USA > Missouri > History of southeast Missouri : a narrative account of its historical progress, its people and its principal interests, Volume II > Part 90
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Mr. Hawks was born in Hart county, Ken- tucky, January 10, 1860, the son of F. T. and Amanda M. (Overfelt) Hawks, both natives of the Blue Grass state. The family removed to Missouri in 1871, and remained here for two years, then going back to Kentucky, where they spent three years, and in 1876 re- turned to this state, of which they had re- tained a happy memory. In 1877 the Hawks family located a mile and a half east of Pux- ico, on Crowley's Ridge, and there maintained their home for many years. The worthy wife and mother died in 1907, in Puxico, and the father makes his home with the subject, his years numbering seventy-two. Mr. Hawks is the eldest of the seven children born to F. T. Hawks and his wife, five of this number surviving. One of the sisters, Mattie, now the wife of J. L. Glover, resides near Union City, Obion county, Tennessee. They own the old homestead, which is dear to all the family with its host of memories.
Edward L. Hawks of this biographical record remained beneath the parental roof- tree until the attainment of his majority. He came to Puxico when it was little more than a promise and built the first residence here in the fall of 1883, previous to the time the "Houck" Railway, now a part of the 'Frisco system, was completed and the town laid out and named Puxico. As he saw a good deal of opportunity in that line, the ambitious young man started his career as a building contractor, and, in truth, he constructed nearly all the business buildings in Puxico. He subsequently engaged in the grocery busi- ness and continued in this line for three or four years, only relinquishing it to engage in milling. He still occasionally takes a 'con-
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tract and has, indeed, a great deal of ability. For instance, he rebuilt the public school building in 1910, remodeling it and putting on an addition. As his public spirit and good judgment are generally recognized it has been the general desire that he serve on the village board, and he has held member- ship upon the same nearly all of the time since Puxico has had a village board. He has seen it grow and flourish until it is now a city of the fourth class, with a mayor. Ile is prominent in fraternal circles, belonging to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen.
Mr. Hawks was happily married in 1880, Samantha B. Looney becoming his wife. Mrs. Hawks is a daughter of John and Mary (Sewell) Looney, and was born in Cape Girardeau county, Missouri. Their union has been blessed by the birth of a family of nine children, as follows: Lucy, wife of Frank Bilbry, of Puxico; Della, who married James Wallace, of Puxico; Susie; Pearl ; Minnie, a student in the Cape Girardeau Business College; Flora; Lois; Lewis Ed- mund; and Jennie. Their home is one of the popular and hospitable ones of the county, the various members of the household being well and favorably known. Mr. and Mrs. Hawks are members of the Missionary Bap- tist church.
JOHN WILLIAM HEEB. Among the substan- tial citizens of the county, who have made its interests their own and have always been ready to aid in the development of the region is Mr. J. W. Heeb. He is a native of the state, Cape Girardeau county being his birthplace and 1868, September 8, the date of his birth. His father, John Heeb, came to Missouri in 1842 and secured a farm of one hundred and twenty acres. He identified himself with the country of his adoption and in the time of the Civil war served in the state militia. His wife was Agatha Scherer Heeb, and seven of their children are still living. Mike married Mrs. Carolina Sanfose, and they live at Kelso, Mis- souri. Anna, Mrs. August Sanders, resides on a farm near Chaffee. Katherine, too, is the wife of a Scott county farmer, S. E. Owens. Otto has been located near Harrisburg, Ar- kansas, since November, 1911. He formerly owned land in the vicinity of Chaffee. August also lives in Scott county, owning a farm near Chaffee, on which he resides with his wife, Tillie Pobst Heeb. The father makes his home with him.
John William Heeb bought his first land in 1887, when he and his brother August pur- chased ninety acres in partnership. He kept on buying and selling until at present he owns a hundred and ninety-two acres in Cape Gi- rardeau county and a hundred and thirty-one in Scott county. He keeps some stock and his principal crops are wheat, hay and corn. In 1905 he sold a hundred and three acres to the Chaffee Real Estate Company, and he still owns five houses in that town.
On June 28, 1891, Mr. Heeb was united in marriage to Miss Rosa L. Daniels, of this county, daughter of George and Mildred Dan- iels. Nine children were born into the home of John and Rosa Heeb, six of whom still glad- den it with their presence. Nona, the oldest, is the wife of John Hobbs, of Chaffee, who is a blacksmith for the Frisco Railroad. Two sons Roy and Paul, were taken from this life, the former fourteen years ago and the latter two years later. Arthur, the oldest son at home, is thirteen; Bessie is eight; Rufus, seven; Henry, five; Lucas, three; and Ruth Ora will be one year old on July 17, 1912.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Heeb are members of the Baptist church, in which their support and in- fluence are highly valued. Mr. Heeb is a mem- ber of the Modern Woodmen's lodge at Oran, while at Chaffee he belongs to the Royal Neighbors and to the Odd Fellows. The con- fidence and esteem with which he is regarded in the community are evidenced in many ways. He is president of the Building and Loan Association of Chaffee, of which he is a stockholder ; he was formerly president of the Farmers' Union of the county; and he has been for nine years president of the school board, serving three years before the town of Chaffee was built. Mr. Heeb also oversees some of the road building in the county. In addition to his real estate interests he is a stockholder in the German American bank and in the First National of Chaffee.
A. FRANK ASA. Among the localities of Southeastern Missouri which have gained distinction in recent years for educational progress and a thorough modernization of school, Stoddard county has not only fol- lowed in the general path of advancement but is recognized as one of the counties which are leading in independent achievements along the lines of public education. To no small degree the credit for this progress is due the present superintendent of public schools, Mr. A. Frank Asa, who is a progres-
Rosa L. Hich
John. W. Heel
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sive, broad-minded educator, whose ability and many years of practical experience in the county give him an unusual equipment for the work now going forward.
In the last two years the schools of the county have been entirely revolutionized, and are now being thoroughly graded and classi- fied. It is noteworthy that the citizens of the county have a keen appreciation of the work which is being done in behalf of their children, and this general moral support has been a large factor in the successful applica- tion of modern methods in the schools. With a population of thirty thousand, Stoddard county has nine thousand school children, with over one hundred and fifty teachers.
Superintendent Asa is a native of Illinois, born at Fairfield, Wayne county, December 23, 1875. He has been identified with educa- tional work since he was twenty years old. Up to the age of seventeen he worked on the home farm and attended district school, and then spent three years in the Fairfield high school. In 1895 be accompanied his parents to their new home in Stoddard county, locat- ing on a farm a few miles southwest of Dud- ley. He began teaching in this county in 1897, and since then has improved his own equipment for the profession by attendance at four summer schools. The record of his experience in this county includes one year at Edwards, one at Wilkerson, one at Tropf, three in the Lakeville graded school, two in Advance, and one at Puxico, while in the lat- ter school he was elected, April 6, 1909, to the office of county school commissioner un- der the old system. By an act of the legisla- ture he took the oath of county superintend- ent of schools on August 16, 1909, so that practically his entire administration has been under the new law. He was re-elected April 4, 1911, being now on his second term. His re-election was a gratifying approval of the work he had inaugurated during his first two years, and during his present term the schools of Stoddard county will be placed on a par with the best county school systems in the state.
DANIEL B. CORBIN. Many of the ablest men in America are ardent devotees of the great basic industry of agriculture, and it is well that this is so, because the various learned professions are rapidly becoming so crowded with inefficient practitioners that in a few years it will be practically impossible for any but the exceptionally talented man
to make good or even to gain a competent living therein. The independent farmer who in addition to tilling the soil cultivates his mind and retains his health is a man much to be envied in these days of strenuous bus- tle and nervous energy. He lives his life as he chooses and is always safe from financial ravages and other troubles of the so-called "cliff-dweller." An able and representative agriculturist who has done much to advance progress and conserve prosperity in Bollin- ger county, Missouri, is Daniel B. Corbin, who owns and operates a finely improved es- tate of five hundred and twenty acres in Wayne township, one and a half miles dis- tant from Greenbrier ..
A native of the fine old Hoosier state of the Union, Mr. Corbin was born in Greene county, Indiana, on the 14th of February, 1858. He is a son of George and Nancy (Hat- field) Corbin, both of whom were likewise born in Indiana, where the father was long engaged in agricultural pursuits. George Corbin was a gallant and faithful soldier in the Union army during the Civil war and he lost his life on the battlefield at Jackson, Mississippi, in the last year of the war. D. B. Corbin, of this notice, was reared to the invigorating discipline of the home farm and he received his preliminary educational train- ing in the neighboring district schools. He continued to reside on the farm in Indiana until he had reached his nineteenth year, and at that time removed to Bollinger county, Missouri, where he has continued to reside during the long intervening years to the pres- ent time, in 1912. In 1897 he engaged in the mercantile and saw-mill business at Greenbrier and in 1899 he purchased a tract of three hundred and twenty acres of Govern- ment land in Wayne township. In 1909 he added a tract of two hundred acres to his original estate and he is now most success- fully engaged in diversified agriculture and the raising of high-grade stock on his large farm.
Mr. Corbin has been married three times. In 1877 he wedded Nancy E. Cassner, of Greene county, Indiana. She was summoned to the life eternal in 1888, and is survived by four children, concerning whom the fol- lowing brief record is here offered,-Samnel, born in 1878, married Ida Ashcroft and they reside in Greene county, Indiana; George, born in 1880. married Annie Ashcroft, and they live in Greene county, Indiana; Stella, whose birth occurred in 1882, is the wife of
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Homer Wright, of Greene county, Indiana ; and Grover, born in 1884, married Ruth Blackridges, their home being in Bollinger county, Missouri. In 1890 Mr. Corbin was united in marriage to Miss Rebecca J. Rob- inson, who died in 1893. This union was blessed with two children,-Nancy, born in 1891; and Clyde, born in 1893. In 1894 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Corbin to Miss Almeta Robinson and they have three children, as follows,-Cash, born in 1895; Frances, in 1897; and Edna, in 1904.
In politics Mr. Corbin is aligned as a stal- wart supporter of the cause of the Demo- cratic party and, while he has never had time for political preferment of any description, he is ever ready to contribute to all measures and enterprises advanced for the good of the general welfare. In a fraternal way he is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Improved Order of Red Men and the Tribe of Ben Hur. He and his wife are valued and appreciative members of the Knights and Ladies of Security and the Daughters of Rebekah. In their religious faith they are consistent and zealous members of the Methodist Episcopal church, to whose good works they are most generous contribu- tors of their time and means. The Corbin home is one of gracious refinement and gen- erous hospitality and Mr. and Mrs. Corbin are honored and esteemed as foremost citizens in the community.
JOHN H. HUEBNER. Among the prosper- ous farmers of Stoddard county, Missouri, who claim a birthplace on the north side of the old "Mason and Dixon" line is John H. Huebner, who owns and occupies a fine farm of two hundred and fifty-five acres, two miles and a half southeast of Puxico.
Mr. Huebner was born on a farm in Posey county, Indiana, October 28, 1868, and made his home in that county twenty-five years. When he was ten years old his mother died, and thus his boyhood was robbed of a moth- er's loving care, and in a measure his educa- tion was neglected. Subsequently his father was twice married.
When he was twenty-four years of age Mr. Huebner married, in Posey county, Miss Ethel Hughes, like himself a native of that county, born in 1868. They lived at his father's home one year, operating the home farm. then accompanied him and his family to Illinois, Mr. Huebner having sold his farm in Indiana and bought one in Gallatin
county, Illinois. For seven years Mr. John H. Huebner operated the Gallatin county farm, a tract of two hundred and eighty acres. In the meantime rumors of progress and prosperity in Southeastern Missouri reached him, and he decided that Missouri was the place for him, so he came south, land- ing at Puxico, Missouri, the day before Christmas in 1900. His first land purchase here was one hundred and fifty-five acres, a part of his present farm, which had a few buildings and which was about half covered with timber. By subsequent purchase he has added to this tract until now he has two hun- dred and fifty-five acres in one body, fenced with wire and nearly all cleared. Most of the buildings now on the farm have been erected by Mr. Huebner and those that were here when he came have been remodeled and improved. And as the result of his twelve years of labor he today has a property worth far more than he paid for it in cash. His chief crops are corn, wheat and clover, and, being a trading man, he deals quite ex- tensively in cattle, hogs and horses.
Mr. and Mrs. Huebner have two sons, Raymond H. and Byron F., both at home. The only fraternal organization with which Mr. Huebner is identified is the Court of Honor of Puxico. Politically he is a Demo- crat, not, however, taking much part in poli- ties save as a conscientious voter. As an hon- est man and worthy citizen he has the respect of all who know him.
R. L. GUY. Included among the prosper- ous farmers of Southeastern Missouri who have made their way to success by dint of their own efforts is found R. L. Guy, whose new residence and broad acres are situated two miles and a quarter northeast of Ad- vance, Stoddard county.
Mr. Guy is a native of Kentucky. He was born in Adair county, that state, March 12, 1868, and when he was only three weeks old had the misfortune to lose his father by death. When he was seven years old he was brought by his mother to Missouri, where she subsequently became the wife of J. G. Mills. After his father's death the support of the family devolved upon two brothers and a sis- ter. They stayed together for several years, and their first location in Missouri was in Scotland county, where the subject of this sketch received nearly all his schooling. He remained a member of his mother's house- hold until his mother's marriage, which took
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place in 1883. That year he came to his pres- ent location. His capital when he started out for himself consisted of one hundred and twenty-eight dollars and a horse. He paid one hundred dollars for another horse, and with a good team he went to work on rented land. For four years he cultivated rented farms. Meanwhile, near him were one hun- dred and sixty acres of land that belonged to heirs, and this proved his opportunity. As each heir became of age Mr. Guy bought him out, and thus a little at a time acquired the whole tract, and from time to time he bought other land until his holdings now comprise five hundred and eleven acres. He moved from his first farm to the one on which he now lives, and into a little log house, twenty by twenty-four feet in dimensions, which continued to be his shelter until it was blown down in 1909. Then he erected his present residence, an eight-room house with halls and basement. He has good barns, two tenant houses, and all these, together with his well cultivated fields and the stock on his broad pastures, indicate the enterprising, prosper- ous farmer. Annually he raises several thousand dollars worth of stock, chiefly hogs.
Realizing the advantage a good drainage ditch would be to this locality Mr. Guy has been active in promoting one, which has re- cently been ordered by the county court. This ditch, when completed, will be of great value of the land east of Advance.
Mr. Guy married. in 1883, in Cape Girar- deau county. Miss Josephine Looney, who was born in that county in 1877, daughter of William J. and Minerva Looney. Frater- nally Mr. Guy is identified with the F. & A. M., having membership in the lodge at Ad- vance.
EUGENE G. SCHRUM. One of the leading citizens of the little town of Swinton, Stod- dard county. Missouri, is found in the sub- ject of this sketch. E. G. Schrum, a dealer in general merchandise.
Mr. Schrum is a native of Stoddard county. He was born March 2. 1875, on a farm near Piketon, and there, when he was only two years of age, he had the misfortune to lose his parents, his father and mother dv- ing within a day of each other and both be- ing laid to rest in the same grave. After this he was taken into the home of his uncle. Jiles Nation, who lived on a near-by farm. When the boy was thirteen this uncle moved to Bell City, where he owned and operated a saw-
mill. Young Schrum worked in the mill for two years, after which he began to clerk in a general store, which his uncle also owned. When he was twenty-one he bought a fourth interest in the store, having at that time come into possession of a small inheritance from his father. A step-son of Mr. Nation's also was a partner in the store. After two years spent as partner there Mr. Schrum saved enough to buy a house and lot. Then he married, and soon afterward he built a store of his own, into which he placed a good stock of general merchandise and which he conducted for a period of seven years, doing a prosperous business and at the end of that time selling out at a good price. Then he in- vested in a farm of one hundred and twenty aeres one-half mile southwest of Swinton. This farm he bought in 1905, and on it he made his home for two years, at the end of that time selling it. Next we find him at Ad- vance and Greenbrier, Bollinger county, where he ran a hoop factory which fur- nished employment most of the time to about fifteen men. On the 20th of February, 1909, he opened a line of general merchandise at Swinton, where he has a store, thirty by sixty feet in dimensions, and where he is now do- ing a successful business.
On June 20, 1897, at Bell City, E. G. Schrum and Miss Margaret Lockard were united in marriage, and to them have been given two children, the elder of whom. Edith, an exceptionally bright little girl, died Sep- tember 25, 1909. at the age of eight years. The baby, Glendon, was born February 16, 1910. Mrs. Schrum is a daughter of Bed- ford and Sarah Lockard, who came to Stod- dard county from their native state, Ken- tueky. In Stoddard county, March 19, 1878, Mrs. Schrum was born, and here her whole life has been spent.
Mr. and Mrs. Schrum are actively identi- fied with the Methodist Episcopal church. South, and he fraternizes with the M. W. of A., having membership in Baker Camp at Swinton. Politically he is a Republican, and has always taken an enthusiastic interest in local affairs. As a successful business man and worthy citizen Mr. Schrum is justly en- titled to the high esteem in which he is held by the people among whom he lives.
ASIER J. SPEER, M. D. Education and financial assistance are very important fac- tors in achieving success in any line of en- terprise today, but they are not the main
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elements. Persistency and determination fig- ure much more prominently and a man pos- sessed of these qualities is bound to win a fair amount of success. Dr. Asier J. Speer, whose name forms the caption for this arti- cle, earned his own education and during the latter years of his life he has climbed to a high place on the ladder of achievement. He is one of Zalma's most prominent citizens and since 1903 has here been most successfully en- gaged in the practice of medicine.
A native of the old Hoosier state, Dr. Speer was born in Martin county, Indiana, on the 10th of December, 1874, and he is a son of William R. and Arinda (Girdley) Speer, both of whom are likewise natives of Indiana. The father was engaged in farming opera- tions during the greater part of his active career and he is now living near Zalma, Mis- souri. The first in order of birth in a fam- ily of four children, Dr. Spear was reared to adult age on the old homestead farm and he continued to attend school until he had reached his sixteenth year. At that time, in 1890, he began to teach school, his first posi- tion as a teacher being at Revelle, near Lutes- ville, Missouri. In 1891, he entered the Southeastern Normal School, at Cape Girar- deau, Missouri, completing the prescribed course in one year and heading his class in all written examinations. While attending normal school he was elected by the Benton Society to debate with two other classmates, each representing a political party. Dr. Speer represented the People's party, Miss Rowena Shaner represented the Republican party and J. C. Shaner, the Democratic party. In 1891, after leaving college, Dr. Speer came to Zalma, Missouri, where he taught school for the ensuing twelve years. In 1898 he began to take work in the St. Louis College of Physicians & Surgeons, and he was finally graduated in that excellent in- stitution as a member of the class of 1903, duly receiving his degree of Doctor of Medi- cine. Immediately after graduation Dr. Speer located at Zalma, where he initiated the active practice of his profession and where he has since been engaged in medical work. He controls a large and lucrative pa- tronage in this place and in the surrounding country and is widely renowned as one of the nost skilled physicians and surgeons in Bol- linger county.
In the year 1899. Dr. Speer was united in marriage to Miss Bertha Black, of Green- brier, Missouri. Mrs. Speer is a daughter of
John and Eliza (Reed) Black and she was reared and educated in this state. Dr. and Mrs. Speer are the parents of seven children, whose names and dates of birth are here en- tered in respective order of nativity, Charles Vernon, born November 20, 1900, died Sep- tember 13, 1901; Ruth, born in April, 1902; Grace, born in March, 1904; Walda French, October, 1905; Hester, August, 1907; Man- ford, August, 1909; and Justin Linn, Au- gust, 1911.
In politics Dr. Speer accords an earnest support to Republican principles, believing that the platform of that party contains the best elements of good government. He has never had time for participation in public affairs but is ever on the alert and enthusi- astically in sympathy with all measures ad- vanced for progress and improvement. In a fraternal way he is affiliated with the Tribe of Ben Hur and the Modern Woodmen of Amer- ica. In their religious faith Dr. and Mrs. Speer are consistent members of the Method- ist Episcopal church, and they are popular factors in connection with the best social ac- tivities of Zalma, where they are held in high esteem by all with whom they have come in contact.
ROBERT L. CALVIN. It is not without reason that the European nations, both ancient and modern, have considered farming the most honorable of occupations. Undoubtedly Amer- ica owes her present supremacy in the nations to the fact that until the last two generations our city population was a small per cent of the total number of our inhabitants and that we drew the flower of our professional men from the farm-bred boys. Besides the train- ing in doing so many various things which the farmer gets, is the still more potent force in character development, the ability to spend time in solitude. The Anglo-Saxon rules the world. solely because he is the one being who can bear the discipline of loneliness. It is not surprising then to find so many men who give stability to the community, both morally and financially, in the ranks of the agriculturists. A signal example of Scott county's farmer fi- nanciers is Robert L. Calvin.
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