Howard, John R.

HOWARD

Posted By: Karon Velau (email)
Date: 6/29/2021 at 12:06:56

History of Warren County, Iowa from Its Earliest Settlement to 1908, by Rev. W. C. Martin, Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago, Illinois, 1908, p.720

JOHN R. HOWARD
John R. Howard was born in Indianola in 1877 and is a representative of one of the oldest and most prominent families of Warren County. His father, John W. Howard, long numbered among the leading citizens here, was born in Preston County, West Virginia, and his death, which occurred in March 1908, at the age of seventy-five years, was the occasion of deep and widespread regret. He was of English ancestry and in early life learned and followed the carpenter's trade, while later he turned his attention to merchan­dising in Indianola and was quite successful in his undertakings. He ar­rived in this city in 1854 and embarked in business here as a carpenter and contractor. In the fall of that year he returned to Preston County, West Virginia, and was married to Miss Fernandez E. Fortney. With his bride he returned to Indianola in the spring of 1855 and from that time until his death was a factor in the business interests of the city. He became a partner of E. W. Fortney and Samuel Martin under the firm style of Fortney, Martin & Company, and they conducted a planing mill and lumberyard from 1870 until 1884. In the latter year the partnership was dissolved and the lum­beryard and mill were removed to Des Moines, while Mr. Howard retained the paint and glass department of the business. He was closely identified with the growth and development of Indianola for a half century, contribut­ing to its success through the establishment and conduct of several pros­perous business enterprises and also by his activity in municipal affairs and public life. He served as assessor of .the city and in 1879-80 filled the office of mayor, giving to the city a businesslike and progressive administration. He was a supporter of the Republican Party which ever found in him a stalwart champion.
Fraternally he was connected with the Ancient Order of United Workmen. By his first marriage Mr. Howard had four children: Ida G., who married R. J. Graham, who is conducting a laundry in Fort Morgan, Colorado; Silas E., a jeweler of Hastings, Nebraska; Ella, the wife of W. K. Crabb, who deals in paints and glass in Indianola; and Minta, the wife of W. M. Ogg, a baker of Indianola. The wife and mother died in 1868 and in 1870 Mr. Howard mar­ried Mrs. Daniel Lyons, whose husband, Captain Lyons, was killed at the bat­tle of Arkansas Post. His second wife, who bore the maiden name of Mel­vina Clark, and was born in Bloomington, Indiana, came of English-Irish ancestry and died in Indianola in 1887, at the age of fifty-six years. She was a member of the Presbyterian Church.
John R. Howard, the only child of this second marriage, began his educa­tion in the public schools of his native city, passed through consecutive grades and eventually entered the business department of Simpson College, from which he was graduated in 1895. He then entered the State University and completed the courses of law and collegiate departments in 1900. He at once located for practice in his native city, where he is meeting with success and in this connection his life record stands in contradistinction to the old adage that a prophet is never without honor save in his own country. He is careful in the preparation of his cases, keen in his analysis and logical in his deductions and has been connected with considerable important litigation tried in the courts of his district.
Mr. Howard's religious views are indicated by his membership in the Presbyterian Church and the Masonic fraternity claims him as an exemplary member, while of the Knights of Pythias lodge he is also a representative. In politics, an earnest Republican, his fellow townsmen elected him to the office of city treasurer, in which he continued for four years, while for the past four years he has been justice of the peace. His decisions are strictly fair and impartial, being based upon the law and the equity in the case.