Jacob Ivan Hess

HESS MCCLOW

Posted By: Connie Swearingen (email)
Date: 9/21/2010 at 22:46:15

History of Woodbury County, Iowa 1984

Jacob Ivan Hess
By Clifford Hess

My grandfather, Jacob Ivan Hess and three of his brothers came from Montanden, Pennsylvania to Winnebago Station, Illinois, in the late 1870’s and helped the Levi McClow family drive wagons from there to Ida Grove, Iowa. The Levi McClows had originated in the area of Shamokin, Pennsylvania, which is not far from Montanden.

Jacob Ivan Hess and Mary Ann McClow, the third child of Levi McClow, were married March 8, 1880, and started farming east of the Ida Grove cemetery near where the Levi McClow family had settled.

My father, Berton Earl Hess was born on this farm on September 10, 1882. A short time later the Jacob Hess family bought a farm seven miles south of Ida Grove for four dollars an acre as land was too high closer to town, where it was going for seven dollars an acre. Five more kids were added to this family while living on this farm.

My dad married my mother, Gladys Grace in July of 1908 and lived on an adjoining farm until the grandparents retired to Ida Grove; then moved to the home place.

My grandparents had a sixth child after they retired to town. I, Clifford Reed Hess, was born on the home place on April 1, 1909, and my brother, Roscoe was born n January 15, 1911.

My folks bought a 120 acre farm from the Krause family, five miles northwest of Lawton in Banner Township, and moved there in 1913. They shipped a carload by rail and my dad and a farm hand drove two teams and wagon loads across country, taking two days for the trip. I was four years at the time and dimly remember leaving the farm for the trip on the train. I do remember the new home as badly infested with bed bugs and we had to fumigate to eradicate them as they almost ate us up when we settled in.

Shortly after we arrived we got about two feet of snow and dad took the old gray mare, Fanny, and made paths around the place.

My brother, Roscoe and Mayme Lorraine Sams were married on December 25, 1932, and they had one daughter, Janet Marie Hess who married Raynard McNaughton.

Florence Lorrain Shoemaker and I were married on June 6, 1934, at Bronson ad we started farming four miles west of Kingsley, Iowa. These were drought and depression years and the biggest crops were debts which took almost ten years to pay off. After four years on the farm we moved to a farm four miles south of Kingsley where we stayed for four more years. Here our son, Charles Burton Hess was born on May 17, 1938, and Joe Edward Hess on February 9, 1941. These two boys now live in the Waterloo area and have been employed at the John Deere Tractor plant for about eighteen years.

In 1941 I had the opportunity to buy my present place in Grant Township on a FHA no down payment loan. I have now had the privilege of calling it home for forty-one years. It was here that son, Jon Clifford Hess was born on December 21, 1946.

Florence passed away February 15, 1972, and I lived alone for nine years when I met my second love, Lois Brink of Castana, Iowa. We were married on August 15, 1981. We are not actively farming as the farm has been operated by a neighbor for the last several years.

With all our many other activities which include square dancing, ballroom dancing, my woodworking shop work, antiques, gas engines, and gardening, we do not even find time to go south for the winter.