Cornish, F. E.

CORNISH, POST, JACKSON

Posted By: mjv (email)
Date: 9/9/2020 at 14:52:02

F. E. Cornish, editor of the Riverside Leader, was born in Manchester, Delaware Co., Iowa, Nov. 4, 1860. He is the son of Horace M. and Effie (Post) Cornish. Both were natives of and were married in Wyoming County, N.Y. The father came from New York about 1858, and established himself in Manchester, Iowa, in the mercantile business, returned to his native county, and was wedded to Miss Effie Post, and the young couple at once became identified with the business interests of the new Northwest. Horace Cornish might properly be termed a “Yankee,” his father Lemuel Cornish, being denominated such, but was of Welsh decent. He was both a farmer and a miller, operating at Perry, N.Y., for many years. He wedded Miss Jackson. Both lived and died at Perry, N.Y., but left a large family of children, of whom Horace was the second son, and with his brother, Hilliard P. Cornish, a commercial salesman, of Cherokee, Iowa, were the only members of the family that came West to stay.

Horace Cornish remained in business during his lifetime in this State, and was a very successful merchant. He was also Postmaster at Manchester for several years. His death occurred Dec. 25, 1883, aged fifty-one years. His wife still resides at Manchester. The Post (formerly Van Post) ancestry were of Holland-Dutch origin. The grandfather of our subject, Christopher Post, was born and married in New Jersey. After the celebration of that event he removed to Wyoming County, N.Y., where the family was among the first settlers. Christopher Post was one of the thrifty pioneers, and cleared up a nice farm upon which he reared a family consisting of ten daughters and two sons. Of the daughters, Effie, the mother of our subject, was the youngest. The aged parents left the farm and purchased property in Gainesville, N.Y., where both died at that advanced age of eighty-four years.

Mr. and Mrs. Horace Cornish were parents of two children, our subject and Katie. The latter died when only two years of age. Consequently the sole heir to the name and fortune of Horace N. Cornish is Fred E., his son. He was educated in his native town, and early evinced a taste for newspaper work. When nineteen years of age he entered the office of the Manchester Democrat and learned the printer’s trade. One year from that time, in company with L.P. Hunt, he went to Lanesboro, Minn., and purchased the Lanesboro Journal, which after being successfully conducted was sold later. From Lanesboro Mr. Cornish went to Mitchell, Dak., and became foreman of the daily Republican, and eighteen months later purchased the Jesup (Iowa) Critic, which he subsequently sold, and later came to Riverside, purchasing the Riverside Leader, established by Wheeler & Cartwright, the first issue being made Aug. 14, 1883. Several unsuccessful attempts had previously been made to make a self-sustaining paper in the new town, but most efforts had proved failures until Mr. Cornish assumed the management. The News was the first title, but later the Leader was the name adopted, and under this fitting cognomen it makes weekly visits to hundreds of families throughout Southeastern Iowa. It is purely local and has no political views, although its editor and proprietor is a Republican. We can only do the Leader justice by saying that it contains a volume of interesting locals each week, which are carefully written, and no local paper could desire a better circulation, and surely the people of this neighborhood, and the residents of Riverside in particular, have every reason to be proud of its newsy pages.

Source: Portrait and Biographical Album of Washington County, Iowa (1887). Excerpt from Biographical Sketch of F. E. Cornish, pages 303-304.