Jacob Hirth
Jacob Hirth makes his home on a fine farm of one hundred and
seventy-eight acres on section 29, Lansing township-a property
which his father purchased in pioneer times and upon which he
himself has resided since his childhood. He is one of the
earliest settlers in this section, which he has seen develop from
a frontier wilderness, and in all of the work of upbuilding he
has borne an active and useful part, his labors constituting
elements in general agricultural progress. Germany numbers him
among her native sons, his birth having occurred in Baden, on the
3d of October, 1837. He is a son of John Adam and Margaret
(Kircher) Hirth, also natives of Germany, where the mother passed
away March 6, 1853. In the same year the father and children
crossed the Atlantic to America and, after arriving in this
country, came west to Iowa,
settling in Dubuque, and thence coming to Allamakee county. Here
John Adam Hirth purchased one hundred and sixty acres of
unimproved land and, with characteristic energy set himself to
cultivate and develop it. He built a log cabin upon his holdings
and for many years made his home therein, eventually erecting the
present frame farm house. The old log cabin, however, still
stands - a reminder of the hardships and inconveniences of
pioneer times. The father was reared in the Protestant religion
in Germany and after coming to America became a member of the
Congregational church. He was a democrat in his political beliefs
and actively interested in the growth of the community he had
done so much to upbuild. He died upon his farm in Lansing
township in 1896, having reached the advanced age of ninety-one
years. He and his wife became the parents of four children, only
one of whom, the subject of this review, survives, Magdalena, who
became the wife of Conrad Steibert, has passed away. She and her
husband lived for many years in
LaFayette township. George was drowned in the Mississippi river
when he was twenty-one years of age. Adam died on the ocean while
on the journey to the United States. He was at that time two
years of age.
In the public schools of Germany, Jacob Hirth acquired his
education and after laying aside his books accompanied his father
to America and after the family settled in Allamakee county
assisted with the work of the farm until after the death of his
father, when he assumed ownership and control. Since that time he
has steadily carried forward the work of improvement and the
results of his many years of care and labor are evident in the
neat and attractive appearance of the place. He has increased his
holdings to one hundred
and seventy-eight acres and upon this carries on general farming,
harvesting excellent crops and engaging to some extent in
stock-raising. Mr. Hirth has been twice married. In 1869 he
wedded Miss Katie Leppert,
by whom he had two children: Johannah, the wife of George Wendel,
of Lansing township, who became the mother of five children; and
Magdalena, the deceased wife of John Decker, by whom she had one
daughter. Mr. Hirth’s first wife passed away in 1894
and three years later he married her sister, Josephine Leppert,
by whom he has five children; John J., who resides in North
Dakota; Clara Emma, the wife of George Wendel, of Cerro Gordo
county, Iowa; Charles E., who married Emma Decker; and Roy Andrew
and William, George, who live at home. Mrs. Hirth is a devout
member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Hirth is a democrat
in his political beliefs and is interested in the growth and
welfare of this section of the state, although he never seeks
public office. He is numbered among the real pioneers of the
county, having come
to Lansing township when there were only a few scattered
settlements and when the Indians were still numerous on the
prairies, wild game abounded in the forest and pioneer conditions
were everywhere evident, there being no schools and, indeed, no
need for educational institutions. He has watched the evolution
which has transformed this wilderness into a populous, wealthy
and growing community and has been to a great extent identified
therewith.
-source: Past & Present of Allamakee County; by
Ellery M. Hancock; S. J. Clarke Pub. Co.; 1913; pg 114-115.
-transcribed by Diana Diedrich (cousin of Katharina & Josephine
Leppert)
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