USA > Iowa > Jasper County > Past and present of Jasper County, Iowa, Vol. II > Part 60
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Mr. Tramel was married in March, 1903, to Lillian Long, who was born in Clear Creek township, this county, March 12, 1882, and here she was reared and educated. She is the daughter of George and Phoebe Jane (Miller) Long, the father born in Winneshiek county, Iowa, April 3. 1854, and the mother in this township, on May 24, 1857, and this union resulted in the birth of nine children, five of whom are deceased, namely : Clarence D., born May II, 1877, lives in Independence township; Quincy, born October 27, 1879, died November 29, 1879; Pearl Hardenburgh, born in April, 1880, lives in Independence township; Lillian, wife of Mr. Tramel of this sketch; James Carl, born September 13, 1883, is assisting his father on the home farm: Stella, born June 18, 1885, died November 3, 1885; Charles, Fred and the youngest child died in infancy.
To Mr. and Mrs. Walter O. Tramel four children have been born, namely : James Russell, born January 6, 1904 : William Blaine, born January 6, 1905 ; Cynthia Marie, born June 7, 1906; Gertrude Irene, born March 6, 1910. These children were born in Independence township, this county, and they are all at home with their parents.
Politically, Mr. Tramel is a Republican and he belongs to the Yeoman lodge of Ira. He is a public spirited man and takes much interest in what- ever tends to promote the interests of his community, lending his aid whenever necessary.
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ELI W. BORTS.
One of the native-born citizens of Clear Creek township, Jasper county, who is deserving of special mention along with other enterprising young men who are performing well their work here, is Eli W. Borts. His birth occurred here on September 5, 1879; he grew to manhood on the home place, which he helped develop, and he has always been identified with the agricultural interests of this community. His father, Eli Borts, was born in DeKalb county, Indiana, November 29, 1845, and there he grew up and received his education in the old time schools. Although young in years when the Civil war came on, he enlisted as drummer boy in Company D. Forty-ninth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, having previously emigrated to the West to make his fortune. He enlisted at Greencastle, Poweshiek township, Jasper county, and served faithfully through the major part of the war, after which he re- ceived an honorable discharge. He married Margaret Stier, who was born in St. Joe county, Iowa, March 13, 1851, and when four years old she came with her parents in 1855 to Jasper county and is residing at present at Mingo, her husband having died in this county on March 5, 1891. Their family consisted of six children, five of whom are living, as follows: William H., born July 3, 1869, is living with his mother at Mingo; Mrs. Cora Pitcock. born October 13, 1872, died June 7. 1897: Gertie, born September 27, 1875 is living at Boone, Iowa; Rosa, born April 1, 1884. is living with her mother at Mingo.
Eli W. Borts was married on February 18, 1903, to Bertha H. Skinner, who was born in Clear Creek township, this county, May 20, 1885, and here she was reared and educated. She is the daughter of Herbert K. and Mary A. (Edwards) Skinner, one of the best known and influential families of this and adjoining counties, her father being representative from Jasper county in the state Legislature. He was born in St. Lawrence county, New York, April 2, 1849, but has spent most of his life in Iowa, having moved with his parents to Ft. Dodge in 1853 and on to Jasper county in 1860 and the family has resided here continuously to the present time. Mr. Skinner devoted twelve years of his life to teaching. He has been very successful in a business way and is the owner of some of the best land in this locality and also in Texas, over five hundred acres in all. He has been prominent in public life for many years, holding a number of local offices, finally securing a seat in the Legislature and there he is making a record of which his con- stituents and friends may well be proud. He married Mary B. Keyes in 1871 ; she was born in Benton county, Iowa, in 1848 and her death occurred in Jasper
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county in 1875. Mr. Skinner was married in 1876 to Mary A. Edwards, who was born in Jasper county in 1855, the daughter of M. M. and Anne (Henderson) Edwards. To the latter union eight children were born, namely : Elsie M., Charles Herbert, Bertha H. (wife of Mr. Borts of this sketch), Mrs. Cora A. Tiffany, Arthur L., Mary Helen, Howard Otis and George M. For a full sketch of the Skinner family the reader is directed to the sketch of Hon. Herbert K. Skinner, appearing in another part of this work.
To Mr. and Mrs. Borts have been born three daughters, Reva B., born February 18, 1904. Zelma E., born February II, 1906, and Lena Irene, born December 24, 19II. The two older girls are attending the rural schools in the home neighborhood. Politically, Mr. Borts is a Republican and he affili- ates with the Congregational church. He belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Lodge No. 174, of Mingo.
Mr. Borts is successfully farming eighty acres of the old Skinner home- stead in Clear Creek township. He has a good home, well furnished and sup- plied with modern literature.
OTTO HARRE.
If a list could be made of the original homes of the old settlers of this portion of Iowa it would be found that a very large number of them came to Jasper county from the German empire, or at least their ancestors did, some of them, maybe, settling in the old Keystone or Empire states or other sec- tions of the- East, and not a few in the Badger and Wolverine states of the North, and from these their descendants emigrated to this section; thus thou- sands of our best citizens are of this descent and blood. The German people are noted the world over for their thrift, honesty and industry, and for that reason the United States has always welcomed them to our shores.
One of the progressive farmers of Independence township, Jasper county, who belongs to the second generation of Germans in America is Otto Harre, whose birth occurred in Sheboygan county, Wisconsin, December 2, 1870. He is the son of Fred and Wilhelmina (Meierkort) Harre, both natives of Lippe-Detmold, Germany, the father on June 4, 1830, and the mother on October 3, 1848. There they spent their childhood, and emigrated to America in early life, locating in Wisconsin, from which state they came to Jasper county, Iowa, when their son Otto, of this sketch, was quite young. Here they established a good home through their untiring industry and honesty,
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and here the father spent the rest of his life, his death occurring in Inde- pendence township on September 4, 1888: the mother survives, living now in Baxter.
Eight children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Fred Harre, all of whom are living; they were named as follows: Mrs. Emma Kracht, who lives in Baxter ; Fred, who lives in Pleasanton, Nebraska; Mrs. Pauline Geise, born October 3, 1864, lives in Malaka township; Otto, of this sketch ; Albert, born August 13, 1873, lives in Waverly, Iowa; Mrs. Mattie Kanne, born April 19, 1875, lives in Malaka township; Mrs. Clara Hager, born October 30, 1877, lives in Baxter; William, born August 29, 1879. The elder children were born in Sheboygan county, Wisconsin, the younger ones in Independence township, Jasper county, Iowa.
Politically, Mr. Harre is a Republican and he has been a member of the school board in Eden township, Marshall county, and he has always been active in bettering the conditions of his vicinity.
Mr. Harre is the owner of one of the best farms in Eden township, Marshall county, which he has placed under excellent improvements and a high state of cultivation. He has carried on general farming and stock raising, and he has a good home and splendid outbuildings.
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FREDERICK S. SCHWEINEBART.
No better representative of the thrifty and progressive younger genera- tion of farmers in Jasper county could be found than Frederick S. Schweine- bart, the scion of an excellent old family of Independence township. He believes in. adopting the best twentieth-century methods in his field work and in doing well whatever is worth doing at all; no half-hearted or "slip-shod" method goes with him, and he is always at it, never letting the grass grow under his feet or any stone unturned whereby he can benefit himself; but he takes a good citizen's interest in the affairs of his community and, while laboring for his advancement, does not neglect his duties to his neighbors and the community in general.
Mr. Schweinebart was born in Independence township, Jasper county, Iowa, in 1881, and here he grew to manhood, received his education in the public schools, and with the exception of six months spent in the butcher business in Baxter, he has devoted himself to agricultural pursuits. He owns and tills two hundred and forty acres of as choice land as the locality can
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boast, the Schweinebart farm, lying just over the line in Eden township. Marshall county. He has kept it under a high state of improvement and cultivation and has been very successful as a general farmer and stock raiser, always keeping a fine grade of live stock, having gathered the nucleus of one of the finest shorthorn herds in this locality. He has an attractive and sub- stantial home, large and substantial outbuildings and everything about his place denotes thrift and prosperity and that a gentleman of good taste and good judgment has its management in hand.
Fred and Etta Schweinebart, parents of the subject, were born in Ger- many, from which country they emigrated to America and located in Jasper county, Iowa, and they are now living in a very comfortable home in the town of Baxter. Four children were born to them, two of whom are living, namely : William, of Independence township: Mrs. Mary Wintermier, de- ceased; one son died young ; Frederick, of this sketch. These children were all born in Independence township, Jasper county.
Fred Schweinebart was married in 1906 to Opal Stinson, who was born in Independence township, this county, April 24, 1888, and here she grew to womanhood and here received her education in the common schools.
Mrs. Schweinebart is the daughter of Thomas and Emily F. (Sego) Stinson. The father, one of the largest land owners and influential citizens of Jasper county, was born in Indiana, May 5, 1847. When a boy he came with his parents to Jasper county, Iowa, here grew to manhood, was educated and has spent the balance of his useful and successful life, he being the son of Jeremiah and Delila (Wyatt) Stinson. On April 12, 1874, he was united in marriage with Emily F. Sego, who was born in this county, January 19, 1857, the daughter of Greenberry and Sarah D. (Goodman) Sego. early settlers of this locality where they spent the latter parts of their lives, both being now deceased; their family consisted of eleven children.
Seven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Stinson, namely : Mrs. Florence Elba Dodd lives in Colfax; Maggie Edith is deceased ; John Berryl lives in Madison county, Iowa; Mrs. Audra Belle Tipton lives in Independence township, this county; Mrs. Sarah Fern Kracht also lives in this township; Opal, wife of Mr. Schweinebart, of this review: Frank G. lives with his parents on the home farm.
Thomas Stinson has been very successful in a business way, and he owns a fine, productive and well improved farm of seven hundred and twenty acres in Jasper county and one hundred and twenty acres of valuable land in Madison county. He carries on general farming and stock raising on an extensive scale, taking rank in the front of our leading agriculturists, and is
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a much admired and influential man. To Mr. and Mrs. Schweinebart two children have been born, the eldest, Harmon, dying in infancy; Nile was born on March 29, 1909.
Politically, the subject is an independent voter, and he takes much more than a passing interest in the affairs of his community, and, in view. of his youth and past success, the future has much of promise for him.
A. C. MEYER.
It requires considerable personal courage and strong resolution to sever the ties which bind one to home, friends, kindred and native land and seek fortune and a place of abode in a foreign country, where the language is unknown, where manners and customs are strange and where the future is uncertain, but A. C. Meyer, well known business man of Baxter, Jasper county, took the risk incident to such a course, nor has he been disappointed in the hope which led him to leave Germany and come to the United States, a youngster of tender years at the time of his arrival, possessing no capital save willingness to work and a strong determination to succeed, which he has admirably done, as we shall see by the study of the following paragraphs which will show the ease with which thrifty Germans achieve such financial success in this country that it is astonishing to most Americans. The record of the gentleman whose name appears above is not only one of industry, but also of honor.
Mr. Meyer was born in Hanover, Germany, December 15, 1843. He is the son of Fred M. and Betty Meyer, both natives of Germany, the mother in Bremen; the date of the father's birth was July II, 1800, and he died in Illinois on July 1I, 1864; the mother was born on 1810 and died at Freeport, Illinois, on June 10, 1883. They grew up, were educated and married in the fatherland and emigrated to America later in life, securing a good home in the new world. They were the parents of the following children: William, Carl, Theodore, Reinhard, Johanna and A. C. of this review ; also a daughter, Lizzie.
A. C. Meyer of this sketch left his native land on October 28, 1856, arriving in New York on December 24th of that year. The family came west at once and settled in German Valley, Illinois, where they remained four- teen years. and in 1869 came on to Eden township, Marshall county, Iowa, where the young Meyer reared his family and cultivated a large farm in that
A. C. MEYER
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township until March 1, 1907, when he removed to Baxter, Jasper county, where he owns one of the best residences in that thriving little village and has long been successfully engaged in business. He has been most successful in whatever he has turned his attention to, and is the owner of a very valuable farm of three hundred and twenty acres, well improved, located near White lake, South Dakota, besides an interest in the bank at Baxter, and telephone stock in the Baxter Telephone Company ; he also owns eighty acres of good Missouri land. . Since 1872 he has improved one of the choice farms of Eden township, Marshall county. He is one of the best informed botanists and floraculturists in this section of the state, having long taken a deep interest in plant life and his beautiful flower garden is the pride of Baxter. It shows a very commendable quality in Mr. Meyer,-a well developed esthetic taste,- showing that he has an eye for the beautiful and is a lover of nature; to him, in the language of the English poet, Wadsworth, "The meanest flower that grows can give thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears." This is a most commendable quality, for in this money-mad age, most men permit the affairs of business and the love of the dollar to take the place of almost everything, literally eradicating what little esthetic quality they had in their childhood. No man can be wholly bad who is a lover of nature and "communes with her invisible forms."
Mr. Meyer was married to Catharine Dahlem, who was born in Bavaria, Germany, October 25, 1844. When a child she came with her parents to America, reaching Freeport, Illinois, on December 25, Christmas day, 1852. She is the daughter of Henry and Susan (Vogt) Dahlem, the father born in Bavaria, Germany, in 1812 and died September 10, 1877, and the mother was born in the fatherland in May, 1822, and died December 8, 1877. They were the parents of four children, namely: Henry, born in Comoden. Bavaria, November 28, 1842; Catharine, wife of Mr. Meyer, of this review ; Elizabeth Pfeil, born November 26, 1848, is living in Illinois; Abraham, born May 26, 1850, lives in Baxter.
Eleven children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Meyer, named as fol- lows : Henry, born April 5, 1867, is living in Saskatchewan, Canada: Eliza- beth, born September 11, 1869, died in Eden township, Marshall county, Iowa, January 14, 1896; Susie, born October 14, 1870, died December 21, 1880; Hannah Meier, born September 25, 1872, is living at White Lake, South Dakota : Catharine, born August 26, 1874, died October 9, 1874; Fred, born October II, 1876, died February 27, 1877; William T., born April 14, 1878, lives in Eden township, Marshall county; Carl Reinhard, born May 4, 1881, (85)
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is living near Waterloo, Iowa; August A., born August 9, 1883, is living at White Lake, South Dakota; John O., born September 7, 1885, also lives at White Lake, South Dakota; Anna D., born March 18, 1888, died March 20, 1888.
Politically, Mr. Meyer is a Democrat. He has been a member of the school board for a period of eighteen years and has done much for the cause of education here during that time. He and his family belong to the German Reformed church.
Mr. Meyer, who is one of the pioneers of this community, has done his full share in developing the same. Many young men of this place can at- tribute their success in the financial world to the confidence placed in them by Mr. Meyer. He is a whole-souled, genial, hospitable gentleman whom it is a pleasure to know and he numbers his friends by the scores.
FRANK COUCH.
One of the enterprising native sons of Jasper county who has ever noted with growing pride the steady advancement of this locality, from a wild stretch of prairie to one of the foremost farming and dairying sections of the great Hawkeye commonwealth, is Frank Couch, who, being a public- spirited citizen, withholds his support and co-operation from no movement which is intended to promote public improvement. What he has achieved in life proves the force of his character and illustrates his steadfastness of pur- pose, for he has persistently refused to be downed by untoward circumstances and has always been of an optimistic temperament, making of the obstacles he has encountered stepping-stones to higher things. He is a man who be- lieves in keeping unsullied the good name of his forebears, and he has ac- cordingly guarded his course in the world of action, believing it to be the duty to safeguard the honored name of the Couch family, long well known here.
Mr. Couch was born in this county on December 9, 1868. He is the son of Rufus D. and Mary (Mallow) Couch, both born in Ohio, the father on June 26, 1832. They spent their childhood in Ohio, and finally emigrated to Jasper county, Iowa, where they became well located on a farm, and here the father's death occurred on March 3, 1900. The mother is living at Goddard. They became the parents of nine children, eight of whom are living, namely : Daniel lives in Sherman township; Mrs. Clara Topper lives in Colfax; Mrs. Amanda Wheeler lives at Goddard; Charlie lives in South
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Dakota; James died in 1868; Andrew lives in South Dakota; Frank, of this sketch, and Warren (twins), born December 9, 1868, the latter living in South Dakota; William Arthur lives on the old home farm, northwest of Mingo, in Clear Creek township. The older children were born in Ohio, the three younger in Jasper county, Iowa.
It was in 1866 that the parents of these children came to this county. Rufus D. Couch, the father, was a soldier in the Civil war, having enlisted in an Ohio regiment.
Frank Couch was reared on the home farm in this county and there he made himself generally useful during his boyhood days, receiving his educa- tion in the common schools of his community. With the exception of three years spent in Missouri, he has been a continuous resident of Jasper county. He formerly owned one hundred and forty-four acres of fine farming land in Worth county, Iowa, but recently disposed of the same. He tills one hundred and fifty-one acres of choice farming land in Sherman township, Jasper county, carrying on general farming and stock raising in a manner that stamps him as fully abreast of the times. He has been very successful and has accumulated a competency. He is an enterprising, liberal and broad- minded individual whom it is a pleasure to meet, commanding the respect of all with whom he has met. He believes in encouraging every worthy public enterprise. Politically, he is a loyal Republican.
Mr. Couch was married in March, 1894, to Edith May Jickling, who was born in Sherman township, Jasper county, Iowa, on July 23, 1871, and here she grew to womanhood and received her education. She is the daughter of John D. and Susan S. (Cuthbert) Jickling, the father born in Canada, June 22, 1837, and the mother in London, England, February 5, 1842, from which country she came with her parents to the United States in 1855, lo- cating in Michigan. The father of Mrs. Couch settled in Kalamazoo, Michi- gan, in 1859 where he remained until 1865 when he moved to Sherman town- ship, Jasper county, Iowa. Here he prospered and is now the owner of four hundred and fifty-one acres of land here, being one of the wealthiest men of the county.
There were five children in the Jickling family, namely: George B., of Winterset, Iowa; William R. lives in Sherman township; Mrs. Laura Alice Zenor lives in Tryon, Nebraska; Edith May, wife of Mr. Couch of this sketch ; Riley R. is deceased.
Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Couch : Mrs. Hazel May Dawson, born March 1, 1895; Riley, born August 29, 1897, who is attending school in Ira.
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J. CLIFFORD BARBEE.
Success in this life comes to the deserving. It is an axiom demonstrated by all human experience, that a man gets out of this life what he puts into it, plus a reasonable interest on the investment. The individual who inherits a large estate and adds nothing to his fortune cannot be called a success- ful man. He that falls heir to a large fortune and increases its value is suc- cessful in proportion to the amount he adds to his possession. But the man who starts in the world unaided and by sheer force of will, controlled by correct principles, forges ahead and at length reaches a position of honor among his fellow citizens achieves success such as representatives of the two former classes can neither understand nor appreciate. To a considerable extent J. Clifford Barbee, of Mingo, Jasper county, is a creditable representa- tive of the class last named, a class which has furnished much of the bone and sinew of the country and added to the stability of our government and its institutions.
Mr. Barbee was born in Independence, Jackson county, Missouri, De- cember 26, 1884. He is the son of Christopher C. and Angeline (Sparks) Barbee, the father born in Hendricks county, Indiana, March 8, 1852, and the mother born in Minnesota September II, 1859. When two years old the father was brought by his parents, John and Ollie (Newton) Barbee, to Jasper county, Iowa, making the overland trip in wagons, before the days of railroads in this part of the country, and here Christopher C. Barbee grew to manhood and has continued to reside, devoting his life to farming and blacksmithing, now engaged as a hardware merchant in the town of Ira, this county. The mother of the subject was the daughter of Joseph and Amilda (Parks) Sparks, the father born in Kentucky and the mother in Indiana. They moved to Minnesota in an early day and there the mother died. The father was a soldier in the Union army and died while in the service.
Seven children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Christopher C. Barbee, four of whom are living at this writing, namely: Bertie died in infancy ; Mrs. Maude L. Reddick, born December 31, 1877, lives in South Dakota; Otis C., born December 21, 1879, and Clarence J., born January 4, 1882, were killed in a train wreck while journeying to Dakota several years ago; J. Clifford, of this sketch; Ray H., born February 9, 1889, lives at Ira ; James Edward, born January 18, 1895, is assisting his father in the store at Ira. These children were reared and educated in Jasper county.
J. Clifford Barbee was six months old when his parents brought him to Rhodes, Marshall county, Iowa, from Jackson county, Missouri, and the
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family lived at Rhodes about four years, then moved to Independence town- ship, Jasper county, where they have since resided.
The subject grew to manhood here and received his education in the local schools. He learned the blacksmith's trade when a young man and this has been his life work. He has become very skilled in his chosen voca- tion and enjoys an ever-increasing business, having followed his profession continuously for the past eight years, and in July, 1911, he purchased a well equipped shop in Mingo where he does a general blacksmithing and repair work.
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