USA > Missouri > Nodaway County > Past and present of Nodaway County, Missouri Volume II > Part 26
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them in their subsequent careers, their father having chosen for them a practical way of developing in them a robust manhood and at the same time schooling them in the lessons of perseverance, the overcoming of obstacles and the general "ins and outs" of the business world, especially as applied to agriculture and stock raising, in which they have so admirably succeeded. He received his education in the local schools, but always cared more for the actual experience of the every-day transactions of life than for text-book training.
In 1890 Mr. Bilby married Louiza J. Albright, daughter of William and Nancy Albright. Her father was one of the early settlers of Nodaway county, being almost the only one now owning land here that was obtained directly from the government. He was born in Orange county, North Caro- lina, and in 1838, when a small child, was brought to Missouri by his par- ents, Joel and Katie ( Holt) Albright : they made the long overland journey from North Carolina in old-fashioned covered wagons, true pioneer fashion. and first located in Clinton county, this state, coming on to Nodaway county about 1850, and here Mrs. Bilby grew to maturity and received a very good education. Her father is now living on his farm four miles southeast of Quitman where he is well known and highly respected. Five children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Bilby, one of whom, Willie, died when three years and one month old; the four living are Edmund R., Sliker W .. Nell and Murray.
John E. Bilby is known to all as Ed. Bilby and the humblest urchin may feel free to call him simply "Ed," for he is happily free from the affectations of some men of means who must be shown formal deference. He is of that rugged, forceful, energetic type of virile American manhood that does things. He is a partner with his father in the Quitman Live Stock Company and con- trols nearly fifteen thousand acres of land in Nodaway, Holt and Atchison counties. It is said that one can ride for a distance of twenty-two miles along the road that separates those counties, all the while passing land that is a part of Ed. Bilby's ranch, the three Bilbys owning a total of twenty-six thousand acres in Nodaway, Holt and Atchison counties and much larger holdings in other states, some of their most important property being in Kansas, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma.
In order to give the readers of this history an idea of the gigantic scale on which the Bilbys do business, the following is quoted from a local paper. in which it appeared in the spring of 1910:
"J. Ed. and R. I. Bilby, the cattle kings of northwestern Missouri, re- ceived about two thousand five hundred head of cattle the last two weeks,
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to be fed out on their large farms in Nodaway and Atchison counties. Last Friday and Saturday thirty-eight cars were unloaded at Quitman and Skid- more and about ten days before twenty-eight cars were received, making in all. sixty-six cars, or about two thousand and five hundred head of feeders from one to four years old.
"These cattle were loaded' at El Paso, Texas, and most of them came from Old Mexico and were a good bunch of steers for that country.
"The Bilbys are said to be the largest cattle feeders in the world. John S. Bilby is as well known through the great Southwest as he and his sons. J. Ed. and R. I., are in Nodaway county. They have been buying and shipping cattle from Oklahoma, Indian Territory, the Pan Handle, Texas, Arizona, New and Old Mexico, for years. They usually buy in large quanti- ties and ship whole train-loads into this country at a time. Most of their cattle are shipped to Quitman and there distributed to their different farms and feed lots in Nodaway and Atchison counties. Quitman has long enjoyed, on account of the Bilby shipments, the reputation of being the largest stock shipping point of any station in all this part of the country. These cattle are turned out on their large blue grass pastures until they are fairly well fattened. then put in the feed lots and finished up on corn and cotton seed .neal. They always have a few cars ready for shipment whenever the market looks good to them. Most of their cattle go to Chicago, and the Bilbys are just as well known at that end of the line as they are here."
Fraternally. Ed. Bilby is a Mason, and personally, he is a very pleasant gentleman, a good mixer. genial and popular with all classes, owing to his industry, integrity and spirit of good fellowship.
E. J. ANDREWS
The Andrews family has long been well known in Atchison township and the northern half of Nodaway township in connection with agricultural interests, and of the younger generation of farmers in this vicinity none seems to have surpassed E. J. Andrews, a native son of this township, where his birth occurred on October 8, 1870. He is the son of George Lyman and Elizabeth (Johnson) Andrews, the former born in Ohio and the latter in Nodaway county, Missouri. She is the daughter of Ephraim Johnson, men- tioned elsewhere in this work. The father of George Lyman Andrews died in Ohio when the latter was but a mere child, and he went to Michigan
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with a Mr. Slickland, with whom he also came to Nodaway county, Missouri, where he grew to manhood. He very early engaged in farming, which has been his life occupation, and he is now the owner of about eight hundred and seventy-three acres, and he has owned and sold considerable other land, being one of the substantial and. prominent men of this part of the county, now making his home near Hopkins. In politics, he is a Republican and is a member of the Methodist church. He and his wife were the parents of five children, all surviving at this writing. The mother died in 1883 and Mr. Andrews married Mary Glespey, which union has resulted in the birth of three children, all living. Mr. Andrews was a soldier in the Civil war. He has been very successful as a trader, farmer and stockman and is influential and highly respected wherever he is known.
E. J. Andrews was reared on the home farm and educated in the com- mon schools and has devoted his life to farming with very satisfactory re- sults. He now owns one hundred and eighty-two and one-half acres, and is engaged in general farming and stock raising, having a well improved place in every respect.
On October 23, 1895, Mr. Andrews was married to Bertha Maud Burch, a native of Nodaway county, born in Atchison township, March 12, 1877, the daughter of Newton Dennis and Susan (Miller) Burch, the father a native of Indiana and the mother of Missouri. Mr. Burch came to Nodaway county, Missouri, when a young man and moved on the farm where E. J. Andrews now lives, and he now lives near Hopkins, his wife having died on October 27, 1882, leaving one child, Bertha Maud, now Mrs. Andrews. Mr. Burch's second wife was Belle Clay, who has borne him two children, both living. To Mr. and Mrs. Andrews three children have been born, Edna B., Everett Lowell and George Dennis.
Mr. Andrews is a Democrat, although his father is a Republican. He and his wife, like the rest of the Andrews family, are Methodists.
THOMAS Y. NEAL.
The gentleman whose name introduces this sketch is a progressive farmer near Clearmont, Nodaway county, and he was one of the Northland's patri- otic sons who donned the blue and fought the enemies of his country on many of the bloodiest battlefields of the South and during the period when
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secession threatened the disruption of the national union, and is therefore eminently deserving of a place in his country's history.
T. Y. Neal was born in Boone county, Kentucky, June 25. 1844, the son of James and Catherine (Bondurant) Neal, both natives of Boone county, Kentucky, the father born in 1809. The mother died there in 1848, and James Neal then married Hester Mckenzie and moved to Greene county, Indiana, in 1854. settling on a farm where he spent the rest of his life, dying in 1896 at the advanced age of eighty-seven years. He and his first wife were the parents of six children, of whom three are living. Mr. Neal was married a third time, lastly to Eliza Duke, by whom he became the father of three children, all living. James Neal was first a Whig in politics, later a Democrat, and he was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
T. Y. Neal spent his youth on the home farm and was educated in the common schools. He began farming in Indiana and has followed this line of endeavor all his life. He moved to Kansas and bought eighty acres, and in 1893 came to Nodaway county, Missouri, and in 1899 purchased the eighty-acre farm where he now lives. engaged in general farming and stock raising. In politics, he is a Republican and he and his family are members of the Christian church.
Mr. Neal was married on October 15, 1868, to Mary Shanklin, of Greene county, Indiana, a daughter of Nero and Margaret ( Beatty) Shanklin. The mother died in Kansas in 1875 and the father resides with Mr. and Mrs. Neal, to whom seven children have been born, named as follows: Artie, Ira. Carrie, Alvin, Etta, Nora and Lottie.
T. Y. Neal enlisted in Company H, Thirty-first Regiment Indiana Vol- unteer Infantry, September 5, 1861, and served very faithfully through the war, being honorably discharged on December 8. 1865. He was under fire seventy-five times, having taken part in the following battles, besides many skirmishes: Donelson. Shiloh, siege of Corinth. Murfreesboro, Chicka- mauga, Franklin, Nashville and those of the Atlanta campaign. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and takes much interest in the same.
WAYNE INGRAM.
Tireless energy and honesty of purpose are the chief characteristics of Wayne Ingram, one of the leading farmers in his community in Nodaway county, and such characteristics have brought him well merited success He was born in Platte county, Missouri, December 6, 1847, the son of Thomas
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and Sarah ( Moore) Ingram, the former born in Scott county, Virginia, and the mother in Ohio. After going to Kentucky they went to Ohio, thence to Indiana, and in an early day came to Platte county, Missouri, and from there moved to Nodaway county, in 1867 ; here Mr. Ingram died in 1868, his widow surviving until February 13, 1892. Their family consisted of eleven chil- dren, of whom five are now living. The father devoted most of his life to farming, although he was a carpenter by trade. In politics, he was a Demo- crat in early life and in later years a Republican after the war. His wife was a member of the Methodist church.
Wayne Ingram was reared on a farm and received a common school education. He came to Nodaway county in 1867 and has devoted his life to farming, now owning three hundred and sixty acres, on which he very successfully carries on general farming and stock raising, also feeds large numbers of livestock from year to year. He has an attractive dwelling, good outbuildings and everything about his place is modern and well kept. Politi- cally, he is a Democrat. He is liberal in religious views.
Mr. Ingram was married on March 30, 1882. to Lourenia Johnson, a native of Atchison township, this county, born on June 24, 1863. She is the daughter of Levi R. Johnson, a son of Ephraim Johnson, who are mentioned elsewhere in this work. Levi R. Johnson was born on February 14, 1832, in Lawrence county, Indiana. He was a farmer by occupation, and in pol- itics, a Republican, having served as justice of the peace for many years. He married Mary J. Minard, a native of Parke county, Indiana, born February 22, 1836. Twelve children were born to them, of whom nine are living at this writing. Mr. Johnson died January 6. 1904. Mrs. Johnson still sur- viving.
Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Ingram: Stella May is the wife of Albert Griffey and they have one son, Elmer ; Laura B. is the wife of Ora Wilson and they have one daughter, Marjorie; Hiram Preston is living at home.
ELMER E. CORKEN.
Mr. Corken is one of those characters whose integrity and personality must force them into a notoriety which their modesty never seeks, who com- mand the respect of their contemporaries and their posterity and leave the impress of their individuality upon the lives of those with whom they come in contact. As treasurer and manager of the Mineral Springs Sanitarium, at Burlington Junction, he has demonstrated business and executive ability of
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a high order and his career thus far has earned for him the respect and con- sideration of all who know him.
Elmer E. Corken was born in Nodaway township, this county, on February 9, 1875, and is a son of Samuel and Ellen Gertrude (Westfall) Corken. Samuel Corken was born in Ross county, Ohio, in 1837, the son of Thomas and Rebecca (Jones) Corken, the former a successful farmer of that county. In 1860 Samuel Corken came to Nodaway county, Missouri, being followed the following year by his father and by the other members of the family the next year. Samuel Corken traveled the entire distance by team, though two years later the family were permitted to come by railroad. Samuel drove a load of goods and a herd of Durham for his brother-in-law, these being the first Durham cattle in Nodaway county. Upon arriving here, Samuel Corken entered the employ of Col. John H. Davis, but the following year he and his father bought one hundred and eighty acres of land together, the place being now known as the Mineral Springs farm. Samuel was the youngest son and upon him devolved the active operation of the farm, of which, in a few years, he acquired the sole ownership, though his parents lived there until their deaths. Thomas Corken was a veteran of the war of 1812 and was a man of excellent qualities of character, enjoying universal esteem. Samuel Corken continued the operation of the farm with much success and eventually acquired a total of four hundred and sixty acres of land in the vicinity of Burlington Junction. He has made a specialty of thoroughbred Durham cattle, the progenitors of his herd being some of the cattle which he originally drove from Ohio to this state. Aside from this he has carried on general farming, meeting with splendid success in all his efforts. In 1881. becoming convinced of the medicinal qualities of certain springs of water located on his farm, he established a hotel for the accommodation of persons wishing to take advantage of the waters, and at the end of a year he sold the hotel to Doctor Black, since which time he has devoted his efforts to agriculture.
In 1861 Samuel Corken married Ellen Gertrude Westfall, a native of Ohio, who came with the Davis family to Nodaway county. To this union were born nine children, namely : James S .. Jessie, Thomas, Lydia, Robert, Elmer E., Henry (deceased). Nellie and Mabel.
Politically. Samuel Corken was aligned with the Republican party up to 1900, since which time he has assumed an independent attitude. Religiously, he and his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. During the Civil war Mr. Corken was a member of the State Militia.
Elmer E. Corken was reared on the home farm in Nodaway township and secured a good education in the public schools, supplementing this by
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taking a commercial course in the Tarkio College, from which he graduated in 1895. He then took up farming on the old homestead, which pursuit he followed until 1900, when, in partnership with C. K. Allen, he bought from Doctor Black the Mineral Springs Sanitarium. They were engaged together in its operation during the following four years and in 1904 the Mineral Springs Sanitarium Company was organized, of which the subject became the active manager. The officers of the present company are as follows : Presi- dent. Nick Sturm: vice-president, C. K. Allen ; secretary, C. J. Hand; treas- urer and manager, Elmer E. Corken. The sanitarium has been greatly im- proved and enlarged since the subject became connected with it and is now thoroughly up-to-date in its every appointment. Originally it had accommoda- tions for but sixteen guests, while now the average number of patients in at- tendance is from thirty to fifty. Most of the patients come from Missouri, Iowa, Illinois and the Dakotas, though they are here from all over the country. The location of the springs is healthful and pleasant. Twenty-seven acres of ground, with shady groves and grassy lawns, swings, croquet and grassy walks, and a small lake nearby for boating and fishing. Hundreds of patients have been treated here with the most beneficial results, all receiving the kind- est care and attention. The spring itself is of clear, cold, sparkling water, discharging about five thousand gallons per day, of an unvarying temperature of forty-eight degrees. A prominent firm of analytical chemists a few years ago said of these springs, "In combination of medical minerals your spring is one of the best in the state of Missouri," and its years of trial have only increased its popularity and patronage.
Elmer E. Corken is, like his father, independent in politics, preferring to vote always for the men he considers best qualified for the offices they seek. Fraternally he is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America and the lodge of Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Maryville. Religiously. he is identified with the Methodist Episcopal church. He has by pluck, en- ergy and enterprise, controlled by correct principles and founded upon strict integrity and honor, attained to a position meriting the respect and admiration of his fellow citizens, which they freely accord.
JAMES W. BLAGG.
One of the leading agriculturists of White Cloud township. Nodaway county, is James W. Blagg, who has spent his life in this locality where his family has been well known since the days of the first settlers. He was born in Grant township. Nodaway county, May 24, 1856, and he is the son of
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William and Cynthia A. (Moore) Blagg. They were natives of Tennessee. The father came to Nodaway county about 1850 and died in White Cloud township, on February 14, 1902; Mrs. Blagg died in Barnard, Missouri, about 1892. Ten children were born to them, of whom James W., of this review, was the oldest. These parents spared no pains in bringing up their children, for they were people who were always on the right side of every question regarding good citizenship.
James W. Blagg, of this review, was reared chiefly in Grant township and he was educated in the common schools. He applied himself in a very assiduous manner and when about twenty years old engaged in teaching in this county, making a splendid record. Aside from the time he was thus en- gaged he has devoted his life to farming and stock raising and has been very successful in both lines. He is the owner of one hundred and sixty acres, all of which is improved. He has a very neat and comfortable home and every- thing about his place indicates good taste and careful management.
Mr. Blagg was married in Maryville, on March 11, 1885. to Nancy C. Sharp, who was born in Washington township. December 12, 1859, and is the daughter of Isaac and Rebecca (Graves) Sharp, both natives of Tennes- see. They came with their parents to Nodaway county, Missouri, in an early day and here they were married and settled on a farm. Mr. Sharp died at Barnard and Mrs. Sharp in White Cloud township. Mr. and Mrs. Blagg are the parents of two children, namely; Eva M. is the wife of George Burris ; Everett J. Blagg.
Mr. and Mrs. Blagg are members of the Methodist Episcopal church South. Mr. Blagg is a man of many praiseworthy traits, scrupulously hon- est in all his dealings with his fellow men, generous and pleasant, advocating honesty in business, clean politics and wholesome living.
J. B. BROWN.
In view of the success that has attended the efforts of J. B. Brown as a tiller of the soil in Nodaway county and as a general business man, the youth of his community would make no mistake in emulating his methods of work, for his life has been directed along channels that ultimately lead to success and to the establishment of a reputation of which anyone should be pleased to contemplate.
Mr. Brown was born in Clinton, Tennessee, in 1844. He is the son of William and Melinda (Overton) Brown, the father born in Kentucky and
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the mother in Virginia, each representatives of excellent old Southern fam- ilies. While they were yet single they accompanied their parents, in a very early day, to the vicinity of Clinton, Tennessee. The country was yet heavily wooded and there Indians were still to be met with. There the parents of the subject met and married. William Brown devoted his life to farming and stock raising, also bought and sold large numbers of livestock for many years and was considered a good trader. He spent the remainder of his life in Tennessee and died there in 1861. He was first a Whig, later a Republican, and he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church. They were the parents of ten children, seven boys and three girls.
J. B. Brown was educated in the country schools and worked on the farm when a boy. When only eighteen years of age he gave vent to his patriotism by enlisting as a private in Company D, First Tennessee Light Artillery, in 1862, and with that company he remained until 1865, and although he was in many hard-fought battles and trying campaigns, always faithful in the discharge of his duty, he was never wounded or taken prisoner.
After returning from the army, Mr. Brown married in Tennessee, in 1866. M. E. Moore, and they soon afterwards began farming, remaining in that community until 1869. in which year they came to Nodaway county, Missouri, settling near Clearmont and they have since lived in this vicinity. being regarded as among the leading citizens of this part of the county.
Mr. Brown first bought land here about 1877: he was always a hard worker and a good manager and he has accumulated two hundred and eighty- five acres of as good land as the township can boast, which he has highly improved and placed under a high state of cultivation. It had but small im- provements when he first purchased it. Here he has carried on general farm- ing in a most successful manner. He keeps an excellent variety of road- horses, also draft horses, and does an extensive business buying and selling them. No better judge of a horse is to be found in the county.
Mr. Brown was one of the organizers of the Clearmont Bank, of which sound and thriving institution he has been vice-president nearly ever since it was organized, and has very ably discharged his duties as such.
Politically he is a Democrat, and a member of the Ancient Free and Ac- cepted Masons. the chapter, commandery, and the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine : also the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. and he takes considerable interest in all these fraternal orders. To Mr. and Mrs. Brown three children were born, Flora B., French P. and Myrtle M The mother of these children, who is remembered as a woman of splendid Christian attributes, was called to her rest on October 21. 1908. She was a member of the Christian church, of which the daughters are also members.
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JAMES M. VERT.
Nodaway county, Missouri, enjoys a high reputation because of the high order of her citizenship, and none of her citizens occupy a more enviable po- sition in the esteem of his fellows than the gentleman whose name appears at the head of this sketch. A residence here of many years has given his fel- lows a full opportunity to observe him in the lines of activity in which he has engaged and his present high standing is due solely to the honorable and up- right course he has pursued. As a leading citizen of his community he is eminently entitled to representation in a work of this character.
James M. Vert was born in the eastern part of Iowa on the 30th day of November, 1855. and is a son of Jacob D. and Delila J. (Madison) Vert. Both of these parents were born and reared in Indiana, where they subse- quently married. In 1851 the family removed to Washington county, Iowa, the long overland journey being made with teams, as this was prior to the advent of the "iron horse" in this section of the country. The father pre- empted eighty acres of wild land, for which he paid one dollar and a quarter an acre. He erected necessary farm buildings, and entered upon the im- provement and cultivation of his farm, to which he devoted his efforts until 1868, when he removed to Adair county, that state, where he remained until 1873, engaged in farming. In the year last mentioned the family came to Nodaway county, Missouri, locating in Nodaway township, where the parents spent the rest of their days, the mother dying there in 1906. and the father in February, 1909. They reared four children, three sons and a daughter. The oldest of these children, William, moved to Montana in 1895, and died there on January 29. 1902. John W. is a resident of Nodaway township. this county. as is Ella, the wife of V. A. Guthrie, whose sketch appears else- where in this work. Jacob D. Vert was nominally a Democrat and sup- ported his party in national elections, but in local affairs he was independent. voting for the men whom he considered best qualified for the offices they sought. He was a man of stanch integrity. his life being controlled and actuated by the highest motives, and he enjoyed in a marked degree the con- fidence of all who knew him.
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