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 97

Author: National Historical Company
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: St. Louis : National Historical Co.
Number of Pages: 1198

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 97
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 97

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).

He left a wife and four children to mourn his loss and cherish his memory. His widow, formerly Miss Jane Cooper, to whom he was married, March 4, 1856, is a daughter of John Cooper, of Howard county. Her parents removed to Howard county from Christian county, Kentucky, where she was born in 1836. Her children are Susan, James W., Jodie E., wife of W. H. Gowens, and Mand. Mrs. McCurdy and her unmarried children live on the homestead in Kelly township, which contains 620 acres of land well improved.

A. M. NELSON,

farmer and stock raiser, section 19. The Nelson family has long been prominently identified with the material prosperity and social life of this county. That branch of it to which the subject of this sketch belongs, comes of Captain James O. Nelson, a worthy

974

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

son of the Old Dominion, who emigrated to Cooper county, this state, in 1836. His wife was formerly Miss Mary Hirst, of another leading family of the county, and both were natives of Fauquier county, Virginia. Captain Nelson became a leading farmer of Cooper county and an influential citizen. He died on his homestead in Kelly township, in December, 1861. Besides possessing in a marked degree the qualities that make successful, prominent men, he was a remark- ably kind hearted man, generous, hospitable, true in every relation of life, and as upright and conscientious in all he did as the most punc- tilious could exact. He led a more than ordinarily pure and blame- less life, and died sadly regretted by friends and acquaintances and deeply mourned by his family. The youth of A. M. Nelson was oc- cupied with farm duties and in attendance at school. After growing up and receiving a good, practical education, he started out in the world for himself. He made a trip overland to California with stock in 1853, and returned by Nicaraugua and New York. The following year he made another similar trip. In both of these he was entirely successful. After his second return he gave his whole. attention to agricultural interests in this county. In June, 1868 he was married to Miss M. L. Tucker, a daughter of W. G. Tucker, of Cooper county. She, however, was born in Kentucky before her parents came to this county. Mr. Nelson was born November 19, 1829. He was seven years old when his parents removed from Fauquier county, Virginia, to this county, in 1836. He has been living on his present farm since 1872. It contains 540 acres of good land all under fence, and otherwise well improved. He is one of the enter- prising, thorough going farmers of the county, and as a neighbor and citizen he is esteemed and respected by all. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson have a family of six children : James M., Estella T., Ada B., Lillian A., Mary E., and Lydia A. Mrs. Nelson is a member of the Bap- tist church. Mr. N. is a member of the A. F. aud A. M. of Tipton.

E. D. NELSON,

farmer and stock raiser, sections 29 and 30. Mr. E. D. Nelson is the second son of the late Captain Nelson, whose life is outlined in the sketch of his eldest son, A. M. Nelson. In this family there were five sons and three daughters, six of whom are now living, four sons and a danghter, in this county, and one daughter iu Sedalia, Missouri. E. D., the subject of this sketch, was born before his parents left Virginia, in Fauquier county, December 12th, 1831. He was, therefore, in his fifth year when they removed to this state, in

975

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

1836. Reared in an early day in this county, his education was necessarily limited to the ordinary English branches. Still he acquired a sufficient knowledge of books for all practical purposes. Brought up on a farm, he very naturally adopted agricultural pursuits as his occupation for life. At the age of twenty-one he was married to Miss H. J., daughter of Joseph and Catherine Stephens, of this county, and sister to Joseph Stephens, Sr. Her family were among the first settlers of the county. After his marriage Mr. Nelson continued farming in this county until 1858, when he removed to Pettis county. He lived there for three years, and in 1861 moved, with his family, to Texas, in company with Benton Stephens and family ; Jackson Stephens, Thomas Wolf, his brother-in-law, and family ; Mitchell Houstberger and family, and Mrs. Nelson's mother. They were a month on the road by wagon teams, and on their arrival in the Lone Star state settled in Denton county. Mr. Nelson enlisted in Jack- son's company of Colonel Stone's cavalry regiment, in 1862, and served until the close of the war. After the war he resumed farm- ing and the stock business in Texas, and remained there for three years, but in 1868 returned to Cooper county. He located on his present farm in 1870, a neat place of nearly a quarter section of land, all under fence and in an excellent state of cultivation. Besides this, he has a tract of land in section 29. He has always made a specialty of raising stock, and feeding and shipping to the general markets. More particularly, he buys cattle, hogs, sheep, etc., and ships to the wholesale markets. In these lines he has been highly successful, being a thoroughly qualified and experienced stock man. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson have two children, Mary Catherine, wife of Charles Francis, of Pettis county, and Joseph O. They have lost one daugh- ter, Harriet Etta, who died in infancy. Both parents are members of the Cumberland Presbyterian church:

JAMES O. NELSON,

farmer, section 30, is a brother of A. M. Nelson, whose sketch precedes this, and is a younger son of Captain Nelson, there referred to. He was born long after his parents removed to this county, on the 12th of June, 1851. Good schools had been established all over the county before he grew up, so that in youth he had excellent advantages to acquire an education. After mastering the curriculum of the common schools, he took a course in high school and traversed the higher branches. Reared on a farm, his tastes were there formed for an agri- cultural life, and at the conclusion of his scholastic course, he entered

976

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

vigorously upon geopanic pursuits. In 1874, still ununited in that mystic union which God is said to join together, the accepted sum and consummation of all human economy, he located on his present farm, where he lived in bachelorhood for six years. But,

" To chase the clouds of life's tempestous hours, To strew its short but weary way with flowers, New hopes to raise, new feelings to impart, And pour celestial balsam on the heart; For this to man was lovely woman given, The last, best work, the noblest gift of Heaven."

He was married June 17th, 1880, to Miss Minnie Ramsey, a young lady of rare grace of person and excellence of mind. She is a daughter of Jesse A. Ramsey, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson have one child, Lester R. Both parents are members of the Baptist church. Mr. Nelson's farm covers nearly a quarter section of land, all under fence and in a good state of improvement. He is a neat, successful farmer, and is highly respected as a neighbor and citizen.

JESSE A. RAMSEY.

Mr. Ramsey lived in this township for eleven years, from 1872 to 1883, and so worthily was he identified with the material and other interests of the township, and so closely connected is he with some of the best families of the county, that a sketch of himself and family very properly finds a place in this work. He was born in Clark county, Kentucky, January 20th, 1837. His father, Major Franklin H. Ramsey, and his mother, whose name was Miss May Garden prior to her marriage, were both also natives of the Blue Grass state. Jesse grew up in his native county, and received a collegiate educa- tion. After completing his college course he engaged in school teach- ing, which he has followed more or less, in connection with farming, ever since. In 1861 he was married to Miss Lucy A., daughter of E. T. Woodward, of Clark county, Kentucky. Eight years after- wards, in 1872, he moved with his family to Cooper county, this state, and improved an excellent farm on land he had bought. Here he continued farming and school teaching, and soon proved himself a marked success in both occupations. As a farmer he was energetic. enterprising, and a good business manager. As a teacher he became widely known as one of the most thorough and efficient in this part of the county. Mr. Ramsey's family was highly respected and esteemed here by the neighbors and acquaintances among whom they lived. He has five children : Minnie M., who married Mr. James O.

977

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

Nelson, of this county, and now resides in Kelly township ; Edwin W., Jesse G., Mary K., and Franklin. Mr. R. is a member of the Presbyterian church, and of the Masonic order. His wife, a most amiable and excellent lady, is a member of the Baptist church. In 1883 Mr. Ramsey sold his farm in this county and returned to Ken- tucky, much to the regret of his neighbors and acquaintances here. He was a valuable citizen of the community, and one whose presence is greatly missed.

COLEMAN RAWLINGS.

Farming has thus far constituted Mr. Rawlings' life occupation, and considering what the phrenologists would call the inhabitiveness of the calling, he has led an unusually active life. He was born in Fleming county, Kentucky, February 26, 1815, and was a son of Aaron and Sophia (Fouch) Rawlings, the father origin- ally of Virginia, but the mother a native of Kentucky. When he was twenty years of age he removed with his parents to Indiana, where he lived until 1861. Having married in the meantime, he then went to Illinois and lived in Champaign county for four years. From Illinois he returned to Indiana and farmed in Tippecanoe county until 1871. He then went to Kansas and located in Cherokee county. He remained in that county three years, after which he removed to Illinois, where he lived four years. In 1878 he came to Cooper county, Missouri, where he has since resided. Mr. Rawlings' first wife, whose maiden name was Eliza Decker, died, leaving him five children, who grew to maturity and are now all married. He was afterwards married to Miss Jane Wills, who was also taken from him by the hand of death. Four children were reared by this union, and one married. His present wife, whose name was formerly Miss Mary Harrison, has borne him one child, now also married. Mr. Rawlings is a member of the Masonic order.

HENRY M. WITHERS, DECEASED.

Kentucky has given to Cooper county, and particularly to the northern part of the county, many of its best citizens, but she has contributed none more highly respected, or, for conscientious dis- charge of duty in every relation of life, more worthy of respect and esteem, than was the subject of this sketch. Henry M. Withers was born in Lincoln county, Kentucky, September 28th, 1808. His father, James Withers, was a native of Fauquier county, Virginia.

978

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

His mother, whose name before her marriage was Miss Elizabeth Carr, was also originally from the Old Dominion. They came out to Kentucky, however, comparatively early in life, where they reared their family and lived until their death. Of an inquiring, active mind, Henry M., as he grew up, acquired more than a fair education, both by instruction at school and by study at home, He started out early in life on his own account. Possessing to a marked degree the qualities that make successful men, while still a young man he had achieved such success that he was regarded as one of the substantial citizens of his native county. He was strongly domestic in his dispo- sition, and more than ordinarily warm-hearted and ardent in his at- tachments. Such a man would hardly be expected to go for a life without the happiness which only wife and home can give. Accord- ingly, in his twenty-fourth year, on the 26th of June, 1832, he was married to Miss China Shackelford, a young lady of rare graces of mind and person, the daughter of Hon. Samuel Shackelford, of Lin- coln county, Kentucky. She was three years her husband's junior, having been born on the 10th of April, 1811. Mr. Withers followed farming and also the flour milling and distilling business in his native county until 1857, when he sold ont his various interests there and removed to Missouri. In this state he settled near Anderson's Point, in Kelly township, Cooper county, where he followed farming and merchandising until the outbreak of the war. After this he was en- gaged in farming alone until the time of his death, August 12th, 1879. He was as successful in his new home as he had been in his old. He left a landed estate of over 500 acres, a splendid farm, be- sides other property. He was a man of more than ordinary natural ability, and was well up in general information and in the current affairs of life. He had long been a worthy member of the Christian church, and was one of the leading lay members of that denomina- tion in his vicinity. None around him were more liberal in contribu- tions for any worthy purpose, charitable or otherwise, than he. His home was the abiding place of generous hearted hospitality, and as a neighbor he was especially kind and accommodating. He died in the respect and esteem of all who knew him, and deeply mourned by his family. He left a wife and six children. Mrs. Withers, a motherly, noble, good woman, still resides on the family homestead. Her chil- dren are as follows : George C., in business at Sedalia ; Horace, constable of Kelly township ; David B., in the cattle business at Fort Worth, Texas ; John K. and Laura, at home.

979

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

LAMINE TOWNSHIP.

ROBERT HARRISON CASTLEMAN,

farmer, section 17. Among the young men whose opportunities and personal worth give promise of future promise and usefulness as farmers and progressive, enterprising stock men of Cooper county, is Robert H. Castleman, the subject of this sketeh. He was born on the family homestead, in this county, December 14, 1855, and is the eldest of four children of David and Sallie A. ( Harrison ) Castleman, both of whom are living and reside in Lamine township. Of the other three, Kate died September 30, 1882, aged nineteen years ; Theodore died four years ago, aged sixteen ; and Benjamin is still at home. Robert H. remained on his father's farm in early youth and attended the neighborhood schools, after which he entered Kemper's well known and highly reputed school at Boonville and there pursued a higher course of studies, thus acquiring more than an ordinary education, particularly in the department of mathematics. His qualifications in this branch were such as to recommend him for a position in the gov- ernment coast surveying service, which he seeured in 1869 and filled, accompanying the surveying expedition from Mound City down the river to Memphis. After this he returned home to Cooper county and engaged in farming, which he has since followed and with excel- lent success. His farm contains 800 acres of fine land, beautifully situated, and is largely planted in grain. He also raises some live- stock, particularly hogs, for the general markets.

DAVID CASTLEMAN,

farmer, section 5. Among the better class of farmers of Lamine township, none are more substantial or better respected for their per- sonał worth than the gentleman whose name heads this sketch. He was born in Fayette county, Kentucky, March 3, 1834, and was one of a family of fourteen children, ten of whom are living, of David Cas- tleman and wife, formerly Miss Virginia Harrison, both natives of Virginia, but reared in Kentucky where they married and brought up their family. Mrs. Castleman is still living at an advanced age, and is now in St. Louis county, where her son George H. and five daugh- ters reside. Lewis, the oldest of the eight, lives in this county, near Bunceton. David, in youth, besides having the advantages afforded by the ordinary schools of Fayette county, attended college for a

980

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

time, but took no regular course, and in 1855, when just past twenty- one years of age, came to Cooper county, where he has since made his home. The following year, January 17, 1856, he was married to Sallie A., only daughter of Robert A. and Theodosia (Tompkins) Harrison, formerly of Fayette county, where their daughter was born September 20, 1833. They, however, removed to Monroe county, this state, in 1839, and two years afterwards settled in Lamine town- ship, Cooper county, where both died in 1868. After his marriage, Mr. Castleman lived eighteen months with his wife's parents, and in 1858, bought his present farm. This place contains 730 acres of fine land, all in one body, and he follows both grain growing and stock raising. By the war, Mr. Castleman losteleven slaves and was other- wise considerably damaged in his estate, but from these losses he has since more than recovered. Mr. and Mrs. Castleman have two chil- dren living and two dead. Robert H., the eldest, is now a well-to-do farmer of this county and Benjamin Tompkins is a lad at home twelve years of age. Theodosia died in infancy and Katie died September 30, 1882, aged twenty-three years.

CAPTAIN GABRIEL H. CRAMAR,

farmer, section 5. Captain Cramar, who is now one of the substantial, well-to-do farmers of Lamine township, is essentially a self-made man so far as his own success in life is concerned. His father, John Cramar, was a successful farmer, but had a large family, and after the absorptive process of administration, partition, and so forth, had been gone through with, Gabriel H.'s inheritance amounted to practi- cally nothing. He was born in Lamine township, near where he now lives, July 28, 1822, and was reared on his father's farm. At the age of about twenty-three he was married September 11, 1845, to Miss Mary J. Jeffries, of this county, and afterwards followed farming and coop- ering, of which trade he was master, in Lamine township until 1850, when he went to Texas, but returned the following year to his native township in this county, and resumed his farming and coopering ocen- pations. On his return he bought 100 acres of unimproved land for which he paid $4.25 per acre, and went to work to opening his present farm. Industry, good management and economy have not been slow to bring him substantial results. He has now a fine farm of over 400 acres of handsomely sitnated, rolling land, all under fence and well improved. Annually, he grows about 150 acres of grain and he also gives considerable attention to stock raising, particularly cattle and hogs. Mr. Cramar has been three times married. His first wife died

981

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

in July, 1859. Of his family of children by this union, all five are living : Milton, now in Colorado ; Mary, wife of Thomas W. Hamilton, of Saline county ; Lucinda, wife of Amos O'Neil ; Victoria, still at home ; and Gabriel, also at home, being married to Mary Hill. Mr. Cramar's second wife was, at the time of her marriage to him, a Mrs. Nancy, widow of Andrew Davenport, but she died April 22, 1866, leaving two children now living : Rebecca, wife of Henry Thurman, of Pettis county, and' Lowell. His present wife, whose maiden name was Sarah Wright, was the widow of Matthias Majors, of this county. She is a member of the Baptist church. Prior to the war, Mr. Cramar was elected captain of a military company, a position he filled during the service of the company. His parents, John and Rebecca (Allen ) Cramar, came to this county during the first settlement of the country, and after stopping a while at Old Franklin improved the Castleman farm on section 5, where they lived until their deaths ; the father died in 1854. He was a Pennsylvanian by birth. The mother died two years afterwards. She was originally from Virginia, but they were married in Kentucky, from which they emigrated to this state. They had nine children, only one of whom, Susan, the widow of Lowell Spalding, is now living. Nearly all of them, however, lived to rear families of their own.

EDWARD DAVISON, M. D.,

physician and surgeon, Lamine City. One of the best physicians and most skilful and thoroughly experienced surgeons of Cooper county, is the gentleman whose name heads this sketch. He was born in Scot- land June 5, 1838, and was a son of Doctor Leonard Davison, an em- inent surgeon of the British army, and wife, who, previous to her marriage, was a Miss Sophia McDonald, of a distinguished family of the land of Wallace, and Bruce, and Burns. When Edward was still in his childhood his father removed to Nova Scotia (having retired from service in the military and become largely interested in ship building), and in 1850 he came to New Orleans, where he remained with his family for three years. He then returned to Nova Scotia, leaving his two sons, Edward and Benjamin, in New Orleans with their uncle. Shortly after his return to Nova Scotia the father died, and New Orleans therefore became the permanent home of the sons. Edward was employed in a drug store several years in that city, during which time he also read medicine, and, in 1859, he, with his brother and several other young medical students of New Orleans, attended lectures at the Chicago medical college, and, as the war cloud was

982

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

then threatening to burst upon the country, they returned to New Orleans, to be prepared for whatever turn public affairs might take. When the echo of the bombardment of Fort Sumter resounded throughout the continent, the two brothers, Edward and Benjamin, at once enlisted to uphold the southern cause. Edward was made reg- imental surgeon of the 31st Tennessee volunteers, and Benjamin en- tered the service as adjutant, but was afterwards promoted to the position of brigadier-general. In the battle at Cold Harbor Benjamin was wounded, from the effects of which he died. Edward, however, served until the close of the war, being always an active field surgeon. He also was wounded - shot at Peach Tree creek in the engagement of the 22d of June, 1864. After his military service he travelled for five years through the north, visiting all the principal cities in com- pany with some other southern gentlemen, for whom he was medical adviser. He then came to Kansas City, where he lived until he lo- cated at Lamine City in March, 1872. While in Kansas City he was honored with the degree of M. D. by the medical college of the city. Here at Lamine he has been actively engaged in the practice of his profession, and has built up an extensive and lucrative practice. His Jong experience in the army, both as a physician and a surgeon, has been of the greatest value to him and to his patients in the general practice. Doctor Davison was married March 18, 1874, to Miss Lillie, the accomplished daughter of A. Dixon, of Bunceton. They have four children : Warner, Corinne, Percy and an infant. The doctor has been also engaged in the drug business for the past two years. He has been a member of the Masonic order for twenty years.

JOHN A. FRAY,

proprietor of Walnut Grove farm. Mr. Fray, one of the leading stock men and wealthy farmers of central Missouri, deserves greater credit for success in life than almost any man in the state, for he has achieved it in the face of greater difficulties than but few, if any, have had to encounter. At the age of six years he was left an orphan boy by the death of both parents, penniless, and with his own way to make in the world as best he could. But the material was in him out of which successful men are made, and it was not long in asserting itself. The first year he worked ( when six years old ) by the month, and received a horse in full payment. Then three years he worked in a saw and grist mill for wages ; then drove teams between Glasgow and Hunts- ville ; then worked at the carpenter's trade ; then engaged in farming ;

983

HISTORY OF HOWARD AND COOPER COUNTIES.

then followed overseeing a number of years ; then farmed on his own account ; and, at the outbreak of the war, owned over 200 acres of fine land. Farming naturally led him to trading iu stock, and hand- ling stock led him to stock trading, which he followed with great suc- cess during the war. And all these three lines he has ever since followed - general farming, stock raising and stock trading. In 1865 he was able to buy the James McMahon farm, a fine estate of 440 acres, and his place now numbers 1,200 acres, and is one of the finest grain and stock farms, both in quality and appearance, iu the state. He grows annually over 300 acres of grain, principally wheat, and has 300 acres in blue grass, besides nearly 100 acres in meadow. In 1880 Mr. Fray introduced the Norman breed of horses in this section of the state, and has pushed this with his characteristic enterprise and en- ergy, so that now that breed is rapidly supplanting all others in pop- ularity for draft and general purposes. He has the finest school of horses of this stock in the state. In hogs and other kinds of live stock he is also securing the best breeds that can be had. In short, he is an enlightened, progressive, enterprising agricultorist in the highest and best meaning of the word. His biography, aside from the work he has accomplished, is short. He was a son of James E. Fray and wife, whose maiden name was Eliza Dennis. His father was of the well known Fray family of Pennsylvania, of which state the father was a native. His mother was of a very worthy and respectable family of Virginia, where she was born and partly reared. They were married, however, in Kentucky, and afterwards came to Randolph county in an early day. His father was a millwright, and constructed a mill after coming, to this state. But both parents died soon after- wards, leaving three children : two little girls, Martha F. and Lucy . E. Lucy died in Texas and Martha is the wife of James A. Howard, now a resident of Texas. The duty of providing for his sisters, there- fore, devolved upon John A., which he manfully performed. Before reaching his twenty-first birthday, John A. was married to Miss Martha E. Herndon, of Cooper county, he having made his home in this county since he was eighteen years of age. Eight children have blessed this happy union : James T., Benjamin H., John W., Mary P., Henry G., Susan F., Eliza J., DeWitt C. and Katie B. How- ever, James T. died at the age of twenty ; Benjamin H. married Miss Adelia Harris, and Mary P. is the wife of Fred. W. Smith, at Boon- ville. All have been well educated. Mr. Fray has been a member of the I. O. O. F. for twenty-five years.

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.

Author: National Historical Company Publication date: 1883 Publisher: St. Louis : National Historical Co. Number of Pages: 1198

Author: National Historical Company
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: St. Louis : National Historical Co.
Number of Pages: 1198