USA > Missouri > Pettis County > History of Pettis County, Missouri > Part 37
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On August 5, 1871, Reuben J. Gentry was married to Miss Bettie Hughes, who was born in Pettis County, December 13, 1853, and was a daughter of Reese and Sarah A. (Burch) Hughes.
Reese Hughes was prominent in the affairs of Pettis County during the early days, and was an early pioneer and attorney of Georgetown, the old county seat. He was born in Tennessee, and was a son of Reese Hughes, who married Cecilia Johnson, a cousin of President Andrew Johnson. The Hughes family moved from Tennessee to Cooper County, Missouri, in 1826 and settled on land whereon is now located Harris'
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Station. There were twenty children born to Reese Hughes, the elder. Reese Hughes, father of Mrs. Bettie Gentry, was educated in Tennessee and graduated as a law practitioner. He was married in Georgetown, Pettis County, to Miss Sarah Ann Burch, and soon afterwards located at Calhoun, Henry County, Missouri. After a residence there of some months, they returned to Georgetown. Mr. Hughes served as county treasurer of Pettis County from 1848 to 1860. He was a large land owner, and kept many slaves on his large farm. Reese and Sarah Ann Hughes were parents of six children: John B. Hughes, whose daughter, Mrs. Howard Wood, lives in Sedalia; Abijah, married Mary (Puss) Gentry, a daughter of Maj. William Gentry, and his son, Will Cloney, of the Dorn-Cloney Company, lives in Sedalia; Edward Hughes, was the father of Ed. Hughes, living east of Sedalia; Mrs. Bettie Gentry, of this review; Mollie, deceased wife of I. M. Sprecher, Sedalia; Charles Hughes, died when a young man.
Six children were born to the marriage of Reuben J. and Bettie Gentry: Ruby, Sallie, a child died in infancy, William H., Charles R., Reuben J.
Ruby was born April 8, 1872, married Dr. W. J. Ferguson on March 9, 1892. She died June 16, 1900.
Sallie, born August 12, 1873, is the wife of T. J. Sturges, whom she married February 7, 1894. Mr. and Mrs. Sturges have one child, Eliza- beth, born June 14, 1896, and is now the wife of William Searcy Ridge, of Columbia, Missouri, whom she married on August 8, 1917. An infant son was born and died on March 15, 1876.
William H. Gentry was born March 15, 1876, and was educated in the Sedalia public schools. He is residing on the home place, and is owner of a farm which he is cultivating.
Charles Richard Gentry was born February 8, 1878; has a farm of 195 acres. He was educated in the Sedalia schools and Missouri State University. On January 20, 1915, he married Kate Thurston, and has one child, Bettie Gentry, born November 7, 1915.
Reuben J. Gentry, youngest son of the family and present deputy clerk of the Circuit Court of Pettis County, was born December 19, 1880. He was educated in the public and high schools of Sedalia and the Missouri State University, graduating from the latter institution with the degree of Bachelor of Law, in 1906. Returning to the old home- stead, he and his brothers operated the large Gentry farm in partner-
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ship until the division of the estate, in 1915. The sons carried on the breeding of Shorthorn cattle and Berkshire hogs, an enterprise for which the farm had become famous. One of the highly-prized souvenirs in young Mr. Gentry's possession is the bell which formerly hung in the old court house at Georgetown. It is altogether probable that this old bell, which years and years ago summoned the people of the neighbor- hood to meetings in the old court house, will hang in the county building at Sedalia, inasmuch as an effort is being made by the Daughters of the American Revolution to obtain this bell for that purpose. When the Georgetown court house was dismantled, at the time of the removal of the county seat to Sedalia, Reuben Joel Gentry, the elder, purchased the old bell, and prized it highly as a relic of the old days.
William Miller Gentry was born September 19, 1837, and died May 1, 1889. He was educated in the common schools and attended the Kemper Military Academy at Boonville, Missouri. He was owner of several hun- dred acres of land and was a practical and energetic farmer, who culti- vated his land with great profit. He used the latest modern machinery in his farming operations. Like his brother, Reuben Joel Gentry, he farmed on a large scale, and bred and raised pure-bred livestock. He and Reuben Joel Gentry each had large herds of pure-bred Shorthorn cattle and Berkshire hogs, and won quite a number of premiums and awards and silver trophies at the St. Louis Fair and other fairs. These trophies are still held in the Gentry family, and are prized very highly. William M. and Reuben Joel were large sheep raisers, and also raised thorough- bred horses. Their farms were the best kept and the best stocked in Pettis County and western Missouri. William M., like his brother, Reuben Joel, was a member of the Masonic fraternity, and was greatly honored and respected for the upright manner in which he lived. At his death he left all of his estate to his widow and her children.
The late Mrs. Bettie Hughes Gentry was born at Georgetown, Mis- souri, December 13, 1853, and died June 11, 1914. She was educated in the common schools and later attended Forest Grove Institute, at that time one of the foremost schools of Pettis County. After the death of her first husband, Reuben Joel Gentry, she remained on the farm where they lived, and managed it until December 2, 1885, when she married William Miller Gentry, a brother of her former husband. At his death, on May 1, 1889, William Miller Gentry left his property to his widow and her children. The rest of her days were spent on the Gentry place,
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known as "Cedar Vale Farm." Together with her sons she managed this place, and the farm left by William Miller Gentry. Besides managing these two large estates, she also managed a large farm of 800 acres, owned by Mrs. A. W. Walburn, her sister-in-law. She was a woman of rare business ability, and always used the best methods of agriculture and raised pure-bred Shorthorn cattle, Berkshire hogs, Merino and Shropshire sheep. At one time Mrs. Gentry owned the largest flock of sheep in the State. Her herd of sheep numbered into the thousands, and she exhibited her fine stock at the fairs and took many prizes, including first prize on wool at the World's Fair in Chicago, in 1893. Mrs. Gentry employed a great deal of labor, sometimes having as many as thirty farm hands working on her lands at one time. Her advice on business matters was sought by many who knew and admired her capabilities. In a social way Mrs. Gentry was a member of the Sorosis Club, the United Daugh- ters of the Confederacy, Ladies' Musical Club, Pettis County Home Makers Club, and others. She was a member of the First Christian Church of Sedalia, and was an ardent worker in the activities of the church. She taught a class of young men in the Sunday school for a number of years. All of her children belong to the same congregation.
Mrs Gentry had a pleasing personality and was a prime favorite in the community with both old and young. She was noted for her charity and gave a great deal of her time and means toward assisting needy and worthy projects for the alleviation of poverty and suffering. Whenever she heard of a poor family in need of assistance, she always was the first to assist them. No call upon her purse or time in the cause of charity went unheeded. She has been known to arise and go, in the middle of the night, to the home of some poor person in the neighborhood where sickness and poverty prevailed and render them aid with both money and her personal services as nurse until health and contentment once more came to the home.
Mrs. Gentry was a famous cook and took many prizes for examples of her culinary art at the county and state fairs. She also acted as judge of the Department of Home Economics at the County Fair for a number of years, and when the State Fair was inaugurated at Sedalia in 1900, she was selected to judge the Home Economics Department, during the first year. During the third year of the fair she was chosen as superintendent of this department and served in this position until her death in 1914. Her daughter, Mrs. T. J. Sturges, acted as assistant
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in this same department for a number of years and after her mother's death, Mrs. Sturges served as the superintendent for three years.
Mrs. Gentry's ability was of a high order. She was a natural artist, and a number of beautiful oil paintings, now in the homes of her children, bear living testimony to her inherited artistic talent. Mrs. Gentry did considerable wood carving and many handsome and valuable specimens of her artistic genius and skill in this art are owned by her descendants. She was awarded many prizes for her oil paintings and wood carvings at the Missouri State Fair and the leading fairs of the country, including the Texas State Fair, Oklahoma State Fair and the State fairs of Iowa, Illinois and Louisiana. She also did a great deal of textile work, upon which many premiums were awarded at various State fairs.
At one time Mrs. Gentry was requested and urged by many leading Democrats of Pettis County to allow her name to be placed upon the ticket for the office of treasurer of Pettis County, but she refused the honor, saying that she did not care to enter politics. In spite of her various exacting business affairs and responsibilities, she was motherly and carefully looked after the welfare and upbringing of her children. The needs and comfort of her children were always foremost in her mind and ambitions.
Several years before her death she disposed of the William Miller Gentry estate and devoted her time to the management of Cedar Vale Farm. Later she took into partnership her three sons, William H., Charles R., and Reuben J., in the management of the place under the firm name of Gentry Brothers. Mrs. Gentry was a silent partner in the firm and this arrangement continued successfully for a number of years. They, like their ancestors, raised pure bred live stock, such as Shorthorn cattle and Berkshire hogs. A division of the land was made after Mrs. Gentry's death on June 11, 1914. Some years prior to this division, Mrs. T. J. Sturges had been given her share of the estate. At present the three sons, William H., Charles R., wife and baby, and Reuben J. are living on the old home place and each is operating his individual holdings.
Mrs. Bettie Gentry was a lovable and capable character whose whole life was so lived that she was a decided benefit to the citizenship of Pettis county. She was an exceptional woman gifted beyond ordinary who had the respect, esteem and high regard of all who had the good for- tune to know her. Pettis county was bettered for having her as one of
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its leading citizens for so many years. The imprint of her personality and accomplishments was so indelibly impressed upon the narrative his- torical annals of the county that she will be remembered for many gen- erations, as one who left the world better for her sojourn here on earth.
During the Civil War, Reuben Joel Gentry served in Colonel Phillips' Regiment of Union Cavalry as a sergeant, and saw much active and ardu- ous service with his command. He was a man of honor, industrious, liberal to a high degree, well educated, and a leader among the people of the community. The Gentry Farm, Cedar Vale, was noted for its cleanliness and freedom from brush and weeds, it being Mr. Gentry's custom to side over the farm frequently with a hoe over the pommel of his saddle and wherever he saw a weed growing, he would cut it out. Every day or so he would make the rounds of his large estate to see that everything was in ship-shape, and order repairs where necessary. Mr. Gentry was always interested in the cause of education and he gave the site for the erection of Sunnyside district school, besides serving for many years as director of this school. He was loyal to his friends and a man of strong convictions which he expressed freely on occasions. Being a witty conversationalist, it was always an occasion when Mr. Gentry visited Sedalia, as he would soon become the center of a crowd who enjoyed his conversation and his views in general upon the topics of the day. Reuben J. Gentry was a Pettis County citizen who kept true to the traditions of his family, and bequeathed a heritage of upright living and honesty and integrity of purpose to the members of his family.
A story of Mr. Gentry's experience in the Civil War while serving as a member of Colonel Phillips' Regiment typifies the code of honor which prevails among the members of the Gentry family: While cam- paigning in Saline County, Mr. Gentry's horse became lame and practi- cally worn out with much arduous traveling. He consulted with his col- onel upon the matter and Colonel Phillips advised him to requisition a horse from one of the neighboring farmers. Private Gentry demurred at this, and said that it would not be fair to give his poor horse for a good one. Colonel Phillips then practically ordered him to go and ex- change his steed at the nearest farm he could find and secure a good mount. Mr. Gentry did so and had quite an altercation with a farmer with whom he made the trade. This farmer was a secessionist and nat- urally seized the occasion to roundly abuse Mr. Gentry for imposing upon him, knowing that he did not dare resist the transaction. Mr.
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Gentry's spirit of fairness then asserted itself and he said to the farmer: "My name is Reuben J. Gentry; my father lives across country a few miles from here. You take this old horse down to his home, tell him the circumstances and he will be only too pleased to give you a good horse in return." The farmer did so. He visited Richard Gentry at his home, stayed all night with Mr. Gentry, and rode away the next day with a better animal than the one which had been requisitioned.
Norvel Commodore McFarland .- At a bend in the rock road, leading northeast from Sedalia in the western part of Bowling Green township, is the beautiful farm residence of N. C. McFarland. The farm of 200 acres owned and operated by Mr. McFarland is one of the best improved in this section of Missouri. The McFarland home is visible from a con- siderable distance and consists of a modern nine-room residence, fitted with a water system, electric lighting plant, and heating system-all the conveniences of city life brought directly to the country. Mr. McFarland has achieved considerable fame as a breeder of Duroc Jersey Swine and has been engaged in this profitable branch of animal husbandry since 1883. The Pettis County herd of Durocs was established in 1883, and has been bred constantly since that time, using the best blood line that money could buy. Mr. McFarland has built up one of the best herds of Durocs in the world, and this fact has been demonstrated at the leading fairs and live stock shows in the United States. At the World's Fair in St. Louis in 1904 the Pettis County Herd of Durocs won more than double the prizes and more than twice the amount of prize money won by any herd of Durocs in the world. It is a fact that today more boars bred by N. C. McFarland are found at the head of good herds of Duroc-Jersey swine than can be found bred by any other breeding establishment in the world, breeding the same variety of hogs. The McFarland herd num- bers 150 head and the breeding stock is all registered in the National Duroc-Jersey Association at Peoria, Illinois, and all are eligible in both Record Associations.
Animals from this herd have been shown at the leading State fairs and national live stock shows of the world, including the Louisiana Pur- chase Exposition held at St. Louis in 1904. Sixteen head were exhibited at this show, winning twenty-eight prizes, thirteen first prizes, five sec- ond prizes, two third prizes, two fourth prizes, one fifth, two sevenths, two champions and one grand champion prize, representing over $2,100 in cash prizes. Mr. McFarland owns the champion and grand champion
1
N. C. McFARLAND.
MRS. N. C. MCFARLAND.
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Duroc sow of the world, "Dotie No. 37472." Mr. McFarland holds sales of his stock throughout the year. Buyers order from all parts of the United States. No auction sales are held but so great is the reputation ยท of this herd and so strong is the confidence of hogmen in Mr. McFarland's integrity and honesty that all sales are made privately and are mostly made through mail orders. The McFarland farm is located six miles northeast of Sedalia and two miles northwest of Beaman, and is con- veniently located for shipping at all times of the year.
N. C. McFarland was born May 13, 1867, in Shelby County, Missouri, the son of Commodore Peter McFarland who was born in Kentucky of Scotch-Irish ancestry. Commodore Peter McFarland was born March 22, 1816, in Kentucky and died May 19, 1884. He was a soldier in the Mexican War, and was an early settler in northeast Missouri where he resided until 1868. In March of that year he came to Pettis County and settled on the place now owned by the subject of this sketch. He resided here until his death. His wife was Mary Elizabeth Combes, born in Kentucky, October 28, 1823, and departed this life June 17, 1915, at the time of her death being probably the oldest pioneer woman in Pettis County. She was a daughter of William Fielding Combes, a soldier of the War of 1812. Five sons and four daughters were born to Commodore Peter and Mary Elizabeth McFarland, as follow: Lucy, deceased; Zachary, a farmer in Bowling Green township; Mattie E. and Fannie E., deceased; William and John, deceased; Green, a farmer in Bowling Green township; Norvel C., of this review ; Mollie, deceased.
For the past fifty years, N. C. McFarland has resided upon his farm and cared for his aged parents until they died. He became possessor of the farm through purchase of the interests of the other heirs and has won a name and place for himself as a farmer and breeder second to none in Pettis County or Missouri. The account of his accomplishments as a breeder is a history of the man himself.
On February 10, 1893, N. C. McFarland and Miss Ella Kemp were united in marriage. Mrs. Ella (Kemp) McFarland is a daughter of Pad- field N. and Margaret Kemp, the latter of whom is deceased, and the former still resides on his farm in Heath's Creek township, one of the oldest of the native born pioneers in Pettis County. A sketch of P. N. Kemp appears elsewhere in this volume. To Norvel C. and Ella McFar- land have been born children as follow: Ruth C., born June 6, 1894; Ruby May, born November 1, 1896, died October 6, 1912; Rosella, born August
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9, 1902; Norvel Clay, born September 22, 1906; Roy Green, born August 24, 1909.
Mr: McFarland is a Democrat. He is a membre of the Methodist Episcopal Church, his family worshipping at the Salem M. E. Church. He is fraternally affiliated with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Modern Woodmen of America, and the Woodmen of the world. He is a member of the Duroc Breeders Association.
John Forster Antes .- The name of Antes figures prominently in the early annals of Sedalia and Pettis County and is especially noted as being connected with the railroad building era which opened up this vast country to settlement and development. John Forster Antes, late of Sedalia, was one of the best known men of the city and for many years was prominent in affairs here. He was born at Harrisburg, Pennsyl- vania, September 24, 1830, and was a son of Henry P. and Catherine (Forster) Antes, both natives of Pennsylvania and members of old American families. Mrs. Catherine Forster was a daughter of General Forster, an officer of the American Revolution.
John Forster Antes attended the public schools of his native city and served for sometime as a soldier in the United States Army, attain- ing the rank of captain. For some years he was employed in the office of the superintendent of the Old Colony and Fall River railroad, now the Boston and Maine railroad. Having occasion to visit an uncle in St. Louis, during the early sixties, he decided to remain in Missouri and took a position in a St. Louis Bank. When the construction of the Pacific railroad began at St. Louis, he accepted a position with the company, and as the road was built westward, from St. Louis, he was placed in charge of the advance stations. The road reached Sedalia in 1863 and here he decided to remain and for four years served as agent of the rail- road in this city. He then resigned and opened a dry goods store at the corner of Main and Osage Streets, Main Street at that time being the principal business street of the city. He operated this store successfully for several years and he then organized the Sedalia Gas Light Company of which he served as president, with J. C. Thompson as vice-president. In 1880, he disposed of his gas interests and bought the Holbrecht Flour- ing Mill. After becoming owner of this mill he remodeled it and installed the roller process and remained in the milling business until 1890. Mr. Antes remained in active business in Sedalia until his death, December 5, 1906.
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John Forster Antes was married on May 25, 1863, to Miss Lucy Jane Dempsey of Otterville, Missouri, a daughter of William R. and Mahala (Barnett) Dempsey, both of whom were born and reared in Virginia. The Dempsey family came to Missouri in pioneer days, and Mrs. Antes was born near Otterville, August 14, 1841. Four children were born to John Forster and Lucy Jane Antes: Catherine, wife of R. E. Waddell, residing at 215 East Seventh Street, Sedalia, has two children, Richard Antes and John Marcius Waddell; John Heard Antes, a decorator, Sedalia ; Marcius S., Sedalia, has been in the employ of the Missouri, Kansas & Texas railway for the past twenty-one years, married May 6, 1912, to Miss Louise Breig, of Clinton, Missouri, and has a son, Marcius Jr .; Flor- ence E., at home, her mother's devoted companion.
The Antes family residence is located at 623 West Seventh Street and is one of the beautiful and imposing homes on that well-kept street.
John Forster Antes, during his long years of residence in Sedalia, was a public spirited citizen who held the best interests of his home city paramount. He took an active and influential interest in civic affairs and served as a member of the city council. When Mr. and Mrs. Antes made their home in Sedalia the place was but a growing town scattered over the prairie. She has witnessed its growth into a beautiful, progressive and wealthy city. A pass issued to Mrs. Antes by the railroad company in December 3, 1866, reads: "Pacific Railroad of Missouri, Pass Mrs. John F. Antes, at pleasure .- T. W. McKissick, Supt."
Although past the age of seventy-six years, Mrs. Antes has an ex- cellent memory and recalls many historic incidents of the stirring days when Sedalia was young. She vividly recalls the time when Sedalia was captured by the Confederates during the Civil War. Her home was located but a few feet from the Federal Fort and a Union flag was kept flying from a pole at the fort. A force of eight hundred Confederates attacked the fort which was but poorly defended by an inadequate force of Union men. When the first shot was fired from the rebel cannon, the fort's defenders fled, leaving their flag flying in the breeze with no one to haul it down. A Mrs. Jackson who lived nearby, hoisted a sheet. in token of surrender and the attacking forces took possession of the fort. Mrs. Antes and her colored maid fled down the street to the western part of the town. Her husband remained at his post during the fight and was not molested by the invaders. Mrs. Antes highly prizes a souvenir of this occasion which is a fragment of the cannon ball, fired by the Con- feredates when the fort was attacked.
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Shields R. Smith, manager of the Sedalia Home Telephone Company and district manager of the Kinloch Long Distance Telephone Company, was born in Cooper County, Missouri, December 23, 1881. He is a son of Nathan A. and Alice Virginia (Bane) Smith, the former of whom was born at Otterville, Cooper County, on September 8, 1858, and the latter was born at Canton, Missouri, February 25, 1862. Both parents now reside at Hayne, Kansas, where Mr. Smith is engaged in farming and stock raising. Their children are as follows: Shields Russell Smith, of this review; Walter Oran, born November 2, 1886, died December 15, 1889; Mattie E., wife of Thomas E. Ellis, Welch, Oklahoma, was born October 16, 1884; Ida M., born December 17, 1888, resides with her parents at Hayne, Kansas; Bane A. Smith, Dixon, New Mexico, born November 19, 1890; R. Berry Smith, born June 12, 1895, now a corporal in the United States Army, entered the service May 31, 1917, and was called to the colors November 5, 1917, trained at Camp Funston and lett for France on January 5, 1918. He is corporal of Company C, 107th Field Signal Battalion of the American Expeditionary Forces; Dixie Smith, born July 15, 1899, died August 28, 1904.
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