Will Cundill, b. 27 Sep 1855

DIXON, PINDAR, JOINER, MILLER, CASSIN

Posted By: Donna Moldt Walker (email)
Date: 2/21/2004 at 11:28:14

Will Cundill, one of the leading photographers of Jackson County, is one of the most successful members of his profession in Iowa. He has for several years had a studio in Maquoketa, which is well-appointed and fitted up with all modern appliances. He is a native-born citizen of this State, the town of Welton, Clinton County, being his place of birth, and Sept. 27, 1855, the date thereof. He is of English descent, his father, William Cundill, having been born in the county of Kent, England, July 7, 1816. His father, the Rev. John Cundill, was born in Lincolnshire, and was reared and married there, his wife, whose maiden name was Sarah Dixon, being a native of Nottinghamshire. She died in 1818, leaving as their only child the father of our subject. The grandfather was married a second time, and had two children, John and Francis, both of whom came to America. John settled in Scott County, this State, and died there. Francis located in Canada, and was there when last heard from. The father died in Yorkshire in 1825.

The father of our subject was thus early left an orphan, under the care of his step-mother. When eleven years old he was apprenticed to a tailor in Hull, Yorkshire. In 1850 he resolved to seek his fortune in America, and, setting sail from England in May, accompanied by his young wife, he landed in New York after a voyage of six weeks. He then made his way to Davenport, Iowa, traveling by the way of the Hudson River to Albany, thence by railway to Buffalo, from there by the lakes to Chicago, and thence by canal to LaSalle, where he hired a team to convey him and his wife to Rock Island, there being no railroads across the State of Illinois. He was with a colony that had come West to secure cheap land and build up homes, and the party pushed on to Welton, in Clinton County, this State. There the colony purchased 2,000 acres of land at Government price, paying for it in land warrants, reserving forty acres for a village, which they named Welton, and divided the rest among the individuals composing the party, Mr. Cundill thus securing forty acres of land and five lots in the village. He there built a house and opened a hotel, and, being very poor at the time, he had to borrow a stove for cooking and heating purposes. He was very popular in his capacity as mine host, and his hotel became well known by the traveling public, and, although the house was small, yet he managed to accommodate many travelers and to provide them with good cheer. In 1855 Mr. Cundill came to Maquoketa, and, buying a team, engaged in the freighting business between this point and the river towns, and, there being no railways in those days to compete with him, he found it quite a profitable employment. A few years later he resumed his trade, opened a shop in this city to do custom tailor work, and has been engaged in that business ever since, and has built up a comfortable property. He was married, in 1843, to Miss Mary Pindar, a native of Hull, Yorkshire, England, and a daughter of George Pindar. Of their pleasant wedded life four children have been born, the United States being the birthplace of them all. The following is recorded of them: Charlotte married O.W. Joiner; John died at the age of two and one-half years; Will is our subject; and Francis died in Maquoketa, at the age of twenty-one years. Mr. Cundill is in every respect a man of unblemished character, whom to know is to esteem.

The subject of this sketch, Will Cundill, was reared and educated in Maquoketa, having been a mere infant when his parents removed to this city from his birthplace. When he was in his fourteenth year he commenced to work in a photograph gallery, and was employed there the ensuing two years, and thus at that early age gained an intelligent knowledge of the art, which he chose to adopt as his calling. At the end of that time, anxious to better his education, he attended school and finished the course of study pursued in the schools of Maquoketa. Our subject then turned his education to account by engaging in school teaching, and was successfully employed in Clinton and Jackson counties. In 1880 he established himself in the calling that he had learned in his youth, opening a studio in this city. Since that time he has built up an extensive business, and is the popular photographer of Maquoketa. In 1882 he erected his present commodious building, on the corner of Main and Pleasant streets; it is built of brick, 36x70 feet in dimensions, and two stories in height. In this he has a large studio, tastily fitted up, and furnished with all the best instruments used in photography. His work is of a superior order, and he is acknowledged to be an artist of rare merit.

Mr. Cundill has been twice married. His first marriage was in April, 1883, to Miss Kate Miller, a native of Pennsylvania, and a daughter of John P. Miller, of Tipton, Iowa. Her death occurred in 1884, after a brief but happy wedded life. Mr. Cundill's marriage to his present estimable wife took place Feb. 23, 1886. Her maiden name was Ella Cassin, and she was a native of Jackson County, and a daughter of Thomas W. and Elizabeth Cassin, natives of Pennsylvania. One son has blessed the union of our subject and his wife, whom they have named Frank.

Mr. Cundill is a young man of exceptional habits, of generous feelings and high principles, possessing in an eminent degree those qualities of mind and heart that make his presence welcome in all social circles. He is a member of the Photographers Society of America, and belongs to Peerless Lodge No. 60, K. of P.

("Portrait and Biographical Album of Jackson County, Iowa", originally published in 1889, by the Chapman Brothers, of Chicago, Illinois)