USA > Missouri > Nodaway County > A Biographical history of Nodaway and Atchison counties, Missouri : compendium of national biography > Part 75
USA > Missouri > Atchison County > A Biographical history of Nodaway and Atchison counties, Missouri : compendium of national biography > Part 75
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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY.
In 1883 Mr. Humphrey took up his res- idence in Lincoln township, Nodaway coun- ty, Missouri, and secured a small farm with only a few acres under cultivation, which has since grown gradually into a valuable farm of two hundred and twenty acres, with a good house, barns, ottbuildings and essen- tial equipments of every kind. The children ! are Otis B., Edgar A., Eugene, Adella, Min- : nie, Fred and Lucy, now Mrs. Dallas Hearst. The family are members of the i Christian church.
Mr. Humphrey is a Democrat. In all public affairs he takes a deep and abiding in- terest and his zeal for his party never flags and his solicitude for the success of its prin- ciples is always keen. In all matters of business he is a model of honesty and promptitude, and his neighbors often remark that "his word is as good as his bond."
Z. W. COFFIN.
Z. W. Coffin is a veteran of the Civil war and one of the early settlers and prominent farmers of Atchison township. Nodaway county. He manifested his loyalty to the government during the Civil war by three years' service upon the battlefields of the south, and since that time he has been as faithful to his duties of citizenship as when . H. G. died in Charlottesville, Indiana, in he followed the stars and stripes in response to the president's call for aid to preserve the Union.
Mr. Coffin was born in Hancock county, Indiana, June 11, 1842, and the ancestry of the family may be traced back through many generations not only in this country but also in Europe. The father of our sub- ject was John Coffin, a son of Zacharias Coffin, and the ancestry is traced on back in direct line to William, the son of Samuel,
the son of John, the son of Tristram Coffin. The last named was one of a company of nine who in 1660 purchased the island of Nan- tticket from the Indians, the deed being signed by two chiefs,-Wenackmamack and Neckanoose. Beyond' Tristram Coffin the line is unbroken back to Sr. Richard Coffin, who went to England from Normandy with William the Conqueror, and still back of Sr. Richard it can be traced to the time of the arrival of Danits in Denmark in the second century. From the sixth to the tenth cen- tury the Coffins bore an active part in all of the conquests of the old Viking kings and rovers who terrorized western Europe for many centuries. John Coffin, the father of our subject, was born in North Carolina, where he was united in marriage to Miss Matilda Walker. Her death occurred in 1870, when her youngest son, H. G. Coffin. was ten years of age. The father passed away in 1898, in his eighty-fifth year, leav- ing two sons and five daughters, of whom Z. W. Coffin is the eldest. He has one brother and four sisters who are yet living in Indiana, and one sister, who is a resident of Colorado. Elisha, who served as a soldier in the Thirty-third Regiment of Indiana Volunteers, is now deceased : Edward also was a soldier in an Indiana regiment; and 1881. The other members of the family are Mariah, Francis and Naomi.
Mr. Coffin, whose name introduces this record, was reared and educated in Hancock county, Indiana, where he became familiar with all the duties and labors that fall to the lot of the agriculturist. In 1873 he came to Missouri, where he has since resided, de- voting his time and attention to farming and stock-raising. He now has a farm of one hundred and twenty acres under a high state
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BIOGRAPHICAL. IIISTORY.
of cultivation and is deriving a good income from his labors. Before he came to Mis- souri, however, he had aided in the defense of the Union on southern battlefields for three years, enlisting as a member of Com- pany F. Nineteenth Indiana Infantry. 11c participated in the first battle of Bull Run, in 1861, and was in the battle of Gettysburg. where he was wounded in the thigh by a shell. After receiving that wound he went to the hospital in Philadelphia where he re- mained for three months, being then granted a veteran's furlough. Returning to his home. lic remained until the expiration of his leave of absence, when he rejoined his regiment and took part in the battle of the wilderness, sustaining a wound in the right arm, Or. account of this he was sent to the hospital in Alexandria, Virginia, and at Indianapolis he received an honorable discharge, return- ing to his home with a creditable record for bravery and gallantry.
In 1870 Mr. Coffin was united in mar- rage with Miss Josephine New, a daughter of Foster and Elizabeth ( Miller) New. Unto them have been born ten children. Damely : Austin M .. Tillie E., Orville G., Ursie S. Nora B., Mable F., Ernest. Ione. Edith and Nellie. Mrs. Coffin is a member of the Methodist church and is a most esti- irable lady. Mr. Coffin is a frank, jovial gen- themen and is one of the best busines men in Nodaway county, where he has made his home for twenty seven years, gaining in that time many warm friends.
RICHARD STAFFORD.
During many years Richard Stafford was one of the most prominent and respected citizens of Atchison county, and no history of this community would be complete with-
out a record of his career. He did much to advance the business interests of the com- munity, withhokling his support from no movement which he believed would prove of public good. Ile was known for his ster- ling worth in every walk of life, being true to each duty, whether public or private. In business he commanded the confidence of his fellow men and in social circles he had strict regard for the obligations of friend - ship and a high enjoyment of its privileges.
Mr. Stafford was a native of county Ca- van, Ireland, born in 1835, and was a repre- sentative of an old and prominent English family on the paternal side. His grand- father. General John Stafford, was an officer in the British army and took an active part in some of the wars of the Emerald Isle. winning distinction for his gallantry and valor on the field of battle. He lived to the very advanced age of one hundred and nine years. His son, the Rev. John Stafford, the father of our subject, was born in England, became a minister of the gospel and was a zealous and faithful worker in the cause of the Master. Ile married Miss Anna For- sythe, a native of Ireland, who was connected with a distinguished family of the Green Isle. He died at the age of sixty-six years. but his memory remained as an unalloyed benediction to all who knew him. By precept and example he led many to enter the better life and his influence was marked upon all with whom he came in contact. By his marriage he became the father of the fol- lowing named children : John, who is living on the old homestead in Ireland: Mary, a resident of Liverpool, England ; Richard; Samuel, of Knox county, Illinois; Frank, who makes his home in Liverpool, England; and Thomas, of Galesburg, Illinois.
In the land of his nativity Richard Stat-
K Stafford
H_
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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY.
ford spent the days of his youth and in the seventy-six years. He was a surveyor and civil engineer and carried on contracting along those lines. He was a man of superior business ability, his name being prominent- ly interwoven with the early railroad his- tory of this state. Ile died in 1895. at the age of seventy-nine years, honored and re- public schools of Ireland acquired his edu- cation. When eighteen years of age he de- termined to seek his home in America, be- lieving that better opportunities were fur- nished to young men in the new world. He first located in Sangamon county, Illinois, where he resided until 1858, when he re- : spected by all who knew him. He was in- moved to Bourbon county, Kansas, taking up his abode near Mapleton. He was married in Shiloh, Bourbon county, to Miss Elizabeth Wilson, a native of Knox county, Ohio, and a daughter of Colonel Thomas Wilson, a former railroad president and official, and an honored and prominent man of Missouri. He was one of the pioneer railroad promoters and contractors in this state and one of the leading builders of the old Tebo and Neosho Railroad, of which he became the president, acting in that capacity for some time. He
terested in the construction of many of the railroad lines of Missouri and Kansas and thus he did much to promote the growth and development of the state, for no other agency does more in this direction than the railroads. Ile took the contract for construct- ing a portion of the Joplin branch of the Mis- souri, Kansas & Texas, and a portion of the Sedalia and Fort Scott lines. He aided great- ly in the upbuilding of the country, being an important factor in the work and progress made in southern Missouri and southeastern was a native of New Jersey and a son of , Kansas. He served as a colonel in the state Charles Wilson, who was born in Ireland | militia, thus winning the title by which he and came to the United States at the age of was widely known. Of the Methodist Epis- copal church he was an active and consistent member. Colonel Wilson had six children, namely: Elizabeth E. Stafford, who died at the age of twenty-three years, leaving two children, namely : Mary, the wife of D. W. Airy, who is connected with the banking business in Watson, Missouri: and one child now deceased: Anna, who died in 1873. at the age of nine years : Charles, a resident of Fort Scott, Kansas; Phebe A., the wife of Richard Stafford: Marvin, who died at the age of seven years : and Myra, who became the wife of Jamies Montgomery and died at the age of twenty years, leaving one son. The mother of these children now makes her home with Mrs. Stafford, and although eighty-four years of age retains her mental and physical faculties unimpaired. Mrs. Stafford was born in Birmingham, Ohio, but nineteen years. His wife bore the maiden name of Anna Logan. He died in Fitchville, Huron county, Ohio, and she at Birming- ham. Erie county. Thomas Wilson was mar- ried in Knox county, that state, to Miss Mary McCoy, also a native of New Jersey, and a daughter of Archibald McCoy, a soldier of the war of 1812. He was born in Scotland and married Miss Catherine ' Hendershot, who was of Holland parentage. He died in Knox county, Ohio, at the age of eighty- four, and his wife passed away in Kansas City, Missouri, when eighty-two years of age. In 1859 Colonel Thomas Wilson and his wife removed to Vernon county, Mis- souri, where they remained until 1861, when they were driven by the bushwackers from their home and took refuge in the state of Kansas, where the father died at the age of
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BIOGRAPIIICAL HISTORY.
was reared and educated in Missouri and in Bourbon county, Kansas. In 1865 she gave her hand in marriage to Richard Stafford and they resided in Bourbon county for a time, subsequently removing to Vernon county, Missouri, where they remained until 1871, when they came to Atchison county. Here Mr. Stafford became the owner of six hundred and forty acres of land, to which he afterward added by subsequent purchases until his landed possessions aggregated four- teen hundred acres of very valuable proper- ty. This was improved with a fine brick residence, modern in all its appointments and equipments. Shade and ornamental trees added to the attractiveness of the place, while an orchard, good barns and other outbuild- ings increased the value of the property. Good streams of water and rich pasture lands made stock-raising a profitable business. The meadows gave him a rich yield of hay and the fields returned to him a goklen trib- ute for the care and labor which he bestowed upon them. The Stafford place became ' riches. widely known as one of the most beautiful country homes in this portion of Missouri.
Mr. Stafford had five children, one by his first wife, namely. Mary E., who has been previously mentioned. By the second mar- riage the children are: Ida C., the wife of Dr. George F. Burton, of Los Angeles, Cal- ifornia: Thomas C., a well known stock dealer of Atchison county : John R., a news- paper man : and Frank W .. also a successful stock dealer of Colfax township.
For some years Mr. Stafford gave his po- political support to the Democracy and after- ward became allied with the Populist party. He was very faithful to the political princi- ples in which he believed and frequently served as a delegate to county, congressional and state conventions. He was made a Ma-
son at Possum Walk, Lamar Station, in Nodaway county, Missouri, and afterward held membership in Rockport Ledge. He died August I7, 1800. in Los Angeles, California, whither he went in the hope of improving his health. He was a man of strict honor and integrity, his word being as good as any bond that was ever solemnized by a signature or seal. To his family he was a kind, affectionate husband and father, was a faithful friend, a loyal citizen and a popular man who enjoyed the respect and regard of all with whom he was brought in contact. Ilis qualities were such as to commend him to the confidence and esteem of all and his example in many respects is well worthy of emulation. He started out in business without capital, yet worked his way steadily upward through determined effort and unfaltering diligence, thereby gaining a comfortable competence, and also left to his family the priceless heritage of a good name which is rather to be chosen than great
OSSIAN E. ALEXANDER.
Prominent among the well known farm- ers and ex-soldiers of Nodaway county, Mis- souri, is the gentleman whose name appears at the opening of this sketch. He was born int Jefferson county, New York, December 7 1845, a son of Harry and Phebe ( Bullock ) Alexander, Rob Mexander, the grand- father of our subject, was a native of Ver- mont, and a member of the Vermont state militia. Harry Alexander, our subject's father, was born in Jefferson county, New York, and was a farmer by occupation. Po- litically he was a member of the Republican party. His death occurred in his native place, at the age of fifty years. His wife,
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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY.
Phebe Bullock, was born in Jefferson county New York, and was a daughter of Elkany Bullock. She died at the age of sixty. The following children were the result of this union : Emily; Harrison, deceased ; Clarin- da; Lydia A., deceased ; Ossian E., our sub- ject ; Harry and Alice. The family attended the Universalist church.
Ossian E. Alexander was reared on a farm and received his education in the com- mon schools of his native place. In August, 1864, he enlisted in the One Hundred and Eighty-sixth New York Infantry, Company B, and served under Captain J. D. McWane for ten months. They were stationed on the James river in front of l'etersburg, and on April 2, 1865, that city was taken by the federal army. Mr. Alexander received an honorable discharge at Alexandria, at the close of the war. In 1878 he went west and for one year lived in Boone county. Illinois. He then went to Minnesota, locat- ing in Lincoln county, in the western part of the state. He spent six years in that locality, when, after selling his farm, he pur- chased eighty acres of land in Nodaway county, Missouri. The farm is well in- proved, and the buildings are comfortable, with all modern conveniences. Mr. Alex ander is an enterprising, thrifty man, and has won the respect of the entire community for his honest and upright dealings with his fellow citizens.
On the 22d of September, 1869, Mr. Alexander was united in marriage to Phebe Fillmore. a native of Jefferson county, New York. She was the daughter of Joseph Fill- more, a distant relative of President Fill- more. Her mother was Phebe Madison, who died at the age of fifty-two years. Jo- seph Fillmore was a farmer by occupation. and attained the age of sixty-two years.
He was a Republican in politics. The chil- dren which resulted from this union were as follows: Lucinda; Malissa; Luther; Le- roy, deceased; Willard, deceased ; Phebe; Alexander ; Angelia, deceased; Edmond ; Carrie, deceased; and Daniel.
Our subject has one son and five daugh- ters, namely: Flora Honaker ; Edna Colter, Phebe Horn, Carrie Jones, Arthur and Ellen -- the two last mentioned still at home. Mr. Alexander and his wife are the grandparents of the following named children: Blanch Honaker, Maud, Zetta. Lizzie and Jane Col- ter, and Roy, Leslie Eaton and Clarence Ed- gar Horn. The family are members of the Baptist church. Politically Mr. Alexander is a Democrat.
PERRY GUTHRIE.
One of the lea ling agriculturists of Lin- coln township, Nodaway county, Missouri, is Perry Guthrie, whose farm is pleasantly located two and one-half miles southwest of Braddyville, Iowa. He was born on that place, March 16, 1860, and is a son of Michael and Elizabeth (Osborne) Guthrie. The father was born in Pike county, Ohio, March 5, 1811, and in 1827 removed to Ver- milion county, Indiana, where he resided for eighteen months. He then located in Ver- milion county, Illinois, at Danville, and, af- ter making his home there until 1854, he went to Wayne county, Iowa, but the follow- ing year removed to a farm in Nodaway county, Missouri. When in Illinois he learned the cooper's trade, which he followed for ten years, but much of his life has been devoted to farming. During the Black Hawk war he served for about two months, aiding in sup- pressing the uprising of the Indians, who menaced the life and property of the frontier
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BIOGRAPIIICAL HISTORY.
settlers. He was married in Illinois, on the 3d of November. 1836, to Miss Elizabeth Osborne, who was born in Adams county, Ohio, October 20, 1819. When a maiden of ten summers she accompanied her parents on their removal to Kentucky, and after a year they became residents of Vermilion county, Indiana, whence they went to Illi- nois, Unto Mr. and Mrs. Guthrie were born twelve children. The father died .Au- gust 21. 1890, at the age of seventy-nine years, and his wife passed away October 22. 1802, at the age of seventy-three years.
Perry Guthrie was reared on the home farm, and after attending the schools for some years he spent one term in college. He was married in Nodaway county, Missouri, August 13. 1882. to Miss Ocea Willey. Her parents, Calvin and Christiana ( Blake ) Willey, were natives of New Hampshire. and from that state moved to Wisconsin. but about twenty-eight years ago came to Missouri, making their home ever since on a farm in Nodaway county. Mr. and Mrs. Guthrie have six children, four sons and two daughters, namely : C. Carlisle. A. Garland. M. Mable. C. Edith, Lee Carroll and Vernon Cecil. After his marriage Mr. Guthrie set- t'es in the old home place, where he has since resided with the exception of four years spent on another farm one mile west. . At the death of his father he purchased the place. At first the father bought only a small tract, but kept adding to it, mostly wild land, until he had a good-sized farm.
Mr. Guthrie usually supports the Demo- cratie party and cast his first presidential vote for Grover Cleveland in 1884. Hle and In- family attend the Seventh Day Adven- list church, at Clearmont, and are held in high regard by their neighbors and many intends.
DANIEL L. BARKER.
Daniel Lewis Barker, an industrious far- mer of Lincoln township, Nodaway coun- ty. Missouri, is one of the progressive and well known residents of the county. He was born in North Carolina, July 10, 1832, a son of James and Anna ( Lewis ) Barker. The ancestors of James Barker came to Amer- ica before the Revolutionary war, when three Barker brothers settled on Long Island. From then on, different members of this family served in the Revolutionary war. In- dian war. Mexican war and the Civil war. James Barker married Anna Lewis, a na- tive of Germany. Her parents settled in North Carolina. James and his wife had children, namely: Martin. Rebecca. Mary, Daniel. Jasper. Emiline. New tin. Joshua and Henry Clay. The last named died when an i fant. They moved to Hendricks county, Indiana, where they lived eleven years. Mr. Barker died in 1847. the widow moved to Wapello county. lowa. in 1853. and died near Ottumwa, Jowa, at the age of seventy- one. She was a member of the Baptist church.
Daniel Barker was nine years old when his parents moved to Indiana. He remained on the farm until he went to Wapello county. lowa, in 1853 and lived there until 1802.
In 1862 President Lincoln called for three hundred thousand men, and Mr. Bar- ker decided to enter the army. AAccordingly he enlisted in Company G. Twenty-ninth Regiment, lowa Volunteer Infantry, under the command of Colonel Benton, and Com- pany G being under the command of Captain Huggins. Mr. Barker was under fire at Co- lumbus, Kentucky, at the siege of Vicksburg. Red River, Arkansas Post. Steel Mound. Tallahatchee river, and Helena, Arkansas.
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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY.
He was in the hospital for some time. under- going a severe illness. He received an hon- orable discharge from the army, with a No. I record as a soldier, at Davenport. lowa, May 18, 1865. Mr. Barker then returned to farm life in Iowa. In 1871 he located in Nodaway county, Missouri, where he has a farm of eighty acres, all in a good state of cultivation. His house and barn are large and commodious, the orchard yields a fine abundance of fruit each year, and' the fields and meadows are in good shape.
Mr. Barker married Martha Magers in 1853. She was born in White county, Illi- nois, a daughter of James and Emily (Braddy) Magers, who were natives of Tennessee. This union was honored by the birth of five children, of whom two are now deceased. The names of all are: Rebecca, the wife of William Guthrie, of Oklahoma ; Albert C., who married Rose Abby, and they live at Cripple Creek, Colorado: Emma, the wife of Robert Calvin, residing in this town- ship; and James and Alvina died when in- fants.
Mr. Barker is a member of the Republi- can party, and of the Masonic order and G. , employ he continued for six years. Next he A. R., Marshall Post, of Elmo, Missouri. : engaged in the general merchandise business He is a man of sound judgment and of great . in Tarkio. the style of the firm being Hurst honor, and his friends in the county are le- | Brothers & Riffe, and this relation continued gion.
J. L. RIFFE.
Men of strong purpose and determined character are continually working their way upward and passing many who start out on the highway of life, perhaps before them. Persistency of purpose is one of the strong- est elements of success and will be found . as a salient feature in the life record of every prosperous citizen. It has certainly formed
an important element in the history of Mr. Riffe, who is engaged in general merchan- dising in Quitman, where he is recognized as one of the most prominent and popular representatives of the business interests of the town.
Mr. Riffe is a native of West Virginia, his birth having occurred in that state in 1861. His father, W. D. Riffe, was a native of the Old Dominion, a representative of one of the ancient families of Virginia. He mar- ried Miss Harriet Bogus, who belonged to a well known family of West Virginia. They became the parents of eight children, -six sons and two daughters. J. L. Riffe acquired his education in the public schools and at the age of seventeen years he removed to the west, locating at first at Rockport, in Atchison county, Missouri, where he was employed as a salesman in a store for some time. In that way he mastered all the print- ciples of the mercantile business and became well qualified to carry on an enterprise of his own. Going to Tarkio in 1881, he accepted a position as a salesman with the firm of Emmert & Neal, general merchants, in whose
for two years, attended with a good and prof- itable trade, and then Mr. Riffe sold his in- terest to the Hurst Brothers. For two years thereafter he was in business with his brother. under the firm name of Riffe Brothers in clothing and furnishing goods, and on the expiration of that period his part- ner sold his interest to D. W. Airy, and the firm of Riffe & Airy was established and the store continued for another two years.
On the expiration of that period, in 1893. Mr. Riffe removed' to Craig, Holt county,
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BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY.
Missouri, where he remained for three years. devoting his attention during the greater part of the time to farming and the raising and feeding of stock. Ile was recognized as a reliable and enterprising business man of that place and continued his residence there until 1898, when he came to Quitman and established his general merchandise store. The building which he occupies is large and well arranged into departments for the better display of his goods. It has a frontage of fifty feet and is one of the extensive stores of the town. Mr. Riffe carries a full line of dry goods, boots and shoes, groceries, furni- ture and other lines found in a first-class es- tablishment of the kind. Ile is fair and hon- orable in his dealings and earnestly desires to please his customers, and well merits the liberal patronage which is extended to him.
In 1889 Mr. Riffe was married in Glen- wood, Iowa, to Miss Mollie Medis, a lady of a good family, fine education and most excel- lent character, being a daughter of Abraham Medis. She was educated in Clarinda, lowa. Mr. and Mrs. Riffe have one son, D. Carl, a bright little boy of four years. They are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and have always given an carnest co-opera- tion in religious and educational work as necessary to the best interests of society and good government. Starting in business life as a salesman, Mr. Riffe has steadily ad- vanced until his standing in the business world is assured, his enterprise and capable management bringing to him success.
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