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

His marriage with Miss Mary J. Allison occurred in 1856 and by this marriage became the father of six children, all of whom are living. They are Louisa, George W., Lina, Maggie, W. J. and Sarah. The mother is still living and makes her home in Clarence, Shelby county. Although advanced in years, she bears the burden of age well, being \dgorous and enei'getic, and meeting the daily duties of life now with the same spirit of devotion and determination that characterized her in the earlier period of her residence in this state, when her experiences were largely those of a pioneer.

Her son, W. J. Kesner, who is the immediate subject of this brief memoir, began his education in the district schools of Lewis county and completed it in those of Monroe county, to which he removed with his parents in 1882. After leaving school he had the usual experience of country boys in Missouri at that time, working on his father's farm and assisting the family, learning in practical labor the art of farming and acquiring a knowledge of human nature by mingling freely in the social life of the neighborhood, thus gaining all the while additional strength and equipment for the battle of life in whatever phase it might present itself.

In 1890 he moved to Macon county and entered the contest for himself as a farmer and raiser of stock. Two years later he came to Shelby county and took up his residence in Clarence, and in the vicinity of that town he has ever since been actively and prosperously engaged in farming and raising stock. He now owns and cultivates eighty acres of land and has his farm brought to a high state of development in its productive capacity and well improved with good buildings and all the other appurtenances of a comfortable country home of the present day requirements.

On February 12, 1891, Mr. Kesner was united in marriage with Miss Lily B. Craig, of Monroe county, in this state. They have one child, their daughter Nora Belle. In politics the father is a Eepublican, in fraternal life he is an Odd Fellow and a Modern Woodman, and in religious affiliation a member of Missionary Baptist church.

Reuben Lee Taylor

Reuben Lee Taylor, one of the prosperous, progressive and successful farmers of Jefferson township, in this county, has passed the whole of his life to this time (1910) in the county, and has been, for many years, one of the leading forces in its progress and development. He has helped to expand and augment its industrial and commercial power, the moral, social and educational agencies at work among its people have had the benefit of his services in counsel and active support and its advancement in the way of public improvements has always been aided by him to the full extent of his ability and influence.

Mr. Taylor is a native of Clay townshii?, Shelby county, where he was born in 1863. His parents, F. P. and Mary H. (Henniger) Taylor, have registered themselves among the most sterling and useful citizens of the county and won the regard and good will of the people by their acceptable lives and faithful attention to every duty in private and general life. The father, who was a son of Major Taylor, of Kentucla-, was born in that state, but was brought by his parents to Missouri before he was a year old. He was reared in Shelby county and educated in the primitive schools of his day. After reaching years of maturity he began farming, and this pursuit he adhered to until his death in 1902.

Being a tirm believer in the doctrine of state rights, when the Civil war began he enlisted in the Confederate army, and during the whole of our sanguinary sectional strife was in the field in defense of his convictions. He was through life an adherent of the Democratic party in politics and one of its most active and zealous supporters. He lived acceptably long years among this people, winning their favor by his valor in war and his industry, frugality and deep and serviceable interest in the general welfare of his community in peace.

The niotber, who is a daughter of "William and Susan (Kimball) Henniger, is still living at the age of seventy-eight years. Her marriage with Mr. Taylor took place in 1849, and they became the parents of nine chiklren, eight of whom are living: Nathan R. ; Susan E., the wife of H. C. Cross ; William M. ; Virginia, the wife of W. E. Warren, of Great Falls, Montana ; Francis H., whose home is in Montana ; Reuben L., the subject of this memoir; Milton H., another resident of the state of Montana ; and

Reuben Lee Taylor attended the district schools of Shelby countj' and also a school of higher grade in Clarence. He selected the vocation of farmer and raising stock early in life as his work for a livelihood, and as soon as he completed his scholastic training according to the opportunities available to him entered upon it with energy and a determination to make a success of it. He now owns and cultivates 300 acres of first rate land and carries on a flourishing business in raising stock in counection with his farming operations, and in both he has realized the determination of his youth, being at this time one of the most successful and progressive farmers in the township in which he lives.

In the public affairs of his township and county he has at all times taken an active and serviceable interest, giving his energetic and effective support to all undertakings for the improvement of the region of his home and stimulating others to exertion by the force of his example. He has been a member of the school board during the last ten years and for the greater part of the period its president. His religious connection is with the Southern Methodist church, and in the congregation to which he belongs he is one of the most active and zealous workers. He served as superintendent of its Sunday school for fourteen years, and in many other ways has been potential in promoting its welfare and extending its usefulness. In political adherence he has always been an ardent Democrat, with an earnest interest in the sue-

In 1885 Mr. Taylor was united in marriage with Miss Hollie Evans, a daughter of William and Susan (Byars) Evans, and a native of Clarence in this county. She and her husband have had seven children, five of whom are living, William E., Perry P., Paul E., Reede L. and Frank, all of whom are as well thought of in the community as their parents.

Isaac Noah Baker

"Contentment, like the speedwell, grows along the common, beaten jjath." So sang a celebrated English poet longyears ago, and so has life been found by Isaac N. Baker, one of the prosperous, enterprising and progressive farmers of Jefferson township, in this county. He has not sought the world's acclaim in official station of high or low degree. He has followed the beaten path of his chosen vocation as a farmer and stock man, and in its congenial duties and good returns for his labor he has found contentment, comfort and substantial progress, along with the opportunity to do much for the advancement of the township and county of his home and the general welfare of the people living in them, for he has been true to their every interest.

Mr. Baker is a native of Randolph county, Missouri, born on October 21, 1844. His father, whose name also was Isaac, was a native of Kentucky and came to Missouri at an early day, being one of the first three settlers in what is now Randolph county. His early home in this state was among the Indians, and as he always treated them honestly and fairly, they were always friendly in their dealings with him and held him in high esteem. The mother, whose maiden name was Jane McCully, was a native of Tennessee. They were the parents of twelve children, all of whom grew to maturity. Five of them are living : Charles Thomas, who has his home at Albany, Texas; Nancy, the widow of William Tedford, who resides in California ; Fanny, the wife of James Davis, of Moberly, Missouri ; Sarah, the wife of Jefferson Snodgrass, of Oklahoma ; and Isaac Noah, the subject of this writing. The mother died in 1871 and the father in 1896. They were highly respected and looked upon as among the most worthy and estimable citizens of the community in which they lived.

Their son Isaac Noah obtained his education in the district schools of his native county, and after completing it worked on the home farm with his father and assisted the family for a number of years. He then set up for himself on a farm and engaged in general farming and raising live stock in Randolph county for a time. In 1877 he moved to Shelby county and took up his residence in Jefferson township. He has an attractive and valuable farm and gives it close attention, intelligent supervision and skillful cultivation. It is well imjjroved with good buildings and fully equipped with everything needed for its work according to the most aiijiroved modern methods in agriculture. The stock industry conducted on it is also well managed and as extensive as tlie circumstances and good business sense will permit, and both are profitable to their owner.

Mr. Baker was married in 1875 to Miss Sarah E. Bishop, a native of the townshiiJ in which she now lives and a daughter of James Bishop, an esteemed resident of that township. Six of the nine children born of the nnion are living. They are : Nettie, Earl, Mabel, Eoy, Elsie and Lulu May. The father is a firm and faithful member of the Democratic party in politics and always a zealous and effective worker for its success. He served acceptably and with credit four years as a member of the school board, giving his official duties careful, judicious and intelligent attention, and making the schools feel the impulse of the vigor of his management and his cordial interest in their welfare and advancement. In religious faith and allegiance he is a Methodist. No residents of the township are more favorably known or more highly esteemed than he and his wife, and they are well worthy of the general regard and good will bestowed upon them in all parts of the county where they are known.

John Henry Maupin

School teacher, soldier and merchant, John Henry Maupin, of Maud, Jefferson township, in this coimty, has shown his adaptability to circumstances and requirements, and the able and faithful manner in which he has performed his duties in every occupation demonstrates that he is not only a man of adaptability, but one of ability, too, and well qualified for usefulness in any employment which he consents to take or any line of endeavor in which he chooses to engage. He has made a good record in every field of action in which he has labored, and his demonstrated progressiveness as a citizen and worth as a man have won for him the high regard of the people of the whole township and other parts of the county in which he is known.

Mr. Maupin was born on July 31, 1836, in Augusta county, Virginia. His father, James Dabney Maupin, and his grandfather, Daniel Maupin, were born and reared in Albemarle county, Virginia. The father came to Missouri in 1851, bringing his family with him and locating in Monroe county, where he was successfully and profitably engaged in farming until his death in 1889. His wife, whose maiden name was Dorinda V. Kennerly, was also born and reared in Virginia. She was a dai;ghter of Reuben and Tabitha (Wyatt) Kennerly, the former a native of South Carolina and the latter of Virginia. The children bom in the Maupin household of this union were nine in number, and all grew to maturity. Six of them are living: Harriet K., the wife of P. M. Hanger, of Shelbina ; Mary C, the wife of L. D. Kennerly; John Henry, the subject of this memoir; Tabitha, the wife of Nathaniel Threlkeld, of Shelbina; and Benjamin F. and Lee K. Their mother died in 1878. The father was a life-long Democrat of the most reliable kind, and was always active in the service of his party, but he never aspired to office or desired any of the preferments of i^ublic life or the honors or emoluments of official station.

John Henry Maupin obtained his education in part in the country schools of Virginia and this state, and completed it at the college in Paris, Missouri. After completing the course of instruction at that institution he taught school for about twentj^-five years, his service in this caiiacity being continuous except during the years of the Civil war and two years afterward. In June, 1861, he enlisted in the Confederate army. Company F, Missouri Infantry, and was soon afterward daring death on the battlefield. He took part in the engagements at Boonville, Pea Ridge, Newark, Kirksville and numerous others, but, while some of the fields on which he fought were very sanguinary, he escaped unhai'med. He rose to the rank of lieutenant of his company and made a creditable record for gallantry on the field and fidelity to duty in every phase of the service.

At the close of the war he returned home and a little while later went West, where he engaged in freighting for about two years. He then came back to his Monroe county, Missouri, home and again engaged in teaching school. In 1883 he came to Shelby county and took up his residence at Maud, in Jefferson township, where he has ever since lived. Here he opened a drug store, which has occupied him from that time imtil the present. He has built up a fine trade, won the confidence of the people in his business and made his store one of the established and most appreciated institutions in the mercantile life of the township.

Mr. Maupin was married in 1887 to Miss Betty Harris, a daughter of Thomas H. and Betsy (Maupin) Harris, natives of Albemarle county, Virginia, but long esteemed residents of this county at the time of the marriage. The one child born of the union is now deceased.

In his political faith and allegiance Mr. Maupin is a pronounced Democrat and has at all times been very energetic and effective in the service of his party. He served as a justice of the peace for more than six years and as a member of the school board about the same lengih of time, rendering service satisfactory to the people in each capacity, winning a good name for himself as a public official and contributing as such essentially to the welfare and advancement of the township. In fraternal life he is connected with the Masonic order. In all the relations of life Mr. Maupin has lived acceptably and uprightly. He has been very successful in business and always taken an earnest and helj^ful interest in all that concerns the good of the region in which he lives, by whose people he is held in the highest esteem.

Francis Marion Dale

Although not a native of Shelby county, Francis Marion Dale, one of the substantial and progressive farmers of Jefferson township, has been a resident of it for a period of almost thirty years, and is therefore well known to its people and also knows them well. He has been an active and effective worker for the improvement and progress of the township in which he lives, and given close and energetic attention to the welfare of the whole county in many ways. By entei'ing into the spirit of their enterprise and aspirations and taking his place and doing his full share of the work of promoting their interests he has won the confidence, esteem and lasting good will of the people and become truly

Mr. Dale was born on January 16, 1849, in Randolph county, Missouri, and is a grandson of Philip and son of Jacob Dale. The latter was also a native of Missouri and one of its prosperous and progressive farmers. He was an active, working Democrat during the whole of his mature life, zealous in the service of his party and also in reference to every form of public improvement of the locality in which he had his home. The mother was Miss Minerva Chitwood before her marriage to Mr. Dale, a daughter of Chedwick Chitwood, who was born and reared in Virginia and came to this state in early life. Mr. and Mrs. Dale had seven children, six of whom are living: Francis M., John William, George A., Mary Catherine, the wife of Samuel Bland, of Randolph county, Missouri; Sarah N., the wife of William Faught; and Lucy Margaret, the wife of Frank Powers, of La Plata, Missouri. The mother of these children died in 1863, and the fatjier afterward married Miss Nancy Hines. Six children were born of this union, all of whom are living. They are: Thomas B., Lewis F., James M., Elizabeth, Barbara and Alice. The father died in 1875.

Francis Marion Dale was reared on his father's farm in Randolph county and obtained his education in the district schools of tliat county, but his attendance at them was irregular and only for a few years. After leaving school he worked on farms in the neighborhood of his home as a hired hand for a time. He then engaged in o])erating a saw mill for two years. At the end of that time he turned his attention to farming for himself in Randolph county, remaining there and following that occupation eight years. In 1882 he moved to Shelby county and located on the farm in Jefferson township on which he now lives. He has been actively, successfully and progressively engaged in farming ever since, and in connection with his farming operations has carried on an extensive and profitable general live stock industry. His fai'm comprises 120 acres of superior land and he has it all under cultivation, well improved and brought to a high state of productiveness.

Mr. Dale was married in December, 1871, to Miss Maria J. Hmnphrey, a daughter of J. J. and Lavinia J. Humphrey, who came to this state from North Carolina. The children born in the Dale household numbered eight, and six of them are living: Homer C, Oliver C, Charles D., Beulah F., the wife of William J. Stewart, of Maud, in this county ; Lora and Hugh J. In politics the father is a Democrat, and in religious connection a member of the Christian church. To both party and church he is true and faithful, working for the welfare of each to the limit of his circumstances and rendering both excellent service. He served as a member of the school board more than ten years. He has been successful in his business, upright in his living, energetic and square in his citizenship and true and zealous in every other relation in life, and is imiversally esteemed as a man.

Samuel Gorby

tions of this venerable man are mainly retrospective. But the retrospect must be pleasing, as he has lived worthily and usefully, and has contributed essentially and considerably to the betterment of the people among whom his years of active industry were passed, and is now giving an excellent example of true and upright manhopd and elevated citizenship to the men younger than he is who know him, all of whom hold him in the highest esteem for what he is, what he has been and what he has done.

Mr. Gorby is a native of Stark county, Oliio, born on May 4, 1829. His father, Jonathan Gorby, was Itorn in the state of Delaware. He was a farmer all his life from youth, following this occupation in the state of his nativity and that of his adoption. In early life he moved to Ohio, when that now great commonwealth was a part of the Northwest Territory, and was still lai'gely under the dominion of its savage tenants, who had held it in thrall for many generations, with much of its soil still virgin to the plow and the greater part of its vegetation only the wild growth of unpruned Nature. He created a good farm in the wilderness and on it reared to maturity all of his nine children. His wife, whose maiden name was Anne Davis, was a native of Virginia. Of their otf spring their son Samuel is the only one now living. The mother died in 18.3.3 and the father in 1841.

Samuel Gorby attended the primitive country schools in the vicinity of his home and later received instruction from a private tutor. His education was far in advance of that of his youthful companions, and after its comi^letion he taught school in his native state for a number of years. In 1854 he followed the tide of migration to the farther AVest and came to Missouri. Locating in the city of Hannibal, he resumed his vocation as a school teacher and followed it there for about three years. In 1857 he moved to Shelby county and in Jefferson township he continued his ministrations to the welfare of his fellow men as a teacher, doing something in this line also in Monroe county. In all he was engaged in teaching for a period of forty years. After giving up his work as a teacher he devoted his energies for a long time to dealing in live stock. But for a number of years he has not been engaged in any active work. The rest he is enjoying has been well earned, and it is a source of great gratification to his countless friends and admirers that he has good health and continued vigor to enjoy the ease which is now his portion. His long day of toil was full of adventure and excitement. It laid him under many privations and exactions. It brought him during a great part of it only the crude and homely comforts of the frontier. But his evening is mild and benignant, and all the more agreeable and enjoyable because of the strenuous life he was called upon to endure during its period of labor - the heat and biarden of the day.

Mr. Gorby was married in 1854 to Miss Eliza Firestine, also a native of Ohio. They had seven children, all of whom grew to maturity, but only two are now living. They are Ethel, the wife of John Swearingen, of California, and John, who lives in this county. Their mother died in 1884, and in 1888 the father mar- ried a second wife, his choice on this occasion being Mrs. Mary (McCloskey) Benson, who was born in Pennsylvania. Mr. Gorbj' has been a lifelong Democrat in political relations and always an ardent and conscientious worker for the success of his party. He served as a member of the school board many years and rendered other valuable service to the public in many lines of useful effort.

Oliver Commodoee Perry

Clay townshi]:) in this county numbers among its people some of the most enlightened and progressive farmers in the county - men who are up to the period in every feature of their business and make themselves examples to others by the manner in which they conduct it, showing hitherto unexpected possibilities in this part of the state in the way of agriculture and developing them to their limits, greatly to their own advantage and the benefit of the county and all its inhabitants.

In this number is to be classed Oliver Commodore Perry, who lives in Clarence. He has a model farm south of Clarence and shows himself to be a model fanner. He is a native of Shelby county, born in Salt River township on December 7, 1846, and a son of Richard and Mary (Selsor) Perry, natives of Virginia. The father came to Missouri in 1833 and located in Shelby county, where he was actively and successfully engaged in farming for a number of years. He was a very religious man and took great interest in church work. He and his wife were the parents of ten children, five of whom are living: Martha, the wife of the late Nathan Byars, of Taylor township, this county ; Joseph S., whose home is in Knox coimty; Oliver C, a resident of Clarence ; Delilah, the wife of the late John Colvert, of Oklahoma City; and Katharine, the wife of Wesley Sharpe, of California. Their mother died in 1866 and their father in 1889.

Oliver C. Perry obtained a limited education in the primitive country schools of his boyhood and youth, and after completing their course of study went to Montana, where he was engaged in gold mining for two years. At the end of that period he returned to Shelby county content to seek his advancement in life in the peaceful pursuit of tilling the soil and leave to others the strenuous life of the mining camp, and all other forms of adventurous and exciting existence. He turned his whole attention to farming in Jefferson township. But of late years lias turned it over to his son Floyd. He also deals in improved real estate and owns considerable property in Clarence. He pushes his business with every attention to its most exacting requirements, keeping himself well posted as to values and the trend of the mai-ket. In both lines of endeavor he has been very successful.

Mr. Perry has also taken an eai-nest and helpful interest in the welfare of his township and county. He is a member of the Democratic party in his political affiliation and an effective and determined worker for the success of the organization. He rendered the community excellent service as a member of the school board for more than ten years, and in all other ways has done his duty faithfully as an upright and patriotic citizen. In

On December 19, 1867, Mr. Perry was united in marriage with Miss Ellen Randol, a native of Shelby county, Missouri. They have had seven children, six of whom are living : John H., a resident of Siloam Springs, Arkansas; Emma, the wife of Dr. Gaines, of Las Animas, Colorado ; Ora, the wife of Edward Phillips, of Hannibal; Floyd, whose home is in Jefferson township; Leo, the wife of N. P. Turner, of Eaton, New Mexico ; and Harry, who is living at Clarence. The parents are accounted as among the worthiest and most estimable citizens of Clarence, and the other members of the family, in their several locations and stations in life are daily exemplars of the lessons and training inculcated around the family fireside wliile they remained under the parental rooftree and the control of their parents.

James Richard Baker

For more than half a century this progressive farmer and representative citizen of Jeft'erson township has lived in Shelby county, actively engaged in one of its leading industries, heljnng to promote its welfare and contributing essentially to the consequence and benefit of its people. He is a native of this state, born in Monroe county on September 25, 1842, and Ijecame a resident of Shelby county in 1857, coming to the county with his father at the age of fifteen years.

Kentucky, and came to Missouri soon after they reached their maturity. The father located in Monroe county and farmed there until 1857, when he moved to Shelby county. Here he continued his farming operations until his death, in August, 1866. His widow survived him thirty years, dying on June 18, 1896. They were the parents of ten children, five of whom are living: Sarah Elizabeth (Newton), James Richard, Samuel E., Elijah B., and Carter A. At the beginning of the Civil war the father enlisted in a company of Missouri infantrj'. But he never got far into the active military operations of the great contest, participating only in a few skirmishes.

His son, James Richard Baker, grew to manhood on his father's farm in Monroe and Shelby counties and obtained his education in the district schools. At the beginning of the war, when he was but nineteen years old, he enlisted in Company D, Sharpshooters, and for a time saw very active and strenuous service. He took part in the battles of Lexington, Kirksville, Pleasant Hill and a number of others. But early in his military career he was captured by the other army, and from then until the close of the war languished in a military prison. At the close of the memorable conflict he was released from ]irison and discharged from the service at Shreveport, Louisiana. He then returned to his Missouri home and resumed his farming operations, beginning a career for himself in this line of endeavor, which he is still expanding. He now owns 189 acres of good land, nearly all of which is under cultivation and liiglily productive. The farm is also well improved with good buildings and fully provided with all that is necessary for conducting the work on it according to the most approved modern methods in advanced agriculture. In addition he carries on an extensive and flourishing live stock industry, and in both lines of enterprise he has prospered.

Mr. Baker has been one of the leading men in his township in jDromoting public improvements and contributing to the general welfare of the locality. He served on the school board more than twenty years, and in numerous other ways has helped to build up and develop the township and county in all their moral, mental and material interests. He is a pronounced Democrat in his political allegiance and always zealous in the service of his party. For a continuous period of eight years he was town constable, and his services to the community in this office were very acceptable to the people and highly approved. In religious connection he is allied with the Baptist church.

In 1885 Mr. Baker was united in marriage with Miss Ellen I. Johnston, a daughter of George and Theresa Johnston, who came to Missouri from Virginia. Mrs. Baker is, however, a native of Shelby county. She and her husband are the parents of two children, their sons, George C. and Everett E. All the members of the family stand well where they live and enjoy in a marked degree the regard and good will of the people around them in all other places where thev are known.

James C. Oek

This prosperous and progressive farmer of Jefferson township, in this county, has been tried by severe discipline in disaster and has never flinched or shown want of high manly spirit. The stern arbitrament of the sword in civil war ruled against him, and laid upon him unusual hardships, but he endured his fate courageously and showed, even in his darkest and most oppressive experiences, the qualities of persistency and determination of purpose which have made him successful in his subsequent operation and won him his high standing in the regard of his fellow men wherever he is known.

Mr. Orr was born in Randolph county, Missouri, in December, 1843. His parents, John B. and Eliza Anne (Hutton) Orr, were born and reared in Virginia, and there also they were married. Soon after their marriage they moved to ]Missouri, arriving in 1843, and took up their residence amid the wild natural luxuriance of Randolph countj', which was largely unpeopled and still in a state of semi-wilderness at the time. Here they won a farm from the waste, which they develoi)ed and improved into a comfortable country home, and on which they reared to maturity four of their six children, all of whom are still living. They are: Elizabeth, the wife of Davis Mitchell; James C, the subject of this brief review ; William M., who resides in Madison, Missouri ; and John N., whose home is in ^lacon, ^Missouri. The mother died in 1854 and the father in 1884 at the age of sixty-nine years. They enjoyed in a marked degree the respect and good will of all who knew them and were numbered among the most worthy and estimable citizens of the locality in which they lived and faithfully labored for themselves and the common weal.

Their son, James C. Orr, obtained a limited education in the coiintry schools, which were primitive and of narrow range in his day, attending those of Monroe county. In 1862 he enlisted in the Confederate army, but did not see much active service. In one of the earliest engagements in which he took part he was captured and thereafter he languished in a Federal prison for about eight months. At the end of that time he took the oath of allegiance to the United States government and was released.

After his release from prison he returned to his Missouri home and at once began farming, the occupation in which he has been actively and successfully engaged ever since. In the spring of 1874 he moved to Shelby county and located in Jefferson township, where he now resides. He has a fine farm of 100 acres, which is well improved, skillfully cultivated and has l)eeu brought to a high state of productiveness. Every detail of its oiDerations passes under his strict personal supervision, and all departments of the work are made to pay triltute to his intelligence and care.

In the affairs of the township and county Mr. Orr has always taken a lively and helpful interest, aiding every good project for the development and improvement of the region, and doing his part toward liuilding up and strengthening all its institutions. He is a Proliibitionist in politics, but has not, for many years, taken a very active interest in public affairs. He served as a member of the school board upward of ten years and as a road overseer for two. In religious faith he is allied with the Holiness sect.

Mr. Orr was married in April, 1870, to Miss Frances H. Hutchinson, a native of Monroe county, Missouri. They have had seven children, six of whom are living: Emma, the wife of N. B. Kiei-gan, of St. Louis; George W., Owen, E. S., C. H. and H. W. In all the relations of life the father has shown himself worthy of esteem and he is held in liigh regard by all classes in the township and throughout the county.

William H. Bostwick

Successful in all his business undertakings, faithful to every duty of good citizenship, taking an earnest and helpful interest in everything that will promote the general welfare of his township and county and minister to the comfort, convenience and general well being of their people, William H. Bostwiclc, one of the leading farmers and stock men of Jefferson township in this county, is well worthy of the high rank he holds as a truly representative man in the county and the universal esteem bestowed upon him by all classes of the peo]ile here and elsewhere, wherever he is known.

Mr. Bostwick was born in Rushville, Indiana, in October, 1861. He is a son of Thomas and Martha (Jerrel) Bostwick, the former a native of Maryland and the latter of Delaware. They left the region of their birth in early life and found a new home in what were then the wilds of Indiana, or at least a portion of that great state which was far behind its present condition of development and advancement. In 1868 the family moved to Missouri and located in Shelbyville, this county, where the father was energetically and successfully engaged in farming to the end of his life, which came in October, 1899. His wife died on August 8, 1890. They were the parents of five children, two of whom are living, "William H. and his brother. Rev. E. E. Bostwick, of Kirksville, Missouri.

William H. Bostwick obtained his education in the schools of Shelbyville, assisting in the work on his father's farm while attending them. He made early choice of his occupation for life, selecting the line of effort with which he was familiar and to which he was trained. As soon as he left school he began the career as a farmer and stock man which he is still extending with such gratifying success and prosperity. He has steadfastly adhered to it during all the succeeding years, and has found his faith in it as a means to advancement fully justified. His present farm comprises 678 acres of excellent land, and his live stock industry is in proportion to it. Both are managed with good judgment, extensive knowledge of the requirements and possibilities in the case, and both bring in handsome returns for the labor and care bestowed upon them. The farm is one of the most highly improved and best developed in the township, and is considered one of the most valuable as well as one of the most attractive.

in all matters of public improvement for the region in which he lives, giving his active and intelligent support to every worthy project for its advancement, and helping in every way he could to strengthen and intensify the mental and moral agencies at work among its people. He has been a member of the school board during the last eight years, and the schools have felt to their advantage the impulse to elevation and progress given by his quickening hand. In religious afiSliation he is connected with the Baptist church, and is a leader in the congregation to which he belongs, serving as one of its deacons and taking a very important part in all its worthy undertakings. In politics he is allied with the Republican party, in which, also, he takes a zealous interest and to which he renders effective and appreciated service.

On February 25, 1886, he was married to Miss Nanny Y. Eaton, a daughter of John and Nancy Eaton, the former born in Hannibal, Missouri, in 1832, of Kentucky parentage, and the latter a daughter of old Virginia families. Mrs. Bostwick, however, was born and reared in Shelby county. She and her husband are the parents of nine children, all of whom are living. They are: Nanny R., Mary E., John E., Elsie, A. Audrey, Willye, Lloyd K., Louveta G. and Lotus V. All the members of the family are held in high regard and well deserve the hold they have on the good will of the people.

Lanius Landron Wheeler

Ms own life to this time (1910) lias been passed amid the pursuits of peaceful industry, he has nevertheless shown by his successful management of his affairs and his quick and complete use of every opportvmity offered for his advantage, as well as in his mastery of adverse circumstances, that he has inherited the traits of his ancestors and is well worthy of the name he bears. He was born at Lentner, in this county, in 1860, and has passed the greater part of his subsequent life in the county.

The paternal grandfather, Mason Wlieeler, was born and reared in Mason county, Kentucky, and received his name from that county. He came to Missouri when he was twenty-one years of age and located in Marion county, where he lived and farmed for a number of years. He then moved to Monroe county, and there he followed farming until early in the forties, when he became a resident of Shelby couuty, locating on a farm near Bacon Chapel. There he died at a ripe old age, respected and revered by all who knew him. In religious connection he was a Methodist, holding his membership in the congregation of Bacon Chapel church. He was a safe leader in church and neighborhood affairs and one of the most forcible and eloquent men in this part of the state in prayer. He was also effective as an exhorter.

His son, Jolm Anderson Wheeler, the father of Lanius L., was born in Marion county, Missouri, in 1835, and, like his father, w^as reared on a farm and followed farming all his life. He was married in 1852 to Miss Fannie Robb, a native of Tennessee. They had eight children, seven of whom are living: Lanius L., Thomas S., Hugh B., John Wesley, Arthur E., Ethel and Olive Leone. In 1862 the father joined the Confederate army and was with Coloner Porter in his famous raid. At the battle of Kirksville a musket ball passed through the crown of his hat and killed his brotherin-law, Thomas Robb, who was standing by his side. After the Porter raid, Mr. Wheeler surrendered, with others of the command, to Colonel Benjamin at Shelliyville, who demanded of him his horse, his gun and forty dollars in money. On receiving these. Colonel Benjamin released him on parole, but required that he report to Provost Marshal Dick Strahn, at Palmyra, Missouri, every thirty days.

After the war Mr. Wheeler returned to Monroe county, Missouri, and took up his residence near Duncan's Bridge, where he lived for a number of years. He then moved back to Shelby county and located on a farm near Bacon's Chapel, where he passed the remainder of his life, dying in March, 1893. His widow is still living and has her home in Kansas City, Missouri. He achieved a considerable degree of success in life, althougti his career was cut short at the early age of fifty-eight, rising to prominence and influence in his community and being well and favorably known throughout the northeastern part of the state.

His son, Lanius L. Wheeler, obtained his education in the district schools and worked on his father's farm while attending tliem. He became a farmer on his own account after he left school, and has persevered in that occupation dur- ing the greater part of his subsequent life. But for a number of years he was engaged in mining in the farther "West, and still has holdings of value in gold mines at Telluride, Central City and Gunnison, Colorado. His present farm in Clay township, this county, comprises 260 acres of superior land, and in connection with its cultivation he carries on an extensive and thriving live stock industry. Both lines of his operations are profitable because of the intelligence, skill and vigor with which he manages them, and his success has made him one of the leaders in these industries in Shelby county.

Mr. Wheeler was married in 1883 to Miss Cora Allen Hirrlinger, a daughter of William and Magdalena (Doerrer) Hirrlinger, who were born in Darmstadt, Germany, but Mrs. Wheeler is a native of Shelbyville. She and her husband became the parents of seven children, five of whom are living: Nora, the wife of H. A. Jordan, whose home is in Clarence, this county ; EUza A., the wife of Peter Neuschafer ; and V i n c i 1 O 'Bryan, Virgil L. and John Leland. In politics the father is a pronounced and ardently interested Democrat, always true to his party and at all times ready to render it any service in his power. He has served on the school board for moi-e than six years, and in many other avenues of beneficial effort has helped to build up the township and county of his residence and promote the welfare of their people. Fraternally he is connected with tlie ]\lo(lern Woodmen of America, and in religious affiliation he and his wife are allied with the Methodist Episcopal church. His half century of life has been judiciously employed in furthering his own interests and at the same time in essential contributions to the welfare of others. It has been eminently useful and upright, and given him an opportunity to exemplify in all relations the attributes of elevated and serviceable American citizenship.

Justus F. Echteenaoht

For a full quarter of a century this progressive and enterprising farmer and stock man has been a resident of Missouri, and has lived and labored in the township and county of his present residence. He is therefore well known to the people among whom his daily life of usefulness and sterling citizenship has l)een passed, and the universal esteem they give him is based on well determined grounds of merit, and is neither speculative nor sentimental. He has demonstrated the quality of his manhood and all who know him have found it worthy of their confidence and regard.

Mr. Ecliternacht is a native of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, one of the rirhest and most prosperous counties in tb ' United States, where he was born o" October 10, 1861, a grandson of Joliu Ecliternacht, who came to thi^-. countr> from England, where he was born au^ grew to manhood. On his arrival in tli United States he located in Laucastf » county, Pennsylvania, and there iris so 3 Williiuii, the father of Justus F., wa born, reared and. at the end of a long life of usefulness, buried in the regi i hallowed by his labor and devotion to the welfare of its people. He was a farmer and gave all his energy to the pursuit of his chosen vocation except what was required for the service of his community. His wife, whose maiden name was Caroline Dean, was born at Lititz in the same county. They had eight children, seven of whom are living: Albert, Sophy, Justus F., Mary, Emma, Harry and George. The father died at Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 1900. The mother is still living and has her home at Adamstown, in her native county.

Their son, Justus F., grew to manhood in the county of his nativity and was educated in the district schools of Adamstown there. After leaving school he worked on a farm in the neighborhood of his home for a number of years, getting a start in life by slow accretions gathered by industry and carefully husbanded in frugal living. In 1885 he came to Missouri and located on a farm in Clay township, Shelby county, on which he is still living, and has bestowed his labor from that time to tb^ present (1910). The farm comprises eighty acres and is devoted to general farming and stock-raising. It is well improved, highlj' productive and skillfully ailtivated. By close attention to every detail of it- work and the application of " broad intelligence to its operation, Mr. '^' Echternacht has made it one of the '^' model farms of t^^e township in which ^ it is located and greatly enhanced its '' value since he became its owner and laid upon it the persuasive hand of his pro- ' gressive husbandry, his good judgment ' in its management and his energj^ in tilling it.

But he has not allowed its requirements to wholl}' absorb him or lessen his interest in the welfare of the locality. To every worthy project desig-ned to promote the development and improvement of his township and county he has given ready, judicious and effective aid, making himself one of the most useful citizens of the region, and winning the commendation of all its people by his energy and breadth of view in its behalf. He is an active, working Democrat in political faith and allegiance, but he has never sougbt or desired a political office of any kind, either by election or appointment. His fraternal affiliation is with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and his religious connection with the Christian church. He has always taken a great and helpful interest in church work, and for years has been one of the trustees of the congTegation to which he belongs. On December 17, 1886, he was united in marriage with Miss Belle Prange, a native of Clay township, this county, and a daughter of John and Kate (Heiman) Prange, who were born and reared in Germany. Six children have been born of the union, all of whom are living. They are : Voneda, the wife of W. Lee, of Atlanta, Missouri, and John, Katie and Carrie (twins), Albert and George.

Jacob Gable

Born and reared in Germany, and trained to usefulness in the stx'enuous and frugal industrial life of that great and progressive empire, Jacob Gable, one of the prosperous and progressive farmers of Clay township, in this county, brought to the United States inherited qualities of industry and thrift and a knowledge of agricultural pursuits that were bound to make him successful in any farming region, and particularly so in one so bountiful in returns for well applied labor as the region in which he found a new home.

His life began in the Fatherland on February 9, 1861, and he obtained his education in the schools of his native locality, southern Germany. He is a son of Philip and Catherine (Keller) Gable, also natives of Germany. They had five children, only two of whom are living, Jacob and his older sister, Elizabeth. Jacob remained at home with his parents until he reached the age of twentytwo. Then, in 1883, he and they set out for the United States, buoyed up with high hopes of prosperity and advancement in the land of promise to which they looked with longing. But much of what they expected was to be denied them. The father died at sea during the voyage across the Atlantic, and the mother followed him to the other world within the same year.

His double bereavement left the son at the dawn of his manhood a lone exile in a foreign land, untried in the ways of the world and thrown wholly on his own resources. He took up his burden bravely and during the eai-ly years of his struggle for a foothold bore it with fortitude and constancy of purpose. Having taken up his residence in Clay township, this county, he went to work as a farm hand wlierever he could get employment, and as he was industrious and skillful he soon found his sei'vices in demand and had no difficulty in securing ijlaces. He saved his earnings, and after a few years of faithful labor for others, he bought a farm of 120 acres for himself, and since then he has been devoting all his energies to its development and improvement. He has been very successful in his operations, rising by steady progress to consequence in a worldly way, and to good standing and influence among the people of his township and county.

His farm is well improved, vigorously and skillfully cultivated and very productive. It yields good revenues in return for the labor and care he gives it, and has grown into considerable value as the result of his judicious management and the general progress of the township, which he has greatly helped to promote and foster. For he has been attentive to all the duties of citizenship and borne his full share of the labor and care incident to pushing forward the development and imjirovement of the locality in which he lives, giving to the interests and institutions of the land of his adoption the same loyal devotion he gave to those of the land of his nativity while he remained a resident of it.

On March 6, 1890, Mr. Gable was united in marriage to Miss Maggie Prange. They have four children : Alice, Anna, the wife of Louis Neuschafer, John and Ruth. The father is a devout and consistent member of the Christian church, taking an active and heljiful interest in all the worthy undertakings of the congrogatiou to which he belongs and aiding it all the while to larger and more comprehensive usefulness. He and his wife, and the other members of the family are regarded as sterling in all the relations of life, and enjoy in a marked degree the respect and good will of all classes of the people around them and of all others who know them. They live acceptably and are faithful in the performance of every duty in private life and neighborhood affairs.

Stephen A. Douglas White

In the life and family history of this successful, enterprising and progressive farmer and stock man, and also more truly a prominent and representative citizen of Clay township, Shelby county, Missouri, there are many features of unusual interest and significance. He is a grandson of Thomas and Jemima (Cooley) White, natives of Kentucky, who came to Missouri and located in Howard county in 1818, where his father, Mark White, was born in 1825. The latter was a farmer and money lender, and achieved great success in all departments of his business, being jjossessed of an estate worth more than $100,000 at the time of his death, which occurred on December 9, 1896.

Soon after attaining his majority he moved to Macon county, Missouri, where he became an extensive dealer in farm lands and other real estate, and was very successful in his operations. He was an uneducated man in the teachings of tlie schools, but he had strong common sense, excellent judgment and great shrewdness in selecting his opportunities and making the most of them. He was also very energetic and industrious, making every hour of his time tell to his advantage, both for his own benefit and that of the township and county in which he lived.

in 1845, and was with Miss Serelda Wright, a daughter of Summers and Naomi (Coffey) Wright, he became the father of nine children, six of whom grew to maturity and are living. They are: William C, a resident of Macon county; Mollie, the widow of the late John B. Eichardson; Melissa, the wife of J. A. Banta, whose home is at Macksville, Kansas; Stephen A. Douglas, the immediate subject of this memoir; Benjamin F., who resides in Kansas City, Missouri; and Amy, the wife of William Gates, of Macon county, in this state.

The mother of these children, who was brought from Kentucky an infant in the arms of her mother, who made the trip on horseback, died on September 9, 1879, at the age of fifty-one years, and in 1880 the father married a second time, choosing as his companion on this occasion Mrs. Hattie J. Dixon, a daughter of Peter Ryther and wife, natives of Ohio. Two children were born of the father's second marriage: Serelda, who is now the wife of Ralph Talbot, of Macon county, and Mark, who is also a resident of that county.

Stephen A. Douglas White attended schools in Macon City, St. James Academy and the State Normal School at Kirksville. When he left school he at once entered upon his life work as a farmer and live stock man, and to this he has steadfastly adhered to the present time (1910), although for about eight months in 1898 he was also engaged in mercantile life. But this was not agreeable to him, and at the end of the period mentioned he sold his intei'ests in it and again gave his whole attention to his farm and stock industry. In 1901 he moved to Shelby county, and here he has continued his extensive operations in farming and raising stock, his principal product in the latter line of business being high-bred mules. He is also a stockholder in the Clarence Oil, Gas and Mineral Company and a member of its board of directors, and as such has an important bearing on its transactions and is potential in promoting its success and prosperity.

In December, 1880, Mr. White was united in marriage with Miss Laura Powell, a daughter of Henry M. and Itelia (Mathis) Powell. Of the four children born of the union, thi'ee are living: Delia, the wife of Joseph Lowery, of Macon county; Alice, the wife of Harry AV. Orr, of Shelby county ; and Valley, the wife of Hood Shearon, of Narrows township, Macon county. Their mother died in Se]itember, 1889, and on February 17, 1892, the father married again, being united at this time with Miss Lillian Davis, a daughter of Durborn and Adelia ("Wallace) Davis, natives of New Hampsliire. Her grandparents on her mother's side were Reuben and Anna (Howard) Wallace, the fonner a native of New Hampshire and the latter of New York, the Wallace line in the family being of Scotch ancestry and belonging to the distinguished family of that name renowned in Scottish history, both for the great achievements of some of its members and the lamentable tragedies that followed them through the ingratitude of those whom they served so faithfully.

New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry. He became a resident of Clarence, in this county, in 1865, just after the close of the war, when the now prosjierous little citj' was but a hamlet on the unbroken prairie. Here he developed and improved a good farm, and aided greatly in building up the town and surrounding country and making them progressive and prosperous. He died on March 13, 1899.

Mr. and Mrs. (Davis) White have had three children, two of whom are living. They are their daughters, Ruth Blanche and Rose. In politics the father adheres firmly and faithfully to the Democratic part}% and is a very earnest and effective worker in its behalf. He has given the community more than ten years of excellent service on the school board, and his party vigor and inspiration as central Democratic committeemen for six years. In fraternal relations he is allied with the Masonic order, its adjunct, the Order of the Eastern Star, and the Knights of Pythias. No citizen of the county stands better in public esteem, and none is more worthy of high standing. His grandmother AVright was a remarkable woman, and lived to be within a few days of one hundred years of age.

Samuel H. Mears

Born and reared to the age of seventeen in Indiana county, Pennsylvania, and having acquired habits of industry and thrift in the strenuous and intense industrial life of that great commonwealth, Samuel H. Mears, of Clay township in this county, transferred to the almost virgin soil of Missouri the train- ing for usefulness as a farmer which his native state had given him, and has enlarged his efforts and quickened his pace in the practice of it in accordance with the advantages which the better land and more extensive opportunities of this region have afforded him for the use of his attainments.

His life began in 1851, and he is a grandson of James Mears, who was born in Ireland and came to the United States in his boyhood. He located in western Pennsylvania, and after leaving school engaged in farming there. His son, John S. Mears, the father of Samuel S., was a native of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, and after reaching his maturity moved across the line into Indiana county, where he followed farming for a livelihood until 1868. In that year he came to Missouri, bringing his family with him and taking up his residence in Macon county. His wife's maiden name was Martha Lucas, and she was a native of Indiana county, Pennsylvania, and a daughter of Patrick Ijucas, an esteemed resident and prosperous farmer of that county. She and her husband were the parents of eight children, six of whom are living: John L., whose residence is at Moberly, Missouri ; Mary J., the wife of J. C. Foster, also a resident of Moberly; Alexander S., who lives in Los Angeles, California ; Samuel H., the subject of this brief review ; William T., of Moberly, Missouri, and Francis M., of Macon county. The father died in February, 1875, and the mother in October, 1909, at the age of eighty-seven years.

of Macon county, Missouri. After completing their courses of instruction he taught school for a time, then moved to Shelby county and became a farmer. He has followed agricultural pursuits ever since, and with increasing success and prosperity. He became a resident of this county in 1873, and here he has passed the subsequent years of his life, busily and profitably engaged in his chosen vocation and rising to prominence and influence among the people of his township. His farm comprises eighty acres of first rate land and is well cultivated. He has it improved with commodious and comfortable buildings, and by his vigor and skill in the management of its operations has brought it to a high state of development and fruitfulness. In connection with his farming he carries on a thriving industry in raising and feeding live stock for the markets.

In political connection Mr. Mears is a pronounced Democrat and a zealoiis and effective worker for the success of his party. He served as district clerk twelve years and was a school director for upwards of twenty. In religious affiliation he and his wife are allied with the Primitive Baptist church, and he has long been an ardent and effective church worker, serving as deacon of the congregation to which he belongs during the last fifteen years, and in many other ways pi'omoting the usefulness and power of the organization, serving also as its clerk for twelve years. On December 3, 1873, he was united in marriage with Miss Lucinda Burk, a native of Illinois and daughter of James and Nancy (Sims) Burk. Six children were born of the union, four of whom died in infancy. The two living are Wellie J. and Homer E. The father has always taken a lively interest in all matters pertaining to the welfare of his community and is one of the representative men of the county.

Heney Schwada

Among the prosperous and up-to-date farmers of Clay township in this county, none is entitled to more consideration for enterprise, progressiveness and success wrung from adverse conditions than Henry Schwada, whose fine farm of 120 acres in section 17 shows up to all observers as a monument to his industry, skill and frugality, as a possession, and his vigor, intelligence and advanced ideas as a farmer. It is one of the attractive and valuable rural homes of the township and is altogether the result of his own unaided efforts, as he acquired it and has made it what it is by hard work and excellent management.

Mr. Schwada was born in Indiana in 1862 and brought by his parents to Missouri and the county and township in which he now lives when he was but two years old. He is a son of John and Clara (Neaman) Schwada, natives of Germany, who came to the United States in early life and located for a time in Indiana. In 186-1 they moved to Missouri, and found a new home in Clay township, Shelby county. Here they were for many years actively and profitably engaged in farming and raising live stock. They had nine children, eight of whom are living: Henry, Flora, Mary, John, Frank, Louisa, Leslie and William. The parents are still living and have their home in Clarence.

Their son Henry obtained his education in the district schools and worked on his father's farm while attending them. As soon as he grew to manhood he began fanning on his own account, and this line of industry has been his constant occujjation ever since. His pi'esent farm com^jrises 120 acres, as has been noted, and is highly developed and very pi'oductive. In connection with his farming operations Mr. Schwada carries on a flourishing live stock business, which is also active and profitable because he makes it so by his enterprise, intelligence concerning it and good management.

He was married on October 11, 1899, to Miss Rosa Griswold, a daughter of George W. and Ellen (Hayford) Griswold, and has two children, his sons, Nolan and Lowell. In politics he is a Democrat, but has never taken a very active part in public affairs. His religious allegiance is given cordially to the Evangelical church, and he and his wife are zealous advocates of its interests and effective workers for its advancement. It is not to be inferred that because Mr. Schwada is not an active pai'- tisan and takes but little interest in political affairs, he is indifferent to the welfare of his township and county. On the contrary, he has been energetic and ardent in the support of every worthy enterprise for their advancement, and has cheerfully and capably borne his full share of the burden incident to promoting their development and improvement, and multijilying conveniences and comforts for their people. No undertaking designed for their benefit has ever lacked his aid or bad to call twice to secure it. To every dutj^ of citizenship he has been true and faithful, and the people who have had the benefit of his services show that they apjireciate what he has done by the general esteem in which they hold him and the members of his family. He stands well wherever he is known, and that is almost all over the county, and is fully deserving of the regard and good will so freely accorded him. He has also been successful in his own behalf and is one of the substantial and well-to-do farmers and stock men of his township.

George W. Harvey

Although not a native of Missouri, George W. Harvey, of Clay township, has been a resident of the state and the county and township in which he now lives ever since he was five years old, a ]")eriod of forty-one years. From his youth he has been actively engaged in one of the leading pursuits of the people of his locality, and, while seeking his own advancement, has given due attention and valued help in promoting the development and improvement of bis community and the whole of the surrounding country, exemplifying in his daily life the best attributes of sterling and elevated American citizenship.

Mr. Harvey was born at Joliet, Illinois, on July 10, 1864. He is a son of Joseph and Naomi (Turner) Harvey, the former a native of Lowell, Massachusetts, where he was born on July 2, 1837, and the latter born and reared in Illinois, and a daughter of George and Rebecca Turner, natives of England.

They were married on December 20, 1858, and had six children, but George W. and his brothers, Edward and Prank, are the only ones living. Their mother died on October 28, 1881, and the father married a second wife in 1884, Miss Alcinda Thrasher, a native of Monroe county, Missouri. They also had six children. The father was educated in the district schools, and after leaving them began a successful career as a farmer, which he is still extending. In J line, 185.3, he moved to Illinois, where he worked at various occupations, but chiefly farming. He became a resident of Shelby county, Missouri, in August, 1869, and here be has been energetically engaged in farming and raising live stock ever since, with continued success and increasing jjrosperity. He is a Democrat in political faith and allegiance, and served as a justice of the peace eight years. His religious connection is with the Evangelical church.

Mr. Harvey's paternal grandparents were Samuel and Hannah (Fellows) Harvey, the former a native of England and the latter of the state of Vermont. The grandfather came to the United States a young man and located in Massachusetts. He was a machinist and worked at his trade all the mature years of his life, having learned it before attaining his majority. He was first married to a Miss Jones, a native of Massachusetts, and by that union became the father of three children. His second marriage, which was with Miss Hannah Fellows, resulted in one child, their son Joseph, the father of George W. Samuel Harvey's last wife died in 1864, and the end of his life came in 1869.

George AV. Harvey obtained his education in the district schools of Clay township, Shelby county, and as soon as he left school began farming, following the occupation he had acquired a knowledge of on his father's farm during his boyhood and youth. He began with practicallj' nothing and now has a fine farm of eighty-seven acres, well improved and highly productive. He also carries on a general industry in raising live stock for the markets, and this he makes profitable, as he does his farming operations, by the energy with which he conducts it and the intelligence and skill with which he manages it. He is one of the substantial and progressive farmers and stock men of liis township and is esteemed as one of its best and most useful citizens, as he takes an active interest and leading part in everything involving the enduring welfare and advancement of the township and county of his home, allowing nothing of value to languish for the want of his aid.

On April 16, 1885, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary Huett, a daughter of Adolphus K. and Sarah Anne (Ingersoll) Huett, natives of "Wisconsin.

Mr. and Mrs. Harvey have had sis children. Three of them died in infancy. The three living are: Grace; Agnes, the wife of Orval Dehner, and Voda May. In political relations the father is a pronounced Democrat and an ene-rgetic and effective worker for the welfare of his party. He has not sought or desired official station, but has served as a member of the school board four years for the benefit of the community. He is regarded as a man of strong character, considerable intelligence and strict integrity, and is generally looked upon as one of the leading and most representative men in Clay township. He well deserves the public confidence and esteem he enjoys, having earned it by his upright and serviceable life, and his interest in all that pertains to the substantial good of his township and county.

The interesting subject of this brief memoir, whose farm and live stock industry near Hager's Grove are among the most prosperous and progressive in Clay township, this county, is not a native of the United States, but has been a resident of this country and of Missouri from the time when he was two years old. He may therefore be considered a Missourian to all intents and purposes, for all his knowledge of the world has been acquired in this state, and all his activities from his boyhood have been expended in the work of building it up and expanding its commercial, industrial, political and intellectual power. And during our Civil war of unhappy memory he showed his devotion to the Union by shouldering his musket and meeting its opponents in battle array on many fields of carnage.

Mr. Glahn was born in Prussia, Germany, on February 6, 1841, and is a son of Christian and Mary Antoni (Wand) Glahn, also natives of Prussia. They brought their family to the United States in 1843 and came at once to Missouri, locating in Marion county. The father was a wagon maker and worked at his trade in that county, and also farmed, until 1866. In that year he moved to Shelby county and made his new home in Chiy township, where he followed farming and raising live stock exclusively, and there he passed the remainder of his life, dying in 1888. He was very successful in his operations and accumulated a large fortune for this part of the country. The mother died in 1888. They were the parents of twelve children, five of whom are living: Henry F., Gustave and Joseph (twins), Benjamin, and Katharine, the wife of Irwin Lathrop, of Joplin, Missouri.

Henry Glahn obtained his education in the district schools of Marion county, and after completing their course of instruction began farming for himself. But he was not allowed a long period of peaceful pursuit of this industry. The Civil war began in a short time after he went to farming, and on August 22, 1862, he enlisted in Company G, Thirtieth Missouri Infantry, and was soon afterward at the front in the midst of hostilities. He took part in the battles of Jackson, Arkansas Post and Blakely, and a number of other engagements of greater or less importance, including the siege of Vicksburg. During this memorable siege he was one of the eightyfour resolute ])atriots who volunteered for the disastrous attack on Fort Hill, which was a forlorn hope from the beginning.

After the close of the war Mr. Glahn returned to his Shelby county, Missouri, home and resumed his farming operations. He has continued them without interruption to the present time (1910), and has been very successful in carrying them on. His present farm comprises

170 acres of good land, is well improved and cultivated with every care and attention that intelligence, good judgment and advanced methods can apply to the work. His live stock industry is also extensive and profitable, for it is managed in the same way as the general work on the farm. Mr. Glahn ranks among the leading and most judicious farmers and stock men in his townsliij), and the good results of all his efforts fully entitle him to the rank he holds.

On October 22, 1868, he was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Jane Price, a daughter of James and Sarah (Stewart) Price, natives of Kentucky, who came to Missouri in 1860 and located in Macon county. Eleven children were born of the union, three of whom died in infancy. Those who are living are: Harvey E., whose home is in this county ; Dora, the wife of William Foreman; Daniel Webster; George W^illiam; Julius Samuel; Charles Henry; Rosa Helen, the wife of Louis Clair, and Russel Marion, who is attending school at Kirksville, with a view to a business or professional career.

In political faith and allegiance the father is an ardent Republican and an earnest worker for the success of his party in all campaigns. He served on the school board for a period of eight years, not, however, as a partisan, but as a good citizen, and for the benefit of the community, and he rendered excellent service, giving the schools an impulse to progress which sprang from his own enterprising and progressive spirit. His fraternal relations are with the Grand Army of the Republic, in which he has always taken a great interest and a very active and prominent part. He is now the chief mustering officer for the state of Missouri, and officer of the day in the post to which he belongs at Clarence. He is also a past-commander and has been state and national aide-decamp. His fervor in devotion to the organization, like that of many other veterans who are members of it, seems to grow in intensity as the years pass and its fast-fading ranks melt away. So, also, does his interest in and zeal in behalf of the Christian church, of which he and his entire family have long been devout and consistent members, and he a leader in the congregation to which he belongs, taking an active part in all its worthy and commendal)le work. In all the requirements of good citizenship he has measured up to the highest standard, giving his community the best service and example he has been capable of. The people of the township and county are well advised of this fact, and of all else that is creditable in his record, and they esteem him accordingly, holding him to be one of the best and most useful men among them.

Lewis Cass Stover

Successful, prosperous and highly progressive as a farmer and stock man, long a valued mem])er of the local school board, for many years an elder in his chui-ch, and at all times deeply and serviceably interested in public affairs and the development and improvement of the township and county of his home, Lewis Cass Stover, whose fine farm of 120 acres, near Clarence in Clay township, this county, is one of the choice ones in that locality, has proven himself to be a very useful citizen and altogether worthy of the confidence and esteem of his community, which he enjoj's in full measure.

Mr. Stover was born in September, 1848, in Hannibal, Missouri, and is a son of Jacob and Polly (Baker) Stover, both natives of Maryland. The father came to Missouri in 1833 and located in Hannibal. He was a blacksmith and for a number of years operated the largest ))lacksmithing establishment in Hannibal. His marriage with Miss Polly Baker, a daughter of Alexander Baker, took place in 1843. They had three children, but their son, Lewis Cass Stover, is the only one of them living. His mother died in June, 1851, when he was but three years old, and in 1855 his father went to Texas, where he remained eleven years. While there he married a second wife. Miss Mary Race, a Kentuckian by nativity. They also had three children. In 1866 the father returned to Missouri, and here he remained imtil his death in 1886.

Left largely to his own resources in boyhood and youth, Lewis Cass Stover realized early in life that he had only his own capabilities to look to for advancement among men and success in life. He attended the public schools in his native city for a time, securing what he could in the way of scholastic training, then went to work on a farm as a hired hand. By this means, and by diligent use of his every opportunity for the acquisition of useful knowledge, he gained a thorough mastery of agricultural pursuits, and as they were suited to his taste and capacity, he determined to devote his life to them. He has adhered to this resolution to the present time (1910), and has won a gratifying success by doing so. He has an excellent farm, which is well improved, highly cultivated and very productive. His special industry, however, is raising good breeds of live stock for the markets, and to this he gives the greater part of his attention and care, making every effort to keep his output up to the highest standard of excellence and maintain the good reputation it has wherever he is known.

Mr. Stover was married in 1882 to Miss Kittie Arnett, a daughter of Macajah Arnett, of Kentucky, and Judith (Frances) Arnett, a native of Virginia. They came to Missouri at an early day and located in Shelby county, where Mrs. Stover was born. She and her husband were the parents of four children, of whom three are living: Sybel, Neva, the wife of James Coi^enhaver, and Mildred. In politics the father is a lifelong Democrat, with an abiding interest in the welfare of his party and an enei'gy and intelligence in effort ever ready for its service. He has rendered the people excellent service as a member of the school board for more than fifteen years, and in every other way available to him has contributed to their benefit and the advancement of the township and county in which he lives. His religious connection is with the Christian church, and he has been one of the elders of the congregation to which he belongs for many years. He takes a great interest and a leading part in church work, and his activity in this behalf is highly appreciated by all church

John D. Edwaeds

The last survivor of his father's household and representing the fourth generation of his family that has been loyal to the American flag and helped to develop and build up the country in peace and defend it in war, John D. Edwards, of Clay townshij) in this county, is a shining link in the chain which connects the present day with our remote and historic past. His greatgrandfather, William Edwards, was a native of Wales, and brought his family to this country in colonial times, locating in Virginia. He was a tailor and made clothing for General Washington. He joined the Colonial army and fought valiantly under the great commander for American independence.

His son, also named William, the grandfather of John D., was also born in Wales and came to America with his parents in his cliildhood. After he grew to maturity he moved to Kentucky, where he farmed for many years and where he at last laid down his trust. In that state the third William Edwards in direct descent, the father of John D., whose life story is our present theme, was born and reared on the farm. He, also, was a farmer, and, after following his chosen occupation in his native state some years, came to Missouri in 1856 and located in Clay township, Shelby county. His wife was Miss Eliza Davidson, a native of Tennessee, and they had twelve children, all now deceased but

Before coming to Missouri the family lived for a number of years in Schuyler county, Illinois, and there John D. Edwards was born in 1841. He attended the district schools near his home and assisted his father on the farm, taking an earnest interest in the welfare of the family and doing all he could to helji it along. At the age of fifteen he accompanied his parents to this state and remained with them until he attained his majority. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company B, Ninety-first Illinois Volunteer Infantry, in defense of the Union, and was soon afterward in the midst of unrolling columns on some of the historic battle fields of our Civil war. He took part in the battles of Mobile, Fort Blakeley and others of importance, and also in many minor engagements.

After the close of the war Mr. Edwards returned to his Missouri home, and for a time worked at the carpenter trade, of which he had previously acquired some knowledge. He then again turned his attention to farming, and continued his operations in that line until 1899, when he retired from all active pursuits. He was married at Shelbyville on Februaiy 10, 1867, to Miss Elizabeth Delmer, a daughter of Sebastian and Mary Dehner, natives of Germany, who came to this country and Missouri many years ago and located in Shelby county, where Mrs. Edwards was born and grew to womanhood. She and her husband became the parents of six children, five of whom are living : James E., who married Miss Louisa Bowman; Eliza, the wife of Hugh Wheeler; Milby I., whose wife was Miss Fanny Eliza Copenhaver ; John F., who married Miss Grace Albright, and Nina K., the wife of Charles Getchal. They are all upright and useful citizens, and are everywhere esteemed highly as such.

In political faith and allegiance the father is a pronounced Eepublican, with an earnest interest in the welfare of his party, and a heart and hand ever ready to promote its success. He keeps alive the agreeable and reminiscent features of his military service, without the bitterness of feeling that prevailed during the experiences they recall, by zealous and active membership in the Grand Army of the Republic. He is also a member of the Methodist church. In the affairs of the townshija and county he has always taken an earnest interest, manifesting this in a practical way by giving the people excellent service as a member of the school board for upwards of five years.

William K. Gunby

All of the sixty-three years so far passed in the life of this enterprising and progressive farmer of Clay township, Shelby county, have been spent in the county except those which found him a soldier in the Union army during the Civil war, and they have all been employed in usefulness to the locality in which he lived since he arrived at years of discretion and the power to labor and produce. He was born in Shelby county in March, 1847, and is a grandson of Kirk Gunby, a native of IVIaryland who commanded a regiment of the Colonial troops at the Revolutionary battle of

Monmouth. His youngest son, Stephen Gunby, the father of William K., was also born and reared in ^Maryland, where his life began in 1817. He came to Missouri in 1836, when he was but nineteen years old, and took up his residence in Shelby county. Here he became a farmer of prominence and won a substantial estate by his industry, thrift and good management.

In 1846 he was married to Miss Mary Ann Coard, also a native of Maryland, where her father, William Coard, also was born. Of the five children born of the union only two are living, William K. and his brother, Thomas Samuel. Their mother died in 1859, and in 1860 the father married Miss Elizabeth Bynum, who is still living. By her marriage to Mr. Gunby she became the mother of four children : Martha, the wife of A. Crutchcoin ; Isabella, the wife of E. McEea ; Elizabeth, the wife of William Holl^^nan, and Anna, the wife of W. H. McRea.

William K. Gunby attended the district school at Bacon Chapel, and later a private school in Shelbina. He then passed five or six months in the study of law, but not finding this to his taste, abandoned the profession and became a farmer. He has adhered to his chosen occupation ever since and has been very successful in it. His farming operations are extensive and are conducted with great vigor, intelligence and a wide and accurate knowledge of the requirements of the soil and the demands of the markets. The fai'm is well improved with commodious and comfortable buildings and fully provided with everything needed for cultivating it in an intensive and highly productive manner, and it makes excellent returns to the persi;asive hand of skillful husbandry which controls it.

Mr. Gunby was married in 1869 to ]\Iiss Perthrah Jackson, a daughter of Thomas and Mary Jackson, natives of Tennessee who came to Missouri many years ago and located in Shelby county, where Mrs. Gunby was liorn and reared, and where she obtained her education. She and her husband became the parents of five children, four of whom are living: Stella Augusta, Lily Irene, the wife of Ford Brown ; Clara Ethel, and Lanius Wesley, a Methodist minister in Southern Califoi'nia.

During the Civil war the father enlisted in the Union army in Company D, Fourteenth Missouri Cavalry, serving as a ]3rivate soldier. In his political faith and activity in national affairs he is allied with the Democratic party., and active in its service. But in local affairs his first consideration is the good oi che township and county, and partisan interests are always secondary, if they are taken into the account at all. He served faithfully and acceptably as a member of the school board upwards of five years, and was also road overseer for a number of years. In religious afifiliations he is allied with the Southern Methodist church, and for many years has taken very active part in all church work, holding in succession every office in the gift of the congregation to which lie belongs. His wife died on July 15, 1908, after nearly forty years of commendable domestic life.

William T. Haet

The chances and changes of location and employment are many and various in American life, and so extensively numerous that a man who starts in one occupation at twenty or twenty-one is very frequently found pursuing- a different one at forty. The career of William T. Hart, of Shelbina, one of the best known and most esteemed livery men and horse dealers in this part of the state, furnishes a striking illustration of the general truth of this statement. He began life for himself as a farmer and live stock man, occupations to which he had been reared, and is now conducting an active business in the service of the public and carrying on an extensive trade in horses.

Mr. Hart is of old Kentucky stock, his father and his grandfather having been born and "bred in old Kentucky," and it may be due to this fact that he is so fond of horses. The fathei', James T. Hart, came to Missouri to live in 1846. He located in Monroe county, where he taught school for a number of years. He then turned his attention to farming and also to dealing in tobacco in Shelbina. His son, William T. Hart, was born in this county on March 2, 1857. The father was a successful farmer and merchant, and a man of prominence and influence in the several communities in which he lived. He lived a useful life, was a devout member of the Methodist church, and died in 1898.

He was married twice. The first time to a Miss Kerrick, a native of Kentucky. They had three children, all of whom are deceased. Their mother died in 1850, and in 1853 the father married a second time, being united on this occasion with Miss Elizabeth Doctor, who was born in Ohio. Six children were born of this union, all of whom are living : John T., a resident of this county; William T., whose home is in Shelbina ; W. H., who lives in Knox county, Missouri; S. P., who is a prosperous citizen of California ; Harriet, the wife of H. W. Frye, of Kansas City, Missouri; and F. B., who is a resident of Monroe county, this state. Their mother died in March, 1898.

William T. Hart had no educational facilities except those furnished by the district schools of Monroe county, and was not allowed to attend them with strict regularity or for a very long period. The work on his father's farm required every force available, and he was obliged to take his share of it at an early age. After finally leaving school he continued to work for his father on the home place a few years, then located on a farm of 340 acres and began farming and raising live stock on his own account, the farm being located in ^lonroe county. His operations were extensive in both industries on this farm, but he gave especial attention to raising and feeding large quantities of stock for the markets.

In 1907 he moved to Shelbina and began the career as a livery and horse salesman, for which he has become distinguished throughout a large extent of the surrounding country. His barn is well equi2)ped for its purposes, the service given its patrons is first class, and everything pertaining to it is up to the highest level of excellence in the business. His dealings in horses are exten- sive, and these, too, are governed by the most scrupulous exactness and altogether satisfying to those who have a share in them as purchasers. He conducts his business as a horse dealer in a way that removes from his transactions the reproach often attached to this line of mercantile life and raises it to a rank which has won him high approval and general popularity.

On February 25, 1878, Mr. Hart was united in marriage with Miss Belle Robertson, a native of this state. They have had four children, two of whom are living. James, who resides in Shelbina, and Carl, who is still at home with his parents. The father is a Democrat in politics, an Odd Fellow and a Modern Woodman of America in fraternal life, and he and his wife are members of the Methodist church in religious connection. His party, his lodges and his church receive a fair share of his attention, and their interests always have his earnest and helpful support.

The affairs of his city and county also enlist his attention and have the benefit of his advice and assistance. No enterprise for their improvement or the welfare of their people escapes his notice or goes without his aid. He is public spirited and progressive, desiring advancement for his community only along wholesome lines of progress and its elevation only by means of enduring value. He stands well in the city and county, and is favorably known and regarded as a man and citizen in much of the adjoining territory, and wherever else the people have knowledge of his worth, his enterprise and his devotion to his state.