Jefferson County Online A part of the IAGenWeb and USGenWeb Projects Who's Who in Jefferson County, 1931 William Berkert Parrett

"The Fairfield Daily Ledger"
Thursday, July 16, 1931
Front Page

Who's Who In Jefferson County
By Herbert F. McDougal

William Berkert PARRETT

When the villain in a play savagely rolls a big black cigar in his mouth it doesn't mean a thing to W. B. Parrett. For Mr. Parrett was for years an expert cigar packer, with a keen eye for colorado maduros and such, and he says that the color of a cigar doesn't have a thing to do with its being strong, and that the mild mannered man with a colorado claro in his mouth is getting just as much kick from his smoke as is the villain.

When Mr. Parrett finished the common schools of his old home town, Monmouth, Ill., he was apprenticed to a cigar maker, and served a term of three years, learning to make cigars. At twenty-one he was a special salesman on the road for a cigar manufacturer. His territory extended over a part of Illinois and a part of Iowa. He covered it every six weeks, giving a month to Illinois and two weeks to Iowa. Fairfield was in his territory.

Then he graduated into the manufacturing business for himself and for four years was a producer. In 1900 he sold out and came to Fairfield to work for the late W. F. Bevering, continuing the connection for seven years. He also later worked for Fred Raible. In 1908, he went to Salt Lake City and stayed two years, pursuing his trade at first, then becoming city salesman for a wholesale firm.

In the meantine, February 14, 1895, he married Miss Gertrude Troxell of Fairfield. When they returned from Salt Lake City in 1909, Mr. Parrett made a connection with his brother in Monmouth who was in the insurance business, which by that time he had decided was his forte. He soon returned to Fairfield and became allied with the Yeoman lodge in its insurance phase, and made a signal success in the organization of big classes in this district. He went from that into the Prudential and was advanced to the assistant supertendency (sic) of this division with headquarters in Ottumwa. In 1914 he moved back to Fairfield, widened the field of his operations to include all varieties of insurance, and has built up a successful agency here. On January 1 of this year, he took his son Joe, who had displayed a marked aptitude for the business, into partnership with him.

Mr. Parrett has made his contributions to the activities of the community. Twenty years ago he allied himself with the Christian church and has been active in its affairs since. He is now serving his second term as a member of the school board, of which he is president. He is a member of the chautauqua board, a Lion, a Mason, an Odd Fellow and a life member of the Walton club.

The Parretts have five children--Mrs. J. C. Warford of Fairfield, Mrs. O. L. Eikenberry of Omaha, James, who is connected with Heston & Anderson, Joe, and Mary, still in school.

For years Mr. Parrett's hobby was music. He played the piccolo in various bands and orchestras where he happened to be located, and was a member of the famous old Charter Oak band here. He and Mrs. Parrett both are football and basketball fans, and it is something unusul (sic) that causes them to miss a home game either of the High school or Parsons college team. Their enthusiashm (sic) leads them to most of the games of the High school team played away from home, and a good many of Parsons college games, played elsewhere, see them in the stands as eager spectators.