WILL A. GARDNER

GARDNER

Posted By: Nancee(McMurtrey)Seifert (email)
Date: 3/1/2002 at 18:15:41

Decatur County Journal
Thursday, December 9, l9l5

WILL A. GARDNER, Recorder of Decatur County,
died last Saturday morning
about nine o'clock at the THOMAS JACKSON
farm, four miles east of Leon,
a stroke of apoplexy ending his life almost
instantly.

MR. GARDNER had accompanied County Engineer
MALLETTE, and GEO. HINDS to
the country, partly for the pleasure of the
trip and partly to lend
assistance in a survey for a road
improvement. At various times in the
past he had made similar trips with the
engineer and was quite familiar
with the work.

About nine o'clock the party arrived at the
point of operations. They
had left the car and walked about
three-fourths of a mile to the place
where they were to start work. MR. GARDNER
inquired what first to do to
make himself useful. The engineer gave him
some instructions and the
two men started in opposite directions in the
pasture where they had set
up the surveying instruments.

MR. MALLETTE had taken but a few steps when
he heard MR. GARDNER fall.
Turning and running quickly to him he
realized at once that something
serious had happened. He started MR. HINDS
on a run to the JACKSON farm
house to telephone for physicians and turned
his personal attention to
the stricken man, but aside from a fleeting,
spasmodic flutter there was
no evidence of life. Almost instantly these
first indications ceased
and a good man had passed into the Great
Beyond without a cry or a
spoken word. It is believed that death was
entirely painless.

MR. HINDS telephoned to LESTER GARDNER, the
dead man's son, that his
father was very ill, and to come with a
physician at once. LESTER, who
is Deputy Recorder, was alone at the office
and patrons waiting so he
ran across the street and notified his
brother, EARL, of the Leon
Clothing Co., who secured Dr. H.R. Layton.
They were delayed slightly
in starting so that it was an hour or more
before they reached the
scene. Medical men united, however, in the
opinion that no help could
have been given the stricken man even had a
skilled physician been on
the ground at the time.

It was a sad and bitter experience for EARL
to find that his father was
beyond human aid but he rallied quickly and
gave telephonic instructions
for notifying other members of the family as
gently as possible.

Dr. Layton, who is also County Coroner,
removed the body at once to the
JACKSON home. Shortly afterward, Undertaker
Stewart took charge and
conveyed the remains to the family home in
Leon, where sympathizing
friends had as far as possible prepared the
bereaved wife and other
members of the family to meet the sorrow.
Their grief was heart rending
in the extreme but all bore up bravely.

About three years ago, MR. GARDNER had a
week's illness which was
brought about by acute indigestion. Since
then he had suffered
temporarily from the same trouble and since
Thanksgiving had undergone
considerable pain from a return of the
ailment, having lost only a day
and a half from his office, however. On
Saturday morning he went to his
office in the court house as usual and in
answer to inquiries both there
and at home stated that he was feeling much
better and in fact seemed to
think he was entirely well. About 8:30
Engineer MALLETTE asked him if
he felt like driving to the country with him
and MR. GARDNER gladly
accepted the opportunity to get the ride and
the fresh air, even
refusing to wear an overcoat which was
offered him. With the exception
noted above he had always been in excellent
health and the news of his
sudden death was hard to believe.

All day Saturday and Sunday friends in an
unending stream called at the
home to pay their last repsects and if there
was any kindness or
thoughtful attention ommitted, it was so
slight as to be unnoticeable.

The funeral was held at the Christian Church,
Monday afternoon at
two-thirty o'clock and the large edifice was
filled to overflowing.
Many were unable to gain admittance and stood
in the church yard in the
chilly wind till the close of the services.
All the county officers and
the stores and other business places were
closed during the funeral
hours. The high school, in which the two
younger sons are students, was
dismissed so that the teachers and classmates
could be present. The
Eastern Star Order of which MRS. GARDNER is a
member, attended the
services in a body.

The floral tributes were numerous and
beautiful.

The services at the church in charge of Rev.
Henry Esch, were very
touching. Rev. A.B. Cornell of Van Wert, who
had been a warm friend of
the deceased from his early boyhood, and who
had officiated at his
wedding twenty-six years ago, delivered as
earnest and heartfelt prayer,
intensified in depth of feeling by his own
recent bereavement.
A male quartette rendered two beautiful
selections and by special
request a mixed quartette tenderly sang "Lead
Me Gently Home, Father,"
a selection which was an especial favorite of
MR. GARDNER's and one in
which his own rich voice had been heard many
times on similar occasions.

Following the services the friends were given
an opportunity to view all
that was mortal of one who in life had been a
friend to all and an enemy
to none. There was no change of features and
to those who gazed for the
last time upon his face, serene, untroubled
and full of peace, it seemed
that he might respond to a spoken word, a
whispered caress or a gentle
touch of the hand, so lightly had the hand of
death been laid upon his
brow.

Interment was in the Leon Cemetery near the
plot where lies his father
and mother and the dearly beloved daughter,
LOUISE, who preceded him
five years ago.

WILL GARDNER was an exceptional man in many
ways. Quiet, cool and
always self possessed, he pursued his even
way in life, taking his joys
and sorrows as they came. To meet him was to
find a new friend. No
night was too dark, no storm too severe, no
hardship too great that he
would not overcome it to respond to the call
of distress. His quiet
exterior, his words, were but masks that hid
the great heart which beat
in sympathy with sorrow and suffering
wherever found, and concealed his
own personal disappointments and crumbled
hopes. Had it been within the
bounds of human possiblity for him to have
shouldered all the troubles
in the world he would have bowed his head to
the mighty load with
uncomplaining smiles. To his family he was
deeply attached. The death
of LOUISE, the oldest daughter, five years
ago, was to him an almost
overwhelming sorrow but he put aside his
personal grief in order that
others dependent upon him might have more
comfort and consideration. He
was a kind and loving husband and an
affectionate indulgent father. To
his sons and daughters he was an elder
brother and a pal to whom they
could all take their big and little troubles
with full assurance that
"Dad" would make it right some way. He was
innocent of guile and being
young of heart remained young in form and
feature so that a stranger
seeing him in company with his sons and
daughter might have taken him
for the big brother of the family.

His life was a succession of sacrifices for
those he loved and the only
reward he hoped for was that he might be
permitted long enough life and
sufficient accumulation to leave them
comfortable.

He had never become a member of any church
but possessed a deep and
respectful reverence for things religious. A
firm believer in the
promises of the lowly Nazarene, he lived and
died by the Golden Rule,
and who shall say that in the final summing
up he shall not be first
among those who are called to sit at the
right hand of the Master.
Peace to his ashes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OBITUARY

WILLIAM A. GARDNER, son of JOHN W. and MARY
GARDNER, was born on the
home farm near Leon, Iowa, August ll, l862,
and departed this life
December 4, l9l5, aged 53 years, four months
and 23 days.

On January 3l, l889, he was married at
Humeston, Iowa, to MISS ORRA
PITMAN, and to this union were born six
children, five of whom, with
their mother, survive him. In early manhood
the deceased was a clerk
for and later a partner with his brother,
FRANK GARDNER, in the grocery
business in this city. Later he farmed the
GARDNER home place for
several years, returning to town in l908 and
again taking up mercantile
life.

In November, l9l2, he was elected Recorder of
Decatur County and was
serving his second term at the time of his
death.

Besides the sorrowing wife and children, he
leaves one sister, MRS. ANNA
CURRY, of this city, one brother, GEORGE O.
GARDNER, of Humeston, a
little granddaughter, MILA, to whom he was
devotedly attached, and a
large number of other relatives and friends
who sincerely mourn his
passing.

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Copied by Nancee(McMurtrey)Seifert
March l, 2002