Harrison County Iowa Genealogy

HISTORY OF HARRISON COUNTY, IOWA, 1891
BIOGRAPHIES
Page 899
JOHN J. THOMAS

John J. THOMAS, a prosperous farmer living on section 26, of Morgan Township, has been a resident of Harrison County since 1878. He may well be termed a practical as well as a scientific farmer. Through long years of experience, and the medium of the best class of farm journals published, he has come to know how to obtain the best results as an agriculturist.

Mr. THOMAS was born in Ohio, July 24, 1829, and is the son of Isaac and Elizabeth (HOLMES) THOMAS, both deceased. They were natives of Virginia and Ohio respectively, and had a family of eight children, of whom our subject was the fourth. Our subject's brother, Abraham, lives in Ohio; William C., in Colorado; Sarah in Ohio, and Susannah, in Iowa. John J's. early life was spent in the Buckeye State, and he accompanied his parents to Washington County, Iowa, in 1847. His father's family was the third to locate in that county, they settled where the town of Crawfordville now stands. Mr. THOMAS attended the common schools of Washington County and learned the carpenter's trade and worked at the same in the locality. He remained in Washington County until 1860 and then removed to Monroe county, Iowa, where he operated a sawmill and doing contract carpenter work, continuing this until 1873 whe he removed to Hamilton County, Iowa, and rented land near Webster City, and in 1874 removed to Kansas, remained three years and came to this county. He was first on a farm here known as the WALKER farm, upon which he lived for six years and then bought the farm he now lives upon, consisting of eighty acres in section 26. He also owns forty-six acres in Mills County. His farm is all under cultivation except eight acres. Everything about Mr. THOMAS's place shows him to be a man of thrift and order, and it may be said that unlike many famers, he allows no land to go to weeds, even the fence corners being clean and the main part of his fields.

Our subject was united in marriage December 27, 1851, in Washington County, Iowa, to Elizabeth BOYD, a native of Ohio, who was born in 1836, in Sandusky County, Ohio. She is the daughter of James and Forille BOYD. Mr. and Mrs. THOMAS are the parent of nine children; eight of whom are now living, Joseph, now living in the State of Washington, born in 1854; Sarah E., now Mrs. STEWART, born in 1856; Abraham R., born in 1858, now married and living in Minnesota; Alice, now Mrs. Galen B. CLARK, born in 1860, living in North Dakota; Clara, Mrs. BOWEN, born in 1862; William, born in 1864, now married; Rosa, born in 1866, now married to R.H. THOMAS; Hattie born in 1868, died in 1880, and Charles E., born in 1875, now at home.

Mr. and Mrs. THOMAS are consistent members of the Baptist Church and in his political views he has ever been identified with the Republican party.

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