USA > Kansas > Marshall County > Portrait and biographical album of Marshall County, Kansas : containing full page portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the county > Part 86
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whom Mrs. Beach is the sole survivor. Later, the Rev. Mr. Reed was united in marriage with Miss Laura Adams Brown, a lineal descendant of John Quincy Adams, and after a long and useful life passed to rest April 29, 1888. He had given his children a good education, Mrs. Beach completing her studies in the Rockland Female Institute at Nyack on the Hudson, after which she taught one year in the Waterville Seminary. Nature endowed her with fair musical talents, and when a young lady she entered Lyons Musical Academy, from which she was graduated with honors. She tanght music for several years while a resident of Blue Rapids. Some excellent musicians of that place were in former years pupils of hers, and of them she is justly proud. She is a lady of culture and refine- ment, and the entire family occupy a high position socially in their community. A relative of Mrs. Beach, George Parsons Lathrop, noted in literature, married Rose Hawthorne. the daughter of Nathan- iel Hawthorne. Also a cousin of Mrs. Beach, Wirt Sykes, married Olive Logan, and was for several years Consul at Wales. It will be ob- served by a careful reading of this biographical sketch, that this family, together with their ances- tors, have been prominent in the settlement and history of four States.
It is the oft-repeated pleasure of Mr. Beach and his amiable wife to turn their thoughts in sweet reminiscence to the days when Kansas was a new country, peopled only by the birds and beasts which frequented solitary spots and lonely prairies. After they had learned the lay of the land, our subject and his wife used to leave the main roads and take a short cut across the high prairies. Oc- casionally they would come upon a spot so iso- lated from all human habitation, that, stopping to look in every direction about as far as the eye could span to either horizon, it would seem that no human footstep had ever pressed the soil before. except for the faint trace of a rut in the tall grass that they might come upon now and then. marking the old California highway of years ago. It is not unlike the sensation of being far out at sea; on all sides were long stretches of billowy prairie simi- lar to ocean waves. The tall grass would bend low with the gentle Kansas breezes, then rise only
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to meet another fall, and so on in endless success- ion. The plumed heads of grass shone white in the sunlight, like foam on the crest of the wave. Involuntarily the thoughts would turn to the rhyme of the Ancient Mariner:
Alone, alone. All, all, alone. Alone on a wide, wide sea ; So lonely 'twas that God himself, Scarce seemed there to be.
The country is now so well settled that such complete solitude would be looked for all in vain.
AMES M. LANE. This gentleman is one of the leading and most successful bus- iness men of Frankfort, where for the past fourteen years he has owned and operated the Frankfort elevator. Ilis business as a buyer of grain, has given him a wide acquaintance through- out the country, and he is generally recognized as a popular and public-spirited citizen. Ever since his arrival in Frankfort, in 1875, he has identified him- self with every movement, and been prominent in every effort calculated to advance the interests and insure the permanent prosperity of that thrifty and growing city.
A native of Ohio, our subject came to Kansas equipped by education and experience for a suc- cessful business career. He possessed the energy, integrity, perseverance and the industry needed to overcome the obstacles that usually beset men who seek to establish themselves in new and growing communities, where competition is fierce, and where those who are not " hustlers" are destined to be distanced in the race for fame and fortune. He has won his way by hard work. prudent business methods. unswerving integrity and unflagging in- dustry.
The birth of our subject occurred Oct. 13. 1849, near Lancaster, Fairfield Co., Ohio, and he is the youngest of a family of seven children. His father, William Lane, and his mother, Maria (Griswold) Lane, were natives of the same State as their son. His mother's parents were natives of Connecticut, and were of Welsh and French ancestry. When
our subject was about six years of age. his father. who had been previously engaged in mercantile business, sold out and purchased a farm near Lan- caster, Ohio, in the care and cultivation of which he passed the remainder of his life. He died in 1878 at the age of seventy years. The mother is still living in Shelbyville, 111.
The brothers and sisters of our subject. were six in number. namely: Malcolm, Marquis. Naomi. Rachael, John and Henry M. Malcolm, upon the breaking out of the Rebellion, entered the Union army. He went out as Sergeant-Major of the 17th Ohio Infantry, served in the army of the Cumber- land under Sherman, followed that celebrated com- mander to the sea, and left the service at the close of the war a commissioned officer, having been pro- moted to the captaincy of Company I. He now is a prosperous farmer, residing near Shelbyville, Ill. Naomi is the widow of the late William Propeck, who went to Texas seven years ago, and secured a tract of land, over a large portion of which the city of Dennison has since extended, making it very valuable and the owner very wealthy. Mrs. Propeck is the mother of five children. Rachael married Jesse Cullumber, a well-to-do farmer, who resides near Shelbyville, Il .; they have seven chil- dren. John died when seventeen years old. Henry M. lives near Frankfort, this State; he is a farmer, is married and has one child.
Mr. Lane's childhood and youth were spent on his father's farm. He attended the public school until he was seventeen years of age, when he went to the lligh School at Baltimore, Ohio, and took a course of the higher branches. He then became a clerk in a general merchandising store in Dayton. Ohio, where he remained until he was about twen- ty-one years of age. when he went to Shelby County and was book-keeper for a mercantile house for two years. He then went to Worthington, Minn., where being desirous of still further advancing his education. he became a student of the Worthing- ton Seminary, after which he entered the employ of the milling firm of Miller & Carlisle, as a book- keeper. He remained with them about a year, and in 1875, as before stated, he came to Frankfort, and engaged in the grain buying and elevator business, which he has successfully carried on to the present
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time. On Dec. 25th, 1876, Mr. Lane was married to Miss Ella Williams. a resident of Frankfort. Her parents are natives of New York State, and of Welsh-English descent. Mr.and Mrs. Lane have had born to them one child, a boy, now eleven years of age.
It was not long after Mr. Lane's arrival in Frank- fort. before he began to identify himself with those enterprises in which public-spirited citizens usually interest themselves. His business naturally brought him in contact with the farmers of the county. and they found in him a man just and honorable in all his dealings, and they soon learned to confide in and esteem him as an upright business man, a cour- teous gentleman and a worthy citizen.
Our subject has held the offices of city Treas- urer for four years, and also Secretary of the Frankfort Fair Association for four years. lle is now serving his second term as Clerk of the School Board of Frankfort, and also Secretary of the Board of Trade and of the Frankfort Association. He is a member of Frankfort Lodge, No. 67, A. F. & A. M., in which he has served in various official capacities. In politics he is a stanch Republican. lle was a delegate to the Republican State Conven- tion in 1886, and has served a number of times as a delegate to county conventions.
ORATIO BLANCHARD was born Feb. 11. 1835, in Tolland County, Conn. When but eighteen months old. his parents, George and Caroline ( Bradley ) Blanchard, removed to the eastern part of the State, where our subject was reared and educated. The spring of 1861 found him thoroughly animated by the patriotic spirit that led so many thousands of our country- men to offer their lives to their country, and he was enrolled among the members of Company C, 6th Connecticut Infantry. Enlisting as a private, he was, before going into service, promoted to the rank of Second Lieutenant, and a short time later was again promoted, this time to the rank of First Lieutenant. Being taken sick, he by the doctor's advice resigned and went home. But upon recov-
ering his health, he re-entered the service, organiz- ing, in company with Capt. T. K. Bates, Company B. of the 18th Connecticut Infantry, which, enroll- ing in August, 1863, served until the close of the war. Our subject, after serving as First Lieuten- ant for over two years, was promoted to the cap- tainey of Company G. Among the many engage- ments in which he took part, was the well known battle of Winchester. At the close of the war he returned to Connecticut, and in 1869 came to this county, where he had previously bought a half sec- tion of land. He took a homestead of eighty acres and settled down to the life of a Kansas farmer.
He now owns 240 acres of thoroughly cultivated prairie, together with twenty acres of timber land, on section 22, Walnut Township. He has erected neat farm buildings, entirely adequate to his needs. and displaying an air of comfort pleasant to be- hold. Ilis farm is altogether one of the most at- tractive in the township.
Mr. Blanchard was married in this county to Florence, daughter of Enos and Belle (Bartley) Neal, natives respectively of Virginia and New York. The families of both parents had removed to Irontown, Ohio, when they were quite young, and in the Buckeye State they were married, removing soon after to Illinois, thence to Missouri, and thence in 1881 to Marysville, where they still live. Mrs. Blanchard is a native of Missouri, where she was born Dec. 7, 1861. She is the mother of two chil- dren-Bessie L. and Delia C.
The subject's paternal great-grandfather was William Blanchard, a native of Rhode Island, in which State he spent his last days. His son, Caleb, married Betsey A. Walker, a native of Connecticut, afterward removing to the latter State. His son, George Blanchard, father of our subject, was born in Rhode Island. but when a boy, removed with his parents to Connecticut, and was reared at En- field, that State. The mother of our subject was left an orphan when a child, her father, a sea cap- tain. having been lost at sea. She was reared by the Shakers at Enfield.
Mr. Blanchard, our subject, is a member of Lyons Post, G. A. R., of Marysville. He is a straight Republican, never failing to cast his vote as in his opinion the best interests of the country demand.
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He is an attendant of the Methodist Episcopal Church. in which his wife is a consistent member in high standing. Ile takes great pride in his beanti- ful farm. as well he may, and also in his cozy resi- dence, a lithographie engraving of which appears elsewhere in the ALBUM. He is highly respected by all who know him for his upright character. gallant war record and good citizenship.
AMES MONTGOMERY. farmer and stock- raiser, resides on a fine farm on section 4. Wells Township. IIere he is carrying on a successful business in agriculture and the raising of Hereford cattle. His farm. though not so large as some in the township. consisting of only eighty acres, is highly productive. and furnished with substantial and adequate buildings.
Mr. Montgomery was born in Madison County. Ind., July 6. 1855, and is a son of Roland and Se- repta Montgomery. Both parents were natives of the Hoosier State, and their ancestors were Irish and English, respectively. The parental family con- sisted of three children, of whom our subject was the eldest. The mother died early in the sixties, and the father now resides in Wells Township. this county.
When a child of about two years, his parents re- moved to Knox County, Ill., where he was reared to manhood. He received a good education in the Knoxville graded schools, and supplemented this by an attendance at Lombard University at Gales- burg. Ill. He was reared to farm life, and has en- gaged in the same occupation during all his years since boyhood, and has also spent a number of terms an as instructor in the schools of Kansas. In 1878, he came to Marshall County. and bought the land upon which he has since resided.
On Nov. 16, 1882. Mr. Montgomery was united in marriage with Minnie M. Moffit, a daughter of Dr. G. W. M. flit, of Frankfort. Kan. The union has been blessed by the birth of one daughter, Ma- bel, born Sept, 10, 1883. In the spring of 1883. the gentleman of whom we write, was elected Trus-
tee of Wells Township, which office he held for four years with credit to himself and his con- stituents. In 1880, he was appointed enumerator of the National Census for the 172d district. From 1879 to 1884, he was in charge of Wells post-office on section 2, the office being at that time discon- tinued through his recommendation. He is now serving as Justice of the Peace, and Clerk of the School District, and is a candidate on the Repub- lican ticket for County Clerk. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. and take an active interest in society matters. Mr. Montgomery's excellent education and upright character give him a prominent position. in the township, by whose citizens he and his wife are held in high esteem.
OHIN DAWKINS, owner and occupant of one of the best farms in the county, the said farm being situated on section 6. in Blue Rapids Township. has been a resident there since the spring of 1872. He was born in Kent County, England. April 30,1842, and is a son of John and Sarah Dawkins. He was the oldest son in his father's family, and was reared to man's estate in his native land. He is mainly self-educated, as his youthful advantages for schooling were quite lim- ited. In the fall of 1863 he emigrated to America. taking passage at Liverpool, and after an unevent- ful voyage of two weeks, landing at New York City. He went direct to Lorain County, Ohio. where he made his home for eight years. During this time he enjoyed a four months' visit among the friends of his childhood in his native coun- try.
On Dec. 27, 1871, Mr. Dawkins was united in wedlock with Rachael Whitestine, who has borne him four children, namely: Rhua E .. James F., Charlotte A. and Mary E. The spring following his marriage, Mr. Dawkins came to Kansas, and settled upon eighty acres of raw prairie, which he has by persevering industry brought to its present state of high productiveness. Ile is now classed among the representative pioneers of the county,
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whose development during the past fifteen years he has watched with untiring interest, and he has borne no unimportant part in the improvement of the county, with whose interests he is identified.
Mr. Dawkins, politically, advocates the principles of the Republican party, and never fails to cast his vote in its interest. lle has frequently been solic- ited to accept office, but has chosen to devote his time and energy to his own affairs. Religiously, he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Irving. As an enterprising and progressive farmer, an intelligent and trustworthy citizen, and a man .of sterling integrity, Mr. Dawkins is held in high repute.
Mr. Dawkins has an attractive residence, which with its surroundings is represented by a fine en- graving to be found on another page. In this abode of hospitality and hearty good will, our subject finds a happy dwelling place, made gay by childish voices and laughter, and blessed by the gracious presence of a loving wife and mother.
C HARLES S. STRANGE has been for a score of years a resident on section 12, Blue Rap- ids City Township. Here he owns 160 acres of fertile land, which is under excellent cultivation, well fenced, and bearing snch improvements in the way of buildings as are made by a thorough-going and progressive farmer. He was born in Carroll County, Va., March 25. 1845, being the son of Samuel and Jane (Traylor) Strange, and the oldest child of his father's second marriage. His parents were natives of the Old Dominion, from which they emigrated to Kansas in 1857, settling in Doniphan County. There they remained until 1869, when they removed to this county.
On the removal of the family to this county Mr. Strange filed a homestead claim on eighty acres of land, which forms a part of his present farm. It was in the primitive condition of all unsettled prai- ries, and by dint of energy and perseverance has been brought to its present state of attractiveness and fertility.
Mr. Strange was united in marriage, Sept. 13,
1869, in Doniphan County, Kan .. with Mrs. Ed- die Stigall, widow of C. N. Stigall, of Cedar County, Mo., and daughter of Robert Rickman. By her first marriage Mrs. Strange had two children- Bettie Stigall, deceased ; and Julia A., wife of John Strange. Mr. and Mrs. Strange have one child, Harry K., who is receiving the benefits of a good common-school education.
Mr. Strange received but limited educational advantages in his early life, but has made good use of the facilities afforded for gaining information on general topics, and is well posted on current events. Ilaving been an eye witness of much of the growth of Marshall County, and an active participant in pioneer work both here and in Doniphan County. he has a large fund of experience and observation from which to draw entertaining and instructive lessons. Ilis wife braved with him the hardships and privations of pioneer life, and to her able co- operation and counsel he is indebted for much of the success which has attended his efforts. In poli- tics Mr. Strange is a Republican, and stanch in his party adherence. He has served on the School Board for a number of years, and is much inter- ested in promoting the cause of education. He is a public-spirited citizen and an honorable man, and as such is esteemed by his neighbors and the resi- dents of the county.
DONIRAM J. PALMER, a gentleman who enjoys the distinction of being one of the first settlers of Marshall County, was born in Steuben County, N. Y., July 2, 1834. His father, William Palmer, was born in Olney, Me., May 30, 1794. When about twenty-one years of age, he moved to the Empire State, where he lived until 1837. removing thence to Scott County, Iowa. There he passed the closing years of his life, and died in January, 1848. Although a mere lad at the time. yet he served in the War of 1812, and afterward became a well-to-do farmer, accumu- lating considerable means. He was a member of, and Deacon in the Baptist Church for many years. His wife, to whom he was married in New York
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State. bore the maiden name of Amanda Haynes. She was born in Rhode Island, in 1798, but was reared in New Jersey. She was a daughter of Marium Haynes, a native of South Carolina, of English extraction. Her death took place in Iowa, in 1855. The grandfather of our subject, Lyman Palmer. was a native of Maine. He served seven years in the Revolutionary War. The genealogy of the family is traced to two brothers, who came to America in 1640, and settled in Maine and Massa- chusetts. Lyman Palmer's wife was an own sister of Gen. Dearborn, of revolutionary fame.
Our subject is the ninth of a family of eleven children born to his parents. ITis boyish days were spent on a farm in Scott County, Iowa, and he re- ceived his education in the common schools. He resided in Iowa until 1858, when he removed to this county, of which he has since been a continuous resident. Only two other gentlemen are now living in Waterville Township, who have been residents thereof for as long a period as our subject. In 1871 he settled on section 36, where he now resides, being at present the owner of 120 acres of land, well cultivated and improved. Upon his estate he has erected a convenient residence, a view of which, with the farm surroundings, appears else- where in this volume. He has devoted all his life to farming, and the property which he has accumu- lated is the result of his industry and good man- agement.
May 8, 1861, Mr. Palmer was united in marriage with Miss Lucy Thompson. of Blue Rapids, Kan., a lady well fitted to make a happy home, and assist her husband in the building up of the family for- tunes. She is a daughter of William and Mary Thompson, whose sketch appears in another place in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Palmer have six children: William A .. Henry I., Mary, Nettie, Rufus and Lucy. All are living except the sec- ond.
Mr. Palner is a member of the Knights of Labor, and votes with the Union Labor party. lle is a man of intelligence, an enterprising and progressive farmer, and a reliable eitizen, who is interested in every movement pertaining to the welfare of the State and county in which he has so long made his home. As a man of fine principles and honorable
dealings, he commands the respect of all with whom he associates. Our subject was Postmaster of Blue Rapids in 1864. and was burned out in that year on account of his political views. He was a County Commissioner from 1863 to 1865.
B ARNARD DOUGHERTY. They were not all Eastern men who sought a home in the far West in the early days of its history. Many came from across the ocean, and the Emerald Isle sent some of its sons, who stepping boldly to the front, made for themselves a name for industry and energy, and in many ways ad- vanced the best interests of the community wherein they had taken up their residence. Kansas was not overlooked in their choice of homes, and hence we find the gentleman, whose name heads this sketch, a resident of Cleveland Township, and enjoying the respect and esteem of the entire community. Mr. Dougherty is a very prosperous farmer and stock-raiser, having on the rich bottom-lands of his well-fitted farm rejoiced in the excellent yield of sixty to seventy-five bushels of grain per acre. Mr. Dougherty, whose home is on section 5, Cleve- land Township, is a native of County Donegal, Ire- land, having been born there March 17, 1822. Ilis father, Barnard Dougherty, Sr., emigrated to the United States in 1836. making his home in Flem- ing County, Ky., where he died in September, 1883, at the ripe age of eighty-eight years. Mr. Dougherty's mother was Bridget O. Dougherty, who also died in Kentucky in 1881, aged eighty- four years. Of the eleven children born to the old people, five are living, Barnard being the youngest. The others are Patrick, Charles, Sarah, and Bridget. It is interesting to have Mr. Dougli- erty relate incidents of his early school life in Kentucky. His education is limited, having been acquired in a log cabin in that State, and the picture becomes quite real, as he tells of the huge fire-place with its rock chimney, the low ceiling black with smoke and age, the seats manufactured of slabs, the desks only rough boards placed on pins in the walls,
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and the general primitive aspect of the little cabin rises before one as it is compared with the modern school-room. In 1863 Mr. Dougherty removed to Putnam County, Ind., locating on a rented farm near Greencastle, where he raised two crops only. as he came to Saline County, Mo .. in 1865. In this connty he purchased a farm, and remained until the spring of 1880, when a desire to go farther West led his steps to his present location, and 240 acres enabled him to gratify his taste in the raising of choice stock, as well as that of cereals. It was on the 9th of January, 1862. that he was married to Miss Mary C. Kelly, a daughter of Amos Kelly, of Kentucky. Of the nine children born to them. eiglit are living: Maggie, the wife of Price Clark, Saline County, Mo., who has two children, Ernest K., and Thomas Cleveland; John; Sarah, the wife William Meagher, and who is also the mother of two children, Honora, and an infant girl; Rosa, Jennie, George, Patrick, and Katie. Mr. Dough- erty is a member of the Roman Catholic Church. In politics, he is a Democrat, but votes for the man rather than the party. Mr. Dougherty has always been industrious, hard-working, unassuming, and is considered one of the stanch, good citizens of the county.
AMES MAXWELL. Pleasantly located on a farm of 160 acres of finely eultivated land, on section 14, Walnut Township, is situated the home of the above named gen- tleman. The house is well built and comfortable, and from its setting of green fields and waving trees presents a very homelike aspect. Not only is the land well tilled, but on it have been ereeted very comfortable farm buildings, and on it has been grown a fine orchard of various kinds of fruit. A view of this pleasant spot is presented on another page. The owner is of Scotch ancestry, though born in the north of Ireland, June 18, 1833. His parents, Joseph and Mary (Russell) Maxwell, removed to Scotland when lie was but eleven months old, and amid the rocks, glens and heaths of his ancestral home he attained to the age of sixteen. IIe then sailed from Glasgow on
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