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Hurlburt
Moulton is living retired in Hopkinton after many years of
varied and successful labor. He was born in Vermont on the 10th
of December, 1829, a son of Reuben Moulton. His mother died when
he was an infant but his father survived until he had attained
the age of sixty-two years, when he met death by accident as he
was hauling hay.
Hurlburt Moulton was educated in the public
schools near his home and at the age of fifteen years he left
home and made his way to Jo Daviess county, Illinois, where he
worked in the lead mines for five years. In 1849 he came to
Delaware county, Iowa, locating in North Fork township, two miles
south of Rockville, which was then the only town of any size in
the county although Delhi was the county seat. He purchased one
hundred and sixty acres of land on a soldier's government
warrant, paying sixty six cents an acre, and a little later
bought an eighty acre tract adjoining his first purchase, paying
seventy dollars for eighty acres. In 1882 he sold his land for
forty dollars an acre, which was a great advance over the price
paid, but the same land would now easily bring one hundred and
forty dollars per acre. For a number of years he has resided in
Hopkinton and in the evening of life is enjoying a leisure which
is his by right of former labor.
At the time of the Mexican war Mr. Moulton
desired to enlist but was not accepted as he was only sixteen
years of age. In 1864 he journeyed with an ox team to the gold
mines of Idaho, as there was no railroad west of Omaha leading in
that direction, and it took his party from May to September to
reach their destination. They returned by mule team to Denver,
Colorado, but from that point traveled by railroad. They did not
succeed in finding much gold but the experience that they gained
was invaluable and Mr. Moulton declares that he has never
regretted the five hundred dollars nor the time that the trip
cost him.
In 1849 he was married, in Jo Daviess county,
Illinois, to Miss Catherine Eggleston, a native of Ohio, born
December 30, 1828. To this marriage were born eight children,
Elma, Ella G., Carrie E., .Mary D., Clara M., Charles H.,
Clarence G. and Mabel B., of whom only three survive. Clara died
at the age of twenty years and the others died when quite young.
Ella is the wife of C. P. Joseph of Hopkinton; Charles lives at
Grand View in the Yakima Valley of Washington; and Clarence is
located at Kalispell, Montana.
Mr. and Mrs. Moulton belong to the Methodist Episcopal
church and are always willing to do their shared in the
furtherance of its work. Mr. Moulton gives his political
allegiance to the republican party and has served as township
treasurer, as a member of the school board, as constable and as a
member of the town council. His residence is situated at the end
of Main street, which it overlooks, and is one of the comfortable
homes of the town. He and his wife are well known in Hopkinton
and are among the most highly esteemed couples in that town. They
recount many interesting incidents of the early days in the
history of the state and so aid in making more vivid in the minds
of the present generation the days when Iowa was not the
prosperous agricultural section of today but instead a pioneer
district with but little land under cultivation. |
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