars. Since taking charge of this church he has remodeled the parsonage and modernized it in every way. His work in this place is appreciated, not only by the people of his own denomination, but by every public-spirited citizen who is interested in the advancement of civilization, whether it be by a Catholic church or a Protestant denomina- tion. The work which Father Daly has done since coming into Iowa has made for better citizenship, better homes and if he fails to receive his reward in this world he has the assurance that he has not labored in vain.
LACEY A. WINE.
There is no positive rule which, if followed, will enable one to achieve success, and yet in the lives of successful men there are always lessons which can be emulated by others. The man who gains prosperity is he who can see and utilize the opportunities which arise before him in his upward path. The essential conditions forming the environments of most human lives are ever the same, the surroundings of individuals differing but slightly, and when one man passes another on the highway of life to reach the goal of prosperity before others who perhaps started out before him, it is because he has the power to use his advantages for the furtherance of his own desires. Today, among the prominent citizens and successful business men of Sac City stands Lacey A. Wine. He possesses qualities of leadership among his fellows and
LACEY A. WINE
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business ability of a high degree which have made him a man of substance in the community.
Lacey A. Wine was born February 13, 1867, in Sac City. His parents are William G. Wine and Mary Jane (Criss) Wine, early pioneer residents of Sac City. William G. is a native of Indiana and son of' William Wine, whose nativity was the state of West Virginia. William migrated with his family from Indiana in 1855 on his way to California, but the family finally settled on the connection line north of Sac City when there were but few residents here, and the country around about was but thinly settled. William, the father of William G., opened one of the first general stores in Sac City, and was accounted a well-to-do citizen. being the proud possessor of a horse and carriage which was looked upon as an unheard-of luxury by the early settlers. He drove one hundred head of cattle from Indiana to lowa and pastured them upon the great free ranges which were in existence at that time. He finally realized his ambition to make the trip to the far West, and set offt for California by the overland route. He eventually reached the mountains, but lost his life in the ranges while prospecting for the precious metals. William G. Wine was reared to manhood in Sac City and followed the business of contractor and builder until his retirement in 1898. He is now residing in California. He served as a volunteer soldier in an Iowa regi- ment during the Civil War. When a young man he married Mary Jane Criss, a daughter of Hon. Engene Criss, a very prominent figure in Sac county his- tory, of whom our historian is pleased to write at considerable length else- where in this volume. To Mr. and Mrs. W. G. Wine were born four chil- dren, namely : Lacey A .: Mrs. Lamont Lee, of Mason City, Iowa ; Mrs. J. B. Rowe, Los Angeles, California. and Mrs. Delmont Goldsmith, who died in 1893.
L. A. Wine, with whom this biography directly treats, was educated in the schools of his native city and completed a commercial course at Shenandoah College. During the administration of President Cleveland, he served as deputy postmaster from 1888 to 1800, inclusive. After this term he pursued his commercial course, and was then employed as salesman in a mercantile establishment until 1894. He then engaged in business for himself and opened a small shoe store which was later enlarged to include a complete stock of dry goods, groceries and a general line of merchantable goods tastefully arranged on the departmental plan. His store is modern in every respect and it has continuously enjoyed a constantly increasing trade among the better class of people of the community. Having lived his entire life in Sac county from the very earliest days of the settlement of the city and county, Mr. Wine
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properly has a large number of friends and acquaintances throughout the county, exceeded by very few citizens. Politically, he is a Democrat and is widely and favorably known as a stanch worker in the ranks and a leader of his party. As a reward for his untiring efforts in behalf of the Democratic party in the county he was recently appointed to the position of postmaster of Sac City. It is safe to predict that he will serve his appointive term to the satisfaction of the government and fill the duties of the office solely in the interest of the patrons. Mr. Wine is the aggressive county chairman of the Democratic central committee and has always taken an active part in political affairs in both county and state. He has attended several Democratic state conventions in the capacity of delegate and leader, and is well known as one of the Democratic "wheel horses" of the state Democracy. He has a wide acquaintance throughout Iowa among the leaders and the rank and file of the party of Andrew Jackson and Woodrow Wilson. He is an attendant of the Episcopal church and is fraternally connected with the Knights of Pythias, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and the Modern Woodmen of America.
Mr. Wine was married June 12, 1902, to Eu Della Kiser, of Oskaloosa, Iowa. To them have come no children, but they are rearing a child, Caroline Kerns. Mr. Wine is genial and unassuming, readily making friends every- where and at all times, and always retains them. He gives his unqualified support to every movement which promises to be of material and moral benefit to the people, and because of his success in life and his genuine worth he is eminently entitled to fitting representation in this work.
WOOSTER B. WAYT.
The fact is well authenticated by thousands of eminent illustrations that success comes as the result of unflagging energy and perseverance in the pursuit of a well-directed course of action previously determined upon. It is seldom known to visit the laggards or the drones and is the outcome of diligence and foresight. Only the men who have continuously sought for- tune's favor have been amply rewarded. The individual is doubly success- ful of whom it can be said "He is an honest man and is deserving of the rewards which have come to him directly through his own efforts." In tracing the life history of the influential manufacturer and public spirited citizen whose name forms the caption of this review, it is plainly seen that the prosperity which he enjoys has been won by the exercise of commend-
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able qualities, and the high esteem in which he and his firm are hell has been bestowed because of personal worth.
Wooster B. Wayt, senior member of the firm of W. B. Wayt & Son, monument manufacturers and dealers of Sac City, Iowa, was born May 10. 1849, in the city of Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania. He is the son of Dr. Will- iam C. Wayt, a descendant of the ancestral followers of William Penn, and who emigrated to Pennsylvania from England at the time of the original Quaker settlement of Philadelphia. His mother was Elizabeth McCallister, who was the daughter of Scotch parents, and whose brother was a well- known merchant of Aberdeen, Scotland. William C. Wayt and wife were the parents of eleven children, several of whom came to Iowa, as follows : John, of Springville, Arkansas; Margaret, deceased; Wooster B .; Frank, deceased ; Ira, deceased.
Dr. William C. Wayt was a physician of the eclectic school and was educated for the practice of his profession in the famous Medical College of Philadelphia. Doctor Wayt was a famous and skilful physician, the high- est praise of whom can be given inasmuch as he was one of that self-im- molating class who cared little for the monetary rewards of his calling and frequently worked himself to the point of physical exhaustion in effecting cures of the ills which beset mankind with whom he came in contact. When Wooster B. was yet a child the family set out for the West, traveling mostly by stage. Doctor Wayt located for a time in the city of Cincinnati, where for a period of two years, from 1850 to 1852, he served as a hospital sur- geon. From 1852 to 1856 he practiced his profession in Brookville, Frank- lin county, Indiana, which is located some miles northwest of Cincinnati. He again set his face westward and northward with the path of empire. At this period the city of Galena, Illinois, was the gateway to the great North- west and it was only natural that the Doctor should travel in that direction. The long overland journey was made principally by stage. He and his fam- ily started for Marion, Iowa, and traveled the distance of forty-four miles from Dubuque to Independence principally on foot: in fact, two-thirds of this distance was traversed afoot. On April 1, 1856, they arrived in Marion. Iowa, where the Doctor practiced for four years. In 1860 he journeyed to Buchanan county and established his office and home in Frienk's Grove. Here they remained until 1865, enduring the hardships of the pioneer life of those early days. The pioneers of the locality had little money with which to pay for medicine and it was necessary for the Doctor to take farm products for his professional services. These were the days of the log cabin, the tallow dip, the home-made furniture and low prices for farm
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products. The Doctor's family were denied the commonest of luxuries and even sugar was an unheard-of and expensive luxury which few could afford. What sugar was used in the household was of the coarsest Orleans kind and was very scarce. Money was scarce and it required a considerable amount of farm produce to even get a few cents in return. They transported chickens a distance of fourteen miles away to Independence and sold them for one dollar per dozen, irrespective of weight or quality. Wheat sold for thirty-eight cents per bushel. Mr. Wayt recalls that kerosene first appeared as an illuminant in 1860 and it was considered exceedingly dangerous to use it at that time in the crude lamps of the period. The Doctor soon moved onward to a newer field and in 1865 removed to Millersburg, Illinois, where he remained for two years. He then returned to Iowa and located in Cedar Rapids in 1865, where his faithful and loving wife died in 1866. Doctor Wayt remained in Cedar Rapids until 1894, when he came to Sac City to make his final home with his son, Wooster B. Here he passed away in the fullness of his long years of usefulness in 1901.
Wooster B. Wayt, with whom this narrative is more intimately con- cerned, received his education in the public schools and the academy at Wil- ton Junction. When he was sixteen years of age he became a tinner's ap- prentice, and worked at his trade at Blairstown, Iowa : later he was employed in Cedar Rapids and Tama, Iowa. For a period of five and one-half years he served as foreman of the tin and copper working department of the Rock Island Railroad at Grand Junction, Iowa. In the year 1887 he engaged in the monument business with his brother Frank at Jefferson, Iowa. He and his brother had previously effected a partnership at Tama, Iowa, in 1876, but Wooster B. was not satisfied with the progress of the business and sold out and returned to his trade of tinner.
In the year 1890 he came to Sac City and laid the foundation for the present extensive and profitable business conducted by the firm. He first established a small shop and the business steadily grew and the products found increasing popularity with the people. The momument works of W. B. Wayt & Son ranks as one of the most important institutions of its kind in western Iowa. Special notice is devoted to this concern in the pages of the history proper of Sac county. This notice traces the growth of the business from its very inception to the erection of the present handsome and commodious manufacturing and office building located near the North- western depot. It has several branch housse and connections in Aberdeen, Scotland. from which point the finest granite is imported to this country for use in their manufacturing operations. In the year 1901 his son, L. R.
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Wayt, was admitted to the firm as junior partner. Father and son make an excellent working combination, which means greater and increasing pres- tige for this well-known establishment. The history of this highly developed institution spells "Success" in the fullest meaning of the word. The firm gave ample evidence of its progressive spirit by the donation and erection of a beautiful and appropriate soldiers' memorial monument to Gen. W. T. Sherman Post, Grand AArmy of the Republic, of Sac City, a generous gift which is highly appreciated by the people in general. The tall spire of this tasteful example of the sculptor's art rears its way heavenward in all its pristine simplicity in a commanding spot in the cemetery. Mr. Wayt has large holdings of property in addition to his business and has been inter- ested in lands for several years, being the owner of tracts of land in North Dakota, Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma and Texas. He is known as a shrewd investor and an excellent judge of land values throughout the country.
The marriage of this well-known citizen occurred April 27. 1871, at Cedar Rapids. Here he was joined in wedlock with Emeretta A. Marsh, daughter of Lambertus Walter and Regina ( Blunt ) Marsh. Lambertus W. Marsh was born March 5, 1827, in Pompey, Onandago county, New York. He was left an orphan when very young and was reared by an uncle in Syracuse, New York. In the year 1845 he migrated to Kenosha, Wis- consin, and thence to Antioch, Illinois, where he engaged in farming. In 1863 he enlisted in Company D, Thirty-Fourth Regiment Illinois Volun- teers, and served until the close of the Civil War. In 1868 he removed with his family to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and thence to his farm in Greene county, Iowa. Later, in 1885, he retired to a residence in Grand Junction, where he died January 23, 1912. He was a member of the Methodist church. Mr. Marsh was married April 1, 1850, to Regina Blunt. who bore him five daughters, namely: Mrs. W. B. Wayt; Mrs. Hattie Smith, deceased; Mrs. E. W. Rogers, of Patterson, New Jersey ; Mrs. O. L. Harmon, of Wallowa. Oregon, and Mrs. William Patterson, of Grand Junction, Iowa. The widow of Mr. Marsh now makes her home with Mr. Wayt in Sac City.
Alr. and Mrs. Wayt have reared the following children: W. E., who married Mary Otis Lee and is the father of four children, Walter Lee, Retta, Lorene and Worth. He removed from Sac City to a large ranch near Mott, North Dakota, in 1909. The second son is Leon R., whose biography ap- pears herein and who is associated with his father in the monument business. Mr. and Mrs. W. B. Wayt also have one daughter, Mrs. Velma Grable, of Sac City.
Mr. Wayt is politically allied with the Democratic party and is a stanch
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member of the Christian church in his home city. He is a member of the Odd Fellows and the Masonic fraternity. He has not only been eminently successful in his business pursuits, but he does his duty as a citizen in ways which are influential and are for lasting and permanent good to the com- mimity at large. Recognizing the fact that a town is best known by the quality of its citizenship and the extent of its public improvements, Mr. Nayt is generally found in the forefront of movements resulting in the in- stallation of municipal betterments. He and his talented son are found in the van of those seeking the advancement of Sac City and have used their influence in furth ring the wave of civic betterment and the installation of public muprorcments which is at present sweeping the city. The friends of this successful manufacturer are legion and he ranks as a familiar and com- manding figure throughout the county and western łowa.
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