Keokuk County Iowa IAGenWeb - 1903 Biography

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JOHN LINN RAMSEY

J. L. Ramsey, the subject of this review, is a self-made man who without any extraordinary family or pecuniary advantages at the commencement of life has labored earnestly and energetipally and by indomitable courage and integrity has achieved both character and fortune and by sheer force of will and untiring effort he worked his way upward and was during many years a leading business man of Keota, and at the present time he is living a retired life there.

Mr. Ramsey was born in Hillsboro county, New Hampshire, on the 17th of September, 1830. His father, Eben. Ramsey, was also a native of the old Granite state and by occupation was a farmer. His father, Samuel Ramsey, came from Scotland to the new world in colonial days and when the Revolutionary war was begun he joined the army and fought for the independence of the nation. He married Elizabeth Wilson and settled in Greenfield, Hillsboro county. New Hampshire, upon a farm. He entered his land from the government and improved the property, becoming one of the active and honored pioneer settlers of the locality. The father of our subject having arrived at years of maturity, was united in marriage to Mary D. Butler, a relative of Franklin Pierce, once president of the United States, also of Horace Greeley and of General Benjamin Butler. Mrs. Ramsey was born in Bennington, New Hampshire, and was a daughter of Moody Butler, whose birth occurred in the old Granite state, the Butlers being a pioneer family there. They were of Scotch-Irish descent. Unto the parents of our subject were born four sons. The father died in 1836 and the mother afferward remarried again, becoming the wife of Amzi Jones, by whom she had two sons and one daughtier. Her death occuree at the advanced age of eighty-five years.

J. L. Ramsey, of this review, is the second son born of the first marriage. He remained in his native place until sixteen years of age and in 1846 removed to western New York, locating at Yates, about forty miles from the city of Buffalo. He went there with a Mr. Grant and his cousin, David B. Ramsey, and for a year he attended school and afterward engaged in teaching in that locality for two years. In 1849 he sought a new home, locating near Lexington, Kentucky, where he engaged in teaching for about a year. He then went to Cincinnati, Ohio, and secured a position on the Dayton & Hamilton Railroad, acting as fireman for six months. He was then promoted to engineer, acting in that capacity in Ohio until 1854, when he became a resident of Chicago. There he entered the service of the Rock Island Railroad Company as an engineer, the road at that time having just been extended to Peoria. He was one of the first engineers on the line and he traveled all over the road on construction trains, rerpaining in the employ of the company for twenty-five years. He also had charge of the round house of Chicago, at Rock Island, Peoria and Peru. During the last years of his connection with the company he acted as station agent in Bureau Junction, Illinois. He was one of the most trusted employes of the company - a fact which is well indicated by his long service covering a quarter of a century.

In 1880 Mr. Ramsey came to Keokuk county, Iowa, locating in Keota, where he engaged in the grain business, building the first elevator at this place. When a young man in the employ of the railroad he had run an engine from Chicago to Rock Island and there transferred his load to coal barges, which were sent down the river to Muscatine, Iowa. He also hauled the material which was used to build the Wilton branch of the Chicago & Rock Island road from Wilton Junction to Muscatine, so that he had previously visited the state prior to locating in Keota. He continued in the grain trade here until 1893, when he sold out and retired from active business to enjoy a well deserved rest from further labor.

On the 28th of January, 1857, Mr. Ramsey was united in marriage to Mary E. Nelson, who was born in Lexington, Kentucky, December 14, 1833, a daughter of George and Elizabeth (Taylor) Nelson, the former a native of Kentucky while the latter was born near Richmond, Virginia. Mrs. Ramsey is their only child and was reared and educated in her native place. By her marriage she has become the mother of six children: Elizabeth, the widow of Forrest Green; Virginia, the wife of Dr. J. W. Blythin, a resident of Gordon, Wisconsin; John N., who wedded May Newton and resides in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Georgia T., the wife of A. A. Hulse, a merchant of Keota; Eben J., a furniture dealer of this place; and Emma C, the wife of Charles B. Galbreath, who resides in Carroll, Iowa.

Mr. Ramsey is a staunch Republican in politics and has been from the organization of the party. In an early day he was personally acquainted with many of the leading men in politics, including such celebrities as John A. Logan, General Sherman, Richard Yates, Sr. He has held several positions of honor and trust. For twelve years he served as mayor of Keota and his administration was practical and progressive, largely promoting the welfare of the town. For about fifteen years he was a member of the school board, taking an active interest in everything pertaining to the general good here, his labors being very effective in behalf of the same. He is a prominent Mason, belonging to Adelphi Lodge No. 353, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, at Keota. He was an organizer of the council of the fraternity at Peru, Illinois, the chapter at Rock Island, and belongs to the commandery at Washington, Iowa. In the Scottish Rite he has attained the thirty-second degree. He has also held all of the offices in the Blue lodge, the council and commandery. He was also grand engineer of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, and is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, though for years he has not been active as such.

Mr. Ramsey is a gentleman who at all times and in all places has commanded the respect and esteem of his fellow men. His life has been characterized by fidelity to duty, whether in or out of office - and faithfulness to duty and strict adherence to a purpose in life will do more to advance a man's interest than wealth or advantageous circumstances. The successful men of the day are they who have planned their own advancement and have accomplished it in spite of many obstacles and with a certainty that could have been attained only through their own efforts. This class of men has a worthy representative in J. L. Ramsey.

JAMES POLK RANDALL

A list of the leading citizens of Keokuk county would certainly embrace the name of J. P. Randall for one of the representative and honored residents of Delta. He is one to whom has been entrusted important public service and over whose record there falls no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil. His unbending integrity of character, his fearlessness in the discharge of his duties, and his appreciation of the responsibilities that have rested upon him, have been such as to make his a most acceptable incumbent in office and his worth is and has been widely acknowledged. He is now serving as mayor of Delta and is a recognized leader in Democratic circles.

A native of Keokuk county, Mr. Randall was born in Warren township, February 26, 1847, and is a son of Maxon and Drusilla (Greenfield) Randall, natives of New York and Pennsylvania, respectively. His paternal grandfather, William Randall, is supposed to have been born in the east and to have been of English descent. During his boyhood the father removed with his parents to the Keystone state and was reared and educated in Erie county. About 1839 he became a resident of Kendall county, Illinois, and in 1844 came to Keokuk county, Iowa. After taking up a claim in Warren township and building thereon a cabin, he returned to Illinois and the following year brought his family to the home that he had prepared for them here. They were among the first settlers of Warren township and bore an active part in Ihe early development and progress of the township and county. The father improved a farm, which he continued to cultivate until 1878, when he sold the place and removed to Sigourney, where he died at the age of seventy-two years, honored and respected by all who knew him. In politics he was a Jacksonian Democrat, and as one of the most prominent and influential citizens of his community he was often called upon to fill local offices, being a member of the county board of supervisors for a number of years. His estimable wife, who survived him many years, passed away in 1895 at the age of seventy-six years. They were the parents of eleven children, seven of whom reached man and womanhood.

Our subject is the eighth in order of birth in this family and the fifth son. He was reared amid frontier scenes and during his boyhood pursued his studies in a little log schoolhouse in Warren township. During his minority he gave his father the benefit of his labors in the operation of the home farm, and on leaving the parental roof learned the carpenter's trade. In 1872 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Randall and Miss Mary Hayes, who was born, reared and educated in Washington county, Iowa, and the following children blessed their union: Mary Eliza, who taught for five years in the Delta schools and for one term in Richland, is now the wife of S. H. Neill, a farmer of Washington county. Iva May also taught three terms in the Delta schools and for eight months in the country, and is now the wife of J. R. Sampson, a furniture dealer of Delta. Nellie is the wife of Estie Wilkinson, a merchant of Allerton, Iowa. Drusilla, who resides at home, is now a teacher in the Delta schools.

For three years after his marriage Mr. Randall lived in Washington county, Iowa, and in 1876 settled on a farm in Warren township, Keokuk county, where he was successfully engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1887, when he retired from active labor and removed to Delta, though he is still the owner of a fine farm of two hundred and seventy-two acres which he rents. Besides this property he has another tract of forty acres, which he has laid off into an addition to Delta, and still another addition of thirteen acres where he now lives.

Since his removal to Delta Mr. Randall has taken a very active and prominent part in municipal affairs and has most acceptably served as mayor since 1893. He has filled all of the township offices with exception of justice of the peace, and was trustee of Warren township for the long period of twelve years. The Democratic party has always found in him a staunch supporter of its principles and he has been largely instrumental in promoting its interests throughout the community in which he resides. He is an honored member of Delta Lodge, No. 385, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which he has filled all of the chairs, and his religious belief in that of the Christian church. He takes a deep interest in all that pertains to the public welfare and the good of the community in which he resides. He is genial, courteous, enterprising and progressive, of commendable public spirit and the highest integrity, and reflects credit on the city which has honored him with the highest office.

J. F. RANDOLPH

J. F. Randolph is a leading and representative farmer of Lafayette township living on section 15. He was born in Mercer county, Illinois, May 5, 1848, and is a twin brother of John Randolph, a hardware merchant of Keota, who is mentioned elsewhere in this work. The subject of this review was about one year of age when his parents removed from his native county to Rock Island county, Illinois, settling in Edgington township, where the next thirteen years of his life were passed. In 1864 the family came to Iowa, locating in Liberty township, and there our subject assisted his father in the work of the home farm until he began business for himself. In 1870 he turned his attentioii to agricultural pursuits upon the farm which is yet his home. He is an enterprising and progressive man, who in his work follows modern methods and has prospered in his undertakings. In connection with the raising of cereals best adapted to the soil and climate he has a good grade of stock, consisting of cattle, horses and hogs, upon his place. He now owns one hundred and twenty acres of valuable land, which is well improved, and the farm is one of the pleasing features of the landscape.

In 1874 Mr. Randolph was joined in wedlock to Miss Mary J. Rowe, the eldest daughter of Jacob and Jonana (Carmichael) Rowe, who were early settlers of Keokuk county. It was here that Mrs. Randolph was born, spending her girlhood days in her parents' home. Five children blessed this union: George J., John Burton, Emma B., and Grace. Three of the children are married. George wedded Maude Rickard, a daughter of Daniel Rickard; John married Ella Gillaland, a daughter of Archibald Gillaland; Emma is the wife of John Wade, a son of James Wade, of Iowa county, Iowa; the youngest child of the family is at home, and one child is dead. The parents hold membership in the Presbyterian church and are people of genuine worth. Mr. Randolph is serving as one of the elders of the church in Keota, and has taken an active and helpful part in promoting its growth and extending its influence. He is also a strong temperance man and votes the Prohibition ticket. From the age of sixteen years Mr. Randolph has continuously made his home in Keokuk county and has gained a wide acquaintance here, while the circle of his friends is co-extensive,
owing to the possession of those qualities which always command respect and regard.

JOHN RANDOLPH

John Randolph is a well known hardware merchant of Keota and was born in Mercer county, Illinois, on the 5th of May, 1848. He is a son of Edward F. and Mary (Irwin) Randolph, in whose family were twelve children, two of whom died in infancy, while one died at the age of fourteen years. The others, however, all reached years of maturity. The father of our subject was a native of Pennsylvania, reared in Crawford county ,and when a young man he made his way to the west to enjoy its greater business privileges, taking up his abode in Mercer county, Illinois. There he married Miss Irwin, who was born and reared in Crawford county, Pennsylvania. Soon afterward he located in Rock Island county, Illinois, where he entered eighty acres of government land, in Edgington township. In the fall of 1864 he came to Keokuk county, Iowa, settling in Liberty township, where he purchased a farm and continued its cultivation until his life's labors were ended in death, when he was about sixty-four years of age. He was one of the organizers of the United Presbyterian church, served as a member of its building committee and took a very active part in church work. A Democrat in politics, he served as a trustee of his township and in other local offices, and in the county he was well known. His widow still survives him and is now seventy-six years of age.

John Randolph and his twin brother, J. F., were the eldest in the family of twelve children and were about a year old at the time the parents removed to Rock Island county, Illinois. There the subject of this review was reared until about sixteen years of age, when he came with his parents to Keokuk county, Iowa, spending the remainder of his minority upon the home farm in Liberty township, which continued to be his residence even after he had reached man's estate. He remained with his parents until twenty-four years of age, assisting in the work of the home farm, and through the period of his youth he attended school during the winter months; He completed his preparation lor a home of his own by his marriage in 1872 to Miss Mary J. Conger, who was born in Liberty township, Keokuk county, and is a representative of one of the pioneer families here. At the age of twelve years she was left an orphan. At the time of their marriage the young couple located on a farm in Lafayette township, Mr. Randolph giving his attention to the cultivation of the soil until the fall of 1886, when he came to Keota and entered into partnership with his brother, James Randolph, as a dealer in hardware and farm implements. The partnership was continued until June, 1892, when the brother died. Our subject then assumed the business and has since conducted it. He sold the implement department in 1895, but continues in charge of the hardware store and now has a liberal patronage in that line, for he carries a large and well selected stock of goods and his earnest desire to please his patrons combined with honorable business methods has been the means of securing to him a large and growing trade. Mr. Randolph also has landed interests, owning a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in O'Brien county and eighty acres in Hancock county, this state.

The home of our subject and his wife has been blessed with three children: Nellie, now the wife of A. C. Smock, a resident of O'Brien county; Mabel P. and Bessie M., who are at home. Mr. Randolph gives his political support to the Democracy and has served for two terms as trustee. He has also been a member of the town council for some time and puts forth every effort in his power in the discharge of the duties of office and in advancing the general welfare. He and his wife belong to the United Presbyterian church, in which he has served as treasurer and elder. He represents the class of busy, energetic men who, while controlling extensive business affairs, also find time to promote the welfare of the town or the locality in which they make their home.

JOSEPH A. RANGGER

Father Rangger is one of the most prominent workers in the Catholic church in this section and has devoted many years of his life to the advancement of its cause among his fellow-men. His influence is ever found on the side of progress, of liberty and of right, and the effect of his labors has been far reaching. He is the loved pastor of the church in Clear Creek township, Keokuk county. Father Rangger was born in Voels, near Innsbruck, in the Tyrol, Austria, on the 16th of January, 1867, while his father was also a native of that country and was a farmer by occupation, being born on the farm on which the Rangger family have resided for three hundred years. For his wife he chose Victoria Woerndle, also a native of Austria, having been born and reared in the region of the Alps. This union resulted in the birth of eight children, four sons and four daughters, as follows: Katherine and Mary, both deceased; Juliana; Francis; Anna; Joseph A., the subject of this review; Marcus, who is now a priest in Vienna, Austria; and Anthony, who still resides on the old home farm in Austria, where the children were all born and reared.

When twelve years of age Joseph A. Rangger entered a seminary at Brixen, where he remained for three years, and on the expiration of that period in 1881, he became a student in the Royal Gymnasium at Halle, there continuing his studies for two years, while for the following year he was at Innsbruck. When but eighteen years of age he bade adieu to the home of his youth and crossed the broad Atlantic to the United States, and after his arrival in the new world he completed his studies in the St. Francis Seminary, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he remained until 1891. In that year he was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Cosgrove, and shortly afterward returned on a visit to his native Austria, spending six months amid friends and relatives and viewing again the scenes of his boyhood and youth. After his return to America he made his way to Wilton Junction, Iowa, where for three months he ministered to the needs of the parish, their regular pastor, Father Duggan, being then ill. His next place of residence was at Davenport, Iowa, where for four months he had charge of a hospital, while for the following three months he served as a substitute to the church at Perry, this state.

Since the 14th of April, 1893, he has ministered to the needs of the congregation in Clear Creek township, and during his pastorate the old brick church, which was erected in 1863, has been replaced by a new and beautiful edifice, the school building repaired and a new parsondge erected at an expense of two thousand, five hundred dollars. During this time the Sisters have taken charge of the school and the attendance has increased one hundred per cent. Through the untiring efforts of Father Rangger congregation increased so rapidly that it became necessary to secure larger accommodations, and accordingly in 1898 they laid the foundation for the present structure. The laying of the corner stone, on Wednesday, June 8, 1898, for this beautiful edifice, was one of the most notable events in the history of Catholicism in Clear Creek township, and was witnessed by from fifteen hundred to two thousand people. It was an impressive ceremony and one that will long be remembered by those who were present. The old church witnessed the passing of a generation, and there the ancestors of the present congregation went to worship and offer up prayer and also to listen to the divine words of their pastor. The sermon was conducted by the Rt. Rev. Bishop Cosgrove, assisted by the visiting clergy and the cost of the building was about eleven thousand, five hundred dollars. Father Rangger is widely known in Catholic circles throughout this section of the state, and his daily life has been a light guiding many to the better way.

CHARLES REED

Charles Reed is an old settler and retired farmer now living in Webster, Keokuk county. He was born in Marion county, Indiana, October 1, 1840. His father, Isaac Reed, was an old settler of Keokuk county, Iowa, and a native of Tennessee, where his birth occurred in 1805. He was there reared and educated and afterward engaged in farming to some extent in his native state. However, he removed from Tennessee to Indiana when a young man, settling on a farm in the latter state. He was married in Tennessee to Sarah Morrison, a native of Kentucky, and they became the parents of eleven children, six sons and five daughters, of whom Charles was the youngest son and the seventh child. These are: William; one who died in infancy; Alexander; another who died in infancy; James, Griggs, Charles, EHza, Sarah, Margaret, and a third who died in infancy. Of the children who reached mature years nearly all were reared in Keokuk county, for in 1850 the father removed with his family to Iowa, settling in German township, Keokuk county, upon a farm of one hundred and sixty acres of improved land. The following year, however, he removed with his family to English River township, where he located upon a farm of a quarter-section of raw land. Here with the aid of his sons he cleared the tract and improved the place, making it a valuable and highly productive farm. His death occurred in 1865, after which his son Griggs lived upon the old home place until his death, and his widow yet owns the farm. In early life Isaac Reed gave his political support to the Whig party and upon its dissolution he joined the ranks of the new Republican party. He held membership in the Methodist Episcopal church of Webster, aided in erecting a house of worship there and took an active interest in promoting the cause of Christianity.

Charles Reed was reared on the old home and is indebted to the public school system of the country for the educational privileges he enjoyed. He was about twenty-five years of age at the time of his father's death. He then purchased a tract of land in English River township of one hundred and fifty acres, which was wild and uncultivated, but with characteristic energy he began its cultivation and improvement and made his home thereon for thirty-four years, his attention being given continuously to his farm work. He placed his fields under a very high state of cultivation and added all modern equipments and accessories to the place.

On the 28th of October, 1871, Mr. Reed was united in marriage to Laura A. Holliday, a native of Illinois, born February 12, 1853. When two years of age she was brought to Keokuk county, Iowa, by her parents, H. M. and Nancy Ann Holliday, who were early residents of this portion of the state. They settled in Adams township upon a farm of two hundred acres of raw land and her father at once began to plow the fields, plant his crops and in course of time garnered rich harvests. It was upon this farm that Mrs. Reed spent her girlhood days. Her mother died upon the old homstead and her father passed away on a farm not far distant. To Mr. and Mrs. Reed have been born seven children, five sons and two daughters: Stella, Frank, Edward L., Donna A., Benjamin, Morgan, and Fred. Of this number Frank is now deceased. All were born and reared on the farm in English River township.

In 1900 Mr. Reed left the old homestead and removed to Webster, retiring from active farming life. He purchased a lot in the town and built a home there and is now comfortably situated. In his younger days he was identified with the Republican party, but for the last several years has advocated "greenback" principles. Socially he is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows of South English. He is a member of the Methodist church of Webster, which he aided in building, and takes an active interest in church work and is serving as one of its trustees. At the time of the Civil war he manifested his loyalty to his country by enlisting in 1861 in the Eighth Iowa Infantry, in which he served for one year, being mustered out in 1862. He then resumed farm work which he continued with success until his retirement to private life. He is now one of the oldest residents of this portion of Keokuk county and has witnessed its improvement as the years have passed, bearing his part in all the work of development.

H. H. REINERT

H. H. Reinert is proprietor of the leading drugstore of Keota, an establishment which would be a credit to a city of greater size because of its neat and tasteful appearance, the excellent line of goods carried and the obliging courtesy of the proprietor. Mr. Reinert is one of Iowa's native sons, his birth having occurred in Sigourney, November 8, 1871. He is the fourth child of Michael and Mary (Horras) Reinert and comes of a family of German lineage. He was reared and educated in this state, pursuing his studies in the public schools of Sigourney, and he entered upon his business career in the capacity of a clerk with his brother, C. C. Reinert, at South English, in whose service he remained for two years. Later he was salesman in the employ of J. E. Graff, in Sigourney, and afterwards purchased his brother's store and conducted it for several years. He then became connected with the drug trade in Tipton, Iowa, where he remainfed for about two years, having also purchased a store there. In April, 1901, he came to Keota, where he established his drugstore and is now doing an excellent business, having the leading establishment of its kind in the town. His experience in the business covers eleven years and his marked success is attributed to the fact that he is thorough and painstaking in all that he does. In February, 1896, he passed the state examination before the board of pharmacy and was the only one who passed in a class of fourteen applicants. During his residence in other towns he gained the confidence and esteem of a large circle of patrons and friends, and his history in Keota is similar. He carries a large and well selected stock of goods - drugs, proprietary medicines, toilet articles, and a large and varied line of jewelry, silverware, clocks, watches and diamonds. The fine display of toilet articles and other goods, with the jewelry, tastefully arranged, add to the attractiveness and value of the stock. Neatness and taste characterize the store in every department, and Mr. Reinert now has a very liberal patronage, which is constantly growing.

On the 30th of October, 1898, Mr. Reinert was united in marriage to Ressa Wagner, a daughter of Edward and Celia (Munn) Wagner. She was born in Iowa county, Iowa, and pursued her education in the public schools of this state and in Fremont, Nebraska, also taking a commercial course in a business college of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is the eldest in a family of seven children and Is a most estimable lady, who shares with her husband in the regard of their many friends. Mr. Reinert belongs to the Masonic fraternity and to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is also a member of the Eastern Star and the Rebekahs, the ladies' degrees of those organizations. In politics hfe is independent, voting for the men whom he thinks best qualified for office. He holds membership in the Catholic church, in the faith of which he was reared. In Keota he is a popular merchant, genial, courteous, and obliging, and well does he deserve the success which has come to him, making him one of the leading business men of his town.

MICHAEL REINERT

Michael Reinert, one of the old settlers of Keokuk county, Iowa, whose fine, well improved farm of one hundred and forty-seven acres is located in German township, is one of the prosperous and well-known farmers, who, although born in another country, has become a valued citizen of this. Mr. Reinert was born in Prussia, Germany, January 1, 1843, and is the youngest of four sons and three daughters constituting the family born to John and Angelica (Leinen) Reinert, both of whom were also born in Germany, where they lived all their lives. Michael attended the common schools in his native land until he was thirteen years old and then was employed by neighboring farmers to assist them and continued to be so employed until he started for America. In 1861 he reached New York and came on to Keokuk county, Iowa, working at farm labor through the summers of 1861 and 1862. In the fall of the latter year he enlisted for service in the Civil war, entering Company B, Second Iowa Volunteer Infantry, as a private, and performed the duties of a faithful soldier until the spring of 1864, when on the 27th of May of that year he was mustered out, having received an honorable discharge.

After completing his army service, our subject returned to Keokuk county, and was soon engaged at farm work by the month; continuing with various farmers of the county until 1865. In February of that year he was united in marriage with Mary A. Horas, who was born in Germany and came to America with her parents when she was an infant. She was reared and educated in Keokuk county and is an admirable housekeeper, a kind neighbor and a most devoted and helplul wife and mother. A family of nine children was born to this union, their names being the following: Frank, who is a porter in one of the leading hotels at Long Branch, New Jersey; Casper, who is a druggist, is now engaged in real estate business in North Dakota; Charles, who is a farmer in German township, married Jennie Killmer; Henry H., who is a druggist at Keota, Keokuk county, married Ressa Wagner; William, who is a farmer in Clear Creek township, married Lucy Klett; Miss Bertha, who resides at home; Bessie, who is the wife of John Strupp, a prominent farmer of German township; Gustave A., who is a farmer in North Dakota; and Fred, who has enjoyed a college education, resides at home.

Immediately after marriage Mr. Reinert took up his residence upon his present farm, the home being in a log cabin standing on the place. His energy and industry have made wonderful improvements which have changed the whole appearance of the place. His residence is one of comfort and convenience, his barns are substantial and commodious, while the other improvements show the thrift and good management which prevail on this place. Mr. Reinert engages in general farming and stock-raising and has been very successful in all his efforts. He is regarded as one of the substantial men of German township.

During the war our subject was a staunch Republican, but in late years he has been more liberal and generally votes in local matters for the man he feels best qualified for office. His own reliability, and the estimation in which he is held by his neighbors, has been demonstrated by his election to almost all of the township offices; he has performed the duties of trustee, school director, clerk and others, with the utmost efficiency. Mr. Reinert is a very prominent member of the Grand Army of the Republic, belonging to the Robert F. Lowe Post, in Sigourney. He is the intelligent promoter of all worthy enterprises for improvempnt in the township, votes and works for good schools and good rqads and is in every way worthy of the high esteem in which he is held.

JAMES ALLEN RENTFRO

James Allen Rentfro, a successful farrrier and representative citizen of Keokuk county, Iowa, was born in Illinois, near Springfield, on January 10, 1834. His parents were John S. and Telitha (Hollenbeck) Rentfro, the former of whom was born March 1, 1806, in Kentucky and was taken when young to Illinois by his grandfather, by whom he was reared to manhood. John S. grew up a farmer and with his neighbors took part in the Black Hawk war. He married Telitha Hollenbeck, who was born in Kentucky in 1810, a daughter of Abraham Hollenbeck, who moved to Illinois and there reared his children. This family was of Dutch descent. In 1849 Mr. Rentfro moved to Keokuk county, Iowa, and lived in Steady Run township for six years, removing then for a short time to Sigourney, and about 1882 located on the farm of two hundred acres in Van Buren township, which is now the property of our subject. Mr. Rentfro was a hard-working, industrious man and made valuable improvements wherever he located. In political sentiment he was a Republican. A family of twelve children was born to him and wife, as follows: Mary, Elizabeth, James Allen, William, Nancy, Joseph, Rebecca, Margaret, John, Perry, Robert and Martha; Mary, Nancy, Perry and Robert being deceased.

Our subject was reared until his fifteenth year in Illinois and then accompanied his father to Iowa. Here he assisted on the farm until the outbreak of the Civil war, when with loyalty he offered his services to the government, enlisting in July, 1861, in the Fifth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, under Colonel Worthington, and serving faithfully for three years. Mr. Rentfro took part in the siege of Vicksburg and was wounded at luka, Mississippi, on September 19, 1862, so seriously that he was kept for four months in a hospital and was then transferred to the veteran reserves. He was mustered out at St. Louis, Missouri, on July 4, 1864, with a fine record. After his return from the army our subject resumed farming and after his father's death purchased the old home farm, which he has continued to successfully operate ever since.

The first marriage of Mr. Renfro was to Lovinia McMillian, and two children were born to this union, both of whom died in infancy. His second marriage was to Arilla D. Curtis, who was born in November, 1851, in Ohio, and is a daughter of Benjamin F. and Amanda Curtis, both of whom were born in Ohio and became early settlers in Iowa. To this marriage a family of eight children has been born, all of whom survive except the eldest, John S. The others are: Clarence C, Bessie L., Harley A., Charles C., Earl, Clarkson, and Benita A., all of whom were born and have been reared and educated in this county. The eldest son is a minister in the Advent church, to which religious body the family belongs. Our subject is assistant in the Sunday school and an honored deacon in the church. In politics he is a Republican and takes a somewhat active part in its local organizations. Mr. Rentfro is a hero of the Civil war, a hard-working, honest and upright man who enjoys, as he deserves, the respect of the community in which he lives.

FRANCIS P. RICHARDSON

Among those upon whom has fallen the mantle of the worthy pioneers who have begun to pass to their reward in another scene, and who are in every way carrying on acceptably the work of the old veterans in developing and building up Keokuk county, stands high the gentleman whose name heads this paragraph, as a leader among the ranks of our signally enterprising and capable farmers. For fifty-seven years Mr. Richardson has gone in and out among the citizens of Keokuk county, and during that time has built for himself a reputation for uprightness and probity. He is at the present time living on section 13. Steady Run township. The nativity of Mr. Richardson dates in McDonough county, Illinois, the date being April 25, 1840. He is the son of Mr. Thomas Richardson and a brother of J. M. Richardson, of this county; and under a sketch of the latter in this volume will be given the ancestral history of our subject.

Francis Richardson is the fourth child and the third son of the family. He removed to Keokuk county with his parents in 1845, being at that time but five years of age. Settlement was made on the tract of land which he now cultivates, and where the primitive log house of that day was built, that interesting old relic of pioneer days still being intact. Mr. Richardson's early life consisted in the hard work and few pleasures which came to the boys of his time, but this experience grounded him well in the knowledge and principles which have made him a man of standing in his community. What book education he received was obtained in the little log schoolhouse with its wide chimney and rough benches, three months in the winter season. He, however, improved his opportunities and was able to secure such proficiency as has enabled him to carry on business acceptably during his life-time. He remained at home until he was nineteen years of age, when he began a farming venture for himself. The only capital which he received, as Mr. Richardson puts it, "was the year and n half which my father gave me of my time before I was twenty-one." He continued cultivating this land until 1864, when, concluding that a little travel would broaden his views of life, he in company with Mr. Josiah Utterbach took a trip to the west, passing through Salt Lake City and on to Virginia City. They were engaged during the period of two years absence for the most part in the chopping of wood. They returned by way of Greytown and New York City, having seen considerable of the world during their absence. Upon his return to his native county, our subject took up the trade of carpenter and cooper, at which he continued to work for several years, but finally returned to agricultural pursuits. He rented a farm in Steady Run township for some three years, and then purchased a tract of forty acres in the same township. This body of land he cultivated for the space of one year, when he sold out and engaged with his brother, J. M., in the mercantile business at loka. This business he pursued successfully for five years, when he sold out his interest to his brother and purchased the interest of the heirs in the old homestead. Here he removed with his family, and has since been engaged in farming and stock raising in that locality. He has a farm here of one hundred and eighty acres, which is highly improved, and furnished with all the buildings necessary for the successful conduct of a large stock ranch. In connection with his brother, B. F. Richardson, he has since 1887 been interested in the operation of a mill in the town of Martinsburg.

In November, 1868, Mr. Richardson married Miss Louisa C. Davis, a daughter of David and Lilly (Smith) Davis. Mrs. Richardson was born in the Hoosier state and came to Keokuk county with her parents when a child. She is the mother of four children, Nora, wife of J. C. Martin of Keithsburg, Illinois; Arthur; George, at Grinnell College, Iowa; and Forest, at home. In political belief Mr. Richardson favors the principles of government advocated by Thomas Jefferson, and gives his vote to the support of candidates of the Democratic party. He has no desire to be bothered with the cares of office, the only one which he ever consented to accept being that of justice of the peace, which office he resigned after being elected. Mr. Richardson is an honest, upright citizen, a man who is highly respected in the community in which he has passed his entire life-time, and we take pleasure in giving him representation among the worthy families of Keokuk county.

GEORGE RICHARDSON

Prominent in the affairs of Lancaster township and well known to all its citizens is the firm of Richardson Brothers in Hayesville. Of the firm George Richardson is the junior partner, but active in its management and in the assumption of its varied responsibilities and innumerable duties. His history has been for many years past intimately associated with that of his brother, Joel Richardson, whose life attainments have been elsewhere recounted herein.

He was born September 19, 1848, in Steady Run township near Tickridge, and is the seventh child and fifth son in his family. When a youth of fourteen he moved to Lancaster township, where he received his education in the district schools, and at nineteen became, like his brother, a teacher in Lancaster township. He taught and studied during the long winter months for about eight years and employed his summers in farming and capentering.

He was united in marriage on the 24th day of October, 1875, to Anna Lister, who was born in Clark county, Indiana, April 14, 1850, and was the daughter of Abram and Lucinda Randolph. Her mother was also born in the Hoosier state and her father was born in England, whence he came to America after having passed but four summers, and was reared in Indiana as a farmer, removing to Keokuk county in 186S. He located in Steady Run township and died in the year 1894. Lucinda Randolph is still living, and is the mother of seven children, five sons and two daughters, of whom Anna Lister was second daughter and third child. She received a superior education in the common schools of the
township.

Mr. George Richardson came to Hayesville in 1881 and opened up business as a general merchant, in which his efforts were crowned with more than ordinary success. In 1882 President Arthur recognized his fitness for the position and appointed him postmaster, and he has continued in the same position under succeeding presidents until the present time. In 1885 he formed a partnership with his brother Joel, whom we have before referred to, and continued the business in the name of Richardson Brothers. He has been a staunch supporter of the Democratic principles and candidates, was township clerk for about two years, served as road supervisor, and in many other capacities has rendered efficient and highly acceptable services. The diversity of experience which has fallen to the lot of Mr. Richardson has been in itself an education, and coupled with the energy and ambition that have always characterized him, has given him a breadth of view and action that few possess.

GILBERT BEEBE RICHARDSON

One of the leading business men of Sigourney, Iowa, dealing principally in music and musical instruments, is Gilbert Beebe Richardson, who was born on a farm in Steady Run township, Keokuk county, Iowa, on April 14, 1858, and is a son of Thomas and Eliza Ann (Weller) Richardson, whose history is recorded in the biographic sketch of Joseph M. Richardson, elsewhere in this volume. Mr. Richardson was reared on a farm and obtained his education in the common schools. At the age of nineteen years he began teaching school in the rural neighborhoods and continued in this profession for three years. In 1883 he went into railroading and became agent and telegraph operator for the Burlington & Western railroad, a position he held for twelve years. Our subject then engaged for a short time in the hardware business at Martinsburg, but later sold this business and re-entered the employ of the same railroad, taking a position in the train dispatcher's office at Burlington, serving two years as assistant and one year as chief dispatcher. On account of failing health he then felt obliged to give up telegraphic work and seek some other employment. In 1901 he purchased a grocery store, in Sigourney, but he has since then changed his stock to music, this being more in accordance with his tastes.

In 1880 Mr. Richardson was united in marriage with Miss Mary E. McKinnis, of Keokuk county, and four children have been born to this union, namely: Pearlie L., Edna G., Jesse T. and Leona M. With wife and children, our subject belongs to the Presbyterian church. His career in this community has won for him the esteem of the citizens and he has a wide and pleasant acquaintance with the traveling public in this locality, numbering many friends, who value him highly.

JOEL RICHARDSON

Joel Richardson well illustrates that type of man who, in a new country, begins his career in a log schoolhouse as pupil, then as teacher, then as a growing factor among his fellows, and in later years holds one after another of responsible offices until he becomes a recognized leader of men. Such meteoric development we are inclined to look for in fiction rather than in every day life, but in him whose record follows, it is sober truth.

He was born in McDonough county, Illinois, on the 11th day of August, 1839. His father, Anson Richardson, claims Ohio as his natal state, whence he moved to McDonough county, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits, going from there to the state of Iowa and locating at Steady Run in Keokuk county, finally settling in Lancaster township in the year 1862, where he still lives at the advanced age of eightyseven years.

His mother, Lydia Weller, came with her people from Kentucky in the early days and settled in Indiana. She also lived to the ripe old age of seventy-two years, having celebrated her golden wedding in the bosom of her family and her friends, an occasion which was made a time of great rejoicing and festivity. Sixteen children were born to her, eight of whom lived to maturity.

Of these children Joel was the third and was eight years old when he came to Keokuk county and thence went to Steady Run, where upon the rough slab benches of the old log schoolhouse he learned his early lessons and became so proficient that at the age of twenty-two years he was given the position of teacher and for eighteen years thereafter in the winter time continued his work of teaching, doing farming and carpentering in the summer time. His first marriage in i860 in Steady Run was to Mary C. Brown, who died leaving three children, Schuyler; Julia, wife of Perry Weller of Sigourney, a prosperous photographer; and Viola, unmarried. By his second marriage in 1876 to Mary E. Hubbard he had five children. His wife was born in Lancaster, Keokuk county, Iowa, and was the daughter of William H. and Samaria (Chastain) Hubbard, who were early settlers of Keokuk county. Their children were Lucia, Ralph, Carl, Ray and Frank. In 1863 he came to Lancaster township and located on the farm where he now lives. This consists of one hundred and ninety-one acres of rich bottom land running down to Skunk river, and from the porch of his house may be had a beautiful view across his highly improved fruitful land. He does a general merchandise business together with his brother George, whose history appears in this work, and combines with this very successfully the managing of his farm.

He espouses the principles of Democracy and usually casts his vote in support of the Democratic candidates. He has risen from one position to another as the years go by, having served in many township offices; he was justice of the peace for about ten years, during which time his decisions and official acts were guided by great discretion and wisdom; was also clerk of the courts for a considerable time; and during all the fifty-seven years of his residence in Keokuk county he has been intimately identified with the growth of its institutions, and has always been esteemed as one of the most influential and competent men of the county. He made use of every opportunity in life, and obstacles to him were but stepping stones to further achievements and development.

JONATHAN F. RICHARDSON, M.D.

Dr. Jonathan Franklin Richardson is a retired physician living in Keota and is a man whose upright life as well as professional ability have gained for him the respect and confidence of his fellow-men. He was born in Vermilion county, Indiana, July 30, 1836, and is the eldest in a family of thirteen children, whose parents were Anson and Lydia (Weller) Richardson. The father was born in Ohio on the 2d of December, 1814, and was a son of Joseph Richardson, whose birth occurred in England. After acquiring his education in the common schools Anson Richardson learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed for many years. In 1836 he came from Indiana to Illinois and in 1845 came with his family to Keokuk county, Iowa, where he is still living, his home being now in Lancaster township. He married Lydia Weller, whose birth occurred December 2, 1818, and was of German descent, her mother having been born in the fatherland. Mrs. Richardson lived to be about sixty-three years of age.

The Doctor was only about six weeks old when his parents removed to McDonough county, Illnois, where he remained until a youth of nine years, when the family came to Koekuk county, Iowa. Here he was reared and in the district schools he pursued his education, the temple of learning being a log building in which the furnishings were crude and the methods of instruction were also somewhat primitive. Outside of school hours, however, he has greatly broadened his knowledge by reading, experience, observation and study, and is to-day a well informed man of scholarly attainments. Wishing to devote his energies to the practice of medicine he began study for the profession under the direction of Doctor Flint, of Ottumwa, Iowa, in whose office he remained for about four years. He then began practice and in 1861 removed to Keokuk, where he entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons of that city, being graduated there with the class of 1864. He then took up his abode in Keokuk county and in 1872 removed to Harper, this county, where he was continuously in the practice for nineteen years, enjoying a large patronage, which was accorded him by reason of his acknowledged skill and ability as a member of the medical profession. In 1891 he came to Keota, where he remained in active practice until about 1894, when he retired to private life to enjoy the rest which he has surely earned and richly deserves. During the long years of his active connection with the medical profession he kept in touch with the progress of the times through reading and study and thus continually broadened his khowledge and promoted his efficiency in the work of alleviating human sufifering.

On the 20th of October, 1859, Dr. Richardson was united in marriage to Martha Jacobs, who was born in Johnson county, Indiana, on the 14th of June, 1839, a daughter of John C. and Permelia (Craig) Jacobs. Her parents were both born in Kentucky in the year 1811 and became the parents of eight children, of whom Mrs. Richardson is the third in order of birth. She was brought to Keokuk county in 1846 when but seven years of age, the family becoming pioneer settlers of this portion of the state. By her marriage she became the mother of six children: Edward Lee, who died at the age of two years; Adla, at home; Robert Lee, who is engaged in the furniture busines in Keota; John C, who is a printer by trade; Anson, who died at the age of nine months; and Austin, who is editor of the Eagle, a paper published at Keota.

The Doctor gave his political support to the Democracy until 1896, when his views concerning the monetary question and other important issues before the people led him to ally his forces with the Republican party. His fellow-townsmen, recognizing his worth and ability, elected him to the office of mayor of Keota, but he resigned before the expiration of his term. He has served as pension examiner for twenty years and for many years he was a valued member of the County Medical Society. He is the oldest physician of the county to-day, having been here for nearly sixty years. In the early days he traveled far and wide to administer needed aid to the sick and suffering, and he won the love and gratitude of many a household. Few men in the county are more widely known than the Doctor and none more deserve the high regard extended to them than does this honored member of the medical profession.

JOSEPH M. RICHARDSON

According to the best information obtainable Mr. Richardson is of Scotch descent. The great-grandfather is said to have come from Scotland. He must have lived for some time in the state of New York, for there a son, Joseph, was born. This son became one of the early settlers of Ohio, later went to Indiana and subsequently moved to McDonough county, Illinois, where he died at the age of sixty-two.

Joseph M. Richardson, the subject of this sketch, was the son of Thomas and Eliza Ann (Weller) Richardson. The father was a son of the elder Joseph and was born September 8, 1809, in Ohio. He early went to Indiana and in 1836 removed to Illinois, McDonough county. He remained here until 1845, when by covered wagon he came to Iowa. This was two years after the western part of the state was opened for settlement. Thomas took up farming land from the government in Steady Run township, Keokuk county, where he lived until the time of his death in 1872. The date of entry is fixed as 1846 and the land is still in the family. As pioneers they naturally underwent many hardships, but trials shared in common are the meeting ground for congenial people, and the steadfast, trustful nature of both man and wife secured for Mr. and Mrs. Richardson the joy of many friendships. They were parents of twelve children, namely: Lydia M.; Joseph M.; Benjamin F., of Martinsburg, Iowa; Francis P., living on the old homestead; Mary Ellen; James W., deceased; David, residing in Lewis, Iowa; Eliza Jane; Bennett J., who died; Gilbert B., of Sigourney; Harriet and Emma, who have both died. Thomas Richardson was originally a Whig but later joined the Democratic party. Both he and his wife were members of the Predestinarian Baptist church.

Eliza Ann Weller was born in Kentucky, December 30, 1815. Her father, Joseph Weller, was a pioneer settler of Indiana, in which state he died. His wife was Margaret Fry, a native of Kentucky, whose family came originally from Pennsylvania. The Weller and Fry families are both of Dutch descent. Eliza Ann Weller was a woman of sweet yet forceful character. She died in Keokuk county, Iowa, in 1894.

Joseph M. Richardson was born on a farm in Vermilion county, Indiana, January 7, 1836. At the age of six months his parents moved to Illinois, and when only nine years old he went with them to Iowa. His life has been that of a pioneer with limited advantages for education, small leisure and plenty of hardship, privation and strenuous labor. He was reared on the farm and the ordinary common schools were his means of instruction, save those surer and more effective means which try the mettle and prepare admirably for life; we mean the struggle with pioneer difficulties, the revelations of and communions with nature and the actual contact with real men. He early went to work for strangers, on the farm as the all-around hand and in the country store as clerk. Up to his twentieth year his wages went to his parents. At that time, in 1856, he married and settled on a farm in Lancaster township. There he lived until 1869, devoting his time chiefly to farming and carpentering. In April, 1869, he moved to loka, Iowa, where he opened a general store, which he conducted for fourteen years. He spent one year in farming and in 1884 went into the general merchandise business at Martinsburg, Iowa. In 1885 he was elected on the Democratic ticket to the office of county auditor. He moved to Sigoumey m the spring of the following year. In the fall of 1887 he was re-elected by his party and at the expiration of his second term, in the spring of 1890, he moved to a farm near Martinsburg, which he had received in exchange for his general store. In 1891, in February, he sold this farm and returned to the merchandise business, this time at Sigourney, which city he has since made his home. He conducted this general store for nine years, sold out and after a lapse of one year bought a half interest in a retail hardware business. After one year he sold his share in that store and now he is living a retired life, enjoying the rewards of years of labor.

On October 9, 1856, Mr. Richardson married Miss Emily, daughter of John C. and Pamela Jacobs, who came to Keokuk county about 1846. She is a native of Indiana. The union was blessed by the birth of nine children: Henry L., deceased; Frank P.; Malissa E.; William H., who has also held office as county auditor; Edward E.; Thomas S., deceased; S. Walter; Albert L.; and Susan J. Richardson. Mr. Richardson is a splendid example of the self-made man; his life is an illustration of what industry, application and perseverance will accomplish.

CHAUNCY RICHMOND

Chauncy Richmond, who is now living a retired life in Webster, but for many years was actively associated with farming interests in Keokuk county, was born in Loraine county, Ohio, February 12, 1818. His father, Amos Richmond, was a native of New York and was of Enghsh parentage. He spent the days of his youth in the Empire state, acquired his education in its public schools and remained with his parents until he had attained early manhood. He served his country throughout the war of 1812 and when a young man left the Empire state and removed westward to Ohio, settling in Loraine county, where he carried on the work of tilling the soil. He was married in that county to Miss Alvira Bronson, a native of Connecticut, where she was reared and educated. They were the parents of eight children, five sons and three daughters.

Chauncy Richmond is the eldest son and now the only surviving member of the family. He spent his early childhood in the county of his nativity and is indebted to its public school system for the educational privileges he enjoyed. He remained at home until fifteen years of age and then went to Cleveland, Ohio, where he became connected with the tanning business, which he followed there for three years. He next became a sailor upon Lake Erie, and after a year spent in that way he left Cleveland, removing to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, where he secured a position as a watchman on the steamboat Favorite, on which vessel he made the trip from Pittsburg down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to New Orleans and thence across the gulf of Mexico to Mobile, Alabama. He remained upon the Favorite throughout the winter, but in the spring returned to New Orleans and thence made his way up the Mississippi river to St. Louis, Missouri. From there he went to Louisville, Kentucky, and ran on a boat from that city to Pittsburg, remaining in that position for about a year. Leaving the boat at Louisville, he proceeded to St. Louis and from there went up the river to Warsaw, Illinois, where he engaged in farming, remaining there for about three years.

During that period Mr. Richmond was married on the 27th of February, 1841, in Carthage, Hancock county, Illinois, the lady of his choice being Miss Elizabeth Marsh, a daughter of Benjamin Franklin Marsh, a native of Vermont, and a sister of Colonel B. F. Marsh, who was a soldier of the Civil war and has since been prominent in politics in Illinois. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Richmond has been blessed with eight children, four sons and four daughters, of whom three sons and three daughters are yet living. The family record is as follows: Benjamin F.; Charles Amos, now deceased; Sophia R., who died in infancy; Charlotte A., the wife of Bacon Holmes, of Smith county, Kansas; Elvira R., the wife of Delbert Hoyt, a retired farmer living in Webster; Arthur M.; Alice B., the wife of Joseph Herrick, of German
township, Keokuk county; and George H., who completes the family.

After his marriage Mr. Richmond left Illinois and went to LaGrange county, Indiana, where he settled upon a farm which he had bought, all of which was then raw land, but he made excellent improvements upon it and transformed it into an excellent property. All of the children were born upon that farm. In 1865 Mr. Richmond removed with his family to Iowa, settling in English River township, Keokuk county, near Webster. He secured one hundred and sixty acres of improved land and continued its further cultivation and improvement until 1891, when he put aside the work of the fields and removed to Webster, where he built a house in which he is now living in the enjoyment of a well earned rest. He was energetic and active in the prosecution of his work, reliable in his business transactions and of strong purpose, and those qualities brought to him a competence which now supplies him with all the comforts and many of the luxuries of life.

Froin its organization Mr. Richmond has been identified with the Republican party, and his study of the political issues of the day and the attitude of the parties concerning public questions has never caused him to want to change his political allegiance. He and his wife have long been Congregationalists in religious faith and their membership is now with the church of that denomination in Webster. They are both highly respected residents of the town, well worthy of representation among the valued citizens of their adopted county.

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JOHN A. RIGGEN, M.D.

There are in every community men of great force of character and exceptional ability, who by reason of their capacity for leadership become recognizd as foremost citizens and bear a most important part in the development and progress of the locality with which they are connected. Such a man is Dr. Riggen, who is a prominent physician and influential citizen of What Cheer, Iowa.

A native of the neighboring state of Illinois, he was born in Stark county, October 29, 1841, a son of John and Anna (Bothwell) Riggen. His father was born in Ohio and traced his Scotch-Irish ancestry back to the early settlers of Maryland and Delaware. The doctor's maternal grandfather was also a native of the Buckeye state and was of Scotch
descent, while his wife was born in Virginia of Irish parentage. Both the Riggen and Bothwell families settled in Knox and Peoria counties, Illinois, in the etarly '30s and originated a generation of people noted for their honest and sturdy habits.

The early educational privileges of our subject were limited, as he was able to attend the country schools only for three winter terms, and what additional knowledge he has acquired has been gathered from the school of experience. In 1859 he accompanied the family on their removal to Missouri, settling in what proved to be a strong secession community. When the war broke out, however, both father and son unhesitatingly declared their adherence to the cause of the Union and emphasized their sentiments by enlisting in the Northern army, the former serving for three years in the First Missouri Cavalry, after which he returned home on account of wounds and disability. The Doctor enlisted in June, 1861, joining the Eighteenth Missouri Volunteer Infantry at its organization in the following July. He was in the service for four years, one month and fifteen days, during which time he was never absent from his regiment, except two weeks while in the hospital with measles, and two months while home on a veteran furlough and in recruiting service. With his command he participated in a number of important skirmishes and small engagements in Missouri during the fall and winter of 1861. He also took part in the battle of Shiloh, where he was wounded; and the siege and second battle of Corinth, Mississippi, in 1862. The following year he was in the campaigns and skirmishes in western Tennessee, and later was in numerous engagements, being under the command of General Sherman in the Atlanta campaign; the march to the sea; the march through the Carolinas, and the battle of Bentonville, which was the last engagement of the war. His regiment then marched through Virginia to Washington, D. C., and participated in the grand review. The Doctor takes a just pride in the fact that he carried a musket for nearly three years, although he was mustered out with the rank of first lieutenant, having been promoted for conspicuous bravery and highly meritorious service.

After the war Dr. Riggen taught school for a few months and then began the study of medicine, locating for the practice of his profession in Johnstown, Bates county, Missouri, in 1869, where he maintained an extensive practice for ten years, when he was compelled by failing health to change his location. Coming to Iowa in the spring of 1879, he first located in Washington county, and in 1884 removed to his present home in What Cheer. During the years that have since passed his practice has only been limited by his physical endurance, for his skill and ability in his chosen profession were soon widely recognized. For twenty years he has been division surgeon for the Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Railroad Company. He is ex-president of the Keokuk County Medical Society and a member of the American Medical Association, the Iowa State Medical Society, the National Association of Railway Surgeons and the American Public Health Association.

At St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1868, Dr. Riggen was united in marriage to Mrs. Hannah E. Mesley, with whose companionship and love he is still blessed. She is a daughter of the late John E. Warner, of Syracuse New York. Their only child is Fannie E., now the wife of T. G. Legoe, a prominent attorney of What Cheer, though they have an adopted daughter, Cora F., the wife of Joseph C. Reilly, a successful millinery dealer in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Doctor has a splendid plantation of two thousand one hundred and twenty acres in the sunny south, where he spends his winters, while the surhmers are passed at What Cheer. Socially he is an honored membef of all of the Masonic bodies up to and including the thirty-second degree, and he is also connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, the Grand Army of the Republic, the Sons of Veterans and the military order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. For seven years he served as commander of Grand Army Posts Nos. 112 and 114, and in 1888 was elected senior vice-commander of the department of Iowa and had charge of the Iowa camp at the national encampment at Columbus, Ohio, that year.

In 1887 Dr. Riggen was nominated by acclamation by the Republicans of Keokuk county for state representative and came within five votes of being elected, although the county went strongly Democratic that year. He has served as a member of the city school board and was postmaster under President Harrison, but resigned in a short time on account of ill health. He was the choice of his county for district delegate to the national Republican convention in 1892 and was elected as an alternate from the sixth district that year. In 1893 he was elected state senator from the twelfth district, being nominated by acclamation and elected by a majority of eight hundred and eighty-five, succeeding a Democrat. During his term of four years the Doctor rendered in a quiet way honest and faithful service to his constituents and to the state. He was a member of a number of important committees, including the ways and means, suppression of intemperance, railroad corporation, military, mines and mining, labor, highways, elections, public health and pharmacy. He was also chairman of the legislative committee to visit the Independence insane asylum in 1894 and the Anamosa penitentiary in 1896. From the hour of his election he positively refused to be considered a candidate for re-election, his dislike for the duties of the office and his persistent ill health making his resolve absolutely necessary.

When the war with Spain was declared Dr. Riggen took an active interest in aiding the government, and by his diligent efforts the city in which he resides had the honor of a good representation in the Fiftieth Iowa Volunteers. He organized a squad of fifteen, accompanied them to the recruiting station, and by his efforts raised money to pay the expenses of all who were accepted or rejected. He kept in touch with the boys at the front, forwarding the money to Jacksonville, Florida, and when they returned gave his gratuitous professional services to all who were ill. Upon the receipt of the news of the battle of Santiago he promptly tendered by telegraph through Congressman Lacy his immediate and gratuitous service to our wounded. As a number of similar offers had been made, the surgeon general accepted the services of those who were nearer when they were needed. The Doctor loves Iowa and her people, but his physical condition will not permit him to risk the rigors of a northern winter climate. He is deservedly popular with all classes, having the happy faculty of being able to win friends easily and as easily retain them.

JAMES BROOKS AYERS ROBERTSON

For over a third of a century James Brooks Ayers Robertson has been among the progressive and energetic citizens of Keokuk county, and at present is living practically retired at his pleasant home in Keswick. For three years he served his country during the war of the Rehellion, participating in some of the most arduous campaigns of that terrible conflict, and in years of peace, no less than in those of war, he has bravely performed his duty, and is justly entitled to a place in the nation's roll of honor.

Mr. Robertson was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, on the 7th of September, 1836, and is a son of John Robertson, a native of Philadelphia. His paternal grandfather, John Robertson, Sr., was a native of England and was a sea captain who was lost at sea when his son John was but eight years old. The latter was then bound out and was reared in a Quaker family about sixty miles from Philadelphia. There he was united in marriage to Miss Maria Frieze, a native of Chester county, Pennsylvania, and they began their domestic life in Downington, that county, Mr. Robertson being engaged at that time in teaming between Philadelphia and Pittsburg. Later he removed to Wrightsville, York county, Pennsylvania, and for two years was engaged in boating on the canal. His next home was at Safe Harbor, Lancaster county, the same state, where he was employed in the iron works for seven years, and in April, 1855, he came to Iowa, landing at Davenport on the 17th of that month. He first located in Muscatine county, but in the fall of 1855 removed to Cedar county, where he entered land and engaged in farming until 1863. Selling his property there he then came to Keokuk county and settled where our subject now lives. Here he died at the age of seventy years, honored and respected by all who knew him. Politically he was a life-long Democrat, and religiously was an earnest and consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, taking an active part in its work for many years. His estimable wife died at the age of seventy-three years. They were the parents of seven children, two of whom died in infancy, while the others reached man and womanhood and four are still living. Three of the sons were numbered among the boys in blue during the Civil war, these being John S., George A. and our subject. John enlisted in the Thirteenth Missouri Infantry in 1861, and was captured at Lexington, Missouri, afterward paroled and came home and later re-enlistd in the Eight Iowa Cavalry; he was captured at Macon, Georgia, and held a prisoner at Andersonville for about six months. George A. belonged to the same company and regiment as our subject and served about three years.

Mr. Robertson, of this review, was the second child and second son in his father's family, and was about eighteen years of age when he accompanied his parents on their removal to this state. He had already acquired a good common school education. While a resident of Cedar county he was married, January 19, i860, to Miss Clarissa M. Wright, a native of Ohio, who came to Iowa with her parents when a small child and was reared in Cedar county. By this union there were eleven children, and the family circle has never been broken by the hand of death, the youngest being now eighteen years of age. In order of birth they are as follows: John H., now a resident of Nebraska; Anna M., the wife of John Schuble of Oklahoma; George Allen, a merchant of Oklahoma; Maggie, the wife of John Brandenburg of California; James B. A., a prominent lawyer and now county attorney of Lincoln county, Oklahoma; Elizabeth A., wife of Michael Gill of Altoona, Pennsylvania; Meda, a teacher in the high school of Chandler, Oklahoma; Alice M., who is attending the Methodist Episcopal Training School in Chicago; Warren K., who is attending college in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Charles Howard, a printer of Chandler, Oklahoma; and Ralph K., who is at home with his parents and is still in school.

After his marriage Mr. Robertson began farming upon rented land and later purchased a small tract which was covered with a heavy growth of timber, and to the improvement and cultivation of that place he devoted his energies until he entered the service of his country during the Civil war, enlisting in August, 1862, as a private in Company B, Twenty-fourth Iowa Volunteer Infantry; but he was afterward transferred to the First Battalion Veteran Reserve Corps and was promoted to fourth corporal, serving with that rank when discharged on the 29th of June, 1865, after three years service.

At the close of the war Mr. Robertson removed from Cedar county to Keokuk county and was first engaged in farming upon rented land in Adams township for three years. He then purchased eighty acres of land on the north side of Eagle river and was engaged in the improvement and cultivation of that place for six years. In the meantime he established a store at Aurora, Adams township, the first in this township, and conducted the same for four years, during which time the Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Railroad was built, and having faith in the future development of Keswick he removed to that place in the spring of 1880 and erected the second store building there. He carried on general merchandising here with good success for twenty-two years and he still owns the store building, which he now rents, having retired from mercantile pursuits.

Mr. Robertson has taken quite an active and prominent part in public affairs, being elected county commissioner in 1886, and so acceptably did he fill that office that he was re-elected, serving in all six years with credit to himself and to the entire satisfaction of his constituents. He has also filled the offices of justice of the peace, school director and constable, and his official duties have always been the most promptly and faithfully discharged. By his ballot Mr. Robertson supports the men and measures of the Democratic party, and in his social relations he is connected with the Masonic fraternity and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in which lodges he has filled all the chairs. He has been active in promoting the interests of his adopted county along many lines and has materially aided in its upbuilding and development. As an honored pioneer and representative man of the community he is also worthy of the high regard in which he is uniformly held.

HENRY CRANDALL ROSECRANS

Among the prominent and representative citizens of Keokuk county is numbered Henry C. Rosecrans, who is now engaged in merchandising at What Cheer. He was born in Delaware county, Ohio, on Christmas day, 1824, and is descended from an old and honored Pennsylvania family of Holland origin, his ancestors having come to this country from Amsterdam in colonial days. His paternal grandfather was Daniel Rosecrans, a native of the Keystone state. His father, Crandall Rosecrans, was born in Wilkesbarre, Pennsylvania, August 16, 1794, and when a boy of nine years removed from that state to Delaware county, Ohio, with his parents. It was there that he was reared and educated and after reaching manhood he engaged in farming and in contracting on the Ohio canal. He was one of the most prominent and influential citizens of his community and was appointed captain of the Ohio militia by the governor of the state. He also served as justice of the peace and associate judge of the district court of Licking county, Ohio; he proved a most popular official, his decisions being fair and impartial. He died at Homer, that state, at the age of fifty-two years, honored and respected by all who knew him. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Jamima Hopkins, was also born in Pennsylvania, in 1797, and died in 1868. She was a second cousin of the Hopkins who signed the Declaration of Independence, and her ancestors were probably of English descent. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Rosecrans were born five sons. one of whom died in infancy. The others were General Willam S. Rosecrans, whose fame as an officer in the Civil war is excelled by but few of those who were in command of our Northern army during the dark days of the Rebellion ; Charles Wesley; Henry Crandall; and Sylvester H.

Of this family the subject of this review is now the only one living. He grew to manhood in Licking county, Ohio, whither his parents removed when he was about four years old, his early life being mainly passed in the town of Homer. His education was somewhat limited, as he was only able to attend school for about three months during the year for five years, and as Homer, at that time, had only a population of one hundred the schools were not of the best. He remaind with his father, assisting him in his business until after the Mexican war broke out. In 1846, on the second call of the government for volunteers, Mr. Rosecrans enlisted as a private in Captain John R. Duncan's company. The governor had offered to give the company Ihat presented itself first for duty the privilege of being mounted on their own horses, and Mr. Rosecrans' company was the one to receive this honor. He remained in the service for fifteen months or until the the close of the war, and after receiving an honorable discharge he relumed to Licking county, Ohio, where he engaged in farming and school teaching for a year.

In 1849 Mr. Rosecrans married Miss Elizabeth Dickey, who was born in Licking county, October 24, 1823, the only child of Joseph and Catherine (Sillins) Dickey, who were from Virginia and were pioneers of Licking county. By occupation her father was also a farmer and teacher. After receiving a good common school education she, too, taught school for about six years in her native county. She is still living and has been to her husband a faithful companion and helpmate for over fifty-three years. They are the parents of four children who are still living, namely: Menga Oveda, wife of Richard Burke of Oskaloosa, Iowa; Adrain D., a telegraph operator for the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad at What Cheer; William J., at home; and Henry S., a resident of Oskaloosa.

Ten days after his marriage Mr. Rosecrans came to Iowa on horseback, leaving his bride in Ohio, and he located a land warrant in Sigourney township, Keokuk county, where he remained during the winter. The following spring he crossed the plains with ox teams and after a long and tedious journey arrived on the Pacific slope in Sqatember. He spent about a year in California, and in September, 1851, returned east by way of Panama and New York, and spent the following winter at his old home in Ohio. In the spring of 1852, in company with his wife, he again came to Iowa, traveling this time by team and wagon, and they took up their residence in Washington county, where Mr. Rosecrans engaged in farming until 1882. The following year he was engaged in the lumber business and then resumed farming, which he continued to carry on until 1889, when he sold his place in Washington county and bought a mill in Sigourney, which he conducted for about eight years. After disposing of his mill property Mr. Rosecrans embarked in merchandising at What Cheer, where he still carries on business with good success, having by fair and honorable dealing built up a good trade.

Politically Mr. Rosecrans has been a life-long Democrat, never wavering in his allegiance to that party, and he has been honored with a number of local offices. He is a member of the Catholic church, having been converted to that belief, and is a brother of Rev. S. H. Rosecrans, a prominent clergyman of that denomination, who was bishop of the diocese of Columbus, Ohio. His life has been manly, his actions sincere and his example is well worthy of emulation.