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The business interests of Mediapolis, Yellow Springs township, Des Moines county, are well represented by this gentleman, whose enterprising spirit is in harmony with the progressiveness of the West. He is a prosperous dealer in a general mercantile business in Mediapolis, and is one of the native sons of the county, his birth having occurred here Feb. 1, 1844. His parents were William and Cynthia (Evans) McClure, and were among the very early pioneers of Des Moines county, settling in Yellow Springs township in 1839, where they entered from the government a tract of land about four miles north of Mediapolis, upon which farm they resided for many years. This worthy gentleman died in 1864, aged fifty years, and his wife passed away in 1895, aged seventy-seven years. They had led lives of great usefulness, and their memories are still cherished by many throughout this section of the country.
The subject of this review was reared on his father's farm, where he remained till he reached his majority. His parents gave him a liberal education, first sending him through the district school of their township, and later giving him a course of study in the schools of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. Still later he attended the Yellow Springs Academy, located in Kossuth, Iowa. These courses of study were of great value to Mr. McClure, and were the foundation of his mercantile success in life.
In 1872, at the age of thirty years, Mr. McClure entered upon mercantile pursuits, and the well-known firm of Brown & McClure was formed, which continued business for thirteen years. He then, with J. Q. Roberts as partner, further continued the business, the firm doing business under the name of McClure & Company, which lasted for a period of seven years.
The next three years this large house was run by I. N. McClure alone with great profit and success. Mr. McClure then took in Mr. A. J. Evans as a partner, and hung out the sign of McClure & Evans, which attracted the passer-by for five years, when the firm was again changed. For the past six years Mr. J. P. Helphrey has been engaged in business with Mr. McClure, and today they do an important part of the business of the town, having a general store, which has been greatly enlarged until it is now the Mammoth Store, both in name and nature, of that section of the country. Every department is well filled with a fine assortment of the best of goods, and are all in charge of reliable and accommodating clerks. The numerous customers of this great department store, which resembles those of much larger cities, are not confined to the city of its location alone, as the trade reaches out over a vast territory of the country.
Dec. 1, 1869, Mr. McClure became the husband of Miss Elizabeth Susan Parrett, a young lady of much ability and refinement, who is the daughter of Joseph and Molena (Carley) Parrett, of Greenfield, Ohio. Unto Mr. and Mrs. McClure three children have been born, all of whom are grown to maturity, and well settled in life, and are a great source of comfort to their parents. The children are as follows: Marens P., a Presbyterian minister, of Stevens' Point, Wis.: Louie Maggie, married the Rev. Herbert W. Reherd, pastor of Bethany Church of Detroit, Mich.; and Franklin Evans, a successful and well known physician of Neenah, Wis.
In politics, Mr. McClure has always been a Republican, but has never aspired to any public office. He and his worthy wife are respected and devoted members of the Presbyterian church, and are actively engaged in the advancement of religion. Mr. McClure is well and generally known and respected throughout the county as a man possessing sterling business qualifications. He has always been much interested in any and all projects that would work a direct benefit to the town or county, and has been a leader in contributing to any enterprise of worth or merit that would in any way be of assistance to the young people in his vicinity. His long term of years in such a large business has brought him in contact with hundreds of the residents of the surrounding country, who all hold him in the kindest regard and as a man above reproach.
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