USA > Iowa > Taylor County > History of Taylor County, Iowa; from the earliest historic times to 1910, biographical sketches of some prominent citizens > Part 26
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Fraternally he is also connected with Taylor Lodge, No. 156, A. F. & A. M .; Triangle Chapter No. 68 R. A. M., Creston Commandery K. T. and Moila Temple of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine at St. Joseph, Missouri. He is con- nected with Bedford Lodge, K. P., while his political allegiance is given to the republican party. He does not seek nor desire office but keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day and is thus able to support his position by intelligent argument. He is numbered among the county's successful construc- tive builders-acquainted with the story of its progress and an active factor in its growth. He possesses a strong nature and kindly spirit and his life has been actuated by high and manly principles. Altogether it has been a useful and honorable career and one that has been of marked value in this part of the state.
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HISTORY OF TAYLOR COUNTY
JOSEPH P. STANDLEY, M. D.
Dr. Joseph P. Standley, one of the most capable and successful physicians and surgeons of Taylor county, now living in Bedford, is, as it were, to the manner born, for he is the son of a physician and the experiences and interests of his early life connected him in a degree with the profession which he after- ward chose as a life work. In the field of business, however, he has won suc- cess equal to that which he has attained in professional lines and is recognized as a dynamic force in the community, possessing the unfaltering purpose and firm determination that enables him to carry forward to successful completion whatever he undertakes. He was born in Platteville, Taylor county, Iowa, Octo- ber 30, 1869, a son of Dr. Joseph R. and Rachel .(Hornback) Standley, natives of Indiana and of Kentucky respectively. The ancestral history of the family gives account of three brothers of the name who came to this country about the time when the Pilgrim fathers landed on the shores of New England. The name was originally spelled Stanley but during the colonial wars some of the family remained loyal to the crown, while others gave their aid to the cause of liberty and inserted the "d" in their names to distinguish them from those who sympathized with the English in their endeavor to retain control of America as a colonial possession. William Standley, the grandfather of Dr. Standley, became one of the pioneer settlers of Indiana and followed farming near Green- castle. He aided in the early development of that state and died in Davis county, Indiana, when about eighty years of age. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Unity S. Mulnix, was a member of the Mulnix family who laid out the town of Greencastle. She, too, passed away at an advanced age.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. William Standley were born ten children, including Dr. Joseph R. Standley, who was reared a poor boy in Indiana and in his youthful days worked at odd jobs to earn money that would supply him with the necessi- ties of life. Saving everything possible from his earnings, he eagerly pressed forward to the goal of his ambition-the study of medicine in preparation for the practice of the profession as a life work. When a young man he came to Iowa and located in Platteville, Taylor county, in 1855. There he took up a claim and while developing the property he also practiced his profession, being one of the pioneer physicians of the district. His broad humanitarianism prompted him to respond to every call made upon him and no night was too dark and no season too cold for him to go to the aid of those who needed his pro- fessional assistance. In time he began dealing in real estate as he saw oppor- tunity for profitable investment and he also engaged in trading and in raising cattle on the range. Because of the growing demands of these interests he gave up the practice of medicine but throughout his remaining days his professional opinion was respected by physicians all over the county. As the years passed he accumulated considerable property and at his death left his children very com- fortably situated financially. He passed away on the 22d of April, 1907, at the age of about seventy-six years, while his wife died in 1897 at the age of sixty- three years. She was a member of the Methodist church and, like her husband, enjoyed the respect and esteem of all who knew them. Their family numbered
DR. JOSEPH P. STANDLEY
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but two children, the elder, a daughter, being Mrs. Ida May Terrill, the wife of Asa Terrill, of Blockton, Iowa.
In the maternal line Dr. Standley comes of German ancestry. His grandfather settled in Kentucky, where he lived for a time and afterward removed to Illi- nois, establishing his home near Barry, where he died. His widow lived to be more than eighty years of age and died in Platteville, this county. They were the parents of two sons and two daughters.
Dr. Joseph P. Standley was born and reared in Platteville, where he at- tended the public schools and later became a student in the high school in Bed- ford, while subsequently he attended the Iowa Wesleyan University at Mount Pleasant and thus completed his literary course. He was graduated from the Kentucky School of Medicine at Louisville in 1889 and having thus qualified for the profession, he entered upon active practice at Platteville, where he re- mained for thirteen years, when, seeking a broader field of labor, he removed to Bedford, where he has practiced continuously since. Reading, investigation and research have continually broadened his knowledge and promoted his efficiency, making him one of the most capable physicians of this part of the state and at all times his professional duties are discharged with a sense of conscientious obligation.
On the 24th of December, 1888, Dr. Standley was married to Miss Dora E. Wakefield, a daughter of John T. Wakefield. Her parents were early settlers of Illinois, locating near Peoria. Her father served as a soldier of the Civil war and died a few years after its close as the result of exposure which he had endured at the front. He had removed to Nebraska, establishing his home near Superior, on the banks of the Republican river, and there he died and was buried but his remains were afterward removed to Peoria, Illinois, and interred by the side of members of the family there. His wife died comparatively young. Their daughter Dora was their only child and on reaching womanhood she gave her hand in marriage to Dr. Standley. They have two children, Ida Fern and John Harlan. Mrs. Standley is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
The Doctor is well known in fraternal relations, belonging to Taylor Lodge, No. 59, A. F. & A. M .; Triangle Chapter, No. 68, R. A. M .; Bethany Commandery, No. 29, K. T., of Creston, Iowa, and Moila Temple of the Mystic Shrine at St. Joseph, Missouri. He is also connected with the Modern Woodmen of America and with the Maccabees. His political allegiance is given to no party, for he prefers to vote independently, considering the capability of the candidate rather than his party allegiance. In professional lines he is connected with the Tay- lor County Medical Society, the Iowa State Medical Society and the American Medical Association. While he is known as a capable physician of wide pro- fessional learning, he is also recognized as a successful business man in other di- rections. He is now a heavy stockholder in the Orogrande Smelting Company, of Orogrande, New Mexico, and he owns about a thousand acres of fine farm- ing land in Taylor county, together with city property in Bedford, where he resides. On his old home place at Platteville he has one of the largest herds of elk in the state. He takes great delight in the fine appearance of his country estate and in the control of his business affairs he displays the keen judgment
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and clear discernment which are ever essential to progress in business lines. He is an alert, enterprising man-a typical representative of the progressive spirit of the west-and one whose appreciation of social amenities also renders him popular.
LOEY HEMENOVER.
Loey Hemenover, who carries on general agricultural pursuits on section 12, Ross township, manifests a persistent and energetic spirit in his business affairs that has brought him a substantial degree of success, making him the owner of eighty acres of rich and productive land, which is situated about three and a half miles from Bedford. He has lived in Taylor county since 1875 and is a native son of the middle west, his birth having occurred in Prairie City, Fulton county, Illinois, on the 22d of August, 1857. His father, D. C. Hemenover, was a native of Michigan and was married in Fulton, Illinois, to Miss Elizabeth Hunt. He be- gan farming in Illinois and four of his children were born in that state. He after- ward removed to Iowa, settling in Taylor county, where he carried on general agri- cultural pursuits in Clayton township until his removal to Des Moines. His first wife died in Morris, Illinois, and he later married again. His children were: Loey, of this review ; Frank, now living in Nebraska ; Harry, who died in Taylor county at the age of sixteen years ; and Ona, the wife of Jack Parlan, of Chicago:
Loey Hemenover was reared to the age of sixteen years in Fulton county, Illinois, and then removed to Knox county, settling near Abingdon. He began earning his own livelihood when but nine years of age, being employed at farm labor. As a young man he went to Colorado, where he worked in the mines, engaged in teaming and did anything that would yield him an honest living. After two years spent in the west he made his way from Colorado to Bedford, Iowa, but after a year returned to Colorado, where he again spent two years. On the expiration of that period he once more came to Taylor county and two years later he went to Council Bluffs, where he was employed in the gas house for two years. He afterward went to Mills county, Iowa, where he worked on a ranch in the employ of one man for seven years, his long continuance in that position being positive proof of his capability, fidelity and the trust reposed in him.
Mr. Hemenover was married in Bedford on the 16th of February, 1883, to Miss Ida Beall, a native of Taylor county and a daughter of Jared Beall, one of the pioneers of this locality. Following their marriage the young couple began their domestic life in Monona county, Iowa, on a rented farm, which Mr. Hemen- over cultivated for eight years, after which he returned to Taylor county and settled in Clayton township, where he rented land for two or three years. He afterward spent two years in the gas house at Council Bluffs and later he bought a farm in Clayton township, where he carried on general agricultural pursuits for six years. In 1907 he disposed of that property and bought his present farm, on which he located in the spring of 1908. He has a good residence here, sub- stantial outbuildings, and altogether a well-improved place. He is diligent and persistent in his work and his success has come as the direct reward of his own labors.
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Unto Mr. and Mrs. Hemenover have been born three children: Ona, the wife of W. J. Moore, a resident farmer of Clayton township, by whom she has one child, Hazel ; Court D., who is proving an able assistant to his father in carry- ing on the home farm; and Edna, who died when about five years of age.
Politically Mr. Hemenover is a democrat and keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day, although he does not seek nor desire public office. His wife is a member of the East Mission church and Mr. Hemenover belongs to Emerson Lodge, A. F. & A. M. His record proves what can be ac- complished by energy and determination, for steadily he has worked his way upward and although he started out empty-handed at the age of nine years he is now comfortably situated in life, with a good farm that yields to him a gratifying annual income.
WILLIAM F. EVANS.
Taylor county has been signally favored in the class of men who have occupied her public offices, for on the whole they have been loyal to her best interests, seek- ing the public good rather than personal aggrandizement and placing the welfare of the community before partisanship. Of this class William F. Evans is a worthy representative and is now making a creditable record as county treasurer.
He was born in Fountain county, Indiana, April 25, 1840, his parents being John and Catherine (Bristow) Evans, who were natives of Virginia and Ohio, respectively. The paternal grandfather, Jesse Evans, was also born in Virginia and was of Welsh descent. He devoted his life to farming and on removing from the Old Dominion took up his abode in Fountain county, Indiana, where he was connected with the early agricultural development. There he died at the age of seventy-six years, while his wife was also seventy-six years of age at the time of her demise, which occurred in Covington, Indiana.
Their family numbered seven sons, including John Evans, who was reared to the work of the fields and was always a farmer. He became an early resident of Indiana, arriving in that state in 1831, and in 1856 he came to Taylor county, Iowa, reaching his destination on the 12th of March. Here he purchased a farm of four hundred acres in Benton township. . He established his home in Benton township and there reared his family but in later years took up his abode in the city of Bedford, where he lived retired from about 1875 until his death, which occurred in 1893 when he was about eighty-two years of age. His wife had died in 1864 in the faith of the Baptist church, in which both were members. Fol- lowing her death Mr. Evans wedded Miss Hannah Propst, who still survives him. The children of the first marriage were nine in number, three sons and six daughters : William F .; Margaret J .; the wife of J. C. Turner, of Bedford, Iowa ; Jesse J., now deceased ; Euphelia, the wife of Henry E. May, of Bedford; James A., also of that place; Sarah C., the wife of William. E. Smith, of Smithfield, Missouri; Ellen, the wife of Rev. R. Campbell, of Oskaloosa, Iowa; Ada C., the
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wife of Ed C. Thompson, of Benton township; and Delilah, the wife of M. G. Maxwell, of Mount Ayr.
As a farm boy William F. Evans spent the days of his boyhood and youth, early becoming familiar with the work incident to the development of the fields and the cultivation of the crops. When he had reached his majority his father gave him eighty acres of land and he engaged in farming in Benton township until 1872, while he carefully tilled the fields and in consequence gathered good harvests. He did not confine his attention exclusively to the operation of his farm, for in 1872 he was elected county auditor and served for four years. He was appointed postmaster of Bedford and filled that position for four years. In 1880 he was again elected county treasurer and continued to serve there for four years, retiring from the office as he had entered it-with the confidence and good will of all concerned. When he had put aside official duties he engaged in the grocery business in Bedford with his brother Jesse J., but his fellow-townsmen were not content that he should relinquish all public service and in 1903 he was again elected county treasurer, which office he still holds. He has thus been again and again chosen as the custodian of the public funds and no higher testi- monial of his efficiency and fidelity could be given. No public trust reposed in him has been betrayed in the slightest degree and on the contrary his record is one over which there falls not the least shadow of wrong nor suspicion of evil. In addition to his other public duties he acted as secretary of the Taylor County Agricultural Society for twelve consecutive years.
There is another chapter in the life history of Mr. Evans that is most credit- able-that concerning his military experience. On the 9th of August, 1862, when the country was engaged in civil war, he offered his aid to the government, enlist- ing in Company F, Twenty-ninth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, with which he remained for three years, being mustered out August 9, 1865. He enlisted as a private, was afterward made orderly sergeant and was mustered out with the rank of second lieutenant. He participated in the battles of Helena and Saline River and was also in many skirmishes. Never for an instant did he falter in the per- formance of his duty as he defended the old flag-the symbol of a united nation.
When Mr. Evans went to the front he bade adieu to his bride of but a few months for he had been married on the 13th of February, 1862, to Miss Amanda Lewis, a daughter of William and Mary J. (Van Meter) Lewis. Three sons were born of that marriage: Charles I., Omer L and Arthur B, all living in Par- sons, Kansas. The former, an engineer on the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad, married Miss Gertie Bundy, by whom he has one living child, May. Omer L., who is engaged in the grocery business, wedded Catharine Ryan and they have a daughter, Leone. Arthur B. is timekeeper for the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad shops at Parsons, Kansas. He married Bertha Crew and they have one daughter, Dorothy. Mrs. W. F. Evans died in 1905 at the age of sixty-one years, passing away in the faith of the Baptist church, of which she was a de- voted member. Later Mr. Evans married again, his second union being with Mrs. Elizabeth McCracken, the widow of Thomas McCracken and a sister of his first wife.
Mr. Evans holds membership in the Baptist church and thus cooperates in the moral improvement of the community. He also belongs to Sedgwick Post,
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No. 10, G. A. R., while his political allegiance is given to the republican party, which was the defense of the Union during the dark days of the Civil war and has always been the party of reform and progress. He is one of its leading repre- sentatives in Taylor county, loyal to its principles and interested in its work. He stands as one of the foremost citizens of this part of the state, honored and re- spected by all who know him-and his acquaintance in Taylor county is a very wide one.
W. D. McMASTER.
W. D. McMaster, a prosperous and representative agriculturist of Polk town- ship, is numbered among the worthy native sons of Taylor county, his birth having occurred on the old family homestead in Polk township. His parents were J. C. and Sarah A. (Thompson) McMaster and a sketch of the father, who is now deceased, appears on another page of this volume. Mr. McMaster, of this review, attended the district schools in his youthful days and early in life also became familiar with the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agriculturist, giving his father the benefit of his services in the cultivation of the home farm. The work of the fields has claimed his attention throughout his entire business career, and he is now residing on a farm in Polk township which was given him by his father. He utilizes the most practical and progressive methods in the conduct of his agricultural interests and has won that measure of success which is ever the reward of earnest, untiring and well-directed labor.
Mr. McMaster has been married twice. On the Ist of January, 1884, he was joined in wedlock to Miss May A. Eggers, a daughter of Mathew Eggers, of Taylor county, by whom he had three children, namely : Evert and Roy, who are residents of Idaho; and Charles, at home. The wife and mother was called to her final rest on the 9th of May, 1887, and in April, 1894, Mr. McMaster was again married, his second union being with Miss Olive Lewis, a daughter of V. P. Lewis and a resident of Hopkins, Missouri. The children born unto them are four in number, as follows : Glenn, Ruth, Ernest and Mary, all of whom are still under the parental roof. Mr. McMaster is well known and highly esteemed throughout the county where he has resided from his birth to the present time, his many good traits of character having won him the confidence and respect of all with whom he has been associated.
W. R. WILDMAN.
W. R. Wildman, living on section 33, Gay township, is one of the public-spirited citizens of his part of the county and his devotion to the general good is recog- nized by his fellow-townsmen, who have called him to local office. At the present writing, in 1909, he is serving as township clerk. Taylor county numbers him among her native sons, his birth having occurred December 1, 1878, on the old homestead farm which adjoins the place he is now cultivating. He is a son of
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William Wildman who is mentioned elsewhere in this volume. The old homestead was the scene of his youthful activities as he indulged in the sports in which most boys take part and performed such duties as were assigned him by parental au- thority. His educational advantages were those offered by the common schools and when not busy with his text-book he assisted his father, remaining at home until he had attained his majority. On the 15th of March, 1905, in Jackson township, he was united in marriage to Miss Gertrude Turner, a native of this county, born in Gay township and a daughter of J. A. Turner of Clayton town- ship. Following their marriage Mr. Wildman rented land and now has charge of two hundred and eighty acres, known as the Hickenlooper farm. He is prospering in his undertakings, doing a successful business in fattening and feed- ing stock, his specialty being hogs, of which he sells a large number annually.
Mr. Wildman has always given his political support to the democracy and was elected and served for two terms, or four years, as assessor of Gay township. In 1908 he was elected township clerk and is filling the position at the present time. No public trust reposed in him has ever been betrayed in the slightest degree and he regards a public office as a public trust. He is a young man of good business ability and upright character who has the confidence and esteem of the community, both because of his business integrity and the excellent record which he has made as a public official.
WALTER H. LAKE.
Walter H. Lake, filling the position of county auditor and maintaining his residence in Bedford, was born near Conway, in Taylor county, Iowa, March 5, 1878. His parents were Albert E. and Sarah L. (Reed) Lake, both of whom are natives of Massachusetts. The Lake family was established in that state at an early day. The paternal grandfather, John B. Lake, was born in Massachu- setts, served his country as a Union soldier in the Civil war and died some time afterward as the result of a wound sustained in that conflict. His widow, Mrs. Amelia H. Lake, died when well advanced in years. They had a family of four children, three sons and a daughter. The maternal grandfather of our subject was likewise a native of Massachusetts and died in the east. His widow long survived him and after his death became Mrs. Wheelock.
Albert E. Lake was reared in the state of his nativity and became a book- keeper in the east. About 1876 he removed from Boston to Iowa and settled on a farm near Conway. A year or two later, however, he abandoned agricul- tural pursuits and engaged in general merchandising in Conway, where he successfully conducted his store for ten years. His fellow-townsmen, appreciative of his worth, then called him to public office and for four years he filled the posi- tion of county treasurer, making a creditable record in that capacity, so that he won high encomiums from the leading citizens of the entire county. He is now a resident of Bedford and the secretary of the Bedford Creamery. In all of his official service his record has been characterized by the utmost loyalty and devo- tion to duty. He served as mayor of Conway for two terms and is now a member
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of the Bedford city council. Both he and his wife are members of the Methodist church and their sterling characteristics have gained them a firm hold on the affection and regard of friends and associates. Their family numbered but two sons, the younger being Harry C. Lake.
Walter H. Lake, the elder son, was reared in Conway and attended the public schools there, after which he was graduated on the completion of the business course in the Western Normal College. He remained there until 1895, after which he engaged in clerking in his father's store for a short time. His next situation was that of an assistant cashier in the Conway Exchange Bank and in 1900 he was called to the office of deputy county treasurer, serving in that posi- tion under appointment of his father for three years. He was afterward engaged in general merchandising in Conway for a short time and then took a position as assistant cashier in the Citizens Bank of Bedford, where he remained for three years. During all this period in his business connections and in his official service, he was giving proof of his trustworthiness and his unfaltering spirit of loyalty, and in 1906 his fellow-townsmen evidenced their appreciation of his good qualities by electing him county auditor, in which position he is now serving. He has always been a republican and in addition to his other official duties he acted for a short time as city clerk of Conway.
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