John Smith Willard

WILLARD, ANDERSON

Posted By: Carrie Robertson (email)
Date: 10/18/2016 at 17:02:15

Thursday October 12, 1922 The Marion Weekly Sentinel
John Smith Willard was born May 25, 1847, in Louisburg, New York, on the St. Lawrence river. he came to Iowa with his father in 1859 and settled on a farm near Lost Nation, Iowa. When the Civil War broke out he enlisted in the Twentieth Iowa Cavalry at the age of 16 years, the place of enlistment being Maquoketa. Soon after his enlistment he received wounds in the hand and back during the battle of Holly Springs, which resulted in four amputations of his arm, which made him a great sufferer thruout [sic] his life.
After receiving his honorable discharge from the service of his country he spent four years attending Cornell college, Mt. Vernon, and then entered into the teaching profession.
He was married January 12, 1873, and to this union were born two daughters Miss Alice Willard, Detroit, Mich., and Miss Elsie Willard, Ardmore, S.D. They also reared a niece, Mrs. Gertrude Anderson, wife of Judge F.L. Anderson, who was cared for as a daughter. During the period from 1884, until 1888 Mr. Willard was county superintendent of schools. Soon after entering this office he suffered th loss of hearing, and this was a great source of annoyance to him, making it almost impossible to carry on the work of his office. After serving four years he gave up this vocation and entered into the horse business, which he carried to a success.
In the early nineties Mr. Willard was appointed postmaster of Marion and acted as such for several years. Mr. Willard during his residence here held an office on the School board and for the greater part of his years in this office, was president. Failing health necessitated a removal and the Willard home was moved to the west twelve years ago, where they settled on a ranch in South Dakota, near the Wyoming line. For the past three or four years Mr. Willard has been an invalid and the greater part of this time has been spent in a hospital at Hot Springs, S.D. He became home-sick and Mrs. Willard and his daughter Elsie made a home for him in Ardmore, where Miss Willard is a teacher in the primary department of that city's schools.
Mr. Willard died at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, October 1. After a short service held at the home Monday evening the flag-draped casket was carried by an escort of World war veterans to the station, where it was placed on board the train for its return to Marion, for interment. The citizens of Ardmore showed their respect for one of the few left of the boys of '61 by placing all flags at half mast during the day, and in respect for their teacher, Miss Willard, the children of the schools were lined on both sides of the street thru which the procession would pass.
Funeral services in Marion were conducted by Rev. George T. Hanna, from the Pingrey chapel, Wednesday afternoon at 4:00. An escort of World war veterans led the procession to Oak Shade cemetery, where the Robert Mitchell Post, G.A.R., was in charge of the service. The firing squad of the Marion Post, American Legion, fired the farewell salute and taps were sounded.
The beautiful flowers sent, and from the many states they represented, spoke well of the esteem in which Mr. Willard was held