USA > Missouri > Platte County > History of Clay and Platte Counties, Missouri : written and compiled from the most authentic official and private sources, including a history of their townships, towns, and villages, together with a condensed history of Missouri; a reliable and detailed history of Clay and Platte Counties --their pioneer record, resources, biographical sketches of prominent citizens. > Part 90
USA > Missouri > Clay County > History of Clay and Platte Counties, Missouri : written and compiled from the most authentic official and private sources, including a history of their townships, towns, and villages, together with a condensed history of Missouri; a reliable and detailed history of Clay and Platte Counties --their pioneer record, resources, biographical sketches of prominent citizens. > Part 90
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Mr. Noland is a son of one of the first settlers of the county, Maj. Joshua Noland and wife, mention of whom is made in the sketch of his brother, Judge G. W. Noland, which follows this; therefore it is unnecessary to again repeat here what will be mentioned there as pertaining to the family history. . Obed C. accompanied his parents to Platte county, Mo., in 1837, and was given most excellent educational advantages. In his leisure moments he assisted on the farm and thus familiarized himself with the routine of a life which he expected to embrace. October 31, 1855, before reaching the age of 20 years, he married Miss Elizabeth F. Higgins, daughter of John Higgins, a native of Missouri, and who was born in Cooper's Fort, though his parents were Virginians by birth. After his marriage, Mr. Noland rented land for a number of years and in March, 1876, settled on his present place, a most beautiful farm of 300 acres. His specialty is in the raising of wheat, an industry for which this land is peculiarly adapted ; and on an average Mr. N. raises nearly 1,000 bushels annually. Mr. Noland was born in Lafayette county, Mo., April 17, 1836, and is therefore in his fiftieth year. We have noted above his career from a beginning as a boy unaided to a position of one of the leading citizens of this part of the county, a career which reflects great honor and credit upon him for the substantial and per- severing manner in which he has overcome all obstacles. He is well versed in the ordinary business affairs of every-day life and richly merits the success which has attended his endeavors. His family numbers 10 children, as follows : Mary J., wife of Geo. D. Pat- rick ; Sarah M., wife of David C. Higgins ; Martha J., now Mrs. Joshua R. Noland ; John H., at home, as is also his brother Will- iam B .; George W. died in October, 1883, in his fifteenth year ; Harmon G., Hugh B., Harry C. and Lottie M. Mrs. N. is a member of the Christian Church.
863
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
JUDGE GEORGE W. NOLAND
(Farmer and Stock-raiser, Section 25, Post-office, Parkville).
Judge Noland, for nearly half a century a resident of Pettis town- ship, and a man who has held several positions of responsibility and honor in the county - one of the township's influential and highly-re- spected citizens, and a man of superior education and natural ability- is deserving of a more extended sketch than we feel at liberty to give in this volume, the space of which is necessarily limited. He came to this county when a mere child, and his entire life since then has been passed within its boundaries. His father, Maj. Joshua Noland, was a Kentuckian by birth, his father having been formerly from Vir- ginia. Joshua Noland was married in Madison county, of his native State, to Miss Sallie Mckinney, of the same vicinity, and soon after this event, or in the fall of 1831, they came to Missouri, locating first in Lafayette county. This was their home until the fall of 1837, when they settled in Platte county ; the senior Noland now pre-empted land, and, after it came into the market, entered it. This embraced the place upon which the Judge now resides. Maj. Noland died in 1854, having during his eventful life, among other things, held the position of an officer of militia. George W. Noland was born in Madison county, Ky., December 5, 1830, and was the third of seven sons, four of whom are living at this time, and three of them in Platte county (the other being in Wyandotte county, Kan.). As already inti- mated, the early life of George W. was an uneventful one, his time being spent in work upon the home farm, and in acquiring an educa- tion. He was here married to Miss Sidney B. Reynolds, on the 12th of February, 1858. Mrs. N. was born in Howard county, Mo., and was the daughter of Thomas C. Reynolds. Mr. Noland soon after this located on the old homestead, buying out the interest of the other heirs. This place, one of the best in the township in size and pro- ductiveness, contains 360 acres, upon which are model improvements, embracing everything necessary for the successful carrying on of a good stock farm. His orchard consists of about 200 trees. In 1862 he en- listed in the State militia, Thirty-ninth regiment, and subsequently was in the Eighty-second until the close of the war. In one engagement he re- ceived a flesh wound which disabled him for some time, and in the fall of 1864 he was mustered out, then returning to the farm. In the Thirty- ninth regiment he held the position of second lieutenant, and was first lieutenant in the Eighty-second. For one term Judge Noland occupied the bench of the county court, and discharged his duties in an em- phatic but practical manner, greatly to his credit and to the satisfac- tion of those who had supported him. He and his wife have five chil- dren : William T., married and on the home farm; Ida D., wife of G. W. Noland, Jr., also of this county ; Henry C., at home ; Emma, and Ed. M. Three are deceased : 'George B., aged five ; James M., three years old, and Mary A., aged four years. Mrs. Noland is a member of the M. E. Church South.
864
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
MATHIAS F. NOLAND
(Farmer and Stock-raiser, Section 17, Post-office, Parkville) .
One of the best known and among the highly respected citizens of this county, and especially of Pettis township, where so many years of his life have been spent, is Mr. John Noland, the father of the sub- ject of this sketch, who has almost reached the age usually allotted to man - three score and ten. He is a sturdy son of Kentucky, having been born in Estill county, and during his residence in Missouri, which has been since 1831, he has displayed to no ordinary degree the char- acteristics and thorough life principles of the people of that State. His first location in Missouri was in Fayette county, but in 1837 Platte county became his home, and here he was afterwards married to Miss Zilpha Garges, a native of North Carolina, and daughter of Joel Garges, an early settler of the county. Mr. Noland subsequently entered land and improved a farm in this township, the place which is now occu- pied by his son, the subject of this sketch. He was 68 years old on February 22 last, a man well preserved in years and who bids fair to see many more winters. Mathias F. has passed his entire life within the bounds of Platte county, having been born in the neighborhood of his present home, August 18, 1844. His early youth was employed in the occupation which he has ever followed, but in 1862 he enlisted in the Eighty-second regiment of the Missouri State militia, under Col. J. A. Price, of Weston. Taken prisoner at Parkville, in 1863, he was only held a short time, then being paroled. January 10, 1864, he was united in marriage with Miss Eliza Gray, whose father, Henry Gray, was a pioneer to Missouri. Mrs. Noland was born and reared in Carroll county. Heaven has blessed them with a worthy family of children, five in number : Zilpha A., John N., Cora E., Milda and Walter. Mr. N., in connection with his father, with whom he makes his home, has 200 acres of land, under good improvement. Mr. No- land has frequently been called upon to fill different local offices in the township, the duties of which he has discharged with ability.
OTHO OFFUTT
(Farmer and Stock-raiser, Section 33).
Samuel R. Offutt, the father of the subject of the present sketch, was born in Virginia, where he grew up and was married to Eliza Hayes, who was also a native of Virginia. In an early day Samuel R. settled in Kentucky, and owned land in both Bourbon and Fayette counties. In 1843 he sold out his interests in the latter State and came to Missouri, locating in Platte county, near Camden Point, where he bought land and improved a farm -two or three farms-and was an extensive trader both in stock and land. He died at Camden Point in the fall of 1865. His wife is also deceased. Otho Offutt is a Kentuck- ian by birth, having been born in Fayette county April 11, 1835. He grew to manhood in this county, having accompanied his parents here
.
865
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
in the fall of 1843, but in early life was denied the privileges of an education. In 1861, under Jackson's call for troops, he enlisted in the Home Guard, and subsequently, upon their disbanding, enlisted in the regular Confederate service, in Pindall's battalion of sharp- shooters, serving until the close of the war. He was in the fights at Springfield, Mo., Elk Horn, Prairie Grove, Mansfield and some lesser engagements. After the war Mr. Offutt returned to this county and was occupied in farming until his marriage here, in December, 1866, to Miss Sarah Settle, daughter of John J. Settle, from Virginia. Mrs. Offutt was also born in that State. Some time after this event he located on a farm at Camden Point, remaining there until 1869, when he removed to the place which he now occupies. This was then un- improved land, but he went to work with energy and determination to cultivate a good farm, which he has succeeded in doing. He has 280 acres all fenced, upon which are good buildings. One important feature of the farm is an excellent well, containing eighteen feet of water, and which seldom varies in depth, and furnishes an abundance of water, for stock purposes. Mr. Offutt had the misfortune to lose his wife July 1, 1884 ; she left seven children : J. Elliott, Jesse E., Vir- ginia, Marion, Otho, George W. and Joseph. Mrs. Offutt was a member of the Baptist Church, with which he is also connected. He is one of the progressive, enterprising agriculturists of Pettis township.
WOODFORD W. RIXEY
(Farmer and Stock-raiser, Section 33, Post-office, Platte City).
Of that sturdy and independent class, the farmers of Missouri, none are possessed of more genuine merit and a stronger character than he whose name stands at the head of this sketch. A young man not yet thirty-five years of age, he has risen to a position among the citizens of this county which would be of credit to one much older and of more experience in the affairs of life. He was born in Cul- peper county, Va., November 25, 1850, and was a son of Charles W. and Ann. F. (Settle) Rixey, of the same county. The former was a prominent man in the county of his birth, was a large land owner, and conducted an extensive plantation, owning, besides, a large number of slaves before the war. He served as a magistrate for many years. He died in 1870. Woodford W. Rixey, his son, was more than ordinarily favored in his bringing up, and especially did he excel in his educational opportunities. To his good primary education he added a course in Roanoke College, and was in the sophomore class when he was obliged to leave school in 1869, on ac- count of his father's health. After his death he came to Missouri, in 1871, and located in Platte county where he was married to Miss Margaret V. Miller, daughter of Jesse and Margaret Miller, for- merly from Virginia, and among the early settlers of this county. Mrs. R. died the same year of her marriage. At her father's decease he had willed the home farm, 160 acres, to Mr. Rixley. He was married again in October, 1878, in Buchanan county, to Miss Mary
866
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
J. Settle, daughter of J. D. Settle. She was born in Platte county, but was reared in Buchanan. To them have been born three children, Margaret Virginia, Mary Frances and Woodford Joseph. Since his first marriage Mr. R. has been engaged in farming. He now has 160 acres in the home place well improved, upon which is an orchard of 400 trees. He also owns a number of houses and lots in Hampton. A valuable spring in his yard affords a sufficient supply of water for all farm purposes. Mr. and Mrs. Rixey are members of the Elm Grove Missionary Baptist Church.
JOHN SHEPARD
(Farmer and Stock-raiser, Section 30, Post-office, Hampton).
A native born citizen of this county, Mr. Shepard has risen to no ordinary degree of success in his calling of an agriculturalist and stock man, and is recognized everywhere as an energetic and pro- gressive tiller of the soil, imbued with all those qualities of go-ahead- ativeness which characterized his father and, indeed, other of his ancestors. His father, Lycurgus Shepard, removed from Kentucky, his native State, to Missouri with his parents and settled in Howard county, where he grew to manhood. He was united in marriage there to a daughter of one of the earliest settlers of the county - Miss Sallie A. Howard, a daughter of Matthew Howard, also originally of Kentucky, though she was born and reared in Howard county. In about 1838 he moved to Platte county and for a year or two rented a farm, then purchased the place where he now lives. He lost his wife here in about 1867. Since his settlement here Mr. S. has been prominently identified with both the public and private interests of the county. He filled the office of surveyor very acceptably for one or more terms and was the efficient sheriff of the county for two con- secutive terms. He now makes his home with the subject of this sketch, and is a hale, hearty gentleman, one of the respected and honored pioneers of the county. John Shepard, a worthy son of Lycurgus Shepard, was born on the farm where he now lives, January 9, 1843, upon which he also grew to maturity. In 1861 he enlisted in the Confederate army, first in Col. John Winston's regiment and afterward in Pindall's sharpshooters, Parson's brigade, of the regular Confederate service. He served until the close of the war and sur- rendered at Shreveport, La., having been in the fights of Elkhorn, Prairie Grove, Helena, Jenkin's Ferry, Pleasant Hill, Mansfield and a number of others. After this he returned to his home and has since been occupied in farming. October 21, 1875, Mr. Shepard was married to Miss Sarah F. Ashby, daughter of S. B. Ashby, of this county, formerly of Kentucky. They have seven children : Anna, Celsus, Matthew, Elisa, Orin, Paul and Nellie. Mr. S. belongs to the Ma- sonic fraternity, holding membership in the Blue Lodge, Chapter and . Commandery (Knights Templar) at Platte City. His farm of 320 acres is a superior one, and is conducted in an excellent manner, - in full keeping with a neat, well educated and enterprising owner, as Mr. S. is.
867
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
SAMUEL B. STUCKEY
(Farmer and Stock-raiser, Section 36, Post-office, Waldron).
Mr. Stuckey had just passed his twenty-first year when he became possessed of a determination to leave the parental homestead in Old Virginia and come on further West. This he was finally prevailed upon to do, and accordingly in the spring of 1868 he moved to Mis- souri, locating at once in Platte county. Here he resumed the oc- cupation to which he had been reared, and which he has ever followed, namely, that of farming, and in which he has not been un- successful. He had not been here very long before he was married, Miss Lou Settle, daughter of John J. Settle, formerly from Virginia, and who had settled in Platte county in 1855, becoming his wife on March 23, 1871. Though herself a Virginian by birth, Mr. S. was brought up and educated in this county. A year after this Mr. Stuckey purchased a farm, a portion of which constitutes his present place. His estate embraces 300 acres, all under fence, and divided as usual into pasture, timber, etc. A good residence adorns the home place, and other buildings are in keeping with the general appear- ance of the farm. The land is peculiarly well adapted to the grow- ing of wheat, which he has made a specialty, and his average yield annually will reach about 2,000 bushels. Their interesting family numbers six children : Jennie V., Ada, John, Rose E., Jesse and George. Mr. Stuckey is descended from an old Virginian family, his parents and grandparents having been born in that State. The father, Jacob A. Stuckey, of Berkeley county, married there Miss Eva Ferrel, daughter of Benjamin Ferrel, originally from Pennsylvania. The family still live in the State of their birth. Samuel B. Stuckey was born in Berkeley county ( now in West Virginia), November 28, 1846, and therefore is nearing his fortieth year. He and his wife are members of the Christian Church.
JOHN E. THRELKELD (Merchant, Parkville, Mo.).
In the early days of the county, no man was more thoroughly con- versant with the geography of the then thinly populated portion of this State than George W. Threlkeld, the father of John E., who was originally from Kentucky. He came to Missouri a young man, locat- ing eight miles north of Columbia, in Boone county, where he married Miss Eveline W., daughter of George Sexton, the earliest stage con- tractor of the State, he having controlled the Missouri and Illinois stage business for a number of years. Mrs. Threlkeld was native to Boone county. In 1848 the family moved to Kansas City, when there were but three houses in the place, and there the father started the hotel and livery business, erecting the first hotel in the town. In 1851 he started overland to California, but was sick on both the trip going and coming, subsequently dying at St. Louis in 1851, aged 38
868
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
years. He was an active, energetic business man, and could his life but have been spared he would have doubtless attained to more than an ordinary degree of prominence. John E. grew to manhood in Kansas City, receiving a good education at the High School and col- leges there. After this he ran his father's business during the latter's absence in California, and also clerked in a mercantile establishment, besides learning the printer's trade. In 1857 he went on a Salt Lake expedition across the plains, and in 1858 took a fur company to a point 140 miles this side of Ft. Laramie, on North Platte, where a post was built. Several years were subsequently passed in making trips to Mexico and Denver. The year 1865 was spent in Salt Lake City. In the fall of that year he returned home, then at Kansas City. Soon, however, he became interested in mercantile pursuits in Clay county, also buying stock for butchering purposes for Kansas City parties. In 1867 Mr. Threlkeld took up his permanent location at Parkville, embarking in the grocery business. Since then he has had several partners, the present firm, Bueneman & Threlkeld, having been formed in 1875. The establishment embraces two stores, one devoted to gro- ceries, and under the management of Mr. Bueneman, and the other, a clothing store, under the charge of Mr. T. They are enjoying a most excellent trade as they fully deserve. Mr. Threlkeld was married October 24, 1867, to Miss Josie Bueneman, daughter of J. H. Buene- inan, the postmaster of Parkville, and whose name appears in connection with his sketch elsewhere. They have two children, Theo- dore R. and Eva May. Two are deceased, George dying when 5 years old and Pearl at the age of 5 years. Mr. T. is a member of the M. E. Church, and his wife is connected with the Presbyterian de- nomination. He belongs to the Blue Lodge of the A. F. and A. M., and is also agent for the Masonic Mutual Benefit Society of Missouri.
COL. JOHN H. WINSTON (Farmer and Stock-raiser, Section 27).
The record of the family of which the subject of the present sketch is a worthy and respected representative, leads us back to the Revo- lutionary days of the Republic. He is descended from a noble, chivalrous and gallant patriot who had settled in North Carolina from Virginia previous to the Revolutionary War-Col. Joseph Winston. He was a colonel in the struggle for Independence and was one of three survivors of the battle of King's Mountain, for whom the Legis- lature of the State of North Carolina ordered three swords to be made which were suitably engraved - living mementoes of that fierce and terrible struggle. Col. Joseph Winston was the father of Gen. Joseph W. Winston, a native of Stokes county, N. C. He married Miss Letitia Hughes of that State, but in 1839 moved to Missouri and located in Pettis township, in Platte county, where he resided until his death in 1840. He, too, was a fearless soldier and in the War of 1812 commanded a North Carolina regiment. He was afterwards major-general of the State militia, and also served with distinction
869
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
and honor as representative of his county in the State Legislature. His father before him had held a like position in his county, and also served two terms in Congress. To Gen. Joseph W. Winston and wife were born four sons, of whom John H. Winston is the eldest. Joseph went to California in 1849 and was elected probate judge, which posi- tion he held until his death in 1864 ; he left one daughter. Matthew H. died in this county in 1884. Capt. Samuel L. Winston served in the Missouri State Guard and C. S. A. under his brother, Jno. W., from 1861 to 1864; he also left two sons and two daughters. The youth and early manhood of John H. were passed in his native county, where he had common school advantages, and in 1837 he became a citizen of Missouri, taking up his location in Platte county, where he settled on a farm. Here, on the 4th of December, 1839, he was married to Miss Elizabeth Tebbs, a daughter of William H. Tebbs, deceased. W. H. Tebbs, born and raised in the ancient town of Dum- fries, Prince William county, Va., was married in 1809 to Miss Lydia Kennedy, of Sandy Point, Md. They raised their family in Prince William county, Va., on a large landed estate. Mrs. Winston, after having received a refined education in Prince William county, and en- joyed high social privileges, removed to St. Louis, Mo., where her father dying, she emigrated with her widowed mother to what was then the Platte Purchase, where she met John H., son of Gen. Joseph W. Winston, a man of wealth and distinction, to whom she was mar- ried December 4, 1839.
After this event Mr. Winston bought a farm and located where he now lives. Soon after his settlement here, or in about 1840, he was made major of the State militia. In 1861, under Gov. Jackson's call for troops to suppress Northern invasion, he enlisted in the State militia and was elected major, but after the fight at Lexington he was promoted to colonel of the Second Regiment, Fifth Division, M. S. G. Col. Winston was transferred, after the battle of Pea Ridge, to the Fifth Div., M. S. G., and consolidated into the First Mo. rifle regiment. He participated in the fights at Lexington, Pea Ridge, Corinth, Prairie Grove, and a number of lesser engagements and was once sent out on special duty, but was captured with Price's command while at home. After being held a prisoner for twenty months at different places, he was released from confinment at the close of the war and then returned home, since which time he has been farming and stock- raising. During his service in the war Col. Winston carried the sword which had been presented his grandfather for services during the Revolutionary War, and which is spoken of above. In 1872-73-74 Col. Winston, having been selected as the most capable candidate to . represent his county in the Legislature, was elected to that position by majorities highly complimentary to his ability and personal quali- fications, and served with credit to himself and honor to his consti- tuents. In his farming operations he is achieving good success, and now has 400 acres of land, his home place being improved with all the conveniences necessary and essential to a proper conduct of a model farm. His family of five children are Harry C., a graduate of
870
HISTORY OF PLATTE COUNTY.
William Jewell College, the Columbia Law School, and the Law School at Washington City, now practicing in Kansas City ; George F., also educated at William Jewell College, and a graduate of the St. Louis Law School ; also practicing in Kansas City ; Lydia, wife of M. E. Clark, banker, in Leavenworth; Cora, now Mrs. Wm. H. Woodson, of Independence ; both of these young ladies are graduates of Clay Seminary ; Julia L., died at the age of 18, after having com- pleted a collegiate course, and Algernon Sidney, who, after having attended William Jewell College, returned to the old homestead, where he is a successful stock-raiser and agriculturist. Mrs. Winston is a woman of more than ordinary force of character and deserving of special credit for the manner in which she has personally taken an in- terest in the bringing up of her children.
COL. RICHARD P. WOOD (Grocer, Parkville).
Col. Wood, one of the well known and honored citizens of this vi- cinity and a man who came to the county in the early days of its ex- istence, is a member of the distinguished family whose name he bears, representatives of which have risen to more than ordinary prominence in the history of this State and others throughout the land. He is a brother of Dr. Joseph M. Wood, of Kansas City, of Judge W. T. Wood, of Lexington, Mo., and also of Lewis J. Wood, of Smith- ville, Clay county. As might already have been inferred, he is a Kentuckian by birth, born in Mercer county, December 28, 1813. His father, William Wood, a native of Virginia, went to Kentucky when a young man, and there married Miss Sarah Thomas, of the same State as himself. In 1833 the family removed to Missouri and settled in Clay county, near Liberty, where Mr. Wood bought land ; and subsequently he died there in about 1834, his wife following him two weeks after. Our subject arrived at his majority while in Clay county, having also received such schooling as could then be obtained in the primitive log school-houses of the period. In 1838, in Lib- erty, he was married to Miss Angeline Wallace, daughter of one of the first settlers from Tennessee to this county, and one of the most prominent citizens of the locality. In 1838 Mr. Wood engaged in the drug business at Liberty, and in 1838 moved into Platte county before the lines had been surveyed, buying a claim near Platte City. Afterward he entered the land, one-half section, remaining in Platte county till 1849. He now sold out and made an overland trip to Cal- ifornia, spending four months on the way ; but after twelve months of work in the mines, returned by Panama and New Orleans. He soon purchased a farm near Liberty, which he subsequently disposed of, in 1867, when Parkville became his home. Before the war Mr. Wood had a number of slaves. In 1867 he embarked in the dry goods business at this point, and after about five years of successful business management started the drug store, which was succeeded by a grocery store some eight years later. This the Colonel has since continued to
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