A. A. Fishel
For the past thirty-one years A. A. Fishel has devoted his energies to the vocation of agriculture in Crawford county and has met with that modicum of success which comes to all who have a purpose in life.
He was born in Seneca county, Ohio, near Mexico, January 12, 1858, a son of Daniel and Mary J. (Mills) Fishel, both of whom were natives of Ohio, in which state the father spent his entire life.
He followed the trade of a millwright until the outbreak of the Civil war, when he enlisted in Company A, Sixty-first Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry, in which he held the rank of corporal. He served for three years from April, 1861, and participated in many famous battles, among them being Bull Run, Gettysburg and Lookout Mountain, and was wounded in the hand just before reaching Atlanta, in an engagement at Peach Tree Creek, it being the same battle, on the same day and almost at the same hour that General McPherson was killed. He was sent home on account of his wounded hand, which remained in a crippled condition during the remainder of his life. After returning to Ohio he engaged in various occupations and during the closing years of his life was deputy postmaster at Upper Sandusky.
His family came from Pennsylvania and was of German descent. Of the eight children born to him and his wife the following survive: Susan E., who became the wife of B. L. Trimble and resides in Minnesota; A. A., of this review; Jerusha E., who married J. H. Harmon and lives in Upper Sandusky, Ohio; and William, who is a banker of Dow City. The father's death occurred at Upper Sandusky in 1873, but his wife survived him until March, 1906, and her remains were interred in Dow City (Iowa) cemetery.
Mr. Fishel took advantage of the facilities offered by the public schools of Ohio in obtaining his education. He subsequently came to Crawford county, Iowa, and in 1880 entered upon his life work, which he had decided would be the pursuit of agriculture. Such was his industry and business ability that he has been able to become the owner of one hundred and twenty acres of land on section 34, Union township, upon which he has made many valuable improvements, including modern and up-to-date buildings. Here he has followed farming in all its various branches and is regarded as an authority on all subjects pertaining to the tilling of the soil.
Mr. Fishel has been twice married. His first wife was Lydia, a daughter of G. W. Huntington, of Dow City, the results of this union being two children, namely: Norine E., who married H. Alexander and resides in Dow City; and Robert, who also lives in Dow City. Mrs. Fishel departed this life in 1898, her final resting place being Dow City cemetery. Mr. Fishel's second marriage took place in 1906, when he was united to Mrs. Lydia Click, of Denison, Iowa.
The democratic party has always had the support of Mr. Fishel, who bas taken an active interest in the political affairs of' his community and filled the office of township trustee for one term, at the expiration of which he was reelected. In his fraternal relations he is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America. During his long residence in Union township he has made many friends, who recognize in him a man of integrity, whose word is as good as his bond, and they accord him the sincere regard that such qualities so richly deserve.
Source: History of Crawford County, Iowa. Vol. II. Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1911.