USA > Iowa > Jasper County > Past and present of Jasper County, Iowa, Vol. I > Part 65
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In 1867 Mr. Reckler was married to Henrietta Junck, who was born in St. Louis, of German parentage. To this union eight children has been born, namely : Mary, Christian and one infant are deceased; the five living are, Fred H., who resides on a farm in Sherman township; Emil is on the farm in Newton township; Harriet married William Hildebrandt and they live in Arkansas; Lena married Harmon Jensen and they live on a farm in Sherman township; Laura married August Snelle and is living at home with her parents.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Reckler are members of the German Lutheran church. Politically, he is a Republican, and he belongs to Garrett Post, No. 16, Grand Army of the Republic.
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BELDING R. MCLELLAN.
One may live a life of busy and successful years, may fashion and construct physical things and yet, if lacking true manhood and human sym- pathy, his works are as nothing. Time, the grim destroyer, is ever at his work of devastation; but there are some things which endure. Long after we forget the material things a man may have possessed, we remember the sacrifices he made, his cheerful Godspeeds and his inspiring example. Prin- ciple is eternal, and courage and steadfastness of purpose have ever moved the world, such as that possessed by the stout-hearted pioneer and soldier, "Bell" Mclellan, one of the best known and highly esteemed business men of Jasper county, who died July 21, 191I.
Belding R. Mclellan was born in Laporte county, Indiana, May 12, 1842, and was the son of Joseph and Fidelia (Read) Mclellan, the father a native of Grafton county, New Hampshire, and the mother of Bedford county, Pennsylvania. The father devoted his life to farming, owning land in Laporte county, Indiana, where he spent most of his life and where his death occurred. He is remembered as a strong character, a man of pro- nounced convictions, sterling honesty and persistent industry, a type of that class of citizens from the bone and sinew of which all new countries spring. His family consisted of seven children, two of whom are now living; the eldest, Andrew, died in Laporte county, Indiana, about the spring of 1910; Sarah Jane died in childhood; Belding R. of this review was next in order of birth; George W. lives on a farm near Laporte, Indiana; Martha married George Reed and died in Michigan City in 1910; her twin sister, Mary, married Charles McClure and they live in Gallatin, Missouri.
Mr. Mclellan of this review spent his boyhood on the home farm which he worked during the summer months and in the winter time attended the district schools. He received a good schooling at St. Mary's Academy at South Bend, Indiana, and Valparaiso University at Valparaiso, Indiana. He proved his patriotism when a mere boy by enlisting, in September, 1861, in the Fourth Indiana Battery, and he was sent into Kentucky, first to Louisville, then to Green River. He was assigned to Buell's command and saw his first hard service at the battle of Shiloh; then he was at the siege of Corinth, and later he was at Nashville, after which his division went to the vicinity of Louisville, thence to Perryville and was in the battle there, in which Mr. Mclellan was severely wounded October 8, 1862, just below the knee, the bullet or fragment of shell passing entirely through his leg. For a time he
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remained in the temporary field hospital, No. 8, at Louisville, in fact re- mained there three months, then was sent home. The injury incapacitated him from work for some time, but as soon as he was able he began assisting with the farming duties. He had been a very faithful soldier and, although thus sorely wounded, never regretted his services to his country. In the spring of 1865 he started over the plains of the great west with an ox team, this incident in his career proving, perhaps more than anything else, that he was a man of courage and energy; the many dangers, such as unfriendly Indians, wild beasts, etc., did not deter him. It was interesting to hear him recall reminiscences of this trip. He recalled the fact that Indians killed white men ahead and behind his wagon train. Upon reaching Central City, Colorado, he engaged in various lines of business. After an absence of about two years he returned to Laporte, Indiana. On February 27, 1867, he was united in marriage with Rebecca A. Reed, daughter of Bazelleel and Catherine (Flood) Reed, the father a native of Ohio and the mother of Franklin county, Indiana. They were married in the county just named and owned a farm there, later removing to Laporte county, Indiana, and buying land there, where Mrs. McLellan was born. Mr. Reed came to Jasper county, Iowa, in 1855 and entered a half section of land in Mound Prairie township, which is still in the possession of the family. He entered this land from the government and it remained undeveloped until 1872 when Mr. and Mrs. McLellan came out and located on it, and, resolutely taking up their labors, they had a good home in due course of time. Mr. and Mrs. Reed are both deceased, Mr. Reed dying October 29, 1878, and Mrs. Reed on September 4, 1861. All their children are also dead except two; four of them died in infancy; Joseph M. died in Kansas just as he was starting for the army, May 15, 1864: Caroline died in Laporte county, Indiana, December 13, 1878; Rebecca A., wife of Mr. Mclellan, was next in order of birth; Franklin died August 28, 1907, in Laporte county, Indiana; W. S. lives on a farm in Jackson county, Kansas; George W., who died October 26, 1901, in Michigan City, Indiana, as at one time sheriff of Laporte county, Indiana, being the youngest man ever elected to that office.
To Mr. and Mrs. McLellan, two daughters, both living, have been born, namely : Minnie B. married George W. Dickinson, lives in Newton part of the time, but has property interests in Buchanan county, Iowa; Effie married C. A. Chapman and they live in Hood River, Oregon. Both these children enjoyed the advantages of good educations, having passed through the common schools, later attending the State University, and they are both cultured and intelligent. Both were graduated from the business course.
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Mr. Mclellan was very successful in a business way and he established a pleasant home. He was a member of Garrett Post No. 16, Grand Army of the Republic, of Newton. He was formerly a member of the post at Prairie City and was quartermaster of the same. He belonged to Preston Lodge No. 218, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, of Prairie City. Politically, he was a Republican. Mrs. McLellan, a woman of refined tastes and pleas- ing address, belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church and is prominent in the Woman's Relief Corps at Newton.
VICTORIA SANATORIUM.
The mineral springs of Colfax have greatly influenced the character of the life and growth of the city in recent years. Of the several establishments of different varieties which have grown up in order to bring to the people the wonderful advantages of the curative waters of these springs, special mention must be made of the Victoria Sanatorium, which has been in ex- istence since 1904, when Florence Brown Sherbon, A. M., M. D., her hus- band, John Bayard Sherbon, M. D., and her father James Brown, incor- porated the Victoria Sanatorium and Mineral Spring. The Doctors Sherbon are in charge of the sanatorium. Doctor Florence B. Sherbon is a native of Washington county, Iowa, graduated from the Keokuk high school, the Independence Training School for Nurses at the Iowa State Hospital, and in 1902 received the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy from Iowa State University. In 1904 she completed her medical education at the same in- stitution, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medicine and the same year the degree of Master of Arts. Doctor John Bayard Sherbon is a native of Iowa, and graduated in medicine from Iowa State University in 1904. Both he and his wife are members of the American, State and County Medical societies. Since 1904, when both Doctors Sherbon located at Colfax, their history has been that of the Victoria Sanatorium.
The present home of the Victoria Sanatorium is a picturesque, red brick colonial building, with spacious white porches, situated on one of the beautiful wooded hillsides of Colfax. The corporation of physicians who own and control it have spared neither trouble nor expense to make it not only a credit to themselves and a boon to suffering humanity, but a credit to the state and to the Middle West. It began its career modestly in a little thirty- room brick hotel building; but was crowded out the first year. The building
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was then completely remodeled and enlarged, doubling its capacity and mak- ing it up to date and entirely modern in every respect. The new building proved as inadequate to meet the demand as the old, and the following year a thirty-room brick building was erected as an annex, and has been in daily use since the completion.
The sanatorium building is brick, with its long exposure north and south, making it warm in winter and cool in summer. It is steam heated, with electric lights, call bells and telephones, has an elevator and is well protected against fire, and is artistically finished and furnished, with all outside rooms and a pleasant outlook from every side. Although but five blocks from Main street and depots, the sanatorium building is located at the end of its street in a park of native trees, and as no traffic passes its doors there is an absence of noise and dirt.
The water from the Victoria spring is classified as a carbonated cal- cicsaline chalybeate, holds an unusual amount of sodium and magnesium sulphate in solution, and has strong aperient properties. Its use is greatly beneficial in many diseases of the stomach and bowels, in cases of diseased kidneys and bladder, and various blood diseases, and especially in cases of rheumatism.
The sanatorium is fitted for the care of many different classes of pa- tients, such as those who are overworked and are in search of rest and re- laxation; those suffering from nervous derangement, who are benefited by the rest cure and the baths and exercises; cases of chronic disorder of the organs of assimilation and elimination; rheumatic patients, in the curing of whom the sanatorium has had wonderful results; cases of valvular heart trouble, which are benefited by Nauheim baths, and appropriate exercises for certain cases, for the care of which the sanatorium is especially equipped ; and many cases of acute, non-contagious diseases, which are given careful nursing and medical care. Tuberculosis and contagious diseases, as well as troublesome mental cases, are not admitted.
The institution has a staff of competent resident physicians who take all proper care of the patients, and who are not extremists, but use all legitimate therapeutic measures. The equipment consists of the newest and most approved apparatus, static machine, X-ray, high frequency coil, vibra- tor, hot air machine, galvanic and faradic batteries, leucodescent lamp, etc. A well equipped clinical laboratory is in constant use for diagnostic purposes, and there is a well arranged operating room and a small perfectly appointed hospital for the care of the more ill or helpless patients. The bath rooms are well equipped for giving all kinds of hydriatric treatment, and are in
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charge of a corps of skillful operators, who are thoroughly trained in both American and Swedish methods in massage, orthopedic exercises, medical gymnastics, etc.
It is not the purpose of the sanatorium to compete with local practi- tioners, but rather to co-operate with them in caring for such cases as need the advantage of sanatorium treatment in addition to regular medical aid.
The doctors in charge of this sanatorium are engaged in a much needed - work for the benefit of suffering humanity, in providing for them the best of treatment which modern medical science can provide, and ideally sanitary surroundings, and their success has greatly encouraged their labors. And there can be no nobler and no higher work than to minister to the ills and sickness of mankind, to relieve them from pain and misery, and to prolong their days on this earth. The physician who follows his profession in its true spirit is the best friend of mankind, and the proprietors of the Victoria Sanatorium have during its existence been responsible for the return of hope to many lives from which it had been long shut out.
CHARLES E. GREENLIEF.
Clearly defined purpose and consecutive effort in the affairs of life will inevitably result in the attainment of a large measure of success; but in following out the career of one who has gained success by his own efforts there comes into view the intrinsic individuality which made such accom- plishment possible, and thus there is granted an objective incentive and in- spiration, while at the same time there is enkindled a feeling of respect and admiration. In carving out his career Charles E. Greenlief, one of the leading business men and enterprising citizens of Newton, lived a use- ful life and it seems that he tried to be of benefit to those who came into con- tact with him, while laboring to advance his own interests, thus he is em- inently entitled to the universal esteem in which he is held.
Mr. Greenlief is one of the honored native sons of Jasper county, and he has been content to spend his life here, taking part in the development of the same through all its stages. His birth occurred on January 19, 1868. He is the son of William C. and Eunice (Brown) Greenlief, the father a native of Montreal, Canada, and the mother of Steuben county, New York. They came west when young and were married in Davenport, Iowa, the father having come to Illinois from Canada in 1854, and after living in that
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state four or five years, went to Davenport in 1861. Near that city he worked for a year breaking prairie, then, in 1862, came to Jasper county, settling in Mound Prairie township on one hundred and sixty acres of raw prairie land. To this he subsequently added eighty acres more and developed it all into a fine farm and here they spent the remainder of their lives, the father reaching the remarkable age of ninety-three years, the mother having died at the age of fifty-five years. For additional facts relating to their lives the reader is directed to the sketch of Leonard A. Greenlief in this work.
Charles E. Greenlief is one of a family of four children, two boys and two girls; Hattie died when a baby; Emma J. died when seventeen years of age; Charles E. of this review; and Homer B., of Des Moines, Iowa.
After the death of his mother the subject left home to make his own way in the world, and, although but thirteen years old, he successfully ran a feed mill for Will Arten of Prairie City for eight months. He then worked as a farm hand for two years, after which he began working in a machine shop at Des Moines, continuing there for several years, becoming a very adroit workman. He then opened a saw mill in Marion county which he operated two years, also ran one two years in Jasper county. He then secured employment with the Parsons Band Cutter and Self-Feeder Com- pany, being foreman of the machine shop for eight years. He then purchased the home place and lived on it for two years, then went to Canada and operated a steam plow for six months, having previously purchased a section of land in that country. Returning to Newton, he bought an interest in the One Minute Manufacturing Company and for six years has been superin- tendent of the factory, no small amount of its success being due to his able management and extensive knowledge of this line of work.
On December 25, 1892, Mr. Greenlief was united in marriage with Mrs. Jomattie Cure, daughter of J. B. and Marian (Hibbits) Rumbaugh, of Ohio, Mrs. Greenlief being born in Jasper county. Her parents were farmers and are now living a retired life in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Their family consisted of ten children, four of whom died in childhood; Mrs. Armittie Cunningham died at the age of thirty-two years; Newton M. is in Des Moines; Mrs. Mariah Swanegan and N. G. also live in Des Moines; Jomattie, wife of Mr. Greenlief; Oliver B. lives in Seversville, Iowa.
Five children' have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Greenlief, namely : Nellie, born April 6, 1895; Harry L., born May 29, 1897: Delta Grace, born Oc- tober 3. 1899; Pearl May, born March 21, 1902, died when five months old; Jesse William, born March 9, 1910.
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By a former marriage Mrs. Greenlief became the mother of these children : John Edward, born February 2, 1886, died when five months old; Thomas J., born March 5, 1888; Hazel I., born April 19, 1890.
Mrs. Greenlief's father was a soldier in the Civil war and he is now an invalid as a result of the hardships of army life. In an early day he was a freighter, having hauled goods by wagon from Keokuk to DesMoines. The first school ever taught in Mound Prairie township was taught in the house of Mr. Greenlief's father. He was a pioneer here and has long been well known in this part of the county.
Mrs. Greenlief is a member of the Christian church. Fraternally Mr. Greenlief belongs to the Yeomen lodge, also the Newton Business Men's Association. He is one of the well-to-do and prominent men of this city, is well known and has the respect and good will of all classes.
HENRY PETER SCHNUG.
The farmers who constitute the bone and sinew of Jasper county, or, indeed, any section of this or any other state, are not those who are unstable and unsettled, who change from one occupation to another, who do not seem to know how to discharge the duties of citizenship until they are told and who take no active and intelligent interest in public affairs, or who hesitate in the support of schools, churches and property. The backbone of this country is made up of the families which have made their homes, who are alive to the best interests of the community in which they reside, who are so honorable in their every-day affairs of life that it is no trouble for their neighbors and associates to know it, and who, attending strictly to their own business, are thus too busy to attend to that of others, who work on steadily from day to day, taking the sunshine and the storm, and who rear a self- respecting, honest family to a comfortable home and useful life. Such people are always welcome in any community. They are wealth producers and this country is blessed with many of them, among whom is the Schnug family, of which Henry Peter Schnug, farmer and stock raiser of Elk Creek town- ship, is a worthy representative.
Mr. Schnug was born in Elk Creek township, Jasper county, Iowa, on September 16, 1866. He is the son of John and Anna Elizabeth (Strater) Schnug, both born in Germany, the father in the town of Weidselters in the duchy of Nassau on January 6, 1827, and the mother in Filbach,
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Herzogthum, in the duchy of Nassau, August 6, 1833. They grew up in the fatherland, received such educational training as was possible and there the father learned the miller's trade, running mills for various employers, and when a young man, in 1850, he decided to cast his lot with the North Americans and accordingly boarded a slow sailing vessel for our shores. He located in Richland county, Ohio, and there worked in a flouring mill, and there he was married to Anna E. Strater, who had emigrated to that county in 1842, when a young girl, with her parents. After the marriage of the subject's parents, which occurred on September 21, 1851, they es- tablished a home in Richland county and remained there until in 1856, when they emigrated to Jasper county, Iowa, and here Mr. Schnug found em- ployment in a flouring mill at Galesburg ; later he ran Warren's mill, Marion county, on the Skunk river, and across that stream he assisted in building one of the first bridges that spanned it. He worked a great deal at the car- penter's trade and he finally turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, buying eighty acres of prairie and one hundred and twenty acres of bottom land on the Skunk river, and he became very well established, developing one of the best farms on that historic stream and there he continued to reside, engaged in general farming and stock raising until 1905, when he moved to Manson in Calhoun county, Iowa. He has been blind for the past twenty-one years. He has long been a consistent member of the German Lutheran church, and, politically, he is a Democrat. He has always borne an exemplary reputation and his life work has been characterized by industry and fairness to his fellow men. He came to this country when it was wild and sparsely settled and he lived to see it grow into one of the first farming sections of the great commonwealth of Iowa.
Three sons and three daughters were born to Mr. and Mrs. John Schnug, named in order of birth as follows: Mrs. Catherine Pahre is de- ceased; Mrs. Mary Strater is also deceased; John Edward lives at Ralph, Iowa; George is making his home in Pocahontas county, this state; Mrs. Esther Walker lives in Council Bluffs; Henry Peter, of this sketch, was the youngest in order of birth.
Henry P. Schnug assisted his father in his general work when a boy, spending his boyhood days in Elk Creek township, this county, attending the common schools in the winter time. When twenty-three years of age he bought eighty acres of land, part of the home place, and set to work with a will; he has accordingly prospered and he is now the owner of one of the choice farms of the community, which consists of one hundred and ninety- three and one-half acres, in Elk Creek township. He has here carried on
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general farming and stock raising in a manner that has stamped him as being fully abreast of the times in these matters. He has placed his farm under a fine system of improvements and keeps his soil well tilled, so that it has retained its old-time fertility. In the year 1902 he built a modern, convenient and tastily arranged dwelling and he has other substantial build- ings. He keeps a fine grade of live stock, making a specialty of Percheron horses, Hereford cattle and he feeds large numbers of cattle and hogs, no small part of his annual income being derived from this source.
Mr. Schnug is a Democrat politically and he has served his community as township trustee.
On April 1, 1889, was celebrated the marriage of Henry P. Schnug and Margaret Kling. The latter was born in Elk Creek township on March 5, 1867, and here she grew to womanhood and was educated in the common schools. She is the daughter of Henry Kling and wife, one of our honored pioneer families.
To Mr. and Mrs. Schnug have been born the following children: Mur- lin, born February 12, 1892; Pearl, born November 21, 1893; Ruby, born June 19, 1895; Clifford, born February 4, 1897; Florence, born January 15, 1901; Harold, born May 19, 1904; Helen, born September 25, 1906; Eldred, born April 7, 1909.
WILLIAM DALES.
One of the owners of extensive farming interests in Mound Prairie township is the gentleman whose name initiates this sketch, one of Jasper county's highly respected citizens. His valuable property has been acquired through his own efforts, his persistency of purpose and his determination, and the prosperity which is the legitimate reward of all earnest effort is today his.
William Dales was born in Guernsey county, Ohio, July 21, 1854. He is the son of Andrew and Mary (Gauley) Dales, both born near Belfast, Ire- land, the father in 1826 and the mother in 1827. Andrew Dales emigrated to America when he was twenty-one years old, having been married just before he started. He came to Guernsey county, Ohio, later becoming the owner of eighty acres. In 1886 he moved to Shelby county, Iowa, and there bought eighty acres and there he and his wife spent the remainder of their lives. Politically; he was a Republican and after the Civil war he became a
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member of the United Presbyterian church. His family consisted of nine children, five sons and four daughters, of whom the subject of this sketch was the oldest.
William Dales grew up on the home farm and assisted with the general work about the place when a boy and he received his education in the district schools in Ohio. Two years after his marriage he came to Jasper county. Iowa, and bought eighty acres in Mound Prairie township. Selling that eighty, he bought one hundred and sixty acres, on which he erected all the buildings and made all other necessary improvements, setting out many trees, including walnut and willow groves. He has been very successful as a general farmer and stock raiser. He keeps large numbers of shorthorn cattle.
Politically, Mr. Dales is a Republican and he has been township trustee and school director. He is a member of the United Presbyterian church.
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