Harrison County Iowa Genealogy

HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY, IOWA, 1891
BIOGRAPHIES
Page 969
AMMON FRY

Ammon FRY. This gentleman was numbered among the pioneer band, who wended their way to Harrison County in 1853, and here sought out a home in a land undeveloped and wild. He accompanied his parents and settled on section 30, of Boyer Township, in the lower part of Bigler's Grove,where he remained until the fall of 1855, and then bought a tract of land on section 7, Jefferson Township, where he improved and lived upon until the autumn of 1866, when he bought his father's farm, where he now lives.

Upon coming to this county, his father pre-empted his one hundred and sixty acress, and held it until July, 1855, when he entered the same, as it had not them come into the market. At that time there were but five families in Boyer Township, west of the Boyer River; David FRY and family; John MCINTIRE and family, and John HOLETON and his family came in at the same time of Mr. FRY's settlement, all taking land in Boyer Township. Mr. MCINTIRE moved to Monona County; Mr. HOLETON died in Magnolia Township, and David FRY (father of our subject) died November 11, 1875, in Boyer Township, at the age of seventy-six years.

Our subject has added to his farm until it now contains an area of two hundred and forty-nine acres.

He was born in Greene County, Indiana, August 13, 1834, and three years later his parents removed to Missouri, lived two yeasr and returned to Illinois and there remained until 1840, at which time they came to Lee County, Iowa, lived there eight years and removed to Appanoose County, and lived until 1850, during which year they moved to Mills County, lived three years and came to Harrison County.

Mr. FRY was married January 22, 1864, to Mary A. MCKENZIE, of Crawford County, by whom eleven children have been born -- William U., May 10, 1865; Isabel, August 7, 1866; Nora and Dora, (twins) January 13, 1868; Minnie I., July 24, 1869; Lillie, July 20, 1870; Anna, May 10, 1873; Joseph, May 9, 1874; Bert E., March 6, 1875; Edgar C., March 14, 1877; Fred A., August 13, 1878.

The following are deceased -- Nora, June, 1869; Dora, March 18, 1868; William U., October 2, 1865; Anna, May 10, 1873; Joseph, May 9, 1874; and Millie, September, 1873.

Mrs. Mary A. (MCKENZIE) FRY was born in Birmingham, England, November 9, 1841; her father died in England, before which her mother and the family came to the United States, arriving April, 1851, coming directly to St. Louis, where the mother died July 4, 1851. The remainder of the family stayed there until 1855, and then went to Crawford County, Iowa, where Mrs. FRY made her home until the date of her marriage. Her parents were Alexander and Mary (BOADEN) MCKENZIE, who was the youngest of a family of nine children. The father was born in Scotlandm in 1813, and died in England, in 1863.

David FRY, father of our subject, was born in Rowan County, NC, October 27, 1799, and left there in 1822, coming to Greene County, IN, where he remained until 1837. His wife, the mother of our subject, Dorothy (STEWART) FRY, was born in Kentucky, August 29, 1800, and her parents removed to Greene County, Indiana about 1822. She was the mother of ten children, Ammon of whom we write being the sixth child. David FRY was always on the frontier, coming to Indiana when it was yet a wilderness, and to Missouri and Iowa, when there was but little settlement made. He was very fond of hunting and found plenty of sport in that direction, in all of these new counties, including Harrison County, Iowa.

Ammon and his brother Joseph sawed lumber for the first house in Magnolia, executing the same with a whip-saw.

Politically, Mr. FRY votes with the Democratic party, and is a member of the Latter Day Saints Church.

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