Shelby County, Missouri - Biographical sketches, 1911 (part 14 of 16)

Christian P. Glalm, the subject of this memoir, was about four years of age at the time of the family immigration to America, and he passed the days of his boyhood and youth in Marion county, this state, where he was reared on and assisted in the work of the home farm and where his ediicational training, very limited in scope, was secured in the district schools of the pioneer days. In 1865 he came to Shelby county with the other members of the family and soon afterward he purchased 128 acres of land in section G, Black Creek township, two miles south of the village of Leonard, where he developed a productive farm, making excellent improvements on the same, and where he continued to be known as a thrifty and successful farmer and stock-grower until the close of his life, on April 24, 1!)06. As his success became cuiuuhitive lie made judicioiis investments in additional land, and at the time of his demise he was the owner of a valuable estate of 873 acres, which is still in possession of the family and which constitutes one of the model farm properties of this section of the state.

Mr. Glahn never sought public offie«, but his influence and co-operation were demanded by his appreciative neighbors, who called upon him to serve as road overseer and as school director. Tie was essentially loyal and public-spirited as a citizen and did all in his power to further the material and civic prosperity of the county in which he so long maintained his home and in which he was not denied the most generous measure of poi)ular confidence and regard, based upon his intrinsic integrity and honor and his kindliness in his relations with his fellow men. He gave a staunch allegiance to the cause of the Eepublican party, and was a zealous and devoted member of the Christian church, with which his wife also has long been identified, having taken an active part in its work imtil the infirmities of advancing years compelled her to relax somewhat her earnest efforts in this respect. Since the death of her honored husband Mrs. Glahn has remained on the old homestead, endeared to her through the gracious associations and memories of the past, and the fine farm has its practical management assigned to her worthy sons, who are numbered among the representative citizens of this part of the county, where they are well upholding the prestige of the honored name which they bear.

On February 22, 1870, Mr. Glahn gave wortliy observation of the anniversary of the birth of George Washington by taking unto himself a wife, in the person of Miss Mary Arnett, who was born in Shelby county, on Septem])er 11, 1852, and who is a daughter of the late ^licajah and Judith (Green) Arnett. wlio were early settlers of this county, the father having been a native of Kentucky and the mother of Virgina. As already stated, Mrs. Glalm survives her honored husband, as do also eleven of their children. Concerning the children the following brief record is given as a fitting conclusion of this brief memoir: Benjamin F. is engaged in the practice of law in the village of Palmyra, Marion county; Fannie is tlie wife of Robert Ray, a farmer of this county; Christian P. is engaged in the practice of medicine at Palmyra; Charles E., James 0. and Ernest are associated in the management of the home farm ; Mary is the wife of Stephen A. Bryant, of Cleveland, Oklahoma; and Alma, Ethel, Milton and Gertrude remain with their mother on the old homestead.

John Peoples

This venerable and honored citizen, who resided on his fine homestead farm in section 29, Taylor township, was a resident of Shelby county from his childhood days and was a member of one of its sterling pioneer families, of which detailed mention is made in the sketch of the career of his brother, William Z. T. Peoples, on other pages of this work, so that a repetition of the data is not demanded in the present connection. Mr. Peoples lived retired for a number of years, after having devoted a long period to the great basic industry of agriculture, in connection with which he gained definite success and prosperity, as is attested by his ownership of the valuable homestead on which lie resided until his death on January 11, 1911.

John Peoples was a native of Sullivan county, Tennessee, where he was born on September 6, 1833, and he was a child of about six years at the time of the family removal to Missouri, his parents first settling in Marion county, whence they removed to Shelby county about one year later. Here he was reared to maturity under the invigorating and somewhat strenuous discipline of the pioneer farm, in Taylor township, in whose primitive schools he gained his limited educational training. He often recalled the scenes, conditions and incidents of the days when this section was practically a wilderness, and he assisted in the breaking of many acres of the fine prairie land, in which connection he contributed materially to the development of the county in which he continued to maintain his home through the long intervening years, marked by the upbuilding of one of the most prosperous and attractive sections of the state. In 1861 Mr. Peoples initiated his independent career as a farmer and stock-grower, and in this line of enterprise he labored earnestly and effectively, so that he was not denied a due recompense. He lived virtually retired since 1885, and his homestead farm, e(|uii)ped with sulistantial improvements and under effective cultivation, com- ]5rises 183 acres, which he disposed of in 1909.

Mr. Peoples gave his support to the enterprises and objects that have conserved industrial and civic progress, and his influence in the couunnnity was ever on the right side, as lie was a man of inflexible integrity and honor, of mature judgment and of strong mentality. In ])olitics he was aligned as a staunch ad- vocate of the principles and policies of the Democratic party. He held membership in the Grange, and was a zealous member of the Christian church at Leonard, in which he had been an elder for many years. At the time of the Civil war he served about six months in the state militia.

In 1860 was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Peoples to Miss Minerva Patton, who was bom in Kentucky, from whence her parents came to Missouri when she was a child. She died in 1865, and of her two children one is living, Eldridge, who is a successful farmer of Custer county, Nebraska. In 1868 Mr. Peoples contracted a second marriage, being then united to IMiss Amanda Fink, who was born in Shelby county, where her father, the late John Fink, was an early settler. Of the seven children of this union four are now living: William, a resident of Shelbyville; Christine, wife of George Jarrell, of tliis county; Laura, wife of Louis Perry, of Shelby county; and John, who is identified with agricultural pursuits in this county. The mother of these children died August 6, 1881.

Benjamin F. Van Vacter

This well known and highly esteemed business man and influential citizen of the village of Leonard, where he is engaged in the real estate business, is a native of Shelby county and a scion of one of its sterling pioneer families, as his father, Benjamin Van Vacter, here took up his abode more than eighty years ago, having settled in Taylor township when this section was a veritable wilderness, wild game being plentiful and providing much for the larders of the sturdy pioneers, whose slumbers were often interrupted by the howls of the predatory wolves. The subject of this sketch recalls many of the scenes and conditions of the pioneer epoch, and he has not only witnessed but has also assisted in the development of this county into one of the most attractive and prosperous in the great state of Missouri.

Mr. Van Vacter was born on the old homestead of his father, in Taylor township, this county, one mile east of the l)resent village of Leonard, February 5, 1846. His father was born in Jefferson county, Virginia, of staunch Holland Dutch ancestry, in the year 1797, and he was reared to maturity in the historic Old Dominion state, where he continued to reside and where he followed agricultural pursuits until 1837, when he set forth for the wilds of the far West, as Missouri was then considered on the very frontier. Soon after his arrival in this state he came to Shelby count}', which at that time had very few settlers, and here he entered claim to 400 acres of govei-nment land, the entire tract being in a state of primitive wildness. He here set himself vigorously to the strenuous work of reclaiming his land to cultivation and in due time he developed one of the productive farms of the county, continuing to reside on his homestead, one mile east of Leonard, until his death, which occurred in February, 1866. He was one of the honored and influential citizens of this section of the country, honest and straightforward in all the relations of life, industrious and energetic, and possessed of strong mentality and individuality, so that he was not denied the confidence and good will of the community in whose upbuilding he so ably assisted. He was a staunch adherent of the Democratic party and both he and his wife were zealous members of the Christian church, having been organizers of the church of this denomination in Leonard and ha^'ing contributed liberally to its support. In 1840 was solemnized the marriage of Benjamin Van Vacter to Miss Anna Smith, who was born in Ireland, and whose death occurred about 1901. They became the parents of five children, and the three sur\nving all continue their residence in Shelby county, namely : Joseph H., Benjamin F. and Robert 0.

Benjamin Franklin Van Vacter, to whom this brief sketch is dedicated, was reared on the pioneer farm, to who.se work he early began to contribute his quota of aid, and he continued to attend the district schools in Taylor township, at varying intervals, during the days of his boyhood and youth, laying in these primitive institutions the foundations for the broad and practical knowledge he has since gained under the direction of that wisest of head-masters, experience. He continued to be associated in the work and management of the home farm until the death of his honored father, after which he engaged in farming and stock-growing on his own responsibility on a farm of 120 acres deeded to him by his father at the time of death. This homestead, in section 20, Taylor township, continued to be his place of abode and the scene of his enteiTorising and successful endeavors as a general agriculturist and stock-grower until 1884, when he sold the property and removed to the village of Leonard, where he entered into partnership with Theodore P. Manuel and engaged in the general merchandise business, under the finn name of Van Vacter & Manuel. About four years later he sold his interest in this enterprise to his partner, and since that time he has given his attention ^principally +o the dealing in real estate in the state of Kansas, in which connection his operations have been of no inconsiderable scope and importance, and have been a source of distinctive profit to him. He is one of the siibstantial citizens and business men of his native county, was one of the organizers and incorporators of the Farmers' Bank, of Leonard, in which he is still a stocldiolder and of which he served as vice-president for a short period. In politics he is a staimch adherent of the Democratic party, and in earlier years he was a zealous and effective worker in its local ranks. He is a member of the Christian church and is active in the support of the various departments of its work. Mr. Van Vacter takes a loyal interest in all that tends to advance the material and civic prosperity of his native county, and measures and enterprises of a public order receive his earnest support.

Luther Kfmp

This well known citizen of Taylor township is the owner of a fine farm of 220 acres and is contributing his quota to upholding the prestige of the great industry of agriculture in Shelby coimty. He has been a resident of Shelby county since his boyhood days, and in the section in which he was reared and is best known he enjoys the most unqualified popularity and esteem, showing that he has directed his course in such a way as to merit this pleasing recognition.

Luther Kemp claims the staunch old Hoosier commonwealth as the place of his nativity, as he was horn in Dubois county, Indiana, on June 21, 1869, being a representative of one of the pioneer families of that state, as his grandfather, William F. Kemp, was an early settler in the county mentioned, having there been engaged in agricultural pursuits imtil his death. In the same county also was born James L. Kemp, father of him whose name initiates this article, the date of his nativity having been 1846. The father was reared to manhood in Indiana, was there married and there continued to devote his attention to farming until 1874, when he removed with his family to ^lissouri and settled in Clay township, Shelby county, where he purchased a farm of eighty acres, to whose area he later added until he had a total of 138 acres. He made excellent improvements on his farm, and there continued to be successfully engaged in the carrying on of diversified agriculture and tlie raising of live stock until his death, which occurred in the year 1882. In politics he gave his support to the cause of the Republican party and he was a loyal and upright citizen, commanding the respect of all who knew him. In 1868 he was united in marriage to Miss Caroline Griffith, who was born in Ohio, and of their five children, two are li\nng, the subject of this sketch being the elder, and AVilliam G., also being a prosperous farmer of Shelby county.

Luther Kemp was five years of age at the time of the family removal from Indiana to Shelby county, Missouri, and here he was reared to manhood under the invigorating influences and labors of the home farm, while his educational opportunities were limited to a somewhat desultory attendance in the district schools, which he attended at intervals until he was sixteen years of age. He was but thirteen years old at the time of his father's death, and after leaving school he found emplojTnent on neighboring farms until 1888, after which he rented land and engaged in farming on his own responsibility for three years. Thereafter he was again employed by others until 1893, and in the meanwhile he was frugal and industrious, saving his earnings and formulating his plans for a future of independence in connection with the branch of industrial enterprise in which he had been trained. In the year last mentioned Mr. Kemp purchased fifty-three acres of land in section 26, Taylor township, and he has since added to the area of his holdings until he now has a well improved farm of 220 acres, reiu'esenting the tangible results of his careful and well directed endeavors. He is one of the substantial and successful farmers and stock-growers of the county, is appreciative of the many opportunities here afforded in his chosen field of endeavor, and is essentially loyal and progressive as a citizen. His success is most gratifying to contemplate from the fact that it has been gained through his own exertions and ability, and he well merits his prosperity, as does he also the esteem in which he is held by those most familiar with his life and labors. He is a stockholder and director of the Farmers' Bank of Leonard, is a Republican in his political allegiance, has never been a seeker of official preferment, though he has served efficiently as school director of his district, and he is affiliated with Cherry Box Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is liberal in his support of the work of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which his wife is an earnest member.

On January 31, 1893, Mr. Kemp was united in marriage to Miss Martha Hamrick, wlio was born and reared in this county, being a daugliter of William F. and Martha J. Hamrick. Mr. and Mrs. Kemp became the parents of eight children, all of whom are living, namely: Olin, Vincent, Freda, Ruth, Theodore, Elsie J., Richard and James.

Forrest G. Bodwell

Dependent largely upon his own resources since his boyhood days, it has been given Mr. Bodwell to achieve a success of no stinted order and one that stands creditable to him as one of the most earnest and indefatigable workers of the world. He has been a resident of Taylor township for more than forty years, in fact since his boyhood days, and here, beginning with no financial reinforcement or fortuitous influence, he has directed his labors with such discrimination and ability that he is now numbered among the substantial agriculturists and stock-growers of the county, being the owner of a well improved farm of 240 acres - a paljjable evidence of his success and independence. He has not, however, hedged himself in with the confines of mere personal advancement but has stood exponent of loyal and liberal citizenship, has guided his course along the lines of strictest integrity and honor, and thus has merited the staunch hold which he maintains upon popular confidence and esteem.

Mr. Bodwell is a scion of families founded in New England in the colonial epoch of our national history, and is himself a native of the old Bay state, having been born at Haverhill, j\Iassachusetts, on February 9, 1851, and being a son of Aaron G. and Lucy (Howe) Bodwell, whose marriage was solemnized in the year 1843. His father was born in Massachusetts, on August 7, 1818, and his mother was a native of New Hampshire, where she was born on April 9, 1818. The father, who was a shoemaker by trade, came with his family to Missouri in 1854, settling in Lewis county, where he continued in the work of his trade until his death, which occurred in 1859. Of his four children, the subject of this sketch is now the only survivor. In 1861 the widowed mother became the wife of James W. Jeffries, and they took up their residence in Shelby county, where Mr. Jeffries was engaged in farming until his death. Mrs. Jeffries is still living, having reached the ripe old age of ninety-three years.

Forrest (i. Bodwell was about three years of age at the time of the family removal to Missouri, and was only eight years old at the time of his father's death. He came to his ste})father's farm in Marion county in 1861, just after his mother's second marriage, and here he was reared to the sturdy discipline of the farm, in the meanwhile securing such educational advantages as were afforded in the district school, colloquially and facetiously known as "Grub College," in Taylor township, the family having removed to Shelby county in 1866. He continued to attend this school at intermittent intervals until he was about twenty years of age, and in the meanwhile he continued to assist in the work of the home farm until 1881, when he purchased forty acres of his present homestead, in section 27, Taylor township. As success attended his indefatigable efforts he made judicious investments in adjoining land, until he now has a fine faim of 240 acres, the major portion of which is under cultivation, while everything about the place bears evidence of thrift and prosperity. He has given his undivided attention to the management of his farming interests and, starting with nothing, is now one of the leading agriculturists and stock-raisers of this section. His career has been marked bj^ hard and persistent work and he has a full and practical appreciation of the value and dignity of honest toil and endeavor. In politics Mr. Bodwell is enlisted under the banner of the Democratic party, in whose cause he takes a lively and intelligent interest, and in jjublic affairs of a local order he gives his aid and influence in the support of all measures projected for the general good of the community. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, has served for several years past as clerk of the school lionrd of his district, and

On November 15, 1877, Mr. Bodwell was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Evans, who was born and reared in this county and who is a daughter of Eleazer and Melinda (Walker) Evans, both of whom are now deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Bodwell became the parents of nine children, all of whom are living except one, James, who died at the age of two weeks. Elizabeth L. is the wife of John B. Alexander, of Macon county ; Samuel G. is a successful farmer of Shelby county; Lula G. is the wife of Chester Gillaspy, of this county; and Ruby, Rose, Marj^ C, Florida and George remain at the parental home.

John A. Christine

John A. Christine, of Salt River township, one of the most extensive and promiuet farmers of Shelby county, has demonstrated in his long career of fifty-four years of usefulness among the people here that his mettle is of the firmest fiber, his manhood of the most vigorous kind and his self-reliance and capacity are of a character that A-ields to no difficulty, is daunted by no danger and disturbed by no disaster. He has met every requirement of every situation in which he has found himself in a masterful way, performed every duty properly belonging to him with fidelity and recognized every claim of elevated citizenship with entire devotion to his county, his state and liis coimtry.

tained his education in the country schools and a graded school in Shelbina, and has passed the whole of his life to the present time on his native soil. He is therefore thoroughly imbued with the spirit of this people and in deep and serviceable accord with their every worthy asi^iration. He has aided in the promotion of all commendable undertakings among them for their progress and improvement, and has helped to lead them along lines of wise development while aiding them in their progress. It is, consequently, an entirely logical result that he is highly esteemed on all sides as one of the most useful and representative men. in the county.

Wliile he is a native Missourian, his father, John Joseph Christine, was born and reared to the age of fourteen and one-half years in Germany. At that age he came alone to the United States, without relative or friend on the vessel that brought him across the Atlantic, or any acquaintance in the long journey across the continent that brought him to Walkersville, in this county, before he reached the age of twenty-one. His life began in 1829 and ended tragically in 1862 in the massacre of Centralia, where he was in the service of the government as a Union soldier. His whole activity during his life in this country was devoted to farming and raising live stock, except the time passed by him in the army.

In 18-56 he was united in marriage with Miss Nancy E. Snawder, of this county, and by this marriage became the father of three children, now living, and one that is deceased. Those living are: John A., the engaging subject of this memoir ; Mary Frances, the wife of Frank

Smith, of Idaho; and Celia, the wife of Matt Smith, of this county. In politics he was a pronounced and ardent Republican and as earnest in his devotion to the welfare of his party as he was to the preservation of the Union.

His son John A. thus found his childhood and youth darkened by the awful shadow of our Civil war, which not only deprived him of his father, but left the family in very straitened circumstances. He left school at an early age in order to assist his mother in pi-oviding for the household and worked on the farm imtil his marriage. He then rented land and farmed it for five years. At the end of that period he bought 120 acres six miles north of Shelbina, which forms a part of the 920 acres which he now owns and lives on, the most of which is under cultivation. On this farm and its subsequent additions he has lived and labored faithfully as a farmer and in raising live stock during the last twenty-nine years. During this period he also manufactured molasses in the autumn months of every year for over thirty years with great success and profit.

]\Ir. Christine's day of toil has been long, however, and its exactions have been heavy, and he is now gradually retiring from active pursuits. But he still keeps up his interest in all public atfairs, serving as a member of tlie school board and in other ways aiding in tiie i)rogress and development of his townshi)) and county, as he has always done, having been a charter member of the Shelby County railroad and interested in numerous other public improvements from time to time. On Marcli 26, 1876, he was married to Miss Letlia Ann Cadwell, a daughter of Noah and Sarah (Hinton) Cadwell, prominent residents of this county. Eight of the nine children born of the union are living - Mary Frances, the wife of H. M. Bragg; Sarah Ellen, the wife of Moses Mcintosh; Allie, the wife of Orville Thompson; Jessie, the wife of "William F. Stewart; John T., Charles H., Harry S. and Abbie Jewel. They are all residents of Shelby county, and the two last named are still at home with their parents. The father is a Republican in his political belief, an Odd Fellow and a Modern Woodman of America in his fraternal and a member of the Missionary Baptist church in his religious relations.

John Forman

As a worthy representative of one of the honored pioneer families of Missouri, of which state he is a native son, having been a resident of Shelby county for fully half a century, Mr. Forman is well entitled to consideration in this publication, and the more so from the fact that he has contril)uted his quota to the civic and material upbuilding of the county, which has been his home from liis childhood to the present day, except for a period of 'a few years passed in the great western mining regions of the west, many years ago. He is now venerable in years, but is still actively identified with agricultural pursuits and stock-growing, tlirongji the medium of which he has gained success and independence, being one of the representative citizens of Taylor township, where his well improved farm is located in section 28.

John Forman was born in Ralls county, Missouri, on March 16, 18.32, and is a son of Benjamin F. Forman, who was born in beautiful Shenandoah county, Virginia, on March 18, 1794, being a scion of a family founded in the Old Dominion in the colonial era of our national history. The lineage is traced back to staunch English origin. Benjamin F. Forman was reared to maturity in his native state, and in 1814, when twenty years of age, he came to the wilds of Missouri, which was then considered to be on the very frontier of civilization. He first located in Boone county, where he remained about eight years, at the expiration of which he removed to Ralls county, where he secured a tract of wild land and initiated the reclamation of a fanu. In that county he continued his residence until 1842, when he removed with his family to Shelby county, where he piii'chased 120 acres of land, in Taylor township. Here he developed a productive farm, to which he continued to give his supervision imtil his death, wliich occurred in 1874. He was a millwright by trade, but after coming to this state his principal vocation was that of farming. He endured the full tension of the pioneer epoch and his name merits a place on the roll of the sterling early settlers of IVfissouri. On his farm he erected a mill, the motive power for which was provided by horses, and in the oi)eration of this primitive mill he was enabled to provide tlie ])ioneer settlers with wheat and buckwheat flour, this being one of the first mills erected in the county and supplying settlers over a wide area of countrv. Mr. Forman was a man of strong- individualitj', staunch integrity of character and of much energy and enterprise, so that he naturally wielded beneficent influence in the community. His political allegiance was given to the Democratic party, and both he and his wife were zealous and consistent members of the Missionary Baptist church.

In the year 1823 Benjamin F. Forman was united in marriage to Miss Mary Bowling, who was a native of Kentucky, and who proved a faithful and devoted wife and helpmeet, being one of the noble pioneer women whose strength and fortitude were well exercised in the days when conditions in this section were of the most primitive order, necessitating many deprivations and hardships, as viewed from the standpoint of the present day. She was summoned to the life eternal in 1854, and of the eleven children, four are now living, namely: Stephen, who resided in Monroe county, this state (since died) ; John, who is the immediate subject of this review ; Daniel, who resides in Elk county, Kansas; Aaron B., who is living in Shelby^'ille, Shelby county, Missouri; and Thomas W., of whom specific mention is made on other pages of this work.

John Forman was reared under the conditions and influences of the pioneer days, and his reminiscences of the same are most graphic and interesting. He was & lad of about ten years at the time of the family removal to Shelby county, and here his educational advantages were limited to a somewhat intermittent attendance in the old Sanders schoolhouse, a most primitive "institution of learning," in Taylor township.

Necessarily arduous labor fell to his portion in connection with the work of the pioneer farm while he was yet a mere boy, but he waxed strong and vigorous under this sturdy discipline, continuing to be associated in the work and management of the home farm until 185-t, after which he was employed by the month on neighboring farms for several years, within which time he broke many acres of virgin prairie.

In 1860, moved by a spirit of adventure and a desire to improve his material fortunes, Mr. Forman made the long and hazardous trip across the plains to California, utilizing an ox team for transportation and being four months en route. After his arrival in the Golden state he secured work on a ranch, being thus employed during the first winter, and, after devoting two years to ranching and gold mining, he purchased a team and outfit and engaged in freighting from Marysville, California, across the mountains to the mining camps at A^irginia City and Carson City, Nevada, this venture proving fairly successful. He continued to be thus engaged until 1866, when he again made the long overland journey and returned to Shelby county, Missouri. For a short time he remained with his brother Aaron in Shelbwille, and he then rented land and was thereon engaged in farming until 1868, when he purchased his present farm of eighty acres, in section 28, Taylor township, where he has lived and labored during the long intervening years, marked by well directed effort and due material success. He has made his farm one of the valuable places of the county, the same having been improved with substantial buildings and being under effective cultivation, while he has also devoted no little attention to the raising of live stock of excellent

Mr. Forman is one of the honored and influential citizens of his townshii?, has ever shown a loyal interest in those enterprises and measures that have tended to advance the general welfare of the community, is a stalwart advocate of the l)rinciples and policies for which the Democratic party stands sponsor and has served as road overseer and school director. Both he and his wife have long been active and devoted members of the Missionary Baptist church at North Eiver.

On April 26, 1871, Mr. Forman was united in marriage to Miss Martha J. Kodgers, who was born in Marion county and reared in Shelby county, where her parents, the late Jonathan and Eliza (Davis) Rodgers, were early settlers, having been natives, respectively, of Pennsylvania and Kentucky. Mr. and Mrs. Forman became the parents of five children, all of whom are living and concerning whom the following brief data are entered in conclusion of this sketch: jMiss Lillian M. remains at the parental home; Charles E. is engaged in business in Great Falls, Montana ; John W. is a resident of the same state, being ongagod in ranching in Fergus comity; and Oi'ville E. and Benjamin C. remain at the parental home, being associated in the practical work and management of the farm and being popular young men of their native county.

Jacob Hoofer

The honored subject of this memoir, who died at his fine homestead farm, in Taylor township, on April 5, 1900, passed the major portion of his long and useful life in Shelby county and was a member of one of the earliest pioneer families of this section of the state, to whose civic and material development he contributed his quota. His life was marked by signal industry and was guided and guarded by the loftiest princijjles of integrity and honor, so that he was not denied the fullest measure of p o p u 1 a r confidence and esteem. He achieved success and independence through his own efforts and made his life count for good in all its relations, so that it is most consistent that in this work, devoted to the county that so long represented his home, there should be incorporated a tribute to his memory, thus per])etuating a brief record of his worthy life and worthy deeds.

In one of the picturesque cantons of the fair little republic of Switzerland, Jacob Hoofer was born on September 9, 18.32, and he was about four years of age at the time of his parents' immigration to America. His father, Ulery Hoofer, was born in Switzerland in the year 1801 and was there reared to maturitj^ as was also his cherished and devoted wife. In 1836 they came to America and, after remaining for a short time in Pennsylvania, they made their way westward to the wilds of Shelby county, Missouri, then an isolated and sparsely settled section, and one that represented the \Trtual border of civilization. The father jnirchased a tract of wild land from tlie government, the same having been located in Taylor township, and his thrift and energy not only enabled him to gain more than average success according to the standard of the locality and period, but he also became influential in the affairs of this section, where he developed a productive farm and where both he and his wife continued to reside until their death. He established one of the first orchards in the county and the same was long one of the largest in this section, the seed for the orchard having been brought by him from Pennsylvania. Of the eight children only two are now living - Frances, who is the widow of Charles E. Bowen and resides in Knox county, this state; and John, who is a resident of Hanson, Kansas.

Jacob Hoofer was reared to maturity on the pioneer homestead in Taylor township, early gaining his full share of experience in connection with the arduous work of the farm, and finding but meager opportunities for diversion or for the securing of an education. His only schooling in a specific way was confined to about two terms in the primitive district school, but his was an alert and rece]:)tive mind and he effectually made good the early handica]i through the lessons gained in the valuable school of ex]ierience and through self-disci- ])line. He continued to be associated in the work and management of the home farm until he was seventeen years of age, when he indulged the sjiirit of adventure by aligning himself with the sturdy argonauts who were making their weary and hazardous way across the plains to the New Eldorado in California. He was one of the historic "Fortyniners," and in that memorable year that marked the discovery of gold in California he crossed the plains with an ox team and joined the throng of goldseekers. He remained in California for three years and his efforts were attended by an appreciable success, as he accumulated a considerable amount through his labors as a miner.

In 1852 Mr. Hoofer returned to the parental home, where he remained until 1857, when he purchased 120 acres of most productive land in Taylor township. Here he developed one of the valuable farms of the county, being energetic, progressive and indefatigable and making his one of the model farms of this section. In 1865 he removed to Iowa and purchased a fann in Freemont county, where he continued to be successfully engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1890, when he returned to Missouri and located in Polk county, where he remained for three years, engaged in farming. He then sold his property there aud returned to his old home in Shelby county, where he ynirchased the present homestead farm occu]ned by his widow, in section 23, Taylor township. Here he passed the residue of his life, secure in the esteem of all who knew him. He was a Republican in his political adherency and took an intelligent interest in the questions and issues of the hour, while he was ever loyal to all civic duties and responsibilities, though never a seeker of public office of any kind.

county, Indiana, on August 19, 1838, and whose parents, Samuel and Hannah (Michaels) Greenfield, were honored pioneers of the county. Mrs. Hoofer continues to reside on the homestead farm, is a devout member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and is held in affectionate regard by all who have come within the sphere of her gracious and kindly influence. Of the nine children, six are living, and concerning them the following brief record is consistently given in conclusion of this memoir: Sarah is the wife of Frederick Schurk, of Lincoln, Nebraska ; Laura is the wife of William King, of Farragut, Iowa; Emma is the wife of George W. Halliburton, of Shelby covmty; and Martha, Jennie and Henry remain with their widowed mother, the last named having charge of the home farm, which comprises 120 acres and which is one of the well improved and attractive rural demesnes of the county.

Lewis Smith

Numbered among the representative farmers and stock-growers of Taylor township is this well known and popular citizen, who has been a resident of Shelby county since his childhood days and who claims the fine old Buckeye commonwealth as the place of his nativity.

Mr. Smith was bom in Eichland county, Ohio, on February 27, 18.54, and is a scion of a family founded in Virginia in the colonial epoch of our national history. In that Old Dominion state was bom his grandfather, George Smith, who removed thence to Ohio and became one of the pioneers of Holmes county, that state. Removed to ^Missouri in 1858 and continued to remain in Missouri vmtil his death. George H. Smith, father of him whose name initiates this review, was l)orn in Holmes county, Ohio, in 1832, and was reared to maturity in the old Buckeye state, where he received a common-school education and where was solemnized, in 1852, his marriage to Miss Mary Marks, who likewise was bom in Ohio and who was a member of a family that settled there in the pioneer days. George H. Smith continued to be identified with agricultural pursuits in Eichland county, Ohio, until 1858, when he came to Missoui'i and settled in Taylor township, Shelby county, where he jjurchased a tract of land and improved a productive farm. He became one of the successful agriculturists and stockgrowers of the count}' and here continued to reside until his death, which occurred on Maj' 26, 1907. He was the owner of 240 acres of land, and the major portion of this was reclaimed to cultivation under his direction. He was a citizen of sterling integrity of character and ever commanded the high regard of the community in which he so long maintained his home. He was a Republican in politics, but was not affiliated with any church. His wife, whose death occurred June 2, 1907, was a member of the German Lutheran cluircli. They became the parents of four children, all of whom are living, namely: Lewis, who is the immediate subject of this sketch ; James, who is a resident of Butler county, Kansas; Franklin, who is identified with business interests in the city of Hannibal, Missouri, where he maintains his

Lewis Smith was but four years of age at the time of the family removal from Ohio to Missouri, and lie has ever since been a resident of Shelby county. He was reared to maturity in Taylor township, and there his early educational discipline was secured in the Ernest district school and the school colloquially desig-nated in those days as "Grub College." He continued to attend school at intervals until he was nineteen years of age, and in the meanwhile he early began to contrilmte his quota to the work of the home farm, with whose affairs he continued to be associated until 1879, when, at the age of twenty-four years, he began independent operations as a farmer and stock-grower, on a place of eighty acres that had been deeded to him by his father. He has improved the farm with good buildings, has added to its area imtil he now has 120 acres, the major portion of which is under effective cultivation, and on every side are evidences of thrift and good management. Mr. Smith is a man of indefatigable energ;^', enterprising methods and marked public spirit, and he has ever taken a lively interest in all that has touched the welfare and advancement of his home township and county, where he is well known and held in high popular esteem. Though he has never been ambitious for public office he has served with marked efficiency as school director of his district and is a staunch advocate of the principles and policies of the Republican party. Both he and his wife ai"e zealous members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Evans Chapel and take an

On February 4, 1879, Mr. Smith was united in marriage to Miss Lorena Jennings, who was born and reared in Shelby coimty and who is a daughter of Wiley D. and Jane Jennings, the former of whom was born in Tennessee and the latter in Illinois. They are now both dead. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have two sons, both of whom are popular j^oung men of Shelby county: John Everett, who was born on December 28, 1879, and Prentiss Eugene, who was born on September 27, 1883.

John A. Gillaspy

Within half a mile of his present attractive residence, in Taylor township, Shelby county, the birth of John A. Gillaspy occurred on February 22, 1838, and this date has its own significance, indicating as it does that he is a representative of a i^ioneer family of this now favored section of the state. His parents were ninnbered among the early settlers of the county, where they ever commanded unqualified esteem and where they did well their part in conserving both civic and industrial development. Further than this, he whose name initiates this paragraph had the distinction of being the first white child bom within the borders of Taylor township, where he is now a substantial citizen and representative farmer and stock-grower, and where his course has been so directed as to retain to him inviolable confidence and esteem, the while he has well ujjlield the prestige of the honored name which he bears and which has been prominently identified with the history of Shelby county for more than seventy years. He is a son of Lewis H. Gillaspy, concerning whom due mention is made in sketches relating to other representatives of the family in the county, and to these articles ready reference can be made as supplemental to the one here presented.

John A. Gillaspy was reared under the conditions and influences of the pioneer epoch in Shelby county, and as a boy he began to aid in the work of the home farm. His early educational training was secured in the Ernest schoolhouse and the old district school building that was formerly a Baptist church - one of the first church buildings erected in Taylor township. He continued to attend school, principally during the winter terms, until he was sixteen years of age, and in the intervening summer months he gave his attention to the sturdy work of the home farm, with whose management he continued to be identified until 1858, when, at the age of twenty years, he initiated his independent career by locating on a ])lace of eighty acres given to him by his father. Here he has maintained his home during the long intervening years, which have been marked by earnest and well dii'ected industry, through the medium of which he has gained a large measure of material success and achieved that independence which makes it possible for him to enjoy unequivocal peace and prosperity as the shadows of life begin to lengthen from the golden west. TTe has continuously given his attention to diversified agriculture and to the raising of highgrade live stock, and to his original homestead he has added from time to time until he is now the owner of a finely improved landed estate of 404 acres. Mr. Gillaspy was one of the organizers and charter members of the Farmers' Bank of Leonard, in which substantial and popular financial institution he is still a stockholder.

Though never lacking in civic loyalty and ever standing ready to lend his influence and co-operation in the support of measures and enterprises projected for the general good of the community, Mr. Gillaspy has never found aught of allurement in public office, and the only position of which he has been incumbent in this line is that of school director. He takes due interest in the vital questions and issues of the hour and his political allegiance is given to the Democratic party. Both he and his wife have long been zealous and devoted members of the Christian church and he is a pillar in the church of his denomination at Leonard, in which he has held the office of elder for a number of years.

On December 2, 1858, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Gillaspy to Miss Crecy Peoples, who likewise was born and reared in Shelby county, where her parents, John and Rebecca (Bachman) Peoples were early settlers. To Mr. and Mrs. Gillaspy were born two children: Dora Alice, who is the wife of John W. McWilliams, a representative business man of the village of Leonard, this county ; and Beatrice Orzelia, who is the wife of James H. Hall, who likewise is engaged in business at Leonard. x\s a worthy i)ioneer and as one of the oldest of the native sons of Shelby county there is special pleasure in presenting in this volume this all too brief review of the career of Mr. Gillaspy, who has here lived and labored to goodly ends and who here commands a secure place in the confidence and regard of all who know him.

Lafayette J. Johnston

In section 28, Taylor township, is located the well improved homestead farm of Mr. Johnston, who is entitled to consideration in this work as one of the representative farmers and stock-growers of Shelby county and as a citizen of distinctive loyalty and public spirit.

Lafayette J. Johnston is a scion of staunch Scottish ancestry, his grandfather, John Johnston, having been a native of Scotland and having come from the land of the hills and heather to America when young. He passed the major portion of his life in the dominion of Canada, where he continued to maintain his home until his death. His son Jacob W., father of him whose name initiates tliis review, was born in Weller county, province of Ontario, Canada, on June 28, 1836, and there he was reared and educated. He was there identified with agricultural pursuits and there also became a skilled workman at the trade of carpenter. He continued his residence in Weller county, Canada, until 1868, when he came with his family to Shelby county, Missouri, and secured a tract of land in Taylor township, where he engaged in farming, in connection with which he found much reciuisition for his services as a carpenter, having erected a number of houses and other buildings in this township. Here he continued to uuiintain his home until 1880, when he removed to Elkhart county, Indiana, where he became a successful farmer and where he passed the residue of hi-s life, which reached its close in 1900. In 1860 was solemnized his marriage to Miss Lydia Nygh, who likewise was bom and reared in the Dominion of Canada and who is still living in Elkhart county, Indiana, both having been zealous members of the Mennonite church and having well exemplified in their daily lives the simple and noble faith they thus jn'ofessed. They became the parents of ten children, of whom eight are now living, namely : Lafayette J., who is the immediate subject of this sketch ; Clara, who is the wife of Jacob Mishler, a resident of Elkhart county, Indiana ; Ida, who is the wife of Albert Brady, of New Paris, that state; Susan, who is the wife of George Walker, of Chicago, Illinois; Isaiah, who is a resident of Nappanee, Indiana ; Esther, who is the wife of Elmer Grubb, of Los Angeles, California; Jacob, who maintains his home in Elkhart county. Indiana ; and Mary, who is the wife of Leonard Stackhouse, of Nappanee, that state. It will thus be seen that the immediate family circle now finds representation in divers sections of the Union.

Lafayette J. Johnston, the immediate subject of this sketch, was born on a farm in Weller county, province of Ontario, Canada, on November 19, 1866, and thus he was about two years of age at the time of the family removal to Shelby county, Missouri, where he gained his rudimentary education in the district schools of Taylor township. When he had attained to the age of four- teen years Lis parents removed to Elkhart county, Indiana, as has already been noted, and there he was reared to maturity and continued his educational discipline in the public schools, the while he contributed his quota to the work of the home farm, in the work and management of which he continued to be associated until 1889, when, as a young man of twentj^-three years, he returned to Shelby county, Missouri, and settled in Taylor township, where he now owns a well improved farm of 160 acres, all of the land being available for cviltivation and being devoted to diversified agriculture and the raising of live stock of excellent grades. Mr. Johnston has shown himself industrious, persevering and progressive and thus has achieved a worthy success in connection with his farming operations. Loyal and liberal as a citizen, he finds satisfaction in aiding in the support of all that tends to advance the general welfare of the community, and to him is given unqualified esteem and confidence by all who knew him. In politics he is a staunch advocate of the principles for which the Republican party stands sponsor, but he has never eared to enter the arena of practical politics, and the only office in which he has consented to serve is that of school director of his district. Both he and his wife hold membership in the Mennonite clnncli, in whose faith he was reared, and is now ]iastor of Mt. Pisgah church, near Cherry Box, having served a number of years.

On December 25, 1890, :\rr. Johnston gave api)ro])riate observance of the joyous Christmastide by wedding Miss Anna Detwiler, who was born in Wliiteside county, Illinois, and reared in Shelby county, and who is a daughter of John G. and Magdalina Detwiler, well known residents of the village of Cherry Box, this county. To Mr. and Mrs. Johnston have been born eight children, all of whom still remain at the parental home, and their names are here entered in respective order of their birth : Lydia, now ^frs. Fred Littleton, of this county; Alma, Eran, Uriah, Xoah, Orpha, Esther and Orvis.

William Howell

Born of a martial strain and with high examples of devotion to patriotic duty and loyalty to the rights of ma'^^'ind in his family history, AVilliam Howell, one of the venerable and venerated citizens of Salt River townshiji, in this county, has, in bis own life work and experience, admirably sustained the spirit and patriotic ardor of his ancestors and exemplified the best attributes of elevated American citizenship. His grandfather, John Howell, although a native of England, helped to win the independence of our country by four years valiant service in the Continental army under the immortal commander who was "First in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen. ' ' And when the Civil war burst with all its fury on the land and threatened its dismemberment, he shouldered his musket and freely ]ioured out his blood to save the laiion which his ancestor had helped to found.

Air. Howell was born in AVestmoreland county. Pennsylvania, on December 1, is;;:?, and is a sou of Aaron and Rebecca (Wilson) Howell, also natives of that county. The father followed fanning and raising live stock in his native state all his life. He was a very successful farmer and a man of prominence and influence in the local affairs of his portion of the state. He also contributed to its welfare and that of other states by rearing to maturity a large family of children and making them useful members of society. His marriage with Miss Eebecca Wilson took place in about 1829 and resulted in the liirth of thirteen children in the household. Of these three are now living - William, the immediate subject of this writing; Matilda, the wife of J. C. Parr, of Irwin, Pennsylvania; and Eleanor, the wife of J. D. Brown, also a resident of Irwin, Pennsylvania. The father was first a Democrat and later a Whig, and finally a Eepuhlican in politics, and in his religious affiliation was warmly attached to the Presbyterian church.

His son, William Howell, was educated in the district schools of Westmoreland and Allegheny counties, Pennsylvania, and after leaving school worked on the home farm with his father until 1870. He then yielded to a longing that had possessed him for years and determined to try his fortunes in the newer country of the great West. In the year last mentioned he came to Missouri and located in ^lonroe county, where he remained until 1882 actively and profitably engaged in farming. He then sold his interests in that county and moved to Shelby county, in which he has ever since lived, following farming and raising live stock for the markets with all his energy and the ardor of a man devoted to his work.

He has been very successful in his operations in this county, and in 1908 determined to lessen his labors and take a well earned rest. He accordingly retired to a very comfortable home on a farm of ninety acres, near Shelbina, and has in addition another tract of sixtyfive acres west of Shelbina and ninety acres northwest of Shelbina. He has the greater part of bis land farmed by tenants, but although he is seventy-seven years of age, he still superintends the work and does a portion of it himself, being very vigorous and active for his age and imbued with a spirit of industry which will not be satisfied without something in the way of regular occupation.

On August 9, 1862, he enlisted in the Federal army in defense of the Union, being enrolled at Pittsburg, in his native state, in Company H, One Hundred and Thirty-sixth Pennsylvania Infantry, under command of Col. Thomas M. Bayne, the regiment being known as the "Nine Months' Volunteers." He was in the service for the full term of his enlistment and was mustered out at the end of it. He participated in the battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, in which he received a wound from which he has never fully recovered.

Ml'. Howell has been as loyal to his country and the locality of his residence and their interests in peace as he was in war. In the affairs of Shelby county he has shown a very earnest interest and in promoting the welfare of the people has taken an active and serviceable ^lart. He was especially helpful to his township in a long service as school director and left his impress on the school system of the township. In many other ways he has contributed essentially and wisely to the advancement of the region and helped to promote its judicious improvement, and he is esteemed by all classes of its citizenship for the uprightness of his life, his enterprise in building ui3 its material development and the aid he has given in strengthening its moral and educational agencies.

On May 16, 1861, he was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Marehand, a daughter of Abraham and Eachel (Saam) Marehand, all natives of Pennsylvania, where Mrs. Howell was born on September 7, 1837. By this marriage he became the father of seven children, six of whom are living - Aaron S. C, of Henry county, Missouri ; William A., a resident of Shelby county; Mary Ella, the wife of Joseph White, also of this county; Rachel Rebecca, the wife of George Foster, of IMacon, Missouri ; and Owen Fletcher and Arthur S., both residents of Shell)y county. In politics the father is a pronounced and zealous Republican, and in religious affairs he leans to the Presbyterian r-hurch, of which his wife is a member. Twenty-eight years of his life has been passed in this county, and they have all l)een fruitful in good to its people and their interests. He is justly esteemed as one of their best and most representative men.

George B. Garner

Owner of one of the splendid farms of his native township and held in high esteem in tlie community that has ever represented his home, ^Ir. Garner is one of tlie prominent and successful agriculturists and stock-growers of Taylor township and is a member of one of the well known and highly honored families of the county. On other pages of this work appears a sketch of the career of his brother, Charles B. Garner, and incidental thereto is given due record concerning the family history, so that a rei)etition of the data is not demanded in the present connection, as ready reference may be made, through the index of this volume, to the article in question. Mr. Garner was born on the old homestead farm in Taylor township, this county, on March 4, 1866, and he is indebted to the local schools for his early educational training, reverting with facetious satisfaction to the fact that he was a student in the Ernest schoolhouse, coloquialiy designated by the euphonious title of "Grub College." He continued to attend school at intervals until he was seventeen years of age, and in the meanwhile he contributed materially to the work of the home farm, thus learning the lessons of practical and consecutive industry and gaining experience that has been of inestimable value to him in his independent career. He continued to be associated in the work and management of the home farm until 1890, when he married, after which he rented a farm near the village of Leonard, where he remained one year, at the ex]iiration of which he purchased forty acres of his ])resent farm, in section 22, Taylor township, where the best evidence of his energy, ability and success is that afforded by his ownership at the present time of a well improved landed estate of 255 acres, all available for cultivation. He erected the present substantial buildings on the place, and the other improvements are of the best type, so that he has everj- reason to view with satisfaction the progress he has made and the independent position to which he has attained through his own well directed endeavors. He is a staunch Republican in his political allegiance, taking a loyal interest in public affairs of a local order and having served both as clerk and director of the school board of his district. He gives a liberal support to the work of the Methodist Episcopal church in Evans Chapel, of which Mrs- Garner is a zealous member

On February 13, 1890, Mr. Garner was united in marriage to Miss May S. Boring, who was born in Green county, Illinois, and reared in this county, being a daughter of George W. and Augusta Boring. The mother died in 1908 and the father lives in Clarence, Missouri. Mr. and Mrs. Garner became the parents of eight children, all of whom are living, namely: Florence Merle. Alfred E., Eva May, George Delbert, Charles E-. Clara Hazel, and Lola Grace. One died in infancy.

Eichaed W. Gillaspy

A representative of one of the old and honored families of Shelby county and a son of William L. Gillaspy, of whom more s]iecific mention is made on other pages of this volume, the subject of this review has been a resident of this county from the time of his birth and is now numbered among the successful farmers and progressive citizens of Taylor township, his well unproved farm being located in section 24.

the old homestead farm of his parents, in Taylor township, this county, on June 28, 1866, and there he was reared to maturity, in the meanwhile having duly availed himself of the advantages afforded in the district school that was long known locally by the facetious title of "Grub College." He continued to atiend school at intervals until he had attained the age of sixteen years, after which he continued to be associated in the work of the home farm until 1887, when he rented a tract of land and engaged in farming and stock-growing on his o\vii responsibility. He was indefatigable in his efforts, which were directed with energ\' and discrimination, so that his success became cumulative. He continued his operations under these conditions for a period of six years, at the expiration of which he purchased forty acres, which he later sold and purchased eighty acres of his old homestead fai-m, to which he has since added until he now has an admirably improved farm of 160 acres, all of which is available for cultivation. He has erected substantial buildings on his farm, and the place gives the tangible evidences of thrift and prosperity.

Mr. Gillaspy has not failed to lend his co-operation in the support of all measures advanced for the general welfare of the community and, though he has never sought or desired iiulilic office of any description, he is a staunch supporter of the principles and policies of the Democratic party. Both he and his wife hold membership in the Missionary Baptist clmrch and are zealous workers in the various deitarlments of its religious and benevolent activities. They are

On March 11, 1890, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Gillaspay to Miss Martha L. McVey, who, like himself, is a member of a well known pioneer family of Shelby county, where she was born and reared. She is a daughter of Reuben W. and Martha McVey, who were residents of Taylor township. They have no children.

John H. Bue

Pleasantly located on his fine farm of 210 acres in Bethel townshiji and pursuing the peaceful if arduous life of an active and energetic farmer and live stock breeder, John H. Bue has, nevertheless, had a career of considerable variety and adventure, even though it was confined to his youth and early manhood. He is a native of this country, though not of this state, having come into being on November 2.S, 1855, in Lake county, Indiana, and is a son of Henry and Eliza (]\Iooney) Bue, natives of Lincolnshire, England, where the father was born in 1830.

He came to the United States when he was about twenty-one years old, and for a short time lived in Rochester, New York. But the West had greater attraction for him. Its great wealth of resources called him with a pleading voice and its natural life, unspoiled as yet by the blandishments of social culture, wore for him a winning smile. Accordingly, after a residence of a year in Rochester he moved to Indiana and took up his residence in Lake county. There he banked cord wood and later became a railroad contractor.

In 1869 he took another flight toward the Rockies, coming to Missouri and locating at Excello, in Macon county. Here he bought a fann and farmed it one year, then moved to Boonville, Cooper county, where death soon afterward robbed him of his wife. From that time to his death, in 1895, he followed railroad contracting almost exclusively. During the greater part of his activity in this country he was highly prosperous, but business reverses late in life deprived him of much of his gain, and kept him from leaving his children with as good a start in life as he had aimed to give them. He died at the home of his son, John H. Bue, at which he had lived at intervals after the death of his wife.

Mr. Bue, the father, undertook and carried to completion several large works of construction in his contracting days, among them the O. K., M. K., T. & Long division of the AVabash railroad in this part of the country. He was married in New York to Miss Eliza INIooney, and by this marriage became the father of eight children, five of whom are living: John H., the immediate subject of this sketch ; Mary, the widow of Patrick Lyons, who lives in Bloomington, Illinois; "William, who is a resident of Flathead county, Montana; Sarah, the wife of William Garrison, whose home is in the new state of Oklahoma ; Charles, who resides at Elwood, Indiana; Hannah M., the wife of R. W. Tanner, of Idaho, who died in September, 1910. The father was a member of the Protestant Episcopal church,

Arthur L. Freelanu

John H. Bue obtained his education in the public schools of Merrillville aud Ross Station, in Lake couutj', Indiana, attending them until he reached the age of fourteen years. He then went to work with his father, going from place to place as circumstances required, seeing different phases of American enterprise and human life aud treasuring up the lessons of his experience for future use. He continued working on railroad contracts with his father until 1879, then determined to gratify a long-felt desire and seek a permauent residence and settled occupation. In that year he came to Shelby county, Missouri, and during the next three years engaged in farming and raising live stock on land which he rented for the purpose. At the end of the period named he liought the farm he had been renting and on it lie has made his home and conducted his industries ever since. But as he prospered he added to his land and increased his live stock business. He now owns 210 acres, the greater ])art of which is under cultivation, and is farmed with intelligence and enterprise. The stock business is carried on in the same spirit, and liotli are made very profitable by the excellent management which controls them in every detail.

Mr. Bue has taken an earnest and helpful interest in the affairs of his township and county, which have felt the quickening imjmlse of his strong mind and ready hand. He is a school director and has rendered valued service as road overseer. His first marriage, wliich occurred in 1879, was with Miss Elizabeth

Smith, of Shelby county. They had one child, which died in infancy. The mother also died soon afterward, and on November 23, 1883, Mr. Bue contracted a second marriage, uniting with Miss Jennie Lee Pickett, also a Shelby county lady, and daughter of Hiram and Elizabeth (Rookwood) Pickett, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Kentucky, and both long resident in Shelby county, where Mrs. Bue was born on .Tuly 19, 1861.

Three children have been born of the second marriage, and two of them are living, a son named William and a daughter named Maybelle Lee, now Mrs. "William Vanskike, of Knox county. In politics the father is a Democrat and at all times an energetic and effective worker for the success of liis party. He and his wife are zealous and devoted members of the Southern Methodist Episcopal church, and are held to be among the most valued workers in its cause. Mr. Bue being one of the stewards of the congregation to which he belongs and looked up to as one of its leading members. Mr. Bue is interested in breeding superior lines of coach and draft horses and now owns two of the best stallions in the county.

Arthur L. Freeland

The last three generations of the family to which Arthur L. Freeland, of Lakenan, this county, belongs have contributed to the life, activity and jiroductiveness of four states of the Auierican Union and have done well and been highly esteemed in all. His paternal grandfather, John Freeland, was a native of

Massachusetts and moved in Ms early manhood to North Carolina, where the father, Francis Freeland, was born on February 27, 1807. While he was but a small boy the family moved to Kentucky, and there he grew to manhood and lived until 1832, extensively engaged in farming and raising live stock after reaching his maturity and becoming one of the noted stock men of the state. In the year last named he moved his own family to Illinois, and in 1866 located in Jackson township, Shelby county, Missouri. There he bought a large tract of land, which he farmed until 1873, when his wife died. He then retired from active pursuits and passed the remainder of his days in ease and the comforts of a prolonged rest, dying at Lakenan on March 13,^1888.

Francis Freeland was married in 1832 to Miss Julia A. Mayhugh, a native of Virginia, born in 1809. She became, by her marriage, the mother of eleven children. Ten of her offspring grew to maturity and six of them are still living - John AV., a resident of Oklahoma ; Fielding M., who lives at Blackwell. Oklahoma ; Fleming IT., who has his home in Shelbina ; Franklin P., a citizen of Leota, Kansas ; Napoleon B., who is also a resident of Oklahoma; and Arthur L., the immediate subject of this memoir. The father was a Whig in early life, and when tlie party to which he belonged passed into history and was succeeded by the Republican party, he joined the new organization and adhered to it until his death. His religious affiliation was with the Southern ]\Iethodist church.

He was reared to the age of fifteen on his father's farm in Illinois, and began his education in the public schools in its vicinity. At the age of fifteen he accompanied his parents to Missouri, and lived with them on their farm in Shelby county until 1885, completing in its public scliools, a private school in Shelbyville and the high school in that city the education he had started in Illinois. After leaving school he became a teacher in the public schools of Shelby county, following that trying but self-developing vocation until 1885. He then started an enterprise in general merchandising which he conducted for a period of twenty years, his place of business being in Lakenan, of which he was appointed postmaster the same year. He is the postmaster of the city now, having filled the office continuously from his first a]ipointment in 1885, with the exception of four years, and discliarged his official duties in connection witli his mercantile undertaking. Mr. Freeland sold his store and business in 1905, and since then he has devoted his time and attention wholly to the duties of his office and the care of his other interests. He has been successful in liis efforts for advancement and now owns land in Pike county and a valuable residence in Lakenan, over both of which he exercises a careful supervision and direction. He has always taken an active interest in jiolitics as a Republican, in fraternal life as a Freemason, holding membershi}) in Shelbina Lodge of the order, and in religious affairs as a zealous member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. On October 31, 1872, he was united in marriage witli Miss Emma C. Holliday, of Shelbyville. One child

Mr. Freeland is an enteriirising and progressive man, as is shown by his own success in everything he has undertaken and by his valued contributions in counsel, in activity and in material aid to every movement for the development and improvement of the town and county in which he lives and the promotion of the enduring welfare of their people. He is always at the front in all good works - niaterial, political, intellectual and moral - - and is esteemed by the ])eople who have had the benefit of his services as one of the most representative and useful men among them. No one stands higher in Lakenan and Shelby county, and the regard in which he is universally held is acknowledged to be based on demonstrated merit.

Rev. James Jolly Wilson

This venerable and venerated patriarch in the Christian ministry, who was a commanding herald of the gospel for fifty-six years, and but recently retired from active service in his chosen line of beneficence, has passed the eighty-first milestone of his long journey of usefulness through the wilderness of human error in which he has contended against all forms of evil, and is now resting serenely from his labors, secure in the affectionate regard of the ]ieoi)le who have so long had the benefit of his ministrations and the confidence and esteem of the whole body of the eitizenshiii of Shelby and adjoining counties and in many other parts of the country.

Rev. Mr. Wilson was born on March 22, 1829, in Highland county, Ohio, and is a son of Joseph H. and Maria (Jolly) Wilson, also natives of that county, where the father was born on May 6, 1807, and they were married in 1828. The father grew to manhood in that county, and when he was old enough engaged in farming. He also kei)t a store and operated a tan yard at Petersburg, Ohio, for twenty years, and at the end of that period moved to Oxford, Indiana. There he followed farming until his death, in 1875. He was successful according to the standards of his day, and in all places of his residence rose to consequence and influence among the people. He and his wife became the parents of five children, but only two of them are now living, the interesting subject of this memoir, and his brother, Sanford H., who is a resident of Santa Clara, California. The mother of these children died some years before her husband, and he afterward contracted a second marriage, uniting in 1856 with Mrs. Priscilla Briden, of Tippecanoe county, Indiana. He was an elder in the Presbyterian church and a man of great activity and effectiveness in his congregation.

His son, James Jolly AVilson, began his education in the district schools of his native county and later attended Salem Academy, in Ross county, Ohio, for one year. In 1849 he entered Hanover College, in Indiana, whidi he attended three years. He then entered the ministry and was licensed to preach in 1853 at the church in which he was baptized as an infant. He began his career as a jireacher in Oxford, Indiana, occupying the pastorate of the Presbyterian church in that city three years. In 1857 he came to Missouri, practically a Christian missionary, and located in Knox county. For a number of years he preached throughout a large extent of the surrounding country in school houses and country churches, both of which in those days were few in number and it was far between them.

The new comer proved a veritable godsend to the region in which he took up his residence and his useful calling. He served as president of the board of education in Knox county before the Civil war and under his inspiring influence school houses soon began to rise in many places like exhalations from the ground, and the cause of public education received a stimulus that was of the greatest benefit to the county and highly appreciated by its inhabitants of that day. His influence as a minister was equally manifest in the quickening of religious spirit among the people, and this also resulted in the erection of many new altars for worship.

In 1868 Rev. Mr. Wilson moved to Shelby county, five mlies northwest of Bethel, and there he dwelt and gave himself to his duties with great and constant devotion until November, 1909, when he retired from all active work in the ministry and found a restful home in Shelbyville. For forty-five years he had preached in Pleasant Prairie Presbyterian churcb, besides delivering a great many sei'mons and addresses in other places, and officiating at numberless other functions belonging to the clergy outside of the pulpit. He was in great demand for funeral services and one of the most popular men in this portion of the state for uniting young couples in marriage. His genial manner and benignant disposition won him his way to the hearts of the people easily and gave him a specially strong hold on the regard of the young, while his high character, purity of life and unwavering fidelity to duty established him in general confidence and esteem so firmly that nothing could loosen his hold or alienate the people from him, even slightly.

Eev. Mr. Wilson was married on September 25, 1851, to Miss Zenetta C. Core, a daughter of John and IMary (Ferneau) Core, residents at that time of Pike county, Ohio, where the marriage took place. Four children were born of the union, but Sandford Core Wilson, of Shelbj'ville, is the only one of them now living. The father is now a member of Kirksville Presbytery and was chosen moderator of the session in 1904. He was then advanced in years, having ])assed his three-quarter century mark, but he was hale and vigorous in body, and the session over which he presided found that his mind was as active and keen and its resources were as ready for immediate iise as they had ever been. His wisdom and skill in presiding fully justified the confidence of the body expressed in his choice.

The life herein briefly chronicled has been one of arduous effort, stern endurance and uncomplaining self sacrifice. But it has been fruitful in benefits to those among whom it has been passed, and in view of the good results it has so materially helped to bring about, its retrospect cannot but be pleasant to all who know its record, even the good man who has lived it. And all who have knowl- edge of him and liis great work, must rejoice and do rejoice that the evening of his long day of toil and trial is so mild and benignant. Moreover, all wish him yet many years in which to enjoy it.

Faemers' Bank Of Emden

This very useful, highly appreciated and widely popular financial institution, which has an excellent reputation for soundness, progressiveness and the use of good judgment in its management, was founded on April 14, 1904, with a capital of $10,000, and the following officers in control : President, D. S. Sharp ; cashier, R. L. Davis; directors, D. S. Sharp, E. L. Turner, W. S. Wood, Thomas J. Crane, P. H. Couch, U. J. Davis and R. D. Goodwin. In 1906 Marsh. Booker succeeded E. L. Turner. The directorate of the bank remained unchanged until January 1, 1908. At that time R. D. Goodwin was elected president and several months later Howard Couch was chosen cashier, and F. M. Dill vice-president. The board of directors at present (1910) is composed of R. D. Goodwin, F. M. Dill, W. S. Wood, Thomas J. Crane, P. H. Couch, U. J. Davis and R. A. Humphrey.

The business of the bank has been good and active from its founding and has steadily increased from year to year. The institution is known throughout this portion of the state, in nearby sections of adjoining states and in banking circles generally, as one of the soundest and best managed banks of its size and character. Its past record is altogether to its credit, both as to progress and to safety, and the gentlemen at the head of it give the best guaranty of its strength and reliability in their personal character and standing, and the success with which they have managed other business enterprises with which they are connected in leading ways.

Richard D. Goodwin, the president and controlling spirit of the bank, is a native of Shelby county and was born near Emden on November 19, 1846. He is a son of Henry H. and Mary (Durrett) Goodwin, natives of Virginia. The father was born in Louisa county, Virginia, in 1817, and came to Missouri in 1835. He located in St. Louis county and during the next two years followed farming there. He then came to Shelby county and here he lived until his death, in August, 1910, and was very actively and successfully occupied in general farming and raising live stock until a few years ago, when he retired from active pursuits. In the early days of his residence in this state he was a great hunter, the season's regular average tribute to his unerring rifle being twentyfive to forty deer, besides other game in profusion. He divided his land among his children, but before doing this he owned 340 acres.

This venerable gentleman, who forms a bright and interesting link connecting the early history of this county with the present state of affairs in it, was married in 1843 to Miss Mary Durrett, a daughter of Dr. Richard Durrett, a native of Virginia, but a resident of Shelby county, Missouri, at the time of the marriage. She and her husband became the parents of eleven children, eight of whom are living: Judith, a resident of this county; Richard D. the president of the bank;

Robert, William and Henry, prosperous and highly respected citizens of Shelby county; Jennie, the wife of George Norman ; Mary, the wife of James Babb ; and Rebecca, the wife of Clay Davis, all also residents of this county. The father was an old-time Democrat in his political faith and allegiance, and his religious connection was with the Missionary Baptist church.

His son, Richard D. Goodwin, obtained his education in the district schools of Shelby county, which he attended at intervals until he was twenty years old. After leaving school he worked on his father's farm in partnership with his brothers until 1899. He then bought 160 acres of land, which he has increased by subsequent purchases to 195, and on this farm he has carried on for years a very active, successful and ])rofitable general farming and stock breeding enterprise of magnitude in each department and conducted with great enterprise, vigor and continual striving for the best results through the application of skill and broad intelligence to the work and observant attention to its every detail.

Mr. Goodwin has been very much interested in the bank of which he is now president from the beginning of its history. He was a charter member in its organization and has been one of its firmest and most faithful friends ever since. What it is now is largely a product of his creation. He has taken also a deep interest in the affairs of the community outside of financial circles, helping to develop and bring to completion every wovtliy undertaking for the benefit of his township and county. He is an ardent Democrat in political relations and has served his party well as township chairman both by appointment and election. He is a member of the Baptist church and one of the trustees of the congregatipn to which he belongs. His wife is an earnest and devoted member of the Christian church. Her maiden name was Anna Moi-eland, and she is a native of Marion county, in this state, and a daughter of Washington and Isabella (Robertson) Moreland, residents of that county. Her marriage with Mr. Goodwin took place on October 19, 1899.

Crayton Woodavard

As one of the sterling citizens of Shelby county, which has been his home since 1902, when he removed here from the adjoining county of Knox, ]Mr. Woodward is well entitled to consideration in this publication. The major portion of his active business career has been one of close and successful identification with agricultural pursuits, and he is still the owner of a well-improved farm of 184 acres in Bourbon township, Kjiox county.

He is now postmaster in the village of Leonard and his circle of friends in the community is limited only by that of his acquaintances, for his life has been such as to merit unqualified popular trust and esteem.

Crayton Woodward claims the old Em- , pire state of the union as the place of his nativity, having been born in Oneida county. New York, on March 30, 1849, being a son of Samuel R. and Mary (Lasure) Woodward, the former a native of Connecticut and the latter of the state of New York, where their marriage was solemnized in the vear 1845. Of the two children Crayton is the elder and Russell is now a resident of Cedar county, Nebraska. The father was originally a AVhig and later a Republican in politics, and both he and his wife held membership in the Universalist church. Samuel R. Woodward was born in Couueetiout in 1829, and was a member of a family of English extraction that was founded in New England in the colonial days of our national history. He was reared and educated in his native state, and he removed to the state of New York when a young man. There he was engaged in the navigation of canal boats for a period of twenty years, at the expiration of which, about the year 1865, he removed with his family to Missouri and settled in Knox county, where he purchased a tract of land, becoming one of the fairly successful farmers and stock growers of that county, where he continued to reside until his death, which occurred in 1875. His devoted wife was summoned to the life eternal in 1852.

Crayton Woodward passed his boyhood days in his native county of New York state, where he was afforded the advantages of the common schools and a well-conducted select school. He was fifteen years of age at the time of the family removal to Knox county, Missouri, where he duly assisted in the work of the home farm, beijig associated with his father until the latter 's death, and thereafter continuing independent operations as a farmer and stock grower in that county until his removal to Leonard, Shelby county, in 1902. He was known as an energetic and thrifty exponent of the great basic industry of agriculture and was not denied a due measure of success in connection with his long continued ojierations in connection therewith. As before stated, lie still continues in the ownership of his old homestead farm, .which is well improved and under effective cultivation.

In politics Mr. Woodward is found loyally arrayed under the banner of the grand old Republican party, in whose cause he has been an active worker in a local way. He received from Postmaster General Payne appointment to the office of postmaster at Leonard in 1902, imder the administration of the lamented President McKinley, and in this position he has since continued the efficient and popular incumbent. He has also served as school director for more than five years past, and is known as a loyal and public spirited citizen. Mrs. Woodward is a member of the Norwegian Lutheran church.

On March '80, 1872, Mr. Woodward was united in marriage to Miss Laura M. Johnson, who was born and reared in Knox county, this state, where her father, the late Cornelius Johnson, was an early settler. Of the six children of this union four are living, namely: Samuel, a successful farmer of Taylor township, Shelby county; Russell, who now resides in Knox county, Missouri; Augustus, who is a twin of Russell, and who is identified with agricultural jmrsuits in Shelby county; and Guy, who remains on the old homestead in Knox county.

Cecilius C. Calvert

Calvert, present postmaster of Emden, in this county, is a modest gentleman of merit, and makes no claim to recognition except what he presents in his character, his conduct as a man and his usefulness as a citizen. He is a native of Missouri, born on April 1, 1844, in Marion county, but his grandfather, also named Cecilius, was born and reared in England and came to the United States in his young manhood, locating in Virginia before the formation of the Federal Union. From Virginia he moved to Missouri in 1818 and took up his residence in what is now Marion county, where he died in 1850.

Coming down to the next generation, Mr. Calvert is a son of Gabriel and Sarah A. (Eollins) Calvert, natives of Kentucky. The father was born in Bourbon county, in that state, in 1814, and was brought to Missouri by his parents when he was four years old. He was reared and educated in ]\Iarion county, and as soon as he was of a suitable age began farming and raising live stock in that county, and followed those pursuits in the same locality until his death in 1898. He was very successful as a farmer and when he died left 200 acres of superior and well improved land to his heirs. In the days of his young manhood the law required citizens to muster at regular times under fixed regulations for military training. Gabriel Calvert was the fifer of the organization in his neighborhood, and it is a common tradition handed down from the older inhabitants that he was one of the best of his day.

He was married in 1839 to Miss Sarah A. Rollins, a native of Kentucky, but residing in IMarion county, Missouri, at the time of the marriage and for some years previous. They had twelve children, six of whom are living: Thomas J., of this county; Cecilius C, the theme of this writing ; Sarah, the wife of B. V. Ferguson, of Marion county; George A., of Monroe county; Julia, the widow of the late John AVood, of Shelby county; Ziba, who lives at Shelton, Nebraska; and Bolar, who is a resident of Marion county, Missouri. In jjolitics the father was a Republican and always deeply interested and active in the service of his party.

Cecilius C. Calvert obtained his education at Hickory Grove district school, in Marion county, which he attended during the winter months until he was thirteen years of age. He then worked on his father's farm until the beginning of the Civil war, when he felt impelled by his love of the Union to enlist in its defense. He enlisted in March, 1862, in Company K, Eleventh Missouri Infantry, under Col. Henry S. Lipscomb, and served until December, 1864, when he received an honorable discharge at Cape Girardeau, in this state. During his service he took part in the battles of Newark and Kirksville, Missouri; Gainesville, Arkansas, and the two days' engagement at Cape Girardeau. The command then followed Price and Marmaduke to Little Rock and took possession of that city and closed the campaign at Frederickstown, ]\[issouri.

After his discharge from the army Mr. Calvert returned to his Marion county home and remained there working on the farm and assisting the family until 1866, when he was united in marriage with Miss Eliza Spaw, of Iowa, a daughter of AVilliam J. and Mary Ann (Ashpaw) Spaw, formerly of that state but long residents of Missouri. He then rented a farm in Marion county, which he occupied until 1873. In that year he moved to Macon county on eighty acres of land which he purchased, and on which he raised stock and carried on general farming operations until 1889, when he sold out there and changed his residence to a farm of 240 acres in Shelby county, about three miles from Emden. He directed the cultivation of this farm and the stock industrj^ in connection with it until 1905, then divided it among his children.

After this disposition of his farm Mr. Calvert moved to Emden and took charge of a feed and grist mill, which he owned and operated until 1907. This mill he then sold, after which he passed a year in South Dakota. Eeturning to Emden in 1908, he bought back the mill property, and he now operates the mill very profitably. He also keeps a general store and has a large and active trade. In October, 1908, he was appointed postmaster of Emden and is still in service in thft capacity.

From his happy union with Miss Spaw in the marriage which was solemnized in 1866, ten children have been born, eight of whom are living, and all residents of Shelby county but one. They are: Laura, the wife of E. P. Parsons ; James ; Sarah, the wife of William E. Dye ; Addie, the wife of James Vanoy; Anna, the wife of W. C. Habig, of South Dakota ; Julia, the wife of William Adudell ; and George and Frank. The father is a Republican in politics. Fraternally he is connected with tlie Grand Army of the Republic, and in religious affiliation he and his wife are energetic working members of the Primitive Baptist church.

William J. Cotton

This extensive, enterprising and successful farmer and live stock breeder and dealer, furnishes an impressive illustration of the worth of industry, thrift and intelligent use of the opportunities afforded by this prolific and rapidly improving country and what they can accomplish in the way of making fortune and good repute for a laborious man and worthy, public spirited citizen. He lived on rented land for some years after he began farming, and although he finally inherited a farm of considerable extent, it was in a state of primeval wildness when he took charge of it, and he was obliged to do almost as much as any pioneer to reduce his holding to systematic productiveness.