ARTHUR C. HARMON.
The history of a county or state, as well as that of a nation, is chiefly a chronicle of the lives and deeds of those who have conferred honor and dignity upon society. The world judges the character of a community by the enterprise and progress of its citizens and yields its tributes of admiration and respect to those whose words and actions constitute the record of a state's prosperity and pride. Among the prominent citizens of Audubon county who are well known because of the part they have taken in public affairs and because of a long residence in the county, from boyhood to the present, Arthur C. Harmon, successful merchant and county coroner, concerning whose life this review is prepared, occupies high rank.
Arthur C. Harmon was born on June 9, 1873, in Henry county, Missouri, son of George and Seretta (Newell) Harmon, natives of Kentucky and Ohio, respectively. George Harmon was a Union soldier who served in the Fourteenth Kentucky Cavalry for four long years during the Civil War, in which service he took part in many hard-fought battles and engagements. His command was part of the army under General Sherman and he saw the hardest kind of fighting under this brave and intrepid commander, his last service being in the final fighting around Richmond. After the war, George Harmon migrated to Illinois and thence to Missouri. From Missouri he came to Iowa, about the year 1875, and purchased a farm near the town of Avoca, in Pottawottamie county. In 1880 he came to Audubon county and settled on a farm three miles west of Audubon, in Douglas township. In 1910 he retired from active farming operations and moved to Audubon, the county seat, where he died on August 20, 1912, his wife having departed this life but few days before, on August 12, of that same year. George and Seretta (Newell) Harmon were the parents of three sons and three daughters, as follow: Arthur C., the subject of this sketch; Albert M., a farmer living near Exira, this county; Mrs. Mary Hollister, of Guthrie county, Iowa; Mrs. Daisy Fairholm, of Messina [?sic Massena], Iowa; Mrs. Lulu Gray, residing in Audubon, this county, and Frank C., who is engaged in the furniture and undertaking business at Mingo, Iowa.
Arthur C. Harmon was educated in the district schools of Audubon county and followed the vocation of farming until about three years after his marriage, in 1898. In the year 1901 he left the farm and moved to Audubon, where he has since resided. For a period of eight years after moving to Audubon he was employed in a furniture and undertaking establishment and in 1909 engaged in the furniture business for himself. In November, 1910, he moved his furniture stock into his present commodious quarters, his store occupying a large brick structure on South Park place, twenty-five by ninety feet in extent, filled with a modern stock of goods suitable for his extensive trade. Mr. Harmon's store was visited by a disastrous fire on February 3, 1913, and the entire stock of goods was destroyed. Undaunted by this disaster, the owner immediately restocked his place and was soon doing business again.
On January 15, 1898, Arthur C. Harmon was married to Lola B. Chamberlain, daughter of George and Rhoda (Mallett) Chamberlain, natives of Virginia and New York, respectively. Mr. Harmon was born in Powieshiek county, Iowa. In 1880 the Chamberlain family settled in Guthrie county, this state, where they resided until 1893, in which year they came to Audubon county, Mr. Chamberlain still residing on the farm he bought at that time. Mrs. Chamberlain died in May, 1909. Mrs. Harmon is a member of the Pythian Sisters and of the Eastern Star lodges and is popular in the social life of Audubon. She is an intelligent and capable woman, an excellent and faithful helpmeet to her husband. To Arthur C. and Lola B. (Chamberlain) Harmon one son has been born, Harold George, born on February 17, 1900, who now is attending the public school.
Arthur C. Harmon is a Progressive in his political views, having cast his lot with the Roosevelt party in 1912. He and his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and he is fraternally affiliated with the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, being a member of the chapter and the commandery of that order. He also is a member of the Knights of Pythias, Pythian Sisters, and the Fraternal Union. Mr. Harmon was elected to the office of county coroner in 1906 and served continuously for eight years, his years of service in that office speaking well for the esteem in which he is held in the community. Mr. Harmon's first official duty in the coroner's office was to hold an inquest on the body of Theodore Martin, and his last official act was to hold an inquest on the body of William Martin, son of Theodore Martin. In every phase of life's activities in which he has been engaged, Mr. Harmon has been true to every trust and because of his genuine worth and upright character he has earned and retains the sincere regard of all who know him.
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Transcribed by Cheryl Siebrass, September, 2019 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. 385-387.
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