Longley, Lyman A.

LONGLEY, BIGELOW, MARVIN, HOWARD, BARTLETT

Posted By: Volunteer Transcriber
Date: 9/14/2009 at 16:18:13

Longley, Lyman A.

No citizen of a past generation in the eastern part of Jasper County was held in higher esteem than the late Lyman A, Longley, of Rock Creek Township, whose life chapter has been closed and the seal set thereon by "the angel with the' backward look and folded wings of ashen gray," but his influence is still alive, tending to shape the course of local progress, for the forces for good which he assisted to set in motion here cannot easily be thwarted or diverted. He possessed a broad and liberal nature and gave of his time and means unstintingly to the advancement of all laudable enterprises, as well as to dispense with something of a lavish hand the necessities of the poor and unfortunate, in fact, in all that constituted correct living and good citizenship Mr. Longley was a splendid example. There was nothing small or narrow in his composition, but on the contrary he took broad and liberal views of men and affairs and stood "four square to all the world," a fine example of symmetrically developed manhood.

Mr. Longley was born in Chester Township, Poweshiek County, Iowa, July 6, 1861, enjoying the distinction of being the first boy born in that Township, consequently he grew up amid typical pioneer conditions and was, so to speak, a link between the primitive past and the opulent present, as affected the state of Iowa. He was the son of Amos S. and Cordelia (Bigelow) Longley, both born at Norridgewock, Somerset County, Maine, where they grew up, and as a young man the father of the subject turned his attention to farming, but when the gold excitement, anent the discovery of the eldorado in California pervaded the world, he joined the famous band of "forty-niners" and made the long journey thither, being very successful as a prospector there, and after remaining there a few years returned to the East. However, he liked the West so well that he returned after marrying, he and his wife selecting for their future home Poweshiek County, Iowa, in 1858. Later he moved to the town of Grinnell, where he soon afterwards died. There were but two children in his family. Lyman A., of this review, and Mrs. Mattie J. Marvin, of Grinnell.

Lyman A. Longley enjoyed the advantages of a liberal education, having attended the common schools in Grinnell and a business college in Davenport. He then turned his attention to farming, which he continued six years in Jasper County, then selling his stock, returned to Grinnell where he engaged as a meat cutter in a butcher shop, and while there he studied for the civil service examination, looking to the examination for the United States mail service and for ten years he was in the railway mail service on the Chicago. Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, also the Iowa Central His work in this connection was very satisfactory to the department. In 1897 the family returned to their farm in Rock Creek Township, Jasper County. This farm originally consisted of one hundred and sixty acres, but the place now consists of three hundred and twenty acres of as valuable land as the County can boast. Mr. Longley was a man of thrift and industry and he was very successful as a farmer and stock raiser, kept his place under the most modern improvements and on it he erected a large modern residence and many good barns and out-buildings, the equipment about the place being modern and to serve every need. He made a specialty of feeding cattle on an extensive scale, shipping to market about four car loads annually. For years he was one of the leading stockmen of the County.

Mr. Longley was a staunch Republican, and while he took the interest of a fair-minded citizen in everything that pertained to the general good of the Township and County honored by his residence, he was never an aspirant for positions of public trust. He was a "standpatter," advocating the principles promulgated by the founders of the party. He belonged to the Modern Woodmen camp, and he and all his family were members of the Congregational Church.

On September 14, 1882, Mr. Longley was united in marriage with Alice L. Howard, who was born in Poweshiek County, Iowa, April 22, 1859, the daughter of Benoni and Elizabeth Ann (Bartlett) Howard, a well known and highly respected pioneer family of that County, her father having come to that place in 1854, and there he assisted in building the first houses in the County. His death occurred in 1904.

Mr. and Mrs. Longley were the parents of the following children: Ethel Cordelia, born October 8, 1883; Ralph Lyman, born August 15, 1892. The latter was attending high school at Grinnell when his father's death occurred on March 29, 1909, consequently after finishing high school he took charge of the farm, then being only sixteen years of age, and he performed the task most admirably with the assistance of his mother, who is a woman of many strong characteristics, good judgment and excellent foresight, and they are carrying on the work inaugurated by Mr. Longley in a most successful manner, keeping the place well tilled and well improved, in fact, it is only fair to say that Mrs. Longley's counsel and encouragement was responsible in no small degree for her husband's large success.

After his death one who best knew Mr. Longley had this to say of him, which voiced the sentiments expressed by his wide circle of personal friends: "Lyman A. Longley was a good farmer, a good husband and indulgent father, and in the best sense of the term, a good citizen, and when one has said that, there is little more that can be added. While engaged as a railway postal clerk, he was highly efficient, passing one of the best civil service examinations for this position that it is possible to pass. It was during these years of service that he probably contracted the disease that eventually resulted in his death. He as an active and worthy member of the Congregational Church at Grinnell and took a lively interest in the best things of life up to the time of his death. He was a man of refinement and held the highest respect of his fellow men." Past and Present of Jasper County Iowa B. F. Bowden & Company, Indianapolis, IN, 1912 Page 808