way steadily upward until he was recognized as one of the self-made men of his township. In addition to tilling the soil he raised and fed cattle and hogs and found that a profitable source of income. Year by year his farming and stock-raising interests were carried on carefully, systematically and profitably until 1893, when he left the farm work to others and removed to the city of Nevada, where he resided until his death. During the first seven years of his residence in Nevada his home was upon a farm lying partially within the corporation limits. About 1900 he removed to Linn street, occupying an attractive residence, in which his widow now makes her home.
Mr. Robison was married in Pennsylvania, in February, 1852, to Miss Nancy Greer, a native of that state. She, too, was born in Mifflin county and was a daughter of Adam and Mary Greer. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Robison were born eight children : George G., who is married and resides in Nevada; Ida, who became the wife of A. G. Moore and died near Nevada, December 28, 1909, leaving three daughters : Emma, the wife of Warren Maxwell, of this county; Roland, who is married and is an extensive cattle feeder living four miles west of the town of Maxwell; Charles, who is married and resides on a farm six miles south of Nevada; Fannie, who is the wife of Ephraim Proctor, living about four miles from Cambridge; Edward, a resident of Maxwell, Iowa; and Bert, who follows farming near Nevada. All of the children are now married and have homes of their own.
When Mr. and Mrs. Robison came to Story county in September, 1856, their cash capital consisted of but ten dollars. The following winter was a most severe one and they suffered much with the cold. They had started from Lafayette with ox teams but one of the oxen became crippled and Mr. Robison traded the other for a horse and bought another horse, driving the rest of the way with the newly acquired team. At that time the county contained a population of little more than two hundred and the town of Nevada was not founded for five years more. There was scarcely any money in circulation and Mr. Robison worked at his trade and in compensation therefore took what he could of the necessaries of life. Des Moines, thirty miles away, was the nearest trading point. Food supplies were scarce and prices were very high at first. The family met all of the hardships, privations and trials of pioneer life, but with the passing years all this changed, and as the result of his energy, diligence and wisely directed effort Mr. Robison became one of the wealthiest men of the county.
After his retirement he spent two winters in California in company with his wife. In all matters of citizenship. he stood for progress and reform, seeking the adoption of methods and measures for the benefit of the community at large. He instructed his children in habits of industry and economy and reared a family who are a credit to his name. He continued his residence in Nevada until his death, which occurred January 23, 1906. In the meantime he had been an interested witness of the growth and de-