USA > Missouri > Dade County > History of Dade County and her people : from the date of the earliest settlements to the present time > Part 42
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Fred C. Meyers is the oldest of a family of four children, being the only one born in Germany. All are dead except himself and brother Henry Meyers who lives near Greenfield. There were four children of the second marriage, two of whom are living: Carrie, now Mrs. Thomas Fitzgerald, of Quincy, Ill., and Kate, now Mrs. Edward Bleibtreu of St. Louis.
Mr. Meyers was raised on a farm in Illinois and re- mained there until 22 years of age when he came to St. Louis and engaged in the nursery business. He followed this occupation three years when he was employed by the famous General William Harney to take charge of his ranch in Franklin county, Mo. He worked on this ranch for three years. On the 4th day of July, 1876, during the Centenial year, he was married to Miss Kate Huffman. born May 24th, 1857 in Beaver county, Penn., daughter of Presley and Sarah (Moore) Huffman. Her parents were married in Ohio, her father being a native of Pennsylvania while her mother was a native of Ohio. They were farm- ers and came to Missouri in 1866 and settled on a farm in Franklin County, Mo. Her father died in 1875. He was a U'nion soldier and died from effects of injuries received in the service Her mother still lives on the old homestead in Franklin county.
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After the death of her father, Mrs. Meyers' mother re-married again to Lonis Schade of Franklin county. He is now deceased. Mrs. Meyers was 5th in point of birth of a family of nine children that grew to maturity. George. Ernest and Jesse Huffinan are residents of Kansas, Ada- line, now Mrs. John Davis, resides at Palestine, Ohio. Lot- tie, now Mrs. Wm. P. Patterson also lives at Palestine. Harvey resides in Illinois while Lou, now Mrs. Thomas Manion lives in Franklin County, Mo., on the old home- stead.
Shortly after his marriage, Mr. Meyers bought an 80 acre improved farm in Franklin county and went to farm- ing. He remained on this farm four years, sold ont and moved to Dade county in 1881. He settled on a tract of 240 acres, two and one-half miles north of Greenfield. They were renters on this land for seven years but by industry and frugality they became able to buy the entire traet, which was known as the Bell farm.
At this time the farm was in a run-down condition but Mr. and Mrs. Meyers set about to beautify and im- prove it. The residence was a hewed log house in which they lived for 23 years and in which all but two of their children were born. While the house was rough and un- seemly on the exterior, all within was neat and clean and the lawn was a perfect bower of beanty, being filled with ornamental trees and in summer with fragrant flowers. Both Mr. and Mrs. Meyers were fond of plants and shrubs and the Meyers home took on the appearance of a floral garden or city park by reason of its arborial adornment. In 1904 Mr. Meyers erected a splendid 8-room, frame dwelling house with modern conveniences.
Mr. and Mrs. Meyers are the parents of seven children, the first two being born in Franklin county, Mo., and the remaining five in Dade county :
(1) Henry, born April 5th, 1877, is now a farmer in Jasper county, Mo.
(2) William, born December 10th, 1880, married Ella Barker, a native of Dade county. He is a farmer and stock man. They have four children.
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(3) Minnie M., born March 9th, 1884, married Charles Gass, a Dade county farmer. They have three children.
(4) Lulu B., born July 1st, 1886, married James J. McConnell a fruit and truck farmer of Jasper county, Mo. They have two children.
(5) Charles E., born November 25th, 1892, mar- ried Edna Owens, a native Dade County girl. They have one child.
(6) Edwin F., born December 18th, 1894, married Gertrude Shaw a native of Dade county, and they are now living on the Meyers homestead and engaged in farming.
(7) Lewis, born February 25th, 1900. Is at home farming with his brother Edwin.
Having two sons capable of managing the farming operations, Mr. Meyers is living in partial retirement. However he maintains a superintending control over the farming and stock-raising enterprises on the place.
Mr. and Mrs. Meyers are members of the Presbyterian church. Ho is a Republican in politics but has never desired or sought an office. He is a progressive, public- spirited, industrious man with home building and home beautifying tendencies. The Meyers farm has long been one of the show places in Dade County, noted for the beauty of its evergreens and roses. Many social fetes and entertainments have been held on the spacious lawn and many clubs and societies are indebted to Mr. and Mrs. Meyers for their unstinted hospitality. Their farm is one of the best in the county and the home is an ideal one from every point of view.
CHARLES B. MEYERS. Deceased.
Charles B. Meyers was born in Richland County, O., January 22, 1830. He was taken by his father to Ver- million County, Ill., when a lad where he grew to man- hood and later moved to Washington County, Iowa. He
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was first married to Miss Susan Pierce who died in 1862. He was a veteran of the Civil war, having enlisted in Co. B., 2nd Kansas and was discharged at Fort Smith, Ark., June 22nd and came to Dade county in 1866 where he was a successful farmer and married here, Miss Sarah A. Cox of South Greenfield who was born February 19th, 1843, the marriage took place February 24th, 1867 and to this union five children were born as follows: Susie, born January 29th, 1868, is now Mrs. Thomas Gilispie of Dade county; Lillie died in infancy; Beatrice Joie, born October 8th, 1876 married Arthur Cotter and died leaving three children, John and Batie and Elma; Charles B. a farmer of Dade county and who was born June 27th, 1883 and married Minnie Wilhite who was born November 6th, 1885, a daughter of Charles and Luella (Hurst) Wilhite. The Wilhites were very early settlers of Polk County, Mo. Mr. Meyers has a nice farm of 111 acres and on which he has built a fine new house. He raises consider- able stock and is fast building up a good dairy herd. Mr. Meyers and wife have two bright children named as fol- lows: Myron Leon, born September 5th, 1907 and Joie Ruhame, born October 17th, 1912. Mr. Meyers is an up-to- date farmer, he is a booster for good roads and free pub- lic schools. His wife is a member of the Baptist church while he is a member of the W. O. W.
Mrs. Sarah Meyers, the widow of Uncle Charlie Mey- ers is living in her fine little home in Everton and a more pleasant and kindly Christian lady cannot be found any- where. It is a pleasure to meet and talk with her and one goes away from a visit to her home impressed with the goodness of life in general and with a desire to follow more closely, the straight and narrow path. Mrs. Meyers is a sister of our late departed beloved fellow citizen Uncle Sam Cox and to whose complete sketch we would refer the reader for the record of the Cox family of whom Aunt Sarah Meyers is an honored member.
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THOMAS ALEXANDER MILLER.
The family to which the gentlemen whose name ap- pears above may be said to be, literally, one of the very first in Southwest Missouri, for it was his grandfather, Bird Miller who came to Greene County in the early thirties, and entered one hundred and sixty acres in the northwest part of that territory which afterwards became the City of Springfield. Missouri. A part of this old Miller farm is now one of the beautiful parks of Spring- field, and the lake upon that park is fed from the never- failing Miller Spring. Here too for many years stood the Springfield woolen mills, now removed to make way for the park and public play grounds.
Eldrige Boyd Miller and Mary Smith (Ellison) Miller the parents of Thomas A. Miller were born in the state of Tennessee, and came to Southwest Missouri with their parents. Eldridge B. Miller was a farmer and spent much of his life at that business in Dade County Missouri. He was a man of exceptional firmness and integrity of character. Mary S. Miller was a patient Christian woman and loved by all who knew her.
To Eldrige Miller and wife there was born a family of twelve children of whom eight are still living, viz: Mary F. Daughtrey at Springfield; Virginia E. Gilmore at Carthage; William L. Miller at South Greenfield; Thomas A. Miller our subject; Louanza P. Bowman, near Carth- age; Mrs. Bird Swift of Golden City, Barton County; Mrs. Ida F. Scott of Colorado and E. Boyd Miller long connected with the Frisco Railroad as a passenger con- ductor.
The first wife of Eldridge Miller died in Dade County in 1870 and Mr. Miller married as his second wife Mrs. Narcissus McConnell To this marriage were born two children, Charles I. Miller and Clarence Miller of Dade County.
Eldridge Miller died in Dade County in 1872.
Thomas A. Miller, the seventh child of a large family. was born in a log cabin on his father's farm near Green- field, Missouri on the 25th of July, 1858. His mother died
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when he was twelve years old and his father died when he was fourteen. He afterwards lived with his sisters until he became of age.
His boyhood days were spent on the farm and at school for three months of each year.
The early influences of a good father and mother, to- gether with the teaching and example of a good schoo! teacher laid the foundation of character which developed in after years into sterling manliood. To these early in- fluences Mr. Miller attributes whatever success he has at- tained in after years. Mr. Miller attended, first, a sub- scription school taught by Mrs. Mary McFarland near Greenfield. This was the only school taught during the Civil war in Southwest Missouri. Many would have gone through life without any sort of education had it not been for this sainted woman who has long since gone to her reward. When the public schools reopened after the Civil war he attended them and for a while was a student at Mrs. Garretts Female seminary and ended his school days at Ozark College, but has been a zealous student all his life.
Before leaving school he began his business career in 1879. His capital amounted to $425.00 received from his father's estate. He started in the limber business with his brother-in-law Captain George W. Gilmore, under the firm name of Gilmore and Miller. At that time they had to hanl their pine himber from Nevada, Mo., a distance of fifty miles. Before the end of a year, Mr. Miller bought ont his partner and continued the business in his own name until 1885 when the business was incorporated as the T. A. Miller Lumber Company and one half the cap- ital stock was sold to Mr. S. K. Martin of Chicago, a friend and benefactor.
During this same year Mr. Miller incorporated the Greenfield Railroad Company and built the line from Southi Greenfield to Greenfield. Greenfield was and is the County seat of Dade County and General Geo. H. Nettleton in building the Kansas City Ft. Scott and Memphis Railroad, for some unaccountable reason cruelly left the town abont
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three miles away. To save his town from desertion and decay, Mr. Miller with the help of a donation of $8,000.00 made by the good people of the town built the road that has ever since served the town and community. In the year 1888 the charter of the Greenfield Railroad Company was amended and the name changed to the Greenfield and Northern Railroad Company and an effort was made to extend the line to Stockton, the county seat of Cedar county. But owing to the powerful opposition of large financial interests the work was abandoned and in the year 1899 Mr. Miller began building the road to Mt. Vernon, the county seat of Lawrence county. With the aid of a donation of $23,000.00 by the good people of Mt. Vernon and Lawrence County he completed the line to Mt. Vernon in the spring of 1890. In the year 1892 Mr. Miller sold a five sixth interest in the property to a syndicate of St. Louis capitalists who immediately extended the line to Aurora with the aid of a donation of $30,000.00 made by the good citizens of Aurora and its friends. It is a monu- ment to the perseverence and energy of Mr. Miller that the road was built, and he was the promoter and builder and equipped and operated it for several years during which time the country was afflicted with financial panics and political agitation. It was a truly hazardous venture, and proved to be very costly both on his time and money but he performed a real service to the community. The road was sold to the Kansas City Ft. Scott and Memphis Railroad Company in 1895 and Mr. Miller accepted serv- ice with that company as commercial agent, but resigned in 1897 and bought out his associates and again entered actively into the lumber business in which he has been en- gaged for nearly thirty-eight years. He now owns ten branches and manufactures his own stock of lumber at his mill in the state of Arkansas. He is the president of the Aurora Lumber and Manufacturing Co., a director in the Majestic Milling Company and the principal stockholder of the Bank of Bower Mills.
Mr. Miller is thoroughly embued with the better civic spirit, believing the best patriot is the man who loves his
JACOB EIRSMAN AND WIFE.
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town. While he lived in Greenfield he helped to build and was part owner of the best brick block ever erected in that town. He built the first brick building in the town of Miller and which town bears his name. He built the fine stone court house at Mt. Vernon and as a monument to his honesty he did not make one cent of profit. He helped to build the best ward school building in the City of Aurora while a member of the school board in 1907. He helped to organize and build the Peoples Sewer System for the sole benefit of the health of the community. In fact he has had business interests in more than twenty towns of Southwest Missouri in which there are evidences of his civic spirit.
Mr. Miller has never sought public office although he to Miss Clara Belle Jopes of Greenfield, Mo., a daughter of Willian H. Jopes. Mrs. Miller was one of five child- ren of whom two besides herself are living. Miss Har- riet F. and Samuel W. Jopes, both of Greenfield.
Mr. and Mrs. Miller are the parents of two daughters; Mary Kate, now Mrs. Louis S. Coleman, has two children; Miller Louis, aged seven, and Louis Shaw, Jr., aged five. The second daughter, Lois Laura, is the wife of Eugene J. McNatt, the present prosecuting attorney of Lawrence county. They have one daughter, Rosemary, aged four years. All live at Aurora.
Mr. Miler has never sought public office although he has always taken an active interest in political affairs and gives his allegiance to the democratic party. He was a delegate to the state conventions that nominated Govern- ors Frances and Folk. He was elected an alderman while he lived at Greenfield in 1881 and the very first thing he did was to have the city take over the care of the cem- etery and started improvements which resulted in the best kept cemetery of any town in the state for its size. Soon after he moved to Aurora, Mo., in 1892 he was elected for two terms chairman of the Democratic County Committee and soon after a member of the school board and in 1915 was elected mayor under commission form of government and is giving his city a modern progressive
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business administration. His ambition in life has been to succeed rather than make money. He gives liberally of his means to all worthy causes and has helped many young men to get a start in life. He is a Mason and an Elk and belongs with his good wife and children to the Presbyte- rian church.
WILLIAM L. MILLER.
Born in Greenfield, Mo., January 19th, 1852, a son of Eldridge B. Miller, a native of Bedford County, Tenn., born February 16, 1819 and died September 5, 1873. He was of Irish descent, a farmer by occupation and came to Missouri with his parents when a lad. They settled near "Miller Springs" in Greene county, near Springfield and are buried there. Eldridge came to Dade County when a small boy, being apprenticed to a blacksmith of whom Eldridge learned his trade. He followed this occupation in Greenfield and afterwards opened a shop on a farm he bought in Center Township. Eventually he became a successful farmer and stock raiser and at the time of his death owned a farm of about 400 acres. During the civil war he was a sympathizer with the South, though a non- combatant, and was frequently taken prisoner by the Federal soldiers. In some way he always managed to escape and make his way back home. He died upon his farm in Dade County.
The mother of William I. Miller was Mary S. (Elli- son) Miller who was born in Bedford County, Tenn., Feb- ruary 8, 1826 and died September 20, 1870. Her parents were very early settlers of Missouri who came from Bed- ford County, Tenn., and located near Springfield, Greene county on a farm. After the death of her father, her mother married Alexander Patterson.
Mary S. (Ellison) Miller was the mother of 12 child- ren, all of them living to maturity:
(1) Mary F., married J. M. Danghtrey, of Spring- field. She now resides with her son at Springfield, Mo., She was the mother of two boys.
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(2) Alma (now deceased) married J. A. Thurman, a merchant at Greenfield.
(3) Virginia, married Captain G. W. Gilmore, a vet- eran of the civil war on the Union side. IIe now resides in Carthage, a retired capitalist.
(4) Wiliam L. Miller.
(5) George Washington (now deceased).
(6) Franklin (now deceased).
(7) Thomas A., Lumber merchant and mayor of the city of Aurora. Builder of the Greenfield & Northern rail- road.
(8) Eldridge B. (commonly called Boyd) lives at Aurora. Is conductor on the Aurora branch of the St. Louis & San Francisco railroad, built by his brother, Thomas A. He has been in this position since the road was constructed.
(9) Luanza, married W. H. Bowman, a farmer of Jasper county.
(10) Bird, married A. A. Swift, a merchant at Golden City, Mo.
(11) Ida, married J. R. Scott, a Colorado farmer.
(12) Mande (now deceased).
After the death of his first wife, Eldridge B. Miller married Narcissa McConnell, a half-sister to his first wife. Her parents were early settlers in Morgan township. By this union there were two boys:
(1) Charles I., living in Missouri.
(2) Clarence, resides in Morgan Township.
William L. Miller was raised on a farm, attended the common schools of the county, and two years in high school in Greenfield. He farmed up to 1901 when he went into a dry goods store as clerk in South Greenfield. In 1909 his brother, Thomas A. Miller, opened up a lumber vard in South Greenfield and placed the same in charge of William L., which position he still holds.
William L. Miller was married to Sarah E. Cates in 1875. She was a native of Dade county, having been born in Greenfield in 1850, and died in 1899. She was a daught- er of Newell and Mary Cates. Her father was a saddler,
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and came from North Carolina to Greenfield while the county seat was yet in its infancy.
Mrs. Miller was a member of the M. E. Church and the mother of three children:
(1) Newell, a railroader by occupation, on the Frisco, resides at Joplin. Has one child, Claude.
(2) Mary C., married F. C. Hair, a rural mail carrier out of South Greenfield. They have one child, William.
(3) Frankie, died at the age of 10 years.
William L. Miller married for his second wife, Irene Bryant, who was born in Illinois, a daughter of Paul and Rebecca Bryant, who came to Dade County and settled in Grant township. No children were born of this marriage. She is a member of the M. E. Church. Mr. Miller is a Democrat in politics, active in every branch of business which he undertakes, is public spirited and progressive, and is regarded as one of the substantial business men of his community. Fraternally, he is an Odd Fellow with membership at South Greenfield.
O
JOHN MARTIN MILLER.
A man of culture and learning, well versed in the ways of the world, rich in the remembrance of many pleasant experiences but in whose garden the "Golden Apples of Hesperides" never ripened. John Martin Miller was born in Warren county, N. J., August 26th, 1839, son of Joseph and Sarah (Glassner) Miller, the former being a native of Pennsylvania, born in 1793 and the latter a native of N. J. in which stato they were married. Andrew Miller, the grand father of John M. Miller was born about the year 1763 and his grandmother Eve (Walter) Miller wore of Holland parentage, though both were born in this country. Their ancestry came to this country from Holland about 1710 and there were many descendents, some of whom were soldiers in the Revolutionary war.
Joseph Miller died in New Jersey in 1872, and his wife Sarah having died in the same state in 1851. Joseph
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Miller had been previously married and had raised a fam- ily by his first wife.
John Martin Miller was raised on a farm and re- mained at home until 25 years of age. He received a good education and recalls the fact that as early as 1856 Latin, Algebra, surveying and even philosophy and astron- omy were taught in the common schools. In 1864 he emi- grated westward, landing in the state of Illinois where he worked out on various farms. He had but little money and was in search of cheap land for a home. After a short time he went from Whiteside County, Ills., to Iowa where he worked out, taught school but finding land beyond his means went still further west into Nebraska where he took up a homestead. This was in 1865 when Nebraska was still a territory and thousands of acres were still un- occupied. He proved up on 80 acres in eastern Nebraska, built a log house and remained on it for a few years but was compelled to abandon it by reason of flood waters from the Platte River. In 1867 he took passage by boat and came to St. Joseph, Mo., with nothing in the way of worldly goods. He finally worked his way to Hamilton, Caldwell county, where he worked out for a time. During these years of financial stress he had never asked as- sistance from home, although his father was well to do. After a strenuous career at Hamilton he finally secured money for his use and bought different small tracts of land adjoining the city of Hamilton, upon one of which he laid out an addition and sold it out at considerable profit. During these years he farmed and dealt in real estate in a small way and prospered.
In February 1870 he was married to Mollie Burnside who died about the year 1876 leaving one child, Mae, who is now Mrs. William Mann, living in Lockwood township.
His second marriage took place November 2nd, 1878 to Miss Virginia Miles, who was born in West Virginia, March 5th, 1845, daughter of James and Catherine (Mace) Miles, who came to Missouri in 1858. Her father died in West Virginia and her mother re-married, to Samuel Smith and they came to Caldwell county, Mo., in 1858. He
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died the first year but she survived him until 1881, when she died at the home of John M. Miller in Golden City, Mo.
Mr. Miller remained at Hamilton about 10 years when in 1877 he emigrated to Harper county, Kansas, and took up a homestead of 160 acres. Here for a period of three years lie enjoyed real frontier life. Times were hard and crops poor, so that in order to earn a livlihood it be- came necessary for him to haul buffalo bones and wood seventy miles. Three years of this kind of life satisfied his longing for the frontier, so that in 1880 he made final proof on his homestead and came to Golden City, Barton county, Mo., and bought a 10-acre fruit and truck farm in the edge of the city. He remained here until 1897 when he exchanged this 10-acre tract for about 100 acres of partly improved land one mile south of South Greenfield. During his 20 years residence in Dade county he has made numerous improvements on his original purchase.
To his last marriage there have been born two child- ren :
(1) James Irving, born September 11th, 1879, mar- ried a Miss Gray of Oregon where he now resides.
(2) George W., born April 18th, 1883, married Car- rie Merrick, who was a native of Dade county. There is one child, Ernest Dale. George W. Miller is a prom- inent business man of South Greenfield, an active member of the Odd Fellow and Woodmen lodges.
John M. Miller is a member of the Presbyterian church while his wife holds membership in the Baptist denomination. He is a Republican in politics and in an early day was prominent in the business circles of Ham- ilton, Missouri. He has made a special study of astronomy and takes great delight in literary and scientific subjects.
MORRIS MILLER.
Was born in Madison County, Indiana, January 24th, 1-57, son of David and Mary Ann (Gilbert) Miller. His father was born December 11th, 1816, in Clermont County. Ohio, while his mother was born December 16th of the
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