Joseph Warren Maxwell (1834-1908)

MAXWELL, PIFER

Posted By: Dorian Myhre (email)
Date: 3/5/2017 at 23:49:15

From Nevada Representative May 8, 1908

OBITUARY

J. W. MAXWELL.

The funeral of the late J. W. Maxwell was conducted Tuesday from his late home in Maxwell and was very largely attended. The regrets over the tragic death of a most prominent and useful citizen are universal. Concerning the manner of his death not much more information has come out. He had gone to Des Moines on the day of Dolliver's speech, Tuesday, and had remained there until the time of his accident, on Friday evening. It was a mistake that Messrs. Douglas of Maxwell and Fish of Collins had accompanied him to Des Moines. They were in Des Moines for the day on business, and their presence in the hotel at the time of his fall was accidental. Being there, it was their privilege to render to him such service as was possible.

Mr. Maxwell will always be best remembered in the county as in part of the firm of Baldwin & Maxwell; and people who were familiar with the operationsof that firm confirm the general belief that it did for a considerable number of years a volume of business such as has never been approached by any other business concern in the county. Also Mr. Maxwell's service as a member of the county board of supervisors was notable. He was one of the original three that were elected when the system of small boards elected upon a general ticket was substituted for the former system of one supervisor from a township. He served for four years from the beginning of 1871 to the end of 1874, and he brought to the service of the county in that time the business ability that he had made conspicuous in his own affairs. Some details of his personal history are given in the following from the Maxwell Tribune of this week:

"J. W. Maxwell was born at Miamisburg, Ohio, April 2, 1854, and died at Des Moines, Iowa May 1, 1908, at the age of seventy-four years and twenty-nine days. He was married to Miss Marietta Pifer at Lafayette, Ind., August 18, 1857, to which union two children were born both of whom died in infancy and lie interred at Lafayette, Ind., the early home of this estimable couple.

"In 1862 or 1863, Mr. Maxwell came to Iowa and settled at Iowa Center, where for many years he was engaged in business with varied success. The firm of Baldwin & Maxwell for many years was one of the strongest in Iowa and being pioneer merchants and established long before there were any railroads in this part of the country all goods hd to be hauled with teams from Iowa City. They also operated branch stores at Cambridge, Colo, Clyde and other points, and removed to Maxwell when the Milwaukee railroad completed the line and laid out the present site. The extensiveness of their business may be gathered from the fact that during one of these years their freight bills for goods imported and products sent out was only four hundred dollars short of $40,000.00.

"Mr. Maxwell was a votary of civic societies taking high rank as a Mason, Odd Fellow and Knight of Pythias, and through many years of time he enjoyed the highest honors his brethren could confer upon him. He became a member of the M. E. church soon after settling in Iowa and ever remained a loyal church man. The monument which will perpetuate his memory is the town which bears his name and in which its citizens take just pride."