USA > Iowa > Fayette County > Past and present of Fayette County, Iowa, Volume I > Part 62
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Mr. Phillips' domestic life dates from January 7, 1874, at which time he
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was united in marriage at Strawberry Point with Ellen Johnson, daughter of Alexander Johnson. of Fayette county. The union has been blessed with two children, a daughter, Lena Blanche; and a son who answers to the name of Ray B. Phillips. In closing this brief sketch of one of Fayette county's eminent lawyers and distinguished citizens, the following from the pen of another appears peculiarly appropriate :
"It is Mr. Phillips's nature to do nothing by halves ; he is and always has been intensely earnest in all he undertakes. Possessed of superior business ability, energy and perseverance, he has been successful in his various enter- prises and acquired a large and valuable property. His success in life is more to his credit for the reason that it has been won by his own unaided efforts. He has a natural aptitude for business and displays more than usual sagacity in his investments and enterprises. As a lawyer he is conservative in his advice, sound in his conclusions, prompt in the discharge of professional duty and always reliable. As a collector, he succeeds in seemingly hopeless cases. His integrity, energy and promptness have won for him the confidence and respect of a wide circle of acquaintances and it goes without the saying the prominent place he occupies in the esteem of the public has been faithfully and honorably earned."
GEORGE WOOD.
Among the successful citizens of Fayette county must be numbered him whose name appears at the head of this sketch. After a period of years, during which he indefatigably labored along agricultural lines, he was prospered to a gratifying degree and is now enabled to enjoy that rest which he so richly earned. He is a man of stanch and reliable make-up and has won and retains the highest regard of those who know him.
Mr. Wood was born in the city of New York in 1845, and is a son of Joseph and Sarah (Barkley) Wood. Joseph Wood was a native of England, having been born near Manchester in 1818. At the age of nineteen years he came to the United States, landing at New York city, where for nineteen years he was employed in the noted firm of Robert Hoe & Company, manu- facturers of printing presses. The subject's mother was born in the north of Ireland, though of Scotch antecedents. When the subject of this sketch was but seven years old, or in the fall of 1852, the family moved to Iowa and lo- cated in the northern part of Delaware county, where they remained until 1869, in which year they came to Fayette county, locating nine miles east of
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Oelwein, in Scott township, where the father and son together bought an en- tire section of land, their respective halves being divided by the public high- way. In 1872 Joseph Wood moved to Brush Creek (now Arlington), where he lived a retired life until his death, which occurred in January, 1876. His wife had died many years previously, when the subject was a small boy.
George Wood received his education in the common schools of Iowa and was early inured to the rigorous labor characteristic of a new western farm. He remained his father's assistant on the farm until 1869, at which time he entered upon the operation of his Scott township land. He was suc- cessful in this enterprise and remained engaged there until July 26, 1890, when he sold this farm and moved into Oelwein, where he is now living prac- tically retired from active work. He possesses a neat and attractice home on First avenue east, and here he enjoys entertaining his many friends who are pleased to take advantage of the hospitality which is ever here in evidence. When the family first located in Scott township their nearest neighbor was a mile distant, and wolves and other wild animals were frequently seen near their home. Now this section is populous and thriving and bears little re- semblance to its former condition.
On August 20, 1878, Mr. Wood was married to Emma L. Stiner, the daughter of Joseph and Esther (Wagner) Stiner, of Clayton county, this state. To this union were born two children, Joseph Wellington and Sarah Esther. The latter is the wife of James E. Lilly, of Marshalltown, Iowa, where he is employed as a machinist in the shops of the Iowa Central railway. They have one daughter, Emma Esther. Joseph Lewis Stiner, father of Mrs. Wood, was born in Columbus, Ohio, July 7, 1812, and came to Iowa in October, 1848. He was the son of Christopher and Esther (Lewis) Stiner, and the latter ivas a daughter of Joseph and Betsey (Tsanor) Lewis, the lat- ter being a granddaughter of the Marquis de Lafayette. Christopher Stiner was a soldier in the war of the Revolution. Mrs. Wood's mother was born at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, March 4, 1815, and was married to Joseph L. Stiner in Columbus, Ohio. Among the prized heirlooms in the Stiner family is a magnificent oil portrait of Lafayette, the ancestor referred to. One of Mrs. Wood's ancestors, a great-great-grandfather, was a member of the King's Guards in England, a position of considerable honor and distinction.
It is said that Joseph Wood, the subject's father, was a mechanical genius of more than ordinary ability. He made shears for shearing sheep, doing the shearing himself, made a carding machine and spinning wheel, on which he carded and spun the wool which he had sheared, and then made a loom on which he wove the cloth from the thread which he had made, ending this re-
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markable performance by making the cloth into garments. In many other ways he gave exhibition of his remarkable skill in mechanics.
George Wood has always voted the Democratic ticket and takes a strong interest in local public affairs. Fraternally he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and the Modern Woodmen of America. Religiously the family are all members of the Episcopal church, to which they give a liberal support. A man of highest integrity and of unvarying courtesy and kindli- ness, he is honored by all who know him and is regarded as one of the rep- resentative citizens of his township.
JOHN A. ROWLAND.
The family of this name were early identified with Fayette county, their connection with this section going back as far as 1850 or before and the first of the name was among the very earliest of the settlers. In or about the year mentioned P. L. Rowland made his appearance in the precincts of Fayette county, which at that time was wild and uncultivated. Shortly afterward his brother, John M., assisted in building a mill at Auburn. P. L. Rowland also worked on the Clermont mill. Besides this he turned his hand to various jobs, including farming. He was also an evangelical minister off and on, until the last years of his life, but most of his time was given to farming. He started a creamery on the farm now occupied by his son, conducted it for four or five years, then rented and finally sold it. He married Alvina Wheeler, of Canada, and from this union was born the subject of this sketch.
John A. Rowland was born in Dover township, Fayette county, Iowa, in 1871, on the homestead that bears his family name. He remained on the farm with his father until about 1892, when he embarked in business for him- self. John A. and Albert R. operated the two-hundred-ten-acre farm where the former now resides, keeping up their partnership for about four years. John A. then purchased his brother's interest and has since farmed with success on his own account. Mr. Rowland is one of the progressive young farmers whose combined work has made Iowa one of the finest agricultural states in the world. Besides the usual crops, which he has raised with success, he has achieved distinction as a livestock breeder. Many specimens of the fine thor- oughbreds of different varieties and breeds which have made Iowa noted may be seen on Mr. Rowland's place. The celebrated Shorthorn family has no finer specimens than those found here. The peerless Norman horses, with
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their graceful limbs and sleek, black coats, enliven the meadows and glades of the Rowland homestead. Duroc-Jersey and Poland-China hogs in the best of condition and of mammoth sizes give promise of rich revenues when they reach the swine market. In addition to his other interests, Mr. Rowland has followed dairying extensively and figured creditably in an industry for which Iowa is famous. Mr. Rowland inherited his love of fine stock, as his father believed in it and always kept a good stallion. He was a man of notable qualities and far above the average. He was founder of the Evangelical church in Fayette county and for many years practically stood the expenses of the same. He donated the land for the buildings which were erected in 1895 or 1896. One of the achievements of which he was justly proud was the passage of what was called the "herd law," for which he worked indefatigably.
In 1898 Mr. Rowland married Clara E., daughter of Henry Smith, and has three children: Merritt, Gladys and Myrtle. The family are members of the Evangelical church. Mr. Rowland is a Republican, but never sought office, though he has consented to act as president of the school board for some years. Like his honored father, he has always been a supporter of all moral causes and active in church work.
Peter Rowland, paternal grandfather of John A., was born December 31, 1791, at Hagerstown, Maryland, and died at the age of eighty-five years. He married a Miss Hoffner, who died in Ohio, and by her had six children, five sons and one daughter. They first moved to Pennsylvania, from there to Ohio, and in the early fifties came to Iowa and settled in Fayette county on land located in Clermont township. He was a pioneer of that section and ended his days peacefully after a strenuous life chiefly devoted to agricultural labor.
AMON C. SABOE.
Among the prominent citizens of the northern part of Fayette county must be ranked Amon C. Saboe, for he has made this locality his home since babyhood and has been active in the general progress of the community. His birth occurred in Dover township in 1857, the son of Colben I. and Julia (Amondson) Saboe, both born in Norway, where they spent their childhood, coming to America early in life. They were married in March, 1850, and in April of that year they located at Beloit, Wisconsin. Colben Saboe had served five years as apprentice to a blacksmith and he received license as a re- sult of this experience and followed this line for one year in Wisconsin ; how-
AMON C. SABOE AND FAMILY.
MR. AND MRS. OLE O. FOSSAAN.
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MR. AND MRS. COLBEN I. SABOE.
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ever, he soon began working on the farm and in May, 1851, settled on the farm now owned by Amon C. Saboe, of this review. He first purchased forty acres where the buildings stand. Prospering from year to year as a result of his excellent business qualities, he added additional forties until he had eleven forties, or four hundred and forty acres. He became quite well-to-do and was an influential citizen there, and he carried on general farming and stock raising on an extensive scale, having cleared most of the land himself, as- sisting the hands in the actual work of preparing the soil for cultivation. His son, Amon C., cleared perhaps one-half of the place. The father first lived in a dug-out where the present comfortable dwelling stands, though before its erection he lived for some time in a log house. All the present buildings were erected by him except the barn, which Amon C. built ; it is a substantial struc- ture, fifty-six by seventy-six feet, with a fourteen-foot shed, twenty-six-foot posts and a drive-way fifty-six by sixteen feet.
The father of Amon C. Saboe was very active in politics, being first a Whig, later a Republican. He held a position on the school board for a great many years and always took an active interest in the affairs of his county. He and his wife reared nine children, eight of whom are still living.
Amon C. Saboe was educated in the public schools of his native com- munity and he began working on the home farm when but a mere lad, and he has driven a reaper for forty-five years consecutively on the same farm, having begun with a hand-rake when seven years of age; now he rides behind a modern McCormick self-binder. He challenges the state to break the record. He purchased the homestead in 1892, consisting of two hundred and seventy-five acres, his father having sold two hundred and eighty acres. The place is now widely known as the "Turkey Valley Stock Farm." He has made high grade cattle and hogs a specialty, keeping from one hundred to one hundred and fifty hogs at a time, preferring the Poland-China breed. He well understands the successful handling of hogs and has never had cholera among them. He also keeps from fifty to seventy-five head of cattle. Corn and oats are his chief grains. He has half interest in a general store at Ossian, Iowa, known as the John Moe Mercantile Company, and in all his business relations he has been very successful.
Mr. Saboe was married in 1892 to Inger Fossaan, who was born and reared on the farm just north of that owned by Mr. Saboe. She is the daughter of Ole O. and Inger (Christian) Fossaan, who came from Nor- way in 1852, locating on the farm mentioned above, which is still in the family. This family was always active in township affairs, and highly
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respected people here. One child, Cora Julia, has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Saboe, and they have an adopted son, Albert Fossaan, a son of Mr. Saboe's brother-in-law. They have also reared Oliver Fossaan and Emma Fossaan.
Mr. Saboe and family are members of the Lutheran church. Politically, Mr. Saboe is a Republican in national affairs and independent locally. He has never aspired to public office, but he has been a member of the local school board for about fifteen years, eleven of which were consecutive; most of the time he was president and secretary of the board. Personally he is a genial, straightforward and hospitable gentleman whom everybody honors and respects.
HENRY L. ADAMS.
A whole-souled gentleman, an able attorney and a public-spirited citizen of West Union, Fayette county, is Henry L. Adams, formerly county super- intendent of schools, a man who has thrown his powers, the weight of his soul and mind into study, work and practice, and who recognizes honesty, integrity and higher character as the most exalted of professional ideals and standards, realizing that men of character are not only the conscience of society, but in every well governed state they are its best motive power, as the moral qualities rule, and, guided by such ideals, he accomplishes whatever he undertakes, being now in the fullest development and vigor of his facul- ties, capable of his best and strongest work.
Mr. Adams was born at Maynard, Fayette county, Iowa, November 28, 1875, and is the son of Leander and Rebecca (Cline) Adams, the former a native of Cattaraugus county, New York, born January 18, 1835, and the latter born in Washington county, Ohio, February 22, 1848. The paternal great-grandfather, Capt. Abner Adams, was a commissioned captain in the patriot army in the Revolutionary war. Leander L. Adams enlisted as a private in Company B, Seventy-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, in 1862, and he was later in the marine service. He was in the engagements at Perryville, siege of Vicksburg, Ball's Bluff, but the major part of his time was spent in the vicinity of Vicksburg. For gallant service he was promoted to corporal, and was honorably discharged in 1865.
Henry L. Adams enjoyed the advantages of a good education in the local public schools, the Maynard high school, Upper Iowa University, at Fayette, the State University of Iowa and the Chicago University. Thus
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he became exceptionally well prepared for his chosen calling, that of teacher, which he first followed at Waucoma, Iowa, from 1897 to 1899, making an excellent record. His abilities as an educator being generally recognized, he was elected county superintendent of schools in 1899 and served very faith- fully and acceptably as such until 1905, during which time the cause of edu- cation in this county was greatly strengthened and encouraged. But believ- ing that the law held greater inducements for him, he accordingly took up that line of research and was duly admitted to the bar, beginning practice in West Union in the fall of 1907, under the firm name of Rogers & Adams, and he has succeeded in building up a very satisfactory clientele, being weil versed 'in the law and careful and painstaking, and eloquent and interesting both as a pleader before a jury and as a public speaker. Politically, he is a Republican and has taken more than a passing interest in the affairs of his party for some time, and in the fall of 1908 he was honored by his constitu- ents by being elected state senator of the fortieth senatorial district, com- prising the counties of Allamakee and Fayette, and his record in the Legis- lature as a champion of the rights of the people whom he represented was such as to win the approval and admiration of all classes. In religious mat- ters he is a Presbyterian and a liberal supporter of the local church.
Mr. Adams is prominent in fraternal circles also, belonging to the local lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, the Knights of Pythias, the Order of the Eastern Star and the Modern Woodmen of America, also holds membership in the Phi Delta Phi, a law fraternity, and the Historical and Literary Club.
On January 5. 1898, Mr. Adams formed a matrimonial alliance with Ina S. Holmes, the cultured and accomplished daughter of David A. and Sarah (Carter) Holmes, of Donnan, Iowa, and this union has been graced by the birth of two children, Maude, born April 8, 1902, and Edith Kate, born January 31, 1906.
Personally, Mr. Adams takes a high rank as one of Fayette county's representative citizens, his life having been lived in such a manner as to win and retain the confidence and respect of all who know him. He is a man of high educational attainments ; always a student, he keeps abreast of the times in all matters of general interest and is familiar with the world's best literature on a great diversity of themes. He is the possessor of a high order of literary ability and whatever he writes or says is given a ready hearing and proper consideration, and there is no man in the county who is held in higher esteem by the population, regardless of all sects, politics or profession.
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EDWARD EITEL.
This is an age in which the farmer stands pre-eminently above any other class as a producer of wealth. He simply takes advantage of the winds, the warm air, bright sunshine and refreshing rains, and applying his own hands to nature's gifts he produces the necessaries of life. The commercial world has come to recognize his importance and has surrounded him with many conveniences not thought of one hundred years ago. And the farmer has not been slow to take advantage of the aids thus offered. Among the up-to- date farmers of Fayette county is Edward Eitel, who operates a. highly improved farm in Center township, and who is entitled to be numbered among the progressive and enterprising farmers of the community.
Mr. Eitel was born in Green county, Wisconsin, on October 15, 1859, and is a son of John G. and Lena (Fisher) Eitel, both of whom were natives of Wurtemberg, Germany. They came to America in 1849, settling in the state of Vermont. Two years later they removed to Green county, Wis- consin, where the father engaged in farming up to the time of his death, which occurred in 1898. His wife died in 1887. Of the seven children born to them, six are living. Politically, John G. Eitel was a Republican, though not an office seeker, while in religion he was a member of the Lutheran church, his wife being a Catholic.
The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm, with the work of which he became familiar at an early age. He is indebted to the common schools for his educational training, which has been liberally supplemented during the subsequent years by observation and experience of a practical nature. In 1887 Mr. Eitel came to Fayette county, Iowa, and rented a farm in Wind- sor township, to the cultivation of which he applied himself for three years. At the end of that period, in 1890, he bought the splendid farm in Center township which he now owns. This farm, which comprises two hundred and forty acres, is up to date in every respect, and Mr. Eitel has made a number of permanent and substantial improvements, having built an attrac- tive, well-arranged and comfortable residence, commodious barn and other necessary outbuildings, all of which bespeak him as a man of sound ideas and practical methods. In addition to carrying on general farming opera- tions, Mr. Eitel has met with much success as a dairyman and as a breeder and raiser of Holstein cattle. He has been a hard working man and to his own personal efforts is attributable the success which he has enjoyed.
Politically, Mr. Eitel gives an earnest support to the Republican party and has rendered efficient service as a trustee of his township. His fraternal
EDWARD EITEL.
MRS. ROSA EITEL.
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relations are with the Modern Woodmen of America, the Brotherhood of American Yeomen and the Mystic Workers.
On January 25, 1885, Mr. Eitel was united in marriage to Rosa Zelmer, who was born in Green county, Wisconsin, on January 14, 1863, the daughter of William and Sophia ( Beckman) Zelmer. These parents, who were natives of Germany, came to America, locating in Green county, Wisconsin, in an early day, and there the mother died in 1901. Mr. Zelmer, who was a farmer of vocation, is now retired and is living in Monroe, Wisconsin. Mr. and Mrs. Eitel have become the parents of one son, Arthur Lewis, who was born on January 30, 1888, in this county. The latter received a good common school education, which he supplemented by two years' attendance in Upper Iowa University, and he is now at home assisting in the operation of the farm. He is a young man of fine personal qualities and is well liked by all who know him. Mr. Eitel is known as a man of industry, honesty and loyalty to right principles, and because of his estimable personal qualities he enjoys an enviable standing in the community.
CHARLES GILBERT NEFF.
Of the firm of Neff Brothers, proprietors of the West Union Electric Light and Power Plant, Charles G. Neff, one of Fayette county's native sons, was born at the town of Auburn on March 26, 1859. His father was Abner G. M. Neff, whose birth occurred at Connellsville, Fayette county, Pennsyl- vania, October 13, 1829, and his mother, Anna Hobson. a native of the same place, was born October 26th of the same year in which her husband first saw the light of day. These parents were married in Connellsville, November 27. 1851, and in 1857 came to Fayette county, Iowa, where Mr. Neff worked at the shoemaker's trade until the breaking out of the late Civil war. Then he enlisted in Company F, Ninth Iowa Infantry, with which he served until fatally wounded at the battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas, March 9, 1862, dying two days later. Mrs. Neff, who is still a widow, has reached the ripe old age of eighty-one years and for some time past has lived with a married daughter in Birmingham, Alabama.
John Dewitt Neff, the oldest of the family of Abner and Anna Neff, was born January 4, 1853, at Connellsville, Pennsylvania, grew to maturity in Fayette county, Iowa, and for a number of years followed the drug business at different places. He served some time as deputy county recorder and later
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was elected clerk, in which position he was serving his first term when his death occurred, on the 10th day of July, 1884, at West Union, Iowa. As a local minister of the Methodist Episcopal church he took a very active part in religious work and his life measured up to a high standard of Christian manhood and citizenship. By his marriage, June 17, 1878, with Mary C. Hare, of Summerfield, Ohio, he had two children, Homer M. and Minnie H. Mary Elizabeth, the second of the family, was born at Connellsville, Pennsyl- vania, August 21, 1854, married, on September 24, 1877, Rev. S. P. Marsh, then of Summerfield, Ohio, now of Birmingham, Alabama, where she and her husband now reside. Homer Marsh Neff, the third in order of birth, is also a native of Connellsville, Pennsylvania, where he first saw the light of day on the 6th of March, 1856. In early life he studied architecture and civil engin- eering, in both of which professions he acquired great proficiency, and his studious habits led him to make investigations in various other lines of thought. He served as official surveyor of Fayette county, was city engineer of West Union for some years and held the position of county clerk for two terms, proving a very capable and courteous official. He stood high in the esteem of the public, ranked among the representative citizens of the county and will be remembered as one of the leading men of his day in the city of West Union. He died, unmarried, on the 5th day of January, 1902.
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