USA > Kansas > Atchison County > History of Atchison County, Kansas > Part 60
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Her well beloved son, Daniel Hooper, was born in 1868, and died Jan- uary 22, 1912. He was one of the most talented and best liked men in Atch- ison, and was far on the road to fame and prosperity when he was cut off in the prime of his vigorous and virile manhood. He received the rudiments of an elementary education in the district school near his country home and early developed ambitions which were partly realized during his life. After leaving school he studied shorthand and typewriting, and while holding a position in the law office of C. D. Walker he studied law and was admitted to the bar. A winning personality and his pronounced ability won him clients from the start of his legal career. His personal populartiy and ambitious tenden- cies led him to enter politics, and he was elected to the office of probate judge of the county, serving the people well and faithfully for a period of six years, and then served two terms as city attorney. Just in the prime of his man- hood and at the zenith of a career his health failed, and he died at Excelsior Springs, Mo., where he had gone in the hope of regaining his health. Judge Hooper was sincerely mourned by a large circle of friends and acquaintances and it is probable that there was not a man in his class better liked or more highly respected in Atchison county at the time of his demise. He was a Republican in politics and was fraternally connected with the Modern Wood- men, the Knights of Pythias, in whose councils he was very prominent, and an attendant at the Christian church. The most notable trait in Judge Hooper's character was his sincere devotion to his parents. Because of the love he bore his mother he never married and cared for no woman but her. His constant thought was to make provision for her in the event of his own demise, and he carefully looked after her immediate and future wants. Such men as he are deserving of a greater tribute than that embodied in this brief review. A memorial window with his and the name of his father thereon was placed in the Christian church in his memory. Printed on this window are
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Judge Hooper's words of faith often expressed: "I believe in a great and a good God."
Mrs. Hooper is rearing and educating a girl, Ruth Jones, who serves as company for her in the home.
ALBERT J. SMITH.
Albert J. Smith, the efficient cashier of the State Bank of Lancaster, Kan., is a native son of Kansas, and has grown up with Atchison county. He is a son of one of the prominent early pioneer settlers of the county, and while yet, comparatively, a young man, he has made good at his chosen avocation and is considered one of the really successful banking men of this section of the State, his talents and ability seeming to be especially adapted to the pro- fession of banking.
Mr. Smith was born on a farm in Brown county, Kansas, January 13. 1879, a son of Thomas B. and Mary E. (Woodruff) Smith. The father of Albert J. Smith was born August 16, 1843, in Grant county, Indiana, a son of William J. and Lucinda ( Barkley) Smith, who were born and reared in Pennsylvania. The father of Lucinda Barkley Smith was a soldier in the War of 1812. William J. Smith removed with his family to Grant county, In- diana, and in 1851 migrated further westward to Bureau county, Illinois, where he made a permanent settlement, and died in that county in 1869. Lu- cinda (Barkley) Smith died in Illinois in 1862, at the age of sixty-two years. They were the parents of the following children : Mrs. Margaret Pugh ; Alvah, a veteran of the Civil war : Mrs. Lucinda Spangler : Isaac, Joseph, and William R. Thomas B. Smith, the father of Albert J., was eight years old when the family removed to Bureau county, Illinois, where he spent his boyhood days and received a common school education, finishing in the Dover ( Illinois) Academy. On the second call for volunteers issued by President Lincoln, he enlisted in Company B. Ninety-third regiment, Illinois infantry. He took part in a number of decisive and important battles and campaigns. Among them are, Jackson, Miss., and Dalton, Ga. On May 16, 1863, while serving in General McPherson's corps, he fought at the battle of Champion Hill and was severely wounded in the left shoulder. He was forced to remain in the hospital for some time and after his recovery he was placed on guard duty for the purpose of guarding the railroad bridges. At the close of the war he was honorably discharged and returned to his home in Bureau county,
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Illinois. After his marriage in 1866, he continued to farm in Illinois until 1874, when he removed to Kansas, locating first in Brown county, where he and his family lived for six years, and then came to Atchison county, where Mr. Smith purchased a farm of 160 acres in Grasshopper township, northeast of the town of Muscotah. He resided on this farm for twenty years and then moved to Effingham in 1900. He died in Effingham, November 29, 1914. Mrs. Mary E. (Woodruff) Smith, his wife, was a native of New Jersey, and a daughter of Nathan and Delia Woodruff.
Thomas B. Smith was married January 24, 1866, to Mary E. Woodruff, at Princeton, Ill. They were the parents of nine children, six of whom are living : Mrs. M. E. Beven, of Muscotah, Kan. ; Mrs. H. T. Reece, of Muscotah ; Mrs. J. C. Harman, of Auburn, Neb. ; Albert J., the subject of this review ; C. E., cashier of the Huron Bank, and T. B., of the Exchange National Bank of Atchison. Three daughters are deceased : Lettie, Gracie and Goldie. Mr. Smith was an enterprising and progressive citizen who did his duty in what- ever community he was located, during his long and useful life. While a resident of Grasshopper township he served as township trustee for four years. He was a member of the city council of Effingham one term, and filled the office of mayor for one term, and also proved his efficiency as a member of the Atchison County High School board for two terms. He was an honored member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Grand Army of the Republic, at Effingham. He was a stockholder and director of the banks at Lancaster and Huron, Kan. Mr. Smith was a member of the Presbyterian church for over fifty years. Mrs. Smith, the widowed mother, was born in New Jersey, in November, 1845, and now resides in Atchison.
Albert J. Smith was reared on the farm of his father and attended the district school in District No. 23, Grasshopper township, and later entered the Atchison County High School, Effingham, and was graduated in 1897. After his graduation he taught school in his home district for two terms, and in 1900 he received an appointment as clerk in the census bureau at Washing- ton, D. C., and served for two years in that capacity. He then returned to Effingham and entered the State Bank of Effingham, as assistant cashier and bookkeeper. He made a fine record for himself in this bank and in July, 1905, was one of the organizers of the Farmers and Merchants State Bank of Effingham, and held the office of cashier from the time of its opening until 1909, when he resigned his position and removed to Lancaster, where he be- came cashier of the Lancaster State Bank. Mr. Smith, in addition to his
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banking interests, is the owner of eighty acres of good land in Kapioma township, Atchison county.
Albert J. Smith was married in 1899 to Elizabeth R. Smith, and to this union have been born the following children : Dorothy, deceased; Gladys, Elizabeth and Albert, all living at home. Mrs. Elizabeth (Smith) Smith, was born on a farm in Grasshopper township, February 26, 1879, and, like her husband, is a graduate of the Atchison County High School. She also taught school for two years. She is a daughter of James K. and Elizabeth (Asquith) Smith, the former a native of Pennsylvania, and the mother a na- tive of England, and early settlers of Atchison county. Both are now deceased.
Mr. Smith has identified himself with the civic affairs of Lancaster and is recognized as one of the town's leading and enterprising citizens. He is a Republican and has served four years, from 1911 to 1915, inclusive, as mayor of Lancaster. His administration was successful and the affairs of the city were conducted with efficiency. He is a regular attendant of the Presbyte- rian church, and is affiliated with the Anti-Horse Thief Association, the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, the Modern Woodmen of America, and the Knights and Ladies of Security.
JOHN E. DUNCAN.
There is a proverbial saying that opportunity knocks once at every man's door, and a classic has been written by a great Kansas statesman, since de- parted from among us, which tells in musical language that Kansas spells opportunity for the young man. Opportunity presented itself to John E. Duncan, Missouri Pacific agent, at Shannon, Kan., and Mr. Duncan seized it, and held on for all he was worth, and made a success of his venture. His ambition first was to become a railroad man and telegraph operator, and probably in the early stages of his career the post of telegraph operator seemed to him to be the great height of attainment. He realized his first dream, and when he came to Shannon, Kan., to take charge of the Missouri Pacific busi- ness at that place, he conceived the idea of engaging in the buying and ship- ping of grain. This idea grew and he became a grain buyer and shipper. built an elevator, established a general store, opened an implement establish- ment, and became a prosperous and trusted business man of his adopted county. It is a fact that more grain is shipped from the little village of Shan- non through the agency of Mr. Duncan than any other point in Atchison
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county, outside of the city of Atchison. Mr. Duncan enjoys the respect, esteem and confidence of the prosperous farmers of the section tributary to Shannon, and they trade with him because of this confidence in his square- ness. A few years ago, when real hard times struck Kansas as a result of the droughts, Mr. Duncan showed his hearty good will and confidence in the eventual betterment of conditions by placing his trust in his farmer friends, and supplying such of those who were not blessed with ready cash, with credit for supplies at his store, and carried them until they were able to pay. This kindness has been appreciated, and the most cordial relations exist between Mr. Duncan and his patrons.
John E. Duncan was born March 21, 1863, in Moro, Madison county, Illinois. He is a son of John and Mary (Hooley)' Duncan, who had eight children, three of whom are now dead. The father was born in December, 1818, in Ireland. He left his native land in 18446 and sailed for New York. He engaged in farming in New York State, and was married two years later. In 1851 he came to Illinois and remained there until 1891. The mother of John Duncan was born in Ireland, also, in 1827. In 1848 she left there with a brother, William, and came to America. She died in 1907. Both parents were members of the Catholic church. The subject of this sketch was reared on the farm of his father and attended the grammar schools of Madison county, Illinois. When he grew to be a young man the long days of labor on the farm palled on him and he longed to get into different work. He had always had an ambition to become a telegrapher and when he was twenty- one years old he had a chance to learn that work. He worked as telegrapher for the Chicago & Alton Railroad Company until 1887, when he went to Everest, Brown county, Kansas, to become night operator for the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company. In the fall of 1887 he was sent by the same com- pany to Shannon, Atchison county, Kansas, to become the agent for the Mis- souri Pacific there. In 1892 he went into the grain business. He bought and sold grain for eight years, and at the end of a successful business period he erected the grain elevator at Shannon. This proved a profitable investment, and in 1907 he invested in a general merchandise store which he conducted until August, 1915, when his store building and stock were destroyed by fire, which was caused by lightning. Mr. Duncan has recently completed a hand- some new store building of cement blocks, 36x56 feet in size, which is attractively finished throughout and is well stocked with goods. In the fall of 1915 Mr. Duncan installed a line of agricultural implements and is the real merchant prince of his section of the county. Besides his business
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interests he is the owner of 200 acres of land in Macoupin county, Illinois, a nice residence in Shannon, and several town lots.
Mr. Duncan was married in 1890 to Margaret V. Clark, and to this union the following children have been born: John, associated with his father in business; Kathrine, aged sixteen years; Margaret, eleven years old; Bernadette, aged nine ; and Dorothy, four years of age, all of whom are liv- ing at home with their parents. Mrs. Duncan is a daughter of Mathias and Katherine (O'Grady) Clark, both of whom were born and reared in Ireland, and emigrated from their native land to America. She was graduated from the school of telegraphy at St. Louis, Mo., in 1889, and assisted her husband in his work at Shannon. Mr. Duncan is a Democrat and he and his family are members of the Catholic church. He is a member of the Knights of Columbus, of Atchison, Kan.
WILLIAM SCHAPP.
William Schapp, a Civil war veteran and an Atchison county pioneer, is a native of Germany. He was born in Wyler, Germany, January 26, 1840, and is a son of Peter and Margaret ( Bonns) Schapp. The Schapp family . immigrated to America in 1854, landing at New Orleans, I.a. They re- mained there but a short time, however, when they came up the Mississippi and Missouri rivers by boat and located at Weston, Platte county, Missouri, where a brother of Mrs. Schapp had located some time previously. Here the father entered the dairy business and prospered and the parents moved to Atchison, Kan., in 1868 and died in Atchison.
William Schapp received a common school education and grew to man- hood in Platte county. He entered the employ of James Steele, an extensive land owner, as overseer of his estate, and was thus employed when the Civil war broke out and soon after the beginning of hostilities, Mr. Schapp was drafted into the Confederate service. Four days after he became a Confed- erate soldier, his company was encamped on the banks of the Missouri river near Iatam, Mo. Young Schapp began to lay plans to escape, as he was a Union man at heart, and he had made up his mind that if he was going to serve in the army that he would serve under the stars and stripes. On the night he escaped the lieutenant of the company was killed accidentally while showing the men how to use a gun, and during the excitement incident to the killing, Mr. Schapp made his escape. During the night he secured a boat
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with one oar and drifted down the river, landing at Ft. Leavenworth. Here he lost no time in enlisting in Captain Black's company which afterwards became a part of Company B. Eighth Kansas regiment. The following night he piloted this company across the river to Iatam where they surprised and captured the Confederate company of which he had been a member the day he- fore. This act won from him the intense hatred of the members of the Confed- erate company, and even after the close of the war members of that company attempted to take his life. After serving about a month in Captain Black's company, he joined Company H, Eighteenth Missouri regiment and partici- pated in a number of important engagements. After the battle of Shiloh he was promoted to sergeant major. He was with Sherman on his march to the sea, and during that campaign, while at Decatur, Ala., his term of enlistment expired and he received special permission to accompany General Sherman's army through the campaign. On arriving at Savannah, Ga., he was placed in charge of fourteen soldiers whose term of enlistment had ex- pired and was the first to arrive in New York City, where they were met by bands of music and were treated royally by the people. He then returned to his former home in Platte county, but the secession spirit was so strong and so much antipathy was shown him on account of his loyalty to the Union that he decided not to remain, and accordingly, came to Atchison. The second night after arriving home he was warned by a friendly member of the Confederate company he had deserted to leave at once, as plans had been made to hang him. He left at once on the next train. He had saved about $800 during the war and loaned it to his uncle, John Bonns, who was engaged in the brewery busi- ness, and through a failure, Mr. Schapp lost every dollar of his savings. He then entered the employ of Julius Holthaus, who conducted a saloon and a grocery store. About a year later he engaged in the manufacture of brick in partnership with Jacob Nash. About five years later he engaged in the ice business, which he conducted about six years. He then bought a farm north of where the orphans' home is located, where he remained for twelve years, when he sold his farm and removed to Atchison, and engaged in the real es- tate business and has since been engaged in that business. Mr. Schapp has been very successful and has accumulated considerable property.
He was married in February, 1865, to Miss Margaret, a daughter of Gearhardt Kunders, a pioneer settler of Weston, Mo. Eight children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Schapp, as follows : Peter P. resides in California : Dora F. resides at home ; Mrs. Theodore Geritz, Atchison county ; Mrs. Theo- dora Arensberg, Atchison; Mrs. Henry Wersling, Atchison county, and Al- bert A .; William H., deceased ; Maggie, deceased.
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Mr. Schapp is one of the old timers of Atchison, and has seen that town develop from a little settlement on the bank of the Missouri river to the great prosperous commercial center that it is today. He has taken an active part in the political life of Atchison, and for seven years was a member of the city council, and served two years on the Atchison school board. Mr. Schapp cast his first vote for Abraham Lincoln for President, and has been a stanch adherent to the policies and principles of the Republican party since that day. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic.
THOMAS LINCOLN BLODGETT.
The passing of a good, industrious citizen from this mundane sphere to the realms of a higher and better life beyond the grave is akvays saddening, especially if his demise occurs while yet in the prime of his vigorous man- hood. Such a one was Thomas Lincoln Blodgett, late of Mt. Pleasant town- ship, who, though not permitted to dwell upon this earth the allotted time decreed for mankind, accomplished in the brief time he was actively engaged in agricultural pursuits more than the average man, and will long be remem- bered for his many excellent qualities by those who knew him best.
Thomas Lincoln Blodgett, late of Mt. Pleasant township, was born July 27, 1860, and lived and died in the township in which he was born in Atchison county, his demise occurring May 4, 1905. He was a son of George M. and Mary (Cline) Blodgett, his father having been born and reared in Michigan and came to Kansas when the State was created in the late fifties.
George M. Blodgett, the father of Thomas Lincoln Blodgett, was born in Livingston county, New York, October 6, 1834, a son of George W. and Lucinda (Garfield) Blodgett, and was a grandson of Thomas Blodgett. Thomas Blodgett, who was a soldier under Washington and fought for the independence of the American colonies, lived in Vermont, where he was a blacksmith and a farmer. He went to Michigan in 1856 and remained there to be near his son, George W., who had settled at Kalamazoo about 1846. Mr. Rowel, the father of Thomas Blodgett's wife, was also a Revolutionary sol- dier. The children of Thomas Blodgett were named George W., Riley and Jared. Riley went to Rhode Island and became connected with shipping inter- ests, navigating waters in the vicinity of Newport. Thomas died in Mich- igan in 1859. aged ninety years.
George W. Blodgett, the father of George M., was born in Vermont in
y Blodgato
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1800, and died in 1880, aged eighty years. His wife, Lucinda, was a daugh- ter of Solomon Garfield, of Ontario county, New York. She died in 1849, leaving the following named children : Orinda, who married Thomas San- ders ; George M .: Emma, who was Mrs. Nathan Allen, of Michigan, and John, deceased.
The education of George M. Blodgett was limited and he became used to hard work at an early age. He worked as hired hand and at logging in the pine woods of Michigan. When twenty-one years of age he left home and went to Winnebago county, Illinois, and took charge of a quarter section of land for which he had traded. Not liking his prairie surroundings he traded his farm for a small tract now within the limits of the city of Moline. Ill. He remained here for four years; then he traded this farm for a farm in Iowa which he sold. With his small means he came to Kansas, arriving in Atchison April 5. 1855. He took up a claim and bought land from the Delaware Indian lands and began developing his farm.
When volunteers were called for at the outbreak of the Civil war, Mr. Blodgett offered himself for the defense of his country's honor and was accepted as a member of Company F. Thirteenth regiment, Kansas infantry, (Colonel Bowen's regiment ), of the Seventh army corps, which was mustered into service at Leavenworth, Kan., and was in the military department of the West. Mr. Blodgett was a sergeant of his company and participated in many battles fought by his regiment in Missouri and eastern Arkansas and was once wounded by a bursting shell.
George M. Blodgett was married in 1857 to Mary E. Cline, a daughter of Henry Cline, an early settler of Atchison county. The children born to this union were : Thomas Lincoln. Frank F., Frederick. Luther, Mrs. Lavina Lawler, Mrs. Jessie Ellerman, and Lulu. The father of Thomas Lincoln Blodgett became quite wealthy and accumulated 500 acres of land. He served as deputy sheriff of the county in 1856 and filled many offices of trust in Mt. Pleasant township.
George M. settled on a pioneer farm in Mt. Pleasant township which he developed, reared a family, and died in the home which he built to house his family. He was the father of seven children, of whom Lincoln was the eldest.
Thomas Lincoln Blodgett was named in honor of Abraham Lincoln, who was greatly admired by the elder Blodgett. He was reared to young man- hood on his father's farm and learned to become an excellent farmer and stockman. After his marriage in 1881 he and his young wife lived on a farm owned by his father for four years, when they purchased 120 acres of
40
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land which formed the nucleus for a large farm which was later increased to 400 acres, now owned by Mrs. Blodgett. The first tract was bought on time, but by industry, economy and self-denial on the part of the ambitious couple, the debt was soon paid off and additional acreage was gradually added as the years went on. Mr. Blodgett was a successful live stock feeder and frequently fed one or two carloads of cattle on his farm each year. He was noted as a good judge of cattle and made money in his operations. The Blodgett farm is well improved and is considered to be one of the best in Atchison county.
He was married August 18, 1881, to Miss Ella Hudson, and to this mar- riage have been born five children, as follows: Robert, a farmer, near Cum- mings, Atchison county, Kansas; George, managing the home farm; Elmer, Mabel and Stella, at home with their mother. Stella is attending the high school at Potter. Mrs. Blodgett was born May 20, 1862, in Illinois, and is a daughter of Cyrenus and Elizabeth (Shaw) Hudson, the former of whom came to Kansas in 1867 with his family. Cyrenus Hudson was a native of Illinois who made good in Kansas, and at one time was the owner of 900 acres of land in Atchison and Jefferson counties, Kansas. In 1901 he re- moved to a home in Potter, where he is living retired. With other live citi- zens of the thriving town he has taken an active part in the upbuilding of his adopted city.
During his life and ever since he attained his majority, Thomas Lincoln Blodgett was allied with the Republican party and took a prominent part in political and civic affairs in his home township and county. He was a pro- gressive citizen as well as a successful and progressive farmer who was always in favor of matters which had for their intent the betterment of the public welfare and the advancement of the citizenship of Atchison county. He was ever ready to do his part in educational matters and was a member of the local school board. He was fraternally allied with the Modern Woodmen lodge, and was blessed with many warm friends and well wishers who esteemed him as a man and citizen. He was a kind parent who loved his wife and children and highly prized his home life and surroundings, and was ever striving to make his family happy and comfortable.
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