USA > Missouri > A history of northeast Missouri, Vol. 2 pt 2 > Part 70
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state, and who died in 1910, at the age of sixty-eight years. Of the children the eldest is Willard S., who is a prosperous farmer of Ran- dolph county ; Ella is the widow of W. G. Sparling, of Columbia, Boone county ; Annie is the wife of Olir Hombs, of the same city; John W. is a successful agriculturist of Randolph county; and Walter is the immediate subject of this review.
Reared under the invigorating influences of the home farm, Walter Ridgway gained his preliminary education in the public schools of Randolph county, and later continued his studies in the Columbia Nor- mal Academy at Columbia. Finally he was matriculated in the Uni- versity of Missouri, at Columbia, and in this institution he was grad- uated as a member of the class of 1904 and with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He gained distinctive prestige as a representative of the ped- agogic profession and was for two years principal of the high school at Centralia. He then became business manager of the Columbia Daily Herald, at Columbia, the capital of Boone county, retaining this posi- tion two years and then assuming that of business manager and editor of the Daily Express at Kirksville. Thereafter he was a member of the reportorial staff of one of the leading daily papers in Kansas City, and on the 1st of December, 1911, he purchased the Howard County Advertiser, over the destinies of which popular paper he has since presided with marked discrimination and ability. He is a thorough and conservative business man and is making a success of all depart- ments of his newspaper and general printing enterprise, the while his editorial policies are of most progressive order and his paper a most effective exponent of local interests, as well as of the principles of the Democratic party, to which he accords unwavering allegiance.
In Kansas City, this state, on the 19th of July, 1908, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Ridgway to Miss Annabel Taylor, who was born in Boone county, Missouri, and who is a daughter of Mrs. Katharine M. Taylor. They have three children,- Katherine Louise, Ruth, and Martha. Mr. and Mrs. Ridgway are members of the Christian church. Mrs. Ridgway received the best of educational advantages and is a talented musician. Prior to her marriage she had been a successful and popular teacher of music, and in her home city she is a most popu- lar figure in the leading social activities of the community.
EDWIN W. BEDFORD. There is probably no citizen of Northeastern Missouri whose record of lineage reveals connections with more notable men in American history, especially in military affairs, than does that of Edwin W. Bedford, cashier of the Bank of Fayette, Fayette, Missouri, and one of the most estimable citizens of that city. By both paternal and maternal descent he comes of Revolutionary ancestry and his family history shows him to be connected with some of the best of southern blood.
He was born November 18, 1853, in Lexington, Lafayette county, Missouri, a son of Edwin W. Bedford, Sr., and Elizabeth Burton Bed- ford. The Bedfords are an old family of the south, that was established there in colonial days prior to the Revolution, and among the descend- ants of the original progenitor of the family in this country appears the name of President Andrew Jackson. Thomas Bedford, the great- great-grandfather of Edwin W. Bedford of this review, passed to his descendants a rich heritage in his record as a patriot in the Continental army during the Revolution. The father, Edwin W. Bedford, Sr., was born at Nasliville, Tennessee, and passed away at Lexington, Missouri, at the age of seventy-eight. He dealt in land and was quite successful in a business way. Coming to Lafayette county, Missouri, when a
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young man, he was there shortly afterward married to Miss Elizabeth Burton, who proved a wise and faithful helpmeet. She was a Virginian, born at Lynchburg, and came from one of the prominent families of the Old Dominion. Jesse Burton, her father, was a son of Robert Burton, who was a son of Alexander Burton, a soldier in the War of the Revolution and who married Elizabeth Leftwich, whose father was a colonel in the Revolutionary war. Elizabeth Burton Bedford died at the age of sixty and left three children: Jefferson U. Bedford, of Omaha, Nebraska; Mrs. W. A. La Bertew, of Colorado Springs, Colo- rado; and Edwin W. Bedford, our immediate subject. Both parents were members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
Edwin W. Bedford was reared at Lexington, Missouri, and was educated at Central College, Fayette, Missouri. At the conclusion of his student days he taught school two years and then entered the Bank of Fayette as cashier, which position he has now held for thirty- five years. This long tenure of service is of itself convincing evidence of his strength as a financier and of the position he holds in the con- fidence of the patrons of the bank. Such men never live to themselves but are invariably prominent factors in advancing their community and this is true of Mr. Bedford, who lends his influence in that direc- tion, both in a personal way and in relation to business.
On April 30, 1879, Mr. Bedford was united in marriage to Miss Nora Payne, a lady of education and culture and a representative of one of the most prominent families of Howard county, Missouri. She is the daughter of Thomas J. Payne, who founded the banking institu- tion in which Mr. Bedford has so long officiated as cashier. Mr. and Mrs. Bedford have two sons: Thomas Payne Bedford, a young man now thirty-two years of age, who is an electrical engineer at Boston, Massachusetts, and Edwin J. Bedford, a student at Central College, Fayette, Missouri. Mrs. Bedford is a member of the Baptist church, and in a fraternal way Mr. Bedford affiliates with the Knights of Pythias.
CHARLES H. LEE, M. D., who is engaged in the general practice of his profession at Fayette, Howard county, has gained secure prestige as one of the representative physicians and surgeons of his native county, and his definite success attests alike his ability and his personal popu- larity in the community which represents his field of professional activity.
On the homestead farm of his father, in Prairie township, Howard county, about twelve miles distant from Fayette, Dr. Lee was born on the 16th of April, 1873, and he is a scion of the patrician Lee family of Virginia,-one that has given most distinguished figures to the nation's history. Well known have been those of the name who were leaders in the War of the Revolution and in the war between the states, and one of the most honored of all was General Robert E. Lee, the great leader of the Confederacy in the Civil war. History gives ample record concerning the family and many of its members have achieved high reputation in public life and in the learned professions. Dr. Lee is a son of Judge John Clay and Rebecca (Painter) Lee, the former a native of Howard and the latter of Johnson. Judge Lee presided on the bench of the county court of Howard county for twelve years, was a leader in the local councils of the Democratic party and was a citizen whose strong and noble character gave to him high vantage ground in popular confidence and esteem. He was a man of superior intellectuality, fine equipoise and firm convictions, and he ever stood stanchly for the cause of right and justice, the while he was kindly and tolerant
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in his judgment of his fellow men. He was long one of the honored and influential citizens of Howard county, and here he continued to maintain his home until his death, at the age of seventy-two years. He was the owner of a well improved farm of 450 acres, and he did well his part in furthering the civic and industrial development and upbuilding of his home county. He was a zealous and liberal member of the Christian church, and with the same his wife also has long been actively identified; she survives him and now has her home in Fayette, where her circle of friends is limited only by that of her acquaintances. Of the four children Dr. Lee, of this review, is the youngest; Elizabeth is the wife of Grant Eubank, of Armstrong; Edith J. is the wife of John Jones; and Edwin is a resident of Armstrong, where he is engaged in blacksmithing.
Under the sturdy discipline of the old home farm Dr. Lee waxed strong in mind and body as a boy and youth, and in the meanwhile he fully availed himself of the advantages of the public schools. There- after he was for one year a student in Central College, at Fayette. He began the study of medicine under the effective preceptorship of Dr. J. W. Hawkins, of Glasgow, this county, and later was matriculated in the St. Louis Medical College, in which he was graduated as a mem- ber of the class of 1893 and from which he received his well earned degree of Doctor of Medicine. He forthwith engaged in the practice of his profession at Fayette, and here he has since continued his earnest and effective labors as a physician and surgeon of distinctive ability and unqualified popularity. He controls a large and representative practice and his appreciation of the responsibility of his profession is shown by the scrupulous care which he gives to the study of the best standard and periodical literature pertaining to medical and surgical science. By this means he keeps abreast of the times and avails him- self of the most approved remedial agents and most modern appliances and accessories. He is a man of fine physique, his weight being two hundred pounds and his height six feet. He is genial and buoyant of temperament, is essentially the friend of humanity, and his popularity shows that he has fully measured up to the requirements of the mete- wand of public approbation. He is identified with the American Med- ical Association, the Missouri State Medical Society and the Howard County Medical Society, of which last mentioned organization he has served as president. In his home city he is affiliated with the lodge of Knights of Pythias, and at Columbia, the judicial center of Boone county, he holds membership in the lodge of Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks. His political allegiance is given to the Democratic party and both he and his wife hold membership in the Christian church.
In the year 1894, at Fayette, was solemnized the marriage of Dr. Lee to Miss Anna Wilcoxon, who was born and reared in Howard county, and who is a daughter of George H. Wilcoxon, a representative of one of the old and honored families of this county. Dr. and Mrs. Lee have two sons,-George Clay and Charles H., Jr. The attractive family home is one pervaded by an atmosphere of generous hospitality and Mrs. Lee is a most popular factor in the social activities of the community.
HENRY T. BURCKHARTT. The editor and publisher of the Fayette Democrat-Leader, in the thriving little capital city of Howard county, is not only one of the best known and most influential factors in the newspaper field in Northeastern Missouri but is also a scion of a family whose name has been closely and honorably linked with the history of Howard county for nearly a century. He has been identified with the
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newspaper and printing business from his youth and has been pub- lisher of the old and influential Democrat-Leader since March, 1912, when he purchased the plant and business. This paper, representing the consolidation of the Democrat and the Leader, is one of the oldest in this section of the state and is not only an effective exponent of local interests but has always been a stanch factor in the upholding of the principles and policies of the Democratic party. These policies, those of basic principle as exemplified by Jefferson and Jackson, have had a most effective standard-bearer in the person of Mr. Burckhartt, and he is also known as one of the liberal, loyal and progressive citizens of his native county, where his friends are in number as his acquaint- ances and where his interests are substantially centered. The Demo- crat-Leader is issued on Thursday of each week and is a six-column quarto publication, modern in letter-press and an effective purveyor of local news as well as a strong force in furthering the cause of the Democratic party.
Henry T. Burckhartt was born in Rochefort, Boone county, on the 26th of March, 1861, and is a son of Matthias N. and Julia A. (Jackson) Burckhartt, the former of German and the latter of Scotch-Irish lineage. The father was born in Howard county, where he passed his entire life and where his active career was mainly one of close and successful identification with agricultural pursuits. He was a man of impregnable integrity, of much ability and of most genial personality, so that he held secure vantage place in the confidence and esteem of all who knew him. He was a son of Nicholas S. Burckhartt, who was born and reared in Kentucky, where the family was founded in the pioneer days, and who established his home in Howard county, Missouri, in 1816, when this section of the state was on the very frontier. He served as the first sheriff of the county, was a successful merchant and farmer and was one of the influential and honored citizens of the pioneer community.
Matthias N. Burckhartt, father of him whose name initiates this review, was seventy-seven years of age at the time of his death, which occurred in 1902, and his cherished and devoted wife was summoned to the life eternal in 1909, at the age of eighty years. They were zealous and devout members of the Christian church, and their faith was shown forth in their daily lives, which were marked by tolerance of judgment and kindly consideration for all with whom they came in contact. Mr. Burckhartt was a stalwart in the camp of the Democratic party and took a lively and intelligent interest in the questions and issues of the hour. Of the nine children the eldest is Mollie, who is the widow of George H. Boughner, of Fayette, this state; Henry T. is the immediate subject of this review ; Benton J. is a resident of Fayette and is engaged in the drug business; Miss Bettie is a loved inmate of the home of her brother, Henry T .; Mat S. is a resident of the city of Hannibal, where he is engaged in the drug business. The remaining four children are deceased.
Henry T. Burckhartt was reared to maturity in Howard county, and is indebted to its public schools for his early educational discipline. It has consistently been said that the training of a newspaper office is equivalent to a liberal education, and the statement has been justified most fully in the case of Mr. Burckhartt. In 1880 he entered upon an apprenticeship to the "art preservative of all arts," by assuming the dignified office of "printer's devil" in the office of the Bates County Democrat, at Butler, Missouri. In this office he learned the trade of compositor and general printer, and he has never wavered in his alle- giance to the newspaper business, through the medium of which he has achieved definite success and won marked prestige. In 1889 he
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purchased the plant and business of the Howard County Democrat, at Fayette, and in the ownership of the property he succeeded Isaac N. Hancock. He continued editor and publisher of this paper until 1893, when he sold the property and purchased the Windsor Review, at Windsor, Henry county. There he continued the publication of the Review until 1896, when he sold the business and purchased the Missouri Statesman, in company with Luther H. Rice. In 1905 he bought the Howard County Advertiser, and of this he continued editor and pub- lisher until December, 1911, when he sold the plant and business to Walter Ridgeway and bought the old-established and popular Demo- crat-Leader, over the destinies of which he has since presided with characteristic ability and discrimination. He has added to the paper's popularity through his well ordered editorial and news policies, and it is sure to continue its precedence as one of the best weekly papers in Northeastern Missouri. The job department of the office is modern in its equipment and controls a substantial business, the while the paper receives a liberal advertising support, which is justly its due.
Mr. Burckhartt is a member of the Christian church and of the Knights of Pythias lodge. He is unmarried.
JUDGE JOHN ROBINSON HAIRSTON. He who labors to secure the progress of his community and strives to develop its resources; who in public life and as a private citizen not only values efficiency and strict integrity upon the part of others but himself sets an example for worthy living, is a public benefactor and of the type of citizen that has built up our great American commonwealth. This is a brief epitome of the character of John R. Hairston, one of the best known citizens of Howard county, Missouri, who is a successful business man, a promi- nent farmer and stockman, and by his close identification with the pub- lic affairs of this community has gained for himself the name of a progressive, public-spirited citizen and a leader in public accomplish- ment.
He was born on a farm near Fayette, Howard county, Missouri, September 19, 1864, a son of John B. Hairston, a native of Texas and a Missouri University graduate, who was well qualified to train his son for usefulness and attainment in life. The mother of Mr. Hairston was Miss Elizabeth Robinson prior to her marriage. She came from a worthy Kentucky family that located in Howard county in an early day and was numbered among the builders of the old Ashland church here. There were nine sons in the Robinson family. This mother, gentle but firm, also was a potent force in the shaping of her son's character. and was a woman loved for her goodness of heart and mind by all who knew her. Her home was one well known for its warmth of hospitality to all. She died at the age of sixty-three. There were six children born to these parents, three boys and three girls : Susan, Jno. R., Annie, Henry, Joseph and Mary, John R. Hairston, the subject of this review, being the oldest boy. Both parents were active members of the Christian church. John B. Hairston, the father, a farmer and prominent educator of Howard county, was a leader in the public life of this county during his active career and was an officer under Gen. Sterling Price during the Civil war. He passed away at the age of sixty-six.
John R. Hairston was reared on the farm and was educated in Central College, Fayette, Missouri, and at the University of Missouri, Columbia. Soon after beginning his independent career he was elected assessor of Howard county and served in that official capacity four years, subsequently serving eight years as clerk of the circuit court and recorder of the county. Eight years more were passed in public service
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as probate judge of this county, making twenty years in succession in all that he labored in public behalf, for his whole official career was one of efficiency and of credit and honor to himself. As a Democrat he has taken an active part in the political affairs of his party here and has frequently been a delegate to the different state conventions. He was a member of that body that nominated R. P. Williams, of Howard county, for the office of state treasurer and was an effective worker in securing his election. In business activity he is engaged in the real estate and loan business and divides his attention between this and the management of his fine farm of five hundred acres, lying about four miles south of Fayette. It is one of the best farms in Howard county, with modern buildings and barns and such accessories as are deemed necessary by the advanced agriculturist of the day, and its land is all in a fine state of cultivation. Under Judge Hairston's management this farm will soon be recognized as one of the model farms of Missouri. Both in connection with his real estate business and by reason of his own personal interests as an agriculturist he works energetically to promote Howard county as an agricultural section and secure its material progress. He is keenly interested in the good roads movement. He has shown his interest in a practical way, and therefore in one of the most convincing and effective ones in influencing others, by assisting in making the roadway along his farm the best in Howard county and one of the best sections of road between St. Louis and Kansas City. Judge Hairston deserves the distinction of being the first man in Mis- souri to tour the state in a series of speeches advocating hard surfaced roads. It is scarcely necessary to mention further the force he has been in securing highway improvement hereabout. He is a no less enthusiastic friend of education and gives his influence and services in that connection as a member of the board of curators of the Howard Payne College, and also as the treasurer of said board. In church con- nections he is a Methodist, and fraternally he is a Mason and a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Hairston is a capable man, one of vim and push, and whatever he enters into he spares no energy on his part to carry it to a successful conclusion. From the foregoing brief sketch it will be seen that he well deserves mention among the representative men of Northeastern Missouri.
On July 6, 1893, he was united in marriage to Miss Ida Long, a native of Howard county and a daughter of William H. Long, a prominent citizen of this vicinity. Mrs. Hairston was educated at Howard Payne College, at which college her daughters are now being educated. Mr. and Mrs. Hairston have three children : Letetia Ann, Hellen Heath and William Long Hairston.
WILLIAM C. PLAINS. In June, 1912, Mr. Plains assumed the office of postmaster at Fayette, the thriving capital city of Howard county, and he succeeded John M. Eaton, who had been the incumbent of this position for five years. He is a native of Howard county and a repre- sentative of one of its honored families, his present official preferment indicating the high regard in which he is held in the community. He is one of the loyal and public-spirited citizens of Fayette, and is giving a most effective and acceptable administration of the local mail service, including the rural free delivery routes operated from this center.
Mr. Plains was born on a farm in Roanoke township, Howard county, on the 12th of December, 1853, and is a son of Andrew Jackson Plains and Elizabeth (Hazelwood) Plains, both of whom were born in Kentucky, where the respective families were founded in an early day, both having been closely identified with civic and material development
-
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and progress in the fine old Bluegrass State. Andrew J. Plains was an enterprising wagonmaker of Howard county, Missouri, and was fifty- three years of age at the time of his death. He gave valiant service as a Union soldier during the Civil war, in which he was a member of the Ninth Missouri Volunteer Cavalry. In politics he was a stalwart Repub- lican and both he and his wife held membership in the Methodist Epis- copal church, even as they so ordered their lives as to merit and receive the unqualified confidence and regard of all who knew them. The devoted wife and mother attained to the venerable age of eighty years and passed the closing period of her life in Howard county, which had been her home for many years. Of the nine children only two are now living: Mary E., who is the wife of Thomas Davis, of Lawton, Okla- homa; and William C., who is the immediate subject of this review.
The postmaster of Fayette was reared to adult age under the benign- ant discipline of the old homestead farm which was the place of his birth, and his educational advantages were those afforded in the com- mon schools of the locality and period. He was a boy at the time of the war between the states, and as Missouri was the stage of much polemic activity his studies were interrupted to a certain extent. He has vivid recollections concerning that climacteric period in the nation's history, as his youthful patriotism was most intense after his honored father had gone forth to battle for the nation's integrity. Mr. Plains continued to be actively concerned with agricultural pursuits until he had attained to the age of twenty-three years, when he engaged in the lumber business, in which his operations were principally along the line of buying and selling oak and walnut trees. In this connection he pur- chased timber in various counties through the state and he built up a prosperous enterprise. After five years devoted to this business he engaged in the draying and transfer business at Fayette, and he con- tinued successful operations in this field of enterprise until his appoint- ment to the office of postmaster, in June, 1912. He is a stanch Republi- can in his political adherency, is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and both he and his wife hold membership in the Baptist church.
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