ALFRED CONNER
Derby
numbers among its honored, valued and representative citizens,
Alfred Conner, who for almost sixty years has been a resident
of Union township and is ranked with the earliest and greatest
of her pioneers. He
has witnessed practically the entire period of the development
and expansion of this part of the state and in the work of
upbuilding has borne an active and honorable part through the
years, accomplishing not only a great individual prosperity,
but a success which is important as an element in general
growth. Possessed
of unusual traits of mind and character, he has so guided his
activities and directed his life that he has won the respect
and esteem of all who have been in any way associated with him
and is recognized as a progressive citizen, an able business
man and a worthy and upright gentleman. Mr. Conner has been
a resident of Union township since the spring of 1855, but was
born in Preston county, West Virginia, November 3, 1831. He is a son of Job
and Nancy (McNier) Conner, the former a native of Preston
county and the latter of Pennsylvania. The parents came
overland from Brandonville, West Virginia, in 1844, and
settled in Cass county, Indiana, near Logansport, then moved
to Union township, Lucas county, Iowa, in 1855, where the
mother passed away in 1861, at the age of fifty years. The father died in
Indiana at the age of forty.
The following children were born to their union: Mrs. Margaret
Clymer, who has passed away; Alfred, of this review;
Elizabeth, deceased; William H., who resides in Derby; John;
Harrison, who has passed away; Lucy Ann, who died at the age
of fifteen; and two, who died in infancy.
Alfred
Conner spent his childhood and youth in Brandonville, Preston
county, West Virginia, and when he was twenty-four years of
age, accompanied his parents overland to Iowa, locating in
Union township in 1855.
He found here a tract of raw prairie land, on which
wild game was abundant, sparse settlements where Indians were
frequent visitors, and indeed all of the hard conditions of
pioneer life. There
was a little trading point at Eddyville and a station at
Chariton, but the rest of the county was practically all
unbroken prairie which the first settlers were endeavoring to
develop into productive farms.
Mr. Conner turned his attention to farming and
stock-raising and for over a half century thereafter continued
to engage in these pursuits, becoming in time a prominent and
successful agriculturist.
With characteristic energy he carried forward the work
of developing his fields, first breaking the raw soil and
erecting buildings, and afterward improving the place and
equipping it with modern machinery. In the early days he also operated the
first saw and feed mill in Lucas county, whither came the
greater portion of the early settlers in the surrounding
districts. He
became well acquainted with his neighbors, for all the
pioneers were drawn together by common necessity, and he has
held their honor and respect through the years, so that today
he is one of the most highly esteemed men in this part of
Iowa. A few
years ago he retired from active business life and moved into
Derby, where he expects to spend the remainder of his days. He has disposed of
almost all of his land but retains ninety acres in Jackson
township.
In
Chariton, Iowa, in 1857, Mr. Conner was united in marriage to
Miss Harriet Wade, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1841, a
daughter of Waitman T. and Ruhama (Aiken) Wade, natives of
Virginia. The
parents came to the eastern part of Iowa in 1854, and after
remaining one winter, moved in the spring of the following
year to Lucas county, where for a time the father taught the
Goshen school. In
1856 he was elected county surveyor and after holding this
office for some time was made county treasurer, a position in
which he did earnest and capable work for a number of years. Both parents have
passed away, the father dying in Appanoose county and the
mother in Chariton. To
their union were born eight children: George; Jesse, who
died while in the Union army during the Civil war; Elijah, who
passed away in Kansas; Waitman, who resides in Seattle,
Washington; Mrs. Conner, wife of the subject of this review;
Mrs. Eliza Spray, who died in Seattle, Washington, in 1908;
Mrs. Phoebe Chapman, who makes her home in Oregon; and Mrs.
Ruhama Pollard, deceased.
The older children were born in Virginia and
Pennsylvania, and the younger in Union township. Mrs. Conner has
passed away, her death having occurred in Derby, January 12,
1911. She and
her husband became the parents of nine children, all born in
Union township, as follows:
Marion S., who was born May 31, 1859, and who lives in
Warren township; W. H., who was born in 1860, residing in
Moscow, Idaho; Mrs. Eliza J. Williams, who was born in
October, 1862, residing in Derby; Joseph E., who was born in
1866, and who died August 22, 1905; George W., born in 1868,
living in New Mexico; Franklin L., whose birth occurred May
29, 1876, and who resides in White Breast township; Martha A.,
who died at the age of three; and two sons, who died in
infancy.
Mr. Conner is a devout member of the Baptist church, which he joined at Goshen church in 1857. He has been an active religious worker through the years, serving for a long period as deacon and for some time as clerk in his church. In his upright and honorable life he has exemplified the doctrines in which he believes and he has never been known to give his consent or aid to any project which his conscience has not thoroughly sanctioned. In politics he is a democrat, and he takes an intelligent and active interest in public affairs, cooperating heartily in all progressive enterprises and never seeking to evade any of the duties of citizenship. He has been an active worker in the ranks of his party and has held all the township offices, his official career having been varied in service and faultless in honor. Throughout his long, useful and honorable life he has never been known to betray a confidence, to be false to a friend, to neglect any personal or public duty and he has in consequence won a high place in the regard and esteem of his fellowmen. Those who are fortunate enough to come within the close circle of his friendship find him a courteous and kindly gentleman, interested in his neighbors and anxious to do all in his power to promote their happiness and prosperity. In Derby and throughout Union township he is known familiarly as “Uncle Alfred,” and he has made this name a synonym for upright living, for loyal citizenship and for kindliness of spirit.