USA > Missouri > Cass County > History of Cass County, Missouri > Part 66
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77
In addition to his apiary, Mr. Heivly is quite an extensive fruit grower and general farmer and also a poultry fancier. He has a number of Buff Orpingtons and has been very successful in the production of eggs. Mr. Heivly is very systematic in the conduct of his business affairs, keeping an itemized record of every department of his productions for the last fifteen years. He can readily turn to any week or month of any one of these years, and determine in an instant his comparative pro- duction of honey, eggs, chickens, etc.
Mr. Heivly was married in 1892 to Miss Lilya Barger, a daughter of Henry C. and Virginia A. Barger. Henry C. Barger was a son of Jasper C., a native of Germany, who immigrated to Pennsylvania when he was a young man. Mrs. Heivly was one of a family of four children and was born in Jackson County, Missouri. The other members of her family are as follows: Jasper C. Barger, Grand View, Missouri; John H. Barger, Edwardsville, Kansas; and Joseph B. Barger, Edwardsville, Kansas. To Mr. and Mrs. Heivly have been born four children: Ida May, Kansas City, Missouri; Grace B., Ethel A., and Josie A. The Heivly family are well known and highly respected in the community and Mr. Heivly is one of Cass County's substantial citizens.
721
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
R. M. Meador, a well known resident of West Line, is a native son of Cass County. He was born in 1848 and is a son of Jesse V. and Sarah T. (Massey) Meador, natives of Tennessee. Jesse V. Meador was a son of Rene Meador, who was also a native of Tennessee and came to Mis- souri, settling in Jackson County, in 1835. In 1839 he came to Cass County and entered government land near Dayton, where he died. Some years later his son, Jesse V., returned to Jackson County and in 1846 came back to Cass County, where he resided until the time of his death in 1907. In addition to farming and stockraising he dealt extensively in horses and mules and became very well-to-do. At the time of his death he owned two hundred forty acres of land. He was a man of genial disposition and his manly ways won for him a great many friends. He was a member of the Baptist church and a deacon for a number of years and frequently was a delegate to church conventions.
R. M. Meador's mother, Sarah T. Massey, was a daughter of Abel and Judith Massey, natives of Tennessee, who came to Missouri in 1835, settling in Union township, Cass County. The mother died in 1910. To Jesse V. and Sarah T. Meador were born six children, two of whom are now living, R. M., the subject of this sketch and Mrs. E. A. Sheppard, of Kansas City, Missouri.
R. M. Meador was educated in the public schools. He began life as a farmer in Union township at the age of twenty-one, continuing that occupation for fifteen years. In 1883 he and his brother, A. M. Meador, purchased a hardware and implement store at West Line and were suc- cessfully engaged in that business for fifteen years. Since that time R. M. has been engaged in the grain business at West Line. He owns a farm in Union township and also property in the town of West Line.
Mr. Meador was married in 1883 to Miss Mary E. Clement, a daugh- ter of B. A. and Susan Clement, who resided near Cleveland, Missouri. The Clement family came to Cass County from Callaway County, Mis- souri, in 1866. To Mr. and Mrs. Meador have been born six children as follows: J. A., West Line; Mrs. Ella Jones, West Line; Ada, Mary, Ora and Oliver, all of whom reside at home.
Many changes have taken place in Cass County within the recol- lection of Mr. Meador. He can remember when their nearest neighbor north of their home was nine miles distant. It was the same distance to any neighbor, except his grandfather Massey, who lived one mile
(46)
722
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
away. There were no roads or fences in those days, and the traveler followed the trail regardless of section lines. Wild game, including deer, wild turkeys and prairie chickens, was in abundance. In the early days Mr. Meador fought prairie fires, which on several occasions swept over the country destroying the fences and frequently the buildings. In those days the settlers in that locality hauled their supplies from Westport or Independence, there being no Kansas City at that time. It was the cus- tom of the early settlers to make two trips yearly for supplies, usually making one trip in the spring and another in the fall. Mr. Meador has heard his parents tell of riding to Pleasant Hill on horseback, a distance of twenty miles, to attend church. Mr. Meador, himself, frequently rode fifteen or twenty miles to attend church or a picnic with his best girl in the early days.
Mr. Meador has always taken an active interest in local affairs and has served as trustee, assessor, and clerk of West Dolan township. He has been clerk of the school board for over twenty years.
J. R. Lusher, a well-known merchant at West Line, Missouri, is a native of Cass County, born in 1859. He is a son of John H. and Emiline (Torrey) Lusher. The father was a native of Switzerland and immi- grated to America when a young man. John H. Lusher first located in New York and was married in that city. In 1856 he came to Cass County, Missouri, bought land and engaged in farming and stock raising. Four years later he removed to Johnson County, Kansas, where he resided until 1885, when he returned to Missouri. While in Kansas he was suc- cessfully engaged in farming and stock raising and became very well- to-do. He was prominent in politics and represented Johnson County in the Kansas legislature for two terms. John H. Lusher was always an adherent to the policies and principles of the republican party. He died in 1912. He was a man who believed in a square deal and was always loyal to his friends. He possessed a strong character and stood high in the community.
J. R. Lusher was one of a family of four children born to his par- ents, as follows: R. O., Kansas City, Missouri; W. D., Los Angeles, Cal- ifornia; L. W., Kansas City, Missouri; and J. R., the subject of this sketch. Mr. Lusher was educated in the public schools. He began life for himself at the age of eighteen. He first entered the drug business in Kansas, which engaged his attention for some years, and in 1880 he en-
723
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
gaged in that business at West Line, Missouri. In all, Mr. Lusher was engaged in the drug business about thirty years. At one time he was the owner of the commissary for the Kansas City Southern Railroad Company and furnished its supplies from Kansas City to Pittsburg, Kan- sas. He was thus engaged for three years. He has also been extensively interested in the stock business, and has handled Percheron horses and Mammoth jacks for several years. He was engaged in the dry goods business for a number of years also. In 1914 he engaged in the general mercantile business at West Line. He carries hardware, groceries, im- plements, and shoes, and is one of Cass County's progressive merchants, who keeps pace with the methods of the times.
Mr. Lusher was united in marriage in 1880 with Miss Cora A. Rebo, a daughter of W. H. and Eliza Rebo, of Johnson County, Kansas. To this union were born two children, Mrs. Corda B. Williams, of West Line, who has three children, Zoe, Lusher and Cora; and R. E., who married Luella Richardson, and they have three children, Lester, Helen and Sanford.
Although Mr. Lusher is practically a young man, he has seen many changes in Cass County since his boyhood. He remembers when the entire section of the country was one vast open plain and a house was rarely to be seen. As a boy he herded cattle in Johnson County, Kansas, on what was known as the "Black Bob Reservation". At that time there were no white settlers on the reservation. He was acquainted with the Shawnee Indians of that section and visited their camps almost every day.
M. N. Stark, the efficient and trustworthy cashier of the Bank of West Line, Missouri, was born in Cass County, near West Line, in 1884, son of William R. and Mary E. (Crenshaw) Stark. William R. Stark was the son of David Stark, who immigrated with his family to Missouri from Kentucky about 1856. They settled in Cass County. Mary E. (Crenshaw) Stark was the daughter of Wm. T. Crenshaw, a native of Kentucky. The following children were born to William R. and Mary E. (Crenshaw) Stark: David, the well-known and honored senator, who resides in West Line, Missouri; James, Freeman, Missouri; M. N., sub- ject of this review; E. L., West Line, Missouri; Stella, West Line, Mis- souri; Galen, West Line, Missouri; W. R., West Line, Missouri; Daniel, West Line, Missouri; and Louis, West Line, Missouri.
724
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
William R. Stark was one of the most distinguished men of Cass County. He was widely known as a prominent and successful farmer and stockman. Mr. Stark dealt extensively in cattle. Throughout his life he displayed great ability and foresight. He was an active, robust, energetic man and very fond of out-door life. His life was one of great activity and usefulness. William R. Stark was a member of the Baptist church and a tireless worker in all humane and Christian causes. By his industry and good management he accumulated much wealth and at the time of his death, in 1901, was owner of sixteen hundred acres of land and not one acre was obtained at the expense of his fellowman. There are now more than two thousand acres in the Stark estate. Few men in Cass County are better known than was he, for Mr. Stark was a man who would be known wherever he went, for he possessed a marked individuality. For many years he went among the people of the county until we may safely say without exaggeration that practically every one knew him, and few there are who do not miss with sadness his familiar form and voice. He has proven it is possible for a man to be a philan- thropist and a business man on the largest scale at the same time. Such examples are not so numerous as they should be and deserve to be noted when they occur. Mrs. Stark, widow of William R. Stark, was ever her husband's faithful co-worker. She now resides in Columbia, Missouri, where four of her children are in school.
M. N. Stark spent the days of his boyhood upon his father's farm assisting with the work and attending the district school. His first business venture was a financial success, and he was very proud of the first money he had ever earned. He was a mere lad when he became deeply interested in the poultry industry and the success which attended his efforts in raising Plymouth Rocks greatly encouraged him to proceed in poultry husbandry. Mr. Stark is now recognized as an expert poultry fancier. When many are complaining of the scarcity of eggs M. N. Stark has no difficulty finding upon his farm from seventy to one hundred eggs each day.
In 1913 M. N. Stark was elected cashier of the bank of West Line, Missouri. He is also one of the stockholders of the bank. The Bank of West Line was organized in 1910 with Lewis G. McGill, president, and C. J. Wortham, vice president, and with a capital stock of eleven thousand dollars. The marked success of this bank has attracted wide-spread at- tention, and Mr. Stark feels justly proud of the institution, which is a
725
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
constant reminder of the confidence and esteem in which he is held. The profits of the bank, which are commensurate with its magnitude, are constantly increasing and are largely due to Mr. Stark's good business judgment and to the fact that he has mastered well the intricate problem of finance.
D. W. Blake, of Dolan township, has been a resident of Cass County for nearly forty years and is a highly esteemed and honored pioneer. He was born in 1851 in Nicholas County, Kentucky, son of Thomas and Abigail J. (Robertson) Blake. Thomas Blake was the son of George Blake, who was born in Virginia and in an early day immigrated to Ken- tucky. Thomas Blake, an ex-justice of the peace in Kentucky, brought his family to Missouri in 1879 and located in Cass County, where he pur- chased forty acres of land. He was engaged in general farming. The following sons are the surviving children of Thomas and Abigail J. (Robertson) Blake: John, Amsterdam, Missouri; J. H., Osawatomie, Kansas; T. D., Lacrosse, Kansas; and D. W., subject of this review. Mr. and Mrs. Blake were familiarly known as "Uncle Tom" and "Aunt Abi- gail", and their names are still fresh and precious in the memory of the people of Cass County. They were renowned for their warm, southern hospitality and gentle, kind manners. Both father and mother were energetic workers in all good and noble causes and both were worthy members of the Presbyterian church. They have long since passed on to meet their Creator.
At the age of twenty-one years, D. W. Blake was taken into partner- ship with his father. He always lived with his parents. He was sepa- rated from them but three weeks, and that separation was made neces- sary when he drove through from Kentucky to Missouri. His parents then came on the train. The father died in 1889 and the mother fol- lowed him in death in 1898.
In 1877 D. W. Blake and Eliza Trilby of Kentucky, were united in marriage and this union was blessed with one child:, Mrs. Irene Cecil, of Freeman, Missouri. Mrs. Blake died in 1878. Mr. Blake has never re- married. Mrs. Cecil is the mother of one child, Gladys.
When Mr. Blake came to Cass County with his parents, in 1879, he found the few settlements along the streams where the early pioneers had chosen sites in order to be near the timber. He recalls the pioneer preachers, among whom he best remembers Rev. Hunter, and the primi-
726
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
tive churches. In those days families went to church, walking the en- tire distance of several miles, or riding horseback, or coming in farm wagons. Mr. Blake is an earnest member and deacon of the Christian church. He has established for himself a fine reputation in Cass County and enjoys the respect of all who know him.
E. C. Wiley, a successful and enterprising merchant of Freeman, Missouri, was born in St. Joseph County, Michigan, in 1863. He is the only son of L. C. and Margaret M. (Ferguson) Wiley. L. C. Wiley was the son of Samuel Wiley, a pioneer of St. Joseph County, Michigan, who had migrated from the State of New York. He had learned the shoe- makers' trade in New York, but he engaged in general farming in Michi- gan, where he purchased a large farm. In 1870, L. C. Wiley, with his family, came from Michigan to Missouri and located upon a farm, a part of which is now the site of Garden City. Margaret M. (Ferguson) Wiley was the daughter of William Ferguson, a native of Pennsylvania.
E. C. Wiley was a child seven years of age when he came to Cass County with his parents. He was a lad of observing mind and remembers how widely scattered were the settlements then. Many times in his youth he was called upon to help fight the destructive prairie fires and to assist his father in saving their property. He received what educa- tion was available in the little red school house on the four corners, near Garden City. At the age of twenty-two years he was employed for one year in the livery business in Garden City, after which he was engaged in the grocery business there. Mr. Wiley was employed for one year in the railroad office in Garden City.
E. C. Wiley's first wife was Flora T. Clemens, daughter of David Clemens, of Garden City. Several years after Mrs. Wiley's death, E. C. Wiley and Della M. Thornberg, daughter of Isaac and Susan Thornberg, were united in marriage in 1897, and to this union has been born one son, Merwin F. The Thornberg family came to Missouri from Indiana in 1892 and located in Dayton.
Mr. and Mrs. Wiley resided in Texas for more than a year. When they returned to Missouri Mr. Wiley engaged in the general mercantile business in Raymore. In 1913 he moved his stock of goods to Freeman, and for the past four years has dealt in general merchandise in this city. Mr. Wiley keeps a neat, clean stock of goods, valued at about ten thou- sand dollars. No man in the west, perhaps, has a better knowledge of
727
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
the wants and needs of the people in general merchandise and very few persons have better taste and judgment in all matters relating to the buying and selling of goods, a work for which he is peculiarly fitted.
J. H. Brown, one of Cass County's pioneers, was born in Bates County, Missouri, in 1857. He is the son of A. H. and Elizabeth Brown. The father came to Missouri at a very early date from Virginia and set- tled in Bates County, and the mother was born in Missouri. Five sons were born to A. H. and Elizabeth Brown, two of whom are now living, namely: J. H., subject of this review; and B. E., Eldorado Springs, Mis- souri. J. H. Brown was but a small boy when Order No. 11 was issued, but he recalls how the Brown family moved away in a wagon, drawn by two cows, with one horse hitched in front of the cows. They came to the end of their journey in Texas and there remained until 1868, when A. H. Brown brought his family back to Cass County. He purchased one hundred acres of land and engaged in the peaceful pursuits of farming. Here, in 1879, he quietly passed on to meet his Creator, and fourteen years later, in 1893, his wife joined him in death. Mr. and Mrs. Brown, in their quiet and unassuming way, nobly did their part in the develop- ment of Cass County, and will long be remembered among the county's most useful citizens.
J. H. Brown 'was eleven years of age when his parents returned to Cass County from Texas and he well recalls the state of the county just after the Civil War. The county's natural resources had not then been despoiled and there were many large forest trees along the streams. Much of the country was wide, open prairie, and deer, prairie chickens, wolves and wild turkeys could be seen in great numbers. He obtained his education in the small, log school house, where his first teacher was Ben- jamin Stephens. Among the pioneer preachers to whom he often listened was Rev. C. C. Wood.
In 1878 J. H. Brown and Mary Childs, daughter of James Childs, were united in marriage, and to this union have been born the following children : James A., Benjamin M., Mrs. Lucy E. Lacy, Mrs. Myrtle P. Lacy, and Iris N. All the children have been reared to maturity and are now living.
After his mother's death, in 1893, Mr. Brown purchased the old home place and has since been engaged in farming and stock raising upon his farm in Dolan township. Though he feeds some cattle he has specialized
728
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
in the breeding of Poland China hogs, and he has been very successful in his chosen vocation. J. H. Brown's life has been one of great activity and usefulness.
W. S. James, president of the Archie State Bank, Archie, Missouri, is one of the well-known members of the banking fraternity of Cass County. Mr. James is a native of Illinois, born near Quincy, in 1859. He is a son of J. H. and M. V. (Taylor) James, the former a native of Mis- souri, and the latter of Kentucky. J. H. James was a son of Adam James, a Kentuckian who settled in Missouri in 1828. The mother of W. S. James was a daughter of Andrew Taylor, a native of Kentucky. J. H. James, the father, followed farming in early life, but later engaged in the grain business at Ursa, Illinois. He became an extensive grain dealer at that place and was engaged in that business about twenty- five years. He died there March 11, 1911. His wife died in 1909. They were the parents of six children, five of whom are living, as follows: W. S., the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Amanda Sheppard, Ursa, Illinois ; E. T., Goddard, Kansas; Mrs. Mary Ketchum, Iola, Kansas; and C. A., Carthage, Illinois.
W. S. James was educated in the public schools and the State Normal School at Kirksville, Missouri. He began teaching school near Ursa, Illi- nois, when he was nineteen years old, and followed that profession about four years. He then learned telegraphy and for two years was employed as telegraph operator at Harrisonville, Missouri. Later he became cash- ier of the Farmers' Bank at Foster, Missouri, remaining there until 1912. He then became an extensive stockholder in the Archie State Bank at Archie, Missouri, and became president of that institution. The follow- ing year Mrs. James was elected cashier of that bank. Mr. James has been president of the bank and his wife cashier to the present time. The Archie State Bank is a substantial institution, and is conducted on safe, conservative banking methods, and has among its patrons the sub- stantial business men and farmers in the vicinity of Archie.
Mr. James was united in marriage with Miss Cora L. Haynes, daugh- ter of Dr. J. N. and Jenette (McCubbin) Haynes, the former a native of Kentucky, and the latter of Scotland. They were the parents of six children, as follows: Cora L., now Mrs. W. S. James, wife of the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Margaret Barton, Amorett, Missouri; Deen Garland, Pleasanton, Kansas; and Fred E., Dallas, Texas. To Mr. and Mrs. James have been born two children, Eula and Virginia.
729
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
Mr. and Mrs. James have an extensive acquaintance in the vicinity of Archie. Their uprightness of character and high business integrity have won the justly merited confidence and esteem of the public.
J. B. Wilson, of Drexel, Missouri, a prominent real estate man of that thriving town, is known over a broad scope of territory in Missouri and Kansas as "Wilson, the Land Man." He is a native of Pike County, Illinois, born in 1841, and is a son of James and Ann (Stevenson) Wilson. James Wilson, the father, was a native of New Hampshire, and a son of James Wilson, a native of Scotland. James Wilson, J. B.'s father, followed farming in his native state. He was a near neighbor of Presi- dent Pierce's father. In 1833 James Wilson removed to Illinois, which was at a very early day in the settlement of that state. He was a man of strong personality and prominent in the affairs of the new country, after coming to Illinois. He was captain of the local militia, and served as justice of the peace for a number of years. He died in 1848. His wife, Ann Stevenson, was a daughter of John Stevenson of Kentucky. She came to Missouri in 1901, and there she died in 1908.
J. B. Wilson received a common school education. He spent his early life on a farm in Illinois. In 1873 he went to Kansas, settling in Miami County, Kansas, about four miles southwest of Drexel, Missouri. Here he bought a hundred seventy acres of land, where he followed farm- ing and stock raising until 1888, when he opened a general store at Sugar, which was three and one-half miles southwest of Drexel, Missouri. There he carried on a mercantile business until 1891. He then came to Drexel, Missouri, and engaged in the live stock business, becoming one of the most extensive cattle dealers in that section. He shipped thousands of car loads of cattle and hogs, and made Drexel one of the important ship- ping points along the line of the Kansas City Southern Railway, and thus added greatly to the commercial development of the live stock in- terests of southwestern Cass County.
In 1905 Mr. Wilson engaged in the real estate business in Drexel. In turning to that field of enterprise, he has applied himself with the spirit of push and energy characteristic of the man, which has made of his real estate venture a success from the start. He is one of the most successful real estate men of the county, and probably one of the best posted men on land values in western Missouri. He has seen the develop- ment of this section of the country from the time that he came here,
730
HISTORY OF CASS COUNTY
when land could have been bought for five dollars per acre, to the present price of real estate, which is probably the mere beginning of land values in this country. The value of land and other products has undergone considerable change since Mr. Wilson came here. In 1875 he bought twenty-two head of yearling steers at six dollars and twenty-five cents each. The same cattle would be worth about fifty dollars a head today. On the other hand, he paid thirteen cents per pound for wire fence in the early day and was the first man to use wire for fencing purposes in his section of the country.
Mr. Wilson was married in 1862 to Miss Sarah Ann Rickey, a daugh- ter of Brice Rickey, of Illinois. One child was born to this union. Mrs. Wilson died in 1865. In 1871 Mr. Wilson was married to Sarah A. Nor- ton, a daughter of John Norton, of Illinois. She departed this life in 1910.
Mr. Wilson is one of the progressive and public spirited men of Drexel. He owns property in Mexico as well as in his home town. He takes a prominent part in local affairs and has served as treasurer of Coldwater township for six years.
C. C. Cable, president of the Inter-State Bank of Drexel, Missouri, is a prominent factor in the financial and commercial sphere of Cass County, and has been actively identified with this section of Missouri for a number of years. He was born in Warren County, Illinois, in 1855, and is a son of George H. and Minerva J. (Foster) Cable. George H. Cable was a native of New York, and a son of George Cable, who mi- grated from New York to Illinois at an early day. He died in that State in 1861. Minerva J. Foster, mother of C. C. Cable, was a daughter of John C. Foster of Illinois.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.