Audrain County, Missouri - Biographical sketches, 1884 (part 5 of 17)

postmistress, Vandalia. Mrs. Woods, for the last tive years postmis¬ tress at this place, and one of the most capable and efficient officers connected with the postal department of the government, so far, at least, as this State is concerned, was a daughter of James Majors, Esq., for many years a leading merchant of Louisiana, in Pike county. Her father was originally from Virginia, and was married in that State. Her mother's maiden name was Mary A. Douglass, also of the Old Dominion. The family removed to Pike county in' about 1847, where the parents lived until their death. Mrs. Woods has one brother still living, William Majors, Esq., of Clarksville. Mrs. Woods was 12 years of age when her parents removed to this State, having been born in Bedford county, Virginia, July 23, 1837. She was there¬ fore partly reared in Pike county, and was educated in the schools of Palmyra. Her father being a business man of some prominence and in well-to-do circumstances, she was given the best advantages the schools of Louisiana afforded and thus she acquired more than an average general education for young ladies. On the 15th of October, 1861, she was married to Mr. John Morris Woods, a merchant of Louisiana, who had been engaged in business there for about two years. He was a native of Indiana, born in Fayette county, August 13, 1826. His parents were Jeremiah and Rachel Woods. Mr. Woods came to Missouri in about 1846 and for many years was en¬ gaged in the dry goods business. He had been married once before his marriage to Miss Majors, his first wife, whose maiden name was Sarah E. Howard, having died in 1858. Mr. Woods was a resident of Andrew county, Missouri, prior to coming to Pike county. His first wife was reared in that county, After his second marriage he continued in business at Louisiana for about eleven years. He was a thoroughly experienced business man and one of the best posted dry goods merchants in this part of the State. In 1875 Mr. and Mrs. Woods removed with their family to Vandalia, where the husband was engaged in business on his own account for some time, but meeting with reverses he subsequently followed clerking up to the time of his death, which occurred on the 2d of March, 1879. He was a man of many estimable qualities of head and heart, and was greatly beloved in his family as he was highly esteemed as a neighbor and citizen. A few months before her husband's death Mrs. Woods was appointed postmistress at Vandalia, a position she has ever since held, and with great satisfaction to the community and to the entire approval of the government authorities. She is a lady of strong character and marked business qualifications, as well as of an amiable disposition - such a lady as is calculated to be esteemed wherever she lives. Her husband left her two children : Cora, now the wife of George Roberts, whose sketch appears in this volume ; and Walter. Mrs. Woods is an exemplary and active member of the church.

Samuel Kaylor

farmer. Mr. Kaylor came from Illinois to this county in 1875, and bought the land where he now lives and which he improved. He has a neat place of 120 acres, and has his farm well improved. He is giving considerable attention to grape culture and also has an excellent orchard. His father's family came from Ohio, from which State they removed in 1850, to Illinois, and settled in Pike county. Samuel was born in Ohio on the 2d of September, 1831. He was, therefore, nineteen years of age when the family came to Illinois. His educa¬ tion, a common school course, was mainly acquired in Ohio. After he reached manhood, in Pike county, Illinois, he was married to Miss Eleanor, a daughter of Lemuel Branbury. Mr. Kaylor had already engaged in farming for himself prior to his marriage, and this he has since followed without interruption. His farming operations were conducted with good success in Illinois up to the time of his removal from that State, but desirous of getting a good farm without paying the high prices demanded in Illinois, he came to this State in 1875, as stated above. Mr. Kaylor is a thorough-going farmer and a worthy citizen of Cuivre township. Having had substantial success hereto¬ fore, it is more than probable that he will in time become one of the leading farmers of the county. Mr. and Mrs. Kaylor have a family of children, as follows: Emma, Charles S., George A., Lydia C., Thomas B., Mary E. and Edward N. Mr. Kaylor, from 1861 to 1875, resided in Macon county, Illinois, where he was engaged in farming.

This sketch is inserted mainly in order that the genealogy of the family of which the subject is a representative may be in a permanent form for preservation and accessible to all interested by consan¬ guinity, or otherwise, who care to provide themselves with a copy of the book. The ancient family Bible of Dr. Gatewood's father was destroyed by fire at the time of the burning of Hon. J. M. Gatewood's residence in Vernon county, during the civil war, so that no records of the family are extant except those of a comparatively recent period. Dr. Gatewood, how¬ ever, is able to give from memory a large number of dates and facts, and it has occurred to the writer, who is a relative to the Doctor, that, now that an opportunity is offered for putting these in shape for preservation, it would be well to have them printed in the present volume, while they can still be had, as records of par¬ donable interest to the different representatives of the family, and to those of our kindred who are to come after us.

One of these was Joseph Gatewood, from whom our branch of the fam¬ ily sprang. He married and settled in Spottsylvania county, of the Old Dominion, where he reared a family of children. Five sons and two daughters lived to reach maturity. Of these, Joseph Gatewood, Jr., who afterwards became the father of Dr. Gatewood, was the young¬ est. His brothers were Thomas, Leonard, Ambrose and John S.

Joseph Gatewood, Jr., was born in Spottsylvania county, near Fredericksburg, March 18, 1781. His father died when he was quite young, and when he was fourteen years of age his mother was also taken away by death. Young Joseph was soon afterwards taken into the wholesale and retail house of Ross & Bro., (James and John), leading merchants of Richmond, Virginia. He remained with them as their employe, becoming in a few }^ears their chief clerk, un¬ til he was twenty-one years of age, when he became their partner in business, under the firm name of Ross, Gatewood & Ross. While in business at Richmond, he became acquainted with Miss Elizabeth Car¬ ter, a daughter of the well-known Johnny Carter of Virginia, who was of one of the first families of that State, being a descendant of Robert Carter, the president of the Council of Virginia in 1726, and one of the wealthiest and most eminent men of the colony. Young

Gatewood and Miss Carter were married in about 1806. By her he received a large property, in addition to what he had accumulated himself, which was by no means inconsiderable. His wife, however, survived her marriage only a few years. At her death she left him two sons, William Carter, born in 1807, and Joseph Edwin, born in 1809.

After his wife's death, Mr. Gatewood, who had a large num¬ ber of slaves, decided to remove to Kentucky, then a new country, and engage in farming on an extensive scale. He came out to Ken¬ tucky in about 1814, and settled in Clark county, near Winchester. A number of Virginia families came out in company with him, includ¬ ing those of John Cole, Richard Childs and others. Mr. Gatewood opened a large farm in Clark county, and was very successful in the affairs of life at his new home. He there became acquainted with and married Miss Lucy Clark Winn, a daughter of Jesse Winn, Sr., of Clark county, and a relative to the old Kentucky fam¬ ily from which that county took its name. They were married in about 1816. They continued to reside in Clark county, Ivy., until 1833, when they removed to Pike county, Mo.

Joseph Gatewood, Jr., was a man of fine business qualifications, as is shown by his rapid rise in mercantile life in Richmond, Va., referred to above. In Kentucky, however, he became surety for a large amount of money for a friend, and, having the money to pay, he lost all his property. It was this misfortune that prompted him toremove to Missouri. Although then well advanced in years, and having a large family, he was still hopeful that by industry and good man¬ agement in this new country he would be able to re-establish himself comfortably in life. He settled near Bowling Green, Mo., and he and his eldest son by his second marriage went to work in the timber at opening a farm. Here, however, he had but little success. Unused to the hardships and privations of pioneer life, sickness and other misfortunes fell upon the family. Still, by hard work he made a comfortable little farm, on which he lived until his death. He died on the 6th of February, 1848, in the sixty-seventh year of his age.

He was a man of high mental culture, a great reader, and more than ordinarily well informed in the affairs of the world. He was also a man of spirit and ambition, and his reverse of fortune had much to do with the physical affliction that marked the latter years of his life. His good wife followed him to the grave less than three years after his death. A tombstone at the head of each in Mt. Phisgah

She was a lady of a most amiable disposition and possessed of great fortitude and resignation. She had been reared in luxury and affluence, but she bore her reverse of fortune without a murmur and ever comforted her loved ones with words of consolation and encour¬ agement. She was one of the queenly, good women who are thought of by those who knew them as angels are.

They were blessed with a family of six children - James Minor, Richard Thomas, Elizabeth Catherine, Lucy Ann Frances Bird, Will¬ iam Lemasters, and Robert Hay Taliaferro. Of these but three are now living - Lucy A. F. B., who is the widow of John R. Gilmore, deceased, and a resident of Montgomery county; William L., now of Montgomery City, Mo., and Robert H. T., the subject of this sketch.

James M. Gatewood, the eldest in the family of children, was born in Clark county, Ivy., December 7, 1817. Subsequently, in Pike county, Mo., he married Miss Malinda Hardin, a daughter of George Hardin, formerly of near Lockport, Ky. Later along he removed to Vernon county, Mo., where he became a leading and wealthy citizen of that county. He represented his county in the Legislature at the outbreak of the war, and afterwards became a distinguished officer in the Confederate army. He died early in 1862, from the effects of a wound received while in the service of the South.

Richard T. Gatewood was born in Clark county, Ky., March 29, 1819, and died in Bowling Green, Mo., in young manhood, and unmarried. Elizabeth C. Gatewood was born in Clark county, Ky., March 18, 1822. She was twice married - first to Thomas B. Hunter, November 1, 1843 ; after his death she married Orson Reed, formerly of New England. She and her last husband are also now deceased. Lucy A. E. B. Gatewood was born in Clark county, Ky., May 29, 1824 ; she, as stated above, is now the widow of John R. Gil¬ more, deceased.

William L. Gatewood was born in Clark county, Ky., Decem¬ ber 12, 1826. In early manhood he read law, and was admitted to the bar. He is now one of the leading real estate lawyers of North-east Missouri, and one of the wealthy, influential citizens of Montgomery county. He represented his district in the State Senate for a number of years. In 1860 he married Miss Fannie White, a daughter of Hon. Morgan White, of Callaway county, Mo. They reside in Montgomery City.

boy when his parents removed to Missouri. His father hav¬ ing been broken up, and there being few, or no, schools of value in the neighborhood of the new country where the family settled, his advantages for an education were very limited. His youth was spent on the farm, and at hard work improving land and raising tobacco, principally. Anxious, however, to acquire at least a sufficient education for the ordinary affairs of life, he employed his leisure to good advantage in study. He also had the benefit of some instruction in a school or two kept in the neighborhood. At the age of about eighteen he decided to learn the carpenter's trade, and went out to work in that occupation, but was soon afterwards called home to assist on the farm. The next three or four years were spent in farm work and study. Becoming somewhat well ad¬ vanced in the knowledge of books, he was solicited to take charge of a school in the county. He, therefore, began teaching, and he con¬ tinued teaching in the counties of Pike, Lincoln, Boone and Ralls for about five years. He became very successful and popular as a teacher, and his services were in request wherever he was known.

But, in the meantime, he had decided to devote himself to the medical profession, and while he taught school he applied him¬ self to the study of medicine when not occupied in the school¬ room with energy and resolution. For several years he made it a rule to read medicine four hours in every twenty-four. Those who know him will not question that he kept his rule. His preceptors were Dr. Stephen J. Reynolds, of Bowling Green, Mo., a relative of his, and afterwards his partner in practice, and Dr. William Bolton, of the same place. He took a regular course at the St. Louis Medi¬ cal College, of St. Louis, Mo., and graduated with distinction in 1857. In the vote of the faculty on his graduation he received the support of every professor of the institution.

Immediately after his graduation Dr. Gatewood returned to Pike county and located at New Harmony, where he engaged in the practice of his profession. His success there was prompt and he soon had a large and rapidly increasing practice. He made himself a neat and comfortable home at New Harmon v, and on the 11th of August, 1858, he was married to Miss Mary Agnes Gililland, a daughter of 'Squire Jesse R. Gililland, now of Farber, in Audrain county. Mrs. Gatewood is a lady of superior mind and culture and a most entertaining and instructive conversationalist. She was born in Lin¬ coln county, Mo., February 4, 1840, and was educated at Pittsfield, 111. In 1861 Dr. Gatewood was solicited by many old friends who had known him from boyhood to return to Bowling Green for the practice of his profession. Although doing exceptionally well at New Harmony, the influence of " Auld Lang Syne " was too great for him to resist, and he accordingly returned to the friends and scenes of his childhood. Establishing himself at Bowling; Green, he was successfully engaged in the practice of medicine at that place for nearly twenty years, and until his removal to his present location, in 1879.

Dr. Gatewood, some years after his return to Bowling Green, pro¬ vided himself with a handsome and comfortable residence property. Later along he bought the old Gatewood homestead, near that place, which had passed into the hands of strangers, and he also bought a small farm in the suburbs of town. But he has never become a wealthy man ; the acquisition of a fortune has not been with him a controlling aim in life. A man of large humanity and warm sympa¬ thies, he has, perhaps, done more practice without pecuniary reward than any other physician of his experience in the profession, an expe¬ rience which now covers a period of nearly thirty years. What more eloquent tribute to his fidelity as a physician and his nobility as a man could be written than the sentiment which is in the hearts of all who have known him long and well, that " he never oppressed the poor, nor refused to minister to the suffering or unfortunate." The memory of such a past is worth more to a good man than all the com¬ forts and pleasures which wealth can bring. At Bowling Green, for many years, and until he removed from that place, he held the posi¬ tion of one of its foremost and most popular physicians. Since settling on the farm where he now resides he has been giving a large share of his personal attention to the duties of farming.

Outside of his profession, also, Dr. Gatewood has made his life one of more than ordinary value to those among whom he has lived. Kemembering his early struggles and hardships in obtaining an education, he has ever been an ardent friend to public schools : this feeling with him amounts almost to enthusiasm. Soon after the war, and for a number of years, he held the offices, from time to time, of school director, and clerk and also president of the school-board. That place and vicin¬ ity, like most localities in Missouri at that time, were largely com¬ posed of a population bitterly antagonistic to public schools. At the risk of his own popularity, and in the face of the most un¬ compromising opposition, he inaugurated a movement for the erection of a large and commodious school building. His determina¬ tion was not only to have ample and comfortable school accommoda¬ tions for the children of the place, but to keep a school in session to the utmost limit of the law. Several good men united with him in his endeavors, and in due time, although their contest was waged both at the polls and in the courts, they had the satisfaction of seeing one of the handsomest and best school buildings erected at Bowling Green, considering the population of the place, in the State. For this beneficient result the people of that place are indebted to the public spirit, zeal and resolution of Dr. Gatewood, more than to the exertions of any other man ; and in recognition of his claims upon their gratitude in this particular, they sought his consent to place his name upon the stone above the entrance to the building, in honor of his services in bringing about its erection, an honor, however, which, being a man absolutely unpretentious and unobtrusive, he declined.

In all matters of a public nature Dr. Gatewood has always taken an intelligent and public-spirited interest, though he is a man en¬ tirely averse to everything like parade or cutting a figure, and as free from the promptings of ambition or the weakness of vanity as Diog¬ enes, himself. A man of large and liberal ideas, his heart is even greater than his mind. His life has been made replete with acts of kindness and generosity. To the poor he has ever been one of tru¬ est friends, and no man of his means has given to them more lib¬ erally. Indeed, this has gone almost, if not quite, to the extent of a fault, for he has often given to others when he was robbing himself. Among his kindred, without exception, he is looked upon as the best of men ; and well he may be : for no one was ever kinder and better, or more generous to those allied to him by the ties of nature, than he. Indeed, it is a common remark among them all, that "he is too good a man for this world."

Dr. and Mrs. Gatewood have reared three children : R A JL, born March 3, 1861, now a clerk in one of the leading- retail drug; stores of St. Louis and soon to graduate from the College of Phar¬ macy of that city ; Katie Olive, born July 2, 1862, now at home and a teacher of instrumental music ; and Jesse Robert, born November 29, 1866, who has charge of the farm. This farm contains several hundred acres, and is one of the best in the vicinity.

Dr. Gatewood is a plain, unassuming man, unpretentious to the last degree ; indeed, so great is his distaste for anything like having attention drawn to himself, or seeing his name paraded in print, that his consent for a sketch of his life to be inserted in this work was given only as an act of kindness to the writer, and on the condition that nothing but plain facts should be plainly stated. The Doctor's two brothers, by his father's first marriage, William Carter and Joseph Edwin Gatewood, both died unmarried, and in early manhood.

Henry L. Ahlfeldt

farmer and proprietor of the steam thresher. It was in 1856 that Mr. Ahlfeldt's parents, Ernst and Minnie (Ficher) Ahlfeldt, came to the United States. They were from Germany, and on landing on our shore they came directly West and settled in Gasconade county, Mis¬ souri. They resided in that county for about twelve }?ears, and then came across to Audrain county and located at Laddonia, where they still reside. Henry L. Ahlfeldt, the subject of this sketch, was about two years of age when his parents came to America, having been born in the Fatherland, on the 24th of April, 1854. He was therefore reared in Gasconade and Audrain counties, and was educated in the public schools of those counties. He early started out for himself and engaged in farming, which he has since followed. The Germans are noted all over the world for their industry and thrift, and Mr. Ahlfeldt is no exception to the general rule of his countrymen. He has been satisfactorily successful as a farmer, and, although commencing a few years ago without anything, he now has a neat place of his own, fairly improved. Full of enterprise, and ambi¬ tious to make every edge cut that he can, several years ago he bought a fine steam threshing machine, which he has since been running through the threshing season, with abundant success. His machine is one of the best in the county, and is said to thresh cleaner and faster and better than any other machine. Mr. Ahlfeldt was married on the 18th of March, 1883, to Miss Louisa, a daughter of Frederick Haldtstine, formerly of Germany. Mrs. Ahlfeldt was reared and educated in Montgomery county of this State.

Columbus H. Cauthorn

farmer and stock raiser. One of the pioneer families to settle in Audrain county was that of Carter Cauthorn, who emigrated from Virginia in 1835, and settled in this county two years following, hav¬ ing spent the interim at Troy, in Lincoln county, and afterwards in Monroe county. Of Carter Cauthorn and his wife, whose maiden name was Eliza A. Colvin (she of Culpeper county and he of Essex county, of the Old Dominion), the father is living on the old home place, but the mother died in July, 1882. There he settled nearly fifty years ago, and he is now surrounded by the comforts which a well spent life has brought him, and by the esteem and good wishes of his neighbors. Of the worthy family of children whom they reared is Columbus H. Cauthorn, the subject of the present sketch. He was born on the old homestead in this county, on the 11th of February, 1844. His father, in the days of the latter's activity, was a man of great industry and energy, and, withal, a man whose ideas of rectitude and the proprieties of life were of the strictest; and un¬ der the influence of such a father, the son was naturally brought up to those habits and principles so essential to success in material affairs and to useful, honorable citizenship. Young Cauthorn's education was not neglected. He had the full benfit of the excellent neighbor¬ hood public and private schools ; and that vicinity being settled with an intelligent, prosperous class of farmers, a good school was nearly always kept open, especially during the winter months. Agriculture then being, as it is indeed yet, the principal industry of this part of the country, on reaching manhood young Cauthorn, as was fairly to have been expected, became a farmer by regular occupation, and this he has since followed. Starting out in life for himself with the advantages of the bringing up he had had, and with a laudable ambition to accomplish something for himself, and ultimately to es¬ tablish himself comfortably in life, he went to work with such resolu¬ tion that substantial results were not long delayed. Marrying in 1876, he at once settled on a farm north of Laddonia, where he car¬ ried on his farming operations for about five years, with marked vigor of success. Having an opportunity to sell his place to good advant¬ age, he disposed of it and removed to his present farm on which he has since resided. For a number of years Mr. Cauthorn has been engaged in handling stock, and with his farming and stock interests he has been so successfnl that already he has attained to a position, although still comparatively a young man, among the leading agricul¬ turists and substantial property holders of the county. Mr. Cau¬ thorn's homestead contains nearly 500 acres of land, a major portion of which is devoted to pasturage for stock purposes. He annually ships large numbers of cattle and hogs to the wholesale markets. Besides his homestead he has other important landed and farming in¬ terests in the county. Mr. Cauthorn's homestead is substantially improved and has all the conveniences and comforts of a good farm and pleasant home. Save an absence of about two years, which he spent on the Pacific coast, Mr. Cauthorn has been a continuous resi¬ dent of this county from his birth. Mrs. Cauthorn, whose maiden name was Sarah A. Scott, was a daughter of William A. Scott, of Jersey county, Ill. She is a lady of refinement and superior intelli¬ gence, and is much esteemed by her neighbors and acquaintances. They were married on the 10th of February, 1876. Mr. and Mrs. Cauthorn have three interesting children: Willie S., Carter J. and Joseph L. Mrs. Cauthorn is a member of the Episcopal Church.

Pleasant P. Collier

was born near Smith's Grove, in Warren county, Kentucky, on the 7th day of May, 1837. He lived on the farm until 1858, at which time he emigrated to Pettis county, Missouri, and there learned and worked at the carpenter's trade ; and he has the honor of having helped to rear the first building in the present city of Sedalia. In 1861, when the Rebellion broke out, he returned to his home in Ken¬ tucky, but seeing his country endangered, his patriotism led him to offer his services to the best government the world ever knew. And in 1862, while his comrades, neighbors and playmates were marching off" to the Southern army, he flew to the defense of that flag and for those principles that Washington and his followers fought to maintain. The Union was dear unto him and this he fully proved by giving him¬ self and risking his life to maintain it. He joined Company B, 33d Kentucky Volunteer Infantry at Bowling Green under Capt. L. S. Beck and Lieut. -Col. Lauck, but afterwards was consolidated with the 26th Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Lieut. -Col. T. B. Fairley, this company changing to Company H, in which he served the remainder of the war, and was mustered out at Salisbury, North Carolina, in 1865, having taken part in several hard contested engagements in Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina. He en¬ listed as a private, but on organization was elected orderly sergeant, in which capacity he served the company faithfully until 1864. He was promoted to 2d lieutenant after the battle of Nashville, in which his regiment was sorely tested. He filled many responsible positions, commanding the company, and when discharged was commanding provost guards of 2d division 23d army corps at Salisbury, North Carolina, from which place he was detailed to take charge of the regimental muster-out rolls and report with them to the proper authorities at Raleigh, N. C., Washington, D. C. and Louisville, Ivy.

These duties he faithfully performed, receiving the approval from those to whom he had to report. When relieved from the army Mr. C. returned to private life to enjoy the fruits of his labors at Glasgow Junction, Barren county, Kentucky, engaging in the grocery business with his brother for two years. Then he remained on the farm until 1874, when he removed to Audrain county, Missouri, locating south of Benton City, where he engaged in farming, carpentering and apia culture - having closely applied himself, for several years prior, to the study of apiaculture as a specific branch of industry. He soon be¬ came noted and was the leading light in developing an interest in many which is now reaping a rich harvest of that " best of all sweets," honey. He had the pleasure of making and introducing the first Langstroth bee-hive known in the county, which soon became the leading hive and is now all over North Missouri. The North American Bee Keepers' Association in 1878 appointed him vice-president of that association for Missouri, and in 1880 he was elected president of the Missouri Bee Keepers' Association, organized at Mexico, Missouri. In 1881 he moved near Rush Hill, where he bought nearly a quarter section for his future home. Mr. Collier's parents, B. S. and Eliza¬ beth (Eaton) Collier, settled in Kentucky in an early day from North Carolina and Virginia. B. S. Collier was a teacheY of mathematics in parts of Kentucky and Tennessee, and both were strict members of the Methodist Protestant Church. B. S. Collier died in triumph¬ ant faith at Dripping Springs, Edmonson county, Kentucky, in 1851. Elizabeth Collier married, after the death of her husband, to Nathan Allen, of Smith's Grove, and died there in 1874. P. P. Collier was married in 1865, by Rev. William Edmonds, to Sarah A. Sullenger, near Bowling Green, Kentucky, the daughter of Gustavus and Mary F. Sullenger. Mr. C. united with the M. P. Church when about ten years old where he lived until he came to Missouri, he and his wife then uniting with the M. E. Church at Sabbath Home. He is also a member of the Farmers and Mechanics' Aid Association and was a delegate to the annual convention in St. Louis in 1883. Mr. and Mrs. C. have five children - the oldest, William A. McDermitt, a step-son, and Annie, Sherman, Henry and John Collier.

James A. Curry

wagon, blacksmith and repair shop, Rush Hill. The Currys settled originally from England in Virginia, and subsequently came out to Kentucky, where Riley J. Curry, the father of James A., was born, from which State while Riley J. was still a mere boy, his pa¬ rents removed to Scott county, Illinois, in which county he grew to maturity and was married in early manhood to Miss Sarah D. Elledge, a native of the Prairie State. After residing a number of years in Scott county, where James A. was born on the 25th of August, 1845, the family removed to Mont¬ gomery county, of the same State, in which Riley J. Curry was for many years a well-to-do farmer. Janies A. was educated in the common schools of Montgomery county, and before he reached his majority was qualified to teach school, which he followed in that county for about five years. On the 7th of April, 1870, he was mar¬ ried to Miss Ida Patterson, formerly of Kentucky, but reared and educated at Alton. Illinois. By this time Mr. Curry (James A.) by economy was enabled to engage in mercantile pursuits which he fol¬ lowed at Walshville for about a year. Following this he availed him¬ self of the opportunity to become a partner in a well paying wagon manufacturing establishment at that place, in which he bought a half interest. He conducted this with excellent success for nearly three years, and as industrious as he was a good business manager, during this time also learned the wagon-making trade in order that he might be a practical master of his business. In about 1874 he sold out his wagon factory to good advantage and engaged somewhat extensively in farming in Illinois. Several years later he was attracted to Kansas by the rose-tinted reports he received of the beauty of the country, the fertility of the soil and the infallibility of the crops. He located in Republic county, of the Jayhawker State, where he bought a farm and was engaged in agricultural pursuits for about five years. But he did not find Kansas to be all that the fine pictures of its farms, which land agents have scattered broadcast over the country, repre¬ sented. Indeed, he had passed through a much better country, Audrain county, which, like modest worth everywhere, has never pro¬ claimed its virtues on housetops, relying on its advantages to speak for themselves ; and to this county Mr. Curry decided to remove. Selling out, therefore, in Bleeding Kansas as best he could, he came to Audrain county and made it his permanent home. He farmed here up to June, 1883, when he established his present business at Rush Hill. Mr. Curry has a good wagon and repair shop and also carries on blacksmithing in connection with his business. He is a man of indefatigable industry, of good education, excellent business qualifications and is a valuable acquisition to the citizenship of Rush Hill. He has a good business in his line which, as he becomes known, steadily increases. He has two neat residence properties at this place. Mr. and Mrs. Curry have three children: Charles J., Susan D. and James Leroy. They have lost one in infancy. Mrs. Curry is a mem¬ ber of the Christian Church ; Mr. Curry has taken the Blue Lodge farmer. 'Squire Doolin's parents, Benjamin F. and Belinda (Smith) Doolin, emigrated from Kentucky to Missouri in an early day and first settled in Pike county, but soon afterwards removed to Pemiscot county, where they lived until 1854, when they made their home at Mexico, in Audrain county. 'Squire Doolin was born in Pemiscot county on the 16th of December, 1842, and was therefore twelve years of age when his parents located at Mexico. He received a good com¬ mon school education as he grew up, and in 1865 went across the plains with Granville Read and others to Nevada, where he worked as superintendent of stores for a mining company for over a year. In the winter of 1866 he returned to Missouri, and on the 4th of Decem¬ ber, two years following, was married to Miss Susan, a daughter of R. M. Canterbury of this county. Following his marriage, 'Squire Doolin engaged in farming, which he has since followed with success. In 1871 he located on his present farm. 'Squire Doolin is one of the thrifty, substantial farmers of this part of the county. His place con¬ tains 240 acres all under fence, 120 of which are in active cultivation. He has about 80 acres in tame grass. His improvements are substan¬ tial and comfortable. A man of energy and industry, and an intelli¬ gent, economical manager, he has made all he has by his own exertions. He is well known in the township as a man of upright character, sound judgment and good business qualifications. In 1880 he was elected constable of the township, but being fully occupied with his farm duties he declined to serve. Two years later, in 1882, he was elected as justice of the peace, a position he now holds. The 'Squire is a. member of the Hebron Lodge No. 354, A. F. and A. M. at Mexico, and he and wife are members of the M. E. Church South. They have six children : Ida Belle, Joseph A., Sarah B., Reuben H., James S. and Willard S.

Patrick F. Dyer

Dyer comes of an old Virginia family, whose name he bears, and representatives of which have risen to eminence in both that State and in other States, including Missouri, in which branches of the family have settled. Patrick F. Dyer was a son of Franklin Dyer and wife, whose maiden name was Harriet Cheely. In about 1830 the family removed to Missouri, where the father lived until his death, which occurred in about 1853. He was an uncle of Hon. B. P. Dyer of St. Louis, and was a leading merchant and tobacconist of St. Charles county for many years. Patrick F. was born in that county on the 17th of March, 1839, and was there reared and educated. As he grew up he learned the general mercantile and tobacco business under his father, and in the excellent schools of St. Charles received more than an average general English education. After attaining his majority he worked in the tobacco business for about ten years, and subse¬ quently removed to 'Audrain county and located on a farm. This was in the fall of 1868, and Mr. Dyer followed farming here with satisfac¬ tory success for a number of years. On the 8th of October, 1872, he was married to Miss Lucy, a daughter of James W. McFadden of Warren county. Prior to engagingin his present business, Mr. Dyer for some time conducted a hotel at Wellsville, from which he retired to engage in business at Rush Hill. In February, 1882, he opened out a stock of goods in this place, and has since been engaged here in the general mercantile business. Mr. Dyer carries a large and well selected stock of goods, and commands an extensive and steadily in¬ creasing trade. A man of sterling and recognized integrity, a thorough business man, and more than ordinarily popular in his walk and talk among those amid whom he lives, he is such a man as to establish a flourishing business and lead a successful mercantile life. He is highly esteemed by all who know him, and exercises a marked influence in the community. Mr. and Mrs. Dyer have two interesting children : Edward E. and Georgie Lee. Mr. Dyer is a member of the Marti nsburg Lodge of the A. F. and A. M. fraternity.

Thomas Edwards

farmer. One of the most gratifying features about the large emigra¬ tion that is annually pouring into this country from Europe is the fact that so many of the new-comers hail from England, the mother-land of the United States, and the parent of our language and many of our better ideas of government, as well as of the original people of the country. They are indeed our brothers, and we naturally welcome them in preference to all others. In 1882 and in 1883 England and Wales furnished more immigrants to this country than any other land except Germany, and for the month of December, 1883, the same gratifying fact is true. Mr. Edwards, the subject of the present sketch, is a worthy representative of the imperial race beyond the sea - England, on whose empire the sun never sets. He was born on that little island on the 6th of November, 1825, and was a son of John Edwards and wife, Mary Sully. Reared in his native country, he was married there on the 11th of June, 1848, to Miss Mary Bradford, and desiring to establish himself comfortably in life at as early a day as possible, he decided to cast his fortunes with the future of America, where he could avail himself of cheap lands, fertile soil and many other favorable advantages. He therefore came to the United States in 1857, and settled first in Macoupin county, Illinois, where he fol¬ lowed farming successfully for about twelve years.* He then removed to Audrain county, Missouri, and bought a body of raw land here, which he improved, and on which he still resides. His industry, economy and good management have not been without their rewards. Mr. Edwards has two farms. His home place contains 120 acres and is substantially improved. For several years he has made something of a specialty of raising cattle, at which he has been satisfactorily successful. In 1859 Mr. Edwards had the misfortune to lose his first wife. She left him three children : George H., whose sketch follows this; Louisa (married) and Thomas. A fourth child, William, died in boyhood the same year of his mother's death. Mr. Edwards was married to his present wife, formerly Mrs. Margaret Whipped a widow lady, relict of Lewis S. Whipped deceased, and daughter of David Harrison, on the 22d of January, 1863, in the city of St. Louis. Mrs. Edwards was also formerly of England. She has one daughter living by her former marriage : Jessie, now the wife of James Scott, of this county. Both Mr. and Mrs. E. are members of the church, he of the M. E. and she of the Presbyterian.

George H. Edwards

farmer, and son of Thomas Edwards, whose sketch precedes this, is justly looked upon as one of the prominent and influential young men of Linn township. He was born before his parents left England, on the 2d ot July, 1854, and of course, came with them to this country and on from Illinois to Audrain county. His education was acquired partly in the common schools, but was completed at Shurtleff college,

Illinois. Besides having the advantage of a college education, he was brought up by his father to the strictest habits of industry, and to sterling ideas of integrity and upright conduct ; so that when he reached manhood he was well fitted to enter upon the duties and re¬ sponsibilities of active life. He early began farming for himself, and his success has been such as to justify the expectations that were formed of his future. Mr. Edwards has a handsome farm of 160 acres, more than ordinarily well improved - one of the neat and comfortable home¬ steads of the township. He is taking special pride in supplying his place with every convenience necessary to successful farming and good living. Mr. Edwards stands high in the esteem and confidence of those among whom he lives, and is taking a public spirited interest in good schools, roads, etc. ; he has been made road overseer of his dis¬ trict and school director, being now a member of the board. On the 22d of December, 1882, he was married to Miss Mary A., a refined and amiable daughter of W. L. McNama of this county, but formerly of Illinois. He and wife are both members of the Presbyterian Church.

William Farrah

farmer. Mr. Farrah, who learned the cabinet-maker's trade while still a youth and afterwards worked at it for over twenty years, is now one of the worthy farmers of the eastern part of this county and has been engaged in farming here for about ten years. He comes of an old Pennsylvania family, but was himself born and reared in Ohio, his natal day and place being the 7th of September, 1833, and Wayne county of the Buckeye State. His parents were William and Julia (Wells) Farrah, both of Pennsylvania. His father died while Will¬ iam, Jr., was still in infancy and his mother removed to Holmes county, where William's early years were spent. Up to the age of sixteen he improved the common school advantages with which he was favored, but in 1849 he became apprenticed to the cabinet-maker's trade, at which he worked for a term of five years. He then came further West as far as Greencastle, Indiana, and worked at his trade there and at Lagrange Center for about a year. Following this, he did journey work in Sturgis, Michigan, in Ohio, in Mississippi and elsewhere until about 1855, when he came to Newton, in Jasper county, Iowa, where he established a shop of his own, which he carried on for about two years. Here he became acquainted with and married May the 1st, 1856, Miss Eliza J., daughter of Christian and Rachel Maffitt, formerly of Pennsylvania, but later along of Ohio and then of Iowa.

Mr. Farrah then sold out, removed to Cass county, Iowa, and located at Lewis in that county, where he worked at the carpenter's business for about two years. Following this he moved to Lyon county, Kan¬ sas, where he carried on the saw-mill business for about a year. After this he returned to Iowa, locating at Greencastle, where he carried on the cabinet-makino: and brick manufacturino- business for about four years. He then went to Des Moines and was foreman of a large cab¬ inet factory, where school-house furniture was the principal goods man¬ ufactured, for about nine years. From Des Moines he came to Missouri in 1872, disposing of his city property in Iowa and buying a farm in Audrain county. Here Mr. Farrah has over a quarter section of land in his place and has it well improved. He is making a specialty of raising broom corn, of which he grows annually between 60 and 40 acres. Successful as a mechanic, he has been not less so as a farmer, and is accounted one of the thorough-going farmers of the township. He has proven a valuable acquisition to the agricultural community in which he lives. He and his good wife have seven children : Everett B., Wesley W., Charles, Cora E., Mary A., Lenie A. and Luda. They have lost two, Nettie May and Eden Ardell, both of whom died in tender years. He and wife are members of the M. E. Church.

Bernard Fennewald

farmer and stock man. The characteristic thrift of the German- American farmers is but in few instances more forcibly illustrated than in that of the subject of the present sketch. Mr. Fennewald, al¬ though born and reared in this country, was of German parentage and possesses most of the better characteristics of his ancestoral nation¬ ality - industry, frugality and level-headed business intelligence. Though now hardly a middle aged man, and having started out for himself with nothing, practically, to speak of, he has already achieved substantial success in life. He has a fine farm of 160 acres, which he runs mostly in grass for stock purposes, handling stock, being, as every one knows, the most profitable line of business in which a far mer can engage. His place is substantially improved, including good fences, a commodious two-story brick residence, a large barn and other outbuildings. Mr. Fennewald as has been intimated makes a specialty of the stock business - raising, buying, feeding and shipping. He ships annually about two car loads of cattle and one of hogs. His parents, George and Margaret Fennewald, came to this country about a half a century ago and settled in Osage county, Missouri, where

Bernard was born on the 19th of October, 1845, and was reared to majority. In about 1863 Mr. Fennewald, his parents having previ¬ ously died, went to Illinois, where he worked on a farm for about eight years. Subsequently, he returned to Osage county, Missouri, and was married September 2, of that year (1873), to Miss Elizabeth Hagaback, daughter of Frank and Eliza Hagaback. Following his marriage he removed to Audrain county and bought his present farm, on which he has since resided. From the above facts it is seen that Mr. Fennewald commenced life for himself as a farm laborer, and is now one of the substantial farmers of. the eastern part of the county. Such an example is worthy the imitation of the generation now coming up. Mr. and Mrs. Fennewald have five children: Frank and George (twins), born August 26, 1875; Joseph, born August 13, 1877; Mary, born October, 28, 1879, and Louis, born August 23, 1882. Both parents are members of the Catholic Church.

Sylyanus C. Hale

farmer and dairyman. Mr. Hale, by his success in life, illustrates in a marked degree, the leading characteristics of his New England ori¬ gin - industry, intelligent management and thrift. He comes of an old and worthy New England family. Nathan Hale, a gallant officer in the American army during the Revolutionary War, and previously a graduate of Yale College, was an uncle of Mr. Hale's father, and the latter was a soldier in the War of 1812. Hon. Robert S. Hale, of Chelsea, Vermont, came of the same family. He was afterwards a distinguished member of Congress from New York, and was special counsel of the United States before the American and British Com¬ mission for the presentment of the case of this Government for claims for abandoned and captured property. Mr. Hale, the subject of the present sketch, was born in Windsor county, Vermont, February 23, 1824. His parents, Samuel and Hepsey (Chapin) Hale, were both natives of the same State, where they lived until their death. Mr. Hale had good school advantages and acquired an excellent general English education. He subsequently taught school about a }^ear and then became identified with the tinner's and hardware business, and was connected with these afterwards for some fifteen years. During this time, and, indeed, during the early part of it, he learned the prac¬ tical work of tinnery, and became a skillful tinner. In June, 1852, he was married in his native county to Miss Rhoda, a daughter of Jona¬ than Benjamin. She survived her marriage for about eight years and died in the summer of 1860. Of her children two are living, Loretta, now the wife of Andrew Dick, and Ellen, now the wife of Charles

Leet, all of whom are resident of Audrain county. The fall following his wife's death, Mr. Hale came West and settled in DeKalb county, Illinois, where he bought a farm and engaged in farming. In September, 1862, he was married there to Miss Albina S., a daughter of George Wel¬ don, formerly of Vermont. Mr. Hale continued farming in DeKalb county and was entirely successful up to 1875 when he sold his farm there to good advantage and removed to Missouri. Here, during the following winter, he bought land, located in Audrain county, on which he set¬ tled, and where he still resides. Here his success as a farmer has been quite equal to his expectations, and he is now comfortably situ¬ ated in life. His place contains over 300 acres, and is all well im¬ proved, being divided up into small fields by good fences and having excellent buildings and other improvements of a superior class. For some years Mr. Hale has been making a specialty of the dairy busi¬ ness, and has about twenty cows. He makes, annually, large quanti¬ ties of cheese and butter and has found this a very profitable line of industry. By his second wife Mr. Hale has four children : Albert B., Carrie, Alice and Ben W. Mrs. H. is a member of the Universalist Church .

Samuel Hale

farmer. Mr. Hale, nephew to Sylvanus C. Hale, in whose sketch an outline of the history of the Hale family of Vermont has been given, is a native of Michigan and was a son of Calvin and Eleanor Hale, of that State. Mr. Hale was born in Eaton county, Michigan, February 22, 1845, and was reared in his native county. His father's family were among the first settlers of Eaton county, having removed there from Vermont as early as 1834. After Samuel, the subject of the present sketch, grew up, he came to Missouri, and located in Audrain county in 1876. Here he bought the farm where he now resides, which is an excellent place of over a quarter of a section of land, nearly all of which is in active cultivation. Mr. Hale has his place substantially and comfortably improved and has a good }^oung orchard representing most of the different kinds of fruit adapted to this climate. Though still comparatively a young man, he has shown by his industry and enterprise, as indeed he has by his success, that he is a worthy descendant of his New England ancestors, a people noted for their progressive ideas and thorough-going manner of carrying on everything to which they direct their attention. Mr. Hale was married on the 25th of December, 1878, to Miss Adella Bliven, a daughter of Hiram Bliven, formerly of New York, a lady of many graces and great personal worth. Mr. and Mrs. Hale have a neat home which, by her good taste, she has made very attractive. They are much esteemed in the community.

Thomas M. Kimball

farmer and stock raiser. Mr. Kimball has been a resident of Audrain county only about a year, but that he is to occupy an enviable position among the prominent farmers and better class of citizens of Linn township is apparent, not only from the favorable impression he has already made as a farmer and citizen on those around him, but from the evident character of the man. He is one of those pushing, thriving, Illinois farmers, of that progressive class of agriculturists whose energy and enterprise have made the great Prairie State one of the foremost in the Union. By nativity Mr. Kimball is from Ohio, but he is of New England ancestry. His father, Charles Kimball, came out to Ohio in an early day, with the hitter's parents, from New Hampshire, and settled in Jefferson county. There Charles Kimball, after he grew up, was married to Miss Jennie Mansfield, of an old and honored pioneer family of the Buckeye State. Later along he moved over into Brown countv. There he made his permanent home and reared his family. Thomas M. Kimball was born while his parents were residents of Jefferson county, on the 4th of November, 1822. Fifteen years of age when they removed to Brown county, he completed his adolescence in the latter county, and received a good general education in the schools of his neighborhood. His father being a farmer, on reaching manhood farming became also his regular occupation. Marrying on the 6th of January, 1848, he located on a farm in Brown county and was suocessfullly engaged in farming there for about five years. As lands were then becoming high in value in Ohio, Mr. Kimball decided to come further West where they could be had equally as fertile, or more so, and at much lower prices. He accordingly removed to Illinois, and found a desirable location in La Salle county where he renewed his farm¬ ing operations and not without substantial results. Mr. Kimball remained in La Salle county for over thirty years and was an active participant in the work of transforming that county from a pathless wild into one of the most prosperous counties in the State. In keeping with the progress of the county, he, too, prospered ; for those thirty years of the very noonday of his life were not spent in idleness. In a word, he became one of the substantial farmers of La

Salle county, and a citizen upon whose name no shadow of reproach was ever cast. But having an opportunity to sell out to advantage in 1882, he disposed of his place, as an intelligent business man, well knowing that with the same money he could buy a much larger body of land in Missouri quite as well favored with advantages for success¬ ful farming and stock raising as the lands in Illinois. Besides, he justly reasoned that in this State we have a more favorable climate and our lands are better adapted to grass growing and stock raising, while there are many other considerations favorable to agriculture in Missouri. In the following spring, after selling out in Illinois, he came to this State and bought a place of nearly 400 acres in Audrain county, on which he settled and where he has since resided. Mr. Kimball is putting his place in fine shape and is making it a typical Northern farm in appearance as well as in all necessary conveniences for farming and stock raising. In 1872 Mr. Kimball had the misfort¬ une to lose his wife. She died on the 20th of January, of that year, leaving a family of eight children : Matilda J., Nancy A., now Mrs. A. C. Whittaker; Sarah R., Mrs. B. F. Jackson ; Mary E., now Mrs. F. B. Gallaway ; Harriet E., Minnie M., Nyra O., and Charles W. The maiden name of Mrs. Kimball was Miss Harriet Whisner. She was a daughter of Alexander Whisner of Brown county, Ohio. Three years after her death, on the 17th of March, 1875, Mr. Kimball was married to Miss Sarah E., a daughter of Isaac Springer of Marshall county, Illinois, and a relative of Hon. William M. Springer, the distinguished member of Congress in that State. There is one son by this marriage, Roscoe Springer. Mrs. Kimball is a lady of culture and refinement, and is much esteemed by those who have the pleasure of her acquaintance.

Louis Knoebel

farmer and stock raiser. To write a biographical sketch of a German- American farmer or of one of German-American parentage, is to write a sketch almost invariably of a thrifty, successful man and good citizen. So it is in the present case. Mr. Ivnoebel is, himself, a native American, but his parents, Henry and Annie (Merkel) Ivnoebel, were both from Germany. His father came over to this country with the latter's parents when Henry Knoebel was in youth or about thirteen years of age. They settled in St. Clair county, Illinois, where the father became a well-to-do farmer. Louis, after he grew up on the farm, was married in Washington, Ohio, August 26, 1883, to Miss Sarah C., a daughter of John Q. Baker, of that county. In the meantime, however, Mr. Knoebel had started out in life for him¬ self, and when he was about grown, farming naturally became his regular occupation, and this he has followed with uninterrupted energy and success. Indeed, so prosperous has been his career that now although still a voun<£ man he is one of the most substantial citizens in the community in which he lives. In November, 1880, he came to Audrain county and bought a fine body of land, some 440 acres, on which he improved his present farm. He has about 200 acres in cultivation and a good meadow and other excellent improve¬ ments, including substantial buildings and a fine young orchard. With his present start in life, young as he is, and with his energy and business qualifications, Mr. Knoebel has every promise of becoming one of the leading agriculturists of Audrain county.

James E. Peery

merchant, Rush Hill. Jonathan Peery, the father of James E., a native of Tazewell county, Virginia, where he was a substantial farmer, was a soldier in the War of 1812, and was subsequently one of the early settlers of Montgomery county, Missouri. James E. was born before his parents left Virginia, in Tazewell county, Feb¬ ruary 10, 1824. His mother's maiden name was Elizabeth Peery, distantly related to his father. The family removing to Missouri in 1840, James was therefore principally reared in Virginia, where he received more than an average common school education. For about five years after the settlement of the family in Montgomery countv, this State, James E. taught school with success in that countv. On the 30th of August, 1848, he was married in Audrain county, to Miss Elizabeth, a daughter of Benjamin Canterbury, formerly of Kentucky, where Mrs. Peery was born and reared. After his marriage Mr. Peery followed farming one year in Montgomery county, and sub¬ sequently in Audrain county until about 1856, when he engaged in selling floods in a country store in Callaway countv, which he followed up to a short time before the outbreak of the war. In about 1861 Mr. Peery disposed of his mercantile interests in Callaway county and entered land in Audrain, about 300 acres, on which he improved a farm. He followed farming on this place for some four or five years and then located on another farm which he owned, and on which he has since been carrying on his farming interests. In December, 1880, Mr. Peery removed his family to Rush Hill, and engaged in mer- chandising, which he has since followed. He carries an excellent stock of groceries, qneen's-ware, glass-ware, etc., and has established a good trade. From the above it is seen that Mr. Peery is a man in comparatively easy circumstances, and that his success he has achieved by his own exertions and personal worth. Having the sagacity at an early age to appreciate the importance of education, he applied him¬ self to its acquisition with diligence and energy, and thus considering his opportunities, rose above most of those around him in point of acquirement, and qualified himself to teach school. Commencing life, therefore, for himself as a school teacher and without means, such have been the perseverance and intelligence which have characterized his subsequent career that he has become one of the substantial land¬ holders, successful business men, and withal, highly respected citizens of the eastern part of the county. This is a record of self-made success that no man would need be ashamed of. Mr. and Mrs. Peery are members of the M. E. Church.

John Petitt

farmer and stock dealer. It is well known that Audrain county is rapidly tilling up with immigration, principally from the Northern States ; and that these new comers are of a very superior class of peo¬ ple becomes manifest to any one who will take the pains to run over the biographical sketches of the citizens of the county, as they appear in the present volume. A prominent representative of the new comers who have settled here from the North within the last few years is found in the person of Mr. Petitt, who came here from Mich¬ igan in 1881. He bought a fine section of land which he already has principally improved, and which, when he completes his improve¬ ments, as he intends to, will be one of the finest stock farms in the county. Besides this, he is personally a man of extensive and suc¬ cessful experience in business affairs, progressive, enterprising and public-spirited, and so far as one can be judged by his works in so short a time, he promises to be one of the leading and useful citizens of the county. Mr. Petitt expects to make the stock business a speci¬ alty, and is already quite extensively engaged in that line of industry, feeding now over a hundred head of steers and nearly twice that num¬ ber of hogs. His land is all under fence, and a large portion of it is set, with blue grass for pasturage. He is also giving some attention to fruit growing, and has put out a young orchard of about 700 trees. Mr. Petitt comes of an old Rhode Island family, but his father, John

Petitt, early removed to New York, where the latter married Miss Electa Freman, and where John, Jr., was born on the 5th of June, 1832. Four years afterwards the family removed from Chautauqua county where they had previously resided to Genesee county, of the same State, and in 1844 they went to Pennsylvania and located near Meadville. The father was a farmer by occupation and to this the son, John, Jr., was brought up. He received a good ordinary edu¬ cation in the common schools, and in about 1847 cast his fortunes with the North-west, making his home in Lenawee county, Michigan, where he was occupied principally with farming pursuits. While there, on the 1st of January, 1854, he was married to Miss Lucy, a daughter of Isaac Webb, of that county. She survived her marriage, however, only a short time, dying during the following year. Mr. Petitt, was subsequently married in Teeumseh to Miss Sylvia Patchen, a daughter of Herman Patchens, of that place. In the spring of 1862 Mr. Petitt removed to Hillsdale county, where he was successfully en¬ gaged in farming for about ten years. A man of good education and fine business qualifications, in Hillsdale county he became promi¬ nently identified with various business interests, and among the rest, was secretary of the Farmer's Mutual Fire Insurance Company of which, indeed, he was the principal organizer, having secured the charter himself and put it on a solid financial footing. Disposing of his farming and business interests in Hillsdale county in 1872, he removed to Jackson City, Michigan, where he engaged in mercantile business, and while there he built one of the finest houses in the city, costing him over $12,000. Having a family of children growing up around him, Mr. Petitt was anxious to remove to the country, and having always had marked taste for farming and the stock business, he decided to come to Missouri, where lands were cheap and the cli¬ mate favorable, and engage here in stock raising on a somewhat exten¬ sive scale. He therefore sold out at Jackson City in 1881 and came to this county, as stated above. Mr. Petitt designs making his place one of the handsomest, as it is one of the best, in soil and other ad¬ vantages, in the county. And in ornamenting and beautifying the surroundings of his residence, he has the benefit of the excellent taste of his good wife. She is a lady of culture and refinement, and of many estimable qualities. Mr. and Mrs. Petitt have five children : Alice, Ada, Adella, Josie and William, the latter of whom is the eldest. Mrs. Petitt is a member of the Episcopal church, and Mr. P. is a prominent member of the Masonic order.

Emil Ruedy

dealer in hardware and agricultural implements, Rush Hill. Mr. Ruedy, one of the enterprising young business men of Rush Hill, is of German parentage, but is himself a native of this country. He was born in Madison county, Illinois, on the 26th of August, 1857. His father and mother, Daniel and Mary (Margooth) Ruedy, emi¬ grated from the Fatherland in about 1850, and located in the county where Emil was born and reared. They were of one of the better classes in their native country, and in Madison county established themselves as one of the most highly respected families in the county. Mr. Ruedy's father still resides in that county, and is one of its most substantial farmers, having one of the largest and best farms in the county. Emil, being an intelligent and liberal-minded man with regard to education, had good advantages. Besides a common school course, he had a thorough course at high school, and thus became conversant with the more advanced studies and well qualified for business pur¬ suits. Following his high school course he entered a store at Greencastle, Illinois, and was engaged in business there with his brother about three years. On the 22 d of January, 1878, he was married to Mi ss Kurz, who was born and reared at Rock Island, but completed her education at Greeneastle. After his marriage Mr. Ruedy engaged in farming in Madison county, which he followed until his removal to Missouri in the fall of 1882. In this State he located on a farm in Audrain county, where he was engaged in farming until 1883, during the fall of which year he established his present business at Rush Hill in partnership with his cousin, Feutz, under the firm name of Ruedy & Feutz. They carry an unusully good stock of hardware and agricultural implements, have a fine trade throughout the surrounding country, both being gentlemen of good education and good business qualifications, energetic and perfectly fair in all their dealings ; and having the nack to make themselves agreeable and popular, it is nat¬ ural that they should command a good trade, especially when it is considered they are in the midst of one of the finest agricultural re¬ gions in the county. Mr. and Mrs. Ruedy are members of the Chris¬ tian church.

Thomas J. Roberts

in whatever situation he has been placed ; and while the accumu¬ lation of property has by no means been his highest ambition, he has yet, by industry, economy and good management, succeeded in securing a comfortable start in life, for he is still, comparatively, a young man, and had to start out for himself at an early age without means or the assistance of others. Mr. Roberts was born in Champaign county, O., February 24, 1842. His father was William Roberts, and his mother's maiden name was Mary A. Cartmell. Both are of old Ohio families. His father was a carpenter and contractor by occupation, and when Thomas J. was still a lad the father was taken from the family by the untimely hand of death. Soon after¬ wards the mother removed with her children to Missouri and located in Audrain county, but only resided here for about four years, when she returned to Ohio. There Thomas J. completed his adolescence; and, a young man when the war broke out, he enlisted in the Union army, becoming a member of Capt. J. Stough's Company F, 44th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, a regiment commanded by Col. Samuel Gil¬ bert, that nearly three years afterwards was consolidated with the 8th Ohio cavalry, in which latter young Roberts continued his service until the close of the war. These regiments were so situated in the army that they did some of the hardest service performed during the great conflict. It would be hard to enumerate the many engagements in which Mr. Roberts participated, and a few only are, therefore, given, namely: the battles of Lewisburg, Va., and Charleston, W. Va. ; the siege of Knoxville, and all the engagements in Sheridan's campaign in the Shenandoah Valley ; and the battles of Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek, and Beverly, W. Va.,in the latter of which nearly all of the regiment was captured, Mr. Roberts, how¬ ever, being among those who escaped. After his discharge at the close of the war he returned to Ohio, from which State he came soon afterwards to Missouri and settled in Monroe county, and re¬ sided here for about two vears. During this time, on the 31st of October, 1867, he was married to Miss Alice A., a daughter of Isaac Minor, of Shelby county, Ky. Her mother's maiden name was Lucy E. Robertson. Mrs. R. was reared in that county, and educated at the Nazareth Academy, Nelson county, Ky. Four children have blessed this union, two of which are dead, Eugene and Beauford, who died in infancy; Lewis W. and Stewart Morton, now living. Im¬ mediately following his marriage, which took place in Louisville, Ky., Mr. Roberts located on a farm in Monroe county, of this State, but four years later he moved to Audrain county, where he has since resided. For three years following 1871 he was engaged in business at Mexico, losing all by fire, and then removed to Wellsville, where he was also engaged in business for about three years. In the spring of 1877 he settled on his present farm. He has a neat place of nearly a quarter section of land, and has it comfortably improved. He has a fine Clydesdale horse and makes a specialty of raising horses, for which he is favorably known throughout this part of the county. He also has a superior quality of hogs and some fine graded cattle. Mr. R. takes an active interest in educational matters and has been school director for a number of years. He is now secretary of the school board, and is also road overseer of his district. Mr. and Mrs. R. are members of the M. E. Church and are wholly sanctified, and he is a member of the Masonic and Odd Fellows' fraternities, both at Wellsville.

Thomas N. Robnett

farmer. That Audrain county may no longer with truth be called a new country is apparent, not only from the advanced state of improve¬ ment which it presents, but even more from the large number of its prominent citizens who are now the grand-sons of the pioneer settlers of this section of the State. There are a few early settlers still among us, venerable, white-haired old men, honored old land-marks of days long gone by, but most of the old fathers of this section of the State have been gathered to their eternal rest ; and their sons and their sons' sons have taken their places on the stage of life. The subject of the present sketch, Mr. Robnett, a thriving, enterprising young farmer of Audrain county, is a worthy descendant of one of the bravehearted old men who, away back during the first quarter of the pre¬ sent century, blazed the way for civilization into the then comparative wilds of the Missouri river country. Mr. Robnett, the grandfather of Thomas N., came to Missouri with his family in about 1815 and located in Boone county, where he lived until his death, one of the pioneer settlers and worthy old citizens of that county. There his son, James R., the father of Thomas N., grew up and was afterwards married to Miss Sarah James, of Callaway county. Following his marriage he settled in Callaway county, locating at Fulton, near where he followed farming for many years. He also ran a saw-mill at that place ; and it is a fact of history worthy of mention that he manufactured nearly all the lumber used in the construction of the early buildings of Fulton. He lived there until his death, which occurred in 1870. He was substantially successful in life and accum- ulated a comfortable estate. Darin" his long residence at Fulton he was ever active and public-spirited in the cause of education, and in every movement designed for the promotion of the best interests of the place and the community. In his own family he was careful to see that his children had good advantages for the improvement of their minds and the elevation and ennoblement of their characters. Thomas N. Robnett was the third son in his father's family of children. He was born in Callaway county on the 28th of March, 1851. In common with the other children of the family, he had good school advantages. His higher education was acquired at the High School of Fulton and at Westminster College. With a taste that led him to adopt the pursuits of agriculture as his calling in life, he engaged ac¬ tively in farming after his college course, which he has since followed and with good success. On the 2d of October, 1881, he was married to Miss Lou C. Griffin, a daughter of James N. and Sarah Griffin of this county, but formerly of Kentucky. Mrs. Robnett is a lady of charming presence and attractive conversation, and withal, gifted with an amiable disposition and superior mental endowments. She is a grand-daughter of the Rev. Jeremiah Vardeman, the celebrated Baptist divine of Kentucky. Mr. Robnett has an excellent farm of over 200 acres which he has neatly and substantially improved. He is a man of enterprise and progressive ideas, and is steadily going to the front as a farmer and influential citizen. Mr. Robnett's elder brother, John D., who was educated at Westminster and at William Jewell College, is the well known Baptist minister of this county, but at present of Texas, justly looked upon as one of the ablest preachers in his denomination. He now has charge of the Baptist church at Brown wood, Texas.

Judge Jacob Shobe

farmer and stock raiser, post-office, Laddonia. Judge Shobe, who has been a resident of this county for only about a year past, was for many years one of the leading farmers and stock men and prominent citizens of Osage count}\ He sold out in that county in the early part of the spring of 1882, and came here duringthe following spring. He has an excellent farm where he resides of 340 acres, and all under fence and either in pasturage or cultivation. His place is one of the neatly improved, choice farms of the township, and his residence, a new building, is commodious and substantial, approached through a handsome yard, ornamented with evergreens, flowering shrubs, etc.

His other improvements are of an excellent class. Judge Shobe was the son of Samuel and Elizabeth Shobe, who came to Missouri in an early day and settled in Franklin county, or in that part of it, rather, which is now included in Osage county. His father became one of the foremost men of that county, and was at one time its largest tax-payer. That those who come after us may have some idea of the comparative lightness of taxes in that early day, it may be stated that although Mr. Shobe's father was considered a wealthy man his taxes never ex¬ ceeded the sum of $6. Judge Shobe was reared on the farm in that county, and received, as he grew up, such an education as could be had in the occasional schools that were taught in the vicinity, and by study at home, to which latter, indeed, he is mainly indebted for his knowledge of books. All in all, however, he sufficiently mastered the elements of an ordinary English education to lit him for farm and busi¬ ness affairs. Prior to the outbreak of the war Judiie Shobe was principally engaged in handling stock - buying, selling, shipping, etc. Later along he engaged in mercantile pursuits, and had charge of a store at Chamois, in Osage cognty, for about two years. During this time he was appointed station agent for the railroad, and held the position for about ten years, consecutively. But anxious to return to the business to which he was brought up, farming and stock raising, in the spring of 1873 he resigned his position and turned his atten¬ tion to agriculture exclusively. The same qualities that made him a successful and popular station agent, and enabled him to accumu¬ late no inconsiderable means, also made him very successful and prosperous as a farmer and stock man. Close attention to business, good management and economy will bring success in any calling. So Judge Shobe went steadily forward to the front rank of the agri¬ culturists of Osage county. A man of superior natural intelligence and extensive general information, as well of high character and great public spirit as a citizen, he soon came to be recognized as one of the prominent men of the county. A life-long democrat, and taking always an intelligent interest in the affairs of his party and in public matters, in 1878 he was called upon by the Democratic party of Osage county to become its candidate for county judge, which he did not feel at liberty to decline. Accepting the nomination, the wisdom of the choice his party had made was vindicated by his triumphant election at the succeeding November poll. Judge Shobe filled the position of county justice with marked ability and to the general satis¬ faction of the people. Indeed, so creditably did he acquit himself of this office that on his retirement from it he was nominated and elected collector of the county, which office he filled up to a short time prior to his removal to Audrain. This count}7 has every reason to congratu¬ late itself upon the acquisition of such a citizen ; and his removal was greatly regretted by the people among whom, up to that time, his whole life, an honorable and useful one, had been spent. Judge Shobe will doubtless become as prominent and useful in the affairs of Audrain county, agricultural and, it is hoped, public, as he was in Osage. The Judge has been married for nearly twenty years, and his wife, whose maiden name was Miss Rebecca S. Hart, is an estimable and refined lady. She was a daughter of John J. Hart, of Cole county, but formerly of Kentucky. The Judge and Mrs. Shobe have three children : Edgar J., Herbert G. and Jacob L. Mrs. Shobe is a mem¬ ber of the M. E. Church South, and the Judge has long been a promi¬ nent member of the Masonic order, being; a member of the Blue Lodge at Chamois and Chapter at Jefferson City.

William G. Sims

farmer and stock raiser. The family of which Mr. Sims is a represen¬ tative came from Virginia in an early day and settled in Boone county, where his father, William R. Sims, grew up and was married to Miss Martha Gray, of an old Kentucky family, but whose par¬ ents were residents of Boone countv. Following his marriage William R. Sims removed across the line into Audrain county where he improved a farm and reared a family. He became quite successful as a farmer, and is now one of the most substantial cit¬ izens of Linn township. William G. was born on his father's homestead in this township, on the 22d of July, 1850. His youth was occupied to good advantage in assisting on the farm and at¬ tending the neighborhood schools, so that when he grew up he had not only learned habits of industry, an indispensable necessity for suc¬ cess in life, but had also acquired a fair education - sufficient for all the practical affairs of ordinary farm and business life. He early engaged in farming for himself and handling stock in a small way, and these he has carried on with such energy and good judgment that he has rapidly advanced toward the front in the agricultural affairs of this part of the county. Mr. Sims has a fine place of over 600 acres of land, all fenced and improved, in¬ cluding good buildings, an orchard, substantial fences, meadows, pastures, etc. Having for several years past devoted himself mainly to stock raising, he has put most of his place in pastur- age, having about 400 acres in blue-grass. He feeds annually large numbers of cattle and hogs for the wholesale markets, and also deals quite extensively in stock. Connected with his stock busi¬ ness he has a pair of scales on his place for weighing stock, grain, etc. He is one of the enterprising, successful farmers and stockmen of the township. On the 14th of March, 1875, Mr. Sims was married to Miss Hattie P., a daughter of Robert and Nancy Cochran, of Boone county, but formerly of North Carolina. Mr. and Mrs. Sims have one child, Robert D., born September 5, 1876. Four are deceased, two in infancy and Jessie and Mannie, who also died at tender ages.

Peter C. Skelly

farmer. Mr. Skelly is a native of the old Keystone State, born in Cumberland county on the 5th of September, 1828. His father, George Skelly, was a farmer by occupation, and to this call¬ ing the son was brought up. His mother's maiden name was Ly¬ dia Cramer. In 1847 young Skelly came West to seek his fortune. He located near New London, in Ralls county, Missouri, where he worked the first }7ear for $60 for S. C. McCune, living there three years. He was then engaged in farming in Pike county for some three years. In 1853 he concluded to try his luck in the mines of California, and accordingly crossed the plains as wagon master and hunter for the company with Ed. Stockton and others, bound for the Pacific coast. They were five months on the plains, and exper¬ ienced all the hardships and privations incident to overland travel in that early day. Arrived in California, Mr. Skelly had the courage to remain there until he made a success of mining. He worked for six long years deep down in the bowels of the earth, delving for gold, and in 1859 was prepared to return with no mean quality of the yel¬ low dust for which he had so long and faithfully labored. Making a visit to his old home in Cumberland county, he met and renewed an early love whom he had left years before to seek his fortune in the great West. In short, he was married to Miss Elizabeth H. Weidler, a daughter of Capt. Reuben Weidler, of Pennsylvania. Mr. Skelly returned to Missouri and worked seven years for J. P. Clark as farmer, and in the year 1869 bought the farm on which he now resides and on which he has since lived. His place contains 160 acres of land and is well improved, including a good pasture, a meadow, a good orchard and small fruits, substantial fences and neat, comfortable build- ings. Mr. and Mrs. Skelly have a family of four children : IdaC., wife of Edgar Elder; Lydia C., Ulysses G. and Martha E. They have lost two : one died in infancy and Linda Belle died in 1875, in her thirteenth year. Mrs. Skelly is a member of the M. E. Church. Mr. Skelly is a member of the I. O. O. F., Knights of Honor and of the National Horse Thief Society.

John Skelly

who, like his brother, Peter C., whose sketch precedes this, is a thrifty farmer and worthy citizen of the eastern part of the county, was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, October 5, 1836, but was principally reared in Franklin county, of that State, to which his parents removed in about 1845. Though working for himself after he reached his majority, he remained at home most of the time until 1862, when he enlisted in the army, becoming a member of Co. F, 158th Penn. Yol. Inf. He was discharged at the expiration of his term of enlistment in 1863, having during his service been in numerous skirmishes, though in no great battle. The succeeding winter, De¬ cember 24, 1863, he was married to Miss Clementine, a daughter of Reuben and Catherine Weidler, and a sister to the wife of P. C. Skelly. Mr. Skelly, in February of the following year, removed to Missouri and located in Audrain county, where he has since been en¬ gaged in farming. He came to his present place in 1874. This farm contains 280 acres of land, most of which is in fine pasturage and good tame meadow. His improvements are such as might be expected of a farmer brought up in Pennsylvania - substantial, neat and com¬ fortable. His family of children consists of four daughters and two sons, viz. : Mary Lizzie, James W., Frank S., Fannie E. and Maggie A. (twins) and Gertie. Mrs. S. is a member of the M. E. Church South.

Milton Smith

farmer and stock raiser. It was in 1879 that this venerable old gentleman, a worthy son and citizen of the Blue Grass State, came West and located in Audrain county. Notwithstanding he was then closely approaching the allotted age of three-score and ten, he had the spirit and courage which only the more brave-hearted of younger men pos¬ sess, to quit a home of ease and comfort and cast his fortunes with the new land beyond the Mississippi, and commence the improvement of a home on Virgin soil. The year before the removal of his family here he came out to Audrain county and bought a large body of land, a part of which had a bare apology for improvements on it, and di¬ recting the work himself, he began making a new and comfortable home for his family. His place contains 630 acres, nearly all of which he has fenced, and has 200 acres in active cultivation. The balance is in pasturage (a large portion of it in blue grass), to be used in connection with stock raising, in which he is embarking on a some¬ what extensive scale. Mr. Smith ships large numbers of cattle and hogs to the wholesale markets annually. His place has every natural ad¬ vantage for a fine stock farm, and he is making its improvements to cor¬ respond with its natural advantages in this particular. In a few years he will doubtless have one of the best farms for stock purposes in Audrain county. Mr. Smith is now in his seventy-second year, and although his life has been one of hard work and unceasing activity, yet, gifted with a naturally strong physical constitution, he has so lived that he is still vigorous and active in mind and body, and carlies on his affairs with a degree of energy, success and foresight that would do credit to a man in the prime of life. He is one of those sterling old Kentuckians, strong minded and generous, who illustrate in their lives the highest types of manhood, physical and mental, and who preserve to a green old age the qualities that made them success¬ ful in the meridian of life. Mr. Smith was born in Harrison county, Kentucky, September 21, 1812, and was a son of Martin Smith, formerly of Pennsylvania. Mr. Smith's mother, before her marriage, was Miss Sarah Spears, of the old Kentucky family of that name, a worthy representative of which, Jacob Spears, now resides in Bowling Green, Missouri. Milton Smith's father was a farmer by occupation and also ran a large distillery for many years. Up to the age of four¬ teen the son remained at home on the farm, but after that and until he was twentv-one, he was almost exclusively engaged in freighting with a six-horse team, hauling the Avhisky of his father's manufacture to the different markets where it was sold. And even after he reached his majority he continued with his father for some six or seven years assisting in carrying on the distillery, and freighting the whisky off to market. On the 18th of April, 1838, he was married to Miss Tabitha, a daughter of John Chowning, Esq., a prominent citizen of Har¬ rison county, Kentucky. The year following his marriage, Mr. Smith settled on a farm of his own, where he continued to reside, success¬ fully engaged in farming until 1877, when he sold out to good advantage and decided to come West and grow up with the country. Forty years, or nearly, of industrious farm life were not without substantial rewards. He became a man in comfortable circumstances, and was so situated when he sold out that he was under no necessity of giving any further attention to the material affairs of life ; for he had an ample competency to support him in ease until the sun of his earthly career should sink down into the bosom of life's western sea. But still energetic and active, he could not sit down quietly and spend his days to no useful purpose. Having children, who yet have their way to make in the world, he desires to make his life as useful to them as possible; and therefore, he is still occupied with his farming and busi¬ ness affairs. Mr. Smith's first wife survived her marriage less than two years, dying January 10, 1840. She left one child, a son, John M., now living in Kentucky. On the 15th of May, 1842, Mr. Smith was married to Miss Eliza, a daughter of George Lemons, of Harrison county, Kentucky. She lived to brighten his home for over twenty years, but at last, in June, 1865, she was gathered to the bosom of her loved ones on the shining shores beyond the river of this life. She left eight children : Tabitha, wife of Thomas Lemons, of Ken¬ tucky ; Peter, (married) also of Kentucky; Joseph L. (married) of Audrain county; George, (married) of Kentucky ; Lipo died in boy¬ hood ; Belle, the wife of A. G. Dillard ; Anna L., Henry L. and Eliza, the last three single and still at home. In September, 1868, Mr. Smith was married to Miss Ruth Worth, a daughter of Abram Worth, of Harrison county, Kentucky, but she did not long remain to comfort his happy household. To his present wife, formerly Miss Sarah E. Smith, a daughter of Nicholas Smith, of Harrison county, Kentucky, he was married on the 25th of May, 1880. She now pre¬ sides over his home with the grace of a true ladv and the affection of a devoted wife. Mr. Smith's eldest son served three years in the Confederate army, and was with President Davis at the time of his capture, in 1865. Mr. and Mrs. Smith are members of the Christian church.

John S. Smith

farmer and stock raiser. One of the most prosperous young farmers of the eastern part of the county is Mr. Smith, the subject of the present sketch. He is a native Missourian, born in Monroe county, January 17, 1850, and was principally reared in this county. His father was a man of intelligence and in well-to-do circumstances, and gave his children good school advantages ; John S. particularly acquired an excellent general education as he grew up. Starting out as a farmer for himself when he attained manhood, his career since, although thus far a brief one, has been a very successful one. In¬ dustry, perseverance and steady habits, united with good business qualifications, are qualities that hardly ever fail of success in agricul¬ ture, where the lands are good and seasons favorable. Mr. Smith, although now but little past thirty years of age, has made himself an excellent farm, which contains over a quarter section of land. His place is substantially and neatly improved. Recognizing the fact that there is more money in handling stock judiciously than in almost any other branch of farming pursuits, he is giving a large share of his attention to that interest. He feeds annually from one to two car¬ loads of cattle for the wholesale markets and about a car-load of hogs. On the 6th of October, 1880, Mr. Smith was married to Miss Delia, a daughter of the Rev. R. C. Mansfield, originally from Kentucky, but for many years past a resident of this county. Mr. Smith's parents, John R. and Lucy (Vivian) Smith, both formerly of Virginia, were among the pioneer settlers of Monroe county. They settled in that county from the Old Dominion as early as 1830, where they lived for over twenty-five years. In 1856 they removed to Audrain county, of which they became permanent residents. Their family ranks with the best in this county.