John Wheeler 

JOHN WHEELER, D. D.  In looking over the written sketches of the history of those we have honored and loved we are oft-times pained to find only the bony structures of characters that in life have shown themselves so rounded and beautiful, so complete in their fullness, so symmetrical in their development, that we scarcely recognize them from the meager touches of the pen. It is easy indeed to note the few statistics that survive the best, so difficult to trace the spirit that animated them, and see how it bent all influences to its own use in molding and shaping the character, and making the real man. The measure of one's life is not length of days, but wise use of opportunities, not strife for selfish ends, but steadfastness of purpose for the uplifting and upbuilding of our common humanity.

By all such standards of measurement John Wheeler stood a man among men. English by birth, though so early Americanized that no memory of his native land survived, he was in all but birth a loyal and true American. His father, John Wheeler, Sr., a ship-builder by trade, as his forefather had done before him, plied his trade industriously at Portsmouth, England. A devout and God-fearing race as far back as there is any knowledge of them, energetic and intelligent to a rare degree, they were fine representatives of the better class of English artisans.

But the spirit of the times then as now was leading many from the cramped opportunities and narrowing prospects of English life to the broader and brighter ones in America, and John Wheeler, with Mary Kingswell, his wife, and their three children, of whom the subject of this sketch was eldest, turned their faces toward the land of promise, landing in Baltimore, where a month later father and little ones stood at the open grave of the young mother -- so soon was he to learn the bitter lesson that disappointment and grief are impartial denizens of all lands.

From Baltimore the father went on to Bellefontaine, Ohio, with his motherless little ones, to rear a new home in a strange land. There the children grew up, sharing the hardships and privations of that early day.

Ten years later we find him running a country store, and also the post-office. In connection with the latter it was his duty to forward the mail to another point three days' ride distant. The ride was a dreary one even in pleasant weather, most of the way through dense forests, with little semblance to a road, and settlers' cabins few and widely separated, but when winter set in the task of finding any one willing to be in the saddle six days out of seven, braving the terrors of the forest - and at that early day they were real - together with the severity of the climate, the question of a mail carrier became a serious one. One by one the available men of the place tried it, and after one or two trips only a single man was left willing to undertake it. He started out bravely, but in a day or two returned, threw down the mail bags, crying like a child with fear and cold, and declaring that no one could do it. What was to be done? The Postmaster was responsible for the delivery of the mail. To leave himself was out of the question. John, then a boy of fourteen, threw himself into the breach. His father hesitated, but the urgency of the case compelled him to accept the offer, and he reluctantly consented. The winter proved to be an unusually severe one, but week after week this fourteen-year-old boy never once failed in his duty. But what he suffered that winter none except himself ever knew. It was not merely the physical suffering, sharp and severe as that often was, which he had to endure, but also the constant presence of peril as well. He was a boy of keen sensibilities, of strong religious bias, of quick and tender conscience, and day after day he rode along in solitude his mind was tossed with questions of the future, beset with fears and racked with doubts. Naturally disposed to "write bitter things against himself," as he rode along every childish fault assumed the form and proportion almost of crimes. So indelible was the impress of this period upon his nature that to his latest years he could not pass a dense forest without a shuddering remembrance of it.

The Sabbath at home was the one bright spot of the week, when, confiding to his father as much as it was possible for such a nature to reveal to any one, he received from him such instruction and comfort as few fathers ever give to sons. The discipline and conflicts of this winter were doubtless valuable though severe aids in developing the man of later years.

The circumstances by which he was surrounded offered no opportunities for acquiring a liberal education, and up to his twenty-first year he had but a few months' schooling, but deep within was the purpose to prepare himself for his life work by a thorough college education. With this end in view he became a student in 1835 at a Methodist seminary in Norwalk, Ohio, supporting himself by his own labors. Two years later he entered Alleghany College, at Meadville, Pa.  Here he formed the acquaintance and gained the friendship of Prof. Matthew Simpson, afterward Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and when two years later Prof. Simpson was appointed President of the Indiana Asbury University, he took with him his pupil, giving him work as tutor while completing his college course, which he did in 1840, being one of the first class ever graduated in that institution, the entire class numbering but three, two classical: John Wheeler and T. A. Goodwin, with, in the language of the latter, "one poor scientific sandwiched in between."

For nearly fifty years Asbury University has been sending out year by year its trained young men, and for nearly twenty its women too, and stands to-day rich in influence and endowment, rich in opportunities and in prospects, but richer far in memories of men, and not a few whose power has been felt and acknowledged in church and State throughout the length and breadth of our land, and some whose reputation and influence has been world-wide.

Two yeas later, having been in the meantime in charge of the Franklin Collegiate Institute at Indianapolis, Mr. Wheeler was elected to the chair of his Alma Mater, a position he filled most successfully for twelve years. In 1854 he resigned his position in the Indiana Asbury University, and went into business, but his love for his chosen profession led him to again accept college work in preference to commercial life, and he accepted the offer of the Presidency of Baldwin Institute, after University, at Berea, Ohio, where he spent the next fifteen years, and where the heaviest work of his life was done. The change in the status of the institution involved heavy responsibilities, while the limited endowments and straitened circumstances made the closest calculations necessary, and heavy demands upon the generosity of friends. Notwithstanding the pressure from these causes the school steadily grew, and assumed healthy proportions.

In connection with this work his keen eye saw another line of influence, unheeded by any college in the land, viz: the number of young German-Americans who were practically barred an education of higher grade, and the necessity to the church of having the means of meeting the emigrant as he comes among us with his old-world sentiments, with ministers educated in the most thorough manner, and able to present the truth in the mother tongue. With this end in view he organized a German department in Baldwin University, and later secured the necessary means to establish the German Wallace College, in connection with the existing university. For nearly twenty-five years this school has been in successful operation, fully justifying in its work the hopes and faith of its projectors, a power for good in the German Methodist Episcopal Church, whose influence can scarcely by over-estimated.

The life and labors of Dr. Wheeler in Iowa commenced in 1870, and were closed by death June 18, 1881. Five years of this time he was President of the Iowa Wesleyan University, during which time the influence of the institution was strengthened and increased in many directions, including the location of the German College, secured through his influence and labor in this place, one year in the pastoral work, and five in the Presiding Eldership, make up so far as records go his life in Iowa, but they give but slight indices of his faithful devotion to every interest committed to his trust. With him no opportunity was suffered to pass unimproved, no known duty neglected. His motto: "I must work, night cometh," seemed a constant inspiration to him, not in the line of college work alone, but for every cause that looked to the elevation of mankind. For every moral reform his sympathies were quick and lasting. In church work his heart went out especially toward the missionary cause, and at two different periods of life he was chosen and accepted the appointment to take charge of foreign fields, but each time a change in the plans by those in authority left him to complete his life work here in his adopted country. His appreciation of the value of the press led him to establish a college paper at each of the three colleges he served, viz: The Asbury Notes, College Gazette and Iowa Classics. In the cause of temperance he was both tireless and fearless. The training of his early life, and his experience at Asbury, alike lay in the line of colleges for mean alone, and indeed up to that time the co-education of the sexes was hardly a mooted question; but when appointed to the Presidency of Baldwin Institute he found himself at the head of a school which for years and been educated on equal footing the sons and daughters of North Ohio, he confessed himself astonished at the high grade of scholarship maintained by both, thus educated in the same institution.

In the few months that passed before the change of grade he was thoroughly convinced of the value of such an arrangement. Later, at a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Indiana University, now "De Pauw," when the question was being hotly discussed as to the prosperity of throwing open its doors to daughters as well as sons, his opinion was asked, and, to the amazement of some, he was fond an earnest and unequivocal advocate of the movement, and we venture to say no more important step has ever been taken toward the permanent success of that institution than was settled that day.

Circumstances doubtless do much to shape and develop the characters of men. The difficulties of his early life were not without their fruits. The warm, generous heart never ceased to feel for those who, like himself, were struggling against difficulties to obtain that preparation for life that would enable them best to fulfill its duties and meet its responsibilities, and no poor student ever sought counsel or aid from him in vain.

In the pulpit, or on the rostrum, his strong convictions, close research, wide information, ripe scholarships, and earnest representation of a subject, made him an impressive speaker, one who would challenge thought and create an abiding interest in any theme to which he gave his attention. In these respects he had comparatively few equals. In his domestic life he was at his best, and to the home circle brought freely and constantly his choicest gifts of mind and heart. It is not often that even good men's lives will bear unsullied too close scrutiny at their own fireside. But none who knew Dr. Wheeler in his own home could fail to yield him their ready reverence and love. He was so uniformly courteous and affectionate to each member of his household, so watchful of their interests, so devoted to their training, especially to their religious instruction, in such cordial sympathy with their plans, their joys or sorrows, as to make him the trusted and loved confidant of every member of the family circle, as well as its authoritative head.

He was twice married. His first wife was Miss Mary Yandes, of Indianapolis, who died in September, 1854, leaving five children, of whom three sons survive. His second wife was Miss Clara S. Hulet, of Berea, Ohio, who survives him, with two sons and three daughters.

Briefly to sum up his character we may say: His wise foresight, his indomitable perseverance, his untiring industry, his scholarly habits, his gentlemanly bearing, his pure and irreproachable Christian character, his unflinching integrity, and his scorn of trickery in church or State, were well-known characteristics of the man. In public life he sought no honors, he shunned no responsibilities.

As he had been found faithful in life so was he fearless in death, leaving as his dying testimony, "My Redeemer liveth," and adding with upraised hand, and solemn emphasis, the oath of a dying man. For such as he

          "There is no death,

           What seems so is transition."

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 635-38.)

Heman Alphonso White

Upon the farm where he now lives in Tippecanoe township, Heman A. White was born on the 7th of April, 1851, a son of Wallace and Jane E. ( Higgins ) White, the former a native of Delaware and the latter of Vermont. The father came to Henry county, Iowa, about 1838, settling in Mount Pleasant when it contained but three houses. He was a carpenter and worked at his trade in the embryo city. He also entered one hundred and sixty acres of land on section 2, Tippecanoe township, which was covered with timber and on this he cleared seventy-seven acres, which he made his home place. In 1850 he supplemented his little log cabin by a frame house, in which was a fireplace. He also built, in 1860, a barn which is still in use. He resided upon this farm until the fall of 1864, when his life's labors were ended in death, but he is still survived by his wife, who was born in 1824, and therefore has reached the very advanced age of eighty-two years. In their family were ten children, six sons and four daughters.

Heman A. White, the sixth in order of birth, spent his boyhood days under the parental roof, remaining with his mother until 1870 and in the meantime he acquired a fair English education in the district schools. On leaving home he went to Kansas, whence he afterward made his way to Missouri with an uncle, remaining there for six months. He next removed to Pottawattamie county, Iowa, where he worked at farming for a year and a half, after which he returned to the homestead residing thereon until his marriage.

It was on the 18th of May, 1873, that he wedded Miss Elizabeth A. Fordyce, who was born in Jefferson county, Iowa, and is a daughter of Robert Fordyce, a native of Ohio. Her education was acquired in the common schools and by this marriage there have been born four children: James P., now living in California; Hugh R., at home; Effie Jane, a nurse now in Tipton, Iowa; and Ora Adele, who is a student in Howe's Academy, which is one of the oldest and best known schools of Southeastern Iowa.

For two years after his marriage Mr. White remained upon the old homestead and then spent a year at farm labor in the employ of others. He next purchased sixty-one acres of land just west of the old home place and built thereon a new house, a stable, corn crib, a well, and made other improvements. His attention was assiduously given to the cultivation and development of the farm until 1898, when he traded that place for the interest of his brother Wallace in the old homestead and removed to the farm, purchasing the interest of the other heirs. He now has one hundred and twenty-eight acres of land in one body. The residence was built by his mother in 1887. The farm is supplied with modern equipments. Mr. White raises here the various cereals adapted to the climatic conditions of the country, and he also raises horses, cattle and hogs.

In his political views he is an earnest republican, and is now serving as president and director of the school board. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Methodist Episcopal church. He has lived in the county for more than half a century and is a representative of one of its oldest pioneer families, the name of White having been associated with its agricultural development from the period when much of the land was still government property, and work of improvement had scarcely been inaugurated by the white pioneer man.

(Biographical Review of Henry County, Iowa. Chicago: Hobart Publishing Co.,1906, p. 97)(PE)

John H. Whiting 

JOHN H. WHITING, President of the National State Bank of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, was born in town of Erwin, Steuben Co., N. Y., Dec. 6, 1834, and is the son of Timothy and Sarah A. (McCall) Whiting, of whom see sketch. He was educated in Genesee College, Lima, N. Y., and at Wesleyan University, Middletown, Conn., graduating in 1855. He was engaged in teaching school for one year in the Paul Wing Academy, near Sandwich, Mass.  In April, 1857, he came West, and located at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, where he entered the banking-house of W. P. Brazelton & Co., as clerk, and soon became bookkeeper. Six months later his father bought an interest in the bank, the firm becoming Brazelton & Whiting. One year afterward John H. Whiting and H. S. Clark succeeded to the business, under the firm name of Clark & Whiting. They conducted the bank until April, 1858, when it was re-organized as the Mt. Pleasant Branch of the State Bank of Iowa, of which Timothy Whiting, his father, was Cashier, and John H. Whiting, Assistant Cashier. In January, 1862, John H. was promoted to the position of Cashier, which he continued to hold after the bank was chartered as the National State Bank of Mt. Pleasant, in February, 1865, his father, Timothy Whiting, being President. Mr. John H. Whiting continued to serve as Cashier till January, 1886, when he was elected Vice President, and on the death of his father, which occurred Feb. 6, 1887, he was elected President to fill the vacancy.

Mr. Whiting was united in marriage with Miss Julia May, at Bath, N. Y., Sept. 22, 1858. Mrs. Whiting is the daughter of James and Betsy (Adams) May, and was born at Bath, N. Y., in 1839. Her parents were from Litchfield, Conn., her mother being related to the Adams family of Massachusetts, of National reputation. Three children were born of this union: May, the eldest, is the wife of George W. S. Allen, a merchant of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa; James Timothy is a bookkeeper of the National State Bank of Mt. Pleasant; Henry C., the youngest, is a student of the Chicago Medical College. Mr. Whiting has served as City Treasurer and as School Treasurer of Mt. Pleasant, and is a Republican in politics. Her inherits the sterling qualities of his honored father, being a good financier and a thorough business man, upright and just. He is liberal in support of educational and religious institutions. Both he and his wife are members of the First Presbyterian Church, of which he has been for the past twenty years Ruling Elder, and for nearly twenty years was Superintendent of the Sabbath-school connected with the church.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 393.)

   Timothy Whiting

TIMOTHY WHITING, deceased, late President of the National State Bank of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, and one of the most prominent and honored citizens of that place, was born at Brewer, Penobscot Co., Me., Feb. 7, 1809. His father, Col. John Whiting, removed to Steuben County, N. Y., when our subject was but six years of age, and there engaged in farming. the succeeding nine years were passed upon his father's farm. His primary education was obtained at the district school. When fifteen he entered Prattsburg Academy, where he completed his studies. Upon leaving the academy he engaged as a merchant's clerk on the munificent salary of $50 a year and board. By diligent and faithful attention to duty he soon secured an advanced salary, and by frugal and economical habits acquired sufficient capital to engage in business. When twenty years of age he formed a partnership with another young man, and engaged in the mercantile business at Painted Post. The venture proved unfortunate on account of the mismanagement of his partner, and a failure was the result, leaving quite an excess of liabilities over the assets of the firm. Mr. Whiting, by perseverance and industry, succeeded in paying every cent of their joint obligations. Thus he established a reputation for those sterling qualities of integrity and honesty that were his ruling characteristics through life. He continued in business in Steuben County until 1857, when he removed to Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, being attracted to that city by its superior school and academic facilities, where his children might receive their education while remaining at home. On coming to Mt. Pleasant he engaged in banking, which business largely occupied his time until his death, which occurred Feb. 6, 1887, on the last day of his seventy-seventh year. He was one of the founders of the Mt. Pleasant branch of the Iowa State Bank, in 1858, and was its Cashier and controlling spirit, and its representative in the State Board of Directors. This board was composed of the leading financiers of the State, whose duty it was to supervise the different branches of the State Bank in the various cities where located. Mr. Whiting's keen business tact and financial ability and thorough knowledge of the true principles of banking were soon recognized by his associates. He became an influential member of the board, and maintained that position during his connection with it. In February, 1865, the Mt. Pleasant branch of the State Bank was re-organized, and chartered as the National State Bank of Mt. Pleasant, with Mr. Whiting as President and his son John as Cashier. Mr. Whiting continued to serve as President and was the chief manager of the bank up to within a short time prior to his death, covering a period of twenty-two years. Under his wise supervision the bank pursued a prosperous and successful course, and became one of the solid financial institutions of the State. Mr. Whiting was noted for his strict performance of duty, punctuality and persevering industry. He usually walked from his residence in suburbs of the city to the bank early in the morning. When the bank opened at 8 o'clock he always had any business that was in arrears the day before well in hand, and was ready to give prompt attention to the business of the day. His unfailing punctuality was one of the secrets of his great success in business. It is said of him that during the thirty years of his active business life at Mt. Pleasant he was never known to be tardy in keeping an appointment unless prevented by unavoidable accident. He never sought or would accept public office or political preferment. He did yield so far to the urgent solicitation of friends as to serve as Trustee of the State Hospital for the Insane at Mt. Pleasant, filling the position of President of the board for eleven years, during which time he discharged the duties devolving upon him with his usual fidelity and earnestness.

He united with the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1831, and remained a consistent member of that society through life. He was ever active and liberal in support of all departments of church work. During the greater part of his residence at Mt. Pleasant he served as Superintendent of the Sunday-school, and for a number of years he filled the position of President of the County Sunday-School Association. Applying himself with his usual energy and methodical industry to the business at hand, he made the Sunday-school an important adjunct to the church. For twenty years he served as President of the Henry County Bible Society, and by his liberality and zeal made this one of the most reliable counties the State in this field of religious work. It was not his custom to take part in public exhibitions of generosity. He had no patience with such displays; but his warm sympathies and liberal aid were easily enlisted to help any laudable cause. All pretensions and shams he hated intensely. His deeds of charity were privately performed, and it pleased him best to have the good deed done without being identified with the act. Yet, when circumstances required a public effort to arouse a general giving he never hesitated to take the lead. Among the latest of his acts of public generosity was a donation of $5,000 to the Iowa Wesleyan University of Mt. Pleasant, on the condition that a like sum should be raised elsewhere for its assistance. Mr. Whiting was a great student through life, and his mind was richly stored with practical knowledge. His opinions were based on close investigation and careful analysis, and his conclusions when reached were convictions. His temperate and orderly life preserved his physical and mental faculties with unusual vigor in his old age, so that while approaching fourscore years he continued to visit the office regularly and give personal attention to his extensive business.

Mr. Whiting was united in marriage at Painted Post, N. Y., Dec. 18, 1833, to Miss Sarah A. McCall, daughter of Ansel and Ann (Shannon) McCall, and a native of that town. For nearly fifty-four years the married life of this aged couple had been an honor to each other and the communities where they resided. Faithful in their united devotion - each an unselfish helpmeet to the other - their lives were blended in the most harmonious relations. Four years prior to Mr. Whiting's death they celebrated their golden wedding, surrounded by their children, grandchildren and friends. They were the parents of eleven children, seven sons and four daughters, of whom seven are now living, viz: John H., residing at Mt. Pleasant (see sketch); Henry, now a resident of Florida; Charles H., a book-keeper in Chicago, Ill.; Samuel S., a mercantile salesman in Minneapolis, Minn.; Frank H., proprietor of a foundry and machine-shop at Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Anne E., wife of Prof. J. H. Hopkins, Principal of the High School at Ypsilanti, Mich.; Sophia E., wife of Robert S. Gillis, Cashier of the National Bank of Mt. Pleasant (see sketch). Four of the children are now deceased. Mrs. Whiting is living in the old home, corner of 
Adams and Henry streets, Mt. Pleasant, and is now in her seventy-fifth year.

Mr. Whiting was a prominent and representative citizen of Mt. Pleasant, and worthy of the honor of the portrait which appears on a preceding page.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 561-63.)

William Henry Whitney 

WILLIAM HENRY WHITNEY, architect, carpenter and builder, Mr. Pleasant, Iowa, was born in Ross County, Ohio, Feb. 7, 1840, and is the son of William and Mary A. (Ressel) Whitney, the former a native of Connecticut and the latter of Pennsylvania. They were married in Ross County, Ohio, to which point their respective families had moved at an early day. William, who traces his ancestry back to nearly 1400 - is of English descent, and early in life learned the trade of a blacksmith, at which trade he worked for many years. In 1845 he moved with his family to Indiana, locating first in Putnam County, where he remained a short time, and then moved to Montgomery, and later to Tippecanoe County, in the same State. While in Indiana he combined farming with blacksmithing. In 1854 he moved to Mt. Pleasant, Henry Co., Iowa, where he remained a short time, working at his trade, and then moved to a farm in Marion Township, having entered 160 acres of land. Later he sold sixty acres, retaining the remainder till his removal to Nebraska, in February, 1888. To William and Mary A. Whitney were born six children, of whom five are yet living. Mrs. Whitney dying in 1859, in 1861 Mr. Whitney wedded Anna Eliza Miller, by whom had two children. For many years William Whitney has been a devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

When the family came to Iowa, William H. Whitney, of whom we write, was fourteen years of age. He soon afterward engaged to learn the carpenter's trade, which he mastered, and in 1860 married Miss Angelina Miller, daughter of Arthur Miller. Two children were born of their union: Mary F., born Nov. 15, 1861, and William A., born June 21, 1863. The former is now living in Colorado, and latter died July 15, 1872. Mrs. Whitney died shortly after the birth of her second child, and Dec. 6, 1867, Mr. Whitney wedded Miss Nancy A. Lamb, daughter of Jacob and Sidney (Ferrell) Lamb. She was born March 10, 1848, in Fulton County, Ill.  Four children were born of the latter marriage, all sons. Charles H. was born Sept. 25, 1868; John L., Jan. 1, 1870, George W., July 17, 1871; Edwin, March 2, 1873.

Mr. Whitney has been engaged in his occupation of contracting and building for upward of twenty-five years, and in that time has erected many of the best public and private buildings in Henry County, among which may be mentioned the residences of P. Summers, Walter Gamage, James Harlan, Jacob Housman, Le Grand Chandler, Wesley Greenfield, Daugherty and Comick. The Catholic Church at Mt. Pleasant, destroyed by the cyclone of July, 1882, was rebuilt by him, and in the summer and fall of 1887 he erected a handsome church building for the Methodist Episcopal Society of New London. He is a first-class mechanic and a fine draughtsman.

Politically Mr. Whitney is a Democrat, and socially a member of the K. of L., and the Good Templars. In the latter body Mrs. Whitney is also a member. Both are members of the Christian Church, at Mt. Pleasant, in which they take a lively interest, generally being found in their accustomed place during the hours of worship.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 357-58.)

William H. H. Willeford 

LIEUT. WILLIAM H. H. WILLEFORD, one of the representative farmers of Center Township, a son of John Willeford, whose sketch appears elsewhere in this work, was born in Henry County, Iowa, Oct. 2, 1840. Here he was reared upon his father's farm, his early education being received in the common schools, supplemented by a partial course in the Howe Academy at Mt. Pleasant. On the 11th day of August, 1862, W. H. H. Willeford offered his services to Uncle Same to help preserve our Union, enlisting in the 25th Iowa Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered into service at Camp McKean, near Mt. Pleasant, and at the time was made a Corporal of Company H, but was promoted to Sergeant and subsequently to Second Lieutenant. He participated in all the engagements after going to the field, among which were many sharp fights. After leaving Mt. Pleasant, he went to Helena, Ark., remaining there until February, 1863, when he went with the regiment to Vicksburg, where the first assault was made under Gen. Sherman, in which battle Sherman got the name Crazy Bill. From Vicksburg they proceeded up the river, where Lieut. Willeford participated in the first general engagement. The regiment then was sent to Young's Point, where it assisted in building a canal; their next expedition was under Gen. Steele, to Grenada, Miss., and then to Milliken's Bend; they then proceeded to Champion Hills and subsequently to Black River Bridge, and from there to Messenger Ferry. Returning to Vicksburg the regiment participated in its siege and capture, being under fire for forty-seven days, and sere situated on the extreme right of Sherman's army. They were at Jackson, Miss., participating in the second fight at that place, then proceeding to Canton, Miss.  Shortly after going into camp at Black River, in the winter of 1863-64, our gallant soldier, with 100 others, was chosen from the 15th Corps as sharpshooters, being on detached duty for eleven months. The following spring the regiment marches to Cherokee Station and from there to Lookout Mountain. While crossing the Tennessee River at Chickasaw and East Port, the regiment was heavily pressed by the rebels. Here Sergt. Willeford had charge of the guard. They were engaged in the battles of Missionary Ridge, Roseville Gap and Ringgold, where there was some heavy fighting. The regiment was in several engagements in front of Atlanta, also in the famous march to the sea. They took an active part in the capture of Columbia, S. C., being the first regiment to cross Broad River. Their last engagement was at Bentonville, N. C., from which place they marched to Washington and were mustered out, receiving payment for their services at Davenport, Iowa.

On the 3d day of April, 1862, Lieut. Willeford was united in marriage with Miss Harriet T. Lee, born in Louisa County, Iowa, Jan. 29, 1842. She is the daughter of William H. and Mary Lee, who settled in Louisa County in 1835. By this union there are two living children - Mary G. and Minnie M.  Mr. Willeford is one of the working members of the G. A. R. Post, of Mt. Pleasant, as is his wife of the Relief Corps. Mr. Willeford has always lived in Henry County, and although comparatively a young man he has done much toward advancing the interests of the community.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 452-53.)

John Hubbard Williams 

JOHN HUBBARD WILLIAMS, a farmer of Baltimore Township, was born near White Water, Ind., in 1842, and is the son of John W. and Catharine (Deardoff) Williams. The former was a native of Maryland, while his wife was of German ancestry, but was born in Union County, Ind.  While in Indiana Cynthia A., Lucinda, Jonas and John H. were born. In 1843 the family removed to Des Moines County, Iowa, and were among the early settlers in that county. Lands were entered and frequent changes were made by Mr. Williams in real estate, but the lands first entered are now in possession of his son-in-law, Joseph Cresap. After Mr. Williams located in Des Moines County, other children were born - Rebecca, Sarah E., George W., Margaret C., Matilda, Emily M., Franklin B., Alegelena, and Laura, who died in infancy. The others reached adult age.

John W. Williams brought considerable money to this State and prior to his death accumulated a large property. He was a heavy dealer in stock, and before railroads were built drove his stock to market. In Indiana he drove his stock to Cincinnati, and was there, as in Iowa, a large dealer. He was an active business man and died in 1881 at a ripe age. His widow survives him and is now in her sixty-ninth year. John W. Williams was early official of Des Moines County, Iowa, and several terms served as Trustee. Of his children all were married except the infant mentioned. Cynthia wedded Elias G. Rowe; Lucinda married Elisha Gappen; Jonas wedded Amanda R. Armstrong; Rebecca was the wife of Alex Jacoby; Sarah A. became the wife of Byron Lilly; George W. married Sarah Sibert; Margaret C. became the wife of Joseph Cresap; Matilda is the wife of Emory Knickerbocker; Emily M. is the wife of John Bishop; Franklin B. is the husband of Flora Parrot, and Algelena is the wife of Milton McDonald.

Our subject was married in Des Moines County, Nov. 25, 1862, to Miss Mary E., daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Mathias) Dickey. Her father was a native of Indiana and his wife of Kentucky. They were married in Des Moines County, in 1843. Burlington consisted of a few log cabins at that time, and Mr. and Mrs. Dicky saw the entire growth of that now prosperous city. Neither of the parents of Mrs. Williams are living, but their memory is sacred and rendered doubly dear as she was their only child, and upon her a wealth of love and care was lavished. In 1873 Mr. Dicky removed to Oregon. His wife Elizabeth died some years before, and Mr. Dicky became the husband of Mary E. (Furry) Dickey, who was, prior to the latter marriage, the wife of his brother Isaac. Mr. Dicky's death took place in Trinity County, Cal.

Mr. and Mrs. Williams remained in Des Moines County until their removal, in 1878, to Henry County. He also owned a steam sawmill in that county, which he operated in connection with his farm. His place in this county was purchased in 1878, and is now a handsome and finely improved estate. His taste for machinery still continues, and he is the owner of a mill which he erected on his own land since he came to this county. He also runs a steam thrasher, and in 1887 thrashed over 60,000 bushels of grain. He is a practical machinist, having learned the trade in McCormick's great factory in Chicago, in 1864. he is the inventor of one of the most perfect traction engines that has to this date been used on the road, and over all over competitors was awarded the first prize at the Burlington Exposition, in 1885. Mr. Williams is an enterprising and industrious citizen, as was his father before him, and the family are highly spoken of by their neighbors, and by all who know them. A man of enterprise and character he takes a leading place in the community.

To Mr. and Mrs. Williams have been born nine children - George W., Charles E., Orel P., Frank L., Hubbard G., Daisy B., Samuel A., Robert C. and Mary Edith. Theirs is indeed a happy home. The silent reaper has passed it by and the family circle remains unbroken. There is not a man in this part of the county who does not know and appreciate the genial and gentlemanly J. Hubbard Williams, and in their pleasant farmhouse the good wife and mother does her part to make life pleasant and profitable. We welcome the family to a place among the best in this township.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 597-98.)

Stephen Williams 

STEPHEN WILLIAMS, a prominent farmer and early settler of Henry County, Iowa, residing on section 13, Baltimore Township, was born in Union County, Ind., May 17, 1824, and came to Iowa in March, 1843. His parents, Nehemiah and Cynthia (Bowden) Williams, were natives of Maryland. The father was born in 1787, and died in 1839, and the mother was born Oct. 7, 1788, and died Oct. 14, 1877.

Our subject spent his early life in his native county in Indiana, and when fifteen years of age removed with his parents to Montgomery County, in the same State. In March, 1843, he emigrated to Iowa, and located in Baltimore Township, where he staid for two years. The following twelve years he spent in Des Moines County, then coming to his present home, where he has since resided. He purchased the farm he occupies in 1861, or a part of it, and has since added to it, having now a well-improved and valuable farm of 302 acres, 100 acres of it being in Des Moines County. His trading town and post-office is Danville, Des Moines County. Mr. Williams was married, Oct. 7, 1849, to Miss Sarah A. Demoss, daughter of Elijah and Margaret (Watkins) Demoss. Mrs. Williams was born in Union County, Ohio, July 7, 1833. Her father was born in Ohio, and her mother in New Jersey, and the family emigrated to Des Moines County, Iowa, in 1847. Both died in Louisa County. Of their children Mrs. Williams is the only survivor. Six children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Williams, three sons and three daughters, of whom two only are now living: Margaret was born July 16, 1850, and is the wife of Rev. John Shepherd, a minister of the Christian Church, and a resident of Danville, Des Moines Co., Iowa, and has two children - Druzella and Nellie; Cynthia J. was born July 26, 1853, and died Aug. 15, 1855; George, born Dec. 30, 1854, married Eliza Howe, and is a farmer of Baltimore Township, and has three children - Lennie Cline, Stephen and Lutie Della; Daniel M., born July 22, 1837, died Feb. 8, 1877; he was the husband of Catherine Krekel, who resides in Baltimore Township. Two died in infancy.

While Mr. Williams was a resident of Des Moines County he for five years ran a sawmill in this county, keeping his home, however, in the former. He as also for a year in the same business in Des Moines County, principally engaged in getting out ties for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company.

Mr. Williams has served several years as Township Trustee, and has held other minor offices. He is a Democrat in politics, and is a member of the Christian Church. he is also a member of Danville Lodge No. 48, A. F & A. M., and has taken the Master's degree. Mrs. Williams is also a member of the Christian Church, and is highly esteemed for many excellent qualities of head and heart. Mr. Williams is widely and favorably known as an upright, industrious man, whose whole course of life has been free from reproach, and whose honest and kindly way has won him hosts of friends.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 379-80.)

DAVID O. WILSON, residing on section 3, Trenton Township, Henry County, was born in Rockbridge County, Va., March 13, 1837. His parents, William and Ellen (Orbison) Wilson, were also natives of Rockbridge County, Va.  They came to this county in 1857, and settled in Trenton Township, where he was employed as a cabinet-maker in Trenton, which trade he followed until his death, which occurred Aug. 8, 1877. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and was Justice of the Peace for a number of years in Trenton Township. He was a Democrat in politics, and took an active interest in all political affairs. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson were the parents of seven children, of whom our subject was the eldest. John C., the second child, died while in the service of his country as a member of the 1st Iowa Volunteer Cavalry, at Butler, Mo., Aug. 6, 1862; James, also a soldier in the same regiment, died at Benton Barracks, St. Louis, Nov. 30, 1861; William now lives in Trenton, and is a painter by trade; C. Givens, a farmer of Marion Township; Charles is a resident of Trenton; Nannie M., wife of Oliver Cavenee, died March 21, 1878. The mother of these children still resides in Trenton, at the age of seventy-two, and is a member of the Presbyterian Church.

David O. Wilson, our subject, was reared upon a farm, and all his life has been spent in tilling the soil. He was married, April 3, 1862, to Ann Morrison, a native of the county, and a daughter of Joseph Morrison, whose sketch appears elsewhere in this volume. Seven children have been born to this worthy couple: Ada, born March 29, 1863, died Jan. 20, 1881; Clarence, born Jan. 23, 1866, died Oct. 21, 1887; he was a student at the Business College in Burlington. May, born May 25, 1872, died Oct. 21, 1878; Harry, born Oct. 25, 1875, resides at home; Nellie, born April 30, 1880, died April 21, 1881, and James, born Nov. 14, 1884, completes the family now living; one son died in infancy.

Mr. Wilson is a member of the Presbyterian Church and his wife of the Christian Church. His business is that of general farming, and he owns 180 acres of fine land in Trenton Township. Politically he is a Republican, and was elected Justice of the Peace of the township. His is well known and universally respected throughout the county.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 356-57.)

   Theron Webb Woolson 

THERON WEBB WOOLSON, deceased, who became a citizen of Henry County in 1856, was during his residence here one of its foremost citizens, and a leader in its public, professional, social and religious circles. A man of marked personality, of great ability, of unswerving uprightness of character, of the strictest professional integrity, conscientious and fearless in the discharge of every duty, public or private, he possessed all the requisites for leadership. His mind was trained, and his character formed in the school of necessity, and the lessons there learned were never forgotten. He was born at Lisbon, N. H., on the 28th of October, 1811, and was a son of a New England farmer. His mother's Christian name was Rebecca. Some years after the birth of the subject of this memoir, his parents removed to St. Lawrence County, N. Y., where both died, the father leaving his widow and nine children in straitened circumstances. Before that event young Theron had become a bread winner, and was hired out to farmers in the neighborhood. His only actual schooling was during this time, when he attended the district school four winter terms, his liberal education being entirely self-acquired. He was of an active, susceptible temperament, with an ardent desire for knowledge, and from his early youth showed the love of reading which clung to him all his lifetime. A physician in whose employ he was about this time, observing his intelligence and thirst for learning, gave him free access to his library, whose contents he soon mastered, also reading all other books accessible, which were by no means numerous in country neighborhoods in that day.

An elder brother who had remained in New Hampshire, had a merchant tailoring establishment in Littleton, in that State. Theron was apprenticed to him, and he devoted himself with characteristic ardor to mastering that trade, at which he soon became an adept. While working at it he kept up his reading and study, and soon attracted the attention of the pastor of the church of which he was an attendant. This man was highly educated himself, and recognizing a kindred spirit in the studious young tailor, gave him lessons in the higher English branches in mathematics, and in Latin, hearing his recitations evenings. Close attention to his trade, coupled with his studious habits, told on a not over rugged constitution, and out-door work became a necessity. He procured employment as a wood worker, and after a time was given charge of a foot-lathe. His health was benefited by the change, and he at the same time made opportunity to continue his studies while at his labor, having his book before him, reading, and digesting what he read while he worked.

With restored health he sought more congenial employment, and having thoroughly qualified himself, procured a position as teacher, first in New Hampshire, and afterward in St. Lawrence County, N. Y.  The characteristics of impressing his ideas on others, and of acquiring control over those with whom he came into contact, here found an opportunity for development. His schools came to be considered models for order and for the rapid mental growth of his pupils. His earnestness impressed the scholars, and the result was shown in their rapid advance. He followed this profession until 1835, when he determined to go farther west, and establish himself in what he designed should be his permanent life-work. Stopping at Tonawanda, Erie Co., N. Y., he engaged, temporarily as he supposed, as clerk and book-keeper in a large general store. His business habits, close attention, and strict integrity, soon won recognition, and by degrees the proprietor leaned more and more on his employe [sic], until the care and management of the entire business devolved upon him, and the business which he had taken up, as he supposed, but for a time, became the work of his early manhood. In this he continued for several years, but having more knowledge than any other person in the locality of legal and business matters, he inevitably drifted into the position of adviser and counselor of many people there, who came to reply upon his judgment and character. He engaged extensively in conveyancing, and was elected Justice of the Peace, which undoubtedly gave him the bent which in later years led him into the practice of the law, which he studied, and to the practice of which he was admitted at Buffalo, in that county. He embarked, and always successfully, in many enterprises at Tonawanda. For some years he had a shingle factory there, and he was the inventor of the process of steaming the blocks from which they were cut, greatly facilitating and cheapening their manufacture. He, with a brother-in-law, engaged largely in real-estate operations, and he laid out an addition to the town, and by his foresight and industry acquired a liberal fortune. He lived in Tonawanda for twenty-one years, and was a leading citizen of the town and county, often called upon to fill positions of trust. He was for years President of the Board of Trustees of the village, and head of the local educational board. He represented the town in the Board of Supervisors, of which he was Chairman, and he also filled the position of Loan Commissioner for the county. He was a truly representative citizen, who strongly impressed himself on those with whom he was associated, and had the respect and confidence of all who knew him, and wielded a great influence in the community. There, as later in Mt. Pleasant, he was foremost in advocating public improvements, and fostering worthy enterprises.

The rapidly growing State of Iowa attracted Mr. Woolson's attention, and he made a tour through it with the intention of seeking a home within its borders. The superior educational advantages of Mt. Pleasant determined his location here, and he removed to it in 1856, arriving here June 6 of that year. After coming to Mt. Pleasant, he devoted himself exclusively to the practice of the law, and formed a partnership with Henry Ambler, Esq., then the leading attorney of the city, and the firm at once took a prominent place among the lawyers of the State. Three years later the firm was dissolved, and Mr. Woolson associated with himself a son-in-law, Samuel McFarland, who entered the Union army during the Rebellion, became Colonel of the 19th Iowa Volunteers, and was killed while charging a rebel battery at Prairie Grove, Ark., in December, 1862. After this Mr. Woolson was alone until 1864, when he entered into partnership with P. N. Bowman, Esq., which continued until Sept. 6, 1866, when the latter retried, and the partnership with his son John S. was formed, which was unbroken until Mr. Woolson's death.

From an appreciative sketch of his career, written not long after Mr. Woolson's death, we extract the following:

  "That keen interest in educational matters which had characterized his former life, was carried to his new residence, and the cause of education found no more unselfish, zealous and considerable advocate and friend. He was for many years a member of the educational board of the city; for years its President, and aided largely, by his devotion, energy and ripe judgment, in placing the public schools of the city in their present well-deserved high position. To him the public-school system was a matter so sacred, so intimately connected with the public welfare and highest interests of the commonwealth, that its demands upon his time were always honored gladly and freely.

   "For a number of years he held the position of City Solicitor of the city, and he was for a number of terms its Mayor. As Mayor, he exhibited that decision of character, determination of purpose, and care for the interests intrusted to him, which were marked features of his whole life. An illustration can be given, taken from his entrance upon his duties as Mayor. By resolution of the City Council, there had been submitted to vote of the electors, at the election at which he was first elected Mayor (and when, also, a new Council was elected), the question of reducing the license upon billiard tables, which was then substantially a prohibitory license, and by a considerable majority the electors refused to sanction any reduction. The day arrived for the meeting of the Council at which the votes of the election were to be canvassed, and when the old Council and the Mayor were to step out and the newly elected step into office. The old Council had a strong majority of its members who were in favor of reducing the license, while the newly elected Council were opposed to such reduction. Mr. Woolson had intimations of an expected attempt by the old Council to pass - in the face of the vote just cast by the people against such a step - an ordinance reducing the license on the tables, and, preparing for it, he subscribed the oath of office as Mayor, and quietly stepped, with other citizens, into the council chamber to witness the proceedings of the canvass. When the Council had been called to order, a motion was made to proceed to the canvass of the votes, a proceeding which had customarily been the first business of such a meeting. But those in charge of it had determined to pass the ordinance reducing the license, and, having the voting power, they compelled the canvass to give way to the consideration of the ordinance, which passed through its first and second readings, and was about to be put on its passage, and the vote to be taken. At this juncture, and when it had become apparent that the opponents of the measure were powerless to prevent its adoption, and that it was the settled purpose of the retiring members to defeat, by this unusual proceeding, the expressed will of the city, Mr. Woolson stepped forward, handed to the City Clerk his oath of office, and demanded of the Mayor his seat as the duly elected Mayor of the city, which was yielded to him. The roll call proceeded. Mr. Woolson directed the Clerk to call his name, and cast his vote against the ordinance. This vote, in connection with his firm action in the chair, effectually checkmated the conspirators, defeated the ordinance, and thus secured the triumph of the expressed popular will.

   "Mr. Woolson was a member, and the Chairman of the first Board of Supervisors of this county, and for years held the position of Attorney for the county.

   "In 1861 he was elected to the State Senate from this county, and re-elected in 1865. He was a member of the Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth General Assemblies. In the Senate he was a leading member, serving on its most important committees, and exercising a large influence in shaping the legislation of that body, and held by vote of the Senate, the position of President's pro tem. It has been truly said of him, that he here 'sustained a reputation not only for earnest, upright honesty, but for the highest skill and ability as a legislator.'"

As an illustration of the estimate put upon Mr. Woolson by his fellow Senators, we quote from a letter received by his son, Hon. John S. Woolson, in November, 1887, from Hon. Warren S. Dungan, now a member of the Senate, and Chairman of the Judiciary Committee of that body during the first year of Mr. Woolson's service:

   "I am reminded of the winter I spent in Des Moines with your father, in the Senate of the Ninth General Assembly, in 1862. . . He was the best posted on the statutes of the State of any Senator. He knew at a glance how any measure proposed compared with the law as it existed. He was always ready and on the alert, genial but dignified; a noble Senator, doing honor to his constituents, and noble service to the State. Let us emulate his example."

Mr. Woolson was a Senator throughout the war of the Rebellion, and by voice, vote, pen and purse, was a determined, effective supporter of the Government. The editor of the Mt. Pleasant Journal being in the military service, Mr. Woolson assumed his duties, and during his editorship the paper never gave forth an uncertain sound on National matters, but was always an earnest supporter of the cause of National unity. Not only in State and National matters did Mr. Woolson take an active interest, and act a leading part. As a citizen of Mt. Pleasant, every movement looking toward the moral and material advancement of the city found in him a hearty supporter. Early in life he was a believer in the doctrines of the Democratic party, but when that party became, in his judgment, unfaithful to its professed principles, he left its ranks, and thereafter was a Republican. He was a member of the first Republican convention held at Buffalo, N. Y., and participated actively and influentially in the councils of the party. He was a delegate from this State to the National Convention which first nominated Gen. Grant for President.

His religious associations were with the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he was a member form 1836. He united with the Asbury (now First) Methodist Episcopal Church, after coming to Mt. Pleasant, and was for many years a member of its official board, and a zealous, consistent member of the church until his death.

September 1, 1836, Mr. Woolson was married to Clarissa Simson, who proved herself a devoted wife and loving mother. She died suddenly, March 7, 1862, while he was absent in the Legislature, of which he was then a member. She left three daughters: Mrs. Peter Melendy, now of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Mrs. R. J. Borghlothaus, of Minneapolis, Minn.; and Mrs. M. W. Darling, of Sioux City, Iowa; also one son, John S., whom see sketch on another page. June 26, 1865, Mr. Woolson was united in marriage with Anna Carney, who with her son, J. Leigh, now survives.

Mr. Woolson's death was sudden and unexpected. On Nov. 7, 1872, he was at his office preparing for the approaching term of Court. For several days he had been somewhat unwell, and in the afternoon of that day was feeling so much worse that he retired to his home. Within two hours of that time he was attacked with acute cholera morbus, so violent in its action as to closely simulate Asiatic cholera. The attack was so violent that in a few hours hope was almost abandoned, and when his wife (who had been absent with a sick daughter) arrived home at 9 P. M., his life was despaired of. He lingered until 4:20 P. M. of the next day, when the great soul was released from the overtasked body, passing peacefully away. His funeral on November 10 was attended by a large concourse of mourning friends, and by the bar of the county, who attended in a body. His remains were interred in Forest Home Cemetery, in the city in which his riper years had been spent, and of which he was, with possibly a single exception, the foremost citizen.

On the following day, at the opening of the District Court, a committee, previously appointed at a meeting of the members of bar, presented resolutions adopted by that body, which were placed upon the records of the court. Judge Joshua Tracy, in well chosen words, paid the following tribute to the memory of Mr. Woolson:

The resolutions just read, commemorative of the death of our friend and professional brother, express in appropriate terms the many estimable traits of character he possessed. They also express the great grief and heartfelt sorrow experienced by his family and the community at large at the loss of one whose place at home, in society and in church, cannot be filled.

His character for strict professional integrity, honesty of purpose and courteous deportment, was such as to endear him to everyone who became intimately acquainted with him.

To those of us who have been so intimately acquainted with him for the last sixteen years in the practice of the legal profession, these traits of character of our departed friend will serve to guide us upon our professional pathway, and, it may be hoped, will lead us to that point of true worth and greatness which he occupied when he ceased to be one among us.

It is worthy of remark upon this solemn occasion, that although our deceased friend possessed a nervous, sensitive cast of temperament, and that in the practice of his profession he was ardently devoted to his client's cause, yet no matter how close the contest, or heated the discussion in which he was engaged, he never so far forgot the character of the true professional gentleman, as to be guilty of applying to his opponent unkind words, or opprobrious epithets, and his conduct toward the Court in the management and argument of his causes was always equally commendable.

By the death of Theron W. Woolson, society has lost an honored, valuable member, the State an able legislator, the church of of which he was a member a true Christian, the legal profession an able advocate, and his bereaved family a kind-hearted and devoted husband and father.

With mournful pleasure, it is ordered that the resolutions presented be spread upon the records of this court; and as a further token of respect to the memory of our departed friend, it is ordered the Court do now adjourn.

Committees were appointed to present the resolutions to the Supreme Court of the State, and also to the United States Circuit Court for this State, in both of which he had an extensive practice.

The Board of Supervisors of the county, for whom Mr. Woolson was at the time of his death counsel, also took formal action in the passage of this resolution:

Be it resolved by the Board of Supervisors of Henry County, now in session, That is is with feelings of profound regret that we learn of the death of a former honorable member and Chairman of this board, and for a long time its principal attorney and advisor, Hon. Theron W. Woolson; and it is with great pleasure we record our administration of the fidelity of his conduct in all those relations, discharging them with promptness, great good judgment and ability; and we hereby express and tender to the family of the deceased our heartfelt sympathy.

The press of the whole State, and of both political parties, noticed in fitting terms and with expressions of appreciative feelings, his life and death. From his political and professional associates many letters were received by his family, all expressive of their profound sorrow at his sudden and untimely death.

It is difficult concisely, yet fully, to express the proper estimate of a life so well rounded, so symmetrical as a whole, and yet possessing in so many directions such marked peculiarities. Perhaps the characteristic best remembered by his intimate friends as pervading his whole life, and lighting up his daily walk, was the entire faithfulness, the thorough conscientiousness, with which he applied himself the performance of duty, in whatever direction that duty lay. As a lawyer he was regarded as pre-eminently a safe counselor, and had the justly deserved reputation of a dissuader from litigation, often inducing clients to settle amicably rather than by active proceedings, a trait in his admirable character which was fully appreciated by the better promised to the "peacemaker." No client, constituent or employer ever had occasion to complain of lack, on his part, of thorough application to the matters place in his charge. To this application he brought a mind naturally strong and clear, which had been matured by close observation and continuous study. His mind was eminently judicial, and had he been called to the bench, he would have graced the highest position. His record as a citizen, lawyer, official and legislator, shows his faithful attention, his ripe judgment, his intellectual strength and his purity of life.

Yet that record is not complete without mention of his home life. He was peculiarly domestic in his tastes and desires, and no happiness was so keenly appreciated by him as that which came from the surroundings of family and friends at home. The shadows and perplexities of business or official life he left outside the threshold, and to family and friends under his own roof-tree was fully shown the genuine hospitality of his nature. In his later years, the enjoyment he realized from his home life perceptibly increased, and his distaste for the strifes and conflicts of public life became stronger, until prospect and promise of official station alike failed to induce him to submit again to the disagreeable accompaniments of public position. No truer father or devoted husband ever gladdened a happy home. In all the relations of life he "fought a good fight," he "kept the faith," and his memory is precious not only the family he trained to follow in his footsteps, but to all who had the privilege of knowing him.

The admirable portrait of Mr. Woolson, on a preceding page, will preserve to his many friends the lineaments of this great man as he appeared in his mature years. It is one that adds great value to this volume, and our readers will thank us for inserting it.

(Portrait and Biographical Album, Henry County, Iowa; Acme Publishing Company, Chicago, 1888, p. 439-43.)

John Wesley Zickefoose

There is perhaps no line of business that demands more close and unremitting effort than does farming and yet there is none which yields more safe or sure returns than this same occupation if pursued in a district where the land is naturally rich and productive as it is in Iowa, responding readily to the care and labor bestowed upon it. Mr. Zickefoose has verified the truth of this assertion in the control and improvement of his excellent farm, which is situated on section 11, Wayne township. He is moreover a native son of this township, born October 17, 1860.

His father, Henry Clark Zickefoose, was born in Virginia and was a son of Benjamin Zickefoose, who was likewise a native of that state. Having reached adult age the grandfather married Susan Buzzard, who was also born in the Old Dominion. They came to Henry county among its pioneer settlers and their first dwelling was little more than a rail pen which furnished them shelter for a brief period until a log house could be built. In that pioneer structure they lived for many years and it was in this county amid pioneer surroundings and environments that Henry Clark Zickefoose was reared, sharing with the family in all the hardships and trials incident to frontier life. He wedded Miss Mary Ann Yancey, who was born in the state of Indiana, September 27, 1841, and was a daughter of Ambrose and Phebe Jane (Goff) Yancey, who were also natives of that state.

The Yancey family arrived in Henry county sometime after the arrival of the Zickefoose family and settled in Canaan township near Mount Pleasant, where the daughter, Mary Ann, remained with her parents until she gave her hand in marriage to Henry C. Zickefoose on the 11th of January, 1859. The young couple then removed to a farm in the northern part of Wayne township, where they lived until 1862, when Mr. Zickefoose responded to his country's call for aid, his sympathies being with the Union cause. He joined Company H of the Twenty-fifth Iowa Infantry and was ever a brave and loyal soldier. Although he entered the army as a private he was serving as sergeant at the time of his death. He went to the south and laid down his life upon the altar of his country, being killed in the battle of Arkansas Post on the 11th January, 1863. His widow remained with her son John Wesley upon the old homestead property until February, 1902, when they sold a portion of that farm and bought one hundred and twenty-five acres of improved land on section 11, Wayne township, known as the Squire Hammond farm. Although that farm was in possession of different people at different times it was owned by J.W. Hammond for twelve years, during which time he erected thereon a splendid country residence containing nine rooms and heated with furnace. It is one of the finest homes in the township. The mother lived with her son John up to the time of her demise, which occurred on the 25th of April, 1902.

John Wesley Zickefoose, reared under the parental roof, acquired his education in the common schools and in Howe's Academy at Mount Pleasant. He was less than two years of age at the time of his father's death but he remained upon the old homestead with his mother and as he grew in years and strength relieved her more and more of the responsibilities and care connected with the home farm and in her declining years provided for her a good home. He has always followed farming and as before stated continued upon the farm which his father had purchased until February, 1902, when he removed to section 11, Wayne township, purchasing here one hundred and twenty-five acres of land. He has a splendidly improved property equipped with modern buildings. He remodeled the barn which is twenty-four by sixty feet with an L, eighteen by sixty feet. This was unroofed by the cyclone in 1903, but he at once repaired the damages. He has built a double corn crib and a granary, also sheds for hogs and he has a well upon the place on hundred and eighty feet deep. There is also a good carriage and implement house and he likewise has the latest improved machinery, with which he performs the work of the fields. He still retains the ownership of twenty-five acres of timberland in Crawford township, Washington county, which is valuable oak timber. This was a portion of the land which his grandfather originally owned and he uses the tract only for pasturage and also takes fence posts from it.

His labors are in the line of general agriculture and in addition to the tilling of the soil he raises some stock, now having ten head of Black Percheron and five head of Hambletonian horses, fifteen head of Durham cattle and one hundred and fifty-five head of Poland China hogs. He also raises about five hundred chickens each year and about sixty turkeys.

On the 19th of December, 1883, Mr. Zickefoose was married to Miss Olletha Jackson, a native of Louisa county, who was educated in the public schools there. Her parents were Elias Gibson and Margaret (Beauchamp) Jackson, the former a native of White county, Indiana, and the latter of Tippecanoe county, that state. Her paternal grandparents were Joseph and Phebe (Cox) Jackson and her maternal grandparents were John and Nancy (Wilson) Beauchamp.

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Zickefoose have been born eight children: Henry Clark, born January 12, 1884; Alta May, April 13, 1888; Howard Gibson, April 8, 1890; William Ernest, January 18, 1893; Russell Asbury, April 10, 1895; John W., February 2, 1900; Mary Edna, November 10, 1902; and Fredrick Merle, born in 1906.

Mr. Zickefoose has spent his entire life in Henry county and the fact that many who have known him form his boyhood days to the present are numbered among his staunchest friends is an indication that his has been an honorable and upright career worthy the respect which is so uniformly tendered him. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Congregational church, while politically he is a republican and has served as assessor since 1904.

(Biographical Review of Henry County, Iowa. Chicago: Hobart Publishing Co.,1906, p.449)(PE)