Henry, James H. (1845-1939)

HENRY

Posted By: Karon Velau (email)
Date: 9/15/2019 at 14:13:49

James H. Henry
Nov 23, 1845 - June 22, 1939

[From the 1891 Biographical History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, p.702]
EXCHANGE BANK, Walnut, Iowa, the only bank in this thriving town, was established in 1875 by E. R. and C. R. HINKLEY as a private banking establishment, and it was purchased by the present owner, J. H. HENRY, November 1, 1880, it then having a capital of $35,000 and doing a general banking business. The bank now has a capital and surplus of over $200,000, which is the largest in this county and one of the largest in western Iowa.

The Exchange Bank has always been a very conservative institution, and since it has been owned by Mr. HENRY, the charge to the loss account has been so small as not to be worth mentioning. The businessmen of Walnut and surrounding farmers may well feel confidence in this stable institution. This bank is equipped with the best modern appliances against fire and burglars, having one of Hall's safes and time locks on a burglar-proof chest, and further secured by a fire-proof vault. This makes it one of the safety institutions in the county.

JAMES H. HENRY, president of this institution, was born at Sturgis, Michigan, in 1845. He received a good education and was one of those men who, when the great Civil War broke out, did not shrink from the call of duty but enlisted and served through all that great struggle, which will make his name remembered by his descendants for generations to come. After the War, Mr. HENRY engaged in the lumber trade at Blairstown, Iowa, and did a successful business.

He married in 1871, Miss Emma EDSON, and they are the parents of four children: William, Angelina (deceased February 13, 1887, at the age of nine years and eleven months), Bessie, and Joe E.

In 1875, Mr. HENRY came to Walnut and engaged in the grain and lumber trade and did a good business until 1875, when he went to Chicago and built a large elevator and carried on extensive grain operations, in connection with his brother William C., under the firm name of Henry Brothers. In November 1880, he sold out his business and came to Walnut and bought the Exchange Bank of Walnut, the history of which is given above.

January 1, 1888, Mr. HENRY, with the view of educating his children and for the benefit of the climate, went to California and settled at San Jose, where he rested from his labors for two years. Turning there his attention to public improvements, he purchased the old horse-car line and franchise on the famous Alameda and established an electric railway system, the first in the state of California, which is a complete success. During the past winter, he bought the principal street railway in the city of Sacramento, and changed the system from mule propulsion to electric, being the second successful electric road in the Golden State. Mr. HENRY is an able financier, a man of wide business experiences, perfect integrity and broad views. He is a man who commands the respect of all who know him and is an American citizen whose word is valued as highly as his bond. His reputation as an honorable businessman is unsullied and extends as far as mercantile records are used.

Socially, he is a Mason, being a member of San Jose Lodge No. 10. His liberality of sentiment is shown by the fact that he has always been in favor of public liberty, and a stanch supporter of that great party whose watchword is the greatest liberty to the greatest number, namely, a Democrat. He is a member of the G.A.R. He is a man of wealth, his property being estimated at about $500,000. He is an extensive owner of real estate, owning over 5,000 acres of fine farming land near Walnut, which is valued at $200,000, while his bank is worth $200,000 and his electric railroads more than $100,000 more, besides which he owns other property and a fine residence in San Jose, California.