William Reader Lee 1860-1955

LEE, HODGE, JOHNSON, SHAFFER, NOEL, POWELL

Posted By: Georgea Clinton (email)
Date: 5/10/2011 at 13:57:56

August 15, 1955 - Carroll Daily Times - W.R. Lee, 94, Carroll's oldest professional man, died at 10:17 Saturday night at St Anthony Hospital, where he had been a patient since suffering a heat stroke a week earlier. Mr Lee failed to regain consciousness throughout his illness. A retired attorney, he had lived in Carroll since opening his law offices here fifty years ago. he had been in retirement for a long time.

Funeral services will be at 4 p.m.Tuesday at the Huffman Funeral home, which is Mr Lee's former residence. The Rev. C.B. Bradshaw Episcopalian vicar, will officiate. Burial will be in the Carroll City cemetery. The body is resting at the funeral home until the time of the rites.

Mr Lee's only survivor is his wife, the former Aimee Hodge. On Dec. 26, 1886, Mr. Lee was married to Margaret Johnson, a graduate in music from Cornell college, Mt Vernon, of which college Mr Lee was an alumnus. She died in Dec 1931. Mr. Lee was married to Aimee Hodge Jan 18, 1934 in Carroll.

Besides his first wife, Mr. Lee was preceded in death by two sisters, Mrs John (Mina) Shaffer of Casey and Mrs. Walter (Rebecca) Noel of Rockwell City.

William Reader Lee, son of Ruben M and Juliana Powell Lee, was born on a farm near Adel in Dallas county, Iowa Nov 11, 1860. He attended rural school which was taught by his cousin. Mr. Lee graduated from Adel High School and Cornell College. After completing his college course in 1883, he farmed in Dallas county for a year. In 1884 and '85 Mr Lee studied law in the offices of a judge at DeWitt. He was admitted to the Iowa bar in 1885. From 1885 to 1889 Mr Lee was a partner in a law firm at DeWitt. during the next year he practiced law in Sioux City. he returned to DeWitt in 1890. In 1891 Mr Lee came to Carroll from DeWitt and opened law offices here. Subsequently, he was joined by the late E.A. Robb who had studied law in the same office with Mr Lee at DeWitt. The two attorneys formed the partnership of Lee and Robb which continued for many years. In 1936, the late Ross E Sifford joined the firm, which became known as Lee, Robb, & Sifford.

Mr Lee was a member of the Episcopal Church. He was a life member of the Masonic Lodge at DeWitt and a member of Signet Chapter No 1, Order of the Eastern Star of Carroll.

In his earlier days, Mr Lee had been active in Carroll's civic and cultural life. He had helped orgainze the Carroll county Chapter of the American Red Cross, which he served as the first president. He had been a member of the Carroll Public Library board for 12 years. Mr Lee had assisted the late Dr G.L. Sherman in founding the Carroll Country Club. He had been a member of its board of directors until recent years. He had also been actively in politics and had served as chairman of the Carroll county Republican Central committee.

For the last 30 years, he had wintered at St Petersburg, Florida. He was a member of the St Petersburg Lawn Bowling club which is the largest lawn bowling club in the United States.