USA > Iowa > Appanoose County > Past and present of Appanoose County, Iowa : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Vol. II > Part 15
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George C. Elliott began his education in the schools of his native city and when but a boy came with his parents to Centerville, where he completed his public-school course. He was eighteen years of age when his father appointed him to the position of deputy county clerk and he thus obtained his initial experience in the office which he is now filling. With his father's retirement from the position of clerk four years later George C. Elliott entered the abstract business, in which he continued for a year, and was then appointed deputy county treasurer under Noah M. Scott, with whom he continued for four years, and was then again appointed to the position under J. T. Sherrard. After eight years' service in the treasurer's office Mr. Elliott became delinquent tax collector and so continued for several years. Prior to entering the treasurer's office he was appointed county clerk to fill an unexpired term of a year. When he left the position of delinquent tax collector he was once more deputy county treasurer under J. A. Moss and on his retirement from the position was elected county clerk. Since that time he has been thrice reelected-a fact which stands as incontrovertible proof of his capability and fidelity. He was called to the position for the fourth term in November. 1912, so that he will remain the incumbent in the office until 1915. Mr. Elliott has almost continuously filled public positions since eighteen years of age and over his record there falls no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil. He also has business interests, being secretary and treasurer of and owner of a fourth interest in the Appanoose Abstract & Title Company of Center- ville. He has never faltered in his allegiance to the republican party and
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has always kept well informed on the questions and issues of the day, so that he is able to support his position by intelligent argument. He is well known in the membership of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, of which he is a worthy representative. He was reared in the Meth- odist faith, his father having joined the church in 1868, becoming a most active and earnest worker therein.
JOSIAH SAMUEL WAILES, M. D.
Dr. Josiah Samuel Wailes, actively engaged in the practice of medicine in Mystic, the foundation for his success being laid in a thorough course of study in the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Keokuk, Iowa, is a native of Wellsboro, Indiana, born .June 21, 1848. His parents, John Perry and Sarah (Wilson) Wailes, were both natives of Prince George county, Maryland, but were married in Kentucky, where they remained until 1830, when they removed to Indiana, living there for twenty years. The father entered a tract of eighty acres of wild land and developed a farm on which he eventually platted the town of Wellsboro, which bears his name although a different spelling is followed. His wife was a grand- daughter of James Wilson, one of the signers of the declaration of inde- pendence. The year 1853 witnessed the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Wailes in Appanoose county, at which time they took up their abode in Chariton township, where they remained for an extended period. About three months before his death, however, John P. Wailes removed to Marion county, Kansas, where he passed away October 11, 1882, at the age of eighty-seven years. The mother died on the old homestead farm in Chari- ton township in August, 1861, when forty-one years of age. Mr. Wailes had always followed farming, thus providing for the support of his fan- ily, numbering a wife and nine children, namely: James W., deceased; George W., a Civil war veteran who is now living retired in Mystic ; Mary Elizabeth, who died at the age of eighteen years; Margaret Ann, who is the widow of Tilghman Davidson, and resides in Walnut township; Josiah S .: Lavinia, the wife of C. H. Hanson, of Florence, Kansas: Susan, the wife of A. L. Whitlock, also of Florence: John P., living in Plano, Appa- noose county; and Sarah, who died at the age of four years.
Dr. Wailes was a lad of five summers when he came with his parents to Iowa. He resided in Appanoose county until 1874 and in that period acquired a good public-school education. He was reared to farm life and carly became familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and caring
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for the crops. He was twenty-six years of age when he left Iowa for Marion county, Kansas, where he remained for a number of years, when he returned to Appanoose county. In the meantime he had practiced medicine for fifteen years in Kansas, receiving a state certificate which permitted his following the profession. Wishing, however, the benefits of further college training he entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Keokuk and was graduated therefrom in 1889. It was at that time that he returned to Appanoose county where he has since practiced with good success. He is a member of the Appanoose and Wayne Counties Medical Societies and at all times he keeps in close touch with the advancement that is being made by the profession as scientific investigation adds to the knowledge of its representatives.
In 1871 Dr. Wailes was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Jane Cross, a native of Bartholomew county, Indiana, with whom he traveled life's journey for twenty-eight years, being then separated by the death of the wife in Mystic in 1898 when she was fifty-four years of age. They were the parents of the following children: William M., who is living in Van Wert, lowa; Ida, the wife of LaFayette Bates, a resident of Mystic ; Mabel, who is the widow of James Wakefield and is living in Mystic; Ellen, the wife of R. B. McMahan, of Mystic; Myrtle, who died in Kansas at the age of four years; and Lizzie, the wife of Charles Morman, of Mystic.
Dr. Wailes on attaining his majority gave his political allegiance to the republican party and remained thereafter one of its supporters until about twenty years ago, when he joined the ranks of the democratic party. He has, however, never sought nor desired public office. He holds mem- bership with the Foresters and with the Yeomen and he is interested in all matters of public-spirited citizenship. He holds to high standards in his professional service, gives his patrons the benefit of conscientious and earnest effort and has long been accorded a liberal patronage.
EUGENE G. WENTWORTH.
Eugene G. Wentworth, owner of coal deposits extending under one hundred and twenty acres in Center township and well known in this part of Appanoose county as an extensive and successful coal operator. was born in Elliott, Maine, on the 13th of February, 1856. He is a son of Cyrus G. and Sarah C. (Bartlett) Wentworth. the former born in Lebanon, Maine, December 18, 1827, and the latter in Elliott, in the same state. Both were of English ancestry, the Wentworth family having been founded
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in America by William Wentworth, who came from Great Britain early in the seventeenth century and settled in New England. The father of our subject was a brick manufacturer, a contractor and builder and worked at all of these occupations in Maine until 1848, when he went to Cali- fornia and worked in the mines for two years. In 1850 he returned to his native state and was there married, coming in 1857 to Iowa and locat- ing at Centerville. Here he worked at brick manufacturing for a num- ber of years but in 1860 went to Boise City, Idaho, and engaged in freight- ing, driving oxen from that city to Walla Walla, Washington. In 1863 he returned to Centerville and a few years later, in partnership with Joseph Goss, opened a brickyard here. Their association continued for three years, at the end of which time Mr. Goss sold out his interest to his part- ner, who conducted the enterprise alone for some time. Later he became engaged in contracting and building and in this relation was identified with the construction of some of the most important business and resi- dence structures in the city and to a great extent built Centerville. He erected the First National Bank and two other buildings for important financial institutions as well as a great many private residences. He con- tinued to engage successfully in this line of work until a few years previous to his death, which occurred September 29, 1906. His wife passed away on the 26th of December, 1907. The father of our subject was a keen and able business man and always quick to recognize true business oppor- tunities. As a result he noted the rising value of Appanoose county lands and invested in them extensively, owning at the time of his death one hundred and twenty acres of valuable coal propery in Center township, which he leased to the Rock Valley Coal Company. He was prominent in fraternal circles, being a member of the blue lodge of Masons and Lodge No. 76, I. O. O. F., at Centerville.
Eugene G. Wentworth acquired his education in the public schools of Appanoose county and in the Centerville high school, and he remained with his father until he was twenty years of age. In that year he began his business career and through the successive stages of progress and develop- ment, through many changes in location and interests, has advanced step by step until he is now one of the leading business men in this part of the county. At first he entered the drug store belonging to Dr. Stephen Wright in Centerville and there studied pharmacy for three years, becoming skilled and expert in this science. He eventually purchased a half interest in the business and two years later, when Dr. Wright sold his stock to S. S. Cole, conducted the concern with the new partner for one year. At the end of that time, however, he sold his interest to Mr. Cole and went to Essex, Iowa, where he obtained employment in the
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drug store owned by Mr. Barlow. After eighteen months he returned to Centerville and after working one year for his father removed to Guthrie Center, Iowa, and there clerked in the drug store for A. D. Lemmon, working in his interests for three years. When he again returned to Centerville he secured a position as clerk in J. W. Clark's drug store and made such good use of his opportunities that he was later able to purchase his employer's interest. The store was located near the Burlington station and there Mr. Wentworth continued in business for three years, after which he moved upon the farm in Center township, which belonged to his father. After a short time, however, he abandoned agricultural pursuits and estab- lished himself in the grocery business in partnership with Tom Manson, continuing in this connection for one year and a half. In 1911 he recalled the lease on his coal mines from the Rock Valley Coal Company and has since operated the coal mines himself. In this he has met with gratifying success, being regarded as one of the most substantial as well as one of the most progressive and reliable business men of Centerville. In addi- tion to his mining property he owns seventy-nine acres of land in Mis- souri and twenty-five acres in Center township.
Mr. Wentworth was united in marriage to Miss Arthelia Wertz, a daughter of Isaac and Lavina (Spitler) Wertz, the former a native of Indiana and the latter of Ohio, both of German ancestry. They came to Appanoose county in early times with their parents and grew to manhood and womanhood in this section. Mrs. Wentworth's paternal grandfather became one of the extensive landowners in this part of the state, holding title to over eight hundred acres of valuable farming property near Center- ville. Mrs. Wentworth's parents married in Appanoose county and settled upon a farm in this section. In 1862 the father offered his services to the government as a volunteer in the Federal army and died in the hos- pital at Fort Scott, Kansas, in August of the following year. Afterward the mother married again, her second husband being John Banks, the sheriff of Appanoose county at that time. They later moved to Kansas and from there to Golden City, Missouri, where Mr. Banks passed away in 1892. After his death the mother moved to Webb City. Missouri, and there remained until her demise. To her first union were born two children: Perry A., who passed away at the age of eighteen months: and Arthelia. the wife of the subject of this review. By her second husband she had seven children: Charles, who has passed away; Lynn, who resides at Webb City, Missouri : Clem, deceased : Wylie, also of Webb City: Lucy; Ray, who is a minister of the Baptist church and lives in Indiana: and Pearl, who has passed away. To Mr. and Mrs. Wentworth was born one daughter, Leah M., whose birth occurred on the 9th of January. 1887.
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and who is at home with her parents. They have also a foster son, Gilbert K. McIntosh, who is a railroad engineer of Centerville.
Mr. Wentworth is connected with Lodge No. 76, I. O. O. F., and Appanoose Camp, No. 3553, M. W. A. Both he and his wife are members of Anna Rebekah Lodge, No. 95, of the Rebekahs of Centerville and Mrs. Wentworth is a member of the Arthelia District Court of Honor, No. 98, a lodge which was organized under her leadership and named in her honor. The family are devout adherents of the Presbyterian church, holding membership in Centerville. Mr. Wentworth gives his political allegiance to the republican party and is a man of high integrity and honor in all the relations of his life, enjoying in great measure the respect of his associates and friends.
MATISON S. EDWARDS.
One of the successful and widely known business men of Moulton is Matison S. Edwards, who is a member of an estimable pioneer family of Appanoose county, where he has passed the greater part of his life. For many years his entire attention was devoted to diversified farming and stock-raising, in which he is still interested, but since 1903 he has been president of the Moulton State Savings Bank, an institution he was largely instrumental in founding. Mr. Edwards was born in Laurel county, Ken- tucky, his natal day being the 11th of April, 1850, and his parents William and Marilla ( Elliott) Edwards. The father was also a native of Laurel county, Kentucky, his birth there occurring on the 29th of January, 1811, while the mother's natal day was January 29, 1816. The Edwards family originally came from Tennessee, but they were among the first settlers of Kentucky, our subject's grandfather, William Edwards, having taken up a homestead in Laurel county in his early manhood and there passed the remainder of his life. His son, William Edwards, Jr., was born, reared and married in Laurel county, where he resided until 1850, when he re- moved with his family to lowa. They first settled in Van Buren county, but in the spring of 1851 they came to Appanoose county. The father took up a homestead in Wells township, where he continued to increase his landed interests until at the time of his death his holdings aggregated five hundred acres, a hundred and sixty of which was timber land. The remainder of his active life was devoted to the improvement and cultiva- tion of his farm, which he transformed from a tract of prairie land into one of the valuable properties of the county. Upon his retirement he
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removed to Moulton, where he made his home until his death. To Mr. and Mrs. Edwards there were born nine children, one of whom, Andrew, died in infancy. In order of birth the other members of the family are as follows: Elizabeth, the widow of S. P. Elam, of Moulton, lowa; James W., captain of Company B, Second Missouri Cavalry, during the Civil war, who passed away in the Indian territory in the vicinity of Caney, Kansas, from wounds received in the service; Mary Ann, the deceased wife of Isaac A. Coffman, of Wheatland, Missouri; Lewis, a veteran of the Civil war and a member of the lowa Home Guards, who is now residing in Erie, Kansas; Daniel, a member of a Missouri regiment during the Civil war, who is now residing in Moulton, lowa; William, a Civil war veteran, of Moulton; Isaac Calvin, a resident of Appanoose county, deceased; and Matison S., our subject.
As he was still in his infancy when he accompanied his parents on their removal to Appanoose county, practically the entire life of Matison S. Edwards has been passed in the immediate vicinity of his present home. He was reared on his father's farm in very much the same manner as other lads of the pioneer period, and at the usual age began his education in the district schools in the vicinity of the old homestead. He completed his course of study in the Centerville high school, and then turned his atten- tion to agricultural pursuits with which he was already familiar. At the age of twenty he rented twenty acres of land from his father and began farming on his own account. His efforts in this direction proved so suc- cessful that at the end of two years he was able to purchase an adjoining tract of forty acres. This small holding formed the nucleus of a farm, the boundaries of which he continued to extend until he had acquired the title to five hundred acres of land. As the years passed he increased the value of his property by the addition of various improvements, and there engaged in diversified farming and stock-raising and feeding until 1891. In the year last named he disposed of that farmi and subsequently removed to a place he had previously purchased adjoining Moulton. He still owns and operates this place, which contains four hundred and forty acres of land and has been developed until it is one of the best equipped and most valuable properties in the county. Mr. Edwards there continued general farming and stock-raising, engaging extensively in feeding, until 1897, when he removed to Moulton, where he has since resided, but still directs the operation of his homestead. In February, 1903, he joined other local capitalists in the organization of the Moulton State Savings Bank, of which he has been president since it was founded.
Mr. Edwards has been twice married, his first union having been with Miss Martha W. Lane, the event occurring on the 31st of March, 1870.
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She was born in Ohio in 1851 and is a daughter of W. H. and Cassandra (Albert) Lane, likewise natives of Ohio, whence they removed to lowa in 1867, locating in the vicinity of Centerville. Of this marriage were born six children, two of whom died in infancy. In order of birth the others are as follows: Burton, who passed away in 1898, at the age of twenty- seven years, in Wray, Colorado; Fred C., a Methodist minister located at Brooklyn, lowa, who married Mabel Anderson, a daughter of Reuben Anderson, of Pulaski, Iowa, and has one child; Marian L. Ethel, the wife of W. R. Votaw, of Bowie, Texas, and the mother of two children; and Carl, who died at the age of fifteen years. The mother passed away Decem- ber 26, 1901, and in April. 1904, Mr. Edwards was married to his present wife, whose maiden name was Etta Wight. She is a native of Brashear, Missouri, her birth occurring on the 24th of September, 1873, and is a daughter of John M. and Sarah ( Elliott) Wight. The family removed to Iowa many years ago, locating in the vicinity of Troy, Davis county, but the father, who is a veteran of the Civil war, has now retired and he and the mother are residing in Moulton.
Mr. and Mrs. Edwards are active members of the Methodist church, and he is a member of the board of trustees. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias, while Mrs. Edwards is most worthy matron of the Moulton Order of the Eastern Star, and she is also an officer in the Rebekahs. Mr. Edwards has always taken an active interest in local polities, and was at one time a member of the board of supervisors of Appanoose county. Different members of his family have figured in public life, one of his nephews, Don C. Edwards, having formerly been United States senator from Ken- tucky. During the long period of his residence in Appanoose county Mr. Edwards has made an excellent record for upright manhood and honorable citizenship, and his fellow townsmen accord hint the respect and esteem ever extended to men of worth and integrity.
J. LOGAN MCCLURE.
An excellent farm of two hundred acres situated on section 8. Pleasant township, is the property of J. Logan McClure, who in addition to cultiva- vating his fields deals in and ships live stock. He has been a resident of Appanoose county since 1902, his birth having occurred across the border in Putnam county, Missouri, September 11, 1873. His father was one of the pioneers of that county and became an enterprising and prosperous
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farmer there. Upon the old homestead the son was reared, early becoming familiar with all of the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the farm boy who divides his time between the work of the fields, the duties of the schoolroom and the pleasures of the playground. His educational ad- vantages, however, were somewhat limited and he is largely a self-edu- cated man, having learned many valuable lessons in the school of experience. He continued to assist his father on the old homestead to the time of his marriage and practical training qualified him to carry on farm work on his own account.
It was on the 27th of December, 1898, in Putnam county, Missouri, that Mr. McClure was married to Miss Catherine Daily, who was likewise a native of that county and a daughter of Timothy Daily, one of the well known farmers there. Following their marriage Mr. and Mrs. McClure began their domestic life upon a rented farm in Putnam county, where they lived for four years, and in addition Mr. McClure engaged in the raising and feeding of stock. In 1902 he purchased the place upon which he now resides and took up his abode thereon. During the ten years of his residence here he has wrought a considerable transformation in the place, which is mostly seeded to blue grass, affording excellent pasturage for his stock, for he is largely engaged in stock-raising, buying and selling for a number of years. He ships from both Centerville and Cincinnati and also to some extent from Unionville, Missouri. He is a well-known live-stock dealer and his success is well merited because of his close application, his sound judgment and his indefatigable industry. He is an excellent judge of stock, seldom fails to appraise correct weight and can accurately estimate the value of the animals which he purchases and ships.
Mr. and Mrs. McClure have a family of two sons and a daughter: Francis, Ruth and Lawrence. The parents are members of the Catholic church at Unionville, Missouri, and in politics Mr. McClure has been a life-long republican but has never sought nor desired office, preferring to give his undivided attention to his business affairs which, capably con- trolled, are bringing to him substantial financial returns.
CALLOWAY C. BAKER.
Through a residence in Appanoose couny dating from pioneer times Calloway C. Baker firmly entrenched himself in the affection and regard of those with whom he came in contact, while his activity in general farm- ing and cattle raising and shipping gained him a high place among the rep-
C. C. BAKER
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resentative and valued citizens of the community. He was born in Han- cock county, Tennessee, near the Virginia line, April 26, 1834, a son of George W. and Martha ( Lockmiller) Baker, both natives of that state. The father, of New England stock, and the mother, of German ancestry, lived and died in their native county, where the former followed general agricultural pursuits.
Calloway C. Baker acquired his education in the district schools of his home section and for a time after he had laid aside his books worked upon his father's farm. He then went to Texas and in 1852, came to. Appa- noose county, locating on land two miles south of Unionville. He found here pioneer conditions upon every side, for the country around Udell township was sparsely settled and the only trading facilities were offered by a little log store conducted by "Uncle" John Miller. Mr. Baker pur- chased a one hundred and sixty acre farm and gave his attention entirely to agricultural pursuits, attaining a gratifying degree of success. In 1865 he went to Washington county, Arkansas, and there opened a general store but after five years he sold this enterprise and returned to Appanoose county, where he purchased a homestead and farmed upon this property continuously until his death, on July 28, 1905. In addition to his general agricultural pursuits he was extensively engaged in buying and shipping stock, his cattle commanding a ready sale in the Chicago markets.
On the 24th of May, 1857, Mr. Baker was united in marriage to Miss Lucy J. Bishop, a daughter of William and Nancy (Clark ) Bishop. When the wife of our subject was ten years of age her parents determined to locate in Iowa and, accordingly, they set out upon the journey. The father, however, died in McLean county, Illinois, and was buried in that section. His widow and children were left with the teams, for Mrs. Baker's brother Robert had also succumbed to typhoid fever. She therefore wrote to her son, Joseph Bishop, who was then in Iowa, and he joined her in Illinois and drove the teams into Appanoose county. The widow here purchased one hundred and sixty acres in Udell township, the property which the subject of this review afterward bought and developed. She died upon this farm on September 26, 1891. She and her husband had seven children: Judy Ann, Joseph Jackson, Robert, William W. and Louis N., who have passed away: Lucy J., the wife of the subject of this review : and Putnam F., formerly of Moravia, Appanoose county, who died December 5, 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Baker became the parents of three children. Nancy Isabella, born August 8, 1862, married A. J. Dickson, a ranchman and stockman of Beaver county, Oklahoma, and they have one daughter, Anna. Martha Elizabeth, who was born January 14. 1874, is the wife of William Miller, a farmer of Udell township, and they have Vot 11-10
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