Biographical and genealogical history of Appanoose and Monroe counties, Iowa
New York, Chicago: Lewis publishing Co., S. Thompson Lewis, editor. 1903
Transcribed by Renee Rimmert. A complete copy of this book is available on-line at archive.org.
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MATISON S. EDWARDS - The gentleman above named is another member of the family whose record and achievements are fully noticed in the sketch of his elder brother. With the latter he constitutes the firm of Edwards Brothers, which for thirty-two years has been actively engaged in buying, breeding, selling and shipping live stock of all kinds. Though his activities have been chiefly confined to the stock business, Mr. Edwards has been a moving spirit in other lines and quite prominent in political, religious and banking circles. He is certainly one of the leading men of the county and it would be taking little risk to set him down as also one of the most popular of the citizens of Appanoose. Mr. Edwards comes naturally by his fondness for stock and skill in its handling, as his father before him was an expert in this line and laid the foundation on which his enterprising sons have built so successfully. William Edwards, of Tennessee, removed in early manhood to Kentucky and married one of the attractive maidens of that state named Marilla Elliott. After this event the young couple "settled down to housekeeping," as they say in the country, and the father engaged in breeding and raising the stock for which old Kentucky has long been so famous. He did fairly well at the business, but concluded that by moving farther west he could do still better. With this end in view, he closed out his deals, converted his estate into money, loaded up his personal property and in the fall of 1850 started on the long journey to Iowa. The family arrived safely in Van Buren county, where they spent the first year, and then moved on to Appanoose, which was destined to be the place of their permanent abode. The father purchased a farm five miles south of Moulton and soon was under way again in his favorite pursuit of raising and selling live stock. He kept this up for about thirty years, during which time he did a great deal of business, made and lost considerable money, but on the whole came out on the right side of the ledger and as old age approached found himself in possession of a comfortable estate. Eventually he sought rest from active business by retirement at Moulton, where his death occurred in 1885, followed by that of his wife in February, 1902.
Matison S. Edwards, younger son of the afore-mentioned couple, was born in Laurel county, Kentucky, April 11, 1850, and when six months old was an unconscious participant in his parents' journey to the west. He grew up on the farm near Moulton, where his father initiated him into all the mysteries of breeding and selling stock with success, with other innumerable and more or less important details connected with progressive agriculture. The boy proved an apt scholar and there was never a time in his subsequent life when it was easy to get the better of him in the price of a bunch of yearlings or the comparative values of herds of "high grades" and roadsters. But young Edwards got a little schooling, too, as he went along and what he learned in the neighborhood schools was increased and improved by several years' attendance at the Centerville Normal. At length, studies finished and books laid aside, he was ready to take up his life work in earnest and at an early age was busily engaged in general farming and stock- raising. The culminating point in his career was reached in 1870, when he joined with his brother William to make the celebrated firm of Edwards Brothers, which has long been one of the heaviest dealers in live stock in southern Iowa. They ship carloads of hogs to Ottumwa and of cattle to Chicago every week and their annual purchases and sales involve an amount of money which would astonish the average citizen. In addition to hogs and cattle, which constitute their main line, the firm also handles horses adapted to farm and road purposes and large numbers of these animals are disposed of at their monthly sales. Regardless of any profit accruing to themselves, the Edwards Brothers deserve the name of public benefactors by reason of the benefit they have brought to the people in encouraging them to raise stock and furnishing them a home market for their products. Aside from his main pursuit Mr. Edwards has found time to lend his aid to other enterprises. When the Moulton State Savings Bank was organized in 1902 through his aid and encouragement, he was made one of the directors and also elected president. By way of diversion as well as because his convictions lead earnestly in that direction, Mr. Edwards has been in the habit of taking a hand in politics when campaign times approach, and is recognized as one of the leaders on the Republican side. He is nothing of an office seeker, however, and is willing to let the "plums" go to others, his only official position being that of member of the board of supervisors, to which he was elected in 1892 for a term of three years.
In 1870 Mr. Edwards was united in marriage with Miss Mattie W. Lane, who was born at Winchester, Adams county, Ohio, March 2, 1851, but came to Iowa in girlhood, with her parents. By this union there were six children, but the only survivors are Fred C. Edwards and Mrs. Ethel E. Votaw, with whom her father has resided at the corner of Maine and Broadway since the loss of his wife by death, December 26, 1901. Though preferring a town residence Mr. Edwards owns a valuable and highly improved stock farm of three hundred and twenty acres one mile northeast of Moulton. He is one of the leaders in the Methodist Episcopal church and holds fraternal connection with the Knights of Pythias and Rathbone Sisters.
WILLIAM EDWARDS - The gentleman above mentioned is perhaps the best known man in Appanoose county. His fame chiefly rests upon his achievements as a breeder and dealer in stock, but he is one of those broad-gauge men who are not content with one occupation, and he has figured conspicuously in banking and religious circles. His name has been rendered familiar all over southern Iowa and in adjacent stock markets by the firm of Edwards Brothers, of which William is the senior member. Many of the thousands of carloads of all kinds of stock which keep busy the railroads leading from Iowa to Chicago are sent out by this enterprising firm, whose yearly transactions foot up an enormous sum of money. By this traffic they have been benefited themselves, but they have also greatly benefited the state by stimulating the trade in stock, while improving its quality. It is to such men as these that Iowa owes its prominence in the world of agriculture, and to no two citizens is more credit due for this culmination than to the Edwards Brothers. This notable family is of southern origin. William Edwards, Sr., moved in early life from his native state of Tennessee to Kentucky, where he met and married Marilla Elliott, with whom he migrated in 1850 to Iowa. The first year after this arrival was passed in Van Buren county, after which they settled permanently in Appanoose on a farm about five miles south of Moulton. Here for many years the head of the household carried on successful farming, with especial attention to live stock, a taste for dealing in which he had acquired in his "Old Kentucky home." Eventually, as the shadows began to lengthen and old age was felt to be creeping on, this estimable couple moved to town for the purpose of spending more agreeably their declining years. The closing scene occurred for the father in 1885, but his wife survived many years afterward and terminated her blameless life in 1902.
William Edwards, namesake and eldest son of his father, was born in Laurel county, Kentucky, December 19, 1843, and about seven years old when his parents settled in Iowa. As he grew up he received from his father that training in farm management and stock dealing which proved so valuable to him in later life, and meantime obtained a fair education during desultory attendance in the schools of the township and at Centerville. Young Edwards, though still in his "teens" when the Civil war began, was among the first to enlist, and served with steady gallantry for three years and eleven months as sergeant of Company B, Second Regiment, Missouri Cavalry. He made an excellent record in the army and as soon as his honorable discharge was obtained returned without delay to his home in Iowa. Immediately thereafter he took up the work interrupted by the war and soon showed that he possessed a natural aptitude for the farm and all the various ramifications of agricultural pursuits. His tastes as well as his talents seemed, however, to turn naturally to stock-raising and stock-selling, and in his branch of agriculture his success has been pre-eminently pronounced. In 1870 he formed a partnership with his brother, Matison S. Edwards, for the raising, buying and shipment of livestock, which firm now ranks among the foremost of its kind in southern Iowa. While making a specialty of cattle and hogs, they have also dealt extensively in horses for the farm and road. It is hardly necessary to attempt to analyze the reasons for the success of this popular fraternal firm, inasmuch as the causes lie close to the surface, in the shape of good judgment, untiring energy and an acquisition of the public confidence by constant fair dealing. That is the whole story in a nutshell. Everybody knows the Edwards Brothers; everybody likes them; everybody has confidence in them, and everybody trusts them. At present Mr. Edwards owns, one-half mile from Moulton, three hundred and twenty acres of land, which is one of the best stock farms in the state.
His residence in Moulton has long been celebrated for the generous hospitality of its happy home circle and the family constitute a social center around which assemble all the brightest and best people of the vicinity.
In 1867 Mr. Edwards was married to Mary A. Floyd, and the six of the nine children by this union now living are: Ulysses W., Mrs. Mae Tifft, wife of G. E. Tifft, a Methodist minister, stationed at Moline, Kansas; Charles W., Clyde V., Clarence F., and James H. The last two mentioned are still at home and Clarence remains on the farm all the time, looking after the practical management of his father's widely diversified interests. In 1901 Mr. Edwards consummated a second marriage with Miss Maude May Taylor, who presides over his home with a grace and discretion that add much to its social charm. In many ways, aside from his main business, Mr. Edwards has proved himself a progressive, enterprising and public-spirited man. In 1902 he was one of the organizers of the Moulton State Savings Bank and holds the position of director of this popular institution. In religious circles he has also long been active, enforcing his views both by precept and practice. He contributed literally to the funds for the construction of the handsome building devoted to the services of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he is a leading member. The fraternal connections of Mr. Edwards are confined to the Odd Fellows, with whom he has fraternized for over twenty-eight years, and associates with his old comrades in the Grand Army of the Republic.
EDWARD K. ELLEDGE - This gentleman is the prosperous general merchant of Cincinnati, Iowa, where he has been established since 1893, and there is no doubt that he has materially improved commercial and trade conditions since he has been in business. The family has been well known in Appanoose county for over half a century, and no biographer of the prominent men of the county could well omit mention of them. But for a rounded history of the Elledges we must take the reader back to the ancestral home in Scotland, where grandfather Benjamin Elledge was born January 24, 1782. He came to America and first took up his abode in Virginia, then moved with the western stream of migration to Indiana, whence he came in pioneer days to Pike county, Illinois, and remained there until he was called to his final rest in his seventy-second year, October 31, 1853. His wife was Catherine Reynolds, who was of German descent and was born July 13, 1786, and died before her husband, in Pike county, having become the mother of a large family.
One of the sons was Henry V. Elledge, who was born in Indiana, June 2. 1826. He was reared in Pike county, Illinois, and when he was twenty-four years of age came to Appanoose county, Iowa, the century having just turned the half-way mark. Since that time he has resided here almost continuously; he was in Davis county, Iowa, for about two years and in Hitchcock county, Nebraska, for four, but in 1893 he returned and is now residing in Cincinnati. Farming has been his life occupation. Mr. Elledge had been in Appanoose county but a short time when he was married on December 8, 1850, to Miss Hannah Rogers; her father was Thomas J. Rogers, a pioneer settler of Appanoose county, and her mother, Phoebe Shin, is still surviving in Moulton, Iowa. Mrs. Elledge was born August 4, 1833, and died at the age of thirty-two, on March 13, 1866, and of the children born to her the following reached years of maturity: William R., born June 20, 1853, is now living in Colorado; Charles R., born November 5, 1857, is in this county; Mary Emma, born October 13, 1861, lives in Arkansas; and Edward Kindred. After the death of his first wife Mr. Elledge was married to Mrs. Mary S. Jennings. Her son, James D., who was born to her of a former union, August 22, 1864, took the name of Elledge, and was the boyhood companion and was often taken for the twin of Edward K.; they were reared together from the age of two and were together constantly, and the former is now a prosperous farmer of this county. The living children of the second union are: Laura Maud, born September 20, 1874, and now in St. Louis; Carl B., born May 23, 1876; Eva Ora, born September 25, 1881, also a resident of St. Louis.
The family history has now been brought down to Edward K. Elledge, who was born while his parents were farming in Davis county, Iowa, December 8, 1863. He had a fair amount of schooling mixed in with the wholesome labor of the farm, and when he was eighteen years old he began life for himself, for the following twelve years being in the milling business. He was not a person to dissipate his earnings as fast as he got them, and by 1893, with the capital he had accumulated, he was able to start his present mercantile house in Cincinnati. His good business methods have commended him to the public, and he is now rated as one of the soundest and most reliable merchants in the county. He owns his own store, which is a two-story and basement brick block, equipped in a modern way, with elevator and stairways, and with a fine and well selected stock of goods.
On November 15, 1896, Mr. Elledge was married to Miss Laura E. Pugh, who was born in this county, November 29, 1871. Her parents are Samuel and Dicy (Baker) Pugh, the former born in Ohio, July 6, 1838, and the latter in West Virginia, June 8, 1843; of the nine children born to Mr. and Mrs. Pugh the following came to maturity: Laura E., Van H., Sanford C, Lucy E., David K., and Blanch H., all of whom reside with their parents except Laura E. The first child to come into the home of Mr. and Mrs. Elledge was Lloyd Cameron, on February 2, 1898; then Inez Maud, December 19, 1899; and Lora Lucile, January 31, 1901. Mr. Elledge is a Democrat in political belief, and is a good member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His success is not a matter of luck, but has been gained by close application, honorable principles, and unremitting diligence, which are the cardinal virtues in this workaday world and lead to certain and honest rewards.
GEORGE C. ELLIOTT - This gentleman, who served as clerk of the district court of Appanoose county, is perhaps the most experienced official in the county. During his comparatively short lifetime he has served in three different county offices, and previously served two terms as deputy in the office he recently filled as principal. This long official service has not only made him efficient, but has brought him into acquaintance with a large number of people whose good will is the best test of his standing. As he is still under thirty years of age, a member of the dominant party and quite popular with all classes, it is safe to predict for this accomplished young man a brilliant and successful future. He is now engaged in the abstract business. He is a son of John and Nancy (Morgan) Elliott, who formerly lived in Davis county, but came to Centerville in 1884. The father was twice elected clerk of the district court of Appanoose county and served his two terms with such satisfaction as to be voted one of the most popular officials the county ever had.
George C. Elliott was born May 14, 1874, while his parents resided at Drakeville, Iowa, and was ten years old when brought by them to Centerville. He attended the city schools, but at a very early age became a deputy under his father in the clerk's office of the district court. As he remained there during his father's two terms, he received an unusually thorough training in all the details and duties connected with such a trust. Naturally this made his services in demand and he was appointed deputy in the recorder's office, where he served a year, and went from there to the office of the county treasurer, with whom he remained as deputy four years. In addition to all this he was for a time collector of delinquent taxes and the duties of these positions were discharged with such efficiency and fidelity that when a vacancy occurred in the clerkship of the district court Mr. Elliott was appointed to fill the unexpired term. This appointment, which sent him back as principal to the office which he had so long occupied as deputy, was made in January, 1902, and he forwith assumed charge of his trust. Since leaving this office Mr. Elliott has engaged in the abstract business, which occupies his attention at the present time. Mr. Elliott's political preferences are zealously Republican and he is popular as a worker and leader among the younger element of the party to which he gives an earnest advocacy.
WILLIAM M. ELLIS - The late William M. Ellis was quite well known to citizens of Appanoose county, of which he had been a resident for more than forty- five years. He was born in Mercer county, Kentucky, January 13, 1830, but when only eight years old was taken by his parents to Harrison county, Indiana, where they took up a permanent abode, which only ceased with their deaths many years later. William grew up in Harrison county, and such education as he was destined to receive was obtained in the somewhat crude schools then prevailing in that section of Indiana. When approaching the completion of his nineteenth year he met and married Miss Margaret A. Ellis, a distant relative of his family, the ceremony occurring in Harrison county, Indiana, December 24, 1849. Miss Ellis was but slightly her husband's junior, having been born in Harrison county, April 4, 1830, and the union that then took place lasted for more than half a century in a harmony of temperament and tastes that was as pleasing as it was unusual.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Ellis resided on an Indiana farm for six years, and then decided on a removal to the distant state of Iowa. It was in 1854 that this, their first bridal trip, was taken, and when they reached the new state beyond the Mississippi a location was selected in Van Buren county, which remained their home during the three following years. In 1857 they transferred their residence to Appanoose county, where Mr. Ellis became the owner of the celebrated Long Branch stock farm, and for years was noted as one of the most extensive stock raisers in that part of the state. Of late years, however, owing to failing health, he was compelled to relax his former vigorous efforts and leave the tasks to younger hands. Eventually, in the course of nature, he reached the "inevitable hour" which awaits all things mortal, and on the 22nd of March, 1902, his kind heart and benevolent impulses were hushed in death. Since this sad event Mrs. Ellis has resided at the old homestead, which has witnessed so many of the mutual joys of herself and husband, and where the golden anniversary of their wedding day was observed in 1899. Of her nine children seven still remain to comfort her old age, though their residences are scattered in many different states and localities. Perry, Jesse and Millard all reside in Appanoose county, the latter at Numa. Elias is a citizen of Kansas. Mrs. Laura Tony makes her home in Missouri. Mrs. G. W. Edwards is in distant Colorado. Mrs. Harry Benefield, youngest of the family, is living in Oklahoma territory. Mrs. Ellis looks after the business of the farm and keeps the old homestead cheerful with the hospitality that always distinguished it and ready for the reception of her children when they come, as it always was in their childhood, during the happy days gone by.