HENRY F. MEIER

The well kept fields of Henry F. Meier indicate that his life is one of industry and enterprise, his entire time and attention being devoted to the further development and improvement of his farm of one hundred and sixty acres on section 31, Massillon township. For twenty-eight years he has been a resident of Cedar county and is numbered among the worthy citizens that the fatherland has furnished to the new world. His birth occurred in Hanover, Germany, December 21, 1860, his parents being Dicek and Wilhelmina (Elmhorst) Meier, who were also natives of that country. The father came to the new world in 1884 and here joined his son. Later he purchased the farm on which Henry F. Meier now resides.

The youthful days of Henry F. Meier were passed in Hanover and he was educated in the German tongue. Favorable reports reached him concerning the new world and its opportunities and awakened in him a desire to try his fortune on this side of the Atlantic. Accordingly he came to the United States in 1880, when but nineteen years of age, and made his way direct to Cedar county, settling first at Lowden. He worked by the month as a farm hand for two or three years, but desirous that his labors should more directly benefit himself, he rented land which he cultivated for three years. He then bought the eighty acre farm upon which he now resides and at once began its further development and improvement. He added to and remodeled the house, built a good barn, also two double corn cribs, a chicken house and hog house. The buildings are all kept in a state of good repair and indicate the watchful interest of the owner. He has also planted an orchard and set out shade trees, and after some years he purchased eighty acres additional, so that his farm now comprises one hundred and sixty acres, all in one body. Its location on section 31, Massillon township, makes Clarence his nearest market place. In addition to tilling the soil he feeds stock, fattening a large number of hogs each year, selling the cattle off the pasture and also raising some good horses. He carefully watches all the branches of his business and notes every indication pointing to success. As the years have passed he has prospered and his labors have gained him a place among the substantial residents of this part of the county.

On the 7th of March, 1890, Mr. Meier was married in Clarence to Miss Eleanora Blome, a native of Prussia, Germany. Unto them have been born six children: Minnie, William, Paulina, George, Clara and Ardelia. The family attend the German Evangelical church at Clarence, in which the parents hold membership, and Mr. Meier has also been a member of the Modern Woodmen Camp for sixteen years. He votes with the democracy, has served as director of schools and for four years has filled the office of superintendent of roads. He has never had occasion to regret his determination to come to the United States, for here he found opportunities which he sought and which, by the way, are always open to ambitious, energetic young men. In their improvement he has made steady advancement and has gained a creditable success.