USA > Kansas > A biographical history of central Kansas, Vol. I > Part 95
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In the district schools of his native coun- ty Carey De Weese obtained his education, but his advantages in that direction were limited, his services being needed in the work on the home farm. He farmed with his father until his marriage, which occurred September 3, 1883, the lady of his choice being Frances E. Lawhead, who was born at Covington, Miami county, Ohio, a daugli- ter of David J. and Martha M. (Conover) Lawhead. Her father was born in Piqua, Miami county, March 30, 1836, and throughout his life followed farming. His wife, also a native of Piqua, was born No- vember 2, 1843, and represented a family that came to the west from New Jersey. The parents of Mrs. De Weese were mar- ried July 3, 1862, in Piqua, where they re- sided until 1888, with the exception of a short period spent in Darke county. In the year mentioned they came to Kansas and after a year's residence in Cherokee county, removed to Kingman county, where Mr. Lawhead purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land, upon which he has since re- sided. His wife died December 29, 1896.
They became the parents of eight children, namely : Mary E., who died in infancy; Frances E., now Mrs. De Weese ; Dora B., the wife of William Grove, who is station agent at Nashville, Kansas ; Gladys L., who died in childhood; Georgie, the wife of Charles Shafer, a farmer of Kingman coun- ty ; Alphonso, who is living with his father, married Minnie Franks, daughter of Mel- vin Franks, a farmer residing in Kingman county ; Alonzo, who was a twin of Alphon- so, and who died in infancy ; and Capitola, who died in childhood.
From his father Mr. De Weese inher- ited a farm of eighty acres, and after his marriage resided thereon for two years, when he sold that property, and in the spring of 1888 he came to Kingman county, Kan- sas, here purchasing one hundred and sixty acres of land, constituting the nucleus of the farm upon which he now resides. There were but few improvements upon the place, including a dilapidated house, and the first season he erected a new and substantial dwelling of four rooms. The same year he built a barn twenty-eight by twenty-four feet and also broke much of the land. He had but five or six head of cattle during the first season, but now a herd of fifty-two head and has found that the raising of and dealing in live stock constitute a very profit- able enterprise. He sells his cattle as stock- ers and also feeds by the carload. He has a fine drove of thoroughbred Poland-China hogs, and everything about his place is neat and thrifty in appearance, indicating his careful supervision. His entire farm is en- closed with a wire fence, and in addition to his stock and cultivated fields he has a fine vineyard, covering two acres.
The home of Mr. and Mrs. De Weese has been blessed with two children, but one died in infancy. The other son, Jesse, born June 27, 1885, is at home. Our subject and his wife enjoy the high regard of many friends and are people of sterling worth. For six years he has served as road super- visor and he has been a delegate to a num- ber of county conventions of the Republican party, of which he is a stanch advocate. He belongs to the camp of Modern Woodmen
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at Cunningham. He and his wife hold mem" bership in the Baptist church, their lives being in consistent harmony with Christian principles.
E. F. SHERMAN.
The story of pioneer life in Kansas is well known to E. F. Sherman, for through twenty-five years he has been a witness of the development of the northwest and has faithfully borne his part in the work of up- building and advancement. He claims Illi- nois as the state of his nativity, his birth occurring in Lasalle county, January 30, 1854. He is a son of John H. and Hester ( McClish) Sherman, the former a native of Germany and the latter of Indiana, and in the latter state they were married. In com- pany with two of his brothers the father emigrated to America and later another brother joined them in the new world, a lo- cation having been made in Illinois. The brothers were John H., Henry, Stephen and John. Henry and Stephen died in Illinois. John H. Sherman, the father of our sub- ject, came to the Sunflower state in 1860, locating in Nemaha county, where he bought land and improved a good farm. He was one of the early pioneers of the county, and the people of the present day can scarcely realize the struggles and dangers which attended the early settlers. the hardships endured, the difficulties over- come. He made many substantial improve- ments upon his farm and was recognized as ( ne of the prominent and influential agri- culturists of his locality. By hard work and unflagging industry he secured a handsome competence, and at his death, which oc- curred in 1878. he left to his widow and children a good estate. His widow survived him until 1882, when she, too, was called to the home beyond. Of the Methodist Episcopal church they were both worthy and consistent members. Their children were : Leonard, Sophronia, Catherine. Stephen. Amos and E. F. Catherine was twice mar- ried, her first husband having been J. Love- less and her second A. D. Wells ; Stephen
died, leaving six children : and Amos was married and left four children at his death.
E. F. Sherman, the subject of this re- view, was reared to the honest toil of a farmer in his native place, and received his education in the district school of the neigh- borhood. He remained under the parental roof until twenty years of age, and then, in 1876, came to Rice county, Kansas, but did not locate permanently in this locality until 1884. Soon after coming here he purchased the one hundred and sixty acres on which he now resides, which is now under a high state of cultivation and is improved with ail the modern accessories and equipments of a model farm. In addition to his general farming he also gives some attention to the raising of a good grade of cattle, of which he now has some fine specimens. His place is one of the valuable farms of Rice county , on which are a good residence, large barns and necessary outbuildings, and his well cultivated fields yield a good return for the care and labor bestowed upon them. The place is located nine miles northwest of Lyons.
In 1888 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Sherman and Mrs. Sarah E. Sherman, who was born in Illinois, a daughter of R. W. and Elizabeth ( Skinner) Wells, also natives of Illinois. They were married in that state and in 1857 emigrated to Nemaha county, Kansas, casting in their lot among the pioneer settlers of the locality. They underwent many of the privations and hard- ships incident to pioneer life on the western frontier. but they bore all with fortitude and courage and nobly performed their part in the great work of improvement and up- building. The father was a gunsmith by trade and also followed farming. They were the parents of eight children : Adolphus. Sally A., Frank, Jane, Abijah, Anna, Charity and Sarah E. Abijah was the judge of a Kan- sas appellate court, retiring in the fall of 1901 by reason of a change in the law abol- ishing that grade of courts. The parents died in Nemaha county, Kansas, in the faith of the Methodist church, in which they held membership. The marriage of our subject and wife has been blessed with one son,
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Jolın E., who was born August 8, 1889. Mr. and Mrs. Sherman are also worthy members of the Methodist church. In his social relations he is a Mason, and in poli- tics votes with the Republican party, and although he keeps well informed on the issues and questions of the day he has never been an office-seeker, preferring to give his time and attention to his business interests. He has many friends among the pioneers, as well as among the later arrivals of Kan- sas, and well deserves mention among the early settlers of this splendid common- wealthi.
ERNEST W. SANDERSON.
The story of pioneer life in Kansas is a familiar one to Ernest W. Sanderson, for he has been a witness of the development of the southwest and has faithfully borne his part in the work of upbuilding and advance- ment. He is a native son of the Sunflower state, his birth having occurred at the old homestead in Lincoln township, Rice county, March 6, 1876, where he was reared to the honest toil of a farmer. He is a son of Sanı- uel and Jennie A. ( Weaver) Sanderson, both natives of Ohio and descendants of prominent and representative families of that state. The father was born in High- land county, Ohio, June 20, 1858, and was reared in Pike county, that state. He was a son of William and Elizabeth ( Evans) Sanderson, natives respectively of Pennsyl- vania and Ohio. The former was of Irish descent. Samuel and Jennie A. Sanderson were the parents of eight children,-Ernest W., Arthur, Alice B., George B., Elna E., James W., John H. and Charles. Of the Methodist church the parents were worthy members and the father was a member of the Masonic fraternity.
Ernest W. Sanderson, the subject of this review, remained on the old homestead until he reached his majority, when he con- menced the struggle of life for himself. His first employment was as assistant deputy agent of the Modern Woodmen of America, with which he remained for two years. At
the time the Oklahoma district of the Wood- men was admitted into jurisdiction as com- petent territory he received the appointment of assistant deputy. He had entire charge of the district, appointed the agents and looked after the interests of the organization there. He remained in that position for four years. May 4, 1900, he accepted an agency of the New York Life Insurance Company, and in that position lie is now serving to the satisfaction of all concerned. He is a competent business man, reliable and trustworthy in every relation of life, and his success has come to him as the result of per- sistent purpose, earnest labor and reliable business methods. In his social relations he is a Master Mason and is also a member of the Modern Woodmen of America.
SAMUEL SANDERSON.
Rice county, Kansas, has no more hon- ored and representative pioneer citizen than Samuel Sanderson, who cast in his lot with the early settlers of the Sunflower state twenty-eight years ago and has ever since been actively identified with the agricultural interests of that locality. His father, Will- iam Sanderson, was of Irish descent. He served his country through the entire war of 1812 and at an early day settled in High- land county, Ohio, and later moved to Pike county, same state. where he improved a good farm and remained during his life. He was an industrious man, whose in- tegrity and honor were above reproach, very social in his nature, greatly enjoying the friendship of his many friends. He was very successful in his farming operations and accumulated a comfortable competence with which to make himself and family com- fortable and happy in old age. Politically he was a Whig and cast his last vote for Abraham Lincoln. He was converted to Christianity when sixteen years of age and joined the Protestant Methodist church, in which he served as class-leader for over twenty years and was also one of the stew- ards of the church, contributing liberally to
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its support. He married Miss Elizabeth Evans, a native of Ohio, and they had eight children. namely: Sarah, the wife of Noah Nicely: Mary A., who married Irvin Nicely; Margaret, who became the wife of J. Spring ; James, who served as corporal of his company during the Civil war and is now living near Newton, Iowa: Martha, who became the wife of C. Flake; Samuel, the subject of this sketch; David, who lives in. Ohio; and Emma, now the wife of H. Aldridge. All are yet living but Sarah, who left four children. The father of the above named died at his old homestead in Pike county, Ohio, September 20, 1861, and their mother, who also was a member of the same church, survived her husband for a number of years, remaining at the homestead until her children were married and settled in homes of their own, when she made her home with them and died at the home of one of her daughters in Iowa.when seventy-two years of age.
Samuel Sanderson, whose name intro- duces this review, was born in Highland county, Ohio, June 20, 1848, but was reared in Pike county, where he acquired a con- mon-school education and remained under the parental roof until twenty-two years of age, when he married and settled on a rented farm in Ross county, Ohio, where he remained for one year. In 1873 he moved to Kansas and located a homestead in Rice county, where he yet lives. He thus became one of the pioneer settlers of that locality, and his claim, which was fourteen miles from the nearest neighbor on the west, was the most western claim in the county. Buf- falo, antelope and other wild game was very plentiful, furnishing excellent sport for the huntsmen and fresh meats for the table. He built a small sod house and with char- acteristic energy and determination began breaking the prairie and preparing it for cultivation. The crops were not always sure or bountiful, and he inet with many dis- couragements, as when in 1874 the grass- hoppers swarmed over the prairie and de- voured every vestige of vegetation; but he had raised and saved about one hundred bushels of wheat, and, later crops being
abundant, by economy and careful manage- ment he has been enabled to provide him- self and family with all the necessaries and many of the comforts of life. He is en- gaged in general farming and stock-raising, his fields are all now under a high state of cultivation, he has built a comfortable and commodious two-story frame farm house, which is supplied with all modern conveni- ences, has large barns, sheds and outbuild- ings, and has made many other substantial improvements upon his place, making it very attractive and valuable, and he is num- bered among the solid men of the county.
In 1871 Mr. Sanderson was united int marriage to Miss Jennie A. Weaver, an in- telligent and cultured lady who was born in Adams county, Ohio, January 22, 1847, a daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Gor- man) Weaver, both natives of Ohio. He was a son of John Weaver, of German de- scent, a farmer by occupation and an early settler of Ohio. His children were: Henry, now living in Ohio; Polly, now Mrs. Mur- phy; Benjamin J., the father of Mrs. San- derson; and John, who makes his home in Ohio. The maternal grandfather of Mrs. Sanderson was William Gorman, who was of Irish descent, a farmer and early settler of Ohio, and he and his wife were earnest Christian people, respected by all who knew them. Unto them were born the following children: Mathew; Michael; Nancy, now Mrs. Wyscupp; John; James; Elizabeth, the mother of Mrs. Sanderson; Mary, now Mrs. Gardner; and Ann, now Mrs. Shoe- maker. The marriage of Benjamin and Elizabeth Weaver was blessed with three children : Catherine, who died at the age of twenty-one years; Jennie, the wife of our subject ; and John B., who died while serv- ing his country in the Civil war. The mother of these children died in 1850, a con- sistent member of the United Brethren church. The father was again married, to Miss Hannah Jenkins, by whom he has three children,-Marion, James and Wal- ter .- all yet living in Ohio, where the par- ents both died. Unto our-subject and his wife have been born eight children, namely : Ernest W., born March 6, 1876, and now
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an agent of the New York Life Insurance Company; Arthur W., born November II, 1877, a farmer by ocupation ; Alice B., now Mrs. Foot, born December 20, 1880; George B., born August 15. 1882: Eliza E., April 13, 1884; James W., March 1, 1886; John H., November 25, 1888; and Charles E., October 24, 1891, still at home.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Sanderson are worthy members of the Methodist Episco- pal church. He helped to organize the first church of this locality and helped conduct the first protracted meeting, which was a complete success, there being thirty-two conversions, and all of the converts re- mained stanch and worthy members of the church through life. Mr. Sanderson is con- nected with the Masonic fraternity, join- ing the order when the lodge was held un- der a dispensation, and thus became a char- ter member of Chase Lodge, No. 247, A. F. & A. M., of Chase, Kansas. He is a loyal and public-spirited citizen, deeply interested in all movements for the upbuilding and progress of his town, county and state, and well deserves mention in this volume.
ELIAS M. CARNAHAN.
Elias M. Carnahan, who is engaged in general farming and stock-raising on sec- tion 7. Kingman township, Kingman coun- ty, was born in Logan county, Illinois, Au- gust 25, 1859, and is a son of Martin C. Carnahan, whose birth occurred in Drake county, Ohio, August 27, 1838. The fani- ily is probably of Irish extraction, although it has been claimed that the original ances- tors were German people. However, many years have passed since the Carnahans cane to America, for John Carnahan, the great- grandfather of our subject, was a native of Pennsylvania. Elias L. Carnahan, the grandfather, was probably born in Darke county, Ohio; at all events he was reared there. When he had arrived at years of ma- turity he carried on farming in Darke coun- ty until 1857, when he removed with his family to Logan county, Illinois, where he
purchased a farm and spent his remaining days, his death occurring in the fall of 1871. He became a prosperous agriculturist and owned a section of land in Logan county. His life was well spent and made him a highly respected citizen of his community. He served at one time as county commis- sioner and he is known as a faithful member of the Christian church.
Martin C. Carnahan, the father of our subject, was one of a family of ten children, namely: William, who is the proprietor of a hotel in Emden, Logan county, Illinois ; Elizabeth, the wife of James Hayes, a farmer living near Bloomington, Illinois; Francis, the wife of Major John Hall. a re- tired farmer of Greenville, Darke county, Ohio; Martin C .: Mary, the wife of John W. Westfall, a retired farmer living in Valley Center. Kansas: Elias L., a soldier of the Civil war, who served for two years and is now en- gaged in the real-estate business in Wichita. Kansas, where he has also served as record- er of deeds for four years: Charlotte, the wife of Clay Quisenberry, who is the presi- dent of the bank and president of the street railway company in Lincoln, Illinois, and also has extensive land interests in both Illinois and Texas : Robert, a retired farmer living in Valley Center, Sedgwick county, Kansas; and two children who died in in- fancy.
Martin C. Carnahan obtained his educa- tion in the district schools of Darke county and with his father removed to Illinois, where he remained until twenty-one years of age. He was married in Logan county, Illinois, to Lodema Hatfield, whose birtli occurred in Darke county, Ohio, and who was a daughter of James and Lucy ( Reed) Hatfield. Her father was born in Penn- sylvania but was reared in Ohio, and her mother was a native of Darke county. There Mr. Hatfield died during the early girlhood of Mrs. Carnahan, but his wife passed away in Wichita, Kansas, about ten years ago. The Hatfields were of Penn- sylvania German lineage. Martin Carna- han engaged in the operation of his father's farm until the Civil war broke out, and in
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the spring of 1863 he enlisted in the Twen- ty-fifth Illinois Infantry, serving for one year, when he was sent home on a furlough on account of disability, occasioned by two sun-strokes which he received. He did not sufficiently recover in time to return to the army. and after the war he continued to engage in agricultural pursuits in Logan county, Illinois, until the spring of 1876, when he removed to Sedgwick county, Kan- sas, and purchased a quarter section of rail- road land on section 24, township 29, range I east. There he lived until three years ago, when he took up his abode near Val- ley Center, in Sedgwick county, where he is now living retired, both he and his wife living with their son Albert. In politics he was formerly a Republican, but now is iden- tified with the Populist party. Both Mr. and Mrs. Carnahan are consistent members of the Christian church, and unto this worthy couple were born nine children, all of whom are yet living.
to Kiowa county, Kansas, and soon after- ward disposed of his property in Valley Center, including his store and residence. He was engaged in the real-estate business in Greensburg, Kansas, during the big boom of 1887, and remained there for two years, conducting a large and profitable trade in city and farm property during the first year. He has also been inspector for two different land companies. At the end of the second year he removed to Kansas City, where he engaged in the insurance business, representing the Prudential Life Insurance Company. After two years passed there he spent two years in Kansas City, Kansas, and afterward resided for two years in Wichita, coming thence to his present place of residence, where he has since en- gaged in general farming and stock-rais- ing. In addition to his own land he rents largely and is extensively engaged in rais- ing wheat. He also had a herd of good cattle.
In the district schools of Logan county, On the 23d of September, 1884, in Val- ley Center, Kansas, Mr. Carnahan was united in marriage to Hattie C. Clark, who was born in Metamora, Illinois, a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Cox) Clark. Mrs. Clark had, however, been previously mar- ried, her first husband being James Delay. Her father was born in Kentucky, January 3, 1819. and on removing to Illinois en- gaged in the practice of law in Metamora. and was a very prominent and influential man. In the spring of 1877 he removed to Sedgwick county. Kansas, and in the fol- lowing spring took up his abode in Wichita. where he soon won a position of marked dis- tinction at the bar, gaining a very large and important clientage. He died June 14. 1883. The same year his wife pre-empted a quarter section of land, on which her son- in-law now lives, and the following year re- moved to that place with her two sons, Bruce and Zackery, there residing until about seven years ago, since which time she has made her home in Oklahoma with her son Zackery. She was the mother of eight children : Annabel, who was born February 25, 1856, and died in Wichita Illinois, and of Sedgwick county, Kansas, Elias M. Carnahan pursued his education, being sixteen years of age at the time the family removed to this state. He assisted in the cultivation of the home farm until twenty-two years of age, when, in company with his consin, he established the first hard- ware store in Valley Center, under the firm name of Carnahan & Waller. For two years they prospered, doing an excellent business, and on the expiration of that period sold their store. Mr. Carnahan then engaged in dealing in implements and also purchased a half interest in a drug store from Dr. Hennessy, his partner being a Mr. Davis. The drug business was then carried on under the firm style of Davis & Carnahan, and the senior partner purchased the half interest in Mr. Carnahan's imple- ment business. For a year and a half they also conducted the postoffice in connection with the drug store. When a year had passed they sold the implement business to H. C. Boyle & Brother and conducted the drug store alone for two years. when Mr. Carnahan exchanged his interest in the stock for the building. He then removed . August 30. 1881: Eunice, the wife of
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George Lantis, a farmer of Kingman coun- ty : John A., who is engaged in the real-es- tate and loan business in Wichita; James, who was the twin brother of John and died in infancy, October 9, 1859: Lillie M., who died in Metamora, Illinois, April 9, 1865 ; Mark B., a lumber and coal merchant of Severy, Kansas; Mrs. Carnahan ; and Zack- ery, a doctor at Ingersoll, Oklahoma. Ellis Clark, the paternal grandfather of Mrs. Carnahan, was of English descent and was born in Georgia December 25, 1791, but spent the greater part of his life in Ken- tucky, where he died July 25, 1848. His father also was a native of Georgia and was .. a captain in the Revolutionary war. He was wounded in the battle of Cowpens and died in his native state. Peter M. Cox, the maternal grandfather, was born May 6, 1797, on Blennerhasset island in the Ohio river, and became a minister of the New Light church. His death occurred June 18, 1833. His father, William Cox, was the first of the family to come to America, crossing the Atlantic from England.
The home of Mr. and Mrs. Carnahan has been blessed with five children, of whom fout are living .- Ruby P., Opal L., Clara E. and Mona D. The third child, Albert M., was born July 7, 1889, and died June 17, 1890. Mr. Carnahan and his family enjoy the highest regard of all who know them and have many warm friends in their adopted county. He is a man of stalwart honesty and his word is as good as his bond. For five years he served as clerk of the school board and has ever taken an active interest in the cause of education. He is a stanch Republican in his political views. Both he and his wife are faithful and active workers in the Christian church at Cun- ningham. His life record will bear the closest investigation and his example is one well worthy of emulation.
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