USA > Iowa > Sac County > History of Sac County, Iowa > Part 46
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warm friend. furnished him the lumber with which to rebuild, with the under- standing that he was to pay the bill when able, and by November 3rd of the same year the new home and buildings were completed. Mr. Fox hauled the lumber for this second home, a distance of twenty miles, from the near- est railway station. Hlis land is located in section 29 and cost him five dollars and fifty cents an acre at the outset. He soon had a beautiful grove and orchards growing on the place and gradually improved it until it is now rated as the most attractive and well kept farm in Clinton township. He re- cently sold the farm to his son, Harry \. The Fox farm is appropriately named "Ashlawn Farm," and is situated on the main highway between Lake View and Odebolt. In 1889 Mr. Fox added eighty acres to his holdings at a cost of thirty dollars an acre. He was also the owner of a fine quarter section of land in Delaware township which he sold at a good profit.
History records the fact that Mr. Fox built the third house in Clinton township and took a prominent part in the subsequent organization and naming of the township. In 1875. he and N. B. Umbarger journeyed to Sac City and presented the petition to the county officials praying for a separate township organization. This was granted and the county auditor suggested that the older settler of the two give the township its name. This naturally devolved upon Mr. Fox who thereupon bestowed the name "Clinton" in memory of his old home county. In the fall of 1904 he and his good wife removed to Odebolt and built for their future habitation a fine bungalow on Park avenue. At the outset Mr. Fox purchased two and one-half lots on Park avenue at a cost of one thousand seven hundred dollars, and later sold! one corner lot for a consideration of nine hundred and fifty dollars. Here he and his faithful companion thoroughly enjoy their lives and take an active part in the social doings of the neighborhood. He is a member of the library board. the Cemetery association and the Automobile Club. At the age of seventy years he learned to drive an automobile. He chops wood every day of his life for needed exercise and is active, healthy and strong for one of his age. As his friends and admirers express it. "he is seventy years young".
He esponses the cause of the Progressive party and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Fraternally, he is associated with the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and is a charter member of Col. Goodrich Post, Grand Army of the Republic, and has served as commander of this post.
Mr. and Mrs. Fox have reared six children on whom they have be- stowed exceptional educational advantages and given, on their attaining their
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respective majorities, the individual sums of one thousand dollars for a start in life. The children are as follows: Mrs. Flora Thomas, a resident of Des Moines, and the mother of two daughters, Blaine and Kathryn ; Chauncey B., a citizen of Jasper, Minnesota, has four children, Helen, Rachel, Florence and Bennett: Mrs. Jessie Carpenter, of Mesita, Colorado, is the mother of two offsprings, Harry F. and Dorothy; Mrs. Fannie L. Quirk, of Clinton township, has one child, Edward L .; Harry V., on the home farm, is the father of three, Eugene Marshall, Paul, Elinor Elaine; Howard M., a resi- dent of Des Moines.
A review of such a life as the foregoing is worthy of a prominent place in the history of Sac county. While mere words can not adequately convey a just appreciation of his manifold virtues as a citizen, this chronicle is respectfully submitted.
FRED W. PETERSMEYER.
It is a well authenticated fact that success comes as the result of legiti- mate and well applied energy, unflagging determination and perseverance in a course of action when once decided upon. She is never known to smile upon the idler or dreamer and she never courts the loafer, only the men who have diligently sought her favor being crowned with her blessings. In tracing the history of the influential farmer and representative citizen of Sac county, Jowa, whose name forms the caption of this review, it is plainly seen that the prosperity which he enjoys has been won by commendable qualities and it is also his personal worth that has gained for him the high esteem of those who know him.
Fred W. Petersmeyer, one of the prosperous farmers and substantial citizens of Sac county, Iowa, was born in Lake county, Indiana, June 7. 1867. His parents were Frederick Wilhelm and Caroline Petersmeyer, a sketch of whose history may be found elsewhere in this volume. In 1872 the Petersmeyer family moved to Sac county, locating in Richland town- ship, where F. W., whose history is here set forth, was reared and educated. At the age of twenty-one he began farming for himself. Although he was beyond school age, he attended school for a few winters after reaching the age of twenty-one. This shows a striking characteristic of Mr. Peters- meyer and one which has dominated his whole career.
In 1892 Mr. Petersmeyer went to Cherokee county, Iowa, and engaged in farming in that county for the next five years. He then returned to
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Odebolt, in this county, and worked in the grain elevator and also operated a threshing outfit during the summers of 1908, 1909 and 1910, and in 1910 got approval of the land and homestead claim, living upon it for .everal years, proving his claim, finally got a patent and now owns one hundred and sixty acres of excellent land in that state. In 1910 he returned > Odebolt and shortly afterward went to North Dakota with another threshing outfit. He spent the winter of 1913-14 in Odebolt, and in the spring of 1914 re- turned to North Dakota to resume threshing and farm work.
Mr. Petersmeyer was married in 1893 to Hulda Rasmus, who died two years later, leaving him one daughter, Edna, who is now a trained nurse in the Henrotin Memorial Hospital, Chicago. Mr. Petersmeyer has never remarried. In politics he is independent, but is naturally progressive in his tendencies. He favors good government and is not particular which party administers it. He is not a regular member of any church, yet he attends the Methodist Episcopal church and contributes to its support liberally. He is a man who has worked all of his life and has always borne his share in the life of the community in which he lives. He has many warm friends who admire him for his many good qualities.
HENRY KESSLER.
AAmong the many Germans who have cast their lot in Sac county none have proven more worthy of the large success their thrift has brought or shown themselves to be worthier of the confidence and respect reposed in them by their neighbors and the public in general than Henry Kessler, of Odebolt, lowa, a man who has never permitted obstacles to stand in his way and who has been watchful of the interests of the township and county in which he resides while forwarding those of his own.
Henry Kessler, a retired farmer of Odebolt, Iowa, was born July 3, 1841, in Cazerona, Saxe-Weimer, Germany, the son of Conrad and Margue- rite (Baumgartner) Kessler. The mother died in Germany in 1861, and four years later the father, with eight children, came to America. These eight children were Barbara, Marguerita, Artman, George, Henry, Marga- ret. Veronica and Daniel. Artman had been a soldier in the Prussian army before coming to this county. The Kessler family settled in Lee county, Illinois, and Conrad Kessler died in 1882 at the home of his daughter in Benton county, Iowa.
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He gry Kessler was twenty-four years of age when his father brought his ci dren to this country. Four years after settling in Lee county, Illi- nois, Henry married Elizabeth Reudzel, and in 1873 moved to Benton county, Iova. Five years later they moved to Sac county, this state, settling on one hundred and sixty-nine acres in section 6, Clinton township, which they purchased for five dollars and sixty cents an acre. Mr. Kessler proved to be a successful farmer and from time to time added to his land holdings, but sold some of his land, and he now owns three hundred and twenty acres of fine farming land in Richland and Clinton townships. Henry Kessler and wife moved to Odebolt, January 8, 1911, where he has a handsome home in the southeastern part of the city on Park avenue. He has turned over the actual management of the farm to his son. Mr. and Mrs. Kessler are the parents of eight children: George, who lives on a farm in Richland town- ship: Mrs. Mary Frevert, of Floyd county, Iowa: Mrs. Katie Bachmann, of Crawford county, this state: John, a merchant of Ida Grove, Iowa; Edward, of this township, who owns a farm of eighty acres; Mrs. Rosina Einspahr, who lives on the old homestead place: Mrs. Caroline Nitzsche, of Clay county, Iowa, and Minnie E., who is at home with her parents; she is a graduate in music of Charles City College and is a teacher of instrumental music in Odebolt.
Politically, Mr. Kessler is a Republican, but has never been an aspirant for any public office, although he has served as road supervisor of his town- ship. The family are all loyal and devoted members of the German Metho- dist Episcopal church and give it their earnest support. Mr. Kessler is a man who has worked himself from an humble station in life to a success- ful place in the life of his community and has won an honorable place among the well-known farmers of the locality in which he resides.
CHARLES GOODENOW.
Each life seems to be cast in a different mold, although environments similar in character surround all persons of any one community. We are influenced to some extent in our choice of a life career by the example set by our fathers : if the paternal parent of an individual has become successful in a good profession the son is very likely to follow in the footsteps of his father and to carry onward and upward the work begun. Thus it is seen that the parental influence, when wielded wisely and for the good ot the
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offspring, is the greatest impulse in shaping the careers of successtul men. It is even claimed by some observers and writers that banking, for instance, is an inherited occupation and if a father is gifted with financial ability, this trait is transmitted to the son in a higher degree if he possesses a personal aptitude for the business. Even so, history records hundreds of instances where this highly important department of our national financial system has been more successfully conducted during past centuries where the heritage has been given over to the sons of the family who but stepped into the place left vacant by the father and acquitted themselves wonderfully and shoul- dered the responsibilities of conducting such an important business in a manner creditable to themselves and their predecessors. In writing the biography of Charles Goodenow, banker and leading citizen of Wall Lake, Sac county, account must be taken of the fact that his father was the pioneer banker of this locality and founded the business which the son has extended and broadened.
He whose name forms the caption of this chronicle was born August 13, 1856, in Clinton county, Towa, and is the son of Royal Goodenow, pioneer settler and banker of Wall Lake, Iowa. Royal Goodenow was born in the state of New York, December 25, 1820, and was the son of Timothy Goodenow, a descendant of an old and highly respected family of New Eng- land. In the year 1845 he migrated to Clinton county, Iowa, and settled on a pioneer farm. He was one of the first settlers of this great county and was preceded by a brother. John E. Goodenow, who settled on a farm lying on the Jackson-Clinton county line as early as 1838. John E. had the dis- tinction of being the first railroad land-grant owner in lowa and was one of three trustees (Goodenow, Clark and Cotton) to whom the land grant was deeded in trust in 1841. In the year 1875 Royal Goodenow came to Sac county and invested in a tract of four hundred and eighty acres in sec- tion 1. Clinton township, to which he soon added one hundred and sixty acres, making an entire section of land which he owned. This was practic- ally virgin prairie which he had broken for cultivation and improved. In 1882 he and Nelson Wright came to the new town of Wall Lake and started the Bank of Wall Lake, which was later reorganized as the Wall Lake Savings Bank in September of 1905. In his later years, when old age robbed him of some of his virile energy, he removed to Jackson county and there spent his remaining days amid the familiar scenes of his younger days, dying March 20, IOTI. He will long be remembered in Sac county as one of the influen- tial and striking figures of the county. The interesting history of the found-
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ing of the Wall Lake Bank and its subsequent fortunes is graphically told in the banking chapter of this memoir.
This pioneer citizen of the county was twice married. His first wife was born in New York state and was Marilla Griffin, who bore him one son, Melville B., now a resident of Nebraska. His second marriage was with Sarah Sherwood, who was born in Ohio in 1833. They were married in Clinton county. To this union were born the following children: Charles; Mrs. Marilla Phillips, of Clinton county; Mrs. Candice Butterworth, of Jackson county ; Burt L., a resident of South Dakota. He was a Democrat politically and was an exemplary and valuable citizen whose usefulness in the early development of Sac county is more than deserving of extended mention.
Charles Goodenow, the son, and with whom this review is directly concerned, received his education in the district schools of his native county. He came to Sac county when the family removed here and drove a large bunch of cattle ahead of him. He unloaded the cattle from the train at Grand Junction, Iowa, and drove them to his father's ranch by way of Lake City and Sac City. He assisted his father in hauling and handling the lumber used in the erection of the farm buildings and did his share in the prairie "breaking." In 1878 he journeyed to Nebraska and remained in this newer state for three and one half years, engaged in ranching. On his return to Sac county he located in the town of Wall Lake and opened a general merchandise store, which he conducted successfully for several years. He became connected with the Bank of Wall Lake, now the Wall Lake Savings Bank, some time later and has practically managed its affairs since 1882. His ability as a banker is unquestioned and the institution in his charge is considered one of the solidest and the safest financial concerns in the county.
Mr. Goodenow has always been interested in farming and has never allowed his interest to wander far from the vocation to which he had been reared. He has charge of the Goodenow estate, consisting of six hundred and fifty-six acres and the cultivation of which he supervises, and is the owner of a fine farm of three hundred and twenty acres in Clinton county.
Charles Goodenow was married on February 14, 1884, to Jessie Newby, formerly of Clinton county and daughter of William Newby, who removed to Sac county from Clinton. He is the father of the following children : Mrs. Nellie Zae Garrett, of Wall Lake: Ruth, at home with her parents; Marilla, a student in the State University at Iowa City ; Royal, a student in the public schools and aged thirteen years.
Politically, Mr. Goodenow is a Democrat and is pronounced in his con-
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victions : fraternally, he is a Mason. For a long period of twenty-one years he has served on the city council of Wall Lake and has ever been found in the forefront in advocating public improvements ; he has many warm friends and well wishers, and is one of these whole-souled, likeable fellows who are accommodating and hospitable to a high degree. Of such men are the best communities composed.
HUGH M. CORY.
The crowning point of a long and reasonably active life is that period when, at peace with the world and mankind and relieved of the necessity of further endeavor to obtain a livelihood. one is enabled to retire for the re- inaining years and await the sunset period Life, with its struggles and dis- appointments, is yet ahead of the younger generation. The activities inci- dental to the gaining of a livelihood, and amassing a competency which enables one to enjoy a peaceful and contented old age in comfort, are matters for reminiscences of value in a work of this character. To have served one's country on the frontier of civilization and to have shouldered a musket in defense of the Union is honor sufficient to gratify the ambitions of the average human. This combination of circumstances fell to the lot of Hugh Cory, re- tired pioneer of Sac City, and Union veteran of the Civil War.
Hugh Cory was born January 11, 1844. on a farm in Hardin county, Ohio, the son of Francis M. and Isabelle ( Hitchcock ) Cory, both natives of the grand okl Buckeye state.
Because of the fact that Francis M. Cory was one of the very earliest settlers of Sac county, and was known as a strong and remarkable character in many ways, considerable mention of him in these pages is necessary be- fore we proceed further with the biography of the son, Hugh. He was born in Ohio in the year 1818, and died in Sac county in 1865. Francis was the son of Alanson Cory, who was the son of Abner Cory, a native of Scotland. Alanson emigrated to America in the latter part of the eighteenth century and entered government land in Crawford county, Ohio. He was the father of the following sons: Francis M., Abner, Hugh, Enos and Alanson. These six sons were reared to manhood on the farm in Crawford county, Ohio. Francis M. first located in Hardin county, Ohio, on attaining his majority. Hearing of the new and richer lands to the westward, he set forth on the long journey with his wife and eight children in the spring of 1854. His children were as follows: Isaac A., of Bellingham, Washington, the first
MR. AND MRS. HUGH M. CORY
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teacher in Sac county: William, who died in Texas; Hugh; Harvey, who resides in North Yakima, Washington; George I .. city marshal and water commissioner of Sac City: Joseph, a farmer residing at Mulhall, Oklahoma ; John, proprietor of the Perkins Hotel, Plattsmouth, Nebraska; Abner, de- ceased : Frances, wife of J. S. Tiberghein, and who was the first white female child horn in Sac county.
The Corys were part of an immigrant company of five families who be- came the real pioneer settlers of Sac county. These were the families of Leonard Austin, Joel Austin, Jacob Mcafee, William LaGourgue and Francis Cory. The family traveled overland with two yoke of oxen by easy stages, hunting and fishing on the way, and taking in all the sights of the new and strange country through which they were passing, and enjoying the trip as a distinct novelty. Arriving within the confines of the county. they naturally selected a timbered tract, surrounding what is known as the Big Springs along the Coon river. The only inhabitants of the neighborhood at that time were scattering bands of Indians, who were on friendly terms with the white people who were soon to take away their traditional hunting grounds. Mr Cory took up his land in what is officially known as the southeast quarter of section 36. township 88, range 36. The land was almost completely covered with heavy timber. They at once set about the hewing of logs from timber newly felled, and erected a small log cabin. Every stick and piece which went into the construction of the pioneer home was hewn out by hand. The floor was of puncheon, and much of the furniture was made by hand from branches and boards smoothed by the adz. This cabin was replaced in 1855 by a more commodious log dwelling, sixteen by eighteen feet in extent. It is said of Mr. Cory that he was a very level headed man and enjoyed the con- fidence and esteem of the Indians with whom he traded. He made a virtue of his trading operations, and would give the Indians meal and pork in the right quantities in exchange for their furs. These he would take to Des Moines and exchange for the necessities of life. During the first winter the settlers fared exceedingly well and were happy and contented with their lot, and were of the decided opinion that their lines had fallen in pleasant places and that this section of Iowa was a second Garden of Eden in a certain sense.
Hugh recalls that on a certain occasion a band of twenty-five Indian "bucks" made a visit to his father's home from their camp on the old Wad- dell place. Mr. Cory, as was his custom, took the guns from the Indians and stacked them. He then tried to converse with their leaders. One Indian, who seemed to be the leader of the group, struck a beam with his hatchet and dipped his hand. Mr. Cory called out "Sug!" The Indians answered in
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concert, "Sug." They at once began trading. Mrs. Cory frequently cooked great kettles full of corn or hominy for the Indians. This they partook of gratefully. Fish and game abounded and the Cory boys were in their natural element when hunting and fishing. Beaver dams were plentiful and the settlers easily added to their store of goods by trying their skill at trapping the fur-bearing animals, which were found in prolific numbers along the banks of the Raccoon river. Deer and elk roamed the prairies all through the timber. The Corys had a team of trained elk which were great pets. The boys, during their idle moments, trained a team which were as sensible and easily driven as a team of horses. It is recorded that the father sold this team of elks to a wandering trader for one hundred dollars. Not having the necessary cash with him, the trader gave Mr. Cory a check for the amount on a Des Moines bank. Cory set out at once on horseback for the Capital city for the purpose of cashing the check and thus securing some ready money. which was a scarce article in those days. Imagine his disappointment upon his arrival at Des Moines when he learned that the bank had failed and his check was worthless. Young Hugh and his brother George became great "shots," and frequently visited with the Indians, whom they amazed by their ability to shoot.
The principal diet of the settlers for the first few years of their occu- pancy of Sac county is said to have been composed of game, crab apples, and dried blackberries, which grew rapidly after fires had swept the timber slash- ings. Wild grapes grew prodigiously and other wild fruit were highly ap- preciated. Another diversion of the young fellows was the hunting down of wolves and coons after nightfall. The children wore clothing made of homespun woven on the place by the housewife, and their suspenders were made of ticking. The "fry" from the fat coons furnished a substitute for commercial lard used in the cooking and baking. According to the sons of Francis Cory, "Sac county at all times was the grandest place in the world for good feeding." Francis Cory served the county as one of its first treas- urers. It is said of his wife, Isabelle Hitchcock, that she was the right kind of a mate for the pioneer. and was a typical frontierswoman. She was an excellent rifle shot, and could ride a horse or handle a yoke of oxen equally well with her sons or husband should occasion or the necessity for her doing so arise. She was born in Ohio in the year 1822 and died in Sac City in 1898.
This narrative, however, directly concerns Hugh, the third son of F. M. Cory. At the age of twenty years, he enlisted, on March 27, 1864, in Com- pany K, Seventh lowa Volunteer Cavalry, under Captain Cooper. His com- mand was engaged principally in the west along the frontier. It was the duty
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of the border troops during the latter years of the war to be in readiness to check threatened Indian outbreaks, and Captain Cooper's company served for one year after enlistment, keping vigilant watch over the red men in antici- pation of outbreaks. The command was concerned in several small battles and many skirmishes with roving bands of Indians, which they prevented from joining main bodies which would become formidable opponents. The object of the Federal government during the Civil war was naturally to keep the several tribes isolated from each other as far as possible, so as to prevent them from joining in a concerted campaign of attack, while the country was enduring the throes of the Rebellion. William Cory was also a soldier during the Rebellion and served with bravery and distinction as became the son of a pioneer. William and Harvey Cory served in Company A, Tenth lowa In- fantry, and were in many great battles.
After returning from the war, Hugh Cory pre-empted one hundred and sixty acres of government land, but was so unfortunate as to lose possession of it in a short time. In the fall of 1867 he purchased the old family home- stead. He and his wife occupied the okl log cabin, where the family were reared to manhood and womanhood for a time. As his family increased, he erected a comfortable firm dwelling, which formed their home until the re- moval of Mr. and Mrs. Cory to Sac City in later years. This farm was held by Hugh until recently, when he disposed of it for one hundred and fifty dollars an aere. During his lifetime, or rather during his residence in Sae county, the original homestead had increased in value nearly one hundred and fifty times. The purchase price when Mr. Cory first occupied the farm directly after his marriage was twenty-five dollars an acre. This is a typical illustration of the rapid increase in the value of lowa farm lands during the last decade. To be acenrate, the Corys built their large frame house on the farm in 1803 and also built a commodious and modern barn. During their residence on the land it yielded a comfortable living for a growing family of six children, and for the last twenty years of their occupancy it gave them a substantial profit over and above living expenses, thus enabling them to start out their children in the right manner and lay by a competence for old age. During late years Mr. and Mrs. Cory have taken several trips across the country on long visits to rela- tives and children on the Pacific coast, but inevitably return to Sae county as the one place of residence which they prefer above all other spots on the face of the earth.
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