USA > Missouri > Cooper County > History of Howard and Cooper counties, Missouri : written and compiled from the most authentic official and private sources, including a history of its townships, towns, and villages : together with a condensed history of Missouri, a reliable and detailed history of Howard and Cooper counties-- its pioneer record, resources, biographical sketches of prominent citizens, general and local statistics of great value, incidents and reminiscences > Part 39
USA > Missouri > Howard County > History of Howard and Cooper counties, Missouri : written and compiled from the most authentic official and private sources, including a history of its townships, towns, and villages : together with a condensed history of Missouri, a reliable and detailed history of Howard and Cooper counties-- its pioneer record, resources, biographical sketches of prominent citizens, general and local statistics of great value, incidents and reminiscences > Part 39
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"None named him but to praise :"
and, having carved ont a successful career in the face of difficulties, yet having held steadfastly to the right amidst all surroundings, he at last died the death of a man with a clear conscience and an irreproach- able name. But his name and the influence of his life for good have not passed away, for -
" To live in hearts we leave behind, Is not to die."
SOLON SHEPHERD.
The "Old North state " was not derelict in her duty to send out her hardy, brave-hearted sons to assist in the great work of carrying civilization into the interior of the continent and of developing its Midas-like resources. Among the thousands who turned the fronts of their covered wagons toward the west in the early days of the country, and came on to the then wilds of Missouri, was James Shep- herd, the father of Solon, the subject of this sketch. He was born in North Carolina in 1793, and afterwards, though still in his teens, was with the " man of iron" -Jackson - in the Indian wars of Georgia and Carolina. On reaching manhood he came westward, and made his home in Wayne county, Kentucky, where he married Miss Barbara Cotron, a native of Virginia but a resident of Kentucky, and they reared three children, of whom Solon was one. In 1819 the fam- ily emigrated to Howard county, Missouri, where the parents lived until their deaths. The father died September 22, 1845, and the mother in February, 1870. Here Solon Shepherd was born June 12, 1825, and he has ever lived since in this county. He was married, June 6, 1870, to Miss Frances Brown, daughter of Robert Brown, who was one of the first settlers in this county, having immigrated here in 1810. Mr. Brown died May 1, 1871. In 1870, the same year of his marriage, Mr. Shepherd settled on his present farm, which consists of 273 acres.
408
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
HENRY C. SHIELDS.
Mr. Shields commenced in life as a school teacher, when nineteen years old, having been born in Warren county, Ky., July 20, 1840. This he followed six years, and until he was able to begin farming. He was married in this county, January 11, 1866, to Miss Mary John- son, and they had two children - Minnie V. and Edward E. His wife died March 19, 1876, and two years afterwards, March 22, 1878, he was again married, Miss Porlee, a daughter of Thomas Shields, be- coming his wife. They also have two children -Romie B. and an infant. Mr. Shield's parents were originally from Virginia. His father, Egbert O., was born in Nelson county, in May, 1818, and his mother, whose name before her marriage was Ellen Brent, some years after- wards, in the same state. In 1839, Mr. Shields, the father, went to Kentucky, where his wife died, in 1844. In the winter of 1845, he returned with his children to Virginia, where he remained six years, and then he married again, his second wife having been a Miss Ann E. Bibb. In 1850, he came with his family to Pike county, Mo., where Henry C. was reared and edneated. Henry C. came to Howard county in 1862, and, in 1871, settled on his present farm, which consists of 160 acres of well-improved land. For four years he held the position of deputy surveyor of the county - from 1868 to 1872 - and was then elected surveyor himself, serving eight years. He is a member of the Christian church, and an elder in that denomina- tion. As a citizen and neighbor he has the confidence of all who know him.
SOLON SMITH,
stock dealer. The men who succeed in life are those who have the intelligence to see an opportunity to better their affairs, and the sa- gacity and energy to take advantage of it. Howard county has long been known to be one of the best fine-stock counties in the state, and it is apparent to even the least thoughtful that there is more money made in handling fine stock than there is in handling common grades. Hence, it would seem to go without saying that this county offers su- perior advantages to the stock trader, advantages certainly unsurpassed elsewhere (outside of large cities) in the state. Yet, this fact does not seem to have been generally recognized, judging by the compara- tively small number of stock dealers in the county who devote their entire time and attention to the business. But among those who have shown the discernment to properly measure the advantages it offers in this line, and the enterprise to avail themselves of the opportunity thus presented, is Mr. Smith, the subject of the present sketch. He has for a number of years been engaged exclusively in dealing in stock in this county, and the results of his experience more than justify his own judgment as a stockman, and the views here expressed. As a stock dealer he has been abundantly successful, and he has the reputa- tion of being one of the best stock traders in this section of the coun-
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
try. He was born and principally reared in the blue-grass regions of Kentucky, his native county being Madison, and the date of his birth, the 3d of April, 1842. He was brought up to farm life, and has made stock his study from boyhood. From handling Kentucky stock he learned what fine stock was, and he has never lost sight of the differ- ence between dealing in valuable and in cheap stock. In 1857, he came with his parents to Missouri, who, after stopping in Cooper county for one year, came to Howard county and made this their per- manent home. In Kentucky, he had attended the common schools, and after coming to this state he attended the Lathrop academy, of Boone county, and Central college, at Fayette. After the conclusion of his scholastic course he resumed his place on the farm, and, after starting out in life for himself, he continued to follow farming, mainly, until 1873, when he formed a partnership with Mr. J. Tolson, and erected a large feed and sale stable building, in Fayette, where they made a specialty of the mule trade. They continued in this partner- ship until 1882. Mr. Smith then disposed of his interest in the busi- ness, and has since been engaged alone in general stock dealing. With his life-time knowledge of stock, with his ten years and more of active experience in dealing in them, and considering the success he has al- ways achieved, it is certainly not too much to expect a more than or- dinarily successful future for him in this line of trade. On the 26th of September, 1867, he was married to Miss Elizabeth W., an amiable and refined daughter of Dr. S. T. Crews, an early settler and promi- nent physician of Howard county. Their family consists of four children - Mary K., Paul C., James S. and Elizabeth. Mr. and Mrs. Smith are members of the Christian church.
JUDGE JAMES T. SMITH,
probate judge of Howard county, came to this county in 1856, and, barring an absence of a year in southwest Missouri and his course at law school, he has lived here ever since. He is also from Madison county, Kentucky, that prolific source of so many of the best men of Howard county. He was born there July 20, 1838, and was therefore but eighteen years of age when he came to Missouri. Here, in Fayette, he attended Central college, and afterward attended law school in Cincinnati, where he graduated in 1860 with marked dis- tinction. After his graduation he went to Butler, Bates county, in this state, and there located in the practice of the law. But at the expiration of a year, he returned to this county and engaged in farm- ing, which he followed until 1875, when he entered into co-partner- ship with Mr. W. A. Dudgeon in the drug business. He continued in this until the fall of 1878, and was then elected to the office of probate judge, which he now holds. He was married June 28, 1866, to Miss Josephine Wilcoxson of this county, a young lady of the most excellent worth and accomplishments, and they now have a family of four children : Willard, George W., Newton E. and an infant, unnamed.
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
Judge Smith is a man of rigid integrity and superior ability, and he enjoys the confidence and respect of all who know him. He is a prominent member of the Masonic order of Fayette.
DR. THOMAS J. SMITH.
Dr. Smith's grandfather, Enoch Smith, was one of the pioneers of Kentucky, having settled Montgomery county, of that state, at an early day. There, in the same place where the grandfather had forced his way with rifle and axe, the father, Enoch, Jr., was afterwards born December 25, 1795. When about twenty-three years of age, Enoch Smith, Jr., was married to Miss Sallie Grimes, a native of Fayette county, Kentucky, and of this union twelve children were born, of whom, Dr. Smith, the subject of this sketch, was the fourth. Dr. Smith's parents lived in Montgomery county, Kentucky, until the fall of 1881, when they came to Missouri, but both died the fol- lowing year. There the son grew up and received the rudiments of his education. In 1844 he entered Bethany college in Brooks county, Virginia, of which Alexander Campbell was then president, where he continued two years, graduating in 1846, with the honors of the college. Returning home after his graduation from Bethany, he at once began the study of medicine to which he gave his whole time and attention, and in 1849, commenced a course in the Eclectic medical college in Cincinnati, which he completed two years afterwards, grad- nating with honor from that eminent school. Thus thoroughly equipped with both general and professional education, he came to Missouri and located at Fayette, Howard county, in 1851, where he has practised ever since-a period of thirty-two years. Dr. Smith was married in 1848, to Miss Margaret McCulloch, a native of New Orleans, and they have had eleven children, of whom six are now liv- ing : Lonise, Annie, Maggie, Sallie, Newland and Enoch ; those de- ceased were, Thomas, Franklin, Sterling, Alexander and Fannie. He is a consistent member of the Christian church, and endeavors to so live that his life shall exemplify the depth and sincerity of his faith. As a physician he enjoys a well earned reputation for skill and ability, and as a man and a citizen he is without reproach.
ANDREW J. SMITH
was born in Chariton county, Missouri, March 31, 1840. His father, Mathias Smith, was a native of Germany, and emigrated to Pennsyl- vania in 1825, and in 1826 came to Missouri, where he lived until his death, which occurred in 1865. The maiden name of Andrew J.'s mother, who is still living, was Christa A. Ruff. She, also, was born in Germany. Andrew J. was the eldest of seven children, and was reared on a farm in his native county, and followed this occupation until April, 1882, when he commenced working at the blacksmith trade, and is a partner in the firm of Maisburger & Smith. He married Miss Margaret Huber, a native of Germany. She died in December,
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
1878, leaving four children, John M., Sylvester, Paulina H. and Elizabeth J. In his religious preferences he is a Catholic. During the late war he served over three years in the Missouri state militia, and held the position of sergeant in the company.
THOMAS H. STAPLETON.
The family of which Mr. Stapleton is a representative justly oc- cupies a prominent place in the biographie annals of Howard county, George H. Stapleton, the grandfather of Thomas H., came with his family, then consisting of his wife and four children, from Kentucky in 1816, and settled in this county. He was a leading member of the Baptist church, and was clerk of the first general association of that denomination ever held west of St. Charles. As a farmer and busi- ness man he also occupied a prominent position, and as an evidence of the confidence and esteem in which he was held, it may be men- tioned that he was called to serve the people of the county for six years in the capacity of judge of the county court. A short time after his official term expired, in 1833, he died, leaving his family a handsome competence. His wife, before her marriage, was Miss Eliza Sheelev. She, also, died in this county. Four children were born to them after they came to Howard county, making a family of eight, as follows : William H., father of Thomas H. ; George W., Amanda (Mrs. Joseph Wilcoxson ) ; Margaret ( Mrs. William Man- pin ) ; Theodore C., Joseph, Mary ( Mrs. Neri Brashear ), who died in this county, and David S. Stapleton, who died in C'edar county, Missouri. William H. Stapleton was born in Fayette county, Jannary 22, 1816, the same year his father immigrated to Mis- souri. He was therefore reared and educated in this county. In his twenty-first year he was married to Miss Evalina, sister of Dr. Kingsbury, a wealthy and old settler of Howard county. Of this anion seven children were born, but three of whom are now living- Joseph, of Randolph county, Missouri ; Elizabeth, wife of Geo. W. P. Smith, also of Randolph county, and Thomas H., the subject of this sketch. Mr. Stapleton has followed farming and milling principally, and he has been very successful in both occupations. He has im- proved one farm and built two steam flouring mills, viz .. the Staple- ton mills, four miles south of Favette, and the Fayette City mills. He now owns three farms in the county, besides some valuable town property. Thomas H. Stapleton is a native of this county, boru March 7, 1856. He was reared on his father's farm, but attended the common schools in his youth, and in 1872 and 1873 took a course at Mt. Pleasant college, in Huntsville, Missouri, thus acquiring a more advanced education. Returning from college, he engaged in farming, which he has since followed. Besides strictly agricultural interests, he has also been engaged with Mr. Preston in the manufac- ture of a corn planter, which is in general use, and is very popular. Jointly with Mr. Geo. W. P. Smith he has 364 acres of excellent
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
land, well improved. He was married May 26, 1881, to Miss Eliza- beth I. Vaughan, a native of Missouri and a relative of Henry Clay, the Kentucky statesman. They have one child, William M. H.
GEORGE W. STAPLETON,
farmer and stock raiser, section 25, is the youngest son of George and Eliza Stapleton, who came to this (Howard) county from Ken- tucky in 1816. George W. was born in Howard county, Missouri, in the same house which he now occupies, September 29, 1835. In January, 1861, he was married to Miss Martha Cornelison, of Mad- ison county, Kentucky, and a daughter of John and Aletha Cor- nelison, of the same county. She died in April, 1866, leaving two children, only one of whom survives, John E. During the war Mr. S. remained at home and operated the old Stapleton mill. This mill was the only one in the county and surrounding country that was conducted during that conflict. He now owns a fine farm, containing 800 acres. Mr. S. joined the Masonic order in 1861.
DR. JOHN A. TALBOT.
Dr. John A. Talbot was for many years one of the most promi- nent physicians and one of the leading men of Howard county. Aside from being a thorough and educated physician, he was naturally a man of superior intelligence, and withal possessed in a marked degree of the qualities that make one respected and esteemed by those around him. His life was an active and energetic one, and without doing any man wrong, but by his own exertions and good manage- ment, he accumulated a handsome fortune. He was born in Erie county, Pa., November 18, 1805, where he lived until he came to Missouri. His father, George T. Talbot, was a native of Maryland, but when a young man went to Pennsylvania and there married and reared his family. On his mother's side, Dr. Talbot, was of the All- nutt family of Pennsylvania, his father having married Miss Mary Allnntt of that state. In youth, the son had excellent school advan- tages not only in the public schools of the period, but also in college. His professional education was acquired at Jefferson college, Phila- delphia, from which he was duly graduated. His parents, however, were not wealthy, and he contributed very materially by his own ex- ertions to the means for his education. Having completed his pro- fessional education, he resolved to come west and seek his fortune in the new empire then rapidly springing up along the shores of the Missouri. Accordingly he came to Howard county, where he settled and entered upon the practice of medicine ; and how he succeeded in the realization of his hopes has been indicated in a preceding sentence. He married Miss Alice Daly, a refined and accomplished lady, born September 5, 1814, and of this union Alice, George D., Ione, William, Ethelbert, Ralph, John and Robert - seven children - were reared. He died August 1, 1858, his wife following him in death
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
April 15, 1871. He lived an honorable and respected life, and now that he has passed away, his memory is cherished as that of a good man and an upright citizen.
HENRY C. TINDALL.
In the veins of Henry C. Tindall mingles the blood of the courtly , hospitable Virginian and the indomitable progressive New Englander. His grandfather Tindall, then a young man, came with his father's family from Virginia to Missouri in an early day. Shortly afterwards the family settled in Howard county and here the father of Henry C. was born and reared. His father on reaching manhood, was married to a Miss Kingsbury, whose father with his grandfather's family, came from Massachusetts. Jere Kingsbury, the grandfather of Henry C. on the mother's side, was born in Massachusetts, December 5, 1784, and died in this county April 5, 1863. His wife, the grand- mother of Henry C., was born in North Carolina, June 18, 1797, and died here June 5, 1852. Mr. Tindall's (H. C.'s) father was born in Howard county, Mo., March 8, 1825, and died May 18, 1855 ; and his mother, whose maiden name was Lucina Kingsbury, was born in this county, January 31, 1827, and is still living. Mr. T.'s ancestry rep- resents two of the earliest pioneer families of the county. Henry C. Tindall, the subject of this sketch, was born in Howard county, Mo., February 9, 1846, and was brought up on his father's farm in this county. In youth he had the advantage of the common schools of his neighborhood, and he also attended one term in Central college and two terms in Mt. Pleasant college at Huntsville, Mo. He thus ac- quired an excellent practical education which qualified him for the business duties of life. But on the farm at home he had already formed a taste for an agricultural life, which, on his return from col- lege, he adopted as his regular occupation and this he has since fol- lowed. However, in 1882, he was elected to the office of connty clerk, the position he now holds, but he has not given up farming as his regular occupation. On the 17th of November, 1870, he was united in marriage to Miss Theodora C. Wilcoxson. They have five children now living - Lulu, Jefferson W., Josephine, Jackson C. and Leonora. Mr. Tindall served in the Confederate army from the fall of 1864 until the general surrender in 1865, having been a member of company E, Searcy's battalion of Missouri sharpshooters during that time.
NERIAH P. TODD
was born and reared in Howard county and has always lived here, except about one year, during which he was in the Confederate army. He is a son of Neriah Todd, of this county, whose sketch appears else- where, and was born August 26, 1843. In 1864, when twenty-one years of age, he enlisted in company E, commanded by Captain T. W. Todd, in Perkins battalion, and served until the general surrender
28
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
in 1865. He then returned home and farmed on the old homestead until 1874, when he located on his present place. His farm consists of 386 acres, and he is an energetic and successful farmer. He was mar- ried February 10, 1874, to Miss Mary J. Afflick. They have four children, Sallie W., Fletcher, Neriah P. and Eugene B. Mr. Todd is a leading dealer in and breeder of short-horn cattle and fine sheep.
NERIAH TODD.
farmer and breeder of blooded stock. Even before the war central Mis- souri had a widespread reputation throughout the Mississippi and Mis- souri river states as an important centre of blooded stock. Conspicuous among the citizens of Howard county who have engaged largely in this business is Neriah Todd, the subject of this sketch, and his son Chenault. It is not, of course, the province of a biographical out- line to give in detail the business in which its subject is engaged, and the fact can therefore only be noted that the Messrs. Todd, father and son, rank among the prominent short-horn stockmen of the county. Mr. N. Todd has a farm of 527 acres and makes a specialty of raising Durham cattle, of which he has one of the finest herds in the county. His son is also largely engaged in this business, having begun in 1870, buying his breeders from the best stock in Kentucky and Illinois. He has a large herd, at the head of which is "Sharon Geneva," a fine Durham bullock, of the pure Rose of Sharon breed, raised by Mr. A. Renick, of Kentucky. Neriah Todd's father, Thomas Todd, was a native of North Carolina, and was born December 25, 1771. He came to Kentucky in 1790, and March 5, 1795, married Mary Che- nault, of the latter state, who was born May 14, 1775. They had eight children, of whom Neriah Todd was one. In 1816, when young Neriah Todd was but twelve years old, they immigrated to Howard county, Missouri, settling first at New Franklin, and afterwards, in 1820, they settled on the place where Neriah now lives, and where his parents died. His father died June 13, 1857, and his mother, June 2, 1834. Mr. Todd, the father, was prominently identified with the de- velopment of Howard county, and was regarded as an intelligent, ener- getic and upright citizen and farmer. Neriah was born in Madison county, Kentucky, December 4, 1804, but was principally reared in this . county. He lived with his father on the home farm until 1829, when he improved a farm in section 2, but returned to the home place in 1850. He was married December 15, 1829, to Miss Minerva, who was born in Kentucky, June 2, 1806, a daughter of William Hocker, an old citizen of Howard county, he having settled here in 1824, and of this marriage there are eight children : William, Thomas, Eugene, James, Sarah, Neriah, Jr., Elizabeth and Chenault. He has been a member of the Baptist church thirty years.
JUDGE BEN H. TOLSON.
The Tolson family represents a type of citizenship that consti- tutes the substantial, intelligent element in every community. In-
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HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.
dustrious, conservative and energetic, they generally achieve a sub- stantial success in whatever pursuit they follow, and appreciating the advantages of a reasonable knowledge, at least, of the information that can be derived only from books, they are almost invariably friends of education, and commonly rank among the more intelligent in their respective communities. Being usually well-to-do in life and satisfied with the conditions that surround them, they are the first to go to the defence of the state against threatened invasion or violent changes in the form or methods of government. Such has been the character of the Tolsons from their first settlement in this country, prior to the revolution. George Tolson, Judge Tolson's great grand- father, was a native of England, and settled in Stafford county, Vir- ginia, in the time of the colonies. He there reared a family, and William Tolson, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was one of his sons. William served in the colonial army under the im- mediate command of General Washington during the entire struggle for independence, and one of his brothers, Benjamin, rose to the po- sition of major during the same war. John Tolson, son of William, and the father of Judge Tolson, was born February 3, 1791, in Staf- ford county, Virginia, where his grandfather first settled, but emi- grated to Madison county, Kentucky, in 1810. When the war of 1812 broke out he volunteer in the United States service, and was in several hard-fought battles. Among the rest was that known as " Dudley's Defeat," in which he was taken prisoner and stripped by the Indians and compelled to run the gauntlet. After the close of the war he returned to Madison county, and in a short time after- wards, January 12, 1815, was united in marriage to Miss Rebecca, daughter of Benjamin Howard, of the distinguished Howard family of Kentucky. Of this union nine children were born, of whom Judge Tolson was the eldest, and he was born in Madison county, Kentucky, January 10, 1816. In the fall of 1819 the family came to Missouri and settled in Howard county, where they made their permanent home, and here John Tolson died January 9, 1870, his wife having preceded him in death eight years-September 6, 1862. Speaking of the lives they led, it has been said of them : "They both lived and died in the fellowship of the Baptist church. They lived peaceable and exemplary lives, and an old pioneer said of Mr. Tolson, that 'he was the best man he had ever known.'" Benjamin H. was reared on his father's farm and remained with the family until 1835. Hav- ing in the meantime acquired a good practical education, he engaged in school teaching, which he followed until 1842. However, after his first school, he attended the university at Columbia in order to pre- pare himself the more thoroughly for his profession. Teaching again for a time in this state, he then went to Kentucky and taught three terms near Boonsboro, in that state. Returning in 1842, he was thereupon married to Miss Eliza J., daughter of David R. Downing, an early settler of the county. He then bought a part of his father's old homestead and settled down to farming, in which he has since continued. In 1859 he moved to his present farm. He owns a hand-
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