USA > Kansas > Butler County > History of Butler County Kansas > Part 93
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Mr. Tague was married in 1875 to Miss Mary Whitham, a daugh- ter of Josephus and Melvina Whitham. Mrs. Tague has a sister and half brother living. They are: Mrs. Eva Burton, Burns, Kans .. and Oliver Whitham, Cassoday, Kans. Mrs. Tague has not only been a companion, but a business partner of her husband and she has con- tributed in every way to his success. To Mr. and Mrs. Tague have been born the following children: C. D., Leon, Kans .; Mrs. Flora A. Crowley, Leon, Kans .: J. S., Douglass, Kans. ; Mrs. Daisy I. Kennedy, Augusta, Kans. ; M. M., El Dorado, Kans., and Mrs. Mary M. Brittian, El Dorado, Kans. Mr. Tague is one of the progressive and enterprising agriculturists of Butler county, and is recognized for his worth and in- tegrity by a large circle of acquaintances.
Robert Kinley of Bloomington township, is a Butler county pioneer who has witnessed all the stages of the settlement and development of this county from a vast unbroken waste to its present populous and prosperous state. He began farming in a small way, after the plan of the average pioneer, and has become one of the successful farmers and stock raisers of the county. Robert Kinley is a native of the Isle of Man and was born in 1843. He is a son of Edward and Isabella Kinley. Mr. Kinley immigrated to America in 1866, and settled in Ohio. After spending three years in that State, he came to Kansas in 1869, and lo- cated in Wilson county. Robert Kinley owned a farm in Wilson coun- ty which he sold and this deal proved to be an unfortunate one. He received a check for the purchase price of his farm but before he pre- sented it the bank upon which it was drawn failed. He then went to Il- linois, but in 1882 returned to Kansas where he owned eighty acres of land upon which he had proved up.
Mr. Kinley has followed general farming and stock raising and has been very successful. He now owns a well improved farm in Butler county which consists of 231 acres which is under a high state of culti- vation. He is one of the men who is entitled to the degree of success which has come to him. He had many experiences in the rough and ready pioneer days. He was here when the so-called "bad men" held sway on the border and the lives and property of early settlers were in secure, and he well remembers when this reign of terror was brought to
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a sudden close by the wholesale hanging of a number of horse and cat- tle rustlers by the vigilance committee. Mr. Kinley recalls an incident which happened to him at Douglass that made a lasting impression on his mind. He was looking for a certain man and inquired from some mien if they knew where he was and his informant pointed out a man to Mr. Kinley and told him to ask him where his man was. The man pointed out proved to be the chief of the vigilance committee and it de- veloped that the man that Mr. Kinley was looking for was a notorious horse thief and the chief of the committee was very much offended at Mr. Kinley's question and threatened to kill him. This is merely one of the many incidents of his early life on the plains. He also had his ex- perience with early day prairie fires and blizzards. On one occasion when he was hauling lumber from Florence to Walnut City he was caught in a blizzard with the thermometer ten degrees below zero and succeeded in keeping from freezing by continually walking.
Mr. Kinley was united in marriage in 1881 with Miss Mary Kaigh- in, a daughter of John Kaighin, and the following children were born to this union : Cora, Mary, Eva, Robert, Ruby and Florence, the last two being deceased. Mrs. Kinley died in 1893. Mr. Kinley lived in El Dora- do for a number of years in order that his children might have the ad- vantage of better schools and during that time worked at his trade of blacksmithing. In 1909 he returned to his farm and since that time has given it his undivided attention. He is one of the substantial citizens of Butler county and has made good.
W. A. Sherar, a successful Union township farmer and stockman, is a native of Kansas. He was born at Paola, Miami county, Decem- ber 15, 1867, and is a son of George and Anna C. Sherar, being one of the following children born to them: M. D., Anthony, Kans. ; W. A., Latham, Kans .: Mrs. Minnie Sipe, Denver, Colo .; Mrs. Dottie Hos- kins, Lamar, Colo., and W. A., the subject of this sketch. After the death of the mother of these children, the father was married to Mary Prosser, and two children were born to that union: W. B. Sherar and Mrs. Maude Kelsey, Winfield, Kans.
George Sherar, the father, served in the Union army, during the Civil war, and shortly after the close of that great conflict, like many of the other soldier boys, he came to Kansas, first locating in Miami county. In 1871 he came to Butler county and homesteaded a quarter section of land in Union township. This was an early day in the settle- ment of that section of the county. Upon coming here, Mr. Sherar proceeded to build a home, hauling the lumber for the same from Humboldt, and some from Wichita. The father was quite a hunter, and frequently went farther west on buffalo hunts. The family was well provided with buffalo meat and other wild game.
W. A. Sherar, as a boy, saw much of the early life of Butler county. He remembers when Milo Nance, then a young man, came from Doug- lass in haste, spreading the news of an Indian uprising, and all the set-
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tlers hid their supplies in the fields; the men proceeded to mold an extra supply of bullets, and the women and children hid in the fields, and they prepared to meet the attack, when it developed that it was a false alarm. This was one of the many incidents of the false report of a would-be Paul Revere of the plains. One of the greatest hardships of the early settlers was the long distance to medical aid and the time required to get a doctor. El Dorado was the nearest point where a physician could be found in the early days in Union township.
W. A. Sherar has always followed farming and stock raising. He got his start in life, when a young man, by breaking prairie for neigh- bors. He is of the thrifty and industrious type of men, who not only accumulate a competence for themselves, but build up communities. He owns 360 acres of land, about ninety acres of which are under culti- vation, and the balance is used for grazing purposes. His place is well improved, with a modern residence, good barns and well fenced, and he has a never-failing spring, which is an asset of inestimable value, particularly to a stockman.
Mr. Sherar was married, in 1898, to Miss Mable Ellis, a daughter of S. C. and Mary Ellis of Latham, Kans. Mr. Sherar is a progressive and public spirited citizen, and has an extensive acquaintance, and he and his wife have many friends.
G. H. French, a well-to-do farmer and stockman of Sycamore town- ship, was born in Windsor, Vt., in 1856, and is a son of Charles H. and Laura French. Mr. French came to Kansas in 1884 and first settled near Abilene. After remaining there two years, he came to Butler coun- ty shortly after his marriage in 1886. He first rented land of S. S. Harsh and five years later bought eighty acres of that place. When he bought the place he had about $200 to pay down and he paid the balance in the next five years. He sold this place in 1896 and bought 160 acres where he now lives in Sycamore township. He has added to this and now has a fine farm of 320 acres which is under an excellent state of cul- tivation, well improved, fenced and stocked. Mr. French has been an extensive raiser of cattle and hogs and has been successful and is one of the prosperous landowners in Sycamore township.
Mr. French was married in 1886, to Miss Evora Holton, a daughter of Reuben and Lorena Holton, natives of Vermont, and of English de- scent. Mrs. French is one of the following children born to her parents : Mrs. Cornelia Smith, Red Wing, Minn .; Mrs. Rose Smith, Cassoday, Kans .; Wallace Holton. DeGraff, Kans .; Charles Holton, Abilene, Kans. ; and Mrs. French. Mr. and Mrs. French have reared one adopt- ed daughter, Mrs. Merle Pettyjohn, El Dorado, Kans.
When Mr. and Mrs. French located in Sycamore township, their home was near the old California trail, which passed between where their house and barn are now located. Traffic was very heavy over this trail in the early days and Mr. French has counted as many as eighty- five teams which passed here in one day. Sycamore Springs was a fav-
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HISTORY OF BUTLER COUNTY
orite camping place for travelers because of its excellent water. In- dians also frequently passed and sometimes in large bands after Mr. French located here.
There were no churches in Sycamore township at that time but services were held in the school houses. Rev. Sears was one of their pioneer preachers. Prairie fires were one of the menaces to the early settlers' peace of mind, and Mr. French has fought prairie fires on many occasions. He is one of Butler county's pioneers who is well en- titled to success for he and his noble wife endured the hardships and overcame the difficulties of pioneer life and are the type of people who courageously fought the good fight that, not only built up Butler coun- ty but laid the foundation for the great West.
S. J. Robison, a prominent farmer of Union township, is a native of Indiana. He was born in Valparaiso, that State, in 1843. He is a son of Thomas and Rebecca Robison, natives of Pennsylvania. The former is of German and the latter of Scotch descent. They were the parents of two children: S. J. Robison, the subject of this sketch, and Mrs. Abigail Hubbard, of Marceline, Mo.
The Robison family migrated from Indiana to Missouri and settled in Carroll county in 1868. Here the father bought 136 acres of land and engaged in general farming. He and his wife both died in Carroll coun- ty, Missouri. S. J. Robison bought the home farm in Missouri in 1891 and in 1895 came to Kansas, locating in Union township, Butler county, where he bought 320 acres of land. He has since been engaged. in farming and stock raising there, and has met with unusual success and is one of the prosperous and substantial stockmen of that section of the county.
Mr. Robison was married in 1871, to Miss Mary E. Shannon, a daughter of James and Saphira Shannon. Her father was a Virginian of Irish descent. To James and Saphira Shannon were born the follow- ing children : Mrs. Rebecca Jeffers, Maronsville, Mo .; James, resides in Missouri; Ervin, California; Mrs. Virginia Older, Oklahoma; James, Oregon; Charles, California ; William, California ; and Mary E., wife of . I. J. Robison, the subject of this sketch. Mr. and Mrs. Robison are the parents of the following children : Samuel, Lamar. Colo .; John, Latham, Kans., and James, Lamar, Colo.
Mr. Robison is one of the substantial citizens of Butler county, and while he may not be classed among the pioneer settlers, he certainly is entitled to mention as a potential factor in civil and commercial Butler county of today.
Mrs. William Hoy, a pioneer woman of Sycamore township, was born in Perry county, Ohio, in 1844. She bore the maiden name of Davison, and was a daughter of William D. and Amelia Davison. natives of New Jersey. There were two other children in the Davison family besides Mrs. Hoy, as follows: Mrs. Martha I. Jeroan, Vanata, Ohio, and Albert W. Davison, Utica, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Hoy were
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married in 1869, and the following children were born to this union, . who are now living: Mrs. Etta Goodnight, Englewood, Kans .; Mrs. Daisy Roberson, Cassoday, Kans .; Frank E., Cassoday, and Mrs. Ethel Wright, Aroya, Colo.
After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Hoy resided in Ohio until they came to Butler county and bought eighty acres of land in Sycamore township. This place was slightly improved, and had a small three roomed house and a straw barn. During the first few years here. they met with discouragements, which were the common lot of the pioneers, and they had a great deal of sickness, but Mrs. Hoy says that although the neighbors were not numerous, they were always ready and willing to help each other, for it seems that the sordid and indifferent dispositions, fostered by the almighty dollar, had not, at that time, taken root on the wild and unbroken plains of Butler county. The Hoy home in Butler county was located on the old California trail, and a great many travel- ers topped at their. place for meals and lodging and always found ac- commodation, none ever being turned away. Indians frequently traveled back and forth over the trail, and, at one time, a band of 250 camped near the Hoy home for two days.
Mr. Hoy was a hard working man and a good citizen. He always looked on the bright side of life, and was naturally of a jovial disposi- tion. He took a deep interest in the welfare of the community, and was particularly a friend of the public schools, and served on the local school board for a number of years. He died in July, 1912. He was a great stifferer for several months before his death, and bore the most ex- cruciating pain with fortitude and resignation. He not only bore the distinction of being a good citizen, but in the dark days of the Civil war, he enlisted as a private and served until the surrender of Lee.
Mrs. Hoy has been deeply interested in Sunday school and church work throughout her life, and is a potent factor for good in her com- munity. She helped organize the first Sunday school in Sycamore township, and is one of the noble, pioneer women of Butler county.
W. Oscar Moore, a prominent farmer and stockman of Murdock township, is a member of one of Butler county's old pioneer families. He was born in Kendall county, Illinois, in May, 1852. His parents were Reuben and Minerva (Paul) Moore, both natives of Illinois. In the early days the family went from Illinois to Iowa and from there to Texas, and thence to Missouri. In 1857 they settled in Douglass coun- ty in the Territory of Kansas. This was four years before Kansas was admitted to the Union. After remaining in Douglass county for ten years, the family removed to Butler county in 1867, settling in Murdock county, being among the very first settlers of that section, and here the father engaged in farmning and stock raising and spent the remainder of his life. To Reuben and Minerva (Paul) Moore were born the follow- ing children: Edgar, Lawton, Okla .; J. Monroe, Elgin, Kans .; W. Os- car, the subject of this sketch ; Mrs. Melissa Taylor, Toronto, Kans., and Mrs. Etta Wiley, Altoona, Kans.
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HISTORY OF BUTLER COUNTY
WV. Oscar Moore grew to manhood on his father's farm in Murdock township and started in life for himself by purchasing eighty acres of land from his father in 1876. He immediately began work on his new place, breaking out a little prairie during the summer of the first year and then he was compelled to sell his team in order to get money to build a little house and live during the winter. The next year he had a good crop of wheat, although he had but seven acres. This gave him a start and since that time he has met with unvarying success and is one of the substantial men of Murdock township.
Mr. Moore was married in April, 1872, to Miss Louisa Adams, a daughter of David and Sarah Adams. The Adams family consisted of the parents and three children, as follows: Mrs. Lavina Turner, of Wichita ; Elmer, Duncan, Okla., and the wife of W. Oscar Moore, the subject of this sketch. To Mr. and Mrs. Moore have been born five children, as follows: Mrs. Effie Courter, Tahoma, Okla. ; Arthur, South Haven, Kans .; Reuben, Whitewater, Kans .; Orin, Whitewater, Kans .. and Ray, Benton, Kans. Hazel Newcomb, a granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. Moore, makes her home with them and is attending school. The members of the Moore family are well known and highly respected and number among the leading citizens of the locality where they reside.
W. H. Bodecker, a Butler county pioneer, came to Butler conIn- ty at a time when many early settlers were having a struggle for existence, but Mr. Bodecker was not of that type. He had the fore- sight to see great possibilities in the future of this section of Kansas and the courage to act according to his convictions. He invested heav- ily in lands, and, as a reward of his capability and industry. he has be- come one of the wealthy men of the county, and is now the largest land owner in Murdock township.
Mr. Bodecker was born in Adams county, Illinois, in 1853, and is a son of G. D. and Anna Bodecker, Illinois pioneers and of German de- scent. He came to Butler county in 1885 and bought 160 acres of land. Having some means when he came here, he was in a position to take advantage of opportunities when he saw them. He started in Butler county with a cash capital of $7,000 and bought land from time to time, not only in Butler, but Sedgwick and Comanche counties, until he became the owner of 3.371 acres. Some of this land has not only doub- led, but more than tripled in value since he bought it. He went into the cattle business extensively. and became one of the successful cattle men of this part of the State. In 1907, he realized $21,000 from cattle alone, and that was just about an average year.
Mr. Bodecker was married, in 1878, to Miss Marguerite Schmitt of Illinois, and a daughter of Andreas Schmitt, a prosperous farmer of that State. To Mr. and Mrs. Bodecker have been born the following children: Louis, Benton, Kans .; Mrs. Emma Leeder, Benton, Kans. : Mrs. Rose Wilson, Angusta, Kans .; W. J., Benton, Kans. ; Mrs. Chris- tina Ohlson, Benton, Kans .; Frank, Benton : Nellie, Viola and Beatrice, all of Wichita.
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In 1912, Mr. Bodecker retired from active business life and built an $8,000 residence in Wichita, where he now resides. At the time that he retired, he gave each of his five children a quarter section of land. and they are all successful and well-to-do farmers and stockmen. The Bodecker family are well known in Butler county, and are prominent in the community where they reside.
B. Levring, a prominent farmer and stockman of Benton township, is a native of Ohio. He was born in Knox county in 1858, and is a son of Enoch and Amanda Levring, natives of Ohio. The Levring family consists of the following children : Riley, Levring, Ohio; Judson, Ches- terville, Ohio; Charles R., Fredericktown, Ohio; Dr. C. A., Ashland, Ohio; Mrs. Ella Vernon, Fredericktown, Ohio: Mrs. Maggie Wright. Alexander, Ohio; and B., the subject of this sketch.
Mr. Levring came to Kansas and located in Benton township, But- ler county, in 1885. He first bought eighty acres of land, to which he moved and began improving and later bought forty acres adjoining his original purchase, and he also owns eighty acres of land in Sedg- wick county. He has devoted himself to general farming and stock raising, and is one of the successful agriculturalists of Butler county.
Mr. Levring was married in 1884. to Miss Emeline Malick, a daugh- ter of Noah and Martha Malick. of Ohio. Four children were born to this union, as follows: Mrs. Gertrude Workman, San Diego, Cal. ; Allen R., lives in Sedgwick county, Kans .; Mrs. Edith Bachelder. Wichita, Kans., and Clifford O., resides in Sedgwick county. The wife, and mother of these children, died in April, 1904, and Mr. Levring married Mrs. E. A. McGehe, of Illinois, in 1908.
Mr. Levring takes an active interest in local affairs and has always been a strong advocate of good schools and served on the school board of his district for eighteen years. He is one of the substantial and well known men of this section.
John Ellis, a prominent farmer and stock raiser of El Dorado, be- longs to one of the real pioneer families of Butler county. The Ellis family was among the first who made a permanent settlement in this county. John Ellis was born in Waukegan, Lake county, Illinois, April 13. 1854, and is a son of Archibald and Ann (Tiernan) Ellis, both na- tives of Ireland, the former of Castlebar, County Mayo, and the latter of County Meade. They both came to America on the same sailing ves- sel and were married after reaching New York. They resided for a time in New Jersey and then came west, locating in Lake county. Illinois, and in 1859 came to Kansas. There were no railroads in Kansas at that time.
The Ellis family came from Illinois to Kansas by river route. Tak- ing a boat at the Illinois river at LaSalle, Ill., they went down the Il- linois and Mississippi rivers to the confluence of the Mississippi Mis- souri and then up the Missouri to Westport Landing, which is now Kansas City, Mo. They drove overland from there to Emporia and the
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HISTORY OF BUTLER COUNTY
father and the oldest son, George, started out from that point to look for a location, leaving the mother and the younger children at Emporia. After finding a suitable location in Chelsea township, Butler county, on the Walnut river, they started back to Emporia for the other members of the family, and while crossing the Cottonwood river their team was drowned and they narrowly escaped the same fate themselves. They soon returned to Butler county and the father preempted the land which he had decided upon and that same quarter section is still owned by a member of the family.
The father engaged in the cattle business and was considered quite an extensive cattleman for those early days. He was successful in his business ventures, and at the time of his death owned about 1,600 acres of land. When a young man he was a candle and soap maker by trade but never worked at that after coming west. He was a man of an ad- venturous spirit, with unlimited courage and enterprise. In 1847, while his family remained in Illinois, he went to California, going by way of New York and the Isthmus of Panama. He returned to Illinois within two years and in 1849 made another trip to California. This was dur- ing the excitement following the discovery of gold there, and he re- mained about seven years that time, engaged in gold mining and met with some degree of success. Shortly after returning from the coast the second time, he came to Kansas with his family, as above stated.
When the Ellis family came to Butler county there was no town or settlement of any kind in the county. Leavenworth, about 200 miles distant, was the nearest trading point of any account and the father usu- ally made about two trips a year there for supplies. Their nearest post- office was Emporia, about eighty miles distant. Later Cottonwood Falls secured a postoffice, and finally one was established at Chelsea. For sev- eral years the nearest grist mill was at Emporia. Few of the early settlers now living in Butler county were here in time to see the buffalo roam- ing over the plains in this county, but Mr. Ellis, whose name introduces this sketch, has seen as many as 150 in a herd here, and deer were plen- tiful for several years after the buffalo disappeared.
Archibald Ellis, father of John Ellis, was not only successful in private life, but was prominent in the public affairs of the county dur- ing his life time. He was a Democrat and took an active part in politics. He served two terms as treasurer of Butler county and was a member of the board of county commissioners at the time of his death. He was a conspicuous figure in the early day county seat fight, as well as in other important matters of public interest. He died in 1879 and was survived by his wife for a number of years, who died in 1892. Arch- ibald Ellis and wife were the parents of the following children : George, deceased : Mollie, married N. B. Coggshall, Chelsea township; Archie. deceased ; John, the subject of this sketch; William, deceased ; Lizzie, deceased : and Frank, deceased.
Although comparatively a young man, John Ellis remembers
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IIISTORY OF BUTLER COUNTY
having seen almost the beginning of Butler county. When he came here with his parents, there were few signs of civilization, no improve- ments and scarcely any inhabitants. One would get the impression from that statement that Butler county was new. It is new, but the astounding part of it is, that such marvellous development could take place within less than half a century; within the memory of a young man ,who is still active in the business affairs of the life of the county.
John Ellis attended one of the first schools in Butler county. It was a little log affair, located on George T. Donaldson's place in Chel- sea township. The school house did double duty; something on the Gary plan that we hear of nowadays. In the summer time it was used for a school house and in the winter time, it posed as a corn crib. Mr. Ellis' first teacher was Margaret Vaught. Indians were plentiful but peaceful, usually going through on hunting trips; Indian scares were frequent but generally unfounded.
John Ellis engaged in farming for himself at the age of nineteen and he has increased his business gradually until he has become one of the extensive farmers and stock raisers of Butler county. His principal products are hay, cattle and horses. He operates about 1,750 acres of land in Chelsea and Sycamore townships, and for the last sixteen years has resided in El Dorado, where he has a modern home. He spends nearly every day on his farm, going to and from in his automobile. Mr. Ellis is interested in various commercial and industrial enterprises, in addition to his vast farming interests. He is vice president of the Farmers and Merchants Bank of El Dorado and vice president of the Telephone company. He has taken an active interest in political af- fairs and has served two terms as county commissioner of Butler coun- ty.
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