DARLING, GEORGE W.
Among the prosperous stock-raisers of White Cloud township is George W. Darling, who comes to Iowa from the Badger state. He was born in Racine, Wisconsin, January 18, 1850, his parents being George W. and Merriam (Fleming) Darling. The former was born in New York city in the year 1812. He followed carpentering in early life and afterward turned his attention to agricultural pursuits. He went to Wisconsin about the year 1846, and in 1857 crossed the Mississippi river into Iowa, establishing his home in Mills county a year later. Here he spent his remaining days, his death occurring in Rawles township, when seventy-one years of age. On coming to this county he purchased land which was partially improved and built thereon a frame house sixteen by twenty four feet. Throughout the remainder of his active business career he followed farming pursuits, but spent his last days in partial retirement in the home of his son George. His wife was a member of the Presbyterian church and was an earnest Christian woman whose influence over the lives of her children was marked and beneficial. She was a native of New Jersey, and her death occurred May 2, 1878, and her husband's death August 4, 1883. She is survived by six of her seven children, namely: Matilda J., Elizabeth, George W., Merriam Tilton, Edward T.L. and Daniel A.
George W. Darling spent his early boyhood days in the city of his nativity and was then brought to Iowa by his parents. He was reared upon the old home farm and worked in field and meadow, assisting in the task of plowing, planting and harvesting. His educational privileges were those afforded by the common schools, and thus he was prepared for the practical duties of life. At the age of eighteen he started out on his own account, being employed as a farm hand, and when twenty years of age he began renting land, which he cultivated for several years. When twenty-six years of age he made his first purchase, becoming the owner of eighty acres of partially improved land in Rawles township, and thereon made his home until 1884, when he purchased the old Hobbs farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which is situated in the valley in White Cloud township and is a rich tract of land, yielding a good return for the care and labor bestowed upon it. The verdant pastures furnish an excellent opportunity for stock-raising and Mr. Darling feeds and sells large numbers of cattle and hogs. He has a stock farm and his annual shipments are extensive and bring to him a good financial return, for his fine grades of stock command high market prices. Many unsuccessful men indulge in theorizing as to the causes of prosperity and claim that it results from fortunate circumstances and environments, but in an analyzation of the history of the most successful men we find that what they have acquired has come as the direct result of their own efforts; and such is the case in the history of Mr. Darling.
DASHNER, FRANCIS H.
The life history of Mr. Dashner, if written in detail, would form a volume containing many exciting and intensely interesting chapters. The old adage, "truth is stranger than fiction," is verified in his career. He has visited many ports of the civilized globe, has lived the wild life of a miner in the west and has followed the quiet pursuits of the farm in the Missouri valley.
It was on the Atlantic seaboard that his birth occurred, for he is a native of Jefferson county, New York, born February 28, 1827. The family is of French lineage. His grandfather and his father were both soldiers in the war of 1812 and were wounded in the battle of Sackett's Harbor. The latter bore the name of Francis Dashner and married Maggie July. In their family were three children, of whom our subject was the second in order of birth. He started out in life for himself at the age of nine years and has since made his own way in the world. Leaving his parental home, he went to Carthage, New York, and entered the employ of a man engaged in the manufacture of cheese-boxes. A year and a half later his mother and sister induced him to return home, but he remained only for a short time, going thence to Pamelia Corners, in Jefferson county, New York, where he spent six weeks. On the expiration of that period he journeyed to Watertown, New York and in the vicinity of that place worked for two years on a dairy farm. He was employed in that locality during the greater part of the time until he had attained the age of nineteen years, when he became a representative of marine life, sailing on the different American lakes and seas for six years. During that period he was twice shipwrecked, once on a South Manitou island, when the vessel, the J. Y. Scammon, was lost; and again on the Big Sodus Reef, in Lake Ontario, the date of the latter being December 10, 1854. During his six years of seafaring life he was on all the principal lakes in North America, and he crossed the ocean to Queenstown, and also visited many other foreign ports.
At length Mr. Dashner abandoned the water, taking up his abode in Ogdensburg, New York, where he was engaged in business for two years. He next moved to Knox county, Illinois, where he began farming, but after two years passed in the Prairie state he removed to Idaho, where he followed ranching and mining for about three years. He was very successful in his undertakings, making much money there, but while returning to the east he was robbed, in Denver, of a large sum and was severely wounded in his struggles with the bandits. The next spring 1855, he came to Mills county, Iowa, where he has since resided, either in Lyons or in Platteville township. On the 16th of October of that year he was united in marriage to Miss Lucy Gonsollay, a daughter of Benjamin and Eliza (Brower) Gonsollay, natives of Illinois. Twelve children were born unto them as follows: Cora May, who died June 27, 1894 at the age of twenty-six years; Maggie Zelpha, who died on the 4th of May, 1896, at the age of twenty-seven years; Clara Frances, now the wife of Frank Johnson, a resident of St. Edwards, Nebraska; Francis Eugene, who is living upon the home farm; Lillie Luella, who died January 23, 1898, at the age of twenty-five years; Stella Elounant, who departed this life on the 7th of June, 1896, at the age of nineteen years; Sabra Victoria, who died September 25, 1899 at the age of twenty; Emily Lenora, whose death occurred September 25, 1899; Clifford Clifton, who passed away at the age of sixteen years on the 30th of October, 1896; Clay Henry, who is living at home and assists in the operation of his father's farm; Clara Pearl, who died in 1899; and Earl Deville, at home. The mother of this family passed away on the 16th of August 1894, when forty-seven years of age, and the father was afterward again married, on the 13th of January, 1897, his second union being with Mrs. Angeline Pfifer, a daughter of Elija and Frances (Nix) Dalton, natives of Kentucky. Her father died in St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1885, at the age of sixty-five years. For many years he conducted a hotel in Lenox, Missouri, and in 1851 he came to Mills county, Iowa, locating in Oak township. His wife survived him for about ten years, passing away at her home in Oak township, in 1895, when seventy-nine years of age.
Since coming to Iowa Mr. Dashner has constantly and successfully engaged in farming, and is one of the most enterprising and progressive agriculturists of the entire county. He today owns three hundred and forty acres of land and is engaged in raising stock and fruit, having over eleven hundred fruit trees. His methods of cultivating his farm are progressive and practical and bring to him an excellent income. Mr. Dashner has had an eventful life, yet, altogether his career has been a successful one, although he has met with many financial losses. He was twice robbed and has had many misfortunes, the greatest of which has been the loss of his children. He is a man of kind impulses, large-hearted and generous; and he possesses the friendship and esteem of all who know him.
DAVIS, STEPHEN D.
While "the race is not always to the swift nor the battle to the strong," the invariable law of destiny accords to tireless energy, industry and ability a successful career. The truth of this assertion is abundantly verified in the life of Mr. Davis. In financial circles he has worked his way upward from an humble position to one of affluence and is today numbered among the prosperous stockmen and farmers of Mills county, his labors having brought to him a splendid return.
Stephen D. Davis was born October 25, 1820, in Jackson county, Ohio, a son of Levi and Mary (Rudyard) Davis. The paternal grandparents of our subject were Robert and Nancy Davis. Robert Davis was a native of North Carolina and spent his entire life in that state, by occupation being a gunsmith. The maternal grandfather of our subject was Isaiah Rudyard, an old sea captain. Levi Davis, the father of Stephen D. Davis, was a native of North Carolina and was a farmer by occupation. In early life he was a member of the standing army for a time. At a period in the pioneer development of Ohio he came with his wife and children to the Buckeye state, and the year of their emigration being about 1806. His last days were spent in Jackson county, Ohio. His wife, who also was a native of North Carolina, was again married, after her husband's death, and removed to Mills county, Iowa, a few years before her son Stephen became a resident of the county. Her remaining days were spent at her home here. Levi and Mary Davis were the parents of nine children, three sons and six daughters. Most of them were farming people, were married and have children and grandchildren.
Stephen D. Davis spent the years of his minority in Jackson county, Ohio. His educational privileges were extremely meager. He pursued his studies in an old-time log school-house, with its primitive furnishings and greased paper windows. The methods of teaching also were rather crude and the school was supported by the subscription plan. But he made the most of his opportunities through life and by observation and experience gained much valuable knowledge. In his boyhood he displayed considerable musical ability and performed upon the fife. He also played the fife at the time when recruits were being solicited for the Mexican war and also for the Civil war.
He first came to Iowa in 1855, making the journey in a spring wagon. He was accompanied by his brother Robert and together they made the trip to the Hawkeye state to see the country and buy some land. In the fall of the year Mr. Davis removed to Iowa. Starting from Portsmouth, Ohio, he proceeded by boat down the Ohio and up the Mississippi river to Keokuk, where he hired a man to bring him and his family across the country - a distance of eighty miles - to the home of his brother-in-law, David Rickabaugh. Here he purchased a yoke of oxen and with that outfit traveled to his destination. He first located a few miles south of the present site of Red Oak, in Montgomery county, but after a few months came to Mills county.
At the time of his marriage he had one hundred and twenty acres of poor land, a horse and a cow, but no money. In thirteen years from that time he was the owner of five hundred and seventy acres of land, entirely free from indebtedness. On coming to Mills county, he located in Indian Creek township, near where the town of Emerson now stands, and after residing about one year at that place he took up his abode in Spring Valley, White Cloud township, in March, 1857. Here he purchased a farm of four hundred acres on section 29 and to this he has added until he now has nineteen hundred and sixty acres. His place is known as the Spring Valley Stock Farm on account of the fine spring which has a flow of about thirty gallons per minute. He has constructed a fine fish pond, which is supplied with water from this spring and contains an abundance of fish. He has made ditches one mile in length and has otherwise improved his property until it is most valuable. Mr. Davis is one of the most extensive farmers and stock men of Mills county. He has ever prosecuted his work along well-defined lines of labor, has followed progressive methods, and his enterprise and industry have enabled him to continually add to his property. In addition to the home place he has a farm of one hundred and sixty acres near Council Bluffs, one of one hundred and fifty-seven acres near Whiting, Iowa, and another of three hundred and twenty acres east of Onawa, Iowa. At one time he owned twenty thousand acres of land in Kansas, and he now has eleven hundred and twenty acres in that state, together with thirteen hundred acres in Texas, and six hundred and forty acres in South Dakota. He is at all times just, and probity is numbered among his chief characteristics.
Mr. Davis is a man of resourceful business ability, and in addition to the cultivation of his fields he has engaged in the stock business on a large scale. He keeps excellent grades of horses and cattle and these find a ready sale upon the markets. Mr. Davis is also a prominent factor in banking circles. He is interested in the First National Bank of Malvern, of which he is the vice president. He is also financially interested in the First National Bank of Tabor, of which he was president for a year or two and is still a stockholder in the institution. He is also a stockholder in a bank in Athena, Oregon, and in one at Colton, Washington.
On the 7th of April, 1842, Mr. Davis was united in marriage to Miss Mary Parker, a native of Virginia, born September 17, 1821, and a daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Parker. Her father died in Jackson county, Ohio, and her mother died in the home of our subject after living with him for a quarter of a century. Mr. Davis and his wife traveled life's journey together for fifty-three years, sharing with each other its joys and sorrows, its adversity and prosperity. Mrs. Davis was a most estimable woman. Never throughout the long years of her married life was she known to speak a cross word, no matter how great her worries or how tired she might be. she possessed a calm and even temperament under perfect control and her devotion to her family was beautiful to see. She was a great Bible student, spending much time and thought over the holy scriptures and thus becoming familiar with the lessons of the Master and His apostle. Her knowledge of holy writ thus became extensive and her interpretation of it was seen in her daily life, in her kindliness, her love, her charity and her forbearance. Hers was indeed a beautiful Christian spirit, so in harmony with the teachings of the Christ that her influence was very marked among those who knew her. Ten children were born unto our subject and his wife: Marion T., Tacy L., Minerva A., Charles F. and six now deceased. The mother's death occurred August 31, 1895, at the age of seventy three years, eleven months and fourteen days, and throughout the entire community her loss was deeply felt. She was a kind neighbor, a faithful friend and enjoyed the respect and confidence of all who knew her.
In his political views Mr. Davis has been a stalwart Republican from the year 1860, previous to which time he voted with the Democracy. Mrs. Davis was reared in the Baptist faith, and her earnest Christian example left a deep impression upon her children. As a citizen Mr. Davis is public spirited, giving an earnest cooperation to all movements for the general good. His life has certainly been a success. His entire career is illustrative of the fact that certain actions are followed by certain results; and his determined purpose, guided by sound business judgment, has enabled him to advance steadily toward the goal of success; and his methods will stand the closest investigation. He has certainly merited the distinction of being what the world calls a self-made man. This is the only title which the American republic confers upon its citizens, and it is one which may be proudly worn. Entering upon his business career without the aid of wealth or influential friends, he has advanced steadily, step by step, to a position of prominence in financial circles. As the years have passed he has added to his property and wealth through earnest labor, close application and sound judgment. Of such a record he may be justly proud, and so his history should be a source of inspiration and encouragement to others.
DEAN, BENJAMIN B.
A very prominent and highly respected citizen of Mills county, Iowa, is Benjamin B. Dean, the subject of this sketch. He was born in Lyons township, December 24, 1858, and is a son of William E. and Susan (Briggs) Dean. He was one of six children born to his parents, the survivors being Seth, who is the competent surveyor of Mills county; Harvey, who is an extensive farmer in Lyons township; and Alvin E., who is a farmer of Polk county, Missouri. William H., the third son, was a sailor by trade and was lost off the fishing vessel Dashing Wave, in a gale, May 15, 1882.
The marriage of our subject was celebrated February 25, 1883, with Anna M. Wallace, a daughter of James and Nancy (Reed) Wallace, both natives of Ohio, the former of whom is a resident of Mills county, the latter dying some years since in Kansas. Seven children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Dean, these all living - William L., Florence, Bessie, Edwin B., Edith, Clara and Seth. Mrs. Dean departed from life May 7, 1900, at the comparatively early age of thirty-seven.
Possessing seven hundred acres of productive land and being an extensive stock-raiser, our subject may be considered one of the substantial men of the county. He has made a specialty of breeding shorthorn cattle, believing them to be the best strain to be found. In his political affiliations Mr. Dean is a Democrat. In 1899 he was the candidate of his party for representative, the nomination coming to him unsolicited and unexpected and he received two hundred votes ahead of his ticket, his popularity in the county being thoroughly proved. He is a consistent member of the Congregational church, where he is held in the highest esteem.
DEAN, SETH
We are now permitted to touch briefly upon the life history of one who has retained a personal association with the affairs of Mills county for many years, having served as county surveyor for a quarter of a century, and one whose ancestral line traces back to the colonial epoch. His life has been one of honest and earnest endeavor, and he has gained the confidence and respect of all with whom he has come in contact either in business or social circles.
Mr. Dean was born in Lyons township, Mills county, on the 20th of October, 1851, his parents being William E. and Susan (Briggs) Dean, natives of the Green Mountain state. On the paternal side his great grandfather, Seth Dean, fought for American independence in the Revolutionary war, and at the close of his third term of enlistment, with his papers (real Continental money), he secured a grant of land in Windsor county, Vermont, where he spent the remainder of his life. He wedded first Mary Bicknell, and after her death he married Ruth Wight, of Hardwich, Massachusetts, where his birth also occurred. Their son Seth, the third of a family of four sons and the grandfather of our subject, was born on the old homestead in Barnard, Vermont, served as a private in the Plattsburg, New York, campaign in the war of 1812, and afterward throughout life followed farming in that state, dying there at the age of forty-nine years. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Martha French, lived to the advanced age of eighty-two years. Our subject's maternal grandparents were Benjamin and Susana (Crowell) Briggs, residents first of Vermont, removing to Huron county, Ohio, in 1836, and residing there the remainder of their lives, while his great-grandparents were Ephraim and Rhoda (Whitcomb) Briggs, natives of Massachusetts. Ephraim Briggs also was a Revolutionary soldier, and participated in the battle of Lexington, under command of Captain Knowlton, afterward colonel. Wkhen mustered out at the close of three years service he was a commissioned officer of the Massachusetts Continental Line.
William E. Dean, the father of our subject, was one of the pioneers of Mills county, Iowa, having located here in 1849. He was a farmer by occupation and spent forty-four years upon one farm in this county. His death occurred at the homestead in Lyons township, when he was seventy-three years of age. In early life he was an old line Whig, but on the inception of the Republican party in 1854 he joined its ranks and assisted in its organization in Mills county. He took a prominent and active part in public affairs; served as the first coroner of the county; and filled at different times, all the local township offices. He was also the first drainage commissioner of the county, and by virtue of this office had charge of the public sale of the government swamp land in Mills county. He assisted in the building of many of the early schools and churches of this locality and always bore his part in the work of development and progress. His wife Susan died on the farm March 31, 1872, at the age of fifty years. She was the mother of six children, four of whom are still living. Later he married Eliza J. Briggs, a sister of the first wife, who also died at the family home, December 25, 1893.
Seth Dean, whose name introduces this review, is almost wholly self-educated, his early school privileges being limited. The rudimentary branches of learning he acquired at home and in the public schools of the township; and for about nine weeks he attended Tabor College in Fremont county. A good mathematician, he loved figures from early boyhood and displayed great aptitude for his present vocation; that of surveyor. He bought and borrowed books on civil engineering, thus educating himself, and is today one of the best in his line in the state. In 1874 he went to Kansas, where he worked on a farm for a short time. returning home in December of the same year he taught school through the winter months. In the fall of 1875 he was a candidate for county surveyor, but was defeated. He opened an office in Glenwood in the spring of 1876 and engaged in private practice. Being elected to office in 1877 he has since filled this office with credit to himself and to the satisfaction of all concerned. Mr. Dean is not wholly unknown in his profession outside of his own county. He was elected a member of the Civil Engineers' Club of the Northwest, at Chicago, in March, 1877, and upon the reorganization of the club as the Western Society of Engineers in 1883 he became a charter member of that body, holding membership therein until 1895. He was elected a senior member of the Michigan Engineering Society in January, 1888, and a non-resident active member of the New England Water Works Association in December of the same year. Mr. Dean was also a charter member and assisted at the "bornin" of the Iowa Surveyors' Association at Des Moines in February, 1885, and at the annual meeting in 1886 was elected the president of the association. This body united with the Iowa Civil Engineers' Society in 1887, the new organization taking the name of the Iowa Society of Civil Engineers and Surveyors. At this meeting Mr. Dean was unanimously elected the secretary, which office he held for ten consecutive years, retiring voluntarily at that time, but still retaining an active membership.
He was elected a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1885, with which organization he is still affiliated. He also served as a volunteer observer in the United States weather bureau, and in the Iowa weather service from January, 1877 to 1895.
On the 9th of April, 1879, Mr. Dean was united in marriage with Miss Anna Baxter, who was born in Weyauwega, Wisconsin, where she was reared and educated, removing with her parents to Glenwood in the spring of 1875. Her parents were Duncan Baxter and Clarissa (Chambers) Baxter, both natives of Remsen, Oneida county, New York. They were married in April, 1848, and in 1855 removed to Weyauwega, Waupaca county, Wisconsin, and in 1875 to Glenwood, Iowa where they both died. Her paternal grandparents were John and ____ (Coley) Baxter, of Remsen, Oneida county, New York, and the maternal grandparents were William and Clarissa (Cundal) Chambers, of Remsen, Oneida county, New York. Mr. and Mrs. Dean have one son, Henry H., a youth of fifteen who is at home.
In his political affiliations Mr. Dean is a Republican, but receives the support of his friends from all political parties. He cast his first presidential vote for General U. S. Grant in 1872. With the Masonic fraternity he also holds membership, and he and his family are active and prominent members of the Glenwood Baptist church.
DELASHMUTT, W. C.
This gentleman who follows farming near Glenwood in Mills county, is numbered among Iowa's native sons, for his birth occurred in Mahaska county, on the 3d of March, 1844, his parents being Peter Lindsay and Esther (Hunt) DeLashmutt, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Illinois. The father was a farmer by occupation and in 1838 he emigrated westward, taking up his abode in Burlington, Iowa, where he married Miss Hunt. They afterward removed to Jefferson county, this state, and about two years later went to Mahaska county, taking up their abode there in 1842. In 1849 Mr. DeLashmutt went to California and in 1859 to Colorado, but during the greater part of the period between 1842 and 1860 he was a resident of Mahaska county. In the latter year he came to Mills county, where he died on the 11th of March, 1897, at the age of eighty-one years.
With one exception W. C. DeLashmutt is the eldest of the family of nine children, eight of whom are now living. He started out in life upon his own account in 1864, going to Montana, where he remained for almost a year, buying and selling cattle. He afterward engaged in freighting and between the years 1865 and 1867 visited Denver and other points in the west. In 1868 he was united in marriage to Miss Sarah E. Gilliland, who died in September, 1885, at the age of thirty-five years. by this marriage there were five children, of whom four are living, viz: Lulu M., now Mrs. C. E. Dean, living in Glenwood, Iowa; Jessie L., now the wife of Clarence Stone; William Lynn; and Ernest W. Ola is the name of the one who is deceased. In January, 1892, Mr. DeLashmutt was united in marriage with Mrs. Nannie B. Hess, who had had one daughter by her former marriage, namely, Mildred, now Mrs. W. M. Estes.
Since his marriage Mr. DeLashmutt has carried on farming and stock-raising in Mills county, with the exception of the periods of his service in public office. In 1887 he was elected the sheriff of the county and served in that capacity for four years. In 1894 he was elected a member of the board of county commissioners and was made its chairman. Having been county commissioner for six years, he retired from office in January, 1901. His public duties have been discharged with marked fidelity and promptness. He today owns seven hundred and twenty acres of rich farming land in Mills county, and in connection with its cultivation he has been a very successful stock-raiser and feeder. Few men in Mills county have as many warm friends as the subject of this review. They are limited only by the circle of his acquaintance. Mr. DeLashmutt is a man of splendid character. If to love one's neighbor as one's self is the essence of all true religion, then he comes very near the fulfillment of the law in perfect measure. He is not only just but is also kind and considerate, and his example is indeed worthy to be followed.
DOYLE, WILLIAM H.
William H. Doyle occupies the old family homestead, comprising one hundred and sixty acres of the rich land of Mills county, and his home in Glenwood is an ideal location. The house is a well built brick structure, surrounded by fruit and shade trees and is very homelike and hospitable in appearance. for almost a half century William H. Doyle has been a resident of Mills county, the date of his arrival here being 1852.
A native of Indiana, Mr. Doyle was born in the year 1845, and is a representative of one of the old southern families. His paternal grandfather was born and died in North Carolina, and his wife, who also was a native of that state, spent her last days in Indiana. Adam Doyle, the father of our subject, was born in North Carolina, and after arriving at years of maturity he wedded Miss Sarah Moore, a native of Indiana. A farmer by occupation he carefully prosecuted his labors along that line and thus provided a comfortable living for his family. In 1850 he determined to seek a home in the west and removed from Indiana to Missouri, where he resided until 1852, the year of his arrival in Center township, Mills county, Iowa. He purchased a claim of one hundred and sixty acres from some Mormons who had encamped here by consent of the government, having made a temporary stay in this part of Iowa on their way from Nauvoo, Illinois, to their ultimate destination in Utah. Mills county was very wild at that time. There were not only no railroads but also no wagon roads, and it was the custom to travel anywhere across the country, taking the most convenient and easy route between the hills that would allow one to reach his destination. The land was unclaimed and in consequence uncultivated and the work of improvement and development seemed scarcely begun. Mr. Doyle, however, with resolute purpose assumed the task of developing a farm, and in the midst of the forest were soon seen rich fields of waving grain. He spent his remaining days upon the old family homestead, dying in 1872, at the age of fifty-six years. Of the children of his family one died in Missouri; Elizabeth DuToe(sic) is living in Denver; Jane Leek is a resident of this county; James makes his home in Denver; and Mrs. Ellen Thomas is living near Hillsdale, Iowa.
William H. Doyle, the other member of the family, received good educational privileges. He was only seven years of age at the time of the arrival of the family in Mills county, and amid the wild scenes of frontier life he spent his boyhood days. He attended the district schools until he had mastered the branches taught therein and afterward spent a year at Tabor (Iowa) College, a splendid institution of learning founded by the New England Congregationalists in 1850. It has graduated some of the leading men of this state and of the west. Mr. Doyle was a student there during the scholastic year of 1861-62. In 1881 he was united in marriage to Miss Rettie Binkley, a native of Ohio, in which state her father also was born. The marriage occurred in Mills county and has been blessed with the following named: Bertha, who is now a student at College View, in Lincoln, Nebraska; Nellie; Frances and Edward, both deceased; Bernie and Gracie. The living members of the family are bright and interesting children, ambitious to seek good education, and it is the intention of the parents that they have superior advantages in that line, thus fitting them for life's practical duties.
Mr. Doyle has ever been a public-spirited citizen, and at the time of the Civil war he manifested his loyalty to the government by entering the Union army. In the fall after he left college he enlisted, at Glenwood, when only seventeen years of age, becoming a member of Company K of the Second Nebraska Infantry in October, 1862. The regiment was organized for the purpose of fighting Indians, who were occasioning the government great trouble. The forces were under the command of General Sully, in whose honor was named a fort in Montana that our subject aided to establish. They had several hotly contested engagements with the Indians, and at the battle of White Stone Lake, in Dakota, thirty-two of their men were killed and eighty wounded, while the Indians suffered the loss of six hundred killed. Mr. Doyle was with his company under the command of General Sully for sixteen months on the expiration of which period he was honorably discharged. the importance of this Indian campaign, although it is not mentioned to any great extent in the histories of the Civil war, cannot be overestimated, for had the Indians of the west been allowed to continue in their course, life and liberty would have been rendered very unsafe to the residents of that portion of the country.
In his political views Mr. Doyle is a Prohibitionist. He is a man of strong moral courage, having high ideals concerning the duties of citizenship and of business and home life. He and his wife are members of the Adventist church of Glenwood. They occupy the original family homestead of one hundred and sixty acres and have there a comfortable residence, its hospitality being enjoyed by their large circle of friends.
DUNAGAN, BENJAMIN F.
A prominent citizen and successful farmer of Mills county, Iowa, is Benjamin F. Dunagan, the subject of this sketch. He was born in Missouri, in September, 1850, a son of John and Margaret E. (Gallaher) Dunagan, the former of whom was a native of Knoxville, Tennessee, and died in Missouri when our subject was a child of nine months. John Dunagan was a son of Nicholas Dunagan, a gallant soldier in the war of 1812, being noted in his locality as a daring antagonist, being a very strong man and exceedingly brave. Our subject has few relatives living, an aunt, Mrs. E. Witt, a resident of Mills county, and one brother, William A. Dunagan, who is a farmer in this county. Four sisters died in Missouri, and one, Mrs. T. M. Britt, the wife of a very prominent farmer, died in this county in 1895. The mother of our subject was born and married in Tennessee, but is now deceased, dying in Mills county. She was a daughter of William Gallaher, a miller by occupation and a well known resident of Tennessee.
Mr. Dunagan, of our sketch, came to Mills county with his grandfather in 1852, hence he is one of the very oldest residents. He was educaed in this county and has been a witness to its wonderful development. He is pleasantly located upon a fine farm three miles from the town of Hillsdale and engages most successfully in general farming. His land shows much cultivation and all of his surroundings are in keeping.
Our subject married Sarah A. Martin, a daughter of Benjamin C. Martin, who still resides in this county. The family of Mr. Dunagan consists of Lemuel F., a farmer residing in the neighborhood, Martha, Clara, Millard C. and Clarence E. The family is one of the most highly regarded in the Methodist church of Hillsdale, where they are consistent members. In politics Mr. Dunagan is a Republican and has held the office of trustee of Center township for six years, efficiently performing the duties of the office. socially he is connected with the I.O.O.F. organization and is a man of such superiority of character that his friends are many.
DYSON, JOHN
For twenty-eight years John Dyson has been a resident of Mills county and throughout this period he has been particularly active in advancing the agricultural interests of the community. The broad prairies of the Hawkeye state afford an excellent opportunity to the farmer, and by improving the possibilities that surrounded him Mr. Dyson has advanced to a very creditable position in the great department of business upon which the world's wealth depends, that of agriculture. He is of English birth, the place of his nativity being in Yorkshire, while his natal day was July 10, 1830. His parents, William and Hannah (Parkin) Dyson, were also natives of Yorkshire and there they spent their entire lives. The father had passed the sixtieth milestone on life's journey when called to his final rest, and the mother had reached the advanced age of one hundred and one years and six months. They were the parents of ten children, two of whom are yet living.
Mr. Dyson of this review pursued his education in the public schools of his native country, but his privileges were limited, owing to the fact that at the age of thirteen years he started out in life to provide for his own support by working as a farm hand by the year. He remained in England until 1853, when, believing he could better his financial condition in the new world, he arranged to become a resident of America. He crossed the broad Atlantic and made his way westward to McHenry county, Illinois, where he remained for a year. He afterward spent eighteen months in Hancock county, that state, and then came to Iowa, locating first in Lee county, where he was engaged in farming for about eighteen years. On the 17th of April, 1872, he arrived in Mills county and was first employed at breaking prairie for his brother William, who is now deceased. He then took up his abode on section 5 in White Cloud township, about a mile south of Malvern, and has since resided upon that farm, continuing the work of cultivation and improvement as the years have passed, until now he has one of the most desirable and attractive properties in this section of the state. He is also a director of the Silver City Bank, at Silver City, Iowa.
On the 8th of May, 1852, Mr. Dyson was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Douglas, a native of England and a daughter of Anthony and Sarah Douglas, who spent their entire lives in that country. Mr. and Mrs. Dyson have a pleasant home and enjoy the warm regard of many friends in the community. Mr. Dyson exercises his right of franchise in support of men and measures of the Republican party, his first presidential vote having been cast for Abraham Lincoln, in 1860. His fellow townsmen recognizing his worth and ability have frequently called him to public office and his service as a member of the board of supervisors covered a period of fifteen years. He is at present a trustee of White Cloud township and as an officer he has a public record that is above reproach, for he discharges his duties with a singleness of purpose, regarding only the best interests of the community. He was one of the organizers of the Mills County Central Fair Association and for twenty three years he served as its treasurer. This has done much to stimulate progressiveness among the agriculturists and has therefore been an important and beneficial element to the farming community of Mills county. He has been a Mason for about twenty-five years. He was made a member in Malvern Lodge, No. 234 A.F. & A.M. and was treasurer for many years of that organization.
DYSON, WILLIAM
William Dyson, deceased, who became a well-known resident of Mills county, Iowa where his earnest and indefatigable labors enabled him to rise from a humble financial position to one of affluence, was born at Goole Fields, Yorkshire, England, May 21, 1828. His parents were William and Hannah Dyson, and the former worked upon one farm for forty years. He died at the age of seventy-four years and his wife lived to the remarkable old age of one hundred and one years. The educational privileges which the son received were very limited. He attended the schools of Goole, studying a few primitive books, such as Reading Made Easy, the spelling book, arithmetic, the Testament and the Bible. Graduation was unknown at that time in the public schools, and at the age of fifteen he was forced to put aside his textbooks in order to earn his own livelihood and aid in the support of the family. He worked with his father on the farm where the latter was employed and gave his money toward paying the household expenses. His parents were kind but poor, and his advantages were therefore meager. When about eighteen years of age, however, he was allowed to do for himself and worked as a farm hand by the year, his wages averaging from four to twenty pounds per annum until his marriage, when he was given ten shillings per week and boarded himself. In the spring of 1852 he determined to try his fortune in America, believing that better opportunities were afforded in the new world by those who desired to gain advancement through their own labor. Accordingly he bade adieu to friends and native land and took passage on a sailing vessel which, after a voyage of six weeks, reached the harbor of Quebec. On a small boat he then sailed on the Great Lakes to Chicago and soon afterward secured work on a farm owned by John Harrison, in McHenry county, Illinois. He worked for four months at twelve dollars per month, and in October of that year he secured a position on a farm belonging to Dr. Hyde, the place being located just across the Wisconsin line. He made arrangements to remain in his employ for a year, at eleven dollars per month. On the expiration of that period he purchased a span of horses and went to Hancock county, Illinois, after which he was employed on the railroad for two years. In the spring of 1855 he came to Iowa, locating first near Farmington, Van Buren county. He gave his team of horses and some money in exchange for three yoke of oxen and secured work on the Des Moines river public works, hauling timber and rock for the locks and dams. In the spring of 1857 he came to Mills county, where he engaged in breaking prairie for two months and also hauled brick for the courthouse at Glenwood. Through the winter he engaged in chopping wood and digging cellars, in fact worked by the day at anything he could get to do that would yield him an honest living. The next year he rented land, and with the profits which had accrued from his labors, in 1859 he purchased eighty acres of land, at six dollars per acre. He was only able to make a partial payment and on the remainder had to pay twenty-five per cent interest. Money was scarce and times dull and the produce of the farm had to be hauled a long distance, the nearest markets being Nebraska City, Council Bluffs and Omaha. Enjoying good health, which enabled him to work, as the result of his untiring industry and economy he secured a nice fortune as the years went by and left to his family a good estate.
Mr. Dyson had been married in Whigift, Yorkshire, England, July 21, 1850, to Miss Hannah Whatt. Her father was a coal merchant and also conducted a small grocery store in Whigift. In 1876 Mr. and Mrs. Dyson made a trip to England, visiting the homes of their childhood and renewing the acquaintances of their youth. The children born of this marriage are: Ann E., born October 19, 1851; Martha, born October 13, 1853; Hannah, born September 6, 1855; Margaret, born February 10, 1859; George William, born October 20, 1860; Eliza, born December 17, 1862; Mary, born March 8, 1864; Sarah, born February 2, 1866; Clara, born October 25, 1867; and John William, born May 21, 1869. In his political views Mr. Dyson was a Republican, earnestly advocating the party principles. He held several local offices in connection with the management of the schools and of public roads, and took great interest in the work of improvement along those lines. Although never associating himself with any particular church, he gave freely to churches and Sunday schools, making donations toward the erection of four church buildings in his town. In the early days before houses of worship were known in this part of the country he and a few early settlers supported a minister and a good Sunday school, which convened in the rude country schoolhouse, and there they and other families enjoyed the advantages of divine worship. Mr. Dyson was of a jovial disposition, and in his home was cheerful, kind and indulgent. He was very liberal, generous and sympathetic to the poor and afflicted and his home sheltered many of the unfortunate ones of the earth. His kind impulses and his beneficence won for him the love and regard as well as the gratitude of many, and all who knew him held him in high esteem. He passed away September 29, 1895, leaving to his family a good name and a comfortable competence. Mrs. Dyson still resides on the home farm where she has so long lived, and throughout the community she has a large circle of friends.
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