USA > Iowa > Fayette County > Past and present of Fayette County, Iowa, Volume II > Part 61
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Leaving Pennsylvania, Mr. Cooney went to Steubenville, Ohio, from which place he went by boat to the Mississippi river, up which stream he pro- ceeded to Dubuque, Iowa, the trip requiring six weeks. He located in the eastern part of Buchanan county, the nearest town being Dubuque, to which he would sometimes walk in one day, starting very early in the morning and arriving late at night. He took an active interest in the growth and development of his part of the state, became an influential factor in local matters and in due time rose to a position of considerable prominence as an enterprising, public-spirited citizen.
Mrs. Cooney, who arrived in this country in 1847, shared with her hus- band many of the vicissitudes of life in the early times, and, like him, pos- sesses the strong vitality which has enabled her to meet and overcome obsta- cles before which the majority of men and women would have succumbed. Mr. and Mrs. Cooney still live in Buchanan county, he having reached the age of eighty-four and she in her seventy-ninth year, both retaining to a marked degree the possession of their mental and bodily powers.
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Dr. C. J. Cooney is one of eleven children born to Patrick and Honora Cooney, all but one living and all except the Doctor residents of Buchanan county. The Doctor grew up on the farm where his parents had lived so long amid the hardships and privations of pioneer times, and received his preliminary education in the public schools of the neighborhood. He sub- sequently completed a high school course at Winthrop and still later entered the University of Iowa, from which institution he was graduated in 1895 with the degree of Doctor of Medicine and Surgery. With a mind well dis- . ciplined by intellectual and professional training, he began practicing at Jessup, but at the end of six months removed from that town to Westgate, where he remained nine years, during which time he built up a large and lu- crative patronage, and forged to the front among the leading physicians of Fayette county. Desiring a more favorable field for the exercise of his pro- fessional talents, the Doctor, in 1904, moved to Oelwein, where he has ac- quired a very extensive practice in both city and country, being, as already indicated, one of the leading physicians and surgeons not only of the county, but in northeastern Iowa as well. In Doctor Cooney are combined two facts which more than anything else have been the contributing elements to his continued advancement and success, thorough preparation and a deep interest in the profession, qualities absolutely essential to the building up and maintaining of an honorable career as a true healer. His knowledge of the kindred sciences of medicine and surgery is broad and comprehensive and in his professional services he has shown himself well qualified to cope with the intricate problems which continually confront the practitioner in his efforts to restore health and prolong life. Always a close and critical student, he keeps in touch with the trend of modern medical thought and is fully abreast of the times on all matters relating to his profession, being a member of the Fayette County Medical Society, Cedar Valley Medical Society, the Austin Flint Medical Association and the Iowa State Association, in all of which bodies he is well and favorable known and before which from time to time he has read papers noted for depth of thought and thorough knowl- edge of the subjects discussed. He has been city health officer of Oelwein for two terms and as such his interest in behalf of the people has been untir .. ing and fruitful of great and lasting results.
Though primarily a physician and making every other consideration subordinate to his professional duties, Doctor Cooney manifests a lively interest in the general welfare of his city, being active and influential in promoting the material progress and equally so in furthering all enterprises having for their object the social, intellectual and moral good of the com-
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munity. In politics he is a Republican and, though well informed on the questions and issues of the times and an earnest worker for the success of his party, he is in no sense a seeker for office, preferring to devote himself to his chosen calling and being content with the simple title of citizen.
Doctor Cooney's domestic life dates from the year 1897, when he was joined in the holy bonds of wedlock with Susan G. McSweeney, daughter of John and Bridget McSweeney, the father one of Fayette county's pio- neers, having taken his homestead directly from the government, when he set- tled many years ago near the town of Westgate. This early home still re- mains in the McSweeney family and is one of the old landmarks of the county. Doctor and Mrs. Cooney have five children, Rolla, Charles, Ed- mund, Paul and Iona, all at home with their parents, constituting a mutually happy and agreeable household. The family are faithful members of the Catholic church, in the faith of which both parents were reared, and the Doctor also belongs to the Knights of Columbus, the Bankers Reserve Asso- ciation and the Modern Woodmen of America.
BENEDICT BAUMGARTNER.
Seven years before the opening of the Civil war, a family of this name, consisting of numerous members, were residing at their old homes in canton Bern, Switzerland. They had often discussed the desirability of emigra- tion, as they were not prospering in the mountain commonwealth. Times were hard in Switzerland. Labor was over abundant and poorly remuner- ated. Heads of families had a trying time to get enough together to sup- port the children in the way of food and clothing. They were growing up in neglect and something had to be done to better conditions. After much discussion around the fireside and while working in the fields, these Swiss laborers finally decided to abandon their native land and seek a better out- look in the great republic beyond the sea. They had heard much of the teem- ing lands in the great Mississippi valley, of the prodigious crops raised, of the fertility of the soil and ease of working it, compared to the stony acres of the Alpian foothills. From the beginning of their discussions, therefore. the Baumgartners were inclined to seek homes beyond the Mississippi, in the growing young commonwealth of Iowa. So one fine day steamer pas- sage was secured for all the members of the family and after a tedious voy- age in the steerage they found themselves in America in 1853. Traveling
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in those days was not what it is now. There were no Pullman palace cars, no diners, resplendent with lights and silver, no vestibuled trains and no tickets reading straight from New York to trans-Mississippi points. The little band of Swiss immigrants, however, managed to make the long trip across the continent without accident and eventually pulled up in the state of Iowa, which at that time was comparatively wild and unsettled. The party consisted of Benedict and Magdalena Baumgartner and several chil- dren. Included among the latter was a son named Benedict, born in canton Bern, Switzerland, September 17, 1843. The new arrivals located on the place which is now occupied by Melchior Luchsinger, which they occupied for many years.
In 1880 Benedict Baumgartner, Jr., married Mary, daughter of Rudolph and Marion Sutter, all of canton Bern, Switzerland. Her parents came to the United States in 1866 and immediately pushed their way to the rich and rising state bordering the Mississippi on the west. Coming to Fayette county, he located in Pleasant Valley township, where he pursued the trade of a mason, with farming on the side. After his marriage, Mr. Baumgart- ner left the home place and worked at various jobs for seven years. In 1887 or 1888 he purchased a farm of one hundred and fifty-two acres, now occupied by his widow, Mrs. Mary Mathys. He greatly improved this place by erecting suitable buildings, tilling and careful cultivation. He and his wife reared five children, Louisa, Rosa, Mary Magdalene, Cecilia and Bene- dict. The father died January 12, 1901, and in June, 1905, his widow mar- ried Ephraim Mathys, and they operate the home farm. Mrs. Mathys is a member of the Baptist church and takes considerable interest in religious affairs.
HON. DAVID W. CLEMENTS.
To accurately and fully portray the life and character of a man of the prominence and influence of the late Hon. D. W. Clements, in the short space allotted to the writer in such a volume as this, is impossible and for this rea- son the task is not wholly inviting. It is undertaken, therefore, with a full realization of the fact that justice to the subject cannot be done, yet it is hoped that sufficient may be said to enable the reader to form at least a toler- ably fair idea of a career which by the forcefulness of personality and mastery of one of the most exacting of the learned professions forms no inconsiderable part of the history of the bar of his adopted state, also of the county where
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his greatest service was performed and his most distinguished success achieved.
David W. Clements was an American by adoption, being a native of county Antrim, Ireland, where his birth occurred on the 9th day of July, 1846. His parents, Henderson Clements and Margaret Woods, both of Scotch-Irish antecedents, were born and reared in the Emerald Isle, but in the prime of life they immigrated to the United States and settled in Fayette county, Iowa, where the father engaged in farming and stock-raising which he followed with gratifying success until his retirement from active labor after acquiring a comfortable competency for his declining years.
Henderson Clements was a man of sound, practical intelligence, who took an active interest in public improvements and to him belongs the credit of introducing thoroughbred draft horses into Fayette county, besides using his influence to raise the standard of agriculture to one of the most dignified and honorable of vocations. After a useful life, largely devoted to the good of his fellows, this estimable gentleman and representative citizen died at West Union, to which place he had removed on leaving the farm, his wife also dying in that town. He was a soldier in the late Civil war, having served with an honorable record as private in Company F, Thirty-eighth Iowa In- fantry, which was subsequently consolidated with the Thirty-fourth, remain- ing at the front until the close of the struggle and taking part in all the cam- paigns and battles in which his command was engaged. Henderson and Margaret Clements were the parents of six children who lived to maturity, namely: Mrs. Phoebe Bartlett, deceased; David W., whose name introduces this sketch; James J .; William H .; Jennette, wife of Dr. William Jones, of Volga, Iowa, and Mrs. Marguerite Probert, of Nebraska; James and William being business men in the cities of Cedar Rapids and Des Moines respectively.
Of the childhood and youth of David W. Clements little need be said as the tide of his early years flowed with comparatively nothing to disturb its current, his life, like that of the majority of lads, being without incident other than those included in the daily experience of home and school. In the year 1849 he was brought to America by his parents and at the proper age entered the public schools of his neighborhood where he pursued his studies until the completion of the usual course of study, sometime after which he became a student in the law department of the State University, from which institution he was graduated June 30, 1874, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. Forti- fied with thorough professional training, he opened an office in August of the same year at West Union, where his abilities soon won recognition, as his rapid rise in his chosen calling abundantly attests, and it was not long until
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he forged rapidly to the front among the rising young attorneys of the local bar and built up a business which grew steadily in magnitude and importance to the time of his death.
Mr. Clements' legal career presents a series of continued successes such as few attain and for a number of years he was the recognized leader of the Fayette county bar, besides gaining wide distinction among the representatives of his profession throughout the state. Actuated by a laudable ambition to excel, he early laid broad and deep a foundation for future usefulness and distinction by thoroughly mastering the basic principles of the law, which, coupled with the ability and tact to apply the same in the practice, enabled him while still quite young to enter the arena with old and experienced at- torneys and force them to recognize and appreciate his talents. By untiring industry and loyalty to his clients' interests, his business steadily advanced and ever since announcing himself a competitor for professional favors he num- bered among his patrons many of the wealthiest and most substantial citi- zens of his own and neighboring counties, the demand for his services in in- tricate and important legal controversies being so great as to often cause a race between litigants as to who should be the first to reach his office. Mr. Clements had a broad and comprehensive knowledge of all phases of jurispru- dence and, believing in the honor and dignity of his calling, he never stooped to anything savoring of cunning or trickery in the practice, his record being above suspicion and in the highest degree commendable. Every step in his career was the result of a well defined purpose. By his own courage and energy he has climbed steadily and stood firmly upon each round of the ladder until he could reach the next above and plant himself upon it. Hon- est effort characterized his every advancement and all of his promotions were honestly earned. His success in his profession was due to a careful prepara- tion, a high sense of justice, candor as a counsellor, regard for truth as well as law, fairness in his treatment of opposing counsel and courteous demeanor under all circumstances. As no suspicion of wrong doing ever tarnished his professional record, so no assault ever compromised his per- sonal honor. His intercourse with all was marked by unaffected frankness and good will, and he was ever steadfast in friendship, modest in self assertion, firm in adherence to principle, proving in all the relations of life an honora- ble, upright gentleman with the welfare of his fellows at heart.
In his political affiliation Mr. Clements was a Republican and as such wielded a strong influence for his party in Fayette county, though he could hardly be termed a partisan in the sense the term is usually understood, neither was he a seeker after public honors or the emoluments of office. Not-
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withstanding his indifference to public distinction, he was chosen, some years ago, county attorney, which position he filled with marked ability and credit for three terms. He was first of all a lawyer, thoroughly devoted to his calling and making every other consideration subordinate thereto, hence he never disturbed his quiet with affairs in any way inimical to his life work nor as- pired to honors which, in the majority of instances, prove more illusory than satisfactory. One matter, however, aside from his profession, engaged his attention to a very marked degree, i. e., the deep interest he manifested in the ancient and honorable order of Masonry, in which he long wielded a wide influence and in which he had also risen to the highest positions within the gift of the local lodge to which he belonged and the grand lodge of the state. He held membership with West Union Lodge No. 69, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons; Unity Chapter No. 62, Royal Arch Masons, at Elgin ; Langridge Commandery No. 47, Knights Templar, West Union; West Union Chapter No. 110, Order of the Eastern Star; grand chapter Order of the Eastern Star, of the state of Iowa, in all of which he was honored from time to time with important official positions. In addition to serving as worshipful master of the blue lodge with which he was identified, he also held the highest offices in the commandery, chapter and Eastern Star, be- sides being elected grand commander, Knights Templar, of the state, in 1894, grand master of the Masons of Iowa in 1909-10, and a member of the grand encampment, Knights Templar, of the United States.
From the foregoing it will be seen that Mr. Clements was signally honored by this old historic fraternity. In all of the high positions to which called, he discharged his duties with distinguished ability, earned the con- fidence and esteem of his fellow craftsmen and his life affords a conspicuous example of the influence of the principles upon which the Brotherhood of the Mystic Tie is founded.
Mr. Clements, on July 4, 1867, was united in the holy bonds of mat- rimony with Mary A. Bartlett, daughter of Henry and Caroline (Reed) Bartlett, of Fayette county, Iowa, the union being blessed with the follow- ing children: Willard B., Vida Ruth and Arthur. W. B., the oldest of the family, after being graduated from the West Union high school, en- tered the Upper Iowa University, in which he completed the classical course and received the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy, later graduating from the law department of the State University. After practicing several years with his father and serving one term as county attorney, he discontinued the legal profession to engage in the more healthful and satisfactory pursuit of agriculture, which he now carries on in the state of Wisconsin. Vida
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Ruth, the second in order of birth, became the wife of Arthur Lawyer, and died in young womanhood, just when life appeared most hopeful and prom- ising. Arthur H., the youngest, died in his tenth year, thus leaving the parents with no children to gladden and make bright the home circle.
Mr. Clements was a firm believer in revealed religion and for a number of years was an active and devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal church, being at the time of his death president of the board of trustees of the local church to which he belonged. Mrs. Clements, who is also a Methodist, seconded her husband in all of his endeavors, professionally and socially, and for much of his success he was indebted to her kindly sympathy and active co-operation. Mr. Clements died at his home in West Union November 16, 1910, after an illness of but eight days, death resulting from a general break-down from overwork. He had been failing physically for several years and his collapse was not entirely unexpected. His funeral, held from the Methodist church on November 19th, drew from all over Iowa the largest company of prominent Freemasons ever seen in West Union. The service was in charge of Langridge Commandery, Knights Templar, West Union Lodge of Masons acting as escort. The local chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star also attended in a body, and the services were conducted by the grand commandery of Iowa Knights Templar. The floral decorations were rich and profuse. The funeral sermon, by Rev. L. A. Swisher, was largely an eulogy of Mr. Clements and a lesson drawn from his life of Christian service.
Resolutions of respect were subsequently passed by the Fayette County Bar Association and the various Masonic bodies to which Mr. Clements be- longed.
JOHN W. REED.
John W. Reed, the well-known furniture and undertaking man, of Waucoma, also postmaster of the town, is a native of Steuben county, New York, where his birth occurred on August 12, 1848. His father, Thomas S. Reed, a native of county Derry, Ireland, came to the United States when twenty-one years of age and located in Steuben county, New York, where in due time he married Adaline Knapp, of that state. Some years later, about 1864, he moved to Chickasaw county, Iowa, and engaged in agriculture. which he carried on with satisfactory results until his death, which occurred at the age of sixty-five years, his wife dying in 1898, when seventy-three
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years old. Thomas S. Reed was one of the pioneers of Chickasaw county and took a leading part in the development of the section of country in which he settled. Intelligent and enterprising, he manifested an active interest in public affairs, held several local offices from time to time and in an early day was one of the influential Democrats of Chickasaw county. Mrs. Reed was an earnest Christian woman who manifested her faith in her daily work and conversation, having been a Baptist in early life, but later united with the Methodist church, to which she continued faithful until called from the "church militant to the church triumphant." The family of Thomas S. and Adaline Reed consisted of three children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the first born. Mary J., the second of the number, a widow, keeps house for her brother, and Orline, the youngest, married Alexander McRae, of Estherville, Iowa, where she and her husband now reside.
John W. Reed was a youth in his teens when his parents moved to Iowa, and his experience for several years following was closely interwoven with the clearing and improvement of the home farm in Chickasaw county. On the death of his father he became possessor of the place and continued to live on the same and prosper until 1894, the meanwhile increasing his hold- ings by an additional eighty-acre tract and making a number of substantial improvements. In the above year he discontinued the pursuit of agriculture and took up his residence in Waucoma and engaged in the furniture and undertaking business, which he still carries on, his establishment being the largest of the kind in the town and extensively patronized. On July 1, 1897, he was appointed by President Mckinley postmaster of Waucoma and has served in that capacity to the present time, a period of thirteen years, dur- ing which a number of changes have been made in the office, which is now the distributing point for four rural free delivery routes. Mr. Reed was appointed in 1908, when the office was made third class, and he is now on his fourth consecutive term, proving a most capable and judicious official whose attention to duty and courteous treatment of patrons have won the confidence of the public and gained for him an honorable reputation as a faith- ful and conscientious official.
Like most enterprising men, he is identified with the Masonic fraternity, holding membership with Standard Lodge at Waucoma, Adelphi Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, at New Hampton, and Langridge Commandery, Knights Templar, at West Union. In his political affiliations he is a Republican and stands for the strict enforcement of the law, gives his aid to all worthy meas- ures for the good of the community, and as a citizen he is wide-awake, enter- prising and progressive and has done much to promote the material pros- perity of the town in which he resides.
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At the age of twenty-three years Mr. Reed was united in marriage with Martha McCashland, of Fillmore county, Nebraska, who died at Wau- coma in 1903, after a mutually happy and prosperous wedded experience of twenty-five years' duration. Mrs. Reed was born of Scotch parentage and departed this life at the age of forty-eight, honored and respected by all who knew her and deeply lamented by the circle of warm personal friends with whom she was accustomed to mingle. She bore her husband three children, namely: Fred B., who is engaged in the grocery and restaurant business at Waucoma; Glen T., a railway mail clerk on the Chicago Great Western railroad, living at Oelwein, and Mabel M., a student in the senior class of the Waucoma high school.
DAVID H. HALL.
A highly respected and successful citizen of West Union, Fayette county, is David H. Hall, who was born in New Jersey, February 25, 1844, the son of Daniel and Caroline (Tuttle) Hall, both born in New Jersey, the father being an iron worker, known in the parlance of that business as a puddler. He moved to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, in 1850, where he continued his occu- pation for a period of four years. In 1854 he came to Winona, Minnesota, and bought a farm in that vicinity of one hundred and sixty acres, which he worked for some time, later went to Wisconsin and there farmed until his death.
To Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Hall eight children were born, seven of whom grew to maturity, four girls and three boys. David H. Hall, of this review, was educated in the Pittsburg schools, also went to school in Wisconsin. He showed his patriotism by entering the Union army in 1861, shortly before he was eighteen years of age, enlisting in Company I, Eighth Wisconsin Vol- unteer Infantry, known as the "Eagle Regiment," in which he served until the close of the war, experiencing some hard service in many campaigns and battles. After the war he returned to Wisconsin and took up farming. In 1865 he came to Iowa and remained one year, then returned to Wisconsin ; remaining there until 1870, he returned to Iowa and located in Illyria town- ship, Fayette county, purchasing a farm of eighty acres. He bought and sold several places, finally owned one hundred and sixty acres of excellent land where he carried on general farming very successfully. About 1892 he moved to the north edge of the town of West Union and there pur-
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