WILLIAM H.COVAULT.
Among the pioneer farmers of Audubon county, Iowa, who came to this county early in its history, when the most of the land was in a thoroughly wild state, and when there were few inhabitants living in the county, is William E. Covault, a prosperous farmer who owns two hundred and forty acres of land in Greeley township, and who was born on September 29, 1847, in Miami county, Ohio, the son of Isaac A. and Elizabeth (Linton) Covault, who were natives of Miami county, Ohio, and farmers by occupation. Isaac Covault was a son of Isaiah and Betsy Covault, who, it is believed, were both born in Virginia. Although Mr. Covault first came to the state of Iowa in 1869 and lived for a time in Cedar county, Iowa, after which he moved to Poweshiek county, where he lived for five years, he then went back to Ohio, and after a residence there of five years, returned to Iowa in the fall of 1879, arriving in Audubon county in September, of that year. At the time he first purchased his farm of one hundred and twenty acres in Greeley township, it was well improved for the times, having a house sixteen by twenty feet, containing one room, although there was no lath nor plaster. The barn, which was a crude affair, fourteen by sixteen feet, held four horses. By prodigious industry, careful management and wise planning, Mr. Covault has improved the farm and buildings and now owns one of the best tracts of land in Greeley township.
Mr. Covault lived at home until he was married, and the educational opportunities of his neighborhood being limited, he was not able to pursue his studies far. In September, 1869, he came west to Cedar county, but remained there only one year, removing to Poweshiek county, but after his return from Ohio, in the fall of 1879, he has lived on his farm in Greeley township continuously since, with the exception of five years which he and his wife spent in Exira. When he and his family first came to Greeley township, there were few settlers in the neighborhood, his nearest neighbor being John Huston, one-fourth mile south of the Covault farm, and from the Huston place to Exira, there was only one other house. Mr. Covault has since added to his farm and now has two hundred and forty acres in Greeley township and eighty across the line in Guthrie county, Iowa.
On January 3, 1869, William H. Covault was married in Miami county, Ohio, to Harriet Jane Ralston, who was born on January 22, 1850, in Miami county, and who is a daughter of Allen and Alary (Welchhans) Ralston, also natives of Miami county, Ohio.
Mr. and Mrs. Covault have had eight children: Elmer A., who married Agnes Baker, and thev have three children, Elva, Clyde and Hazel; Harry A. married Maggie Flynn, and they have two children, Wilbur and Owen; Charles married Mattie Wire, and they have three children, Silva, Elizabeth and Leota; Delia, the wife of Edward Flynn, has three children, Roy, Ralph and Lloyd; Isaac died at the age of twenty-three years; Effie became the wife of Chester Adair, and has four children, Guy, Esther, Wayne and Bernice; William Roy married Annie Goochey, and they have six children, Ruth, Ethel, Eunice, Joseph, Mamie and Glenn; Bertha is the wife bf Chelsea Adair, and has three children. Florence, Maxine and Don. Mr. and Mrs. Covault also has one great-grandchild, Lois Hadley, the daughter of Carl and Elva Hadley, the latter of whom is a daughter of Mr. Covault's son, Elmer A.
Although Mr. Covault was a member of the Christian church in Ohio, he has never united with any church since coming to Audubon county. He has given his support freely to all religious denominations which hold services in his vicinity. He is a Democrat and served not only as constable for several years and assessor of Greeley township for one term, but also served as deputy sheriff of Audubon county for four years.
William H. Covault as a pioneer citizen, and one of the early settlers of Audubon county, has been connected with almost every phase of the progress, prosperity and growth of Audubon county for a period of nearly forty years. He has seen the county transformed from a wild and uncultivated prairie into a garden teeming with the good things of life and the men who have had a part in this wonderful transformation are entitled to the respect of the present generation and much credit is due for their unselfish service. One of these men is Mr. Covault. who is a man of high standing in his community, honored, earnest and cordial in his dealings with the people of his neighborhood and county.
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Transcribed from History of Audubon County, Iowa Its People, Industries and Institutions With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families, by H. F. Andrews, editor, Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen & Company, 1915, pp. 491-493.
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