Pettis County, Missouri - Biographical sketches, 1919 (part 6 of 14)

Judge Lower has been a leader of the Republican party in Pettis County for many years, and stands high in the councils of his party, and has a wide and favorable acquaintance with the national leaders of the party. He was elected county clerk of Pettis County in 1898, and served two terms of four years each. When last elected to the office of county clerk he received a plurality of 213 votes, and led the Republican ticket. When first elected he received a majority of 129 votes, in the face of a Democratic plurality of 500 votes in the county, and was the first Repub¬ lican county clerk elected since the Civil War period. Mr. Lower was elected presiding judge of the County Court by a majority of over 200 votes. In 1908 he was a delegate to the national convention of the Pro¬ gressive party, which nominated Theodore Roosevelt for President. He has served twice as a delegate to the conventions at St. Louis, and Mrs. Lower was a member of the committee which escorted Col. Theodore Roosevelt over the city. For some years he served as a member of the board in charge of the State Training School at Boonville, Missouri, and has been the instigator of some very marked and beneficial improvements in the management of the school during his tenure of this office. He has the honor of having been the instigator of the movement to establish one of the first rural mail routes in Missouri, Rural Mail Route No. 1, Hughesville, Missouri. Judge Lower is a Presbyterian. He is a good, loyal citizen, and is alive to the needs of his home community and county in a civic and governmental sense.

Jesse Swope. - At the time of his death, on March 18, 1918, at his home in Longwood township, the late Jesse Swope was the oldest living native-born pioneer in his section of Pettis County, and probably the oldest in Pettis County. Bom October 12, 1837, within one mile of his home farm, he lived all of his long life of over four score years within sight and sound of his birthplace, and was one of the best known of the Pettis County pioneers. He was a son of Jesse and Mary (Hedrick) Swope, whose advent into Missouri dates backward over a long, long period of one hundred years.

Jesse Swope, the elder, came to Missouri from Kentucky in 1819, and settled first in Howard County, Missouri. Three years later, in 1822, he came to Pettis County and entered government land, created a farm, and resided thereon until his death, in 1874. He was a famous hunter, whose skill was remarkable and whose exploits have been handed down by tradition to this day. At one time Jesse Swope wounded a large bear some miles distant from his home. Not caring to cany the carcass of the bear a distance of several miles to his home, he managed to drive the wounded animal within sight of his doorstep, then finished it. He killed many deer, and during one year he had the record of killing eleven panthers. At that remote period there were but five families between

Boonville and the Swope home, and Boonville was the nearest trading point. Jesse Swope and his family had few wants which could not be supplied in the neighborhood, and he spent the greater part of his time in hunting and fishing. His wife, who was known to the countryside as Grandma Swope, in her old age, at one time set a pole for fish in the nearby stream, and caught a fish weighing forty pounds, so heavy and strong that its mere weight pulled her into the water waist deep before she could land it. Another story goes that Aunt Becky Cunningham, wife of Uncle Joe Cunningham, while doing family washing one day, went down to the spring to get water and found two buck deer fighting, with their horns locked together. She went back home, got a large butcher knife and killed both deer with the knife. The early pioneer women, like their husbands, were brave and hardy, and were unafraid of the hardships of the pioneer life on the frontier of civilization.

Jesse Swope, the first, was married to Mary Hedrick, of Kentucky, who bore him eleven children, as follow: Mrs. Sallie Newbill, the first white woman married in Pettis County, wife of Matt Newbill, and died at the age of ninety-four years, her marriage being the first to be recorded in Pettis County; Meredith, died in 1878; Hiram, died in Pettis County; Joseph, deceased; Mrs. Rebecca Cunningham (Aunt Becky), deceased; Milton, deceased; Orpha, wife of David Greer, died at the age of eightyfour years ; Mrs. Tina Hansbrough, deceased ; Mrs. Mary Finley, deceased ; Jesse Swope, subject of this review.

Jesse Swope, of this review, served in the Civil War in the State militia for a period of seven months, and was honorably discharged because of defective hearing. He was married on October 4, 1859, to Miss Nancy Lower, a daughter of Capt. George and Mary Augustus (Host) Lower, late deceased, resident of Pettis County, a sketch of whom appears in this volume in connection with the biography of Judge R. N. Lower. Mrs. Nancy (Lower) Swope was born April 18, 1841, in Ken¬ tucky, and was the youngest child born to her father and his first wife, Mary Augustus Host, who died in May, 1841. Immediately after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Swope settled upon their farm and erected a comfortable farm residence, which is still standing. They moved to their present place in the spring of 1867, and here erected a home which, with various remodeling and enlarging, affords a comfortable and impos¬ ing farm residence. The Swope homstead consists of 200 acres of wellimproved farm lands, with a large barn, 50x32 feet, in dimension. This farm is devoted to raising and feeding live stock, and none but highgrade stock is produced on the place. A private road, three-fourths of a mile in length, crosses the farm and is kept in an excellent state of repair, being used freely by the public.

Ten children were born to Jesse and Nancy Swope, as follow: Wil¬ liam, and George W., deceased ; Mary M., died in Oregon ; Elizabeth Cath¬ erine, is the wife of Frank Williams, and lives in Kansas City; Mrs. Alice Wheeler, lives in Hughesville township; Mrs. Emma Wheeler, lives near LaMonte, Missouri; Sallie, is deceased; Edmonia, at home; Jesse Alonzo, or Lon Swope, lives at home ; one child died in infancy.

Mrs. Alice Wheeler has six children: Jesse Raymond, who married Ella Waldecker, and has one child; William, Geneva, Marion, Gwendolyn, and Cecil.

Mrs. Emma Wheeler has nine children: May, Stanley, Dwight, Mrs. Bertha Holland, who has three children; Mrs. Winona Patterson, Donald, Clifford, Virginia, and Lloyd.

Jesse Alonzo Swope was married to Miss Eula Rice in September, 1906. He is managing the home place since his father's death, and for sev¬ eral years prior to his father's death he was in active charge of the farm¬ ing operations.

Mrs. Swope has nine great grandchildren, and is a well-preserved lady, despite her age. She remembers conditions in the early days, and says that the old families had good times and enjoyed life. Most people were kind and sociable, and generous with all they had. In her girlhood days everybody in the neighborhood attended divine worship at Priest's Chapel. Schools were held mostly in the homes of the settlers. There being few physicians, the women of the households did the local doctoring by the use of home-brewed medicines, brewed from herbs gathered from the fields and woods.

Jesse Swope was a Republican in his political affiliations. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and was a good, whole-souled Chris¬ tian in his daily life. He was a hard worker, industrious, a good business man, kind and indulgent to his family, for whose interest and welfare his whole matured life was spent. He never left his fireside to be away from home for any length of time but he was accompanied by his beloved and faithful wife. He was kind to all, and like and respected by the people

Raphael Valentine Denny has been prominently identified with the agricultural interests of Pettis County for a number of years. He was born in Washington township, this county, June 1, 1873, and is a son of Raphael and Maria Ellen (Ashby) Denny. Three children were born to them, of whom Raphael Valentine, the subject of this sketch, is the only one living. By a former marriage to Elizabeth G. Brass there were born to Raphael Denny three children, of whom Charles William, who now resides on the same place in Washington township, Pettis County, is the only one living.

Raphael Denny, Sr., was born in St. Peters, St. Charles County, Missouri, December 19, 1821, and died March 31, 1898. He came to Pettis County in 1868 and settled in Washington township, where he was successfully engaged in farming and stock raising for many years. At the time of his death he was the owner of 652 acres. He was one of Pettis County's substantial citizens. Raphael Denny, Sr., was a son of Charles Denny, a native of Jarduff, France. He was educated in his native land for the profession of medicine. He immigrated to America and settled at St. Peters, St. Charles County, Missouri.

Raphael Valentine Denny, the subject of this sketch, was reared on a farm in Pettis County, and received a good public school education. He has made farming and stock raising his life's occupation, and is one of the successful men of affairs of Pettis County. He owns two valuable farms, aggregating 581 acres, located in Prairie and Washington town¬ ships. His home place is known as "Cedar Grove Farm," and the other place, which is located just north of the above-mentioned farm, is known as "South Look Farm." These are two well improved, nicely located and productive farms, which compare favorably in value with the best land in Pettis County. In 1918 Mr. Denny rented his farm and moved to Sedalia, where he has a pleasant home at 1009 West Third street.

April 29, 1896, Mr. Denny was united in marriage with Miss Mary E. English, a native of Prairie township, Pettis County. She is a daugh¬ ter of James and Mary (Sullivan) English, both now deceased. They came to Pettis County at a veiy early date with their parents, and were among the early settlers of this section. To Mr. and Mrs. Denny have been born three children, as follow: Raphael, James Theodore, and Vivian Ellen.

Denny. Residence Of R. V. Denny, Sebalxa, Mo

Mr. Denny is a member of the Catholic Church, and his fraternal affiliations are with the Modern Woodmen of America and the Benevo¬ lent and Protective Order of Elks. Politically, he is a Democrat. Mr. Denny is the present secretary of the Farmers Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Pettis County.

William Ellis Taylor. - Earning his own way from boyhood, William Ellis Taylor, Longwood, Missouri, has risen to become one of the substan¬ tial and influential citizens of Pettis County. Mr. Taylor had few oppor¬ tunities when a boy except to find work in order to support himself. In his younger days he did all kinds of hard work in order to earn an honest dollar, cutting cord wood, making hedge, assisting in the operation of a threshing outfit, and working as farm laborer. The Taylor farm, adjacent to Longwood, consists of 275 acres, splendidly equipped and improved for stock raising on an extensive scale. Of late Mr. Taylor has turned over the tilling of much of his acreage to his son-in-law, and uses much of the land for grazing purposes. He feeds several car loads of cattle annually, besides many hogs. Mr. Taylor owns a large tract of 535 acres, six miles northeast of Longwood, 455 acres of which lies in Saline County, and eighty acres in Pettis County. This farm is managed by his son-in-law. A pretty brick residence, large barns and commodious feeding sheds make the home farm an attractive and busy place.

Mr. Taylor was born in Cooper County, Missouri, in 1854. He is a son of Henry Clay and Sallie (Ellis) Taylor. Henry Clay Taylor was born in Kentucky in 1832 and died in 1916. His father was an early pioneer settler in Cooper County and emigrated to that county from his home State of Kentucky. Sallie Ellis Taylor was born in 1834 and died in 1864. Five children were born to Henry C. and Sallie Taylor, three of whom are living: James L., living in Kansas; Mrs. Mary Nichols residing in northwestern Missouri; and William Ellis, subject of this re¬ view. Henry C. Taylor was again married to Celia Ellis, a sister of the first Mrs. Taylor and the following children were born of this marriage: Harry, a citizen of Texas ; Dr. John Taylor lives in Washington ; Carlisle, Sedalia, Missouri; Mrs. Sylvia McCully, living near Chicago, Illinois; Mrs. Sallie Swartzel, Texarkana, Arkansas; Virgie, wife of Dr. Huff, near Texarkana, Arkansas; Mrs. Constant Pemberton, Sedalia, Missouri; Mrs. Maude Staples, living near Nelson, Saline County, Missouri.

later. He had previously moved to Pettis County in the fifties and owned considerable land southwest of Sedalia. Reverses came to him and he lost much of his fortune on account of the war, and upon his re¬ turn to Pettis County when the Civil War was over he clerked in a Sedalia general store for several years. In his old age he made his home with a daughter in Texarkana, Arkansas, where his death occurred.

William E. Taylor lived at home with his parents until after his marriage in 1876. He then rented land near Hughesville, for two years, after which he tilled a rented farm south of Dresden for two years. For the next five years he resided on a farm in Heath's Creek township. In 1885 he bought his fine farm near Longwood on which he placed all of the present fine improvements, rebuilding the residence, erecting a large concrete silo, and rebuilt all of the fences. The entire tract is fenced with four-foot woven wire fencing with steel posts set in concrete emplace¬ ments. Mr. Taylor bought his large farm northwest of Longwood in partnership with William Powell but later purchased Mr. Powell's inter¬ est in the tract. All of his accumulations have been made within a period of thirty years.

Mr. Taylor was married in 1876 to Willia Grinstead. of Pettis County, a daughter of William Grinstead, a former old settler of Pettis County. Three children have blessed this union: Roy E., married Carrie Lower, daughter of Judge R. N. Lower, and resides on a farm south of Longwood; Mrs. Sallie Valonia Hurt, whose husband is operating a large farm near Houstonia; Ollie Bess, wife of Rev. Arthur Downs, formerly a minister of the Christian Church but now engaged in the insurance and real estate business in Marshall, Missouri.

Politically, Mr. Taylor is a Democrat. He is a director of the Bank of Longwood and is the second largest stockholder of this thriving in¬ stitution. He is a member of the Longwood Methodist Episcopal Church and was a liberal giver towards the erection of the present handsome church in his home town.

Das Winston McClure. - A citizen's place in the history of his home community and county is measured by his accomplishments during his lifetime. These accomplishments include his success as an individual, his usefulness to society and the part taken in behalf of the development of the community. Likewise we must take into account the standing of those who bear his name and the part played by them in the general ' scheme of continuous development. All of these stipulations were met in the main by the late Das Winston McClure, of Hughesville, who was a successful citizen in every way that the term success can be applied to an agriculturist. Mr. McClure not only succeeded as a farmer and business man far above the average of men of his day, but he did well his part as a citizen, as a father, as a friend, and in every way measured up to the qualification of good citizens. Das Winston McClure was born in Montgomery County, Missouri, in 1849 and died at his home in Hughesville township, January 3, 1902. His sons are now carrying on the great work which he began and tilling the hundreds of acres which he owned at the time of his death. Mr. McClure was a son of Winston McClure, a native of Virginia, a pioneer in Montgomery County, Mis¬ souri, later settling in Saline County, where he became one of the most widely known stockmen in western Missouri. More details concerning his life are given elsewhere in this volume.

The three sons of Winston McClure, named John Wesley, Das Wins¬ ton and Benjamin F. McClure, came to Pettis County in 1876 and engaged in stock raising on a large scale. They continued in this operation for several years, until each brother began farming on his own account on land which they purchased, individually, in Hughesville township and vicinity. Das Winston McClure moved to what is now the homestead east of Hughesville in 1883. This farm is one of the finest improved places in Pettis County. The place was already improved by a splendid mansion which had been erected by a former owner in ante-bellum days, and Mr. McClure equipped the tract for live stock production on a large scale. The home farm comprised 1,400 acres, besides which Mr. McClure owned a tract of 400 acres west of Hughesville. Mr. McClure fed and marketed over two hundred head of cattle each year.

Das W. McClure was married May 22, 1884, to Miss Luella Ricks, who was born in Hughesville township, and is a daughter of William and Mary Jane (Harvey) Ricks; the former was bom in Kentucky and the latter in Cooper County, Missouri. Mr. and Mrs. Ricks came to Pettis County in 1854, and built up a fine farm near Hughesville. William Ricks was bom in 1829 and died in May, 1917. Mary Jane (Harvey) Ricks was born in Cooper County, Missouri, in 1837 and died in 1911. William and Mary Jane Ricks were parents of a large family of thirteen children, eleven of whom are living: Marion, Goodland, Texas; William lives in St. Louis; Dee, living in Arizona; Mrs. Luella McClure, widow of the subject of this review; Ernest, a resident of Oregon; Mrs. May Hart- man, died in Nebraska; James, Sapulpa, Oklahoma; Elizabeth, lives in Sedalia; Mrs. Clara Forrest, lives in Hughesville township; Vernon, Hughesville township; Margaret lives in California; Joseph, Hudson, Kansas.

The children born to Das Winston and Luella McClure are as fol¬ lows: William Winston, a successful live stock dealer, Hughesville, Mis¬ souri; D. Weston, the soldier of the family, bom in 1887, enlisted as private in the National Army, July, 1918, trained at Waco, Texas, and was in camp at Camp McArthur, a member of Company 21, A. R. D., now with the American Army in France; Leonard Page McClure, bom in 1889, is in charge of the adjoining farm; Benjamin, born in 1891, farmer and stockman, at home; Mrs. Theresa Sprecher, Sedalia, Missouri; Eunice, at home with her mother; Lester Hut, bom in 1896, and Das, born in 1902, both at home. The McClure estate has been divided among the children, each of whom received a substantial acreage from the division.

The late Das McClure was a Democrat and during his lifetime he used his personal influence in behalf of his friends who sought political preferment. He worshipped at the Methodist Episcopal Church South.

John Robert Field, proprietor of a nicely improved farm of 189 acres in Longwood township, has lived his entire life in the vicinity in which he was born and reared. He was born November 11, 1865, on the old Field homestead in Longwood township. He is a son of Henry Young Field, who was born June 21, 1937, and died July 6, 1898. His mother was Mary (Baker) Field, who was born May 1, 1838, in Kentucky on a farm within four miles of Danville.

Henry Young Field was a son of Col. William Hill Field, a native of Virginia, who was educated for the practice of law in Kentucky, where his parents had removed when he was but a child. Col. William H. Field came to Pettis County in 1853 and purchased a large tract of land from Ransom Wells. This land embraced over 2,000 acres and Mr. Field brought a retinue of slaves with him to till the land. He erected a splen¬ did mansion at a cost of over $25,000 and conducted farming and live stock operations on a large scale. He had previously practiced law in Louisville, Ketucky, and he followed his profession to some extent in Pettis County after coming here. In 1862, when feeling ran high in western Missouri between the Union adherents and the advocates of slavery and many crimes were committed in the name of war, Colonel Field fell a victim to war's cruelty. He endeavored to maintain a neutral atti¬ tude and had really taken no part in war's activities, but he was marked by those of the opposition and, supposedly because of his high standing in the community and his influence, he was taken from his front porch to a nearby wood and shot by men masquerading as Union soldiers. He died bravely. He left a widow and seven sons and three daughters. His widow died in Louisville, in 1880. She was Mary Young prior to her mar¬ riage.

Henry Young Field accompanied his parents to Pettis County in 1853 and engaged in farming on the Field estate when he attained ma¬ turity. In the fall of 1878 he was elected clerk of Pettis County on the Democratic ticket, and served for two terms in this capacity. Mr. Field owned a farm of 400 acres in Heath's Creek township and was widely and favorably known throughout the county. He was married in December, 1856, to Mary Baker, who was born in Gerard County, Kentucky May 1, 1838, and bore him children as follow: Nannie, died in infancy; William, died at the age of seventeen years; Mrs. Lucretia Davis died in Okla¬ homa; John R., of this review; Nellie, died at the age of fourteen years; Allie, wife of David Bouldin, living on a farm near Hughesville ; Edmonia, wife of Samuel May, living near Hughesville; Janie, wife of Allen Frick, Sedalia. Mrs. Field reared twenty-two children in all, those besides her own children being wards. She has seven grandchildren and one great¬ grandchild. She is a daughter of Lucretius Baker, who was born in Clay County, Kentucky, in 1809. His parents were natives of Virginia and both died in Kentucky. He was married in 1835 to Nancy Rout who died in 1845. In 1846 he was again married to Lydia Montgomery, of Kentucky. Mr. Baker came to Pettis County in 1854 and purchased a farm of 400 acres, fifteen miles north of Sedalia on the Independence and Boonville trail. Mr. Baker died in Pettis County in 1893.

John R. Field was reared in Pettis County and has always been en¬ gaged in farming. He was married on September 12, 1910, to Miss Sallie Madison Major, who was born in Sedalia, Missouri. She is a daughter of Dr. Thomas Turley Major, who practiced dentistry in Sedalia for many years. Dr. Major was born in Franklin County, Kentucky, March 4, 1829, a son of Oline T., a native of Virginia, and Nancy T. (Gunnell) Major, a native of Kentucky. The family removed to Saline County, Missouri, in 1848, and Dr. Major was reared in that county. He took up the study of dentistry in 1852 with his brother, Dr. A. C. Major, of

Brownsville. In 1863 he located at Glasgow, Howard County, Missouri, and afterwards practiced his profession at Waverly and Lexington. He located in Sedalia in 1868, practiced his profession in Sedalia for many years and died in this city on June 24, 1902. Doctor Major was married in 1850 to Rachel Lewis, who bore him three children: Margaret, wife of John Stewart, deceased; Lizzie, deceased; Nannie, wife of John T. Grimshaw, Los Angeles. She has a son, Edwin, who served in France as a soldier in the National Army.

Mrs. Rachel Major died in 1857. Doctor Major was again married, in 1864, to Miss Mattie Buckner, who died in 1899, at the age of sixtyseven years. Three children survive her: Mrs. Sallie Field, of this re¬ view; Dr. George Major, engaged in dental manufacturing in Kansas City, and Miss Anna May Major, making her home with Mr. and Mrs. Field. Doctor Major was a soldier in the Confederate Army and served under General Price. The Major family is a very old one in American annals and its beginning in this country dates with the year 1700 when Bartholomew Dupuy, a Frenchman, who fought bravely in the armies of Louis XIV of France, fled to America with his wife, Susanna La Villan, rather than renounce his religious belief. He was a Huguenot.

Mr. Field is a Democrat of the true and steadfast kind, who is a firm believer in democratic principles of government. He is a member of the Presbyterian Church. Mrs. Field is a member of the Christian Church.

James B. Finley, a substantial farmer and stockman of Longwood township, was born in Richmond, Ray County, Missouri, July 17, 1858. He is a son of Rufus W., bora in 1824, in North Carolina, and Mary (Brown) Finley, a native of Kentucky.

Rufus W. Finley was a son of George B. Finley, who left his native State of North Carolina in 1832 and journeyed to Ray County, Missouri, where he made a permanent settlement. Travis Finley of the same name, but no relation, accompanied him to the undeveloped section of what is now Ray County, and both men played a prominent part in the settling up and developing of that county. Rufus W. Finley became well edu¬ cated and was a man gifted beyond ordinary attainments. For a num¬ ber of years he taught school in Ray County and resided in that county until 1863 when he removed to Lexington and the same year he removed to Saline County and settled on a farm, where he resided until his death, in 1896. During the Civil War he was a captain in the Union Army and served as enlisting or provost officer at Lexington, Missouri, during the war. He was father of eleven children, nine of whom were reared to maturity: Sarah, lives in Saline County; Mrs. Mary F. Chilson, Califor¬ nia; Mattie E. lives with her sister in California; James B., subject of this review; George B., died in 1873; Samuel lives in Oklahoma City; Ada and Emma reside in Mississippi; Nathan H., Collinsville, Oklahoma; Nannie lives in Washington, D. C. ; Rufus W. died in 1876. The mother of these children was born in Kentucky in 1830, and departed this life on October 1, 1909. She was a daughter of James and Martha (Scroggin) Brown, who came to Pettis County from Kentucky in 1844, and settled on a farm, four miles northeast of Sedalia. Rufus W. Finley, or Professor Finley as he was more familiarly known, established the Boys School at Sweet Springs in co-operation with Dr. Yantes in 1848 and there became acquainted with Miss Brown. This was the first school of its kind in Saline County.

Having a talented and well-educated paternal parent, it was only natural that James B. Finley had the advantages of a good education. His public school work was supplemented by private tutoring under his father who was insistent that his children receive a good education. He has always followed farming and when a young man he went to the West and roamed over Kansas and Oklahoma in the hope of finding a suitable site for a home. He homesteaded land in Haskell County, Okla¬ homa, for three and a half years, decided that this section of the west was too dry and the making of crops too precarious an undertaking and fetumed to old Missouri. Having been reared just across the Pettis-Saline County line, he was well acquainted with the Houstonia neighborhood. He rented land in the vicinity of Houstonia for five years, and in 1897, he had a capital sufficient to make a payment on 240 acres of land, with¬ out improvements. Mr. Finley has improved his farm to a considerable extent and has erected in 1916, one of the best and most modem homes in his vicinity. Good fencing surrounds the farm land and a silo is used to store silage for winter feeding of cattle which he produces to the extent of two carloads each year besides feeding from one to two carloads of hogs annually. Mr. Finley raises over one hundred head of hogs annually, and is a mule breeder to a considerable extent.

On November 18, 1908, James B. Finley and Miss Inez Boatright were united in marriage. Mrs. Inez Finley was born near Herndon, Saline County, Missouri, and is a daughter of William G. and Nancy Frances (Buie) Boatright. William G. Boatright was bom in Howard

County in 1830, and has resided on his farm near Herndon, Missouri, for the past fifty years. Mrs. Nancy Frances Boatright died in December, 1913. She was a daughter of the Rev. David Buie, who was a pioneer preacher of the Cumberland Presbyterian faith in Saline County, and who established several churches in the county. The children of the Boatright family are as follows: John W., Saline County; Lewis, de¬ ceased; Finis H., Saline County; George F., Sedalia; Charles R., Califor¬ nia; Mary F., at home with her father; Mrs. Anna Deil, North Dakota; Mrs. Inez Finley, of this review; Mrs. Sallie Maupin, Kansas City; Leslie G., owner of a farm near the Saline County home place ; Jesse died when two years old.

James Melvin Coats. - For nearly seventy years the late James Melvin Coats, of Houstonia township, resided in Pettis County, and at the time of his death was one of the oldest pioneer citizens of the county. He was bom November 30, 1842, in Kentucky, and was but seven years of age when his parents settled in this county, in 1849. At this period of the county's development there were but few settlers on the prairie, and much of the land was then open range. Richard Coats, his father, died in 1854. His mother, Pauline (McCombs) Coats, kept her family together and continued the development of the farm in Houstonia town¬ ship. Upon the outbreak of the Civil War James M. Coats enlisted in the Union Army and served with a Missouri regiment for about one year. He was a private soldier in Company D, 5th Provisional Regiment, which was organized and equipped for State duty during the latter part of the conflict.

On February 12, 1868, James Melvin Coats was united in marriage with Miss Eva Ann Strole who, during over fifty years of happy and prosperous wedded life, has been a faithful helpmeet and companion of her late husband. Mr. and Mrs. Coats settled upon an eighty-acre tract which was given them by Mr. Coats' mother, on condition that he care for his mother during the remainder of her days. This they consented to do and they made their home with Mrs. Coats and her family for the first five years, while developing the farm. Mrs. Eva Coats worked side by side with her husband in the fields, and drove the ox team, hitched to the plow, while her husband drove the horses. Often she had trouble with the brutes, who would heed no restraint when thirsty, but would dash across the open country to the nearest water hole in order to quench their thirst, it then becoming necessary for Mr. Coats to go and get the erratic team, so that his assistant could continue the work of plowing. Mrs. Eva Coats was one of a large family of girls, who learned to do all kinds of farm work, and, there being plenty of female help in the Coats household to do the housework and cooking, she was thus left free to help her husband with the farm work. There is no indi¬ cation, when one observes her healthy, bright appearance, although she is now in her seventieth year, that the work injured this pioneer lady in the least. Rather, it promoted her health and assisted in the developing of a robust constitution. In 1873, Mr. and Mrs. Coats built their com¬ fortable home, and, being desirous of owning a large farm, they went in debt for land, succeeding , in becoming owners of 480 acres of rich prairie soil in Houstonia township. This land is in three tracts, the home farm consisting of 240 acres, there being two other farms of 120 acres each. The land is free from debt, and is the reward of years of hard, unremitting toil and good financial management on the part of Mr. and Mrs. Coats.

The children born to James M. and Eva Ann Coats are: Sue Belle and James Richard, at home with their mother; Leslie A., a farmer in Blackwater township, married Maude McGruder, and has one child, Beatrice AJi~ fa; Elbert Clement, born February 26, 1890, enlisted in the National Army December 12, 1917, and is now in France, a member of the 270th Aerial Squadron of Mechanics, and is serving as assistant hangar chief on the American front in France.

Mrs. Eva Ann Coats was born March 6, 1849, in Virginia. She is a daughter of James T. and Barbara (Kite) Strole, both of whom were natives of Virginia. The Stroles came to Pettis County, Missouri, in the fall of 1860 and settled south of Dresden, where Mr. Strole rented land for some years. He finally bought a farm in Houstonia township, and there lived the remainder of his days, engaged in farming. James T. Strole died in October, 1886. Mrs. Barbara Strole died in June, 1886. They were parents of twelve children, five of whom are living: Mark Strole, lives near Nevada, Missouri; James Strole, lives in LaMonte; Mrs. Caroline Kelly, near LaMonte ; Mrs. Eva Ann Coats, is the youngest survivor of this large family, which boasted seven daughters.

was honest to the core, hardworking, a splendid citizen and a kind father, whose loss to the community in which he had resided for so many long years was deeply felt by all who knew him. All who knew him respected and admired him for his many sterling qualities, and has was ever ready and willing to give his assistance to worthy projects for the public good.

Richard A. Marshall. - One hundred years ago, Richard Marshall, grandfather of R. A. Marshall, whose name heads this review, came to Howard County, Missouri, from his ancestral home in Virginia, and formed one of the vanguard of hardy pioneers who opened up this rich section of Missouri for settlement. He landed at old Fort Boone, across the Missouri from Arrow Rock, and a little later he purchased 800 acres of land in Saline County, and owned land in different tracts from Nelson, Missouri, to Knob Noster in Johnson County. Richard Marshall was a kinsman of Chief Justice John Marshall, of Virginia, and Vice-President Thomas R. Marshall is a member of the same old family.

Joseph Marshall, father of Richard A., was born in Saline County, Missouri, in 1823 and died on July 3, 1901. He responded to the call for volunteers to assist in the invasion and conquest of Mexico in 1846, and served during the memorable campaigns which wrested a vast tract of territory from the southern Latin Republic. In return for his services he received a grant of land from the government. Not having had enough hardships and adventures, and still being a young man, when gold was discovered in the Sutter Creek in California, he crossed the great plains and mountains in 1849 and secured a amount of the precious yellow metal which amply repaid him for his trip. He settled on his government patent of 160 acres in Saline County, not far from the north¬ ern border of Pettis County and became wealthy in the course of time, accumulating a large estate of over 1,600 acres of land. He had married Mary Porter, who died in 1856, leaving children as follow: R. A. Mar¬ shall, and a sister who died in childhood. His second wife, whom he mar¬ ried some time later, was Lizzie Lynch, who bore him ten children: Mrs. Mollie Pyle, died in Saline County; Mrs. Janie Pyle, Marshall, Missouri; Robert, living with his mother on the old homestead; James, Marshall, Missouri; Joseph, a farmer, Saline County; Eva, wife of Joseph Scott, near Hardemann, Missouri; Mrs. Nettie Pyle, Marshall, Missouri; Mrs. Stella Meredith, Miami, Oklahoma; Scott, and William, farmers in Saline County.

acres of his present farm of 180 acres, upon which Mr. Marshall moved in February, 1877, and in 1882 he purchased his additional land. Mr. Mar¬ shall has placed all of the existing improvements on his farm, and he and his wife and family have lived happily and comfortably here for over forty years.

In 1878, R. A. Marshall and Miss Lillie Hanley were united in mar¬ riage and to this marriage ten children have been born: Joseph Frank¬ lin, superintendent of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company at Havre De Grace, Maryland; Porter Allen, a merchant at Virginia, Idaho; Archibald lives on the home place and is a farmer; Ethel is the wife of

A. H. Orear, a merchant of Longwood; Mrs. Gertrude Spriggs, Detroit, Michigan, her husband being employed in the Timken Works ; Dixie, wife of Louis Montgomery, who is also employed in the Timken Manufactur¬ ing Co.'s plant at Detroit; Mrs. Lillian Bates, living on a ranch in Ne¬ braska; Mrs. Mary Hicks, whose husband is auditor of the Long Pine Lumber Company, Bogaloosa, Louisiana; Louise and Martha, the two youngest children are at home. The mother of this interesting family was born and reared in Saline County. She is a daughter of Archibald (b. March, 1819, d. June, 1909) and Phoebe (Claycomb) Hanley. Archi¬ bald H. Hanley was a native of Virginia. He came from Monroe County, Virginia, to Saline County, Missouri, and settled there in 1843. Archi¬ bald Hanley was father of the following children: Mrs. Mollie Jones, Kansas City; John lives at Rich Hill, Missouri; James, Boise, Idaho; Mrs. Virgie McDaniel, near Aramo, Idaho; Mrs. Daisy Powell, on the old homestead; Lee, in Saline County. Mrs. Phoebe Hanley was born in 1830 and died March 9, 1892. Mr. Hanley was first married in 1843 to Miss Flora Cook, and that fall came to Saline County and settled on a farm of forty acres which he entered from the government. Mrs. Hanley died in 1853, leaving four children, only two of whom grew to maturity: Mrs. Mary E. Jones and John C. Hanley.

Mr. Hanley's second wife, who before her marriage was Julia A. Claycomb, lived but one year, and left one child, who died at seven years of age. For his third wife, Mr. Hanley married Phoebe E. Clay¬ comb, who bore him children as follow: Virgie, James M., Lillie

He was a son of Archibald and Susan (Kinkaid) Hanley, of Virginia, and comes of Revolutionary ancestry. Both Mr. and Mrs. Marshall are descended from Revolutionary ancestry. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall have eleven grandchildren.

Mr. Marshall is a thorough Democrat of the old school. He and Mrs. Marshall are members of the Bethlehem Christian Church. He is affil¬ iated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Wood¬ men Lodge of Longwood.

Mr. Marshall is a jolly, hospitable old settler of the true Missouri type, who loves to reminisce over the old days when the country, now so thickly populated, was almost a virgin wilderness, abounding in wild game and the streams teeming with fish. He recalls that his grand¬ father, like many others of his day, was a mighty hunter and spent most of his time when not urgently employed upon his farm, tramping or riding over the country, happy in his favorite recreation. Back in those days the wheat was "tromped" out by horse power, and he recalls seeing this done and assisting at the work many times when a boy. The "ground hog" thresher superseded the old laborious method of "tromping" out the grain. The settlers would "boat" their hogs and mules to the St. Louis market, and also ship their wheat to St. Louis. This period of the Great World War was not the only time that wheat brought two dollars per bushel for Mr. Marshall remembers when his father received the extremely high price of $2.25 per bushel for a crop. In 1865 they were forced to pay as high as $12 per hundred weight for flour and the children and parents used burnt molasses in lieu of sugar for sweetening. The old "ground hog" thresher operated on the principle of the presentday corn sheller, the wheat being pitched in when it was cut up, the thresher would knock out the wheat and chaff and then they would have to use the "blower" to separate the wheat from the chaff. His father owned one of the first in the country and people would travel to the Mar¬ shall farm for a distance of fifty miles to see the new fangled wheat thresher in operation.

Nathan Harris. - The history of the Harris family in Missouri ex¬ tends over a long period of nearly ninety years in the State. Conse¬ quently, the members of this family are counted among the oldest of the Missouri pioneer family descendants. In 1830 Nathan Harris, grand¬ father of the subject under review, migrated from Kentucky to Missouri.

He located on the Blackwater River in Saline County and built a mill at a point on the river which later became known as the Harris Mill Ford. He erected a dam and flume and built the mill which served for a variety of industries, such as grinding grain and sawing lumber for the incoming settlers. Mr. Harris also made whiskey and opened up a salt spring in the neighborhood and engaged in the manufacture of salt. When the news of the great gold discovery on Sutter Creek in California was made known in this section of Missouri, Nathan Hams crossed the plains with an ox team and, arriving in the gold mining region on the Pacific slope, he set up a hotel in the mining country. He operated this hotel for several years and engaged in various enterprises and became possessed of con¬ siderable valuable property, the most of which he lost through defective titles. Soon after his business discouragements he returned to his home in Missouri and died shortly afterwards.

Burrell Harris, father of the subject of this sketch, was reared in Saline County and there married Nancy Eliza Tevis, who was born in 1824 and departed this life in 1869. Burrell Harris came to Pettis County in 1872 and invested in a large tract of land near Houstonia, on the east. In 1875, he moved with his family to this land and proceeded with its development. He erected a residence almost in the center of the tract and resided there until his removal to California, in 1881. He was bom in Kentucky in 1817 and died in 1897. He accumulated 525 acres, prac¬ tically all of which is now owned by his sons and daughters. To Burrell and Nancy Elizabeth Harris were born children as follows: Charles C. died in Saline County at the age of nineteen years; F. C. resides with his son-in-law, Mr. Vickery, in Houstonia township; Lulu died in California in 1896; Bettie lives in California; Nathan, subject of this sketch; W. B., a farmer in Houstonia township ; Mary L., resides at San Jose, California.

Nathan Harris was fifteen years old when the family settled in Pettis County. He received his share of the home place near Houstonia and has improved a fine farm of 210 acres. Mr. Harris resided upon his farm until January, 1906, when he removed to Houstonia where he owns a comfortable and attractive modern home. He oversees the farming operations from his home in Houstonia and visits the place daily.

Mr. Harris was married in 1890 to Miss Myrta Tevebaugh, a daughter of H. B. and Georgia Tevebaugh, the former is deceased and the latter makes her home with Mr. and Mrs. Harris. Four children have blessed this union: Eugene W., Mary Lillian, Walter H., and Russell.

self in the poultry and produce business in Houstonia prior to his enlist¬ ment in the National Army for service in the World War. He was edu¬ cated in Sedalia High School, William Jewell College, Drake University, and the Transylvania University at Lexington, Kentucky. He enlisted in the National Army on December 13, 1917, was trained at Jefferson Bar¬ racks, Missouri, Battle Creek, Michigan, and the Aviation Camp at Lake Charles, Louisiana. In September of 1918, Private Harris crossed the Atlantic for service in France. Mary Lillian Harris graduated from the Houstonia High School and studied at Stevens College, Columbia, and Christian College, Columbia, and is now a student in Missouri State Uni¬ versity. Walter H. Harris is conducting the poultry business at Hous¬ tonia. Russell is attending public school and is aged twelve years.

Mr. Harris is a Democrat and he and Mrs. Harris are members of the Christian Church. They are highly respected in the community and have many warm and steadfast friends.

William B. Harris, a prosperous farmer, Houstonia township, is a member of one of the oldest of the Missouri pioneer families. He was born on a farm in Saline County, August 9, 1865, and is the son of the late Burrell Harris, who resided in Pettis County for a number of years prior to his removal to California, where his death occurred. Burrell Harris was a son of Nathan Harris, of Virginia, who settled at the Har¬ ris Mill Ford on Blackwater River as early as 1830. For further par¬ ticulars regarding the history of this old Missouri family, the reader is referred to the sketch of Nathan Harris, brother of William B. Har¬ ris, elsewhere in this volume.

William B. Harris was eight years old when his father settled in Pettis County, just east of where William B. now lives. He was educated in the local public schools and in 1880 he accompanied his father to California and while living at San Jose, California, for about four and a half years, he attended the city schools. Upon his return to Pettis County, in 1885, he engaged in farming on his own account. Later he received his share of the estate and has increased his acreage to 212 acres of splendid land in one body. To this original tract of 132 acres he has added 80 acres and has placed all of the existing improvements on the farm. The Harris home is a handsome and imposing structure of ten rooms, modem throughout, which Mr. Harris erected in 1910, remodeling his old home.

then built a cottage nearer the road and remodeled this house in 1910. He is engaged in general farming and stock raising and feeds from fifty to sixty head of cattle annually, besides raising about one carload of hogs for the markets.

September 7, 1886, William B. Harris and Miss Annie Belle Lewis were united in marriage. Four children have blessed this marriage: Edna, Irvin B., Earl and Mearl, twins.

Edna is the wife of Edward Dorsey, and resides on a farm nearby in Houstonia township. She is mother of two children: Annie Mildred and Alma Ruth.

Irvin B. is an enlisted sailor in the United States Navy. He was born March 19, 1895, and enlisted in the United States Navy in June, 1918. He has been stationed at the Great Lakes Naval Training Sta¬ tion since his enlistment.

Earl and Mearl, twins, were born November 18, 1896. Mearl en¬ listed in the Aviation Department of the National Army, December 12, 1917. He was trained in Georgia and at Camp Greene, North Carolina, and is attached to the Mechanic and Ambulance department of this ser¬ vice.

The mother of these children was born in Pettis County and is a daughter of J. M. Lewis, deceased, an old settler of Pettis County. J. M. Lewis was born in White County, Tennessee, January 5, 1837, and died in 1903. He was reared to young manhood in his native county and came west in 1857. Mr. Lewis first located at Butler, Bates County, Missouri, and remained there for three years. In 1860 he came to Pettis county, locating near Rowletta. After the breaking out of the Civil War he cast his lot with the Union cause. On March 2, 1862, he enlisted in Com¬ pany B, Seventh Missouri Cavalry (State Militia), and participated in many hard-fought engagements. He was severely wounded during the battle of Pineville and was incapacitated for two months. Rejoining his command, he was promoted to the post of sergeant and was honorably dis¬ charged from the service in the spring of 1865. He returned to Pettis County and engaged in farming pursuits. In 1868 he was married to Eleanora Weathers, a daughter of Enoch G. Weathers, one of the first pioneers of Pettis County. The children born to this marriage were: Annie Belle, wife of W. B. Harris; Albert G., Oklahoma; John Monroe, deceased; Sally Ida, deceased; Mansfield, died in childhood, and James Arthur Lewis, Oklahoma; Nellie Robertson, Oklahoma; Odie Ellen (Kin¬ ney), Oklahoma.

Mr. Harris is a Democrat and he and Mrs. Harris are members of the Christian Church of Houstonia. For twenty-eight years he has been a member of the Modern Woodmen of America, and is a charter member of the Houstonia Lodge. Mr. and Mrs. Harris stand high in the com¬ munity and are worthy and industrious citizens and have many friends.

Moses Gustin Smith. - The development of Pettis County from a barren and unpeopled waste to its present state of prosperity, like all other sections of the West, is due to the courage, industry and high standard of character of the men and women who came here at a time when the surroundings were uninviting; and who courageously began the battle of life with a determination of subduing the barren plains, and making substantial homes for themselves and their posterity. Such was the class of pioneers to which Gustin Smith and his ancestors belonged.

Mr. Smith was a native of North Carolina, born near Raleigh, Sep¬ tember 26, 1859. He was a son of Eri and Mary J. (Crews) Smith, and was one of the three children born to them, the other two being, J. Willis Smith, manager of the telephone company at Sweet Springs, Missouri, and Hattie, who is now deceased. Eri Smith and his wife were natives of North Carolina, and came to Missouri about 1869 and later settled in Pettis County, where they spent the remainder of their lives.

Gustin Smith was reared on a farm, and received a good common school education, and, when about twenty years of age, engaged in farm¬ ing in Pettis County. He bought his first land in 1883. In 1892 he bought 300 acres of land in Blackwater township. He made extensive improvements, and in 1913 erected a large modern residence, which he equipped with electric lights and all modern conveniences, at a cost of $7,500.00. This is one of the fine residences in Pettis County. Mr. Smith was one of the most successful farmers and stockmen of the county. He was one of the early breeders of throughbred stock in the county, and over thirty years ago began breeding saddle and trotting horses. He was also a successful breeder of pure blood hogs and cattle. He con¬ ducted the business of farming and stock raising along scientific lines, and was one of the first men of the county to recognize the value of the practical application of scientific farming, along the plans which are being encouraged and conducted today by the State and national gov¬ ernment.

Residence Of Mrs. Gustin Smith

had the first telephone in his section of Pettis County. He was interested in the Chemical Bank of Sweet Springs, Missouri, and also a stockholder in the International Implement Company. He was a man who made a success of whatever he undertook. He was public-spirited, broad-minded and liberal. He was an advocate of good roads, and kept the roads in his vicinity in good repair. He never refused a worthy charitable request. He died August 3, 1915, and his demise was not only a great loss to his family and immediate friends, but to the community and county. He will long be remembered as one of Pettis County's best citizens.

December 25, 1879, Gustin Smith was united in marriage with Miss Augusta Victoria Cooper, a native of Illinois, born in Sangamon County, Illinois, July 4, 1859. She is a daughter of Ambrose and Dorothy (Keagle) Cooper, both natives of Illinois. They came to Pettis County in 1870, and settled on a farm in Blackwater township, and are both now deceased. The father died September 29, 1918, aged eighty-nine years, and the mother preceded him in death twenty years, having departed this life in 1898, at the age of seventy years. They were the parents of five children, of whom Mrs. Smith is the third in order of birth. She has one brother, William W. Cooper, who is a blacksmith at Houstonia. To Mr. and Mrs. Smith was born one child, who died in infancy.

Since the death of her husband Mrs. Smith manages her home place, and is a very capable woman. During her husband's lifetime she was his confidant in all his business affairs, and since his death her inti¬ mate knowledge of all the details of his business affairs has proven invaluable. She is a member of the Baptist Church and one of Pettis County's most estimable women.

David Edwin Longan, cashier of the Houstonia Bank, Houstonia, Missouri, was born in Cooper County, Missouri, April 23, 1851, and has resided in Pettis County for the past fifty-five years. He is a son of Frederick Longan, who was born near Jefferson City, Missouri, and is now deceased. Frederick L. Longan was a son of Austin K. Longan, a son of Irish parents who settled in Kentucky. Austin K. Longan was married in Kentucky to Martha B. Letch worth and migrated to Mis¬ souri in 1810, with the first vanguard of pioneers who settled in central Missouri. He became prominent in the affairs of Cole County, Missouri, and was a member of the first Legislative body ever brought together in the State. His son, Frederick L. Longan, was reared to manhood in Cole and Cooper counties, and was married to Emily E. Reavis, who was born

November 18, 1827, a daughter of Missouri pioneers, and who died No¬ vember 20, 1917. At the time of her death she was the oldest woman in Houstonia and probably the oldest in Pettis County.

Frederick L. Longan was a farmer. He came to Pettis County in 1858 and settled on a farm near Houstonia where he devoloped 360 acres, 280 acres of which was rich prairie land and eighty was covered with timber. In his old age, Frederick L. Longan retired to Houstonia where he died. The children born to Frederick and Emily E. Longan were: Walter F., the first cashier of the Houstonia Bank, died in 1904; David E., subject of this sketch; Henry A., assistant cashier in the bank; A. G. Longan, deceased; Mary D., married Dr. G. F. Smith, both deceased; Joseph C. Longan, merchant of Houstonia.

D. E. Longan was educated in the public schools and followed farm¬ ing until 1878. He then moved to Houstonia and engaged in the drug business which he followed until about 1888. He then embarked in the grain and live stock shipping business and was successfully engaged in this business for a period of twenty years. In 1902 he became interested in the Houstonia Bank and associated himself with his brother. In 1904 Mr. Longan became cashier of the bank. He is operating a farm of 300 acres upon which he is raising and feeding live stock and still handles grain and live stock to some extent. He maintains on his farm a fine flock of high grade sheep.

Mr. Longan is a Republican and is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He is one of the leading citizens of Houstonia and Pettis County.

John Townsend Patterson, lumber merchant, and a leading citizen of Houstonia, Missouri, is a native of Ohio. Mr. Patterson was born in Belmont County, Ohio, November 15, 1857. He is a son of George S. and Artemesia Patterson, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Belmont County, Ohio. George S. Patterson was a merchant in Belmont County, Ohio, and died in that county in 1860.

J. T. Patterson was reared to young manhood in his native State and left for the west in 1883. He had no capital of any consequence and came to Pettis County endowed with a good constitution, a desire to get along in the world, and a good moral purpose. Mr. Patterson rented a farm north of Houstonia and was a successful farmer for some years in this section of the county. In 1901 he purchased a quarter section of land southwest of Houstonia, cultivated it for the ensuing two years and then sold the farm. He then embarked in the lumber business, an undertaking which has proved to be one of the best business successes in Pettis County during the last decade. Being a born business man, Mr. Patterson has built up a mediocre lumber business into the leading concern of its kind in this part of the county. The Patterson Lumber Yard was first established in 1893 by D. E. Longan and Frank Sewell. This firm was succeeded by Cook Nichols, and Mr. Patterson purchased the yard from the Anderson Lumber Company in 1903. He has rebuilt the buildings and has a splendidly appointed yard, with substantial build¬ ings and a well equipped office. The business and stock is located on four city lots, each 45 by 120 feet. A complete stock of lumber, roofing and builders materials is carried, the value of which will exceed $15,000. Mr. Patterson is a director of the Houstonia Bank and is owner of resi¬ dence properties in addition to his lumber yard.

Mr. Patterson was married in 1882 to Miss Minerva Orrison, who was born in Belmont County, Ohio, a daughter of Amos Orrison. Mrs. Patterson departed this life in 1886, at the age of twenty-six years. Mr. Patterson has always revered the memory of his wife, and while he has no children ofh is own, he has been a father in a certain sense to many of the younger folks of Houstonia. No citizen has a better reputation for progressiveness and upright manhood than he. Liberal to a high degree, always among the first to head a subscription list, always in the forefront of worthy movements, calling for liberality, in giving, he is held in the highest esteem by his fellow citizens. Among the beneficia¬ ries with which he is credited is the adoption of a French orphan whom he will support for some years to come.

Pettis County has been the gainer for his citizenship, and it is men such as he that go far toward making a progressive community. He is a Republican, but is inclined to independence in voting in local matters, believing that the welfare of the people can best be enhanced by a disre¬ gard of politics where the county and community welfare is concerned. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Mod¬ ern Woodmen of America of Houstonia.

Jeffrey H. Downs. - The life story of Jeffrey H. Downs, extensive land owner of Houstonia township, furnishes abundant proof of the fal¬ lacy that the "fabled pot of honey" is always many miles distant. His sixty years of life have all been spent in Pettis County, and his present home is but a short distance from his birthplace. In Mr. Downs' case, opportunity in abundance was at hand in his native county, and he has prospered and become one of the largest individual land owners of Pettis County through his proverbial industry, good financial manage¬ ment and ambition. The Downs farms comprise a total of 1,200 acres in Houstonia and Blackwater townships and are among the most pro¬ ductive and best improved in Pettis County. There are four farms, all of which boast good improvements. The home place is an attractive one and well and substantially built. Two hundred head of cattle are raised and fed for the markets annually on the Downs farm; three hun¬ dred head of hogs are likewise fattened for the markets each year; and twenty-five head of horses and mules are kept on the place. While Mr. Downs harvested but eighty acres of wheat in 1918, he has sown 180 acres for the 1919 harvest.

Jeffrey H. Downs was born March 27, 1859, within one mile of his present home. He is a son of James Andrew Jackson Downs, one of the early pioneers of Pettis County, and a man of sterling worth and integrity.

James Andrew Jackson Downs was born in 1827, and died January 11, 1895. He was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and came of an excellent American family of pioneer stock. He was reared to young manhood in Louisville, Kentucky, and Jeffersonville, Indiana. In 1842, when but a lad, he left home and came by steamboat up the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers to Saline County, landing at Arrow Rock. Some time later, he came to Pettis County and settled on the prairie in the Houstonia neighborhood. He first settled on what is now the Higgins place and later upon the Gibson place, in Blackwater township. He took open prairie land in each instance, and improved it. In the course of years of honest endeavor, he became one of the wealthy men of Pettis county, and owned a large acreage of land; and was enabled to give each of his children a farm with which to begin their individual careers.

Mr. Downs was married in Saline County, and then spent one year in Texas, prior to settling in Pettis County. During the Civil War, he enrolled with the Missouri State Militia, and aided in keeping order within the State. While he was a Southern sympathizer, he was unalterably opposed to the principle of secession. He had some splendid ideas as to the best manner of settling the difficulties which had arisen between the North and the South, over the question of slavery, and believed that the fearful four years of bloodshed which ensued, could have been avoided by the Government purchase and freeing of the slaves. Many great minds of those days believed likewise. Despite his Southern sympathies, he was a loyal Union man throughout the war. Mr. Downs was much inter¬ ested in the cause of education, and he and Col. Joseph C. Higgins erected a school house in the vicinity. While a resident of Saline County, J. A. J. Downs married Caroline Sandridge, a native of Virginia, who was born in 1827 and departed this life in 1905. To this marriage were born the followng children, only three of whom are living: Three children died in infancy; Annie, Benjamin, Mary, Sallie, and Robert are also deceased; Jeffrey H., subject of this review; James Downs lives in Sedalia; Mrs. Matilda Alexander lives in Sedalia.

Jeffrey H. Downs first attended school in the school house erected by his father. Later he attended Prairie Grove School, and he finished his education at the Warrensburg Normal School. He began to earn his own way in the world when nineteen years old. On the day that he became of age, his father gave him a tract of eighty acres of land. Around this tract and adjoining it he has built up his splendid estate of 1,200 acres. In 1915, Mr. Downs built his handsome farm residence of nine rooms with many modern conveniences, including electric lights.

October 30, 1883, J. H. Downs and Miss Jennie Shelley were united in marriage. This marriage has been blessed with the following children: Jeffrey D., Conway R., Gladys N. and Glee.

Jeffrey D. Downs, the eldest son of the family, resides on one of his father's farms, located three miles south of the home place. He mar¬ ried Bettie Hanley and has one child, Hildred.

The mother of this family was born in Cooper County, Missouri, De¬ cember 6, 1862. She is a daughter of John D. and Mary E. (Rue) Shelley, both of whom were bom in Cooper County of pioneer parents. John D. Shelley was the son of an Englishman and lived nearly all of his younger days on his farm near Pilot Grove. He was born in 1835 and died in 1901. His wife, Mary E. Shelley, was bom in 1837 and died in 1906. They came to Pettis County and settled near LaMonte in 1867. Four children were born to John D. and Mary E. Shelley, as follows: Mrs. Jennie Downs, of this review ; John B., living near LaMonte ; George R., resides at Green Itidge; and Mrs. Mary Wensell, LaMonte.

for office. He was formerly a stockholder and one of the organizers of the Houstonia Bank. Mrs. Downs is a member of the Christian Church. Mr. Downs is a home man who loves his own fireside and whose sole thought is for the comfort and welfare of his family.

Fendal Hart Tuck, farmer and large land owner of Houstonia, is a native born citizen of Pettis County. Mr. Tuck was born on a farm, five miles northwest of Houstonia, December 21, 1849, and is a son of Dr. Ryland and Elizabeth (Prigmore) Tuck, late well-known residents of this county.

Dr. Ryland Tuck, who for many years was a prominent physician of this county, was born in Virginia, October 18, 1822, and died on his farm in Pettis County, November 27, 1904. When a small boy, he accompanied his parents from Virginia to Cooper County, Missouri. He was there reared to manhood and educated. He studied medicine in the office of one of the early practitioners and began the practice of his profession in Pettis County in the early forties. Later, during the fifties, he attended the Ohio Medical College at Cincinnati, and graduated from this institu¬ tion. He then returned to his home and resumed the practice of his profession with considerable success. Doctor Tuck's practice extended over a large extent of territory, and during the earlier years of his prac¬ tice when roads were mere trails across the prairies, he would travel on horseback, carrying his medicines in his saddle baks. He was one of the first and best-known pioneer physicians of Pettis County. He invested in farm land near Houstonia and became quite well to do. His wife, Elizabeth Prigmore, was a daughter of Benjamin Prigmore, one of the earliest of the pioneers in Pettis County. She departed this life in the spring of 1881, at the age of sixty-two years.

F. H. Tuck has resided in Pettis County during his whole life of nearly seventy years, with the exception of from March to August, 1865, when the family sought safety in Illinois from the ravages of the Civil War. When twenty-one years old he began farming on his own account and cared for his father until he attained the age of thirty years. He and his brother, M. P. Tuck, and the father purchased a large tract of land together in 1880. The total of their purchase of land was 740 acres. Of this acreage, F. H. Tuck got 200 acres which is the nucleus around which he has built up a large estate. In about 1882, he built his first home and successive years saw the gradual enlargement of his land hold¬ ings until he became owner of 828 acres. Of this amount, he has dis- posed of 160 acres, and he now owns a total of 681.5 acres, all of which is situated in the Houstonia neighborhood. One farm comprises 804 acres ; another comprises 240 acres ; another 121 acres ; and 5 acres of timber ; the home place at Houstonia comprises 11.5 acres. Upon this tract, Mr. Tuck erected a splendid modem residence of ten rooms in 1906. This fine resi¬ dence has a basement underneath the lower floor and is fitted with every modem convenience to make living comfortable.

Mr. Tuck personally oversees the farming operations on his land. He feeds from 100 to 200 head of cattle annually, and about 100 head of hogs each year for the markets. From 220 acres of wheat harvested in 1918, he threshed a total of 5,323 bushels of grain, and has sown 150 acres for the 1919 harvest. There are three sets of farm improve¬ ments on his land, including two tenant houses. Mr. Tuck has placed practically all of the existing improvements upon his farms.

On December 23, 1888, Mr. Tuck was married to Miss Mary War¬ ren, of Warrensburg, Missouri. Mrs. Mary (Warren) Tuck is a daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth (Reavis) Warren, both of whom were members of old American families of historic interest. She was born October 4, 1863. She is a grand-daughter of Martin Warren, in whose honor the city of Warrensburg, Missouri, is named. She was reared in Warrensburg and vicinity. There were thirteen children born to her parents, of whom seven are living: Eliza, widow of Captain Box, lives at Lamar, Mis¬ souri; Dr. J. T. Warren is deceased; Mrs. Mattie Prigmore lives in Houstonia; Mrs. Nannie Thomson lives at Warrensburg; Mrs. Angeline Thomson is deceased; Carrie, deceased wife of Dr. Ashley; Fannie is de¬ ceased; Mrs. Emma Cones is deceased; Mrs. Ella Carter is deceased; Mrs. Laura Roark lives in Oklahoma; Mrs. Ida Thompson lives at Lamar, Missouri. Mrs. Mary Tuck is the youngest of this large family of children.

Three children have been bom to Fendal Hart and Mary (Warren) Tuck, as follow: Fay, Hugh Fendal, and Robert Hart. Fay is the wife of Lee H. Stiles of Houstonia, and has one daughter, Mary Lee, aged six years. Hugh Fendal lives on the home place, married Gladys De¬ honey of Kansas City and has one child, Robert Warren. Robert Hart, a soldier in the National Army, was born May 31, 1897. He enlisted in the Aerial Service on December 12, 1917, and after a short time at Jeffer¬ son Barracks, he went into training at Camp Custer, Michigan, for five weeks, then was sent to the Aerial Camp at Fort Worth, Texas, where he was a member of the 183rd Aerial Squad. On February 3, 1918, he was transferred to New York and on May 2, 1918, sailed with his command for France. He has been serving in the fighting zone on the western front in France as a skilled airplane mechanic and has been at Chateau Thierry, St. Mihiel, and the Toul sector, and the Argonne Forest with the First American Army. He came rightly by his fighting blood inasmuch as his grfcat-grandfather, Martin Warren, was a soldier of the Revolu¬ tion.

Mr. Tuck is a Democrat who has filled the office of justice of the peace in Houstonia for a number of years, but holds no political or civic office at present. He and Mrs. Tuck are members of the Christian Church and are leading citizens in their home community. Mr. Tuck is one of the most temperate of men. During his long life he has never taken a drink of intoxicating liquor and has never played a game of cards. He is remarkably well preserved for a man who is nearing the three score and ten years mark and is active and strong, both mentally and physi¬ cally.

Fred Fichter, a progressive farmer and stockman, who is well known as a successful breeder of fine Percheron horses, is the owner of a val¬ uable farm of 380 acres in Dresden township. Mr. Fichter's farm is well improved and nicely located. In 1914 he erected a ten-room, modern residence, and his barns and other farm buildings are modern and up to date.

Mr. Fichter was born in Alsace-Lorraine January 27, 1852, a son of Charles and Madeline (Trautman) Fichter, and was their only child. In early life the father was a brewer, but owing to the fact that the water on the place contained valuable medicinal properties, he abandoned the brewery business and converted his place into a hotel. The town was one of the famous health resorts of that vicinity. The father died in 1870, at the age of forty-eight years, and in 1874 the mother came to America to join her son, Fred, who had preceded her to this county about two years. She died in Dresden township. December 14, 1889, aged sixty years. Both she and her husband were members of the Lutheran Church.

Fred Fichter was reared and educated in his native land, and, when a young man, assisted in his father's hotel business. In 1872 he came to America, and on October 2 of that year landed in New York City. From there he went to Buffalo, New York, and for a time was employed in a hotel there, and later clerked in a store for a time. In 1873 he came to Missouri, and located at Holden, where he clerked in a store for a few months, when he went to Sedalia. About this time he was joined by his mother, and they purchased the place in Dresden township, where he has since resided. At that time the farm had but little improvements on it, which consisted chiefly of an old house and a shed. Mr. Fichter proceeded to improve the place, until he now has one of the finest farms in this county. He is engaged in general farming and stock raising, and in 1910 began the breeding of Percheron horses, and in his herd of horses he now has two valuable imported Percheron mares.

Mr. Fichter was married May 1, 1878, to Miss Louisa W. Voight, a native of Wisconsin, born April 13, 1859. Her parents, Philip and Mary E. (Klapatch) Voight, were natives of Germany, and early settlers in Pettis County. To Mr. and Mrs. Fichter have been bom nine children, as follow: Mary M., resides at home with her parents; Philip William, lives in North Dakota; Emily, deceased; Fred, resides at home; George, lives in Hughesville township; Bertha, at home; Charles, at home; Lily M., at home, and Edward A., who enlisted in the United States navy during the World War.

Henry C. Brown. - Members of the Brown family, of which Henry C. Brown of Houstonia is a representative, have been prominent in the industrial and civic affairs of Pettis County for over forty years. They came from North Carolina and have been substantial additions to this county in many ways. Mr. Brown was born on April 9, 1854, in Davidson County, North Carolina. He is a son of Haley Brown, who was born in 1805 and died in 1866. His mother was Jane Emily (Spurgeon) Brown, who was bom in 1813 and departed this life in 1895. Henry C. Brown was one of nine children born to his parents: John, Joseph A. C., Phebe Jane, William, Dempsey S., David F., Sarah, George.

Dr. Joseph A. C. Brown was born in Davidson County, North Caro¬ line, received a classical education in Trinity, and Emory and Henry col¬ leges, graduated from the State University in 1858, studied medicine at Jamestown, North Carolina, and graduated from the Jefferson Medical Col¬ lege, Philadelphia, and went to Texas in 1860. He served in the Confeder¬ ate Army under Stonewall Jackson, and after the close of the war, in 1865, he located at Dresden, where he practiced medicine until 1877. He then served as county collector of Pettis County until 1881, after which he looked after his farming interests in Dresden township until his death, December 7, 1888. Phebe Jane Brown lived and died in North Carolina. William Brown died in Texas, where he made his home, after leaving his native State. Dempsey S. Brown was born in Davidson County, North Carolina, in 1843, and died in Pettis County December 28, 1915. He first came to Pettis County in 1865 and became engaged in farming and stock raising. He was joined by his brother, Henry C. Brown of this review in about 1875, and the brothers were in partnership forty years, during which the best of amity prevailed. They prospered and owned and operafed one of the large stock farms of Pettis County until Mr. Brown's death in 1915. Daniel F. Brown was well educated and fitted himself for the practice of medicine. He was born October 27, 1845, and died March 16, 1902. He practiced his profession for many years in Dresden township and was widely and favorably known. Sara1" Brown died in North Carolina at the age of twenty-two years. George Brown, next to the youngest son of the family, died in Pettis County at the age of twenty-two years. Four of the sons of this family, Dempsey S., George, Joseph A. C., and David F., came to Pettis County in 1865.

Henry C. Brown came to this county in 1866, but returned to North Carolina in the spring of 1867 and attended school in his native county. The mother came to Pettis County in 1872 and made her home with Dr. David H. Brown in Dresden. In 1874 Henry C. Brown returned to Pettis County and joined his brother Dempsey S. in his farming operations in Blackwater township. Dempsey S. Brown in 1867 had become associated with Dr. L. H. Williams, who owned a large farm in Blackwater township and was practicing medicine in the neighborhood. He and Doctor Wil¬ liams were partners until the latter's death. Then Dempsey S. and Henry C. Brown formed a partnership. Brown Brothers fed from 100 to 200 head of cattle yearly and operated over 1,000 acres of rich prairie land. They built up a splendid farm and resided on the place until 1903, when Mr. Brown removed to Houstonia. During the past few years he has disposed of a considerable part of his land holdings, because of poor health.

Mr. Brown was married on December 16, 1877, to Mrs. Nannie (Berry) Williams, widow of Dr. L. H. Williams and a daughter of the Rev. Tyree Berry, an early Missouri pioneer. Dr. Williams died February 22, 1875, as a result of injuries received during the cyclone which swept Hous¬ tonia and this section of Pettis County in February of 1875. The build- time. Dempsey Brown was in town on that day and he was knocked down and bruised but not seriously injured. Doctor Williams was a native of North Carolina and came to Pettis County in 1847 and located on a farm, three miles west of Houstonia. Two of his brothers crossed the plains to the gold fields of California in 1849. Of the six children born to Dr. L. H. and Nannie Williams, one is living: F. S. Williams, a merchant in the Imperial Valley of California. One child was born to the mar¬ riage of Henry C. and Nannie Brown, namely: Dempsey, wife of 0. C. Horine, living in Houstonia with the subject of this review.

Mr. Brown is a Democrat. He and his family are members of the Baptist Church. He is a modest, unassuming gentleman whose standing in the community of which he has long been a resident is a substantial and highly respected one.

Dr. Thomas Allen Smith. - "He gave his life that others might live" is the inscription which might rightly be placed upon a stone erected in memory of the late Dr. Thomas Allen Smith, of Houstonia, who for many long years practiced his profession in the country adjacent to Houstonia. The life of the average country physician is filled with hardships and is unselfishly devoted to the healing of the sick and ailing. The work done by the country doctor is of a more exacting character than that required of his city prosfessional brother, inasmuch as it requires that he respond to a sick call of an ailing patient miles away. Doctor Smith was a physi¬ cian of high standing in the community who had a high conception of his calling. During the many years of his practice, no call for the exercise of his skill went unheeded, no matter what the distance, the condition of the weather, or the ability of his patient to pay. His first thought was to alleviate suffering; to use his skill to the utmost, and even in his last days as he lay dying and many were ill in the neighborhood, he did what he could in his weakened condition to advise his old patients and those who were suffering.

Dr. T. A. Smith was born March 13, 1852, and departed this life November 28, 1918. He was born in Harrisburg, Kentucky, and was a son of James D. and Sallie (Allen) Smith. James D. Smith was born at Hannibal, Missouri, and later, after some years residence in Missouri, he located at Harrisburg, Kentucky, and engaged in the real estate busi¬ ness and farming.

Thomas Allen Smith was educated in the public schools of Harris¬ burg, Kentnucky, and graduated from the Louisville, Kentucky, Medical College. After serving for four years as interne in the Louisville Hos¬ pital, he came to Houstinia in 1883 and began the practice of his pro¬ fession. For a period of thirty -five years, he practiced in Houstonia and the northern part of Pettis County and was widely and favorably known as an able and learned physician. There is probably not a single family in northern Pettis and southern Saline County which has had sickness at one time or another during past years but Doctor Smith has been called upon to minister to the ailing among them, either as the family physician or as a consultant. Mindful of making provisions for the future, Doctor Smith invested in a tract of 280 acres, just north of Hous¬ tonia one and a half miles, and this farm is now being cultivated by his son.

On January 15, 1883, Dr. Thomas Allen Smith and Miss Ocie Berry were united in marriage. Four children blessed this marriage: Odie Vard is the wife of Frank Hayman Higgins, living five miles west of Houstonia; Edwin Guthrie, managing the home farm, north of Hous¬ tonia; Henrietta, and Tom Allen, at home.

Mrs. Ocie (Berry) Smith and her twin sister, Odie, were born on a farm, five and a half miles north of Houstonia, July 27, 1860. She is a daughter of Thomas C. Berry, born in Boone County, Missouri, December 19, 1827. Thomas C. Berry was a son of Rev. Tyree Berry, who was among the earliest of the Missouri pioneers, coming here from Virginia early in the nineteenth century. Thomas C. Berry was an early settler in Pettis county and is now living at Sweet Springs, Missouri. He mar¬ ried Mary Jane Prigmore, who was bom in Missouri and was a daughter of Isaac Prigmore, a pioneer of Pettis County. Both Thomas C. Berry and Isaac Prigmore were "forty-niners" and crossed the plains in a com¬ pany to the gold fields of California. On the return trip by way of the Isthmus of Panama, Mr. Prigmore was stricken with cholera and while suffering in his mortal illness he promised his daughter, Mary Jane, to Mr. Berry for his wife if he would see to it that he was properly buried in the ground after his death. He died while near the Isthmus and his mortal remains were wrapped in a blanket, carried by four men who dug the grave and laid his body away in an appropriate and Christian man¬ ner, Mr. Berry taking charge of the burial according to his promise.

bers of his family. He was a progressive student of the science of medi¬ cine. He was a member of the County, State and American Medical Asso¬ ciations and stood high in the ranks of his profession. Doctor Smith practically wore out his physical powers in the exacting work of his pro¬ fession and responded to every call made upon his skill regardless of con¬ ditions or physical weariness. His friends were legion, and his death was a distinct and irreparable loss to Pettis County. He will long be remem¬ bered as a kind, able, conscientious and painstaking physician, who was a skilled healer and adviser. The greatest tribute which could be paid any man of his profession was uttered by one of his many friends on the occasion of his illness and that is "If there ever was a poor man's doctor, he is one."

Richard F. Boehme, proprietor of the Le Grande Garage and dis¬ tributor for the Maxwell and Marmon automobiles in this section, is one of Sedalia's most enterprising and progressive business men. Mr. Boehme was born in St. Louis, Missouri, July 30, 1878, a son of F. G. Boehme, a contractor and builder of St. Louis, where he was actively en¬ gaged in contracting and building for many years. He died in 1915, at the advanced age of eighty-four years. His wife bore the maiden name of Goerlick. She preceded her husband in death, having passed away in St. Louis in 1883.

Richard F. Boehme was the eldest of a family of three children, born to his parents. He was reared in the city of St. Louis, and educated in the public schools. In 1896, when he was about eighteen years of age, he began life as a traveling salesman, out of St. Louis. He followed this occupation for two years, during which time he represented a New Eng¬ land Watch Company, and later the Drummond Tobacco Company. In 1900, he came to Sedalia, which has since been his home.

In 1910, Mr. Boehme engaged in the automobile business and has met with marked success in this field of endeavor. The Le Grande Garage, of which he is proprietor and sole owner, is located at 404-6-8-10 South Osage Street, and is one of the largest and best equipped garages and auto repair shops in the city. His storage and wareroom capacity are commodious and his repair department is equipped with all neces¬ sary, up-to-date machinery. He has a 150-ton hydraulic tire press, used in connection with solid rubber tires, such as are used on heavy trucks and electric cars. This is the only machine of this kind between Kansas City and St. Louis. Mr. Boehme employs about twenty-five men in his garage. His sales department has had an astonishing growth and de¬ velopment under his capable management, since he entered that field. In 1914, he took the agency for the Maxwell motor car, and the first year he sold fifty-four of these cars. In 1916 he sold sixty-two; in 1917, one hundred and eight; and in 1918 four hundred and twenty-seven. In 1917 he became general distributor for the Maxwell car in ten Missouri counties.

Mr. Boehme was united in marriage June 12, 1901, with Miss Eliza¬ beth Sailer, a native of Jefferson City, Missouri, and a daughter of Henry Sailer, a prominent Cole County farmer, who now resides in that county. To Mr. and Mrs. Boehme have been born two children, Dorothy and Richard F.

John C. Cordes, a leading merchant of Sedalia, whose store is located at 120 West Second Street, is a native of Missouri. He was born near Cole Camp, Benton County, April 21, 1869, a son of John C. and Margaret (Kroencke) Cordes. They were the parents of seven children as follows: Mary, married Charles Eckhoff, and resides in Sedalia; Herman H., Meade County, Kansas; Benjamin, Meade County, Kansas; Kathrine mar¬ ried A. Moreau, Denver, Colorado; Anna, married E. L. Kemper, a mer¬ chant of Sedalia, Missouri; John C., the subject of this sketch; and Jacob who resides in Meade County, Kansas. The parents were both natives of Hanover, Germany. They immigrated to America in 1866 and settled in Benton County, Missouri. Here the father was engaged in farming and stock raising until his death in 1877. After the death of her first husband, Mrs. Cordes married Louis Miller. No children were born to this union. The mother is now deceased.

John C. Cordes was reared on a farm in Benton County, and received his education in the public schools. When nineteen years of age he left the farm and came to Sedalia, where he was employed in the store of the Sedalia Woolen Mills. In 1889 he entered the employ of Kahrs & Bliss, general merchants in Sedalia. He remained with them about two years, when he entered the employ of Guenther Brothers and worked in their dry goods store as clerk for a time. In 1901, Mr. Cordes, in partnership with H. H. Kroencke, purchased the business of Major W. M. Beck and operated this business under the firm name of Kroencke & Cordes until

1909. Mr. Cordes then purchased his partner's interest and since that time has been the sole owner and proprietor of the store. He carries on a general mercantile business and has a valuable stock of goods. He is one of Sedalia's progressive merchants and has built up a large trade. Mr. Cordes' long and varied experience in the mercantile business and his association with various business concerns in his early career, has given him an opportunity to study the various methods of different suc¬ cessful merchants from the inside viewpoint. This has been of inestim¬ able value to him as he is a keen observer and a close student of the fun¬ damental principles of business success.

Mr. Cordes was united in marriage with Miss Jessie Shelly, daughter of J. M. Shelly, of Pettis County. She departed this life in February, 1891. There were no children born to this union. Mr. Cordes' second wife bore the maiden name of Margurate Card and is a native of Cooper County. She is a daughter of James Card. Mr. and Mrs. Cordes have no children.

Mr. Cordes takes a commendable interest in public affairs. He is a Republican and is now serving his third term as a member of the city council of Sedalia. He is chairman of the committee on police and also the electric light and gas committee. He is one of Sedalia's substantial citizens of real worth to the community.

C. B. Chryst, one of the leading fanners and stockmen of Prairie township, is the owner of one of the fine farms of that section of Pettis County. His place consists of 189 acres, all but thirteen acres of which is located in Prairie township, and the well kept appearance of this place bears evidence of the industry and progressiveness of its owner.

Mr. Chryst is a native son of Pettis County and was bom on the farm where he now resides, April 22, 1874. He is a son of Hezekiah and Martha A. (Ewers) Chryst, both natives of Ohio. Hezekiah Chryst was a Union veteran of the Civil War. He was born in Trumbull County, Ohio, in June, 1840, and when the Civil War broke out, he enlisted in Company H, Twentieth Ohio Infantry and served three years and six months. He returned to Ohio at the close of the war and in 1867 came to Missouri, first locating on a farm near Longwood, and two years later settled on the farm in Prairie township where Chancey B. Chryst now resides. He improved this place and was successfully engaged in farm¬ ing and stock raising here until his death in November, 1896. He was a Republican in politics and an upright and honorable citizen whose in¬ tegrity was well known to his extensive acquaintance. Martha A.

Hezekiah and Martha (Ewers) Chryst were the parents of the fol¬ lowing children: Lillie E., married G. W. Steele, and resides in Dresden township; Chauncey B., the subject of this sketch; Milo E., Claremore, Oklahoma; Cora R., married Rev. Edward Turrentine, Salina, Kansas; Stella, married Frederick A. Schaeffer, Columbus, Ohio.

Chauncey B. Chryst was educated in the public schools of Pettis County and took a three years' course in the State Normal School at Warrensburg, Missouri. In 1896, he engaged in farming on the home place and subsequently purchased the interests of the other heirs to his father's estate. He has improved the place in many ways until it is one of the best improved farms in Pettis County. He carries on general farming and stock raising and feeds hogs extensively for the market.

Mr. Chryst was married November 24, 1904, to Miss Carrie E. Steele, a native of Pettis County and a daughter of T. V. and Mary Steele, who now reside in Dresden township. To Mr. and Mrs. Chryst have been born one child, Chauncey Byron, Jr., who is now eleven years old.

Charles H. Houchen. - What a man does during his lifetime and what he possesses are usually taken as concrete and indisputable evidence of his worth in the community. If he be a progressive, law-abiding and dependable citizen, who has accumulated a competence which will sup¬ port him and his family during his declining years, he is considered to have a made a success of his life. Such a man is Charles H. Houchen, of Houstonia township, who even, had he not achieved a success in his sphere of activity as a farmer and stockman, he would be entitled to an honored mention in the history of his home county, because of the fact that he and Mrs. Houchen have reared and educated one of the largest families in Pettis County.

Charles H. Houchen was bom February 4, 1856, on a farm just eighteen miles north of his present home, in Saline County. Conse¬ quently, his whole life has been spent in the neighborhood where he has made a success. He is the son of Fleming and Mary (Bird) Houchen, both of whom were born and reared in Virginia. Fleming Houchen was born in 1800 and died in 1877. His wife, Mary, was bom in 1810 and died in 1888.