|
JAMES HENDERSON, a wealthy farmer
of Delaware county, Iowa, was born in St. Ramie Parish,
Canada, March 4, 1840, and is a son of William and Alice (Bursell)
Henderson. William Henderson was born in Scotland and his wife
in England, but were married in Canada. He is a self-made man,
having, through industry and thrift, acquired competency. He
came to Iowa in 1854 with about $1,000, and this sum he
increased and multiplied, and at one time was owner of nearly
two thousand acres of land, gained through his foresight and his
keenness of observation as to the prospective, his vocation of
of farming not preventing him from studying the possibilities of
the future that was then before him. After his arrival in Iowa
he was recognized as one who would make a useful citizen, and
also as one who would be of avail in the management of the
affairs of Linn county, where he had cast his lot, and for that
reason the voters of his township elected him as supervisor,
the duty of which office he filled to the great satisfaction of
his fellow-townsmen. He is now eighty-three years of age and
still holds the respect of all who know and have known him, not
only for his venerableness, but for the moral life he has led.
For thirty years he has been a deacon in the Congregational
church, of which his wife was also a member until her death,
which occurred about 1875, at the age of sixty-three. The
children born to this couple were six in number, and of these,
William, a gallant soldier and a member of Company A, Sixth Iowa
volunteer infantry, died while in the service at St. Louis,
Mo.; the second child is James, the subject of this sketch ;
the third is Peter G., in the creamery business at Central
City, Iowa; the fourth, Robert, is a farmer in Linn county; the
fifth is Henry, who still clings to the old home; the sixth is
Hannah J., the wife of Peter T. Henderson, a farmer in Linn
county.
James Henderson, whose name stands at
the head of this sketch, came from Canada, at the age of
fourteen, in company with his parents, and assisted his father
on the home farm until he was twenty-five years of age, when he
came to Delaware county, Iowa, and bought a farm in 1865 but did
not settle on it till 1867. In the meantime, from 1862 until
1867, he was in the milling business at Coggon, Linn county. In
1882 Mr. Henderson established a creamery on his farm, and,
being a gentleman of thorough business habits and of genuine
enterprise, has made more than a success of it. His annual
output of butter now amounts to ninety thousand pounds, and in
addition to his dairy business he superintends his farming
interests, carries on a trade in lumber and is a raiser and
heavy dealer in live stock. In 1887 the Iowa Central railroad
was built through, and Ehlers Station was established at his
place and this fact has been of great aid to him in the
prosecution of his business and has greatly enhanced the value
of his real estate. He now owns a total of four hundred and
fifty acres of land, towit: three hundred and twenty acres in
sections 26 and 27 in Adams township, on section 26, on which he
makes his residence; ninety acres in section 4 and 10, in
Jackson township, Linn county, forty acres in Wheeler township,
Sac county, Iowa. With the exception of one hundred and sixty
acres reserved for his homestead, he rents out his land for a very fair return. All this estate and all these business
interests have accrued to Mr. Henderson through his own
excellent management, he having received but little assistance
from his father at his starting in life.
Mr. Henderson was
married August 28, 1863, to Miss Mary Sheldon, a daughter of
William Sheldon, and born in Linn county, Iowa, about the year
1844. Their household has been made happy by the birth of three
children: William, Albert J. and Ella M., all of whom are
still single and reside with their parents, and have received
first-class educations in neighboring educational institutions
and at Mount Vernon, Iowa.
Mr. Henderson is not a
member of any religious denomination, but he freely gives of his
means in their aid and maintenance, as he fully recognizes their
great moral influence in the community. In politics he is a
republican. |
