Keokuk County Iowa IAGenWeb - 1903 Biography

O. D. LAWRENCE, M.D

Dr. O. D. Lawrence is engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery at What Cheer, Iowa, and has that love for and devotion to his profession which have brought to him success and won for him a place among the ablest representatives of the medical fraternity in Keokuk county. The Doctor was born in St. Lawrence county, New York, July 5, 1844, and on the paternal side is probably of English descent, though the family have resided in this country for several generations. His grandfather, James Lawrence, was a native of Vermont and died in Wisconson at the advanced age of ninety years.

James R. Lawrence, the Doctor's father, was born in Addison county, Vermont, December 13, 1807, and throughout life followed the occupation of a farmer. On leaving his native state he removed to New York and in 1845 took up his residence in Morrow county, Ohio, where he made his home until coming to Keokuk county, Iowa, in 1854. Settling upon a tract of land in Washington township, which he entered from the government, he there improved a farm, continuing its cultivation until his death, which occurred on the 20th of December, 1879. Politically he was at first a supporter of the Whig party and later the Republican and he always took a commendable interest in public affairs. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Claramon Spaulding, was also a native of the Green Mountain state, born in Rutland county, Vermont, June 22, 1813, and died June 22, 1884, at Uinta, Utah. Her father was Stephen Greeley Spaulding, his mother having belonged to the noted Greeley family. On the paternal side his family was of German origin, and his ancestors settled in Boston, Massachusetts in 1626. He was born in that city on the 28th of October, 1766, and died in Essex county. New York, October 19, 1853. During the Revolutionary war he entered the Colonial army at the age of twelve years as a cook and at fifteen shouldered a musket, serving as a private soldier during the last three years of the struggle for independence and participating in the battle of Yorktown. Dr. Lawrence is the youngest son and third child in a family of five children, the others being as follows: Coral S., who died in Kansas in 1901; Miles, now a resident of Glenns Ferry, Idaho; Malinda, wife of John J. Smith of Bonner Springs, Kansas; and Joanna, who died October 21, 1868.

The Doctor was only a year old on the removal of the family to Morrow county, Ohio, and the fall after he had attained the age of ten years they came to Keokuk county, Iowa. He began his education in the former county and later attended the district schools of this county, though his literary education was principally acquired by reading and study at home. Until twenty years of age he gave his father the benefit of his labors in the operation of the home farm and the following two years worked on the farm of W. W. Thomas. On leaving the employ of that gentleman he made a trip to Indiana by team.

Returning to this county Dr. Lawrence was married on Christmas day, 1867, to Miss Elizabeth Thomas, a daughter of W. W. Thomas, with whom he continued to engage in farming until 1873, when he took up the study of medicine. On the 3d of September, that year,, he went to Chicago and entered the Bennett Eclectic Medical College, where he was graduated in 1874 with the degree of M.D., and has since successfully engaged in the practice of his chosen profession at What Cheer.

By his first marriage Dr. Lawrence had six children, namely: Minnie M. is now the wife of William Palmer, a farmer of Tyler. Minnesota, and has three children, Mildred, Ethel and the baby; Hode B., who is now clerking in What Cheer, married Amy Irwin of Keswick and has one son, Alton. Bert is at home with his parents. Charlie, a railroad man living in Madison, South Dakota, married Isabel Woolstoncroff and they have two daughters, Eunice and a baby. Daisy is the wife of Henry Thompson and has one son, Rufus. Frank married Maud Brainard and is now engaged in farming in Warren township, this county. The mother of these children died in 1892 and the Doctor was again married on the 8th of October, 1895, his second union being with Margaret Simpson.

Fraternally he is a prominent Mason, belonging to Universe Lodge, No. 242, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and Excelsior Chapter, No. 100, Royal Arch Mason, and politically he is identified with the Democratic party. A pleasant, genial gentleman, the Doctor wins friends wherever he goes, and is very popular with all classes of people.

WILLIAM LAWSON

William Lawson, a highly respected agriculturist of Steady Run, now residing on the fine old homestead in section 30, has attained prosperity and influence largely through the conscientious performance of filial duties and by following closely in the footsteps of his father. During his youth he was a co-worker with his father, and upon the death of the latter fell heir to a part of the family estate. And here, since a lad, he has spent his Hfe in the development of its large resources. Born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, March 7, 1825, he is the son of Hugh and Nancy (Murphy) Lawson, well-to-do farming people.

Hugh Lawson was one of those sturdy, hard-working Irishmen who have done so much for the development of the agricultural resources of this country. Born in Ireland in 1786, when but six weeks old he was taken by his parents to this country, and soon afterward to a Pennsylvania farm, where they made their home for the rest of their lives. Here the son received the education and rearing of an ordinary American farm lad. Upon reaching manhood he did not shun the labor to which he had been trained, and with a steadfast purpose settled upon a farm of his own. During this period, while still residing in Pennsylvania, he married Nancy Murphy, who was of Scotch descent, but who was born and reared in Pennsylvania. Of this union there were ten children, six sons and four daughters: James; William, who is mentioned below; David and Elizabeth, both now deceased; Thomas; Sarah; Joseph, now deceased; Agnes; Matilda, now deceased; and John. The first eight were born in Pennsylvania, the two youngest in Indiana. Possessed of that courage and determination which scorns fear of privation and hardship, Mr. Lawson, in 1834, boldly left his comfortable Pennsylvania home and moved to a pioneer farm in the newly settled region of Indiana Here he spent twelve years in clearing up the place, making it during that time one of the most valuable pieces of property in the vicinity. His success encouraged him in the course of time to take a hand in the opening up of the farther west, and in 1846 he moved to Iowa. He spent the winter in Westpoint, looking for a suitable location, and in the spring of 1847 took a one hundred and sixty acre farm in Keokuk county, which is now in the possession of his sons. He spent many years of hard work in clearing and improving the place, and as a result had in time one of the choicest farms in the vicinity. Being among the first settlers, he had the pick of the land in the county, a fact of which the place still bears evidence. A man of vigorous constitution, he lived to the advanced age of eighty-seven. He died on the farm in Keokuk county, where he had spent the best days of his life. Mr. Lawson was a zealous patriot all his life. When the war of 1812 broke out he enlisted and did some valiant service for his country. As a Democrat he took a lively interest in politics and was very influential. A large capacity for work and an unwavering purpose in life obtained for him in time a very solid prosperity.

William Lawson as a child saw a great deal of pioneer life. Very young when his parents left the Pennsylvania farm, he spent twelve years of his early life on the Indiana farm. Later he moved with his parents to Steady Run, Iowa, where he received a little schooling and a great deal of discipline in rough farm labor. The work was not, however, without its compensation, and he acquired in time a practical knowledge of agriculture, which has been invaluable to him in later years. For a long time he assisted his father in the management of the large farm and after his father's death fell heir to the old homestead and ninety acres of land. The rest of the property was divided among the other children. On this place Mr. Lawson has continued the work that his father began and has proved himself by no means inferior to the latter as an agriculturist. His crops have been large and of the best quality, and have commanded for him a good price in the market. Wise in financial management he has been enabled to lay aside something for a rainy day and has added to his estate by the purchase of eighty-seven and one-half acres near the flourishing city of Hedrick.

In 1866 Mr. Lawson married Ellen McMillen, who was born in Ohio, but in 1848, when four years old, moved with her parents, John and Frances (Middleton) McMillen, to Steady Run, Iowa. Both parents were natives of America, and among the old settlers of Keokuk county. Mr. McMillen secured a one hundred and sixty acre farm in the early days and afterward added to his property until at the time of his death he owned five hundred acres in the vicinity, most of which he had cleared and greatly improved. He died July 9, 1855, and his wife in 1899.

To Mr. and Mrs. Lawson have been born four children: Jennie, who is now deceased; Hugh; Fannie; and John, all of whom were born and reared in the old homestead. As one of the old settlers and one of the most progressive agriculturists in his section Mr. Lawson is thoroughly well known in his vicinity. He is a Democrat in politics and exerts an influence in public afifairs.

J. W. LEMLEY

J. W. Lemley, one of the most progressive and successful agriculturists of Richland township, is the owner of a farm of one hundred and eighty acres on section 18. He was born in Richland county, Ohio, November 28, 1852, and is a son of Jacob Lemley, a native of Germany, who came to this country with his parents when only two years old and settled in Richland county, Ohio, where he grew to manhood and was married. On coming to Iowa in 1854 he first located in Washington county, but two years later took up his abode in Keokuk county, settling on section 17, Richland township, where he continued to make his home until called to his final rest at the age of sixty-seven years. He was an earnest and consistent member of the German Baptist Brethren church and took quite an active part in church work. In politics he was first a Democrat, but during President Lincoln's administration became a Republican and continued to vote with that party throughout the remainder of his life. For his first wife he married Miss Caroline Green, who was born and reared in Cuyahoga county, Ohio, and died at the age of thirty-nine years. Of the nine children born of that union six are still living, one of these being the subject of this sketch. In 1872 the father married Emma Whistler, by whom he had three children, all living at the present writing in 1902.

J. W. Lemley of this review was the second in order of birth in the first family and was about two years old on the removal of his parents to Washington county, Iowa, and four when they came to Keokuk county. His boyhood and youth were passed in Richland township and he is indebted to its common schools for his early educational advantages, while later he was a student in the Agricultural College at Ames, Iowa. He engaged in teaching in the public schools from the age of twenty-one to twenty-six.

In 1878 Mr. Lemley was united in marriage to Miss Lizzie Wonderlich, a native of Keokuk county and a daughter of Charles and Mary (Long) Wonderlich, who were old settlers of this county. Mrs. Lemley was also reared and educated in Richland township and by her marriage to our subject has become the mother of the following children; Effie, deceased; and Roscoe, Ray, Mary, Jennette and Lawrence, all at home. After his marriage Mr. Lemley took up his residence upon a farm in the noi'thwest corner of section 18, Richland township, which he purchased but afterward sold, and in 1886 he removed to his present place, where he owns one hundred and eighty acres of land under a high state of cultivation. In connection with general farming he carries on stock raising and is meeting with good success in his undertakings.

Politically Mr. Lemley is a supporter of the Republican party and takes an active and commendable interest in public affairs, having for three terms acceptably filled the office of township assessor. He is a member of the Missionary Baptist church, in which he has filled the office of deacon, and takes quite an active and prominent part in church and Sunday-school work. From the age of four years he has lived in Richland township, and as a public spirited and progressive citizen he has borne an important part in her upbuilding and development. He stands high in public esteem and well merits the regard in which he is held.

DAVID P. LEWIS

There is no class of citizens who deserve more from society than the farming element. The man who passes an entire life time in the cultivation of the soil ought to have a right to expect that at three-score he can lay down the implements with which he has been employed and take his deserved rest. There has been no time in the history of agriculture in the state of Iowa when honest, persistent labor with a fair amount of executive ability should not have produced a competency in that period. This fact has been demonstrated by the honored gentleman whose name initiates this paragraph, and who is now a retired farmer living in the city of Hedrick.

Mr. Lewis is a native of the Hoosier state, born in Ripley county, March 30, 1830. William Lewis, his father, was a native of the state of North Carolina, and was a farmer by occupation, removing to Indiana some time subsequent to his marriage. He settled on a farm entered from the government, where most of his family were reared to maturity, and where he died. His wife's name was Mary Mitchler, also a native of North Carohna. They became the parents of thirteen children, of which our subject was the sixth son and the tenth child. The names of the children are as follows, only two of them now living: Abigail, Jacob, Elizabeth, Katherine, Daniel, John, Amelia, Samuel, Mathias; Dcvid P., the subject of this sketch; Polly E., William S., and Mary M. The youngest and our subject are the only known living members. The father of the family was a devout member of the Methodist church, and a worthy citizen of the county in which he passed his life. In politics he voted. with the Democratic party.

Mr. David P. Lewis, the honored subject of this sketch, passed his early youth and boyhood in the severe labor of farm life in the Hoosier state, receiving a limited education in the few months of winter school. He remained at home until he was nineteen years old, marrying at that early age Mahala Allen. This lady was born in the Hoosier state in 1833 and was the daughter of Meriet and Elizabeth (Robinson) Allen. The Allens were natives of the Blue-grass state, and later were early pioneers in Keokuk county. Mr. Lewis and his wife were the parents of fifteen children, eight boys and seven girls, as follows: Martha Jane, deceased; William M., deceased; John A.; Mary E.; Jacob R.; Johnson; Susana, deceased; David, deceased; Marguerita; Samuel; George, deceased; Katheime; Emma; Charles; Annabell. All of these children except Jacob were born and reared in Keokuk county. The year following his marriage Mr. Lewis joined the tide of emigration that had set in for the west, and came to Keokuk county, where he settled in Jackson township. The year of this settlement was 1850. He rented different farms for a period of years, and passed one year in farming in the state of Missouri. He finally returned to Keokuk county, however, and purchased a farm of forty acres in Jackson township. To this original farm he added different bodies, continuing the cuhivation and improvement of it until he became a large land owner. He had also other farms in different sections of the county. He retired from active life on the farm in 1895. He continued to live on his farm until 1897, when he moved to the town of Hedrick, and in the following year built himself a tasty residence, in which he expects to pass the remainder of his days.

In political belief Mr. Lewis is a Jacksonian Democrat, though he satisfies himself in political matters by simply depositing his vote, never having held any office. He is very generally and favorably known all over the county by reason of his long residence and the worthy life which he has lived among his fellow citizens. He is a man of staunch principles and of great integrity of character, and merits the good wishes of a large number of friends and acquaintances.

JAMES LINDER

James Linder has lived for fifty-five years in Keokuk county and is one of the very well known and honored citizens who have placed their impress on the development of the country. His father, Robert Linder, was a native of Kentucky, but early came to Keokuk county at a time when there were only six families in the county. In 1850 he went to California and died at the age of seventy-six in Montana; by occupation he was a harness maker, carrying on this trade in Sigourney; he also owned a farm. Our subject's mother was Sarah Barnett, a native of Illinois, and she still resides in Sigourney at the age of eighty-two. They were the parents of six children, four daughters and two sons; only two yet survive, James and Robert, the latter residing in Nebraska.

James Linder is the fifth child and oldest son, born in Sigourney January 17, 1846. There he was reared and educated in the public schools; in 1872 he located on a farm east of Lancaster, in Lancaster township, and engaged in farming for twenty-six years. In 1898 he sold this farm and bought the farm of one hundred and thirty-six acres on section 8, Lancaster township, where he now resides, surrounded by all the comforts of country life.

In 1870 Mr. Linder became the husband of Cordelia Strong, a native of Sullivan county, Missouri, who came to Keokuk county with her parents when only two years old and was there educated. Mr. and Mrs. Linder became the parents of seven children; the eldest died in infancy; Edward married in Missouri and is now living in Lancaster township; Ted is now in Seattle, Washington; Fred; Zelpha; Izette and Berton. Mr. Linder has always held an independent position in politics. In his long life in this county he has ably performed all the duties devolving upon him as a citizen and no stain may be found on his reputation.