Carter, Issac G. (1830-1900)

CARTER

Posted By: Joyce Hickman (email)
Date: 11/4/2008 at 16:27:59

Isaac G. Carter
Feb 20, 1830 - Oct 27, 1900

(From the 1883 History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, by J. H. Keatley, p.241, Valley Twp.)
I. G. Carter, farming, P. O. Hancock, was born near Dresden, Ohio, February 20, 1831; moved from Ohio to Chicago in 1853, and lived there five years; from there to McDonough County, Ill., and then to Jasper County, iowa; thence to Columbus, Neb., where he lived for one year, and then moved to Valley Township, in 1872. Mr. Carter served three years in the war, going out with Company C, Seventy-eighth Regiment of Illinois, staying with his company three months, when it was all captured except Mr. Carter and on other man, who escaped. Mr. Carter was then transferred to the Engineers' Corps; was wounded, in the fall of 1863, at Carter's Creek, Tenn., by a bridge timber; he was then transferred to the Invalid Corps at Louisville, Ky. He was mustered out at Clinton, Iowa, in July, 1865, having been the the battles of Fort Donelson, Stone River, Lookout Mountain, Franklin, Tenn., and the battle of the Wilderness. Before going into the army, he had followed his trade of carpentering, but on account of the injury received at Carter's Creek, Tenn., he had to give up carpenter work, and has since followed farming, doing his first farming in Jasper County, Iowa. He now has a farm of 120 acres, adjoining the town of Hancock, on which he has lived since 1872; he does general farming, but pays most of his atteniotn to corn. He is the son of Albin and Nancy (Clark) Carter, natives of Ohio; he was one of the old settlers of Ohio, and died in 1842; she died in 1842. Mr. Carter was married, November 13, 1851, to Miss Lucinda Dowell, born near Dresden, Ohio, October 16, 1835, daughter of George and Grace (Helms) Dowell, he born in Virginia, died May 14, 1868, she, born in Pennsylvania, died April 25, 1874. Mr. and Mrs. Carter have one son in oregon, general agent of the Retailers' Union; their oldest daughter married George Payne, and lives in Harrison County, Iowa; one son is a drayman in Hancock; the youngest son and two daughters are at home; the children are Harrison A., Charles E., George W., Retta, Eva M., Ida M., Jennie, Howard R., Florence M. and Hugh E.; two of the children are deceased. Mr. Carter has always taken an interest in political affairs; he was County Treasurer of McDonough County, Ill., for two years; Trustee for two years in Jasper County, Ioaw, and has held various other county and township offices. He is a Methodist and a Republican.

(From from the 1891 Biographical History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, p.692)
ISAAC G. CARTER, of Hancock, Valley Township, is one of our old soldiers who served his country in her time of need, and after her victory was secured returned to his home and resumed the peaceful pursuit of agriculture in Valley Township. Mr. Carter is from an old American family, who were among the early settlers of Virginia. His grandfather was born in Virginia, and moved to Ohio, settling in Muskingum County, as a pioneer, and became a successful farmer, owning 200 acres of land. He lived to the great age of eighty-two years, and died on his old homestead in Ohio. He was the father of eight children: Ezekiel, Marcus, John, Joseph, Matilda, Hulda, Jane and Alvin. The youngest son, Alvin, was the father of Isaac C., our subject. He was born in Muskingum County, Ohio, and married Nancy Clark, of the same county. To them were born six children: Isaac G., Henry B., Washington, William, Hugh and Mary A. Mr. Carter died very suddenly at the early age of thirty years from exposure. His wife died within two weeks from exposure in taking care of the stock on the farm.

Isaac, their oldest son, and the subject of this sketch, was born February 20, 1830, and was but twelve years of age when be was left an orphan, and the little family of six orphan children were scattered. Isaac was brought up by William Evans, a wealthy Irishman, who treated him kindly. He received a common-school education, and at eighteen years of age he began to learn the carpenter's trade, serving a four-years apprenticeship, the old-fashioned plan of thoroughly learning a trade, and followed his trade until after the close of the war.

He married Lucinda Dowell, daughter of George and Grace (Helms) Dowell. Mr. Dowell, an American of German descent, was a farmer of Muskingum County, Ohio, and the father of thirteen children: Mary, Harrison, Isabel, Amanda, George, Malinda, Lucinda, LaFayette, George W., Thomas, Henrietta, Mahala, and an infant who died unnamed. Mr. Dowell was born in Virginia. His father, George Dowell, moved to Muskingum County, Ohio. John Dowell, an uncle of Mrs. Carter, was a soldier in the war of the Revolution. All her uncles were large men, weighing over 200 pounds.

After marriage Mr. Carter settled in Dresden, Ohio, for one year, and in 1853 went to Chicago with his family, where he followed his trade and became a contractor and builder. In 1859 he moved to McDonough County, Illinois, where he continued his business of contracting and building. Here he enlisted August 12, 1862, when Abraham Lincoln made his first call for 300,000 men to defend the Union. Joining Company C, Seventy-eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry he went immediately to the front with his regiment, and was soon promoted Commissary Sergeant of his company. After three months he was transferred to the Engineers' Corps, Company A, Second Regiment, and worked at bridge building. His principal service was in Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky and Georgia. While with the Seventy-eighth Illinois, he was in the battle of Munfordville, Kentucky, and the whole regiment was captured except Mr. Carter and one boy. The Ninety-first Illinois and Seventy-sixth Indiana were captured at the same time, by the famous Confederate raider, John Morgan. Mr. Carter and the boy returned to the Union line. His regiment was paroled and exchanged. While connected with the Engineer Corps he was in the battles of Murfreesboro, Franklin, Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain and Nashville, all in Tennessee. In the fall of 1863 he was injured by a falling bridge timber, and was in the hospital for nine months, part of which time he was Commissary Sergeant of the hospital at Louisville, Kentucky; and then was assigned to act as Commissary Sergeant by the Provost-Marshal at Lebanon, Kentucky, and remained there until the close of the war. He was sent to Clinton, Iowa, with supplies, and was mustered out and honorably discharged July 7, 1865, at Clinton, Iowa, having served his country during three years of the great civil war. The following is endorsed on Mr. Carter's discharge paper:

HEADQUARTERS Co. B, 23D V. R. C.

The bearer, Isaac G. Carter, was formerly a private of the Seventy-eighth Illinois Infantry, and afterward transferred to the Veteran Reserve Corps, U. S. A., on account of disability incurred in the discharge of his duties. Since his connection with this company he has acted as Commissary Sergeant, and has proved himself in every way a good and faithful soldier, and a sober, reliable and intelligent man. Should he ever have occasion to use this endorsement I hope his application may be favorably considered.

J. W. BFEBEE,

1st Lieut. Commanding Co. B, 23d V. R. C.

After the war, like most of the surviving soldiers, Mr. Carter came to the West and settled in Iowa, which was then a new State. He lived on a farm in Jasper County for four years, and then went to Platte County, Nebraska, where he lived a year, and in 1872 came to Pottawattamie County, Iowa, and settled in Valley Township, where he still resides, an honored citizen. Mr. Carter owns a fine farm of 120 acres, which he has nicely improved. Both himself and Mrs. Carter are life-long devout members of the Methodist Church, and Mr. Carter has always taken an active interest in his church, has filled all its local offices, and has held them most of the time since the war. He is now class-leader, trustee, steward and Sunday-school superintendent. He enjoys the respect of his fellow-citizens in a marked degree. Has held the offices of Justice of the Peace and Constable, filling one or the other for the past seventeen years. He is Chaplain of William Layton Post, No. 358, Oakland, Iowa; also Chaplain of the Anti-Horse-Thief Society at Hancock, Iowa. Mr. Carter has taken an active interest in the cause of education and the schools in his community, having been School Director. Two of his daughters have been teachers--Jennie and Florence. Mr. Carter is a man of honorable and upright character, whose word is taken for its full meaning. As a soldier and a citizen he has served his country, in war and in peace, by faithfully doing his duty to his country and his community. He is a man of strictly temperate habits and correct moral principles, and has striven to instill right principles in his family. His record as a soldier will descend to his children for generations, and as one who fought for the preservation of his country. The family descended on both sides from good, old American pioneer stock, than which there is no better.

Mr. and Mrs. Carter are the parents of ten children, seven of whom lived. Harry A., Charles, deceased; George W., Henrietta, Eva, Ida, deceased; Jennie, Howard, deceased; Flora and Hugh. Harry A., now an engineer at Hancock, married Miss Hale, and his children are Arthur, Charles, Blanche, Amy and Ruby M.; Henrietta married George Payne, now deceased, and has one child, Rollo; George, now on a cattle ranch at North Canyonville, Oregon, married Winnie Pickett, and has four children: Ida, Irmie, Hugh and Pattis; and Eva married William Tibbetts, a farmer of Hardin County, Iowa, and has one child, Minnie.