Cass County, Missouri - Biographical sketches, 1917 (part 11 of 15)

time of its organization in 1908, and he has held that office since that time. He endeavors to keep himself posted on current events and usually votes the Democratic ticket. He has taken a commendable interest in the wel¬ fare of the public schools of his locality and has served as director and treasurer of the school board for more than twenty years. Mr. Shouse and his wife are members of the Baptist church, in which he has served as deacon for many years.

Mr. Shouse has always been held in the highest respect and esteem by his neighbors who know him best. As evidence of the confidence which his friends have in his integrity, he has been named as executor of three wills, and in each case, when responsibility devolved upon him, he admin¬ istered the estates capably and conscientiously. He has no record in public office of which to boast, but in his own unobtrusive way, as a business man and neighbor, and in his interest in church and school work, he has left his impress upon the community.

W. P. Houston, a prominent Cass County attorney and the present efficient mayor of Belton, is a native of Missouri. He was born in a one room log cabin amidst the pioneer surroundings of Maniteau County, Missouri, December 2, 1872. His parents removed to Cass County and settled in Raymore township the following year. Mr. Houston's first rec¬ ollection is therefore of Cass County. He says that like Dickens' Abel Magwich he "became aware of himself, first, down in Essex, thieving turnips for a living." He is a son of N. F. and Jennie A. (Williams) Houston. His father now resides at Raymore, having made his home there since 1873. N. F. Houston is a son of Dr. Christopher Columbus Houston, who lived to be one hundred years old and who practiced medi¬ cine about fifty years. Jennie A. Williams, mother of W. P. Houston, is a descendant of one of the early pioneer families of Maniteau County.

To N. F. and Jennie A. (Williams) Houston were born the following children: J. M., an attorney in Kansas City, Missouri; W. P., the sub¬ ject of this sketch; Isaac L., died in infancy; Mrs. Blanche V. Gray, Ray¬ more, Missouri, and Maude M. Evans, Lawrence, Kansas.

W. P. Houston was reared in Raymore, Missouri, and educated in the public schools, Warrensburg State Normal School, and the Dixon School of Law, Dixon, Illinois. He was admitted to the bar in 1903 and began the practice of his profession at Belton, Missouri, the same year. How¬ ever, before taking his course in law, he had been engaged in teaching school for eight years. Since being admitted to the bar he has been engaged in the practice at Belton, where he has a large clientage, which he has won, not only by his ability as a lawyer, but by his honesty and integrity in everyday life.

Mr. Houston was united in marriage, March 15, 1895, with Miss Mary E. Hiatt, a daughter of John R. and Emily Hiatt, a pioneer family of Franklin County, Missouri. To Mr. and Mrs. Houston have been born the following children : Esther A., a graduate of the Belton High School, who is now assistant to her father in his office, and who is a talented musi¬ cian; Florence May, a student in the Belton High School, who has won a reputation not only in Belton but in Cass County as a gifted elocutionist; George G., a student in the Belton Grade School, who also oversees his father's dairy interests ; William, also a student in the Belton schools, who is said to be a youthful Chesterfield in manners and a born diplomat; Myrtle M., who leads her class in scholarship much of the time ; and James Newton, three years old, who wields the sceptre of governing power in the household.

Mr. Houston is a Democrat and takes a prominent part in the affairs of his party. He has served as state representative from Cass County for two terms, during which time he was active and influential in repre¬ senting his constituents at the State Capitol. He drafted the Township and Special Road District Bill, took it to Jefferson City three days before the legislature adjourned, and succeeded in placing it upon the statute books of the State. He also organized the Mount Pleasant Township Road District No. 1, which was the first of the kind in the State. He is now serving his third term as mayor of Belton and during his incumbency the city has spent ten thousand dollars on its streets, twelve thousand dol¬ lars for an electric light plant, ten thousand dollars for a city hall, and induced the railroad company to spend five or six thousand dollars in improving its city property. Under Mr. Houston's administration great progress has been made in enforcing the prohibitory law. The "booze'' condition has been so cleared that not even the drug stores keep it now. His administrations have been clean, honest, and fearless and today Belton is one of the best governed towns in Missouri.

Mr. Houston has farming interests, owning a fine place near Belton which is well stocked and where he has also quite an extensive dairy. The family home is an imposing structure with an antique air situated near Belton.

VV. E. Yost, a Cass County pioneer, whose successful career was closed by the hand of death May 4, 1909, belonged to that class of noble men who not only leave their family a heritage in the way of earthly pos¬ sessions but a family name of inestimable value, that will pass on down the corridors of time for the benefit of future generations.

W. E. Yost was born in Jessamine County, Kentucky, in 1839, a son of George J. and Elizabeth Yost, natives of Kentucky, and of German descent. They came to Missouri prior to the Civil War. W. E. Yost, whose name introduces this sketch, came here with his parents.

January 30, 1879, W. E. Yost was united in marriage with Miss Philena A. Olmstead, a daughter of Justice and Sarah J. Olmstead, the former of Bartholomew County, Indiana, and the mother from near Lexington. To this union were born the following children: One died in infancy; George J., who was born November 2, 1881, now deceased ; Mrs. Maud E. Hawthorn, who was born August 7, 1882, Belton, Missouri ; Mary E., who was born August 25, 1885, now deceased; Mrs. Anna Lee Rosier, who was born August 6, 1866. Mrs. Yost came to Cass County in November, 1866.

Mr. Yost was essentially a farmer and stockman and one of the most successful men in this special line of endeavor in Cass County. However, he was interested in other avenues of enterprise and was a man of keen foresight and exceptionally good business judgment. He saw opportuni¬ ties and made a comfortable fortune where other men blindly bemoaned the cruelty of fate. At the time of his death he owned eighteen hundred acres of valuable land which bore mute testimony of his successful career. He was also equally successful in the world of finance and for a time was president of the Bank of Belton.

While Mr. Yost's time and energy was largely devoted to his private affairs, yet he was public-spirited and charitable. He took a keen interest in the upbuilding and betterment of the community and was especially interested in the progress and future of Belton. The esteem in which he was held by his friends and neighbors is best told in an article written by W. A. Hill, which appeared in the Belton Herald, May 13, 1909, and which follows : "It was more than a generation ago that the writer first met Mr. Yost. At that time he was living with his father, George J. Yost, at the old homestead which stands today as one of the old landmarks of Cass County, and which is now included in the Yost estate. The acquaintance we had with Mr. Yost was such as is usually acquired by people that have lived as close neighbors for a long series of years and while the acquaint- ance ripened into friendship, and on my part to high respect and esteem, yet the relation we sustained to each other was not as close and intimate, perhaps, as sometimes bind men together; nevertheless to me it is a most pleasant reflection, as I look back over the long years of our acquaintance, with the consciousness that I was permitted to enjoy the friendship and confidence of one possessing the splendid qualities and noble traits of char¬ acter as did William E. Yost.

In some respects Mr. Yost was a remarkable man, especially along the line of the acquirement and the accumulation of property, seemingly having an intuitive knowledge in this respect possessed by few men engaged alone in the pursuit of agriculture and stock raising. We knew him when he owned only eighty acres of land and as the years went by we saw him add to this, one farm after another, until he had acquired nearly two thousand acres, which he left as a heritage to his family and with the splendid possession he was the same plain, unassuming neighbor and friend as when he owned only the eighty acres. Perhaps no man ever lived in Cass County who was missed by so many people after his death as he will be. While he dealt writh men on strictly business principles, yet we never knew of a person, in need of assistance, applying to him in vain, and many have been the men who would have been unable to raise a crop for the support of their wives and children had it not been for the loan of a load or two of corn from him to feed their team while raising the crop. And often we have heard it remarked that a man's credit had to be at a very low stage if he could not get help from Will Yost.

Mr. Yost was a man reserved in his disposition. It was not his nature to impart to others his business, which he kept largely to himself, and we know not the extent of his benefactions, but this we know: That it has often fallen to our lot to raise money for charitable, and other purposes, through voluntary donations, and we never went to Mr. Yost but what he responded cheerfully and liberally. Yes, he will be missed, missed as a business man in the community with which he had been so long identified, missed as an upright, honorable citizen, missed as a friend and neighbor; but most of all he will be missed by his family, by her who had walked with him life's pathway, who had shared with him life's joys and borne with him life's sorrow - she who has been left widowed by his death, who had leaned on his strong arm for support. Who can tell the desolation of her heart and the sorrow of her life as she sits in the still quiet and listens for a voice that is forever stilled, a footfall that will be heard no more forever. Yes, he will be missed as a tender, loving father by the children for whom he had toiled and labored and struggled, and over whom he had watched with such deep anxiety and solicitude. But to them his memory will be sweet and tender and when they make pilgrimages to his grave and place upon it choicest flowers and moisten them with tears, which will come unbidden, they will look back on the years gone by and recall the many tender, loving acts of father and esteem them as memories sweet and precious to them."

Mrs. Yost resides in her cozy cottage on Main Street, Belton, inde¬ pendent in the possession of an abundance of this world's goods and devotes much of her time to church work. She is an estimable lady and rich in the possession of the esteem of all who know her.

Rev. E. W. Miller has been an ordained minister of the gospel for twenty-three years. He has also had a successful business career and today is one of the leading farmers and stockmen of Cass County. He was born in West Virginia in 1851, and is a son of B. F. and Jane (Still) Miller, natives of Pennsylvania, of German and Irish descent. The father was engaged in farming for some years in his native state when he moved to West Virginia, remaining there until 1856, when he went to Illinois. In 1902 he came to Belton, Missouri, where he spent the remainder of his life. He died in 1907. His wife passed away in 1894 at Ada, Kansas. They were the parents of the following children: Mrs. Maggie L. Mea¬ dor, Belton, Missouri; Rev. E. W., the subject of this sketch; Elijah McCoy, Marston, Illinois ; and Mrs. Mary Meiller, Belton, Missouri. B. F. Miller, the father, was a deacon in the Baptist church for forty-five years. The real joy of his life was religious work. He was kindly disposed and made many friends. The mother was also inclined towards church work and possessed a modest, unassuming, Christian spirit.

In early life Mr. Miller was engaged in farm work when his health failed. After partially regaining his health he started out one morning in August with a two-horse wagon and a pair of steelyards. At noon he had bought three hundred pounds of butter at ten cents per pound. He met an old German friend, who said: "What's you do?" "I am buying butter, Mike," said Mr. Miller. His friend, who was a grocer, said: "What are you paying?" "Ten cents," replied Mr. Miller. After a few words with the grocer, Mr. Miller sold him his three hundred pounds of butter for fifteen cents per pound. Thus he had made fifteen dollars in half a day, which gave him his first insight into the profits of merchan¬ dising. A short time afterwards he fully equipped a wagon with general merchandise and began peddling and buying produce through the coun¬ try. The next fall he opened a general store at Buffalo Prairie, Illinois. This venture proved a splendid success. After six years he sold his busi¬ ness there and went to Ottawa County, Kansas, and invested in a store and residence, having bought a section of land in Mitchell County some time previously. Here he engaged in the cattle business and also con¬ ducted his general store. Ten years later he sold out and went to Jackson County, Kansas, where he bought a quarter section of land, engaging in general farming and stock raising. Three years later he sold that and went to Gallatin, Missouri, and sold groceries for a year.

In 1898 Mr. Miller came to Cass County and bought four hundred acres of land in Mt. Pleasant township, three miles from Belton, and for fourteen years he was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising on that place. He has specialized in Poland China hogs, fed cattle exten¬ sively and has prospered. In 1913 he bought six acres of land in Belton, where he built a beautiful home. There he and his wife now reside.

Rev. Miller was married in 1872 to Miss Mary L. Crabs, a daughter of Abraham and Mary Crabs. The mother bore the maiden name of Har¬ rington and was a native of New York State. The father was a native of Ohio. He was a carpenter by trade, but also owned a farm. Mrs. Miller was one of a family of eight children born to her parents, as follows: Mrs. Sarah Duffield, deceased ; Mary L., the wife of Rev. E. W. Miller, the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Margaret J. Davis, Salina, Kansas; Philip P., Ada, Kansas; Mrs. Cassandra E. Mote, who resides in Oklahoma; Will¬ iam D., who resides in Oklahoma ; Asa H., Manchester, Kansas ; and Abra¬ ham, who lives in the State of Washington.

To Rev. and Mrs. Miller have been born four children, as follows: Mrs. Ollie J. Clark, Jr., Blue Rapids, Kansas; A. F., who is extensively engaged in the dairy business, who recently sold twenty head of Jersey cows at an average of one hundred seventy dollars each, Belton, Mis¬ souri; Ernest W., Belton, Missouri, and Louis Earl, Belton, Missouri.

Rev. E. W. Miller began his church work as Sunday School Superin¬ tendent at Ada, Kansas, where he served for ten years. In 1894, he was ordained to preach in the Baptist church, his first pastorate being at St. Clare, Kansas. Since coming to Missouri, he has served the West Union and other churches. He has really given his time to needy churches with but little pay, more for the good that he can do than for the remunera¬ tion which he receives. He has been a member of the Baptist church for fifty-two years and his wife has been a member of that denomination for forty-seven years.

T. J. Collier, a well known and successful farmer and stockman of Big Creek township, is a native of Missouri. He was born at Centralia, Boone County, in 1868, and is a son of Valentine Smallwood Peyton and Frances Elizabeth Collier. The mother died in Kansas in 1891. The father came to Cass County in 1898 and died in 1906 in Big Creek town¬ ship. He was a veteran of the Mexican War, and drew a pension as such. He and his wife were the parents of eleven children, only two of whom are living: Robert E. Lee Collier, of Collinsville, Oklahoma, and T. J. Collier, the subject of this sketch.

T. J. Collier was educated in the public schools of Marshall and Cen¬ tralia, Missouri, and followed farming in his native county for a number of years. In 1898 he came to Cass County and settled in Big Creek town¬ ship. Two years later he purchased one hundred and seventy acres of land, for which he paid thirty dollars per acre, and later added eighty acres at a cost of forty-two dollars and fifty cents per acre, and is today the owner of one of the well improved and valuable farms of Big Creek township. His place is well watered, having three good wells and also a branch of Big Creek courses its way through his broad acres, which makes of it an ideal stock farm. The farm is well improved with a good residence and other buildings, and located only five and one-half miles south-west of Pleasant Hill. Mr. Collier is quite extensively engaged in the dairy busi¬ ness, and milks about twenty-five cows. He is also a successful hog raiser and has on hand about fifty head of Duroc hogs. He is an advocate of mixed farming and soil conservation, and puts his theory into profitable practice. He raises wheat, corn and tame grass, and about seventy acres of his farm are devoted to blue grass.

Mr. Collier was married in 1892 to Miss Jennie Riner, a daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth Ellen (Thompson) Riner, natives of Virginia. The Riner family came to Cass County, Missouri, in 1870, and settled at Harrisonville. Later they removed to Big Creek township where they purchased a farm of eighty acres from William Prater, and spent the remainder of their lives there. Mr. Riner died in 1908 and his wife departed this life in 1896 and their remains are buried in the Pleasant Hill Cemetery. He was a Union soldier during the Civil War and served in an Ohio regiment.

Mr. and Mrs. Collier have one child, Mary Elizabeth, a teacher, having taught her first school in 1915 and is now a student at William Woods College, Fulton, Missouri. She graduated in 1917 and holds a State Teacher's certificate. Mr. Collier is a prosperous and progressive citizen and the family is well known and popular in the community.

Frank Huber, of Belton, is a Cass County pioneer who for years has been prominent and influential in the affairs of Belton and vicinity. Mr. Huber was born near Lancaster, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1847, and comes from an old Pennsylvania family who received their land grants from William Penn. His parents were David and Elizabeth Huber, the former of Swiss and the latter of Scotch descent. In 1719 C. Herr built a house, which is still standing, in Lancaster County, Penn¬ sylvania. He was Mr. Huber's great-great-grandfather. Mr. Huber and one sister, Mrs. Catherine Good, are the only surviving members of his family. She resides in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

Mr. Huber spent his boyhood days in his native state. In 1870 he came to Missouri, settling at Lees Summit, where he remained about a year, when he returned to Pennsylvania. In 1872 he came back to Mis¬ souri and two years later bought one hundred fifty-three acres of land one mile north of Belton. Here he has followed farming and general stock raising and has also dealt extensively in stock. Mr. Huber has prospered and increased his acreage from time to time and now owns four hundred acres of valuable land, which is said to be the best farm in Cass County.

In 1875 Mr. Huber was united in marriage with Miss Catherine Barr, a daughter of Benjamin Barr, of Pennsylvania. They have had four children: Benjamin, deceased; Bertha, deceased; Mrs. Mattie Sams, Belton, Missouri ; and Mrs. Mary Yocum, Kansas City, Missouri.

Locating in the vicinity of Belton at an early date, as Mr. Huber did, gave him an opportunity of seeing much of the development of that section of the county. He saw the ground where the thriving city of Belton now stands when it was unbroken prairie. He recalls the first church in Belton which was moved by the Christian denomination from

High Blue to Belton, and soon after this the Methodists erected a church there. He says that times were good in the early days although money was scarce and the men who lived here in those days were kind, cour¬ teous, and of high moral character, "the most hospitable people in the world."

In 1870 bond voting for railroads became epidemic in many western counties and townships and about that time Raymore and Mt. Pleasant townships became obligated to the extent of one hundred ten thousand dollars. Later these bonds were rated at about ten cents on the dollar and at that time Mr. Huber, Nathan Harrelson, William Colburn, Benja¬ min Barr, Frank Blair, J. N. Hargis and others borrowed eleven thou¬ sand dollars and bought these township bonds, levied a tax, collected the same, and paid off the bonds. This move eliminated a great deal of hard¬ ship which the future would have had to bear in disposing of this indebt-

Mr. Huber was a charter member of the first bank that was organized in Belton, in 1875, the Bank of Belton, and has been a member of its board of directors ever since. For a number of years he served as vicepresident of that institution. He became its president in 1914 and is now serving in that capacity. Mr. Huber has been active in everything that has had for its purpose the upbuilding and betterment of his town and community. He contributed one thousand dollars to the construction of the rock road from Belton to Kansas City. He contends, however, that he has done but little as he feels that no man can do more than his duty and he has never gone beyond that limit. Mr. Huber's motto is, "Don't do right because you are afraid to do wrong; but do right because it is right to do right." I

Dr. E. S. Moad, a prominent physician of Belton, is a native of Mis¬ souri. He was born in Platte County in 1860, and is a son of Dr. G. L. and Sidney E. (Sanders) Moad, the former a native of Virginia and of Scotch descent, and the latter also a member of a prominent southern family, her father having served with the rank of major in the Confed¬ erate army. Dr. G. L. Moad, the father, practiced medicine in Missouri for a number of years. He was an able practitioner and his reputation as a skillful physician extended far beyond the boundaries of this state. He not only was regarded as a great physician, but as a man was held in the highest esteem by those who knew him. He was prominent in Masonic circles and held office in the Grand Lodge of the Masonic Order. He died in 1900 and his wife departed this life in 1904. They were the parents of two children: W. R. Moad, who resides in Texas; and Dr. E. S., the subject of this sketch.

Dr. E. S. Moad attended the High School at Clinton, Missouri, and after receiving a good preparatory education, entered the Washington University of Medicine, where he received his medical education, after which he practiced with his father for a number of years at Clinton, Mis¬ souri. In 1888 he came to Belton, where he has since been engaged in the practice of his profession. He is a well-read, careful physician. Dr. Moad has been very successful in his professional work and has built up a large practice. During the last few years he is giving more attention to office work, making a specialty of diseases of women.

Dr. Moad was married in 1890 to Miss Stella Berry, daughter of M. A. Williams, of Cass County, and one of a family of three children bom to her parents, as follows: Mrs. W. A. Williams, Belton; Mrs. J. F. Darby, Blue Springs; and Mrs. Dr. Moad. To Dr. and Mrs. Moad have been born two children: Mrs. A. E. Ford, Blue Springs, Missouri; and Mildred, who resides in Belton, with her parents.

Dr. Moad has seen many changes since coming to Belton. Especial¬ ly have many of the hardships in the practice of medicine in the country been eliminated. He says when he came here the age of the telephone and the automobile had not yet arrived. In his early practice he has ridden on horseback at all times of night, long distances over the prairie, when the thermometer was below zero. The advent of the automobile and telephone changed all this. A brief interview with the doctor over the telephone may make a call unnecessary, and if it is necessary, with the automobile, it is only a matter of a few minutes to reach the bedside of the most remote patient.

Dr. Moad was reared in the Presbyterian faith. He has always been a strong advocate and supporter of the principles of the Democratic party.

Isaac J. Holloway, a Cass County pioneer, is a native of Kentucky. He was born in Madison County, that state, in 1832, a son of John G. and Sallie (Jacobs) Holloway, natives of Kentucky, and descendants of old Virginia stock, of English origin. John G. Holloway came from Ken¬ tucky to Missouri, with a two horse wagon in which he brought his fam- ily, when Isaac J., the subject of this sketch, was a child. He settled in Jackson County, Missouri, where he homesteaded a quarter section of land which was situated in the western part of the county not far from the Shawnee Indian reservation. Black Bob, the celebrated Shawnee Chief and founder of the Black Bob reservation, was well known to the Holloway family and has eaten dinner at the Holloway home. Isaac J. Holloway remembers Black Bob well and says that he was an honest Indian and that the Shawnees were a quiet, peaceable tribe.

Isaac J. Holloway was married in 1860 to Mary Ann Keeney, a daughter of Michael and Nancy Keeney, natives of Tennessee, a very prominent family of that state, of German descent. Until January 4, 1917, Mrs. Holloway was the only one living of a family of nine children, when she, too, was called away. She was bora in Jackson County, Mis¬ souri, and reared on a farm there. She had seen much of the pioneer life of Missouri and noted with interest all these years the many changes that have taken place in the local social and industrial evolution. She recalled the old "house-raisings," the "quilting-bees," and other social and semi-social gatherings. She remembered making a trip, from her home in Jackson County to Springfield, Missouri, with a two-horse wagon. To Mr. and Mrs. Holloway were born the following children : W. A., Belton, Missouri ; S. R., Belton, Missouri ; and E. L., Alva, Oklahoma.

Mr. Holloway has been a successful farmer and stockman and has accumulated a competence. He owns two hundred thirty-four acres of land which he rents, and resides in Belton, where he and his wife have a comfortable home. They are both members of the Christian church and have been earnest workers in the cause of Christianity all these years.

Mr. Holloway has observed many changes that have taken place dur¬ ing a period of over fifty years in this section of the State. He recalls going to mill, on horseback to Harrisonville, and carrying two bushels of grain. This trip required two days. He says that his education was obtained in the "subscription schools." Those who sent children to school paid their pro rata share of the teacher's salary. Mr. Holloway was not only a pupil in those old subscription schools but later became a teacher. He recalls the days when plows with wooden moldboards were used, when grain was threshed with a flail, and the harvest season was a time of neighborly co-operation from a sort of semi-social standpoint.

the present site of Belton. There were countless wild turkeys. Prairie chickens were so plentiful that he frequently killed them with rocks. Numerous occasions are still fresh in his memory when prairie fires came sweeping from the "Indian country." He recalls how settlers would ride to meet the advancing fire on horseback and by a system of back-firing generally stop the advance of the devastating flames. Many changes have taken place during Mr. Holloway's lifetime and no doubt, notwithstand¬ ing that we are living in an age of rapid evolution, the next century will fall considerably short in the way of material changes which have been witnessed by him.

C. R. Champion, a progressive and enterprising real estate man of Raymore, Missouri, is a native of Illinois. He was born in Tazewell County in 1863, and is a son of Alfred G. and Emeline R. (Kibby) Cham¬ pion. The father, Alfred G. Champion, was born in Pennsylvania in 1837 and died in Illinois in 1905. When C. R. Champion was three months old his parents removed from their native state and settled in Illinois. They drove through with ox teams. Alfred G. Champion was a son of Abraham Champion, a millwright, who became very well-to-do. At one time he owned over fourteen hundred acres of land in Illinois. He built the first mill in the vicinity of Pekin, Illinois. It was located some dis¬ tance south of Pekin on the Mackinaw River and known as Champion's Mill. He operated this mill nearly all his life and at the same time had other interests. The piling of this old mill is still standing. All the tim¬ bers used in the construction of this mill were hewn by hand. Abraham Champion built a great many other saw and shingle mills in that vicinity later and sold them to other parties. There is still standing a command¬ ing residence of early days, one mile north of Green Valley, Illinois, which was built by Abraham Champion. The framework of this building is all of walnut. Abraham Champion was bom in Pennsylvania in 1812 and died in Illinois in 1862. C. R. Champion's mother was a daughter of Charles Kibby and a native of Ohio. She died in 1895. C. R. Champion has one sister living, Mrs. Mary Larimore, who resides in Tazewell County, Illinois.

C. R. Champion was reared in Illinois and educated in the public schools. He remained at home and when sixteen years of age became manager for his father. Later he engaged in farming and in 1901 went to Iowa, where he engaged in farming and selling farm implements. In

1903 he came to Cass County and bought a farm near Raymore where he was engaged in farming and in the hog business. Shortly after com¬ ing to this county Mr. Champion became interested in the real estate business. From time to time he handled more or less property. In 1915 he moved to Raymore and since that time has devoted most of his atten¬ tion to real estate. He has put through some important transactions, among which might be mentioned the Allen deal, which involved a cash transaction of one hundred fifty-five thousand dollars, and he has handled a great many farms. Mr. Champion has much valuable Cass County property listed for sale at the present time. Mr. Champion also accom¬ modates the traveling public, keeping a hotel at Raymore.

In 1887 Mr. Champion was united in marriage with Miss Laura A. Hootman, of Illinois, a daughter of Henry and Mary Hootman, natives of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Champion have three living children, as follows: Alfred Jackson, Mary, and Mrs. Ethel Frantz, all residing at Raymore, Missouri. The Champion family have an extensive acquaintance and are representative people of Cass County. Mr. Champion is of that genial type who readily makes friends and by square business methods has won the public confidence.

Alex King, a pioneer merchant of Raymore, was born in Gallia County, Ohio, in 1846, and is a son of Newell and Clarisa (Durst) King, of Ohio. They were the parents of the following children: Mrs. Saman¬ tha Swisher, who resides in Ohio; Mrs. Lucina Swisher, who also resides in Ohio; Harvey, Raymore, Missouri; Wesley, Raymore, Missouri; S. W., Kansas City, Missouri; and Alex, the subject of this sketch. The father died when Alex was a child and the mother departed this life in 1882.

Alex King was reared and educated in Ohio. In 1869 he came to Missouri, located in Cass County, and followed farming and stock raising for a few years, when he engaged in the grocery business, built up a large trade and prospered. When Mr. King settled in Raymore there was no railroad and the country was very sparsely settled. At that time the broad, unfenced prairie in the vicinity was used for common grazing ground. Wild game was in abundance. Prairie chickens were here in great numbers. Raymore was a small frontier settlement with only a few houses and no churches.

To Mr. and Mrs. King have been born the following children: Mrs. Viola May Hooper, Columbus, Ohio; Arthur Lee, Raymore, Missouri; Henry Martin, Stanley, J. Milton, and Gladys, all of Raymore, Missouri.

Mr. King is one of the progressive and prosperous citizens of Ray¬ more. He owns two brick buildings and a fine, comfortable residence, and is vice-president of the Bank of Raymore. He is of retiring dis¬ position, and has never sought political honors. Alex King is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and active in church work. He is one of Cass County's prominent, representative citizens.

N. F. Houston, a prominent farmer and stockman who has been identified with Cass County for forty-five years, is a native of Missouri and a descendant of a prominent old American family. Mr. Houston was born in Miller County, this State, in 1841, and is a son of Dr. Christopher C. and Catherine (Whitsitt) Houston, pioneers of Missouri.

The Houston family was founded in America in the latter part of the eighteenth century by John Houston, who came from Scotland and settled in Pennsylvania, and the direct line of descent from him is as follows: John Houston, Christopher, James, Christopher C., N. F., the subject of this sketch, his son James M., and his grandson, Joseph, who is now fifteen years old.

N. F. Houston is one of eight children, living, who were born to his parents, as follows: Wiley W., North Dakota; Magnus F., Ordway, Col¬ orado; Perry D., Grain Valley, Missouri; Newton F., the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Laura E. Campbell, Mineral Wells; Mrs. Mary E. Sappington, Clarksburg, Missouri; Mrs. Columbia Dickerson, Cornelius, Oregon; and Mrs. America Burwitz, Cornelius, Oregon.

N. F. Houston came to Cass County in 1872. In the following April he gathered corn on shares and sold his share at seventeen cents per bushel. In 1878 he bought eighty acres of land from James Allen at twelve dollars and fifty cents an acre, which at that time was considered a fair price. He engaged in farming and stock raising. He also bought and shipped cattle and produce and for twenty-eight years was the prin¬ cipal shipper from Raymore. He began shipping cattle before the Kansas City market had developed sufficiently to attract attention and in those days he shipped cattle to the St. Louis market. At that time there were vast tracts of open range and Mr. Houston, like many other cattle men of the west, took advantage of this free and unlimited grazing ground and

Mr. Houston was married in 1883 to Mrs. Mary Quick, a native of Missouri and a daughter of G. G. Daothit, who was a Kentuckian and an early settler in Missouri. Mrs. Houston is one of a family of five chil¬ dren born to her parents, as follows: Thomas A., Plain View, Texas; Mrs. J. Dora Pfost, Raymore, Missouri; John P. Winside, Nebraska; Mrs. Sallie A. London, Council Bluffs, Iowa; and Mrs. Houston. By a former marriage, in 1870, to Jane A. Williams, daughter of Isaac L. Williams, Mr. Houston has the following children: James M., Kansas City, Missouri; W. P., Belton, Missouri; Mrs. Blanche V. Gray, Salina, Kansas, and Mrs. Maud M. Evans, Lawrence, Kansas.

Mr. Houston has seen many changes and developments since he came to Cass County. As time has passed many of those who were active in the early days have disappeared from the scenes of activity, one after another, until comparatively few of the old timers are left to tell the story. When Mr. Houston came here, T. B. Hanna conducted a store at Raymore. His son, B. S. Hanna, is now cashier of the Bank of Raymore. Dr. L. F. Gray was the pioneer physician and Eli Wannamaker bought grain here. A. M. Neer built the first house in Raymore and Dr. Breckenridge was the first preacher. He preached in the depot.

Mr. Houston is still active in general farming and stock raising and operates one hundred thirty acres of land which he owns. He has never aspired to hold political office, preferring to devote his time to private affairs. He is one of Cass County's substantial pioneer citizens.

B. S. Hanna, cashier of the Bank of Raymore, is a pioneer of that section of Cass County. He was born in Iowa in 1866 and is a son of Thomas B. and Sarah E. Hanna, natives of Ohio, who were early settlers in Iowa, locating in that state about 1865. The father enlisted in the army, in the Thirty-eighth Ohio Infantry, and became second lieutenant. Later he became a member of the One Hundred Forty-sixth Illinois Infantry, and served until the war was over, when he went to Iowa. In 1869 he came to Jackson County, Missouri. Thomas B. Hanna was en¬ gaged in the mercantile business at Greenwood a short time. In 1871 he came to Raymore and opened a general store. He was the first merchant at Raymore. When he located here there were only a few houses in the town.

Thomas B. Hanna took a prominent part in the early settlement and development of Raymore township. He served as township trustee for a number of years and was the first postmaster at Raymore. He did an extensive business as a merchant and was well known, to the early settlers, over a broad scope of country. He was a jolly, good-natured man who had a great deal of confidence in his fellowman. In fact, he was too liberal and trusted too many customers during the course of his mercantile career. He died in 1894 and his wife departed this life in 1903. They were the parents of the following children: Edna B., Long Beach, California; Roy C., Long Beach, California; and B. S., the sub¬ ject of this sketch.

B. S. Hanna, the subject of this review, received his education in the public schools of Raymore. In his early educational career it was his fortune to come under the instruction of Mr. A. A. Wirt, who won the reputation of being one of the best educators in the early days of Cass County. This man Wirt was one of the pioneers of what is termed vocational training, in the vernacular of educators of today. He not only assisted and instructed his students, but studied them and aided them in selecting their life's work. Mr. Hanna says he owes to this man whatever success he has attained in an educational or business way.

Mr. Hanna remained with his father in connection with the Ray¬ more mercantile business until he was twenty-one years old, when he taught one term of school at District No. 100. He then went to Kansas City and entered the employ of the Midland National Bank, where he received his first practical training and experience in the banking busi¬ ness. In 1890 Mr. Hanna returned to Raymore and was shortly after¬ wards appointed postmaster, serving in that capacity about two years. He then served as collector and constable of Raymore township. In 1894 his father died and B. S. Hanna was appointed administrator of the estate. Later he bought the stock of goods from the other heirs. After disposing of the merchandise he assisted in promoting and organizing the Bank of Raymore and became its cashier. He has served in that capacity to the present time. W. S. Allen has been president of that institution since its organization. This bank opened its doors for busi¬ ness April 13, 1895. It is one of the substantial and conservatively man¬ aged banks of Cass County. Most of the stock is held by well-to-do farmers in Raymore and vicinity.

the western frontier was disappearing. Even then the prairie was all open and great herds of cattle grazed over the plains. Although a young man, B. S. Hanna has seen many changes within the period of his obser¬ vation in Cass County.

Lee Glandon, better known as Major Glandon, a veteran of the Civil War, and a soldier in the United States service for a number of years afterwards, has been agent for the Kansas City, Clinton and Springfield Railway at Raymore for forty-five years. Mr. Glandon was born in Harrison County, Ohio, in 1844, and is a son of James M. and Agnes (Carnahan) Glandon. James M. Glandon, the father, came to Cass County in 1880 and died here. He was a son of Joseph Glandon, an Ohio pioneer, who was a tanner at Deersville, Ohio, for a number of years. Agnes Carnahan, his wife, was a daughter of John Carnahan, a native of Ireland.

Major Glandon was educated in the public schools of Ohio. When the Civil War broke out he enlisted in Company C, Ninety-eighth Ohio infantry, under Capt. John A. Norris, who had been his teacher the previous winter. Mr. Glandon participated in a number of important battles and campaigns and innumerable skirmishes. He was at the bat¬ tle of Perryville, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Kenesaw Mountain and the Atlanta campaign, taking part in the march to the sea. He was wounded at the battle of Perryville. At the close of the war he took part in the grand review at Washington, D. C. He then enlisted in Company A, Thirty-sixth United States infantry. His command was assigned to the west and for a long time guarded the engineers, who were surveying for the Union Pacific Railroad. He was in this service from Cheyenne, Wyoming, to Ogden, Utah. Mr. Glandon was sergeant of his company and in that capacity a great deal of service and much responsibility came within the scope of his duties. He recalls having made a trip across the wild section of the country, which was infested with hostile Indians, to a telegraph station, with a small detail of men. It was agreed among the soldiers that in case they were surrounded by the Indians, that each man should save one bullet for himself rather than be captured by the Indians. Such was the hazardous nature of the service which the soldiers on the frontier confronted in the early days.

At the expiration of his term of enlistment in the army, Mr. Glandon entered the employ of the Union Pacific Railway as bridge watchman at Granger, Wyoming. In 1870 he returned east to visit his parents and remained there from June until October, when he came to Kansas City, Missouri, and entered the employ of the Missouri Pacific Railroad as yard man. While thus employed he met with an accident in June, 1871, by which he lost a part of his left foot. He began the study of teleg¬ raphy and in 1872 came to Raymore as station agent for the Missouri Pacific Railroad, which afterwards became the St. Louis, Lawrence and Western, and is now the Kansas City, Clinton and Springfield. Mr. Glandon has held this position continuously until the present time. From 1872 to 1884, he took care of both the Raymore and Belton offices. When he came here, Raymore was just about in its initial stage. There was only one store, which was conducted by T. B. Hanna, and the surround¬ ing country was one broad expanse of unbroken prairie.

Mr. Glandon was married in 1878 to Miss Eliza Kanaga, a daughter of F. C. Kanaga, and to this union was born one son, Clyde Campbell, who is practicing law at 644 Minnesota street, Kansas City, Kansas. Mr. Glandon's wife died in 1881. In 1885 he was married to Josephine Hun¬ ter, daughter of Jacob S. and Rebecca Hunter, and the following children were born to this union : Roy Alfred, who is in the employ of the Federal Reserve Bank, Kansas City, Missouri; and R. H., now enlisted in signal service, Raymore, Missouri; and Ross Osborn, who was born June 22, 1900, and died April 29, 1904.

When Major Glandon came to Raymore, the depot was used as a sort of a community hall. During his first years here church services and Sunday school were held in the depot. Rev. W. C. Breckenridge was the first preacher. Elections, funerals, and frequently political meetings were held in the depot.

Mr. Glandon is a republican and at one time was his party's can¬ didate for county recorder. He has served two terms as collector of Raymore township and has been a member of the school board for a number of terms. He is a member of Masonic lodge and has been secre¬ tary and master of the local lodge for a number of years. He is one of the substantial men of Cass County.

Wesley King, a Civil War veteran and pioneer of western Missouri, is a native of Ohio. He was born in Gallia County, Ohio, in 1840, and is a son of Newell and Clarisa (Durst) King. He was reared on a farm and educated in the public schools of his native state.

infantry and served for three years. He was at the battle of Cedar Creek, Fisher's Hill, Stephens' Station, Cloyd Mountain and numerous other lesser battles and skirmishes. Notwithstanding the fact that his escapes were narrow and numerous, he went through three years of that great conflict without a scar.

When the war was over and Mr. King received his honorable dis¬ charge, he came to Missouri in 1865, and located in Cass County, where he bought one hundred sixty acres of land, east of Harrisonville. Here he tilled the soil for a number of years when he sold his farm and pur¬ chased one hundred acres near Greenwood, Missouri, where he made his home and was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising for thirty-four years. In 1893 Mr. King sold his farm and removed to Raymore, where he bought a comfortable home. There he has since resided.

Mr. King was united in marriage in 1866 to Miss Margaret Coughenour, a daughter of Jacob and Anna Coughenour, of Ohio. She has been his faithful wife and companion all these years, never complaining about the crude conditions of pioneer life which she found upon coming to the frontier. She adjusted herself to conditions and uncomplainingly made the best of life. She died in 1890. In 1892 Wesley King was married to Elizabeth Rawlson.

When Mr. King was a young man in Ohio, before the war, he and his brother, Newell, purchased a farm, which was the beginning of his independent career. He was the first settler in Cass County from Ohio. Soon afterwards Joseph and John Lasley came and took up their resi¬ dence in this county. He says that the people were always kind to him here, that they were good neighbors and their kindly interest in him pre¬ vented him from getting homesick. When he came here, northwestern Cass County was one broad, unfenced plain, used for grazing purposes, but he has lived to see all this changed. Mr. King is proud of the progress which his adopted county has made within the last fifty years.

John M. Graybeal, a prominent pioneer of Cass County and vet¬ eran of the Civil War, is a native of Ohio. He was born in Logan County, that state, in 1845, and is a son of Andrew and Mary Graybeal, natives of Virginia, who removed from their native state and settled in Ohio about 1832. The family is of German descent. John M. Graybeal was one of a family of seven children born to his parents, three sons and four daugh¬ ters, and the daughters are all deceased. The sons are: William, now

When the Civil War broke out John M. Graybeal enlisted in Com¬ pany D, Forty-fifth Regiment, Ohio Infantry, August 5, 1862 and was mustered in August 19th. He received his baptism of fire at Cynthiana, Kentucky, September 1st. He participated in over fifty engagements with his company and was in the pursuit and capture of Morgan and with Sherman until the fall of Atlanta. He took part in all the battles con¬ nected with Hood's advance and the siege of Nashville, Tennessee, includ¬ ing his defeat, December 15th and 16th, 1864, and was in pursuit of Hood's forces as far as Huntsville, Ala. He never was wounded, but had some very narrow escapes and on one occasion a shell burst so close to him that his face was severely powder burnt and his wife says that it took her years to pick all the powder marks out of his face. He was captured on October 20, 1863, at New Philadelphia, East Tennessee, by Longstreet's men, and after spending six months at Belle Island and other prisons around Richmond, he was exchanged April 16, 1864, at City Point.

At the close of the war he was at Bull's Gap, Virginia, and after he was honorably discharged and mustered out of the service, he returned to his Ohio home and attended school for a time. He says the first money which he earned was as a farm hand at $8.00 per month. In 1878, he came to Missouri and settled on a farm in Raymore township, Cass County, where he now resides. He has been engaged in farming and stock raising and has been successful.

When Mr. Graybeal came to Raymore there was scarcely any towrn there and the country was sparsely settled and was one great limitless stretch of prairie, and in going to Pleasant Hill or other places there were no laid-out roads but merely a main traveled trail, without any regard to section lines. There were no fences around the homes of the early settlers nor elsewhere and the cattle grazed right up to the very doors and children had to be watched to keep the cattle from trampling upon them. The first night that the Graybeals spent in their Raymore home a rain storm came up and as the roof was not completed, they had to resort to the protection of umbrellas. Their first winter here was one of the real old fashioned early day winters that we sometimes hear about. The snow was thirty inches deep at one time. Timber was scarce in the early days and Mr. Graybeal hauled his wood from Big creek, a distance of several miles.

Mr. Graybeal was married in 1867 to Miss Isabella Collins, a daugh¬ ter of Burrell S. and Margaret Collins. Mrs. Graybeal has one sister, Mrs. Mary C. Brown of Bellefontaine, Ohio. To Mr. and Mrs. Gray¬ beal have been born the following children : Wilbert Owen, Kansas City, Missouri; Mrs. Mary L. Craig, Kansas City, Missouri; Mrs. Mar¬ garet E. Shipley, Raymore, Missouri; John B., Montesano, Washington; Mrs. Ella B. Lawson, Raymore, Missouri; C. Ernest, deceased; Curtis C., Bellingham, Washington; Orville L., Aurora, Missouri; and Mrs. Lola M. Peck, Chambers, Washington. C. Ernest Graybeal was one of Cass County's boys who enlisted in Company E, Fifth Missouri Infantry, dur¬ ing the Spanish-American War. He was taken sick at Chickamauga, and came home with his regiment. He had a relapse November 5, 1898 and died December 14, 1898.

Samuel Lavelock, a prosperous farmer and stockman of Mt. Pleasant township, was born in Texas in 1857. He is a son of T. N. and Dorcus (Shoup) Lavelock, the former a native of Ireland and the latter was born in Ohio. T. N. Lavelock and Dorcus Shoup were married in San¬ gamon County, Illinois. Dorcus Shoup was a daughter of Jacob Shoup, of German and English lineage. T. N. and Dorcus Lavelock were the parents of the following children. Joseph, Richmond, Missouri; Alex¬ ander, deceased; T. N., Richmond, Missouri; Samuel, the subject of this sketch; G. W., Richmond, Missouri; and Mrs. Mary Stapp, Richmond, Missouri. The parents are both now deceased.

child. The family settled in Ray County, Missouri, where the father was engaged in farming until the time of his death. Samuel remained on the home farm until he was twenty-three years old, when he went to Wilson County, Kansas, where he engaged in the cattle business. He pastured large numbers of cattle, which he sold direct from the pasture. He soon found that the winters were too severe to conduct the cattle business on that plan, and returned to Ray County, Missouri, and bought one hundred and sixty acres of land. In 1904 he returned to Missouri, settling near Peculiar, Cass County. Here Mr. Lavelock was engaged in general farming and stock raising until 1909, when he bought eighty acres of land, one-half mile south of Belton, where he has since been engaged in general farming and stock raising. He makes a specialty of grade Shorthorn calves, which he sells when they are about six months old. Mr. Lavelock finds this to be a very profitable and interesting branch of the stock business. He also keeps about twenty head of cows. His place is well adapted for the stock business, being well watered and much of it kept in condition for grazing land.

Mr. Lavelock was married in 1877 to Miss Cora T. Yates, a daughter of Capt. J. T. Yates, of St. Joseph, Missouri, who died in 1863. Mrs. Lavelock is the only surviving member of the Yates family. Her father, Captain Yates, was a Kentuckian and belonged to a prominent pioneer family of that state, of German and Irish descent, and was a minister. Captain Yates was a captain in the Confederate army and served through¬ out the Civil War. He was a brave soldier, a capable and resourceful officer, and won distinction on many a field of battle. Captain Yates was wounded thirteen times during his military career. He was a loyal friend, a good neighbor, and had many friends.

Mr. and Mrs. Lavelock have one child, Ralph, who is engaged in farming and stock raising, near Harrisonville. The Lavelocks are well known and highly respected in the community.

F. R. Twente, a substantial farmer and stockman of Raymore town¬ ship, is a native of Missouri. He was born in St. Charles County in 1859 and is a son of Henry and Elizabeth (Hinnah) Twente, natives of Germany, who immigrated to America in the early fifties, making the voy¬ age in one of the old-time sailing vessels of that day. The family first located in St. Louis, Missouri, where the father worked at his trade, which was that of a tailor, for about twenty-five years. He then removed to LaFayette County, Missouri and bought a farm, which he later sold. He went to Jackson County and bought another farm consisting of two hundred forty acres, where he spent the remainder of his life. Henry Twente died in 1887. He was a successful farmer and stockman and at the time of his death was in comfortable circumstances. He was a man who stood for a square deal. He loved his home and family. His great¬ est pleasure was in making his family happy. He was a life-long mem¬ ber of the German Evangelical church. His wife, the mother of the subject of this sketch, was a daughter of Henry Hinnah, of a highly respectable German family, who for generations have been tillers of the soil.

F. R. Twente is one of the following children born to his parents: Mrs. Mary Schemmer, Bone Hill, Missouri; F. R., the subject of this sketch ; Herman, deceased ; Mrs. Eliza Schemmer, who lives in Oklahoma ; William, who resides in Missouri ; and Mrs. Minnie Welter, who resides in Missouri.

Mr. Twente began his career as a farmer in LaFayette County, where he bought a farm in 1885. There he made his home for twentyfive years and met with success. When he came to Cass County he located in Raymore township, where he has since been engaged in farming and stock raising. He makes a specialty of white-faced cattle and keeps about fifteen cows of that breed. He is also quite an extensive breeder of full blood Duroc-Jersey hogs. Since boyhood Mr. Twente has been of an industrial and thrifty turn. He made his first money by investing in hogs, for which he received one hundred and fifty dollars. This was the beginning of his successful career. The Twente farm in Raymore township is one of the fertile and productive farms in that section. It is well watered and in all its appointments is well fitted for profitable stock raising. The place is well improved with general farm buildings and fences, Mr. Twente having built a nine-room modern house in 1910.

In 1885 Mr. Twente was united in marriage with Miss Mary Woestemeyer, a daughter of H. H. Woestemeyer of LaFayette, Missouri. The following children were born to this union: John, Baxter Springs, Kan¬ sas; Mrs. Ella Meinershagen, Belton, Missouri; Milton, Belton, Missouri; Laura, Belton, Missouri; and Vera, Belton, Missouri. The Twente family have an extensive acquaintance in northwestern Cass County, where they have many friends. Mr. Twente is one of Cass County's representative citizens.

William Downing, a Cass County pioneer who has spent a half cen¬ tury of his life in Missouri, is a native of Lake County, Ohio, and is a son of William and Eliza (Simmons) Downing. William Downing was a resi¬ dent of Vermont and settled in northern Ohio at an early day.

In 1867 William Downing, the subject of this sketch, came to Mis¬ souri, locating in Jackson County near Lees Summit on a quarter section of land. Later he added eighty acres which he purchased from Senator Johnson. This was a new country at that time, the broad limitless prairie was in its native state and wild cattle roamed over the plains. Mr. Down¬ ing broke prairie and proceeded to improve his place and gradually get into the stock business giving special attention to raising hogs. His first investment in the stock business was in a sow and twelve pigs and this family of pigs and their descendants netted him over a thousand dollars within a few years. He bought and fed cattle extensively which he sold at a considerable increase in price as well as in weight when they were prepared for the market. He bought cattle as low as two dollars and fifteen cents per hundred and in a short time sold them for four dollars.

Mr. Downing has a distinct recollection of the devastation wrought by the grasshoppers in 1874, and during that season, after the grass¬ hoppers had vanished, he raised one hundred and twenty acres of com and that year sold nineteen hundred bushels for twenty-one cents a bushel. He has bought corn for twelve and one-half cents a bushel. In the early days his nearest market place was a general store at High Blue. When he came to Missouri there was not a single free school in the State, and his wife's sister, Mary Campbell, taught a subscription school at his home.

Mr. Downing remembers when the present site of Belton was a broad stretch of prairie with not a house within the limits of the horizon, and when Kansas City was a mere village. He knew the Dalton boys well and they frequently visited at his place, and he says they were about like other boys, and apparently, not destined to become notorious characters in years to come. Later circumstances and events, perhaps, had something to do with shaping their destiny.

In 1861 Mr. Downing was married to Miss Abbie Campbell, a native of Ohio, and the following children were bom to this union: Clifford, Belton; Mrs. Sarah Harrison, Belton; Mrs. Lida Bums and Mrs. Cora Jones, the former residing in Oklahoma and the latter in California. Mr. Downing is one of the interesting pioneers of western Missouri. He has been a close observer all his life and possesses a valuable knowledge of the early history of this section and has a keen insight into the affairs of the world.

George J. Evans, one of the leading farmers and stockmen of Cass County, belongs to a prominent pioneer family of this County. He was bom in Raymore township in 1870 and is a son of William N. and Eliza¬ beth (Yost) Evans. William N. Evans was of Scotch Irish descent and a very early settler in Missouri, coming to this State in 1843. He came to Cass County and settled on a farm of one hundred sixty acres in Ray- more township in 1868, where he was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising during the remainder of his life. Mr. Evans added more land to his original purchase until he owned two hundred eighty acres. He was not only successful in his private affairs but was prominent in the organization of Raymore township and an influential factor in the early development of Cass County. During the course of his career he held practically every office in Raymore township at one time or another. He was one of the prime movers in cleaning up the old bonded indebted¬ ness of the township at a considerable saving. He died in 1909 at the close of a successful career and not only his immediate family but hun¬ dreds of friends and acquaintances in the county mourned his death. They appreciated how much his death was their loss and, as a testimonial of the esteem in which he was held, his funeral was the largest attended of any ever held in Cass County. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Yost, was a daughter of George and Mary Yost, Kentuckians, who were pioneer settlers in Missouri, coming to this State in 1852.

William N. Evans and wife were the parents of the following chil¬ dren: George J., the subject of this sketch; Cora, deceased; Thomas F., deceased; William F., Belton, Missouri; John 0., Asherville, Kansas; Mrs. Laura Long, Pittsburg, Kansas; and Mrs. Mary McFeters, Daugherty, Missouri.

George J. Evans was reared in Cass County and educated in the public schools. He has made farming and stock raising the chief occu¬ pation of his life. In 1893 he bought a farm of eighty acres in Cass County and after living on that place and improving it, he sold it in 1904. He then bought three hundred twenty acres just south of the old home place where he has since been engaged in farming and stock raising, having met with success. He gives special attention to the stock business and began his career with four head of Hereford cows in 1896. He now owns one hundred thirty-five head of cows and has sold thousands of dollars worth of calves. He buys white-faced calves which he pre¬ pares for the market and has found this to be very profitable. He also buys considerable grain, having his own land mostly devoted to bluei grass. In addition to other features of the stock business, he raises many Duroc- Jersey hogs. Mrs. Evans specializes in raising Plymouth Rock chickens of the pure-bred variety and sells eggs, for hatching pur¬ poses, all over the country.

The Evans farm is one of the best-kept and most prosperous looking places to be found in Cass County. It has splendid improvements includ¬ ing a modern dwelling and large barns and other farm buildings. He has his own water and light plants and the place is supplied with every modern convenience. Mr. and Mrs. Evans are very popular in the com¬ munity, having many friends.

Fred Evans, a prosperous farmer and stockman of Raymore town¬ ship, is a native son of Cass County. He was reared and educated in Raymore township, where he was born in 1876. He is a son of W. N. and Elizabeth (Yost) Evans, pioneers of Cass County.

Fred Evans has made farming and stock raising his life's occupa¬ tion. In 1910 he bought eighty acres of land and has given special atten¬ tion to stock raising. He breeds registered Percheron horses and also a great many mules. Mr. Evans has also been very successful in breeding Duroc-Jersey hogs. He always finds ready market for the product of his stock farm, the superiority of his stock having already won a wide reputation.

Mr. Evans was united in marriage in 1903 to Miss Mollie E. Perkins, a daughter of J. R. and Mollie Perkins, early settlers of Jackson County, Missouri. The Perkins family consisted of the following children: Mrs. Lydia Maxwell, deceased; Mrs. Bertha Wright, Mount Washington, Mis¬ souri; Mollie E., now the wife of Fred Evans, the subject of this sketch; Thomas, Grandview, Missouri; Jessie, Grandview, Missouri; Mrs. Pearl Grow, Elgin, Illinois ; Earl, Grandview, Missouri ; Mrs. Sallie Barger, Kansas City, Missouri ; Walter, St. Louis, Missouri ; Howard, Red Oak, Iowa; John, Grandview, Missouri; Elsie, Grandview, Missouri; Susan, Grandview, Missouri ; and Pansy, Grandview, Missouri.

The Evans farm is one of the well equipped stock farms of Cass County. Mr. Evans has recently remodeled his residence and now has as cozy a cottage as is to be found on any well regulated farm in the county. He takes a commendable interest in local affairs and is a pro¬ gressive and enterprising man, who always stands ready to co-operate with any movement that has for its object the betterment of the com- munity. He is a strong supporter of good schools and is now president of the Raymore school board. He is a member of the Masonic lodge and the Modern Woodmen of America. In politics he is rather inclined to be independent. He is a young man with ambition to do things and is one of Cass County's representative citizens.

H. S. Pedicord, of Raymore township, one of Cass County's most suc¬ cessful stock breeders, is a native of Ohio. He was born in Morgan County, in 1873, and is a son of J. T. and Eliza A. (Blackburn) Pedi¬ cord. The mother is a native of Ohio and a daughter of James Blackburn, who was of German descent. J. T. Pedicord was a son of Thomas Pedi¬ cord, a native of Ohio who followed farming in that state. J. T. Pedi¬ cord and wife were the parents of the following children: Mrs. Maggie S. Kite, Raymore, Missouri; John Pedicord, Longmont, Colorado; H. S. Pedicord, the subject of this sketch, and Erva J. Pedicord, Garden City, Missouri.

J. T. Pedicord came to Cass County, Missouri, in 1883 and bought one hundred sixty acres of land in Raymore township. Here he was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising during the remainder of his life. He was a man who took a keen interest in local affairs and was always willing to co-operate with his neighbors in the upbuild¬ ing and the betterment of the community. He served as justice of the peace for some time and was a notary public for a number of years. He was successful in the business affairs of life and at the same time generous and kind-hearted and made a host of friends. He died in 1913. His widow now lives near Raymore.

H. S. Pedicord was married in 1895 to Miss Cora B. Miller, a daugh¬ ter of T. E. and Emma Miller of Harrisonville. T. E. Miller has been a teacher for more than thirty years. He is now devoting his attention to raising Brown Leghorn chickens, at Harrisonville. Mrs. Pedicord is one of five children born to her parents, the others being as follows: Mrs. Ida McKee, Pittsburg, Kansas; Arthur Miller, Harrisonville, Mis¬ souri; Mrs. Flora Arnold, Raymore, Missouri; Miss Adelia Miller, a teacher in the Harrisonville public schools.

Mr. Pedicord occupies the old homestead, where his father settled, in Cass County and, while he is engaged in general farming, his spe¬ cialty is breeding registered Percheron horses and Hereford cattle. Many valuable animals are to be found on his place. He recently sold a four-year- old stallion for one thousand dollars and his Percheron mares usually sell for about five hundred dollars each. He rarely ever sells a horse which is under four years of age. However, he follows the opposite course in ref¬ erence to his Hereford cattle, generally selling the calves at the time they are weaned. He usually gets from seventy-five to one hundred fifty dol¬ lars each for them. Mr. Pedicord also raises Duroc-Jersey hogs. His place is an ideal location for a stock farm. It is well watered with running springs. He has a large part of his farm devoted to bluegrass, which he has found the most valuable for his purpose.

Mr. and Mrs. Pedicord have five children as follows : Ethel ; Claude, deceased; May, Lester, and Roy. Mr. Pedicord takes a keen interest in local affairs and is one of the wide-awake and progressive citizens of Raymore township. He is now serving his second term as township assessor.

C. J. Gore, a well-known farmer and stockman of Raymore township, is a native of Cass County who belongs to a pioneer family of this section. He was born in 1882 on the old homestead, where he now resides, and is a son of Thomas Henry and Anna Mary (Jamison) Gore. The mother was a daughter of Samuel Jamison, a native of Ireland, and the father was a son of Amos Gore, of English descent. Two sisters of the father are now living: Mrs. Anna Horn, Los Angeles, California; and Mrs. Ella Shick, Bellefontaine, Ohio. The mother has one brother living, Crosby Jamison, of Sedalia, Missouri.

Thomas Henry Gore came to Cass County at an early day and was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising until his death in 1909. His widow now resides with C. J., the subject of this sketch. They were the parents of five children, as follows : C. J., whose name introduces this sketch ; Homer G., deceased ; Harold W., Payson, Utah ; Ida L., deceased ; and Wilbur R., Raymore, Missouri.

C. J. Gore was reared and educated in Raymore township. All his life he has been interested in farming and stock raising. He occupies the old Gore homestead and in addition owns forty acres adjoining. While he carries on a general farming business, he gives particular attention to stock raising, making a specialty of Shorthorn cattle, of which he has a very valuable herd. His plan is, in general, to raise calves to abo*t the age of one year when he disposes of them at a very profitable price. Mr. Gore has worked out many facilities and conveniences for handling stock in the most satisfactory manner. He raises considerable bluegrass, which he has found to be very profitable in connection with stockraising.

Mr. Gore was united in marriage in 1912 to Miss Mabel, a daughter of J. W. and Alice Caldwell of Jackson County, Missouri. Mrs. Gore has two sisters ; Mrs. Nellie L. Cattlett, Lees Summit, Missouri ; and Mrs. Maud E. Clendennen, Lees Summit. The Caldwell family were very early settlers in Missouri, coming to this state from Ohio, just prior to the Civil War. Mr. and Mrs. Gore have one child, Francis Clyde. Mr. Gore is one of the progressive young men of Cass County and the Gore family . are representative pioneers of this section of Missouri.

Dr. J. G. Bailey, one of Cass County's leading dental surgeons, is located at Belton and has built up a splendid practice in that thriving community. Doctor Bailey was born in Clark County, Iowa, in 1883, and is a son of J. 0. and Ella M. Bailey, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Ohio. The parents now reside near Kirksville, Missouri, and are prosperous, progressive, agricultural people.

Doctor Bailey was reared to manhood on his father's farm and attended the public schools at Kirksville, later taking a Normal School course. He entered the Western Dental College, where he was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery in 1907. Shortly after receiving his degree Doctor Bailey located at Belton, where he has since been engaged in the practice of his profession. He met with success from the start and has built up a large practice. He is a close student of his profession, thoroughly devoted to his work and has established a well-earned reputation for giving the public the best that the science of dentistry affords, insofar as it is within the scope of his ability to do so. One of his everyday efforts is to impress upon his many patients the importance of sanitary care of the teeth, which is recognized, not only by the dental profession but by advanced thinkers generally, as being an important health factor of the day. If Doctor Bailey can be said to have a hobby, it is cleanliness and sanitation. It is a deplorable fact that the public generally have been slow to accept this form of education notwith¬ standing that nature has been trying to educate her children for centuries and has administered toothache and other forms of human ills for dis¬ obedience.

Doctor Bailey's practice is of a general nature and while he is first an advocate of preventive measures, he is a very able mechanical dentist and does a large amount of plate and bridge work with very satisfactory results. His offices are equipped with all modern sanitary devices apper¬ taining to his profession and his instruments are the best that money can buy.

Doctor Bailey was married in 1907 to Miss Leta Townsend, a daugh¬ ter of Doctor Thomas and Ella Townsend, of Knox County, Missouri, where the father practiced medicine. To Doctor and Mrs. Bailey has been born one child, Lois Ruth. Dr. Thomas Townsend, father of Mrs. Bailey, is now deceased.

Doctor Bailey has two brothers and one sister, as follows: Jessie Bailey, Moberly, Missouri; 0. L. Bailey, Fresno, California; and Dr. S. L. Bailey, Carthage, Missouri.

Dr. R. M. Miller, a successful physician and surgeon engaged in the practice of his profession at Belton, Missouri, is a native of this state. He was born in St. Charles County in 1880 and is a son of R. H. and Sarah (Miller) Miller. While the parents bore the same name they were in no way related. The mother was a daughter of Frederick Miller and comes of an old Virginia family. The father was a merchant for a number of years at St. Charles, Missouri. Later he bought a farm in Carroll County and is now living retired at St. Joseph, Missouri. The mother died in 1918. They were the parents of the following children: Mrs. Carrie Burkhart, Carrollton, Missouri ; Walter, Detroit, Michigan ; Edward, Fort Worth, Texas; Lloyd, St. Joseph, Missouri; Frederick, St. Joseph, Mis¬ souri; Roscoe, St. Joseph, Missouri; and Dr. R. M., the subject of this sketch.

Doctor Miller spent his boyhood days on the home farm. In early life he became imbued with a desire to be a physician and when he attained the age of sixteen his one dream was that of a medical career. He was educated in the Columbia High School and Missouri University. He matriculated in the Washington University at St. Louis, where he was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1905. He immediately engaged in the practice of his profession at Carrollton, Missouri, where he continued the general practice until 1912, when he located at Belton, where he has built up a large practice. Doctor Miller is a diligent student of the science of his great profession and is a careful, conscientious, pains¬ taking physician and has been uniformly successful in his practice.

Before locating at Belton, Doctor Miller took a post graduate course at Chicago, where he made a specialty of diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. Probably, in the not far distant future, he will specialize in these particular diseases inasmuch as the tendency of the age is towards specialization, especially in the medical profession. Anyhow, office work is more to his liking, owing to the fact that he feels that he is getting better results with all necessary instruments and proper equipment at hand such as are to be found in his office. However, for the present, his practice might be properly said to be of a general nature. In his pro¬ fessional work he covers a large scope of territory in and about Belton, frequently going as far as fifteen miles from town.

Doctor Miller was married in 1907 to Miss Lena Jenks, a daughter of R. M. Jenks, of Bogard, Missouri. Mrs. Miller is one of a family of five children born to her parents, the others being as follows : Frank ; Mabel ; Ralph, Osawatomie, Kansas; and Eunice Rose, Denver, Colorado. To Doctor and Mrs. Miller has been born one child, Ivan Miller. Doctor Miller not only has a large professional acquaintance but is the type of man who makes friends and is popular in the community.

J. W. Reid, an enterprising and wide-awake real-estate man of Belton, Missouri, is a native of Indiana. He was born in Lawrence County in 1860, and is a son of John and Nancy Reid of Bedford, Indiana. They were the parents of the following children : William B., Orleans, Indiana ; George W., Mitchell, Indiana ; Mrs. Minerva Andrews, Lawrenceport, Indiana; Ellen, Louisville, Indiana; Elmer M., Mitchell, Indiana; Carrie, Terre Haute, Indiana; and J. W., the subject of this sketch. John Reid, the father, was a native of Indiana and his father was a pioneer settler of Lawrence County, that state. John Reid was a farmer and lumberman. He sawed lumber in the early days when the old fashioned sash-saw was in vogue and water power was used. He also owned a flour mill, on the east fork of White river in Indiana, which was operated by an undershot water wheel. This mill was abandoned in 1880 when the roller process was introduced. John Reid was a progressive man and prominent in his community. He died in 1905, his wife having preceded him in death a number of years.

The famous Bedford stone was quarried near the Reid home. Peter Shafer, an uncle of J. W. Reid, was one of the pioneer stonemen of that country during the initial period of these quarries which, in recent years, have developed into the largest quarries in the country.

J. W. Reid was reared in Indiana and received his education in the common schools. He earned his first money making shingles at fifty cents per day. At that time he shaved all the shingles for the roof of a house. He began life for himself as a farmer in partnership with his brother, Will, in 1878. They began on rented land and were successful until one of the periodical floods, incident to that section of Indiana, destroyed their crops.

In 1882 Mr. Reid came to Missouri, settling in Cass County. He at first worked for twenty-two dollars per month. In August of the same year, he bought a team and engaged in gathering corn. The following year he engaged in farming for himself and in 1890 bought one hundred sixty acres of land, a half mile west of Coleman, Missouri. He was suc¬ cessfully engaged in farming and stock raising here until 1906, when he located in Belton and engaged in the grain business. A year later he turned his attention to real-estate, which, since that time, he has been successfully engaged in handling. Mr. Reid has handled a large number of important transactions and has been very successful in this line of endeavor. He is one among the best posted men on real estate values in Cass County. The great advance in real estate within the last ten years is due to the fact, as Mr. Reid says, that farmers are learning how to get better results from their land. They are raising more grass and turning their attention to the stock and dairy business. The close proximity of this section to the rapidly growing metropolis, Kansas City, is another element which must not be overlooked in the future value of Cass County land. With the rapid extension of Troost avenue, Mr. Reid states, it is but a matter of a short time when it will be extended to West Belton.

Mr. Reid was married in 1887 to Miss Mattie J. Reeder, a daughter of J. M. and Liddie Reeder of Cass County, Missouri. Mrs. Reid is one of the following children born to her parents: Thomas R., Washington; Mrs. Etta Lamb, Coleman, Missouri; Mrs. Emma Sjaarda, Jardon, Mis¬ souri; Albert R., Salt Lake City, Utah; Mrs. Minnie Bush, Coleman, Mis¬ souri; Mrs. Lizzie Dobson, Coleman, Missouri; Katie, Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Mattie, wife of J. W. Reid.

To Mr. and Mrs. Reid have been born the following children: A. Ives, Belton, Missouri; Elton, Billings, Montana; Ray, Coleman, Missouri; Mrs. Nancy Ramey, Kansas City, Missouri; Fern, Belton, Missouri; John, Belton, Missouri; and Albert, Belton, Missouri.

Dr. S. W. F air, a prominent physician and surgeon of Belton, Mis¬ souri, is a native of this state. He was born in Livingston County, Mis¬ souri, in 1873, a son of Thomas and Nancy (Shields) Fair. Thomas Fair was a native of Pennsylvania and a son of Simon Fair, who was also a Pennsylvanian. Simon Fair was an extensive lumberman in Pennsylvania in the early days and accumulated a fortune in that industry, prior to the Civil War. However, when oil was discovered in Pennsylvania in the latter sixties, he turned his attention to that industry and like hun¬ dreds of others, who have been lured to financial disaster by that elusive fluid, he too lost his fortune. Later he became a farmer and spent the remainder of his life on a farm.

Thomas Fair, the father of Doctor Fair, came to Missouri in 1868 and made his home in Livingston County until 1892, when he bought a farm near Trenton, Missouri, where he was engaged in farming and stock raising until 1898. Since then he has been living retired in Trenton. He has been successful and accumulated a competence and above all has built up a reputation for honesty and integrity. Thomas Fair is a stickler for honesty first, last and always and he has never been known to lose sight of this rule even in a horse trade. His wife, Nancy I. Shields, was a daughter of David Shields, and also a native of Pennsylvania. The Shields family came to Missouri in 1868, and it was on the train, while coming to Missouri, that Thomas Fair met and became acquainted with Miss Shields, who is now his wife. They are the parents of the follow¬ ing children: Fred, Marshall, Missouri; Dr. S. W., the subject of this sketch; James A., Trenton, Missouri; S. C., Gallatin, Missouri; R. E., Trenton, Missouri; Mrs. Maud Crecelius, Trenton, Missouri; Dr. W. A., Pleasant Hill, Missouri; and Mrs. Katie Metcalf, who resides in Montana.

Doctor Fair was educated in the public schools and Avalon College, Trenton, Missouri. He then attended Miami College at Cincinnati, Ohio, for one year when he entered the University Medical College at Kansas City, Missouri, wher^ he was graduated with a degree of Doctor of Medi¬ cine, in 1900. He immediately engaged in the practice of his profession at Raymore, Missouri, and met with success from the start. After four years of practice there he removed to Belton and opened an office in the Cunningham building where he has since been located. His removal to Belton from Raymore did not necessarily mean that he went to a new field, but it was more in the manner of extending his practice over a larger field inasmuch as he retained most of his practice in Raymore and

While Doctor Fair's practice is of a general nature, surgery is very much to his liking, and he has a strong inclination towards that branch of his profession. He has taken post graduate work in the Chicago Post Graduate Medical College where he gave special attention to surgery. He has the reputation for being a very skillful and successful surgeon, having had uniform success with a great many difficult and delicate surgical operations which he has performed. His practice extends over a broad scope of territory in and around Belton and Raymore.

Doctor Fair was married in 1900 to Miss Catherine Craig, of Braymer, Missouri, a daughter of William and Mary Craig. Mrs. Fair is one of three children born to her parents, the other two being: Jacob, of Los Angeles, California; and Robert, who resides at Braymer, Missouri.

F. L. Hogard, of Belton, Missouri, was born in Wabasha County, Minnesota, in 1866 and is a son of Thomas H. and Mary J. (LaRue) Hogard. Thomas H. Hogard, the father, was born in Montreal, Canada, in 1833, a son of H. Hogard, a native of Yorkshire, England, born in 1800. Thomas Hogard learned the carriage maker's trade when a boy and later was engaged in that business at Oxford, Canada. In 1862, he was mar¬ ried to Miss Mary J. LaRue, daughter of Samuel and Jane LaRue. He was an upright and honest citizen and a member of the Christian church, of which he was a deacon. His wife was also a member of the Christian church and a noble Christian woman, who loved her home. Mrs. Hogard found no sacrifice too great to make for her children. The father died in 1904 and the mother passed away in 1912. They were the parents of the foliowing children: F. L., the subject of this sketch; and Fred, who resides at Lyle, Washington.

F. L. Hogard was educated in the public schools of Belton. In 1901 he bought eighty-six acres of land near Cleveland, Missouri, for which he paid twenty-five hundred dollars. The following year he sold it for thirty-four hundred dollars. Later he bought a farm near Belton, which he sold at a good profit and invested in a quarter section of land in Okla¬ homa in the rapidly developing oil fields of that section. He now lives on the old homestead near Belton, where he is engaged in farming and gar¬ dening.

of Samuel B. and Sarah Rider, natives of Missouri, the former of German and the latter of French descent. Mrs. Hogard is one of a family of four children born to her parents, the others being as follows: C. E., Belton, Missouri; E. A., Belton, Missouri; and Mrs. C. W. Holloway, Kansas City, Missouri. The parents are both deceased. The father, Samuel B. Rider, was a carpenter and a Cass County pioneer. He built the first house in Belton. At one time Chesney Young, grandfather of Mrs. Hogard, owned three hundred acres of land in Kansas City in the vicinity of where Fifteenth street is now located. Mrs. Hogard says her mother remem¬ bers when there was only one log cabin in that vicinity. During the Civil War Mrs. Hogard recalls that her mother had to move fourteen times. The father wTas a man of high character and a member of the Presby¬ terian church. He belonged to the Masonic lodge, a charter member of that lodge at Belton. The mother was a high type of American woman¬ hood. For a number of years before her death she was an invalid, but she bore her sufferings with fortitude. She was a member of the Presby¬ terian church for forty-three years.

Mrs. Hogard was born in Cass County and is a granddaughter of Chesney Young, one of the very early settlers of this county. Mrs. Hogard was educated in Belton and has spent practically all her life in this vicinity. Mr. and Mrs. Hogard are well known in Cass County and have many friends.

W. A. Crone, now living retired at Belton, Missouri, has had a suc¬ cessful career and is one of Cass County's most substantial citizens. He was born in Fayette County, Ohio, in 1839, a son of Benjamin A. and Nancy Ann (McDonald) Crone, natives of Ohio. The mother was a daughter of Thomas McDonald, of Scotch descent. Thomas McDonald helped make the survey of Ohio. He was a grandson of Thomas McDonald who came from Scotland to America in 1772 and settled in Pennsylvania. Later he went to Kentucky with a brother, John McDonald, who was prominent in the political affairs of that state in the early days and served in the legislature.

In 1856 the Crone family removed from Ohio to Illinois, where the parents died. W. A. Crone has practically made his own way in life and whatever success has come to him is due to his own unaided efforts. He made his first money setting out onions, receiving ten cents per day and his dinner. He sold pumps at Canton, Illinois, in early life and there met

Mr. A. C. Moore, who was a successful breeder of Poland China hogs. He traded a pump for a pair of pigs and in this way became familiar with the hog industry. In 1868 he engaged in the restaurant business in Illinois and was in that business for twenty years.

In 1902 Mr. Crone came to Missouri and located in Cass County, where he bought one hundred thirty-six acres of land. He engaged in general farming although he specialized in breeding Poland China hogs. Mr. Crone generally had a sale every fall, where he disposed of his sale¬ able hogs, for which he received a very good price. He was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising for a number of years but now rents his farm and resides at Belton, where he has a comfortable home and is well-to-do.

Mr. Crone was married in 1870 to Miss Mary Wherritt, a daughter of George and Margaret Wherritt, of Virginia, of German and Welsh descent. Mr. Wherritt was a weaver and dyer. He manufactured his own dyes and had a secret of compounding colors which were of a very high stand¬ ard. Mrs. Crone remembers her father as a man of kindly disposition who was much devoted to his family. She recalls his greeting to her on one occasion after she had been away from home about a year. Upon her return he met her and exclaimed, "Here's Mollie, God bless her, she's the light of the household''. He was an honest, conscientious man and his wife was an industrious and kind hearted woman.

To Mr. and Mrs. Crone have been born seven children, as follows: Wallace, Wichita, Kansas; William, St. Joseph, Missouri; Mrs. Grace Neiswanger, Washington, Iowa; Maggie, Belton, Missouri; Elliott, Belton, Missouri; Mrs. Josie Chapman, La Junta, Colorado; and Mrs. Clara Kraft, Henrietta, Missouri. Mr. and Mrs. Crone have ten grandchildren, namely: Earl and Vera Crone, Elma, Dorothy and Donald Neiswanger, Charles, Helen and James Chapman and Clyde and Ralph Kraft.

Horace Gray, one of the most progressive citizens of Raymore town¬ ship, is a native of Illinois. He was bom in 1862 and is a son of Dr. L. F. and Lydia (Morey) Gray, both natives of Ohio. Dr. L. F. Gray's father was a native of New York, born in 1797. He was a soldier in the War of 1812 and lived to the advanced age of ninety-seven years, dying in 1894. Dr. L. F. Gray was a student at Sheraon College, Ohio. In early life he became a teacher. Doctor Gray studied medicine under Dr. Alex¬ ander Hull, a noted physician of his time. He later entered Rush Med¬ ical College at Chicago, where he was graduated in the spring of 1857, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. In 1869 Doctor Gray came to Missouri and located in Cass County in the vicinity of where the town of Raymore now stands. Here he engaged in the practice of his pro¬ fession and was a very successful physician. He built up a large practice and won the confidence of the public not only as a physician but as a friend, neighbor and fellow citizen. He built one of the first business houses in Raymore and was successful in a financial way as well as professionally.

Doctor Gray was united in marriage in 1857 with Miss Lydia Morey, a daughter of Rev. Amos Morey, of Ohio. Two children were born to this union: Horace, the subject of this sketch; and Milton A., who resides at Saiina, Kansas.

Horace Gray, whose name introduces this sketch, received a good education in the public schools of Cass County. In early life he learned the trade of painter and paperhanger and has probably done more work of this kind than any man in Raymore township. Mr. Gray is interested in various other enterprises in addition to his trade. In fact, he is a hustler and is always busy no matter from what angle he is viewed. He is a very successful breeder of standard bred trotting horses and is the present owner of "Highest Ideal, No. 42329", which is one of the valuable horses of western Missouri.