Mills County, Iowa
History of Fremont and Mills County, 1901
Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, 1901
Biographical Sketches
W
WALL, WILLIAM R. M. D.
Many years have passed since Dr. William R. Wall arrived in Iowa, and he is justly numbered among her honored pioneers and representative citizens. He has been prominently identified with her business interests as a member of the medical profession. His is an honorable record of a conscientious man, who by his upright life has won the confidence of all with whom he has come in contact. He has rounded the psalmist's span of three score years and ten and though the passing of years has whitened his hair, he has the vigor of a much younger man, and in spirit and enterprise seems yet in his prime. Old age is not necessarily a synonym of weakness or inactivity, and it need not suggest, as a matter of course, want of occupation, of helplessness. There is an old age that is a benediction to all that comes in contact with it, that gives out richness from its stores of learning and experience and grows stronger intellectually and morally as the years pass. Such is the life of Dr. Wall, an encouragement to his associates and an example worthy of emulation to the young.
Dr. Wall was born February 28, 1826, in Knoxville, Tennessee, and is a son of William and Jane (Wolfe) Wall, the later a niece of General Wolfe, who fell at Quebec in the French and Indian war. Her father was a second cousin of George Washington and was a man of brave military spirit, who, when the country became involved in war with England, aided the colonists in their struggle for independence. He joined the American army, and the sword which he carried throughout the period of hostilities is now in the possession of Dr. Wall, of this review, and was carried by him in the Civil war. The family has always been noted for its military spirit. Through every war in which the country has been engaged it has furnished many representatives, who by their valor and loyalty have upheld the flag of the nation, battling earnestly for its principles and its rights. The grandfather was one of two brothers who settled in New York at a very early day. The maternal grandfather of the Doctor emigrated from London to South Carolina and then to Tennessee, and was there extensively engaged in mining, in which pursuit he attained wealth, becoming one of the leading and substantial citizens of his adopted state. William Wall the father of our subject resided for many years in Tennessee, his death occurring in Knoxville when he was thirty-five years of age. His widow passed away in Palestine, Indiana, at the age of eighty-four.
Dr. Wall, whose name introduces this sketch, was reared in the Hoosier state and pursued his education in Indianapolis where he was a classmate of General Lew Wallace and a son of Governor Noble. He was a young man of twenty one years when he first became connected with military affairs. With the blood of Revolutionary ancestors in his composition, his patriotic spirit was aroused at the trouble between the United States and Mexico, and on the 12th of April, 1847, he enlisted for service in the Mexican war under Lieutenant Snyder. For two years he remained in the army and was then mustered out at Covington, Kentucky, in 1849. Again he served his country when the sectional differences between the north and the south involved the nation in civil war. Believing firmly in the cause of the Union, he resolved to aid in establishing the supremacy of the government at Washington, and therefore "donned the blue," enlisting April 17, 1861, as a member of the Eighth Indiana Infantry, with which he went to the front as a private. There his fidelity to duty, his meritorious service and the readiness with which he mastered military tactics and discipline caused his promotion. He served three months and then went home and helped to organize, in 1862, six cavalry regiments. First he was a captain then a major and lieutenant colonel and at Nashville, Tennessee, he finally was brevetted a brigadier general. He commanded the Ninth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Cavalry, at Nashville, Franklin, and then brought the regiment home, and was with it mustered out at Indianapolis, at the close of the war. The Doctor is a natural soldier and commander, and it is said that when the Spanish-American war broke out he was as eager to go to the front as any of the young men. He possesses that quality of mind so necessary to a soldier of grasping a situation at a glance and deciding at once and correctly what to do.
Dr. Wall prepared for practice as a member of the medical fraternity in Chicago and Cincinnati, and for thirty years he has resided in Mills county, Iowa. Although he is now seventy-four years of age, he is still an active representative of the profession and has attained a wide fame as a specialist in the treatment of cancer. As his financial resources have increased he has made judicious investments in real estate and is today the owner of three hundred and fifty acres of valuable land, which brings to him an excellent income. He votes the Republican ticket, having been a stalwart advocate of the party since its organization. He is in hearty sympathy with its principles of protection to American industries, of a gold standard and expansion, believing that the stars and stripes wherever they have been planted should be upheld. He is a man of kindly nature, of generous impulses, liberal in his dealings, and at all times honorable in every relation of life. Much might be said in terms of laudation, but to those who know Dr. Wall it is unnecessary. He is a man of broad general information and ripe scholarship who has labored earnestly in the paths of his profession; and, whether his work has resulted in pecuniary benefit or not, no trust reposed in him has ever been slighted. A ripe old age, crowned with the efforts of his former toil and honored with the esteem of his fellow men, this in brief is the record of William R. Wall.
December 10, 1849, he married Miss Elvira Scott. His second wife was a Miss Allis, and his present wife was Louisa Lacey.
WASHBURN, ALBERT B.
Among the prominent and substantial farmer citizens of Mills county, Iowa, is Albert B. Washburn, the subject of this sketch. He was born in Winneshiek county, Iowa, in 1869, a son of John P. and Ellen (Devine) Washburn, the former of whom was born in New York, came to Iowa in 1853, and is now living in Cedar Falls, this state. The mother was born in Pennsylvania, a daughter of Joseph and Caroline Devine, and died in Tama county, Iowa in 1885. The paternal grandfather was named Jesse Washburn and was born in Vermont although of English ancestry.
After a thorough primary education our subject entered the Western College, at Toledo, Tama county, Iowa, and later the Upper Iowa University, a fine institution, among whose graduates are D. B. Henderson, Governor Larrabee and Senator William B. Allison. Mr. Washburn came first to Mills county eight years ago and married here, since making it his permanent home. He owns one thousand acres of rich Iowa land, located in this county, and engages in general farming and stock-raising, being one of the largest landholders in this part of the state.
Mr. Washburn was married in 1893, to Miss Mary (Wearin) Washburn, who is a daughter of Otha Wearin, whose family history appears in this volume. Two children have been born of this marriage: Lawrence and Henry W. In politics our subject is a Republican and strongly advocates the principles of his party, taking an intelligent interest in public affairs. Both he and his estimable wife are members of the Methodist church, to which Mr. Washburn has contributed liberally. They are among the most respected residents of the county, both families having large connections and hosts of friends.
WEARIN, ADELBERT J.
This gentleman is entitled to distinction as one of the most progressive and enterprising men of southwestern Iowa, and has for many years been identified with the interest of Mills county. Upon the commercial activity of a community depends its prosperity and the men who are recognized as leading citizens are those who control extensive business enterprises. Mr. Wearin is a man of broad capabilities who carries forward to successful completion whatever he undertakes.
He was born in Porter county, Indiana, about forty-five miles southeast of Chicago, and is a son of Josiah C. and Olive Wearin, who are represented on another page of this volume. As he never left the parental roof our subject affirms that he still resides at home. He is the only son in a family of seven children, and is practically self-educated, though he attended the district schools to some extent, at the same time herding cattle on the prairie and bringing them home at night. His first business experience aside from farming was in a bank at Hastings, which he and H. B. Gray established in 1890 and conducted about five years. He then came to Malvern and opened a bank at this place, which he carried on until July 1, 1900, when he sold out. Although practically retired from business, he still looks after his large estate, landed interests, live stock, etc., and is exceedingly busy for a retired man, being like P. T. Barnum, too progressive and up-to-date to cast aside all business cares.
On the 18th of September, 1885, Mr. Wearin was united in marriage to Miss Mary L. Foster, a native of southern Illinois, and a daughter of William W. and Ruth (Marion) Foster, the former a native of Illinois and the latter of Kentucky. The Fosters were of Scotch-Irish descent, and William W. Foster was an uncompromising Democrat. He died in Illinois in December, 1899, and his wife passed away in that state at the age of forty-two years.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Wearin were born two children, but one died in infancy. The living is Josiah F., a very bright young man, who was born on the 30th of September, 1887, on the old Wearin homestead in Indian Creek township, Mills county, near the village of Hastings. For the purpose of giving his son the benefit of the excellent schools of Malvern, Mr. Wearin removed to that place, and has erected there a handsome residence only three or four miles from the old homestead where his mother still lives and which he still regards as home. He is a man of strong convictions and many sterling qualities, and in short is a man among men. Since casting his first vote for Horatio Seymour in 1868 he has affiliated with the Democratic party and has done all in his power to advance its interests and insure its success. He and his family hold membership in the Presbyterian church, and occupy an enviable position in the best social circles of the community.
WEARIN, JOSIAH
More than a century ago George Washington said that farming is the most useful and well as the most honorable occupation to which a man devotes his energies. Throughout the ages history has demonstrated the fact that it forms the basis of all business activity and that the country is most prosperous which has for the foundation of its business affairs extensive and important agricultural interests. It is agriculture which has placed Iowa in its present high position among the sister states of the nation, and one of the leading representatives of this line of work through many years was Josiah Wearin, an honored pioneer of Mills county, where he became the owner of extensive landed interests and of large herds of stock. In the control of his business he not only promoted his individual success but also added to the general prosperity by improving the grade of stock and thus increasing its market value. His life history illustrates most forcibly the power of industry and capable management and the potency of honorable dealing in the active affairs of life.
Mr. Wearin was born in what is now West Virginia, May 2, 1824, his parents being Michael and Mary (Coe) Wearin. His father was a native of Virginia, but died in Mills county, Iowa, at the age of eighty-one years, while the mother was a native of Ohio and died in that state at the early age of thirty-seven. When our subject was a little lad of three summers he removed with his parents to Ohio and acquired his education in the primitive schools of that day. Later he became a resident of Porter county, Indiana. Thinking to better his financial condition in the far west, he left Indiana in March, 1850, upon an overland trip to California, making the journey in a wagon. He had only sixty dollars in money when he started upon what was to prove to him a prosperous trip. The first stop which he made for any length of time was at Council Bluffs, Iowa, and the second at Salt Lake City, Utah. At those places he obtained employment and when he had thus replenished his depleted exchequer he proceeded on his way, reaching the Golden state in the autumn of 1850, after many exciting incidents and many narrow escapes. On several occasions he almost lost his life. While in California he engaged in teaming, also in buying and selling live stock, which was a very profitable industry at that time, and in little more than three years he had managed to save from his earnings seven thousand dollars.
With that sum Mr. Wearin returned to Indiana in 1854, making the journey by way of the water route. The same year, after his return, he induced his brothers to come to Mills county, Iowa, and gave them instruction where to locate land, which they secured northwest of the present town of Hastings. For a few years after their arrival, Otha Wearin made his home with his brother Josiah and his wife, and when Otha was married Josiah divided with him all his lands, stock and farming implements. While Mr. Wearin was in California his wife raised white beans and threshed them out on an old overcoat in order to sell them and thus obtain money to pay the taxes on their Indiana land, having a tax title deed for one hundred and twenty acres, a part of which was afterward redeemed. When she received letters from her husband, it was customary for the receiver to pay the postage which oftentimes amounted to forty cents. If it happened that a letter was received in the evening, as she had no candles or grease to burn in a lamp, she would whittle pine shavings, which she would light upon a hearth, and by the fire would read the much-prized missive. During his residence in California Mr. Wearin suffered from mountain fever, small pox, and the measles. The winter of 1858 was a very cold one. He rented a little one-horse water sawmill four miles distant from the place he lived. One cold morning on arriving at the mill he found that everything was frozen and in attempting to pry the drive wheel loose with a crowbar, the bar slipped and cut a hole clear through his cheek. He was then carried into a house near by, the people believing that he was dead; but soon he showed signs of life and ultimately recovered.
In 1855 Mr. Wearin took up his abode upon a tract of land which his brothers had entered in Iowa. During the winter of 1855-56 he and his family resided in a log cabin of one room, 15 x 15 feet. When night came and it was time to retire they had to put their chairs out doors in order that they might place the trundle bed in the vacant space. There were nine persons living in the little cabin, which was located in Mud Creek Grove. In April, 1856, however, they removed to a better house upon the farm where Mrs. Wearin now resides. As the years passed the comforts and conveniences of civilization were added to their home, but when they came here everything was wild and new, few settlements having been made upon the broad prairies, the greater part of the land being still in its primitive condition. The houses were long distances apart and the pioneers had to depend almost entirely upon what they raised in order to supply the table. Many trials and hardships had to be borne, but with great fortitude these sturdy early settlers met circumstances as they were, doing everything possible to improve their environments as the years passed. During the Civil war a party of men, claiming to be Union advocates, came to the Wearin home, armed with revolvers, and took away three of their mules which they drove to St. Joseph, Missouri; but Mr. Wearin followed them alone, stood a lawsuit, pleaded his own case, and won it, and brought the three mules back with him.
As a result of the energetic and determined labor of Mr. Wearin he was enabled to add to his property from time to time, and when called to his final rest he was the owner of seven thousand acres of land in Mills county, and since he has passed away the estate has been increased to about eight thousand acres. Mr. Wearin always followed agricultural pursuits and his life was a striking contradiction of the statement that the farmer in the business of improving his land cannot acquire a fortune. He gave his whole life to earnest labor in the line of tilling the soil and raising stock, placed his fields under a high state of cultivation and in the autumn was enabled to gather rich harvests. In his pastures he placed good grades of cattle, horses and hogs, and in his stock-raising venture he found that he had made a profitable investment of his capital. He did much to improve the grade of stock and thus his labors were of much benefit to his community. His best thought and the greater part of his time was untiringly devoted to his work and thereby he was enabled to provide handsomely for his family and leave them a very valuable estate. He was certainly a recognized leader in agricultural circles in the great state of Iowa.
On the 3d of September, 1848, Mr. Wearin was united in marriage to Miss Olive Smith, who was born eleven miles west of Rochester, New York, in 1828, and is a daughter of James F. and Inda (Durby) Smith. Her father was a native of the Empire state, her mother of New Hampshire, and in the pioneer days of Michigan they removed to that commonwealth and thence to Indiana, also becoming pioneers of the latter state, where they both died. For many years the father conducted a tavern and was a well known and leading factor in the communities in which he conducted business in the early days. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Wearin have been born seven children, of whom five are yet living, namely: Mrs. Frances M. Benton, Adelbert J., Mrs. Coloma Hyde; Inda A., now Mrs. Coffman, and Mrs. Ida M. Fickel. The two daughters who have passed away are Olive and Flora.
Mr. Wearin was killed in a railroad accident November 8, 1881, at St. Charles, Missouri, while on his way with six carloads of cattle for the Boston market. For a number of years he had been vice president of the Mills National Bank, of Malvern, Iowa. In his political views he was a Democrat, and was a citizen of worth and reliability who withheld not his support from any measure or movement which he believed would contribute to the general good. All men recognized his worth and honored him for his fidelity to duty and to the right. He was one of the valued residents of Mills county and well deserves prominent mention in this history. Since his death the large estate has been managed by his son, Adelbert J., aided by the wise counsel of Mrs. Wearin, the mother, who is a woman of distinctive business ability, of remarkably keen discernment and reliable sagacity. They have carried on the work largely along the lines instituted by the husband and father, continuing the labors of improvement, as evidenced by the erection of a handsome residence which was built at a cost of twelve thousand dollars. Mrs. Wearin, who is now in the seventy-third year of her age, is a woman of remarkable energy and resolution. She has been a pioneer of three states, Michigan, Indiana and Iowa, and has witnessed with deep interest the progress made in the Mississippi valley, bearing her part in a quiet but no less important manner than did the pioneer husband and father. Notwithstanding her busy and active life she is still remarkably well preserved and could easily pass for a woman ten or fifteen years younger. She enjoys fancy needle work and makes many beautiful articles, her proficiency being equal to almost any one in the county along that line. She keeps well informed on the questions of general interest concerning the neighborhood and the nation, has a genial, sunny disposition and is very popular with her acquaintances. She holds membership in the Presbyterian church and contributes liberally to its support,. She is one of the wealthy women of southwestern Iowa and has ever capably controlled her extensive interests. Her history is one which contains many entertaining chapters, owing to her connection with pioneer events in three of the great commonwealths of the nation.
WEARIN, OTHA
A prominent farmer of Indian Creek township, Mills county, Iowa, is Otha Wearin, the subject of this sketch. He was born in Harrison county, Virginia, March 22, 1826, and is a son of Michael and Mary (Coe) Wearin, the former of whom was born in 1791, in Virginia, and died in 1887 at the home of his son in Mills county. The mother of our subject was born in Ohio, and died at the age of forty, leaving a family of nine children, four of whom are still surviving. The family removed from Virginia to Athens county, Ohio, thence to La Porte, Indiana, and in 1856 to Mills county, Iowa.
Our subject remained at home with his parents until he was twenty years old, in the fall of that year accompanying his brother Josiua to Indiana. There they worked for their uncle, P. Robbins, for two years, and in the winter seasons attending school in Michigan City. Otha Wearin left Indiana in the fall of 1854 and came to Mills county, walking most of the way, thus showing the determination to overcome obstacles which has marked his after life.
After reaching Iowa Mr. Wearin took up government land, and the first winter chopped wood and sold it in Glenwood, thus paying his board. In the spring of 1855 he and his brother rented land and later took up three thousand acres. Until 1858 the brothers lived together, but separated at the time of our subject's marriage, December 23, 1859, to Miss Martha Workman, who was born in Indiana in 1832, and died here when about thirty years of age. She was the mother of four children: Charles O., Joseph A., William Henry and Mary V.
After his marriage our subject located upon this place, his first residence being a little box-house, sixteen by eighteen feet in dimensions and lived there until 1882, when the present comfortable residence was built. At the age of twenty Mr. Wearin owned nothing but a saddle and bridle. He now possesses seven hundred acres of land here, and about two thousand in Nebraska.
In politics Mr. Wearin has always voted the Democratic ticket, casting his first ballot in 1848 for Lewis Cass. However, in local issues he reserves the right to vote for the one he considers the best man for the office. About the time of his wife's death he retired from active work, but still looks after his interests in a quiet way. The family is one of the most respected in the neighborhood, and its members are attendants at church and interested in any educational movements in the community. Mr. Wearin is a man who commands the respect and esteem which he receives, on account of his high character and record of honest and dignified living.
WILKINS, WILLIAM A.
One of the prosperous young farmers of Mills county, Iowa, is the subject of this sketch, who was born in Washington county, Iowa, November 8, 1873, and is a son of B. F. and Mary J. (Moore) Wilkins. His father was born in Roane county, Tennessee, January 6, 1847, the latter in the same county, July 6, 1852, and they were married in August, 1870. The paternal grandfather of our subject was Elisha Wilkins, who emigrated from Tennessee to Washington county, Iowa, in 1865, bringing with him his wife, six sons and three daughters. One son is now a Methodist minister in Birmingham, Iowa, another, for many years a practicing physician in Oskaloosa, this state, moving in 1893 to Colorado for his health, where he had vast interests in the sheep business. While there he was a surgeon for the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad, and also elected to the legislature in 1894, returning to his old home in Washington county, Iowa, where he died in 1897. The paternal grandmother of Mr. Wilkins was Nancy Burnet, a native of Tennessee, born in 1823, hence she is nine years the junior of her husband, who bears his years as well as she does hers, both being active in mind and body. The grandfather being one of the few pensioners of the Black Hawk war.
Our subject is the second in number in a family of six children, these being: Dwight E., a resident contractor of Council Bluffs; our subject; R. H., a civil engineer residing with his wife at the home of W. A.; Fred, an official of the Union Pacific Railroad; Claira Idell and Earl. Mr. B. F. Wilkins resides in Council Bluffs, but is a commercial traveler in the nursery business. Our subject was educated in the public schools and academies of Washington county, Iowa, and at the age of twenty left home to fight the battles of the world for himself. Going to Fremont, Nebraska, he entered the commission house of Kirschbraun & Sons, where he remained for two years, and then spent two years representing them on the road. Following this initial capacity he traveled for one and one-half years representing Edward Lytle, of Omaha, Nebraska, closing his engagement only on account of the failure of the firm. He is now engaged in farming on a tract of one hundred acres one and one-half miles from Silver City, Iowa, owned by his father-in-law, renting also fifty acres, upon all of which he carries on a general farming business, also raising fine cattle, hogs, and horses and making hogs a specialty, and he is making a success of the new venture.
Mr. Wilkins was married, March 30, 1898, to Miss Birdie Huffaker, the beautiful and accomplished daughter of H. H. Huffaker, of Silver City, Iowa. She is the only daughter in that family and is a well-educated lady of great ability, painting in oil and proficient on the piano. She was born in Silver City, in 1880, and educated in St. Francis Academy in Council Bluffs, Iowa. One little son has come into this family, born December 26, 1898; and it is needless to say he is the idol of his grandfather. Mr. Huffaker, the father of Mrs. Wilkins, came to this county in an early day from Illinois and now possesses many broad acres of fertile land.
In politics Mr. Wilkins is a Republican and boldly upholds the principles of the party. He has no desire for office, his business and delightful home giving him sufficient use for his time. The substantial residence of Mr. and Mrs. Wilkins was erected for them by the generosity of Mr. Huffaker. They resided at the old farm nearly sixteen months and came to their place in July, 1899. A fine new barn is in course of erection, and there seems to be no reasonable doubt that prosperity will continue to smile upon this most worthy young couple.
WILLIAMS, LEROY E.
Prominent among the business men of Mills county is Leroy E. Williams, who is closely identified with the history of this city as a representative of one of the most important business interests. He is a man of keen discrimination and sound judgment, and his executive ability and excellent management have brought to the concern with which he is connected a large degree of success. The progressive, safe, but conservative policy which he inaugurated commends itself to the judgment of all and has secured to the company a patronage which makes the volume of annual business transacted of great importance and magnitude. the prosperity of the company is certainly due in a large measure to its president and manager, the gentleman who is the subject of this review.
Leroy E. Williams was born in Virginia, February 22, 1864, so that he is yet a young man, and the future undoubtedly holds in store for him greater successes. His parents, E. P. and Rebecca (Isler) Williams, were both natives of the Old Dominion, and the father still resides in that state, where the greater part of his life has been devoted to the operation of a pig-iron furnace in Giles county, his business being extensive. His wife died in January 1865, leaving two children, the daughter being Nannie R., now the wife of F. E. Dunklee, of Newport, Virginia.
Mr. Williams, of this review, remained upon the home farm in Clark county, Virginia, until eight years of age. He pursued his education by tutor and in the public schools of Newport, Salem and Richmond, Virginia, and Baltimore, Maryland, and at the early age of twelve years began making his own way in the world, since which time he has been dependent entirely upon his own resources. He was one of four hundred boys that were examined for admission to the Baltimore City College and was one of two to pass the highest percentage at that time. When a lad of twelve summers he became assistant in the office of the clerk of Clarke county, Virginia, and the following year was made head bookkeeper of the Johns Mountain Iron Company, in Giles county, Virginia, in which capacity he served about three and a half years. On the expiration of that period he went to Atlanta, Georgia, where for two and a half years he was in the employ of the Bradstreet Mercantile Company.
In September, 1884, he arrived in Glenwood, Iowa, to accept a position in the Mills County National Bank, of Glenwood, where he remained until January, 1893, when he resigned in order to give his attention to his personal affairs, having in the meantime become associated with the New Glenwood Canning Company, which was organized in 1882. He was made its bookkeeper and assistant secretary in 1886, and was thus engaged, in addition to his bank and other work, until 1890, when he became a partner in the enterprise, of which he at that time was also made secretary and treasurer, thus serving until 1897, when he became the president of the company. From a small industry in 1882 the plant has steadily grown until it is now one of the largest west of Indiana, having a capacity for packing one hundred thousand cases, or two million and four hundred thousand cans, during the canning season. The goods put up by this company are of a high grade, being prepared for the best trade. The company furnishes employment to about one hundred and fifty people during the canning season, which continues about six months. Tomatoes, sweet corn, beets, hominy, pumpkins and baked beans are among the products canned and shipped from their establishment. The company manufacturers its own tin cans, having in this department of the buiness a capacity for six million cans per annum. They also have a fine fruit evaporator, with a capacity of evaporating five hundred bushels of wood-dried apples per day. this is said to be one of the finest and best fruit evaporators in the United States. The business of the New Glenwood Canning Company has grown to an extensive volume and the industry is one of the most important in this section of the state, being of practical value to the community by furnishing employment to many men and women. Mr. Williams, the president, is a man of resourceful business ability who has not confined his efforts to one line alone. He is a stockholder in the Glenwood State Bank and the owner of a fine Mills county bottom farm.
On the 21st of December, 1893, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Williams and Miss Bessie E. Anderson, of Glenwood, a daughter of the late William H. and Ella J. Anderson. Her father was one of the prominent men and bankers of Glenwood for many years, having located in this city in 1857. Mr. and Mrs. Williams have one of the finest colonial homes in Glenwood, it having been erected in 1899. It is supplied with all the conveniences and adornments that fine taste can suggest and an added attraction is the air of gracious hospitality which ever pervades the home.
In his political views Mr. Williams is a pronounced Republican, giving his time and money for the advancement of the interests of that party. He was, however, reared in the Democratic faith and affiliated with that political organization until 1894. His life has been one of continuous and arduous labor and is a brilliant illustration of the potency of earnest work in the acquirement of success. He is recognized as one of the most capable, far-sighted and enterprising business men of Glenwood, and his entire accomplishments but represent the result of the fit utilization of the innate talents which are his and the directing of his efforts along those lines where mature judgment and rare discrimination lead the way. There is in him a weight of character, a native sagacity, a far-seeing judgment and a fidelity of purpose that commands the respect of all. He is a man of indefatigable enterprise, industry and fertility of resources and has carved his name deeply on the records of Mills county.
WILLIAMS, MARSHALL J.
A very wealthy landholder and prominent farmer of Mills county, Iowa is Marshall J. Williams, the subject of this sketch. He is the son of Dr. S. W. Williams and was born in Pottawattamie county, Iowa, July 4, 1864. His father, Dr. Williams, was a native of Ashtabula county, Ohio, and became a prominent citizen of Iowa, well and favorably known in his profession, and especially beloved in his family. His educational advantages in early life were very limited, but he applied himself to his books whenever opportunity offered, the result being that he acquired a fund of varied information which enabled him to take an equal position in life with those who had been more favored by fortune. When but fourteen years of age he went to Cape Girardeau county, Missouri, and engaged as a clerk in a mercantile business, remaining in this position for about seven years, quietly preparing all this time to enter the profession of medicine.
Dr. Williams attended a course of lectures at the Louisville Medical College and then commenced to practice at his former home, shortly afterward returning to the college, where he finished the course and graduated at the head of his class, in 1851. Removing to Council Bluffs, Iowa, he engaged in practice in connection with Dr. P. J. McMahan, a prominent physician of that place. He became very successful and was valued highly by the residents of Council Bluffs. He possessed those noble traits of character which the world loves to find in a physician, kindness, courtesy and sympathy. He was ever ready to respond to the call of the sick, making no distinction between the rich and the poor.
Owing to failing health Dr. Williams retired from practice in 1865 and located on a farm near Glenwood, Iowa. He was called upon very often to consult with brother physicians, but aside from this duty he entirely laid away his medical paraphernalia realizing that work in that line was at the expense of his own health. He became closely identified with all of the progressive measures intended to promote the growth of Mills county. For several years he was a member of the various county boards, and at one time was a candidate for representative. He labored to promote the interests of the Congregational church, of which he was a trustee. The death of Dr. Williams occurred June 8, 1880, at the age of fifty-seven. He had married Janet Frierson, in 1856, and three children were born of this union: Rowena; Sarah E., who married James Rec??l; and Marshall J., our subject. The mother of these children died January 31, 1886.
Our subject was placed in a very trying and responsible position at the time of his father's death. He was but sixteen years old, and the care of the large estate fell upon his young shoulders, but he faced the responsibility and overcame the many difficulties. He took a trip to California, but with that exception has spent his life on his own land. He is the owner of three hundred and thirty acres, and a half interest in two hundred and seventy acres, both in Oak township, and eight hundred and eighty acres in Pottawattamie county. He has carried on farming in connection with stock-raising in both of which he has been very successful. He has never had a case of disease among his hogs, which are of Poland China and Berkshire breeds. Their pens and yards are kept clean and disinfected, and probably this precaution explains the vigorous health of his stock. Among his cattle the same conditions prevail. He has made a scientific study of the science of breeding and the care of stock and considers regular feeding a great factor in successful management of such a business. His preference in cattle is for the Hereford and Durham breeds of which he owns a great number.
The marriage of Mr. Williams took place March 24, 1887, to Miss Gertrude L. Starbuck, a daughter of Elisha Starbuck, a native of Ohio, and now engaged in the practice of law at Glenwood, Iowa. To Mr. and Mrs. Williams has been born one child: Clifford Starbuck Williams, August 11, 1891. Mr. and Mrs. Williams are among the representative people of Mills county. They are highly esteemed and well-known residents, and their hospitable home is familiar to their many friends.
In politics Mr. Williams is a Democrat but has never sought office, although he has been made chairman of the central committee for many years and at present is township trustee.
WILSON, JAMES J.
James J. Wilson, the well-known and popular cashier of the First National Bank of Malvern, Iowa, was born in Monmouth, Illinois, on the 17th of November, 1856, his parents being John G. and Melvina (Skinner) Wilson, natives of Ohio. The father died at Monmouth, Illinois, in 1885, at the age of fifty-nine. The mother is still living in Monmouth with her daughter, Mrs. Carrie Ritchey.
After completing his education in the school of his native city Mr. Wilson was employed as a bookkeeper for about ten years, and was also engaged in farming upon his own land for a time. In 1888 he came to Malvern and accepted the position of bookkeeper in the First National Bank. In 1893 he was promoted to cashier, which responsible position he has since efficiently filled. He has gained a wide reputation as a most capable financier, and to his business ability and sound judgment the bank owes much of its success.
On the 29th of November, 1884, Mr. Wilson was united in marriage to Miss Anna Berigan, a daughter of Abraham and Bridget Berigan. By this union have been born two children, Robert H. and Carrie, the birth of both having occurred in Malvern. The family are communicants of the Catholic church and are quite prominent socially.
Politically Mr. Wilson has been identified with the Democratic party since casting his first presidential vote for General Hancock, and socially he has affiliated with the Knights of Pythias for several years. He is one of the most prominent and progressive business men of Malvern, and well merits the high regard in which he is uniformly held.
WINKLER, ALPHEUS H.
Among the most progressive and enterprising business men of Mills county none stand higher in public esteem than Alpheus H. Winkler of Glenwood. He was born in Holt county, Missouri, December 8, 1855, and is of English and German descent. According to tradition his great-great-grandfather was reared by King William III, of England, being educated by that monarch for the ministry. His father, Wyatt T. Winkler, was a native of Fayette county, Pennsylvania and a son of William and Margaret Winkler. The grandfather was born in Germany and when a young man came to the United States, locating on a farm in Pennsylvania, where he spent the remainder of his life, dying there at the age of eighty-four years. He was a highly educated man, and prior to his emigration to the new world, took part in the German wars. In early days he was noted as a log-roller, being a man of great strength, and at the age of eighty-two could throw the best wrestler in his county, that being quite a pastime in those days. He devoted his life to farming and was also a tax collector.
About 1849 when a single man, Wyatt T. Winkler, the father of our subject, left Pennsylvania and removed to Glasgow, Missouri, where he operated a ferry and also conducted a general store until 1861, when he removed to Holt county, Missouri, and thence to eastern Kansas. There he also engaged in merchandising and farming, and continued to make his home in that state until called from this life June 18, 1885, at the age of fifty-eight years. He was one of the old free-state Democrats, and was a man highly respected by all who knew him. He wedded Miss Mary J. Thrailkill, a native of Missouri, who is now living on a farm in Oklahoma. By this union were born ten children, all of whom are still living. Mrs. Winkler's grandparents were William and Polly (Ish) Thrailkill. William Thrailkill was born in Tennessee and died in California, and his wife was born in Scotland and died in Missouri. Reared on his father's farm and in the village where his father was engaged in business, Alpheus H. Winkler was principally educated in the district schools, but he attended high school for a time, and in 1882 was graduated at Bryant's Commercial College, of St. Joseph, Missouri. He was married on the 22nd of October, 1885, to Miss Margaret Culwell, a native of Nemaha county, Nebraska, and they have become the parents of three children: Ada M., Albert H. and Ethel May, all born in Hiawatha, Kansas.
Henry Culwell, the father of Mrs. Winkler, was born in Tennessee, of which state his parents, Samuel H. and Margaret (Mayberry) Culwell, were also natives, while the latter was a daughter of James Mayberry. Samuel H. Culwell died in Nebraska at the age of sixty-eight years, and his wife passed away in the same state at the age of sixty-nine. The Culwells followed agricultural pursuits principally and were also businessmen. In 1855, in company with his parents and the four other children of the family, Henry Culwell removed to Illinois, and in the spring of 1857 went to Nemaha county, Nebraska, where he made his home until coming to Glenwood, Iowa, in May, 1900. In connection with our subject he is now running the electric light plant at this place. On the 20th of December, 1864, he was united in marriage with Miss Catherine Mayes, and to them were born four children, one of whom is now deceased. Mrs. Culwell was one of a family of fourteen children, whose parents were Joel and Martha Mayes, natives of Missouri and Tennessee, respectively. The former died in Nemaha county, Nebraska, at the age of forty-nine, the latter in Jackson county, Missouri, at the age of seventy-one years.
After his marriage Mr. Winkler made his home in Hiawatha, Kansas, until 1895, when he came to Glenwood, Mills county, Iowa, where he has been a reputable business man of high standing ever since. He has large farming interests both here and in Nebraska, and also owns several hundred acres of valuable coal and iron lands in Tennessee. He is quite extensively engaged in the real estate and loan business, and also conducts the electric light plant at Glenwood, which he purchased in 1899. By putting in new machinery he now has one of the most modern plants in this part of the country. He is recognized as one of the leading and successful real estate men in southwestern Iowa. Since casting his first presidential vote for Grover Cleveland Mr. Winkler has been an ardent Democrat, and fraternally is identified with the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen of America. He and his family attend the Methodist Episcopal church, and they are recognized as valuable and prominent additions to the commercial and social circles of their adopted home. Thoroughly up-to-date and progressive Mr. Winkler is a man of excellent business and executive ability, whose sound judgment, unflagging enterprise and capable management have brought to him well-merited success. In manner he is pleasant and cordial, which, combined with his sterling worth, makes him one of the popular citizens of the community.
WOODROW, E. R. C.
The name of this gentleman is inseparably interwoven with the history of Mills county, for through many years he was a prominent factor in its progress and development and up to his death was numbered among its honored and valued citizens. He was born on a farm in Guernsey county, Ohio, in the year 1830, the place of his birth being near the town of Byesville. He was one of a family of ten children who grew to adult age among the stern realities of life upon a farm in a comparatively recently developed region. At the age of twenty-three years he was united in marriage to Miss Mary Ann Fisk, of Marshall county, West Virginia, and spurred on by the wonderful hardihood and Christian character which seemed to mark the men and women who brought to the country the first evidences of civilization, this young and inexperienced, but the hopeful couple set out from the homes of their youth, leaving behind them the friends and associations of childhood and came to Iowa.
The journey was made by boat and on the 10th of May, 1853, Mr. Woodrow and his wife reached Glenwood, then a small hamlet known as Coonsville. Many hardships came to them in the years of the early settlement, and difficult to meet were the trials which they were forced to encounter. It is a very arduous task to establish a new home on a western frontier, deprived of the comforts and privileges of the east, but with brave hearts and resolute spirit Mr. and Mrs. Woodrow undertook the task which they finally successfully accomplished. Four children came to their home and thus added to their labors, but at the same time their lives were brightened by the prattle and happiness of the innocent little ones. Only one of the number however, is living, namely, Dr. E. G. Woodrow, a successful practicing dentist at Glenwood. In 1877 the wife and mother died and in 1880 Mr. Woodrow was married to the lady who is now his widow.
Mr. Woodrow was a carpenter by trade and during the first eight years of his life in Mills county he diligently followed that calling in Glenwood. In 1861 he established a shoe store which he successfully carried on for seventeen years. Subsequently he embarked in the real estate business, in that enterprise being associated with J. E. Nickham up to a short time prior to his death, when Mr. Woodrow practically retired from active life. His career was one of marked diligence and enterprise and that he won success is due entirely to his own well directed efforts, guided by sound judgment and unquestioned honesty.
In 1860 he became a member of the Baptist church was untiring in his works and contributed liberally to its support. He acted as trustee and deacon and did all in his power to promote its cause among men. He was also a trustee and the treasurer of the Iowa Institution for Feeble Minded Children, acting in that capacity until 1888, or for a period of eleven years. His Christian character was at once unique and interesting. Common sense and practical judgment predominated and was combined with wisdom and a genial and kindly manner which attracted people to him and won their regard and confidence. He was a safe and reliable advisor in common things and many persons will remember his friendly council. He listened with patience and careful consideration to the tales of woe and sorrow which were brought to him, and to the best of his ability he pointed the surest way of relief to them. Possessing a deeply religious temperament and strengthened by an unfaltering belief in an over-ruling Providence, he made religion at once a plain, practical thing which became a part of his daily life and not merely a Sabbath observance. To have known him well, to have been familiar with his mental tenderness, his moral traits, his clearness of perception, his accuracy of conclusion, his homely speech, his quaint metaphors, his patient attention, and his ready and responsive sympathy, was to be impressed with his resemblance to Abraham Lincoln.
He had a comprehensive knowledge of pioneer life as he had seen it in the west through a period of nearly fifty years. Those who have sat for hours and heard him describe and comment upon the life, the customs and habits of that period, cannot forget the knowledge they thus obtained of one of the most interesting and eventful epochs of our history. If the reminiscences recounted by him in these talks and his observations of minor events and the life of the time could be preserved they would comprise a volume of rare value to the residents of the community. As a man, a citizen, a friend, a philosopher, a guide and helper among his fellows, his memory will ever be honored in the hearts of all who knew him. He left the impress of his life and character upon the community, its history and its progress. These are a public heritage graciously cherished. His influence was as a blessed benediction to all who knew him and no history of the community would be complete without a record of his career.
WOODROW, EDWIN G.
Edwin G. Woodrow is engaged in the practice of dentistry in Glenwood, and his ability has won him prestige as a representative of the profession. He is numbered among the native sons of the city, his birth having here occurred on the 30th of September, 1864, his parents being Ebenezer R. C. and Mary A. (Fisk) Woodrow. His father was widely and favorably known in Mills county, where he first settled in 1846. He was prominently identified with the real-estate, loan and abstract business and his name figured conspicuously in connection with transactions along those lines.
At the age of seventeen Dr. Woodrow entered the office of F. M. Shirver, a dentist of Glenwood, who directed his studies for three years, and at the same time he became familiar with the practical work of dentistry, as well as with the principles of the science. He had acquired a good education in the public schools of his native town and at the age of twenty years he became a student in the Iowa State University at Iowa City, where he pursued the study of dentistry with unremitting diligence for two years, and on the 21st of March, 1886, he was graduated in that institution with honor. He then located in Shenandoah, Iowa, where he succeeded Dr. Nance. In this profession he has doubtless found the occupation for which he was intended by nature. He follows the latest and best improved methods of dentistry and is particularly well qualified especially in the line of crown and bridge work. He has an office supplied with the latest equipments and instruments, and he is an earnest and enthusiastic follower of the profession in which his marked ability and unremitting toil have gained him high rank.
The Doctor is a consistent member of the Baptist church and is active in religious work and in social circles. He possesses considerable musical talent and has had an influence in promoting the musical culture of the city. He is courteous and affable in manner, obliging and kindly in disposition and has the esteem of all with whom he comes in contact. In 1890 he sold his business in Shenandoah to Dr. Richardson and returned to his native city, where he has already secured a liberal patronage, which is constantly increasing. He is a member of the Iowa State Dental Society and also belongs to the Knights of Pythias fraternity, while in his political affiliations he is a Republican.
WORTMAN, JOSEPH M.
One of the well known and highly respected citizens of Deer Creek township, Mills county, Iowa, who is also an honored veteran of the Civil war, is Joseph M. Wortman. Mr. Wortman was born in 1839, in the state of Ohio. His father, Jacob Wortman, was a native of Virginia, and his mother, Valeria O. (Elliott) Wortman, was born in the state of New York.
Jacob Wortman passed his last days in Mills county, Iowa, where he had removed with his family in 1856. He had served faithfully a short term under General Jackson in the war of 1812, and afterward engaged in Indian warfare. Benjamin Wortman, an uncle, served through the war of 1812 and through the Indian war, and one cousin, Benjamin Wortman, served in the Mexican war, the family seeming to have a taste for military life, our subject also making a brilliant record for himself in that line. The mother of our subject removed from New York, where she was born, to Kentucky, where she married, and passed her last days, after the removal of the family to Iowa.
When the Wortman family drove across the country from Ohio to Iowa, they found very different conditions from those they are now accustomed to prevailing in that then remote corner. The claim they bought was fertile, but for a time they had to face all the adversities of pioneer life, drought, wind and crop failure, and bear for some time the isolation that was inevitable, for few neighborly visits could be exchanged in those days. These conditions were experienced by our subject, and he now has his reward, in the ownership of a fine farm of nearly five hundred acres, upon which he resides in deserved comfort.
In 1861 Mr. Wortman left home and went to Omaha, where he enlisted in the First Nebraska Cavalry, but the regiment, not having its full number, was brought to Iowa and made a part of the Fifth Iowa Cavalry, under Colonel Lowe. Its first move was to Benton Barracks at St. Louis, from there being transferred to Fort Donelson, where it engaged in the battle fought at that place in 1862. After that his regiment, now a part of the Army of the Cumberland, engaged in the chase and capture of guerrillas through Tennessee and Kentucky, and took part in the terrible battle of Corinth, since which time many a family has worn the token of woe. Following this battle the regiment to which our subject belonged was detached, and combined with the Fourth Michigan Cavalry (which captured Jefferson Davis) and the Seventh Pennsylvania Regulars. The new organization became known as the Saber Brigade, and under General Minty became as famous through the country as the Iron Brigade, under General Bragg. These trained soldiers were experts in sword practice, and their services were constantly in demand, at Stone River, Nashville, and all around Atlanta. On account of their skill and bravery this brigade was always placed at the front and experienced hard fighting all through the war. As a cavalryman our subject was frequently called upon to perform very hazardous picket and guard duty, often being exposed to the greatest dangers. Although escaping wounds he was captured by the enemy and placed in the terrible prison pen at Andersonville, contracting sickness there which necessitated a time in the hospital at Bedloe's island, after the close of the war. He was mustered out there in 1865. The war has long been happily over and its issues closed, but a grateful country cannot forget her heroes.
Mr. Wortman married Amanda M. Dolph, of the well known Dolph family of Mills county, and two children were born to them, William S. and Mrs. Bertha White. Since the war Mr. Wortman has been an ardent Republican and has filled a number of local offices, such as trustee and school director. Both he and his estimable wife belong to the United Brethren church, where they are beloved for their many virtues. The general estimate of Mr. Wortman is that of a neighbor, a good man, whom everyone in the neighborhood respects, and this is worthy praise.
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