USA > Kansas > Jackson County > Portrait and biographical album of Jackson, Jefferson and Pottawatomie Counties, Kansas : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 99
USA > Kansas > Jefferson County > Portrait and biographical album of Jackson, Jefferson and Pottawatomie Counties, Kansas : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 99
USA > Kansas > Pottawatomie County > Portrait and biographical album of Jackson, Jefferson and Pottawatomie Counties, Kansas : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens > Part 99
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The Delaware Bank was incorporated under the State laws, Sept. 3, 1886, and is the only incorpor- ated bank at Valley Falls. It is already doing a large business, which is constantly on the increase. The President is J. M. Piazzek, the Vice President E. M. Hutchins.
REEMON ELMORE. A prominent place among the young business men of Jefferson County, is held by the above named gentle- man, who is Cashier of the Bank of Winchester, an institution which he organized in 1887. It was es- tablished with a capital stock of $50,000, and was opened with J. W. Ferris as President, L. Wilhelm, Vice-President, Freemon Elmore, Cashier ; and a board of Directors composed of J. K. O'Neill, W. L. Layson, R. S. Mercer and J. D. Lemon. The new institution has been very successful, will show a dividend of sixteen per cent for the year 1889, and in January, 1890, shows a deposit of $4.000. Previous to the establishment of this in- stitution, the banking business of the community was done almost exclusively in Leavenworth, and the first bank of Winchester is the pioneer in the town.
The gentleman who is the subject of this biog-
raphy is a native of Pike County, Mo., and a son of Freemon Elmore, Sr., and Martha (Orr) Elmore. Ilis mother was a North Carolinian, a daughter of Robert Orr and a granddaughter of James Orr who came from Ireland to America, and who was of Scotch-Irish descent and of the Presbyterian faith. The latter was a Revolutionary soldier and took part in the battle of Guilford Court House, N. C. Freemon Elmore, Sr., was a son of Benjamin El- more of North Carolina who moved to Pike Coun- ty. Mo., with his family in 1830, being one of the early settlers of that county. The marriage of the parents of our subject took place Dec. 22, 1831, and they reared eight children, of whom Free- mon, Jr., is the youngest.
Freemon Elmore, the subject of this sketch, was born July 13, 1853, and received an excellent High School education. He was in his twenty- third year when, in 1876, he came to Kansas, and found employment with Messrs McIntire & Layson, of Nortonville, Jefferson County. The firm after- ward became McCarty & Layson, and he continued in its employ until 1885 when he entered the Bank of Nortonville, as Assistant Cashier. After hold- ing that position for about a year he moved to Winchester and organized the bank as it now stands, the institution being opened for business a few months later. The energy and business tact displayed by Mr. Elmore, have been prime factors in the success of the institution and bid fair to make it ere long one of the chief institutions of the kind in Eastern Kansas.
Mr. Elmore and Miss Rose E. VanNess celebra- ted their marriage in Topeka, Kan., and are the happy parents of an infant son, William Leo. Mrs. Elmore is a cultured, intelligent and amiable woman, well fitted for her duties in life, and de- serving the love of her husband and the esteem of her many friends. She is a daughter of Daniel and Lucy ( Meet) Van Ness, of Topeka. Her paternal grandfather, Joseph Van Ness, was born in New Jersey and was a son of Jolin P. Van Ness. Bothı Mr. and Mrs. Elmore are members of the Meth- odist Church, and they take an active part in the work of that society. Mr. Elmore belongs to Nor- tonville Lodge, No. 19, I. O. O. F., has passed the Chairs and represented it in the Grand Lodge of
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the State. His genial nature and intelligent mind make him a pleasant companion and be is popular in the community where he has made his home.
C APT. W. P. MCCLURE, Clerk of Kentucky Township, Jefferson County, is one of the prominent business men of Thompsonville, where he is now engaged in the drug business, and where for a time he also sold groceries. He is a practical and well-informed pharmacist, and a man of thorough education, irreproachable character, and pronounced business ability. He won an hon- orable and enviable record during the Civil War, in the progress of which he experienced several nar- row escapes, among them being that of death by starvation.
The paternal ancestry of Capt. McClure came from Scotland and were settlers south of the Ohio River. His grandfather, George McClure, was born in Virginia and was an early settler in Ken- tucky, being a planter while in the Southern States. He finally removed to Indiana, locating near Vin- cennes, where he purchased land at twelve and a half cents per acre, and where prosperity attended his agricultural labors.
The father of our subject was Robert G. Mc- Clure, whose birth took place in the Blue Grass State in 1793. and who was taken by his parents to the Hoosier State when about five years old. On reaching manhood he became a farmer and the owner of a farm of 200 acres near Vincennes, which he operated until his death in October, 1875. During the War of 1812 he acted as a scout for Gen. Harrison. He was Justice of the Peace for twenty years, and served one term as County Judge. In politics he was a Jeffersonian Demo- crat.
The maternal grandfather of Capt. MeClure was Samuel Thompson, who was born in Virginia, and located in Indiana in 1805. He was a slave owner and took his bondsmen with him from Virginia, freeing them when Indiana was admitted to the I'nion; they all, however, remained with him until his death. He carried on farming on an extensive scale, and was a very prosperous man. His daugh-
ter, Jane Thompson, was also a native of the Old Dominion, and her death took place in the Hoosier State after she had borne her husband, Robert Mc- Clure, eleven children. Of these S. T. and Colum- bus are now engaged in farming in Indiana; Mrs. Mary J. Richter lives in Knox County, that State; so also does George; Napoleon D. lives in this county and township; Theodore resides in Knox County, Ind .; Charles is deceased; Ellen lives in Knox County; the next in order of birth is our subject; Margaret and Mrs. America Throne are living in Knox County.
Capt. McClure was born in Knox County, Ind .. Jan. 8, 1841, and spent his boyhood days on the banks of the Wabash, enjoying the sports of a hunter with his father, who was expert in bringing down game. He had the, advantage of good schools, and when eighteen years old entered the Academy near Vincennes, where he pursued his stud- ies until the breaking out of the Civil War. The residents of Indiana well remember what a wave of enthusiasm and patriotism swept through the State when Ft. Sumter was fired upon, and with what eagerness the Hoosier lads desired to serve their country, and how many devices were re- sorted to by those who sought admission to the army when parents thought them too young to go. or their services seemed needed at home. The schools and academies were rapidly depleted of all who could bear arms and pass the required physical examination, and sad was the heart of the youth who was compelled to remain at home.
Young McClure entered fully into this spirit of fervent desire to aid in the defense of the Union, and not long after the breaking out of the war he was enrolled in Company H, 51st Indiana Infantry, being mustered into service at Indianapolis, Oet. 23, 1861, as a private in the ranks. Less than a year later he was promoted to the rank of Ser- geant, and in July, 1863, held the highest non- commissioned office-that of First Sergeant. In February, 1864, he became First Lieutenant and the following May was commissioned Captain of his company, which he was then leading. and during the latter part of the war he acted as Major of the regiment and would have been commissioned as such had the conflict lasted a few months longer.
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In addition to the usual less notable though not less important duties of active army life, Capt Mc- Clure took part in the following famous battles- Perryville, Stone River, Shiloh and the siege of Corinth-during his first year's service. In 1863 the command went on a raid, marching from Mur- freesboro to Nashville, thence going by boat to Eastport, Miss., then over the country to Tus- cumbia, Ala., where they were fitted up with mules and rode on to Rome, Ga., where they de- stroyed a great deal of property and three supply trains. During this raid they engaged in severe contests at Day's Gap, Crooked Creek and Blunt's Farm. On May 3 they were captured by Gen. Forrest, and the confederates wished to try them for theft, grand larceny and incendiarism, under the State laws, but the Rebel General refused to surrender them to the civil government, preferring to retain them as prisoners of war. They were sent to Richmond via Atlanta, and were in the hands of the Confederates about twenty days, five being spent on Belle Isle. Capt. McClure was so thoroughly worn out and weak from lack of food that he fainted, but a comrade procured him some bread, and he managed to exist until the captives were taken to City Point and paroled, whence they reached their own lines. The command was sent to Columbus, Ohio, and after drawing new clothing went home on furlough.
Capt. McClure rejoined his command at Indian- apolis, thirty days later, and for four months they remained at Madison, Ind., guarding the hospital. They were then sent to Tennessee, and participated in the battles of Dalton and Franklin, and the siege and battle of Nashville, wintering at Huntsville, Ala., being in Eastern Tennessee when Lee sur- rendered, and when President Lincoln was assassin- ated. After taking part in the grand review of Gen. Thomas' army at Nashville, they were sent to Texas to guard the frontier, and Capt. MeClure was at San Antonio from August until he was mus- tered out Dec. 13, 1865. He was then sent to In- dianapolis where he received an honorable dis- charge, retiring with his captain's commission and a reputation for gallantry that is a proud in- heritance. His entire length of service had been four years and three months, during which time he
had many narrow escapes from wounds and death. Once while on a skirmish line he was separated from the rest of the boys, and the enemy's cannon being turned loose on him, his escape secmed al- most impossible, but he managed to keep behind trees and logs and get back to the line unhurt. At different times his coat tail and the brim of his hat were taken off by canister shot, but the only time they drew blood was when the skin was taken off the knuckles on his left hand.
After his return to civil life Capt. MeClure re- stmed his studies, taking up the scientific course at Hanover College, Indiana, and remaining there about one and one half years, when his health failed and he was obliged to abandon his books. In the spring of 1867 he came to Kansas, by rail and boat to Wyandotte, and thence on horseback to Perry, and buying a farm in Kentucky Township. worked upon it during the summer and taught school in the winter. His farm comprised 240 acres in the northern part of the township, and was in his possession until 1877, when he sold and changed his location. In 1868 he started the grocery busi- ness in Perry, under the firm name of Stark & Mc- Clure, and after carrying it on for six months, sold and went to Neosha County, where he took up a pre-emption claim of 160 acres. On this he built a house and remained there till cold weather, when le came back to this section to get money to live through the winter, and while he was away the claim was jumped, and he lost it,
Capt. McClure went to Morris County in 1873, and there made the preliminary filings for a home- stead of 160 acres, and after paying the necessary fees, breaking some ground and putting up a shanty, he was compelled to leave it, as he could find no employment there. He went back to his former home in Indiana and secured a position as teacher for a term of five months. In the spring when he got back to his claim, he found it had been jumped, and a contest was begun for it. He had been gone just six months and seven days, so lost the property, and the hardest part of the affair to him was the fact that the claim was taken by an In- diana soldier. After selling his farm in Kentucky Township, this county, Capt. McClure located near Thompsonsville on rented land, operating a farm
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until 1880, when he built the store which he is now occupying and engaged in the drug and gro- cery business. Six years later he abandoned the gro- cery trade, and has since devoted his attention exclusively to the compounding and sale of drugs.
The marriage of our subject took place at Thompsonville, Sept. 3, 1874, the noble-hearted and cultured lady who became his bride, being Miss Aurelia Brown. She was born in Butler County, Ohio, and is the daughter of the Hon. Val. Brown, whose sketch may be found elsewhere in this vol- ume, and which contains an account of her ancestry. Capt. McClnre and his wife are the happy parents of one child-Valorous Fremont.
Capt. McClure has been Clerk of Kentucky Township for seven years. He is a member of Corinth Post. No. 238, G. A. R., at Perry, and is now Commander. In politics he is an unflinching Republican. He is a Deacon of the Presbyterian Church at Perry, has been Superintendent of the Sunday-school, and is a leading member of that society. His education, talents and uprightness are well-known, and give him a prominent and influen- tial position, especially in his own township, by whose residents he is regarded with high esteem.
W ILLIAM M. HEDGE. Among the young business men of Jackson County, none show greater ability and enterprise than the gentleman above-named, who is a member of the firm of Hedge & Brown, whose hardware and tin store at Whiting is an honor to that city and to the county. Mr. Hedge was born near Princeton, Ill., Oet. 17, 1850, and is a son of James and Bridget (Fagan) Hedge, who were among the first settlers in that portion of the Prairie Statc. They were from County West Meath, Ireland, and settled in LaSalle County, Ill., about the year 1840, after- ward removing to the county west, where they re- mained until their death.
Mr. Hedge received a good common-school edu- cation, and lived in the Prairie State until the age of twenty-one, when he started out in the world for himself, coming West as far at Whiting, where at that time there were but three dwelling houses.
He bought a piece of prairie land just adjoining the town section on the south, it comprising one quarter of section 34, and this he brought under a state of thorough cultivation, breaking and fenc- ing it, building a good frame house, and setting out a fine orchard of peach and apple trees.
In the spring of 1877, Mr. Hedge, in partnership with A. S. Hlatch, opened a general merchandise store in Whiting Village, which they operated until the fall of 1878, when our subject sold his interest to his partner. The following spring, in company with W. E. Brown, he opened the first hardware and tin store in the township, and the firm of Hedge & Brown has continued to the present time. They have always owned the building in which they have conducted their business, but in October, 1883, met with a serious loss in the destruction of that which they then occupied, together with almost all the goods then in stock. The building was set on fire by a burglar in the adjoining room, which was then occupied as a drug store and postoffice. The safe was blown open and set fire to the building, and it and eight others were destroyed before the configration could be controlled. Having just re- ceived their fall stock of stoves and other goods, the firm of Hedge & Brown lost a large amount, which the insurance which they carried failed to cover within $5,000. The firm now has a larger and much finer building on the same site, and carry about $10,000 worth of goods, their sales running as high as $30,000 during the season. They employ a competent tinner in the shop. and everything about the establishment indicates that the proprie- tors' aim is to have it rank with the best.
Mr. Hedge was married on Dec. 19, 1878. to Miss Lizzie M., daughter of Michael and Kate (Manning) Brown, and a sister of the junior mem- ber of the firm. Mr. and Mrs. Hedge have been the parents of four children, two of whom died in infancy : Ernest Brown is now a lad of eight years, and Charles William is four years younger.
When Whiting was incorporated Mr. Hedge was elected as Mayor, and at the expiration of his first term was re-elected, and is the only Mayor the city has yet had. The place being strongly Republican, and Mr. Hedge a Democrat, his election is quite a compliment, and indicates the high opinion which
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his fellow-citizens have of his character and talents. He has also had the suffrages of the township (which is also strongly Republican) for their Trustee, and was nominated by the Democrats for Sheriff of the county. He not only does his part for the political body to which he belongs, but is identi- fied with all enterprises for the good of the town and county. He is not a member of any religious organization, but is a man of excellent moral char- acter, and an attendant with his wife of the Presby- terian Church, of which she is a member.
G EORGE KERR. In noting the prominent members of the farming community of Liberty Township, Jackson County, Mr. Kerr deserves due mention. He tills a well-regu- lated farm of 130 acres on section 18, where he has made good improvements and surrounded himself and his family with all the comforts of life. He is comparatively a young man, having been born June 16, 1857, and is a native of Platte County, Mo., where he spent the first eight years of his life, removing then with his parents to Davis County, that State. The father there purchased a farm where the family lived until 1872. John Kerr departed this life when his son, George, was an infant of eleven months. The mother was sub- sequently married to Frank Hill, and they came to Jackson County, Kan., in 1872, settling in the vicinity of Circleville, where they now reside.
Young Kerr remained with his mother until reaching man's estate, acquiring his education in the common school and becoming familiar with the art of plowing, sowing and reaping. He accom- panied the family to Kansas in September, 1872, and remained with them until 1875. He then com- menced working out on a farm and was thus occu- pied four years. In the spring of 1879 be settled on a farm on section 18, Liberty Township, where he resided five years. Then selling out he removed to Pottawatomie County, where he remained until the spring of 1889. Returning to the old farm he took up his abode and proposes there to remain for some time to come.
Mr. Kerr was married in Jefferson Township,
this county, June 20, 1880, to Miss Mary M. Clowe. This lady was born in Hocking County, Ohio, May 28, 1864, and was consequently a maiden of sixteen at the time of her marriage. To Mr. and Mrs. Kerr there have been born four children, the eldest of whom a daughter, Mintie, died in infancy. The survivors are John E., Nel- lie M. and Harrison. Mr. Kerr, politically, affiliates with the Republican party, but meddles very little with matters outside of his farming interests. His fields are thoroughly enltivated and he makes : specialty of stock-raising.
The maiden name of the mother of our subject was Mary J. Rader, and George was her only child by the second marriage. The parents of Mrs. Kerr were Elijah B. and Elizabeth (Whiteraft) Clowe, who removed from Circleville, Ohio, to Jackson County, this State, in 1868; they now live on a farm in Jefferson Township. Their family consisted of seven children, Mrs. Kerr being next to the youngest. Six of these are living.
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G ILBERT M. LEE. Among the large land- owners and stockmen of Jefferson County, none are hetter worthy a representation in a volume of this kind than he whose name heads this sketch. He is enterprising and progressive in the management of his estate and the business con- ducted thereon keeping thoroughly abreast of the times in the various machinery used by him, and in procuring thoroughly good breeds of animals; added to this he is a man of cultivated mind and of fine tastes, as may readily be learned by even a cursory view of his magnificent liome.
The dwelling of Mr. Lee is in Jefferson Town ship, and his home farm comprises 1,300 acres, one of its prominent improvements being a barn, 61x80 feet, with 16-foot posts of red cedar and fitted up in the most approved manner. The hay-mow has a capacity of 100 tons, and is filled by machinery which carries the hay to its place, each movement of the fork conducting a half ton of the fragrant mass; the lower floor is fitted with box stalls and perfect arrangements are made for cutting and mixing the feed which enters the mangers. This
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fine barn replaces a structure, 30x80 feet, which was blown away during the storm of May 11, 1887, and for which he received $800 (the full amount for which it was insured by the Home Insurance Company of New York,) a few weeks after the catastrophe.
Mr. Lee has some fine horses, among them being a Gold Dust colt, a splendid Netherland mare and "Joe", a young stallion two years old in June. All his equines are three-minute stock. His herd of twenty cattle includes a thoroughbred Holstein bull "Morris" 712, that was sired in New York, where he was bought by Mr. Lee, and two imported cows; all the stock in this herd are pedigreed, and the cows are such good milkers that six pounds of but- ter can be made from six quarts of cream. Mr. Lee also breeds thoroughbred hogs of the Poland- China stock.
The subject of this biography was born in Wayne County, Pa., Aug. 4, 1835, to Gilbert Minor and Phoebe (Ricks) Lee. His parents moved to Wisconsin in 1844 and having finished his fundamental schooling, the son attended the college at Appleton, acquiring a thorough knowl- edge of the branches on the college curriculum. In 1857 our subject took up his abode in Leaven- worth, Kan., and was there engaged in mercantile pursuits until 1861, when he moved to his rural home. The lady in whom he found united the qualities which he most, highly appreciated in womankind, was Miss Elizabeth, daughter of Ly- man and Charlotte E. (Ross) Scott, and sister of Lucien Scott, of Leavenworth, Kan. His regard being reciprocated, Mr. Lee was united in marriage with Miss Scott, who has since been his cherished companion, and with him enjoys the comforts and beauties with which they are surrounded, and the companionship of their chosen friends.
Mr. and Mrs. Lee live a quiet life on their mag- nificent estate, surrounded by their children and grandchildren, in whom they take great pride. They have but two children, Scott Mortimer and Mary E. Their son lives on a fine farm near their own, is married and has three children. The daugh- ter married J. T. Kirkham and lives on the home- stead and has two children. For years it was the custom of Mr. and Mrs. Lee to make a trip East
during the summer, but this became tiresome, and now they find their greatest pleasure in their own home, where they are to be found summer after summer. Mr. Lee makes quite a hobby of the cul- tivation of flowers, and the beautiful lawn about his home is brilliant with many hned blossoms for months. Their roses are especially beautiful being carefully trained and cared for by Mr. Lee, and each winter carefully housed and protected. He is highly respected by his fellow citizens. and his character and high financial standing eombine to render him an influential member of society. Mr. Lee served a term of two years, '60-'61 in the Legislature of Kansas, and it was through his in- fluence during this session that the County Seat of Jefferson County was located, Oskaloosa being the point.
OHN H. FAULK, contractor and builder, and mover of buildings, whose home is in Val- ley Falls, Jefferson County, is a thorough- going and capable man in his business, and a master workman at the trade which he followed for many years. He has also had considerable experience in agricultural life, and in that line of work also he was quite successful. He takes con- tracts for building houses, barns and bridges. and for several years has done all the bridge work in Delaware Township, and he has a full outfit for the work of moving buildings.
Before outlining the history of our subject a few lines regarding his progenitors will not be amiss, particularly as there are one or two interesting circumstances connected with the history of the past generations. His father, John A. Faulk, was a native of New Jersey, and born June 11, 1800. He was a son of Andrew Faulk, a soldier of the War of 1812, and went with his parents to Stark County, Ohio, during the year in which that strug- gle began. He married Miss Anna, daughter of Martin Dickerhoof and they had a family of thirteen children. The present survivors of this large cir- cle are: Mrs. Margaret Cross, of Fulton County, Ohio; our subject; Andrew, who lives in Circle- ville, Kan .; Adam, whose home is in Topeka; Wesley, a resident of Onega; Mrs. Anna E. Bine-
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