Greene County Biographies


From the Pictorial and genealogical record of Greene County, Missouri : 
together with biographies of prominent men of other portions of the 
state, both living and dead. 
Chicago: Goodspeed Bros., 1893



DAVIS & STRALEY. The enormous increase in the demand for carriages and
buggies of all grades has rendered their manufacture a prominent industry
in the United States. There are few branches of industrial trade in which
such a vast amount of capital has been invested and none other in which
the American manufacturer has by his skill and ingenuity so far
outstripped his competitors. The industries of Springfield are principally
of an important character, ably and successfully carried on, the products
being such as to have secured for this city a reputation of which any
might well be proud. Among the most widely known and deservedly popular
concerns whose productions are in constant and ever increasing demand is
the firm of Davis & Straley. From the outset, owing to the superior merits
and general excellence of its products, it has been recognized as the
leader in this line of trade, and has had the benefit of the executive
management of responsible and influential officers. This business was
established in 1890 and they are men trained in the art of manufacture,
and possessing an intimate knowledge of all the details of the business as
well as the requirements of the public. Six or eight skilled mechanics are
employed and Messrs. Davis and Straley are obliging gentlemen, whose
reputation for sterling integrity and personal worth are already too well
known in the city to require mention. Mr. Straley has been a resident of
Springfield for ten years and has been a carriage maker since 1848, being
one of the finest mechanics in this section. He learned his trade in
Philadelphia, Penn. He came originally from the Keystone State, where he
was reared, and during the Civil War he served his country faithfully. He
was captured by the Winchester Riflemen under Stonewall Jackson, but
shortly afterward released. In selecting a companion in life he chose Miss
Catherine Shank, a Virginia lady, who bore him these children: Alboero,
Florence, Clara, Henry and ----. The eldest child is married. For
thirty-five years Mr. Straley has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, and in politics he is an ardent supporter of the principles of the
Republican party. Since 1854 he has been an Odd Fellow and is at present
captain of the -------. Ever since his residence in Springfield he has
been identified with all enterprises of moment and has gained the respect
and esteem of all. For nearly fifty years he has manufactured buggies and
by his acute perception and vast experience has secured the company a
large and constantly increasing trade. W. H. Davis, also of the firm of
Davis & Straley, owes his nativity to Illinois and,started to learn his
trade of a blacksmith at Neosho, Mo., in 1876. Since that time be has
worked at it and has become expert at his business, being considered one
of the best workman in the city. He has had fifteen or sixteen years'
experience, and brings to bear on the business a wide range of practical
experience, sound judgment and thorough knowledge of the wants of the
trade. His wife, formerly Miss Carrie Meodour, was born in Minnesota, and
died in Springfield on the 12th of April, 1892. Three children were born
to their union, Clifford, Larry and Clara. Mr. Davis is a thorough
mechanic in every respect, and being public-spirited and enterprising, is
respected by all.




THOMAS J. DELANEY. To become distinguished at the bar requires not only
capacity, but also sound judgment and persevering industry. These
qualifications are combined in no gentleman at the Greene County bar to a
greater extent than in Thomas J. Delaney. A careful and accurate adviser,
and an earnest and conscientious advocate, his success at the bar has been
achieved by the improvement of opportunities, by untiring diligence, and
by close study and a correct judgment of men and motives. Like so many of
the eminent men of the present day his early career was not a very
auspicious one, and gave no hints of the honor that was to come to him in
later years. He was born in the city of New Orleans May 10, 1859, a son of
James Delaney, who lost his life while serving for the South in the great
civil strife of 1861, being fatally wounded at the siege of Corinth. He
was a native of Ireland, but became a citizen of America in 1850, first
making his home in the city of Brooklyn, and in 1859 removing to New
Orleans, in which city his widow still resides. To their union a family of
five children were given, the following of whom are living: Mary
(Kearney), of Springfield, Mo., Jennie (Beven), of McComb, Miss., and
Thomas J. The education of the latter was acquired in St. Mary's College,
New Orleans, in which institution he enjoyed excellent instruction and
made the most of his opportunities. In April, 1874, he came to
Springfield, Mo., and took up the study of law in May, 1878, with F. S.
Heffernan, but gave it up for a time to engage in railroading, which he
continued until October of the same year, at which time he entered the law
department of the Washington University of St. Louis, from which he
graduated with first honors in 1880, in a class comprising forty-two
members, many of whom are now prominent attorneys of Missouri. Mr. Delaney
entered upon the practice of his profession in St. Louis as a partner of
Brillian A. Hill, but on account of ill health left that city in April,
1881, and came to Springfield, having been married in St. Louis in
December, 1880, to Miss Cordie Boyd, daughter of Hon. S. H. Boyd, of this
city. Since he has made his home at this place he has been actively
engaged in the practice of law, and gives attention to both civil and
criminal practice. He has been a life-long Democrat, has taken a deep
interest in politics, and in 1882 was elected by his party to the office
of city attorney of Springfield, serving that year and during 1883. In the
latter year he was appointed Prosecuting attorney of Greene County, which
position he filled until 1885, when, he refused to be re-nominated. After
the defeat of Cleveland in 1888, he was appointed assistant United States
district attorney for the western district of Missouri, and under
Harrison's administration he tendered his resignation. In 1890 he was
elected a member of the State central committee, representing the old
thirteenth district, and in 1892, he was elected to the same position to
represent the now seventh district. For a number of years he was
associated in the practice of his profession with his father-in-law, Hon.
S. H. Boyd (from 1885 to 1890), and the firm proved a strong one and
became widely and favorably known. He and his wife have one child living:
James Boyd, who was born July 2, 1882.




GEORGE W. DELO, M. D. In tracing the genealogy of the Delo family, we find
that the first representative of this family in America was George Delo,
great-grandfather of our subject, who came from France at a period long
antedating the Revolutionary War, and settled in the Keystone State. He
was married in Westmoreland County, that State, had but one son, George M.
Delo, and was a substantial and worthy citizen. He was killed in the
Westmoreland Indian Massacre in early days. Some of the early members of
this family were soldiers in the Revolutionary War as well as the War of
1812. The Delos were noted for rearing large families as were all the
Pennsylvania people, one man being the father of thirty-four children. Our
subject's grandfather, George M. Delo, was present at Perry's Victory. In
looking back over the career of the Delo family we find the men and women
honorable and upright in every walk of life, and ever ready to advance any
worthy movement. The father of our subject, Daniel Delo, was born in
Pennsylvania, December 12, 1799, and was married in that State to Miss
Laughner who was of an old Westmoreland family, some members of which took
part in the early wars and were prominent in all public matters. Fourteen
children were the fruits of this union, and our subject, whose birth
occurred in Clarion County, March 14, 1824, was the oldest of this family.
He gained a good education by self- application, and in 1843 was married
to Miss Sophia M. Wheaton, daughter of Charles and Elizabeth Wheaton. Mrs.
Delo was a native of New Jersey and was but four years of age when her
parents settled in Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs. Delo are highly esteemed and
honored people and their long lives have been replete with kind deeds. An
old fashioned family of thirteen children were born to them, three of whom
died young. The remainder are named as follows: C. A., who is a coach
maker in the Frisco shops in Springfield, is married and has a family of
four children; William R., is an oil man in Bradford County, Penn., and
has a family; John A., is a brick mason, in Springfield, Mo., and has a
family; Mary E., is the widow of Benjamin LaBelle. She is residing in
Springfield; Wesley B. resides in Polk County, Mo., where he follows the
occupation of a brick mason; Moria, wife of Henry Gross, resides in
Springfield; Christiana, wife of George Attabury, resides on a farm near
Springfield; George F., is a railroad mail at Kansas City; Joshua H. is a
car maker in the Frisco shops at Springfield, and Hannah J. is the wife of
L. B. Cooper, and resides on the farm with her parents. The ones deceased
are: Olive J., Daniel and Secilla J. In his early days our subject was a
carpenter and a natural mechanic, and built many houses. He is also a fine
cabinetmaker and has followed that business nearly all his life. He and
family are members of the M. E. Church. He resided for many years in his
native State and Alabama, and during that time practiced medicine in
connection with agricultural pursuits. About 1874 he came to Greene
County, Mo. Previous to moving to Alabama, our subject resided in Elkhart,
Ind., for some time. After coming to Greene County, Mo., he located just
out of town on a farm of 80 acres, and of late years he has kept a great
many cows. By good management and perseverance every thing has seemed to
prosper under his hands and he is now one of the substantial men of the
country. In politics be is a Prohibitionist and takes an active part in
putting down the drink traffic.




WILLIAM A. DENBY. The time has never been that the prescription druggist
was not of as great importance to any community as a practicing physician.
Indeed it would be difficult to name a branch of business that is more
indispensably important than that devoted to the sale and importation of
drugs and the preparation of prescriptions. A prominent retail merchant in
this line at Walnut Grove is William A. Denby, who was born in Dade
County, Mo., in 1858, a son of Dr. William and Anna (Patterson) Denby, who
were born in Warren County, Tenn., in 1824 and Cannon County, Tenn., in
1828 respectively. They were married in 1845, and in 1855 came by ox team
to Dade County, Mo., settling near Dadeville. Dr. Denby acquired his
professional education in the Medical College of Keokuk, Iowa, and in 1860
began practicing in and around Dadeville, but in 1868 came to Walnut Grove
where he continued to successfully heal the sick and afflicted, his
practice extending from Stockton to Cave Springs and from Ash Grove to
Bolivar. About 1891 he retired from practice, to a certain extent, and
established himself in the drug business, which he carried on, with his
usual success, until his death, on the 16th of April, 1898. For many years
he also devoted much of his time to religious work and for many years was
a minister of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. He was an active and
energetic worker for the general well being of the community in which he
lived. During the early part of the war, he served as regimental surgeon
of the Sixth Missouri Cavalry, but resigned this position in 1862 to take
a place in the State Legislature, to which he had just been elected. He
was held in high esteem by the citizens of Greene County and was a
prominent member of O'Sullivan Lodge, No. 7, of the A. F. & A. M., at
Walnut Grove. He had two sisters who became residents of Cedar County,
Mo., where they eventually died, each the wife of a Mr. Edge. The father,
Samuel Denby, was a Virginian, but was an early settler of Tennessee, in
which State he followed the occupation of farming and milling and in-which
he died. He was a soldier in the War of 1812 and a son of Samuel Denby,
who was an active soldier of the Revolution. The widow of Dr. William
Denby is still living. She became the mother of the following children:
Bluford, a farmer of this county, who served in the Civil War in the
Sixteenth Missouri Cavalry; Harvey, a resident of Polk County; John M.;
Geneva, wife of B. F. Holder of Walnut Grove; Mary, wife of B. T. Edge of
Polk County; William A.; Margaret, wife of C. P. LaRue of Dade County;
Anna, wife of Chiton LaRue; Eliza, wife of H. L. Rains, also of this
county, and Kittie. William A. Denby was educated principally at
Morrisville Institute, finishing his course in 1877, after which be began
teaching school, a profession he followed with marked success until 1893,
when he succeeded his father in the drug business. He was one of the most
successful educators and disciplinarians of the county, and upon entering
upon his present business, although the county lost an able instructor it
gained a painstaking, active, and industrious druggist. He taught in Polk,
Dade, and Greene Counties, and upon closing his career as an educator he
was principal of the Walnut Grove school. In 1880 he married Margaret,
daughter of Dr. E. K. and Eliza McMaster, who came to this State from
Indiana, the doctor's death occurring here in 1860. He was a successful
physician for a good many years and his death was deeply felt, not only by
his immediate family, but by all who knew him -professionally and
socially. His widow now resides near Cave Springs, and a large family of
children also survive him. Mrs. Denby was born in Polk County and received
the principal part of her education in Greenfield Seminary. She and the
doctor have three children; Esma, Sherman, and Wiley. Mr. Denby is a
member of the Woodmen of the World, Buckeye Lodge, No. 55, at Walnut
Grove, and he and his wife are members of the Cumberland Presbyterian
Church.




GEORGE A. DILLARD. This honorable and useful citizen has been a resident
of Taylor Township, Greene County Mo., since 1837, but owes his nativity
to Monroe County, Tenn., where he was born in 1826, a son of William and
Sarah (Gregory) Dillard, the former of whom was born in North Carolina,
his father being John Dillard, who was descended from the French people,
who were early settlers of this country. Some of the early members of this
family were soldiers of the Revolution, and William Dillard organized a
company for service in the War of 1812. In 1837 he became a resident of
Greene County, Mo., and settled in the neighborhood of where the family
now lives, purchasing a claim and becoming a successful farmer. He was a
Whig in politics, and after the great Civil War cast his influence on the
side of the Republican Party. He was at one time a nominee for the
Legislature in Tennessee. He took great interest in the affairs of Greene
County after locating here, and was justly considered one of its most
successful candidates. He died about 1877, at the advanced age of
ninety-five years, at which time he was the next oldest man in the county.
His wife was born in North Carolina; was a member of a prominent old
family of that State, and died in 1861, when about seventy years of age.
She became the mother of the following children: Mary, wife of Horace
Snow, moved to California and there died; Stephen was a farmer and died in
California; Samuel, also deceased; Elizabeth, who died in Polk County,
Mo., the wife of William Maddy; John, a resident of Oregon; Robert, a
resident of Greene County; Frances is the deceased wife of William Price;
James died in Tennessee Amanda, a resident of Douglas County, Mo., is the
widow of Albert Smith; Caroline is also a resident of Douglas County and
is the wife of James Breedlove; George A.; William, who is a resident of
this county, and Sarah, who is a resident of Christian County, Mo., and is
the wife of J. Smith. The majority of the members of this family belong to
the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and are highly honored in the different
sections in which they reside. The father is the owner of a fine farm of
374 acres and for years past has been engaged in stock raising. George A.
Dillard was brought to this county when a lad of eleven years; attended
the schools of the neighborhood, and when a young man, in 1849, began
farming for himself and has since followed this occupation in connection
with stock raising. In August, 1862, he enlisted in the service of his
country and was chosen captain of Company E, Seventy-second Regiment of
Enrolled Militia, and was in the engagement at Springfield, where he was
stationed the most of the time. He was on post duty at Springfield during
the Wilson Creek fight and did post and scouting duty the balance of the
time. He was honorably discharged in 1865, and returned to farming on his
old place on which he had resided fifty-five years of his life. One
hundred and fifty acres of his land is under fence and well tilled,
yielding large crops annually. He was married in 1849 to Eliza Gibson, a
daughter of John Gibson, of this county, and to them nine children were
given three of whom died in infancy; William has been county assessor and
is now a hardware merchant of Springfield; Dudley is a conductor on the
Gulf Railroad and makes his home in Springfield; James is still with his
parents; Margaret is the wife of Albert Turner, of Turner Station; Bell is
the widow of Harry Merrett who was killed on a railroad; and George is a
railroad man living in Springfield. Mr. and Mrs. Dillard are members of
the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and in politics he is a Republican. He
is a member of the Masonic Fraternity, and as a citizen is highly regarded
by all who have the honor of knowing him.




J. C. DODSON has been a resident of Greene County, Mo., for forty-three
years, coming to this State from Hawkins County, Tenn., where his birth
occurred April 14, 1849, and as a public spirited citizen is held in high
respect by all who know him. He is a son of Thomas R. and Minerva E.
(Price) Dodson, both natives of Tennessee, where the Dodson family was
well known, being among the pioneer families of that State. (See sketch.)
Our subject was but five months old when his parents came to Greene
County, Mo., and as a consequence all his recollections are of this State.
He attended the early schools of his township, but only a few months, and
is mainly self-educated. Until the breaking out of the Civil War he
remained with his parents, and during that exciting period served as
substitute for his father in the State militia. After the war he branched
out for himself and after engaging in different occupations, was, in 1874,
appointed deputy sheriff by A. J. Potter, the sheriff of Greene County,
serving in that capacity for two years. After that he was appointed United
States deputy collector, hold that position for a short time, and in 1878
engaged in agricultural pursuits, continuing the same up to 1881. From
that year up to 1884 he worked at carpentering in Springfield, and was
then appointed policeman of Springfield, holding that position one year.
In 1886 he was elected sheriff of Greene County on the Republican ticket,
and so efficiently and satisfactorily did he discharge the duties of that
position, that he was re-elected in 1888, thus serving four years. In 1890
he engaged in the grocery business in Springfield, but later sold out, and
accepted a position with the Parce Buggy & Implement Co. He has held other
positions, and on the 1st of February, 1893, he engaged in the livery
business with Mark Gault, the stables being located on West Walnut Street,
Nos. 307, 309, and 311. He is a young man of more than ordinary business
ability, and has shown himself to be worthy of all honor. Politically he
is a strong Republican, is in every sense of the word public spirited, and
is one who would be considered an acquisition to any locality in which he
might locate. He has been prominent in most of the county conventions and
takes a deep interest in all worthy movements. Socially he is a member of
the K. of H. In the year 1878 he was married to Miss Maude E. Mack, a
native of Greene County, Mo., and the daughter of W. L. and Arminta (Dew)
Mack, natives of Tennessee. Mr. and Mrs. Mack came to Greene County before
the war but did not take up their residence in Springfield until 1889. Mr.
Mack is now probate clerk of Greene County. Mr. and Mrs. Dodson are the
parents of six children, five now living: William T. L., Ethel A., who
died when eighteen months old, Harry S., Maple A., Maude L., and Marcus E.
Mr. Dodson and family attend the Methodist Episcopal Church. Our subject
is well known throughout the county, and is respected by all parties.




THOMAS R. DODSON. Integrity, intelligence and system are qualities which
will advance the interests of any man and will tend to the prosperity to
which all aspire. Mr. Dodson's life has been characterized by constancy of
purpose, conscientiousness, undoubted ability and energy, and as a natural
consequence he is one of the county's most esteemed citizens. He is a
native of East Tennessee, born in 1819, and all his life has been engaged
in the arduous duties of the farm, although in connection he was also a
blacksmith for some time. Although seventy-four years of age, time has
dealt leniently with him and his mind is as clear and his health as good
as most men of fifty-five or sixty. He was married in his native State to
Miss M. Price, who is also a native of Tennessee and now seventy-two years
of age. After marriage, or in 1849, this worthy couple moved to Missouri,
and this State has been their home ever since. Of the eleven children born
to them, four are now living: Sarah J., wife of George Bradley; Joseph C.;
Rebecca, the wife of John Thornhill, of Springfield, and Hattie, the wife
of Wade Hindman of Springfield. When first coming to Missouri Mr. Dodson
settled in the southeast part of Greene County and there remained until
the breaking out of the Rebellion, when he moved to Springfield. He has
been a well known and well respected resident of that city since, and now
resides about three miles from the public square. Mrs. Dodson was a
daughter of Henry and Nancy (Dick) Price, both natives of Tennessee, where
they tilled the soil all their lives, and she was one of six children, all
but one now living. This worthy and much esteemed old couple have a very
comfortable and pleasant home and can spend the closing scenes of their
lives in peace. They both hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal
Church. Their son, Joseph C., married Miss Maude Mack, and now resides in
this county. (See sketch.)




W. W. DONHAM, clerk of the circuit court of Greene County, Mo. The
official work of this gentleman has extended over a number of years and
has brought him before the attention of the citizens of Springfield, and
in him his constituents have found a man of ability and integrity, and one
whose activities have ever been employed for the good of the community. He
is a native of this State, born in Johnson County, July 6, 18397 and the
son of Demis and Jane (Bighan) Donham, the former a native of the Blue
Grass State and the latter of Alabama. The families came to Missouri at an
early day and settled in Johnson County where they resided for many years.
Demis Donham was of Scotch-Irish descent and of genuine Yankee stock of
New Jersey. He was a man honored and respected by all for in every walk of
life he acquitted himself with credit and renown. The youthful days of our
subject were spent on his father's farm in Johnson County and he secured a
fair education in tile district schools. In 1862 he enlisted in Company A,
Seventh Missouri Cavalry, and served until April, 1865. He entered the
service as a private but before the close of the war he held the rank of
major. Among the engagements in which he participated the following are
the most prominent: The Big Blue and Lone Jack. He served principally on
the frontier and spent a good deal of his war days in fighting Guerillas.
In 1863 he was in the Marmaduke raid for sixteen days and during that time
had but one good meal. Mr. Donham had his right eye so affected during
service that he lost the use of it and now receives a pension. Although he
took part in some hard fighting he was never wounded, but bad some narrow
escapes. His fighting was confined to Missouri, Arkansas and Kansas. After
leaving the army he was appointed United States assessor for the second
division of the third district of Missouri and held that position two
years. He then entered the war claim business and was occupied with the
duties of the same for six years, and filled that position in a very
creditable manner. Previous to entering the army Mr. Donham followed the
profession of teaching and although young in years (for he was but
twenty-one when he entered the service), he won quite an enviable
reputation as an educator. After filling the above mentioned positions he
became clerk of the district court at Springfield and hold that position
until the office was abolished. After that he was mail contractor in
Arkansas, residing at the time in Boone County, at Harrison, for four
years. His mail route was from Harrison to Walnut Ridge. In the year 1883
he returned to Springfield and was contractor for transporting the mails
from the depots to the post office for two years. In 1886 he was elected
to the position he now holds and so ably did he fill that position, that
in 1890 he was re-elected. He has held other positions in Greene County
and has ever discharged the duties in a careful and conscientious manner.
In the year 1865 he was married in Greene County to Miss Elizabeth C.
Bearden, a native of the county, who was born near the public square of
Springfield. Her father, E. N. Bearden, is one of the oldest pioneers now
living in the county, having settled two miles east of Springfield in
1837. Mrs. Donham died in October, 1892. She was the mother of eleven
children: Emma, Grace, Mattie, Grant, Della, Anna and Bessie. All the
others died young. Mr. Donham has a pleasant home at 859 North Main
Street, Springfield, and he and family attended the Cumberland
Presbyterian Church in which all hold membership. Politically Mr. Donham
was reared a Democrat but in 1856 he became a Republican and has remained
with that party up to the present. He is a man universally respected and
has filled the many positions he has held with credit to himself and to
those who aided him in getting them. He is a member of the G.A.R., also
the A. O. U. W., the W. O. W. and was a member of the L. of L. order ever
organized in Greene County.





F. M. DONNELL. The gentleman whose name heads this sketch is a well known
citizen of Greene County, Mo., whose intelligence, enterprise and energy,
with many other estimable qualities have secured for him a popularity not
derived from any factitious circumstances, but a permanent and spontaneous
tribute to his merit. He is a native of the county in which he now
resides, his birth occurring September 22, 1847, a son of John M. and Jane
(McLain) Donnell, the former of whom was born in Tennessee in 1800,
becoming a citizen of Greene County, Mo., in 1832. In his veins flowed
sterling Scotch-Irish blood, and for some time after the family had taken
shelter under the "stars and stripes" the name was known as O'Donnell. The
paternal great-grandfather was one of the brave men who fought for home
and liberty during the Revolution, and his son, the grandfather of the
subject of this sketch, showed his love of his country and his patriotism
by service in the War of 1812. John M. and Jane Donnell were among the
first to locate in Greene County, Mo., coming thither from Tennessee by
wagon, and settling on a farm in the northern part of the county. They
purchased a tract of good farming land, but Mr. Donnell continued to add
to-his acreage until be became a large land holder. He gave much attention
to trading in mules, shipping them South, and in this branch of business
he was very successful. He was a member of the A. F. & A. M., and was
Master of Solomon Lodge for some time in its early history. He was well
known throughout the county, and was much respected by all, having many
warm friends. His wife, who was also born in Tennessee, died in 1848 after
having become the mother of ten children, seven of whom are still living:
Monroe, who was a farmer of Texas, and a man of family; Mary A., who died
in 1868, was the wife of David Kepply of this county, and left four
children; George W. is a man of family, and is a farmer in the northern
part of Greene County; Wildam M. is married, and a farmer of Saline
County, Mo.; Sarah C. is the wife of James Armstrong, of Polk County, Mo.,
and has four children; C. W, is a mechanic of Saline County, is married
and has a family; he was a soldier in the Confederate Army during the
civil war, and served four years with General Lee, taking part in many
important battles; and F. M., the subject of this sketch. Upon the death
of his first wife Mr. Donnell was married for the second time. The mother
of F. M. Donnell was a noble woman and an earnest christian, and for many
years of her useful and well spent life was connected with the Methodist
Episcopal Church South. She was about fifty-five years old at the time of
her death, and came of an excellent and well known family of Tennessee. F.
M. Donnell was reared on the farm of his father some fourteen miles north
of Springfield, and his early training was received on his father's farm,
and his education in the district schools. He gave his father his time and
services until the opening of the Civil War, and when only sixteen years
of age be entered the service, enlisting in Company E., Sixteenth Missouri
Cavalry, under Capt. S. W. Headley, with whom he remained for two years.
Some of the engagements in which he took part were Jefferson City,
Lexington, Big Blue, besides numerous sharp skirmishes. He was mustered
out of the service in June, 1865, soon after which he emigrated to
California, where he was actively engaged in agricultural pursuits up to
1888, when he returned to Greene County. During the time that lie was in
the West he lived in Enby and San Joaquin Counties, Cal., and was at one
time the foreman of 1,500 acres, the most of which he devoted to the
raising of wheat. He has been a very successful business man, and since
his return to Greene County, Mo., he has been a resident of Springfield,
where he was soon appointed to the position of deputy sheriff, and still
later became a member of the city police force. He has held the office of
constable, and in 1885 he was elected to the office of sheriff of Greene
'bounty, which position he filled with ability for two years. At the
expiration of his term of service he moved to his farm two and one half
miles east of Springfield, where he has been very successfully tilling the
soil and raising stock for about six years. His estate comprises 120
acres, and it is without doubt one of the best improved places in the
county. He has been living in the city of Springfield since early in 1893,
where lie is conducting a well appointed livery stable, and rents his
farm. His stables are located on Oliver street, near Boonville Street, and
is one of the best appointed and located, as well as stocked, in the city.
He has about fourteen head of horses always ready for service, and is
already doing a profitable business. Soon after the close of the war Mr.
Donnell was married to Miss Mary A. Hall, of Greene County, daughter of
George Hall, and to them two children were given: Charles, who was killed
at Willow Springs in 1893, on the Gulf Railroad, leaving a widow, and
George S., who is living in California, now a widower. Mr. Donnell lost
his first wife in 1872 in California, after which be married Miss Mattie
J. Williams of Kentucky, a daughter of Perry Williams, and by her is the
father of five children: F. M., Jr., Cordie, Carrie, Lee and Roy. Mr.
Donnell has always been a Democrat in politics, and in all ways has ever
been a man of decidedly public spirit. He has a neat and comfortable
residence at 615 St. Louis Street, besides a number of other dwelling
houses in the city, and considerable real estate of value.




DR. GREEN B. DORRELL, Republic, Mo., is one of the prominent younger
physicians of Greene County. He springs from an old American family of
French ancestry. Stephen Dorrell, grandfather of our subject, was a farmer
and citizen of Pike County, Ill., and came to Greene County, Mo., in 1830,
bringing his family and settled near Ash Grove and remained there the
balance of his days. He went to California in 1849 with his son, Green B.,
crossing the plains, and Mr. Dorrell was murdered by robbers. He was a
prominent farmer, well-to-do and an honorable citizen and a typical
pioneer American citizen. Green B., his son and father of our subject, was
born in Greene County, Mo., on his father's farm and has always been a
farmer. He married Elizabeth, daughter of Burrow Buckner, an old pioneer
minister in the Baptist Church in Missouri. Mr. Dorrell is yet living on
his farm and is a prosperous and prominent citizen of Lawrence County.
Politically he is a Democrat. Dr. Green B., son of above and our subject,
was born March 5, 1862, in Lawrence County, Mo., received the common
education and attended Drury College, and began the study of medicine
under Dr. Ross, of Springfield, and Dr. Dolzell, of Henderson., Mo., and
then attended the Missouri Medical College at St. Louis, Bellevue Hospital
Medical College, of New York City where he graduated in 1889 and received
his diploma March 11, 1889, and began his practice in 1889 at Republic,
Mo., and built up a successful practice, and in 1893 attended the
Polyclinic Institute, New York City, an advanced school for physicians.
Dr. Dorrell married April 7, 1892, Addie L., daughter of Hugh M. Simcox
(see sketch) of this county. Dr. Dorrell is one of the most successful.
physicians of Greene County and has attained his success by ability and
intelligence in his profession. He is a member of the Springfield Medical
Society and Southwest Missouri Medical Society. Socially, Dr. Dorrell is
an Odd Fellow, Relief Lodge No. 341, Republic, Mo., and holds the office
of vice grand. He is also a member of the Republic Lodge of Masons, No.
471. Politically he is a Democrat. Dr. Dorrell stands deservedly high as a
man of character and is a skillful and reliable physician.




JAMES H. DUNCAN. Among the noted and representative men of the flourishing
city of Springfield, Mo., stands the name of J. H. Duncan, who is the
present prosecuting attorney of Greene County. Perhaps no member of the
legal fraternity enjoys a mote extensive practice or is more widely known
than this gentleman. He came originally from the Blue Grass State, born in
Georgetown, Scott County, January 8, 1854, and is a son of Harvey and Mary
E. (Bowden) Duncan. The father was also a native of Kentucky, born in
Madison County, and is of Scotch-Irish descent, his ancestors emigrating
to this country at an early date. For many years the father made his home
in Springfield but later moved to Canton, Ill., where he resides at the
present time. Mrs. Duncan was a sister of Ex-Judge James H. Bowden of
Kentucky. She died in the year 1862. Of the five children born to this
worthy couple, only two besides our subject are now living: Prof. S. P.
Duncan, a resident of Coldwater, Kan., and probate judge of his county, is
a prominent attorney of his city, and Mrs. Allie B. Gardener, wife of J.
B. Gardener resides in Canton, Ill.. The early recollections of our
subject were of his native State but when the war broke out he moved with
his parents to Evansville, Ind., from there to Canton, Ill., in 1866,
where he remained for five or six years. He was educated in the Evansville
and Canton high schools, and also attended the McGree College in Macon
County, Mo., thus securing good educational advantages. After leaving
school he became a teacher and while thus occupied he took up the study of
law. Later he entered the law office of Cravens & Bray and was admitted to
the bar in 1876. The same year be began practicing his profession in
Springfield and in 1878 was elected city recorder and re-elected in 1879.
For four years after this he held the office of justice of the peace, was
elected assistant prosecuting attorney and later prosecuting attorney. Mr.
Duncan has been chairman of the Republican committee of Springfield, for
eight years, and has ever taken an active part in politics. He began
giving his undivided attention to the practice of law in 1882, and since
that time all his mind has been centered on that and his duties as
prosecuting attorney. Since serving in that capacity he has prosecuted a
large number of murder cases and is classed among the foremost attorneys
of the city. Socially he is a member of the A. O. U. W., Lodge No. 402,
Springfield, and a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Mr.
Duncan has a pleasant home at No. 710 West Elm street, and this is
presided over by his chosen companion, formerly Miss Levie A. Carson, a
native of St. Louis and the daughter of Henry S. Carson of Springfield.
Three children have been born to this union, as follows: Henry H., Harvey
L. and Paul B. Mrs. Duncan holds membership in the Baptist Church and is a
lady of intelligence and good judgment. Mr. Duncan has ever taken a deep
interest in politics, has been a delegate to all the Republican
conventions, and is one of the influential young men of the county.




DANIEL DUNKLIN, M. D. The medical profession of Springfield, Mo., is
represented by a number of skillful practitioners, who have an extended
knowledge of therapeutics, skill in their use, and enviable reputations as
physicians of ability. Prominent among them is Dr. Dunklin, who was born
in Jefferson County, Mo., April 15, 1851, a descendent of William Dunklin,
a resident of Wales, but of English descent. He was the founder of the
family in America, settling near Charleston, S. C. He met and formed the
acquaintance of his wife while on board the vessel bound to this country,
her maiden name being Hillary Sullivan, a native of Ireland, who was
coming to this country with her parents. She and Mr. Dunklin reared a
large family of boys. Daniel Dunklin, the grandfather of Dr. Dunklin, was
born in Greenville District, S. C., in 1790, where he remained until
seventeen years of age, then went to Kentucky, and in 1810 settled in
Potosi, Washington County, Mo., where he was elected sheriff. He was a
member of the convention that founded the first constitution of the State,
at St. Charles, Mo., which was then the seat of government. In 1878 he was
elected to the responsible position of governor, and again, in 1832, but
resigned the position in 1836, a few months before the expiration of his
term, to accept the position of surveyor general of public lands in
Missouri and Illinois, to which position lie was appointed by President
Jackson, and held until 1839, when he resigned to attend to his own
private business affairs. He made a wise and able governor,
notwithstanding the fact that his early educational advantages were
limited to the common schools of South Carolina. Through his own efforts
be became a good English scholar and a fine mathematician. He was much
interested in the common-school system and did more and labored harder to
establish them on a sound basis than any other man in the State during his
time, and it may be truly said that he was the father of the public-school
system of Missouri. He removed to Jefferson County, Mo., in 1840, where he
died four years later at the age of fifty-four years and was buried on a
bluff of the Mississippi River, a spot noted for its beauty. He served in
the Black Hawk War under Gen. Henry Dodge, and throughout life was a
strong Democrat, in his political proclivities, of the Jacksonian school.
He was connected with the Presbyterian Church and throughout life
endeavored to follow the teachings of the golden rule. He was married to a
Miss Hicks, a native of Missouri, and to them five children were born, as
follows: James L., the father of the immediate subject of this sketch;
Mary, who became the wife of Dr. Kannon, of Jackson, Mo.; Emily, the wife
of Falkland Martin, at one time secretary of State of Missouri; Eliza, who
was the wife of Rev. James Cheeney, of Dover, Mo., and Jenny, who married
Capt. Boarman, of Kansas City, Mo., who won his title while serving in the
Confederate Army. Of this family only James L. and Emily, who is now the
wife of Mr. Mackebane, are living. James L. Dunklin was born at Potosi,
Mo., August 15, 1821, received his initiatory training in the public
schools and finished his education in the Christian Brothers' College at
St. Louis, Mo., graduating from the classical course when about twenty-one
years of age. Being possessed of some means, he purchased a tract of land
and finally bought the old home of his father, and on quite an extensive
scale engaged in farming. He lived on this place until within a few years,
when he sold it and bought him a home at West Point, Miss. During his life
he has quietly pursued the " even tenor of his way," and although he has
ever been keenly alive to the issues of the day, he has never been an
office-seeker, the political arena possessing no charms for him. He was
married about 1844 to Miss Cassandra A. Anderson, a native of Nashville,
Tenn., of which State her people were among the very earliest settlers,
her father being the owner and operator of a saw-mill on the Missouri
River at Glasgow until his death, which occurred some time in the
thirties. Mrs. Dunklin was one of his four children, the other members
being Alfonzo, Dewitt and Volney S. The eldest son was a merchant in
Mexico and made considerable money while there. Being a thorough Spanish
scholar, be acted as interpreter for Gen.__________ in the City of Mexico,
and after the war he went to Gaudalaxara, where he later died of cholera.
Dewitt went to New Orleans after attaining manhood and was never afterward
beard from. Volney is a prominent attorney of Hailey City, and is a
graduate of Yale College. Mrs. Dunklin has been a lifelong member of the
Christian Church, and in that faith has endeavored to rear her children,
whose names are as follows: Mary A., the wife of Capt. C. B. Tilden, a
river captain; she is living in Jefferson County, Mo., and has a family of
four children, Mary A., Harry D., Alfonzo and Charles B. Emily taught in
the public schools of St. Louis and at West Point, Miss., where she died
September 10, 1890; she was an earnest member of the Presbyterian Church
and was loved by all who know her. Alice is the wife of B. R. Pegran, a
commission merchant of Now York city, by whom she has two sons --Lawrence
D. and Rush. Daniel, who was named after his grandfather, the early
governor of Missouri. Louis L., who died in Texas, of consumption, was an
express messenger by occupation; he died in the spring of 1892, leaving
three children Edna, Anna and Byron. Alfonzo L. is living in St. Charles,
Mo., but formerly lived in Mississippi with his father; he has a family of
two small children. Charles T. was a clerk on a Government fleet at Kansas
City and was drowned by being blown overboard one stormy night in August,
1888, while trying to save the fleet, and James L., who is living at St.
Louis, an express messenger on the Iron Mountain Railroad from St. Louis
to Memphis. The father and mother of these children are now living in
retirement at West Point, Miss., surrounded by everything to make life
comfortable and enjoyable. Dr. Daniel Dunklin was first employed after
leaving home, in 1870, as agent and operator on the Iron Mountain Railroad
at Mineral Point, and during this time he began the study of medicine. In
1875 he entered the Missouri Medical College at St. Louis, from which he
graduated three years later, entering upon the practice of his profession
in Tazewell County, Ill. Eight months later be removed to Mineral Point,
Mo., and in March, 1882, went to Bonne Terre, of which place he became one
of the most prominent and successful physicians. In October, 1873, be was
married to Ella, daughter of Alexander and Sarah L. (Daniels) Hunn. She
was born in St. Louis, Mo., in 1855, and of the four children she has
borne her husband only two are living--Ella Lucile and Stella T. Mrs.
Dunklin is a member of the Baptist Church and in politics the Doctor is a
Democrat. While living at Bonne Terre he was chairman of the County
Central Committee. He is a Select Knight of the A. O. U. W., and is a
member of the K. of P. He has been medical examiner for the New York
Mutual Life Insurance Company. He has been a resident of Springfield since
1889 and has a nice home at 431 South Jefferson Street and an office at
328 South Street. He is a member of the Springfield Medical Society and
the Southwest Missouri District Medical Society, in both of which he is
considered one of its foremost members. He keeps thoroughly abreast of the
times in his profession, takes considerable medical literature and is
especially skillful in his treatment of the diseases of women, although he
is remarkably successful in all branches of his profession. He is an
acquisition to the city and one of its most public-spirited citizens.




REV. W. C. CALLAND. The tendency of the times is to broaden and elevate
the character of man. The opportunities bestowed upon men of comfortable
means of obtaining the culture and widened vision of the present day tend
to make the most of men -who have inherited the keen insight and
philanthropic character from a Scotch ancestry. Few men of his chosen city
possess more of the well rounded characteristics of a christian gentleman
and business man than W. C. Calland. He is a descendant of sterling Scotch
Presbyterian stock, and his ancestors were numbered among the Covenanters
and originated in Aberdeen, Scotland. They were members of the celebrated
McGregor clan. The Scotch people organized a free school system early 1600
and were ever afterwards noted for their intelligence. The Callands, like
many of their nationality, were firm believers in education, and at an
early period many of them became educated men. Joseph Calland, the great
grandfather of our subject, was an educated and prominent man. He was dean
of the Aberdeen Academy for at least sixteen years and was a leader of
music in the Scotch Presbyterian Church of his native town for many years.
This position has been held by some member of the family for many
generations. Joseph Calland, son of the above and grandfather of our
subject, was born at Aberdeen and secured his scholastic training in the
academy of that town. He taught music for many years and finally engaged
in business as a shoe merchant, in which he prospered and became
extensively known. He married Elizabeth, daughter of William Millross who
was a prominent merchant of Aberdeen and who was also dean of' the academy
for seven years, succeeding Joseph Calland. Twelve children were born to
the marriage of Mr. Calland In 1820, after the birth of all his children,
this gentleman sailed for America and three of his children died on the
voyage. The remainder of the family landed in the city of New York and
then, after purchasing supplies and three ox teams, they traveled in
company with five other Ohio families that had come with them from the old
country, to the wilds of settling in what is now Monroe County. There
Joseph Calland bought land, cleared up a farm of 160 acres and became a
substantial farmer. His sons and sons-in-law also located, cleared up
farms and became prosperous farmers and stock-raisers. Several Scotch
families having settled in this neigborhood and near the present town of
Summerfield, it became widely known throughout the country as the "Calland
Settlement." Mr. Calland being a devoutly religious man, immediately after
building his hewn-log house in the wilderness, turned his attention to
establishing a Church, which was the first in that part of the country.
Mr. Calland and three of his sons became local preachers and the "Calland
Settlement" became known to the pioneers for many miles on account of its
morality, strict observance of the Sabbath, and the religious character of
the people. Joseph Calland being a man of education, which was unusual
among the pioneers, held the office of justice of the peace and was
prominent in the organization of Monroe County. He was one of the early
school teachers, built one of the first school houses in his county and
this school became in time the high school, pupils attending it for miles
around and from the neighboring counties. The impress of this early
schooling still remains in the neighborhood which is yet marked for its
refinement. Many of the pupils educated in this school became in after
years prominent men and women. Thus the humble settlement of these sturdy
Scotch pioneers thrived and became one of the best improved in that part
of Ohio. Joseph Calland died at the age of seventy-two years and his wife
at the age of ninety-two. Her family was noted for longevity, her mother
reaching the great age of 102 years. Joseph Calland was a man of high
moral character, intensely religious and uncompromising in his doctrinal
views. He held in his church the office of class leader and was local
minister for years. Of iron constitution his stalwart frame was well
fitted for the life of a pioneer, among whom he was held in great respect.
He was county commissioner one term. His second son, William Calland, the
father of our subject, was seven years of age when he came with his
parents to America and well remembered the voyage. The burial service of
his little brother, who died at sea, vividly impressed itself upon his
mind and he ever afterward had a great horror of water. Coming when young
to a pioneer country and early beginning to assist in clearing the land,
he became inured to the hardships of the life of the pioneer in his youth.
He received the education of the district schools and being a lover of
books and a student by nature, he accumulated a good library for his day
and gained a practical education. He was a patron of the New York Tribune
for forty years and was a firm Abolitionist. His house was a station on
the underground railroad and in several instances he assisted in the
escape of slaves. He was married at the age of twenty-one years, to Miss
Sarah Capell, daughter of Nathaniel Capell who came from England and was
one of the pioneers of the "Calland Settlement," and one who heartily
engaged in the advancement of the settlement. He was a strong Methodist
and a leader in the church and his descendants are educated and prominent
people. He married Miss Nancy -----, and they were the parents of six
children: James, William, Nancy, Maty, Eliza and who died in infancy.
Mr.Capell lived to the age of eighty-five years, his wife to seventy-five
years. To William Calland and wife were born six children as follows:
Francis, Robert, William, Samuel (died in infancy), Samantha and Eliza.
All his life Mr. Calland had been a farmer and stock-raiser and was a
prosperous man, being the owner of 445 acres of fine land on which he had
good improvements. This property he accumulated with his own hands unaided
except with what help his boys gave him and was a self made man in very
truth. A Methodist in his religious views he was a prominent man in his
church, holding the office of trustee and treasurer. In politics he was a
strong Republican and an ardent Abolitionist. He had the respect and
confidence of the people and held the office of county commissioner for
some time. Public-spirited and progressive be took an interest in good
roads and for many years held the office of road commissioner. He was a
liberal contributor to his church and was one of the foremost in building
the Methodist Church in his community. His first wife died at the age of
thirty- seven years, and his second marriage was to Miss Mariah J.,
daughter of Rev. Richard Horton, a prominent Methodist minister. By this
wife Mr. Calland became the father of ten children: Richard W., Weston F.,
Hermond J., Georgiana, Marietta, Forest E., and Harry, and two who died in
infancy. Thus Mr. Calland was the father of sixteen children. Like his
father, he was a man of sturdy integrity, a lover of peace and frequently
an arbitrator among the people. Kind and benevolent he assisted the poor
and needy, and at an early day his house was the home of the itinerant
Methodist preacher. He was so regular in his attendance at church that his
absence would have been a matter of remark. Rain or shine he was always in
his accustomed seat. Of benevolent nature, the poor man or stranger was
never turned from his door, and be aided with generous hand not only the
cause of religion, but any enterprise deserving his assistance. Rev. W. O.
Calland, son of the above, was born on his father's farm in the "Calland
Settlement," Monroe County, Ohio, December 27, 1843, and early learned to
work on the farm. There he acquired those traits of character, probity,
industry and thrift, of which the Scotch are so justly proud, and gained
from honest labor, perseverance and self reliance the basis of an
honorable, upright career. He received the education of the district
school and later attended the high school in the village of Summerfield.
When twenty years of age, March 3, 1864, be enlisted as a soldier in the
service of the United States, at Summerfield, in Company D, One Hundred
and Eighty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and for one year served as a
private. He was then promoted to corporal and later to second lieutenant,
serving out his time for the most part in Virginia and Maryland. He was in
the battle of Monocosa Junction, Md., and in the skirmishes at Danville,
Ky., Cumberland, Md., and Arlington Heights. After serving six months he
was promoted to quartermaster of his regiment, and was honorably
discharged by general orders at the close of the war. The young soldier
then returned home and resumed the studies that had been interrupted by
the war. He attended the preparatory department of Oberlin College and
then took a classical course in that institution, graduating in 1877.
After this he attended the Andover, Mass., Theological Seminary and
graduated in 1880. On the l4th of August of that year he married Miss
Josephine Franks, daughter of Dr. Ezra and Eleanor (Brown) Franks. The
great-grandfather of Dr. Franks come from Germany before the War of the
Revolution and settled in Fayette County, Penn. His son, Henry, was born
in that county and served as a soldier seven years in the Revolutionary
War. He was taken prisoner by the Indians in Pennsylvania and kept a
captive for three years, enduring many hardships and privations during
that time. After the war he settled in Wayne County and married Miss
Christine Mason who bore him nine children. Mr. Franks died at the age of
seventy-two. His son, Henry, father of Dr. Franks, was born in Fayette
County, Penn., and there grew to manhood and received the ordinary
education of those days. He married Miss Susan Routson and became the
father of nine children. He was a substantial farmer of Wayne County and
lived to be eighty-three years of age. He was a prominent member of the
Methodist Church and held the offices of class leader, steward and
trustee. He was noted for his piety, honesty of character and peaceful
disposition. Dr. Franks, the father of Mrs. Calland, was born December 10,
1823, in Wayne County, Ohio, and was reared on a farm and educated in the
common schools. When twenty-three years of age he began the study of
medicine under Drs. Rusk & Hunt, of Lorain County, Ohio, as was the custom
in those days in his school of medicine, Homeopathy. His medical education
was gained entirely from his preceptors and he began practicing at Oberlin
and Wellington, Ohio, where he remained carrying on a successful practice
for more than twenty years. He then practiced in Hillsdale and Gratiot
Counties, Mich., and there continued for thirteen years. In 1890 Dr.
Franks came to Springfield and still continues to practice his profession.
He was married on the 11th of June, 1845, to Ellen Brown, who was of Irish
descent. Four children were born to this union: Owen H., Millard L.,
Josephine and William L. The Doctor is a Republican in politics and in
religious belief is a Methodist. He has held all the offices in his church
and has contributed liberally of his means to its support. For two years
he held the office of county commissioner of Lorain County and was justice
of the peace in Oberlin many years. He also held many minor offices. After
marriage Rev. Calland was called to the oldest Congregational Church in
Michigan to fill its pulpit and remained there two years. He was then
called to the first Congregational Church of St. Louis, Mich., and was
pastor of that church for four years. While there, by his efforts, two
Congregational Churches were built. He identified himself with the growth
of the town and was appointed school commissioner of Gratiot County in
1885 and 1886. In the latter year be was called to Drury College to become
financial manager and the next-year he was elected secretary and
treasurer, positions which he still fills to the great advantage of the
college and with credit to himself. During this time he has had complete
charge of the finances of the college and under his management this
institution has prospered in its monetary matters. Rev. Calland has been a
prominent factor in the growth of Drury College and is identified with the
interests of the college and city and has promoted a growth of confidence
between them. Both Rev. and Mrs. Calland move in the highest social
circles in Springfield, and Mrs. Calland takes a leading part in literary
matters. Rev. Calland was elected city treasurer in 1892 and this position
he still holds to the satisfaction of the people. The same year he was
elected president of the Springfield Humane Society and December, 1892, he
was elected treasurer of the Board of Associated Charities of the City of
Springfield. Since that time he has been thoroughly informed of the needs
of the city. Rev. Calland is a public-spirited citizen and takes an active
interest in the promotion of public enterprises and is now deeply
interested in the Springfield, Marshall & Sedalia R. R. He is also
intimately connected with the Y. M. C. A. and has always been recognized
as a man of benevolence, and has been active in assisting the needy
colored people of Springfield.




DR. WALTER A. CAMP. Man when well boasts that he has no need of the
doctor, and is pleased to indulge in gibes and sneers concerning the skill
of the members of the profession. That is to say, some men do, and it is
commonly observed that those who rail loudest are they who first send for
the physician at the sound of danger. In all honesty and seriousness the
discoveries in medical science and the advance made in surgical skill,
especially in the past thirty years, have been so wonderful as to suggest
that supernatural aid has been rendered the noble army of men who devote
their lives to the alleviation of suffering. The doctor is a man who
inspires confidence because he is worthy of it. His humanity is expressed
and his interest in his patients is intensified by reason of the concern
he has for them as well as for the experience he, may gain for the benefit
of future sufferers. Dr. Walter A. Camp has gained distinction in his
treatment of all diseases, and his patronage is exceptionally large and
lucrative. He is descended from an old American family of prominence and
was born at Rossville, Ga., in 1855, finishing his literary education in
that well-known institution of learning, Washington and Lee University, at
Lexington, Va., from which he was graduated in 1873. His kindly nature
then turned to that broad field of human suffering, the medical
profession, for his life work, and he began preparation for that field of
-usefulness at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at New York City,
after which he graduated from the Atlanta Medical College, Atlanta, Ga. He
at once began practicing in that city, and held the position of city
physician one year. Following this he practiced in Buffalo, Mo., two
years, and in 1880 returned to New York City, where he was resident
surgeon of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, In order to more thoroughly
fit himself for his profession he visited Europe and pursued special
studies in London, Paris, Vienna and Heidelburg, his attention being
specially directed to diseases of the eye, ear, throat and nose, his
instructors being some of the most eminent specialists in that line in the
world. In 1883 he returned to the land of his birth and the same year took
up his residence in Springfield, Mo., where he has practiced his
profession with marked success ever since, with the exception of -the time
consumed in two trips to Vienna to perfect himself in some special
branches. Dr. Camp is a member of the Missouri State Medical Association,
being its past vice-president; the Southwest Missouri Medical Association,
and the Springfield Medical Society, and past president of the two latter.
In 1881, while in London, he was a member of the International Medical
Congress held in that city. Dr. Camp is a patron of the leading medical
periodicals of both Europe and America, to some of which he has
contributed valuable articles. Socially he is a member of the Knights of
Honor, and is past chancellor commander of the Knights of Pythias. In
politics he is a Democrat, and was special pension agent under the last
administration.




W. T. CHANDLER. It matters little what vocation a man may select as
occupation so long as it is an honorable one. If he is an honest, upright
man, courteous in his intercourse with his fellow-men, and possessed of
energy and business sagacity, he is bound to make his business a financial
success. Mr. Chandler possesses all the above-mentioned requirements and
is to-day a prosperous general merchant of Ash Grove. He was born in
Fitchburg, Mass., September 19, 1849, a son of J. L. and Abbie (Kimball)
Chandler, the paternal ancestors having come from England to this country
during its early history, and in 1637 became residents of Connecticut and
still later of Massachusetts, where they were known for many years.
Members of this family were soldiers in the Revolution, and John Chandler,
the great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was a captain in the
Continental army. The Chandlers have been prominent in the affairs of
their adopted country from the very first, and the majority of them were
men of influence and affluence. The great-great-grandfather held the rank
of cornet in one of the French and Indian wars, in the English service,
and the grandfather, Samuel Chandler, was a soldier in the War of 1812, in
which he served as captain, and later was major-general of Massachusetts
State Militia and captain of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company
of Boston. J. L. Chandler was born in Massachusetts in 1820, and in that
State continued to reside until he reached manhood. In 1853 he emigrated
to St. Louis, Mo., where he followed mercantile pursuits until the opening
of the late lamentable civil war, when he enlisted in the Seventh Missouri
Cavalry, was elected adjutant, and was later promoted to
lieutenant-colonel, a position which he ably filled until 1865, at the
termination of the war. Some of the most important of the battles in which
he participated were Prairie Grove and Little Rock. He was wounded during
his service, but not seriously. After the war he took up his residence in
Memphis, Tenn., where he engaged in business as a wholesale grocer and
cotton factor, later becoming a traveling salesman, the greater part of
his business being transacted in Texas and a few other Southern States. He
was an intelligent and wide-awake man of affairs, and his death, which
occurred in February, 1880, was much regretted. His wife died in May of
the same year. To them three children were born, of whom the immediate
subject of this sketch was the oldest. Ella is the wife of W. J. Hawkins,
of Greene County. Bessie married a Mr. Janes, and died in 1884 in Ash
Grove. Mr. Chandler was a Republican in his political views. Socially, he
belonged to the A. F. & A. M. and the I. O. O. F., and at one time was
collector of revenue of Memphis, Tenn. The early life of W. T. Chandler
was spent in Missouri, and his education was received in the excellent
public schools of St. Louis and in the _______ University of that city. He
started on his business career in 1873, in Ash Grove, and since that time
he has carried on a successful general mercantile business, and has gained
the esteem and respect of the community at large and of the citizens of
Ash Grove in particular. He does an annual business of $20,000, the value
of his stock amounting to about $15,000. In addition to himself, he finds
constant employment for three or four clerks, who have a thorough
knowledge of their business and are well posted, accommodating and
agreeable. The establishment has a frontage of 25 feet and a depth of 94
feet. Mr. Chandler is a Republican in politics, and has always taken a
deep and abiding interest in the political issues of the day, and
especially those of his section, and has held a number of important
offices in the town. He is a member of the A. O. U. W., but aside from
this does not belong to any secret organization. He is the owner of
considerable real estate, principally city property, and has a pleasant
and comfortable residence in the eastern part of Ash Grove. Mr. Chandler
was married in June, 1882, to Miss Roxie Comegys, daughter of William
Comegys, the postmaster at Ash Grove. She was born in Indiana and has
borne her husband four children: Triece K., Almira, Courtney and John L.
The children are bright and intelligent, and the eldest is now attending
school.




DR. C. C. CLEMENTS, Springfield. Mo., is one of the honored and leading
physicians of this city, who has devoted many years of his life to the
practice of his chosen profession. He descends from an old Colonial
American family and was born in Jackson County, Tenn., in 1838. His
father, Christopher Clements, came from Virginia. He was a farmer and
married Mary Frame, who was of Scotch-Irish descent and a native of
Tennessee. Mr. and Mrs. Clements were the parents of eight children, -who
grew up: Leroy S., Henderson M., William M., Andrew J., George W.,
Tabitha, Sallie and subject. Mr. Clements died at the age of sixty-four
years in Jackson County, Tenn. He was a member of the Christian Church and
his wife was a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and they were
both people of sterling worth. Mr. Clements was a soldier in the Seminole
War in Florida. Dr. C. C. Clements, son of above and the subject of our
sketch, was born on his father's farm in Jackson County, Tenn., April 8,
1838. He received the education of the public schools, and when a young
man began the study of medicine under his brother, W. M. Clements, with
whom he pursued his medical studies for some years and attended the
medical department of the University of Louisville, Ky., and then
graduated at the Jefferson Medical College, after which he began the
practice of medicine in Macon County, Tenn. In the spring of 1864 Dr.
Clements was appointed to the position of assistant surgeon of the First
Tennessee United States Volunteer Mounted Infantry, and afterward surgeon
of the Fourth Tennessee Mounted Infantry, and was one of the surgeons who
cared for the wounded at the battle of Nashville. After these honorable
services to his country he came to Springfield, in the spring of 1867,
where he has since practiced medicine. He married -----1870, Abina Parish,
the daughter of H. M. Parish and ------. Dr. Parish was one of the
prominent physicians of the early days in Springfield. To Dr. and Mrs.
Clements have been born one child, Frank P., now a successful business man
of this city and teller of the Greene County Bank. Dr. Clements is
socially a Mason, member of Solomon Lodge, Springfield. He is also a
member of the Greene County Medical Society, Southwest District Medical
Society and Missouri State Medical Association. The Doctor is a patron of
the leading medical periodicals and journals, a physician of wide
experience and great skill in his profession and stands high as a man of
high integrity of character in the city where be has passed so many years
of successful practice. The Doctor is president of the Springfield Board
of Pension Examiners. In political opinions he is a Republican. Dr.
Clements is one of those physicians who has gained his enviable reputation
by the able and faithful practice of his profession through a long period
of years, during which he has won the high esteem of the people of
Springfield.




DR. J. M. CLYDE. There is no profession which meets the popular needs more
than that of the dentist. He confers a positive boon on humanity, supplies
that which is either deficient or destroyed and completes the appearance
and comfort of his patients. One of the well-established and most popular
dentists of Springfield is Dr. J. M. Clyde, who has been a resident of
this city since the spring of 1886 and has elegant rooms over the
Commercial Bank. The Doctor came originally from the Dominion of Canada,
born near Huntington, December 16, 1833, to the union of James and Agnes
(Marshall) Clyde. His parents were born near Glasgow, Scotland, and in
1830 came to America and settled in Canada. In the fifties they removed to
Iowa. Both were members of the Presbyterian Church. Six children were born
to them, of whom our subject is the oldest. The father of these children
was a well-to-do farmer and gave liberally of his means to further all
worthy measures. The Doctor's early life was passed on his father's farm
and in the district schools, where he obtained a fair education. Later he
entered the Kentucky University and completed his literary course. In 1860
he began his career as an educator, teaching in the Bluegrass State for
twelve years, and was classed among the very best instructors-a
natural-born teacher. He was for seven years Principal of Bath Seminary,
Kentucky, and his fame as an educator was spread both far and wide. His
education is broad and thorough, and he stands as a shining light of. what
a young man may accomplish by energy and industry. In 1863 he began
reading medicine, and nearly completed the course, but taking a fancy to
dentistry, he adopted that profession, commencing the study of the same in
1876, while teaching, and graduated with special honors at the Ohio
College of Dental Surgery, in 1880. The next two years he served as
clinical instructor and demonstrator of operative dentistry in the same
college, which was a compliment to his professional ability. He was
president of the Mississippi Valley Association of Dental Surgeons, in
1883, and also of the Kentucky State Association, in 1885. During this
time he was living in Covington, Ky., practicing his profession. In the
spring of 1893 the School of Anesthesia was organized in Chicago, Ill.,
and he, with other prominent dentists, physicians and surgeons, was
elected a member of the faculty. He came to Springfield in 1886 for his
daughter's health, and as she improved from the first, he has made this
his home. He has a good practice and is a skilled and experienced dentist,
and is prepared to administer anesthetics by the most improved method, for
the relief of his patients from pain in severe operations. He is a
representative man in his profession, enjoys the confidence and esteem of
the business men of the city, and is a member of the church. In 1869 he
was married to Miss Carrie Thompson, of Mt. Sterling, Ky., than whom none
stood higher in the esteem of the people of that city. To this marriage
one child has been born, Mary F., who is now attending school. In his
political views the Doctor is a Democrat, public spirited but quiet and
unassuming.




HON. FRANCIS MARION COCKRELL. Francis M. Cockrell was born in Johnson
County, Mo., October, 1834, and was brought up by his father, who was a
practical farmer, a man of good business qualifications and respected
wherever known for his integrity and moral worth. Francis inherited these
characteristics and was studious, industrious and practical, his
education, like that of farmer's sons generally, being of that character
that develops the muscles while expanding the mind. In the common schools
of his native county his initiatory training was received, and there he
prepared himself for the academic course subsequently pursued in Chapel
Hill College, Lafayette County, Mo., which had then attained a high
reputation as an institution of learning, and had turned out some of the
most brilliant scholars; in the State. He entered in 1850 and graduated
with honor in 1853. Mr. Cockrell possessed a decided liking for the
profession of law, and to the study of this science he applied himself
with great diligence, in order to fit himself for its practice. In 1855 he
was admitted to the bar and began immediately to practice his profession
in Warrensburg, Johnson County, in partnership with James O. Silliman, a
nephew of Lewis Cass, and his application to his profession and his
talents soon brought him into prominence and secured him a desirable
practice which be continued until the opening of the great Civil War. Long
before this, however, the intelligent public mind saw that there would be
waged a bloody conflict, and in the winter of 1860-61, when the Missouri
Legislature made provision for the organization of the Home Guard, every
body knew that it undoubtedly meant war. Although the national
difficulties were much regretted by Mr. Cockrell, when the army was
actually to be formed, he responded with great alacrity and enlisted as a
private. He was soon advanced to the rank of captain, and during the first
three months of the war took part in the engagements at Carthage,
Springfield and Lexington. Soon after the battle he joined the regular
Confederate army and was assigned to the command of the Second Missouri
Infantry, with the rank of captain. After the battle of Pea Ridge, in
which he took part, he accompanied Gens. Van Dorn and Price to the east
side of the Mississippi River. He was elected lieutenant-colonel in May,
1862, and a month later was commissioned a colonel. He participated in the
battles of Iuka, Corinth and Hatchie; was with Pemberton's army in its
retreat from Holly Springs to Grenada; took part in the bombardment of
Grand Gulf and the battle of Port Gibson; was in the fight at Champion's
Hill and that of the Big Black, and when the Confederate army was driven
back into Vicksburg, he took a prominent part in its defense and endured
the dangers and privations of the besieged. Within the fortifications of
that city he had command of Fort Hill, the most important and conspicuous
of the city's defenses, against which the heaviest columns of the enemy
were hurled. This fort was the key to Vicksburg, and three days after its
destruction by the explosion of a mine, in which Col. Cockrell was
severely wounded, Pemberton surrendered the city to Gen. Grant. He was
paroled at Demopolis, Ala., and was promoted to the rank of
brigadier-general. After recovering from his wound and being exchanged he
was in the army of Lieut. Gen. Polk, in front of Sherman in his movement
from Vicksburg to Meridian. He then joined Gen. Joe Johnston's army near
Rome, Ga., and. was with it in front of Sherman when the latter advanced
upon Atlanta. He was wounded at Kenesaw Mountain; was with Hood in his
march in the rear of Atlanta into Tennessee; was in the battle of Altoona,
October 5, 1864, and in that of Tilton on the 13th of the same month; was
wounded three times in-the battle of Franklin; was left at Mobile in
February, 1865, in command of the French division, and was captured on the
evening of April 9,1865, the day.of Lee's surrender. He was sent as a
prisoner to Fort Gaines, on Dauphin Island, and was paroled on May 14
following. He at once returned to Warrensburg, Mo., and resumed the
practice of law in partnership with Col. T. T. Crittenden. In 1874 be was
a prominent candidate before the Democratic convention for governor, and
was defeated by Charles H. Hardin, the latter receiving one-sixth of a
vote more than the former. In January of the following year be was elected
by the Legislature of Missouri to succeed Carl Schurz in the United States
Senate, his term extending six years from March 4 succeeding. Politically
Col. Cockrell has always been an unswerving Democrat, and, although by no
means disputatious, is always ready to discuss the principles of his party
when occasion demands it., Since 1851 he has been a member of the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and for years. was an elder in the
Warrensburg congregation. He was married in July, 1853, to Arethusa D.
Stapp, of Lafayette County, Mo., and to them were given three sons. Mrs.
Cockrell died in December, 1859, and in April, 1866, Gen. Cockrell married
Anna E. Mann, daughter of James B. Mann, of. Mercer County, Ky. She died
of consumption in August, 1871. In July, 1873, he was married in St. Louis
to Anna Ewing, eldest daughter of the late Judge Ephraim B. Ewing, of the
Supreme Court of Missouri. They have two children, a son and a daughter.
Gen. Cockrell is possessed of wide intelligence, quick wit and great
geniality, and his presence in any society is always welcome. His life has
been pure and blameless beyond the ordinary, and, being intelligent and
far-seeing, his endorsement of any enterprise is the highest evidence of
its merits. His business qualities are of a high order, and no client
fears his treachery, or neglect of his case. His prominent characteristics
are moral principle that is never betrayed, steadfastness of aim and
honesty of purpose--an upright, honorable and high principled gentleman.




DR. THOMAS W. COLTRANE. Integrity, intelligence and system are qualities
which will advance the interests of any man in any profession and will
tend to the prosperity to which all aspire. Dr. Coltrane's life in the
professional arena has been characterized by constancy of purpose,
conscientiousness, undoubted ability and energy, and as a natural result
his time is fully taken up with the duties of a profession which is the
most arduous of any in the field of science. He was born in Guilford
County, N. C., a son of Kelly and Mary Coltrane, who were also born in the
Old North State, where their entire lives were spent, he dying in 1859 and
she in 1891, both being earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal Church
South. Kelly Coltrane was one of several brothers and sisters. Dr.
Coltrane was the eldest of eight children born to his parents, the names
of the other members of the family being: Daniel B., a banker of Concord,
N. C., served throughout the war in the Confederate army; John E., a
captain in North Carolina Line Infantry, D. H. Hill's Corps, a farmer of
North Carolina; Kelly G., also following that occupation in North
Carolina; Abbie L., wife of A. R. Johnson. of Jefferson City, Mo.; Sarah
G., wife of Joel J. Thom, who served through the war in North Carolina
Cavalry, Stuart's Corps, of Neosho, Mo.; Leonora Isabelle (Mrs.. Marsh) of
North Carolina; and Rola, now Mrs. Murray, of North Carolina. Dr. Coltrane
was reared on a farm and attended the common schools, then he attended the
Quaker high school at New Garden and then Trinity College, of North
Carolina. He left home when quite young, and in 1859 came to Greene
County, Mo., where be taught school until the bursting of the war cloud
that had so long hovered over the country. In May, 1861, he entered the
military service and with two short intervals served till the close of the
Civil War. He was mustered out of the service as first lieutenant and
adjutant in April, 1865, and after the war resumed the study of medicine
which be had commenced prior to its opening, and in the latter part of
1865 and in 1866 he attended the St. Louis Medical College. In 1866 he
began practicing at Walnut Grove, the following year on Grand Prairie, and
since 1868 has been a resident of Cave Springs, where he has a large and
paying practice. He attended the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia,
Penn., session of 1869 and 1870. He graduated from the Missouri Medical
College, of St. Louis, and is now one of the oldest physicians of the
county. The doctor has some farming interests near Cave Springs, on which
be raises a good grade of horses and cattle. In November, 1867, be took
for his companion through life Lulu, daughter of Alfred and Lucina Staley,
who were born in Randolph County, N. C., where they were also married. In
1846 they became residents of Clinton County, Mo., but a year later came
to Greene County, and Mr. Staley was engaged in merchandising at Cave
Springs until his death in 1853. He was a public-spirited man, active in
all public measures, was a Jacksonian Democrat. His widow died in 1891.
Mrs. Coltrane was born at Cave Springs, and is the mother of one son,
Victor O., who is a graduate of Drury College, and is now taking a law
course at Ann Arbor, Mich. Dr. Coltrane is a Democrat, but not a
politician. He was a member of the Pension Examining Board, at
Springfield, Mo., during President Cleveland's first term, and is a
prominent Mason, being for some years W. M. of O'Sullivan Lodge, No. 7, at
Walnut Grove, and District Deputy G. M. and District Deputy Grand Lecturer
and later for some years he was W. M. of St. Nicholas Lodge A. F. & A. M.,
No. 435, at Cave Springs, but now moved to Willard, Mo. He and his wife
belong to the Old School Presbyterian Church.




WILLIAM COMEGYS, who has been the servant of "Uncle Sam" in the
post-office at Ash Grove, Mo., has been a resident of the place since
1869, coming thither from Vermillion County, Ind. He was born in Delaware
County, Ohio, March 4, 1837, a son of Cornelius M. and Anna Bell (Dunlap)
Comegys, the former of whom was a descendant of a family that came to
America from Holland in 1670 and settled in Kent County, .Md. The man who
established the family tree on American soil was Cornelius Comegys, and
for many years thereafter the home of the family in this county was Kent
County. The name Cornelius was a favorite one in the family, and one who
bore it took an active part in the War of the Revolution and was a member
of Gen. Washington's staff. The family was a very prominent one during the
early history of this county, and were noted for their patriotism and love
of their country. One branch finally moved to West Virginia, where they
lived until the War of 1812, when the grandfather of the subject of this
sketch entered the service, and after the termination of hostilities,
removed to Delaware County, Ohio, in 1816, where he and his wife
eventually died. Their son, the father of William Comegys, spent the first
sixteen years of his life in West Virginia, after which he was taken to
Ohio, where he lived until 1841, when he removed with his family to
Indiana where the remainder of his life was spent, his death occurring in
1865. His life was devoted to the calling of the agriculturist, and
politically he was first a Whig and later a Republican. Although by no
means an active politician, he held the office of Commissioner of
Vermillion County, Ind., for some years, during which time he proved
himself an able official. He -was a member of the A. F. & A. M., and for
many years was connected with the Methodist Episcopal Church. His wife was
a native of Maryland and was a member of one of the finest families of
that State. She died in Ash Grove in 1872 at the age of seventy years,
having borne her husband eight children, four of whom survive her: Martha,
who is the deceased wife of Thomas Moore; Jemima, who died young,; James,
who is living in Ash Grove and is assistant postmaster. He is a Democrat
in politics and is a man of family; William; Sarah J., who is deceased;
Mary, who is married and living in St. Louis; Ellen, who is a resident of
Crawfordsville, Ind., and one that died in infancy. The mother was
connected with the old school Presbyterian Church and was of Scotch
descent. The early part of William Comegys' life was spent in Indiana,
where he obtained a fair education in the district schools in the
neighborhood of his home. He was married there in 1860 to Miss Elizabeth
Triece of Vermillion County, Ind., a daughter of Samuel Triece, her native
State being Ohio, where she was born in 1832. In 1862 the patriotic spirit
in Mr. Comegys being fully aroused, he enlisted in company K,
Seventy-first Indiana Infantry, with which he served until the close of
hostilities in 1865, taking part in the battles of Richmond, Ky.,
Knoxville, Tenn., and the principal battles of the Georgia campaign. He
was with Sherman at Atlanta and fought his last battle at Nashville. He
was captured twice, once at Richmond, Ky., and again at Muldraugh Hill,
Ky., but was paroled both times. He was not sick a day during his entire
service and was never away from his company. Although he participated in
many hard fought battles, he at all times displayed true courage and was a
faithful and useful soldier. After returning home he remained in
Vermillion County, Ind., until October, 1869, when be came to Ash Grove,
Mo., and began following the trade of a carpenter, which he continued
successfully until 1877, when he was appointed to the position of
postmaster under President Hayes, and has held it to the satisfaction of
all concerned ever since, with the exception of from June, 1886, to June,
1889, holding it one year under Cleveland during the latter's first term,
and so far during his present term, in all, thirteen years. He has always
been a stanch Republican and takes an active part in all matters of a
public nature. He is a member of the Masonic Lodge of Ash Grove, No. 436,
the A. O. U. W. and the G. A. R., Ash Grove Lodge, No. 234. He has held
all the offices in these orders and has been an active and useful worker
in them all. He has a pleasant home, on Main, Street, and there he and his
estimable wife reared their four children: Roxie J., wife of Mr. Chandler;
Carrie, wife of E. A. Hurt, of Ash Grove; John N., and Courtney B. John N.
has a book store in the postoffice building, where be is doing a
prosperous business. He is married to Anna Murray, by whom he has two
children, Stella and Helen. Courtney B. is the proprietor of a grocery
store, where he is doing a prosperous and continually growing business. He
married Monlie Smith, of Morrisville, Mo., she having been a teacher in
the schools of Ash Grove. Mr. and Mrs. Comegys are attendants of the
Presbyterian Church, and in all respects are classed among the most
estimable citizens of the county. As a business man Mr. Comegys; has been
very successful and has at all times manifested the utmost public spirit.
He is the owner of the postoffice building and his residence, besides
other valuable property.




DAVID CONN. The original founder of the family of Conn on American soil
was William Conn, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, who was
born in Ireland and came to this country with his family in 1787, settling
in Butler County, Pa. In the section in which they settled, Indians
abounded, but he and his family were not molested, and they continued to
prosper until they were the owners of a large farm of 600 acres, all of
which was in one body and which was eventually divided among their
children, Joseph, Robert, William, and five daughters whose names are not
remembered. William Conn was a member of the Seceder Church, was of a deep
religious nature, and was honored and respected by all who had the
pleasure of his acquaintance. His son Joseph was born in Ireland in 1787,
and was six weeks old at the time of his parents' removal to this country
in his youth he was given such educational advantages as could be obtained
at that time, and upon reaching manhood became the owner of 200 acres of
land from his parent's estate, upon which he spent the remainder of his
days in healthful, congenial, and profitable occupation. He was first
united in marriage to Miss Nancy _____, by whom he became the father of
five children: Robert, John, Betsey, Nancy, and one that died in early
childhood. After the death of the mother of these children, Mr. Conn took
for his second wife, Miss Elizabeth Ferguson, the daughter of David
Ferguson, an Englishman, and a family of eight children were given them:
Ferguson, Clara A., Joseph, David, William, Eli, Margaret J., and James,
all of whom were born on the old home farm in Pennsylvania. Joseph Conn
lived to be sixty-four years of age, and like his worthy father before him
was an earnest and worthy member of the Seceder Church. In him was imbued
a deep affection for the land of his adoption, which led him to take up
arms in her defense during the War of 1812-14, and he afterward adjusted
the difficulties of the people of his section for two terms while serving
in the capacity of justice of the peace. He was an industrious,
intelligent, and successful farmer, and at the time of his death, in 1851,
was in good circumstances, possessed of an ample amount of worldly goods.
He always supported the principles of the Republican party after the
breaking up of the Whig party. David Conn, the subject of this sketch, was
born on his parent's farm in Pennsylvania, November 8, 1831, and was given
such education as the schools of his day afforded. He learned the details
of farm work thoroughly in his youth, for that branch of human endeavor
was agreeable to his tastes, and to it he decided to devote his lifelong
attention. In Butler County, Pa. he was married on the 24th of June, 1858,
Elizabeth, daughter of Lewis and Elizabeth (Hillyard) Chambers, becoming
his wife. She is descended from an Old Colonial New Jersey family, and
David Chambers the father of Lewis, was one of the early settlers of the
Keystone State. He was a successful and wealthy merchant of Harrisville,
Pa., and purchased each of his children a good farm in Butter County. He
lived to the advanced age of ninety-nine years, and upon departing this
life, left an untarnished name, as well as a goodly property, as a
heritage to his children. To Lewis Chambers a family of eight children
were given: Thomas, Lydia, Daniel, Hillyard, John, James, and Margaret,
all of whom were reared on their father's fine farm of 250 acres. On this
estate Lewis Chambers died when over seventy years of age, a respected and
highly honored citizens and a devout member of the Methodist Church for
over sixty years of his life. After his marriage David Conn settled on the
old home farm, where he, on the 9th of August, 1862, enlisted in Company
G, One Hundred and Thirty-ninth Regiment Volunteer Infantry, and during
the great civil strife was in the service of his country for nearly two
years. He was elected and commissioned second lieutenant, and was in the
engagements at Fredericksburg, Antietam, Chancellorsville, in a number of
skirmishes during the Burnside expedition, and was in the Battle of the
Wilderness. During his entire service he was neither sick nor wounded,
although on various occasions his clothing was pierced by bullets, this
being especially the case at Chancellorsville and Antietam. He was
honorably discharged from the service in January, 1861, and the following
year he came to Oil City, Mo., where he began prospecting for oil. In 1866
he brought his family to Greene County, Mo. where they arrived on the lst
of September. For four years thereafter, Mr. Conn farmed on Kickapoo
Prairie, but in 1873 came to his present farm on Grand Prairie, which
consists of about 200 acres of well tilled and fertile land. He is
decidedly practical in his views, energetic by nature, and correspondingly
prosperous in all his ventures. A good old fashioned family of fourteen
children have been given to himself and wife, seven sons and seven
daughters: Almeda M., Ida E., Milo C., Harry A., Edith M. (who died at the
age of seven years), Lydia A., Almina M., Lewis O., Newton, Oscar O.,
Lizzie C., David S., Maggie A., Marshall S., and Rufus A. D. Mr. Conn has
always been a Republican of considerable influence and is a member of
Brookline Post of the G. A. R., in which he has been officer of the day
for the past two years. He is very favorably known throughout Greene
County and has reared a large family to honorable manhood and womanhood,
all of whom are well settled in life except the four youngest. Daniel
Chambers, the grandfather of Mrs. Conn, was the father of sixteen children
by one wife, who lived to be about seventy years of age.




REV. CARSON F. CORUM is probably one of the most prominent clergymen of
the Missionary Baptist Church of Greene County, Mo. As a pastor he gets
very near to his people and has ever sought to develop the highest type of
social life in the church, has made himself the friend of each member of
the church, sympathizing with them in trouble and rejoicing with them in
their gladness. Mr. Corum comes of an old Einglish family who settled in
America during the Colonial history of this country, and Travers Corum,
the great grandfather of Carson F. Corum, was a well-to-do farmer of
Virginia and reared a family of nine children: Thornton, Catherine, Susan,
Mary, Nancy, Dolly, Elizabeth, Bell and James. Travers Corum was a soldier
of the War of 1812, and in this struggle with England lent the American
cause effective service. Later he removed to Blair's Cross Roads, Granger
Co., Tenn., where he died at the age of seventy years, an earnest
Christian and an active member of the Missionary Baptist Church. Thornton
Corum, his son, was born near Richmond, Va., and upon the removal of his
parents to Tennessee he accompanied them and there gained a common school
education and learned about all there was to be learned about farming.
Annie, the daughter of Robert and Barbara Gains, became his wife and after
their marriage they settled in Granger County, Tenn., where Mr. Corum
became a substantial farmer and where he passed the remainder of his days.
He and his wife were members of the Missionary Baptist Church, and in
politics he was an old line Whig, He was industrious, pushing and
enterprising and lived to be about seventy years of age. Mr. and Mrs.
Corum were the parents of nine children, as follows: Elizabeth, James and
Calvin (twins), Carson F., Jasper, Pleasant, Robert T., Tallitha and
Henry. Carson F. Corum, son of Thornton Corum, was born on his parent's
farm in Granger County, Tenn., June 23, 1834, and was given the advantages
of the common schools, which he improved to the utmost. In 1855 he was
married to Caroline, daughter of William and Nancy (Northern) Elmore, the
former of whom was a farmer of Granger County. After his marriage Mr.
Corum continued to reside in Granger County until 1857, engaged in
farming, then removed to Polk County, Mo., and in 1858 to Greene County,
settling on a farm on Grand Prairie, where he lived for five years, then
purchased 260 acres near Ash Grove. In August, 1862, he enlisted at
Springfield, Mo., in the Missouri State Militia as a member of Capt.
Phillips' Company and served until the close of the war, being called out
when necessary and remaining at home looking after the wants of his family
between times. He was in the battle of Springfield when Marmaduke made his
raid and fought from Fort No. 4, south of the square, which received the
brunt of the battle, and to their credit be it said that a few companies
of militia saved the town from capture. The principal duty of Mr. Corum's
regiment was the protection of Government property, especially in the
southwestern part of the State. After the war Mr. Corum resumed his
farming which had been interrupted by the war, as it was impossible to
keep good horses to carry on his work. As a natural outcome of the war
times were hard and there was a good deal of suffering, especially among
the poorer class of people, but time remedied this state of affairs and
Mr. Corum continued to prosper financially. When a boy of fourteen years
he became a convert to the Missionary Baptist Church and always took great
interest in religious matters, remaining a deacon in his church for ten
years. He has always given liberally of his means in the support of
religious movements and has been very generous in his contributions to the
erection and support of churches throughout Greene County. He has always
been deeply interested in both Home and Foreign Missions, has donated
large private sums to this cause and has used his influence to make the
work popular. In the spring of 1881 he was ordained a minister of the
Missionary Baptist Church and has since been preaching regularly, having
now three churches under his care. Mr. Corum is an intelligent gentleman,
possesses a fine and original mind, and is a fluent, forcible and eloquent
speaker, and wields a wide influence among the young of his flock. To Mr.
and Mrs. Corum eight children have been born: Nancy, Mary, James, William,
Oliver, Edith, Annie and John, all of whom were born in Greene County,
Mo., except Nancy, who first saw the light in Tennessee. In 1890 Mr. Corum
bought his present farm which is pleasantly situated near Nicholas
Junction, upon which good improvements have been made and a tasteful
residence erected. The cause of education has always found in Mr. Corum an
earnest friend and he has given his children every advantage consistent
with his means. He has always been actuated by the highest motives, and it
is his earnest desire to live the life of a true Christian and to
accomplish great good in this world.




A. S. COWDEN is one of the best known young lawyers of Springfield, Mo.,
or Greene County, and his success is largely due to the fact that when he
first engaged in the practice of his profession, never to go into a case
without thorough preparation. As a rule he maintains that litigation
avoided is better than law suits courted, and is a strong adherent of
Daniel Webster's idea that cases can best be adjusted in the secret
councils of the office than by the long, tedious and expensive trials that
follow cases contested in the courts. Mr. Cowden goes into the trials of
his cases knowing all the details and always anticipates the opposition by
being prepared for any possible point which may be raised. His sympathies
seem to be with the weak, against the strong, and he has won many verdicts
by his, persuasive power of speech. Mr. Cowden was born in Polk County,
October 6, 1862, being the youngest of four children reared by R B. and
Martha J. (Headlee) Cowden, the former of whom was born in Tennessee, a
son of Robert Cowden, who was one of the early settlers of Tennessee from
North Carolina, afterwards moving to Missouri in the early history of that
State, made their home in Polk County and there reared their children.
Their settlement was made about 1842 and he afterwards became a successful
farmer and stockman of that region and the owner of a large tract of land
in Polk County. He was a man of great public spirit and on all necessary
occasions supported the Democrat party. He died there at the age of
sixty-six years and his widow survived him only a short time. To them a
good old-fashioned family of thirteen children were born: James, Hannah,
Mary, William, John, Robert B., Rebecca, Jane, Louisa, Samuel, Newton,
Marshall and Melissa. John, Samuel, Newton, Marshall, Mary, Jane and
Melissa live in Polk County, and Rebecca, who married a Mr. Crocker,
resides in Webster County. James, who was a resident of Springfield, where
he has two sons living, is dead. The paternal great grandfather was an
officer in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. R. B.
Cowden, the father of the subject of this sketch, was seventeen years of
age when he came to Missouri and up to that day received such education as
the schools of Tennessee afforded. When still quite young he began doing
for himself and in 1850 was united in marriage to Miss Headlee, after
which be lived on the same farm for forty-two years, his death occurring
on the 19th of July, 1892, on the homestead in Polk County, having been a
life-long member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Like all the
members of the Cowden family he was very public spirited and throughout
life was very much interested in the cause of education. He was very
domestic in his tastes, was devoted to his family and friends, and
although interested in the welfare of his country and his own immediate
vicinity, was never an aspirant for public favor. His wife was born in
Middle Tennessee about 1829, being two years younger than her husband, a
daughter of Elisha and Rachel (Sweet) Headlee, who were among the first
residents of Missouri from Tennessee. After their removal to Missouri they
settled ten miles northwest of Springfield Where they took up some land,
on which Mr. Headlee remained until his death in 1876. He was a man well
known in Greene County and held a number of official positions, such as
county judge, and for many years was connected with the affairs of the
Methodist Church, in which he was always deeply interested. He and his
wife reared a family of nine children and lost one: Dr. Samuel H., who is
practicing medicine at St. James, Mo.; Martha J. (Mrs. Cowden); Caroline,
who died when a child; C. C., who resided on the old home place in Greene
County until 1891, went to Louisiana where he died in 1892; Hannall J.,
wife of J. W. Kerr of this county, is a widow, her husband having been
killed by a runaway horse; David has been dead since 1874; Ann is living
in Polk County, Mo., the wife of Mr. Armor, a farmer; Eveline; Melissa;
Elizabeth and Harriet the last four being single and living on the old
home place. Mrs. Cowden, the mother of the subject of this sketch, is
living in Polk County, an earnest and energetic worker in the Presbyterian
Church. She bore her husband three sons and. one daughter: William H. is a
practicing physician of Fair Grove, Greene County, having graduated from
the Missouri Medical College of St. Louis in 1880. His literary education
was obtained in McGee and Drury College. He was married near Fair Grove to
Miss M. Butts, a native of Greene County and daughter of J. M. Butts. C.
W. lives on the old homestead in Polk County with his mother and is
married to Miss Jrelda Cavin, a native of Greene County and daughter of A.
S. Cavin. They have two children, Everett and Effie. Mary C. died in 1868
at the age of fifteen years. Albert S., the subject of this sketch, was
educated in the district schools of Polk County and Morrisville College
for a year or so, after which he entered the State University at Columbia,
Mo., and graduated from the law department of that institution in 1888 but
prior to this had been in the drug business at Fair Grove for a year or so
and continued to follow this occupation until February, 1889, when he came
to Springfield and here has since made his home. He has been a successful
legal practitioner and has made a specialty of Corporation law. He is a
member of the Masonic order, and at the present time is one of the best
known young men in the State among that fraternity. He was married in
October, 1892, to Miss Julia A. Patterson, of Polk County, daughter of
William and Elizabeth (Reed) Patterson, who were early pioneers of that
county. Mr. Patterson is now deceased. He was the father of nine children:
Alexander (deceased), William B., George T., Robert B., James L., N. B.,
W. C., Marion V. and Julia A. Mr. Cowden has a pleasant residence at 308
Mt. Vernon street, and his office is located at 104 East side of the
public square. Since 1889 he formed a partnership with Judge J. T. Neville
and after the election of his partner to the position of judge of the
circuit court he is alone. He has always been a Democrat in politics and
has always been deeply interested in its success.




DR. WILLIAM H. COWDEN. The gentleman whose name heads this sketch is
successfully engaged in practicing a calling which is perhaps the most
trying on brain and body of any in the field of science. He is one of the
busiest of this busy class of men, and is well equipped and fully prepared
to meet any professional demands that may be made upon him, and has met
with flattering success from the start. He owes his nativity to Polk
County, Mo., where he was born in 1850, his parents being Robert Blackburn
and Martha J. (Headlee) Cowden, who were born in Maury County, Tenn., in
1825 and 1831 respectively, the family of the former coming to Polk
County, Mo., about 1839 and that of the latter to Greene County, Mo., in
1836. Immediately after his marriage, Mr. Cowden settled on a farm in Polk
County, on which he resided and successfully tilled the soil and followed
stock raising until his death in July, 1892. He was in sympathy with the
Union during the Civil War but took no active part in the struggle, and
after the close of hostilities was registering officer for some years. He
was always an active Democrat, a man of undoubted integrity, and was
prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Ozark Lodge, No. 297, at
Fair Grove. He and his wife were Presbyterians, and his widow still
survives him. The paternal grandfather, Robert Cowden, was born in Alabama
about 1793, where his father, also Robert Cowden, who was a captain in the
Revolutionary army, had settled after the close of the war. He came to
Tennessee with his father, where he soon after married and began farming.
About 1838 or 1839 he came by wagon to Polk County, Mo., and improved a
good farm on Upshaw Prairie, on which he spent the remainder of his days,
dying about 1863. He was a Democrat, of Irish descent and a member of the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church. His family consisted of the following
children: James, who was a farmer, of Greene County, and died before the
war; John A. is a retired farmer and merchant of Pleasant Hope, Mo.;
William was a farmer and died at Pleasant Hope, leaving a family; Robert
Blackburn; Newton, who is single and resides on the old home farm;
Marshall, who is a retired farmer of Pleasant Hope and is now a miller;
Samuel, who resides on a part of the old home farm, was in the Confederate
army; Hannah (deceased) was the wife of Newton Fawcett; Elizabeth is the
widow of Lundy Crocker; Jane is the wife of J. P. Fullerton, of Polk
County, and Melissa is the wife of Rev. J. B. Landreth of the Methodist
Episcopal Church South, residing in Polk County. The maternal grandfather
of the subject of this sketch was Judge Elisha Headlee, one of the first
settlers of Greene County, Mo., where he died about 1876. His grandfather,
John Headlee, was a Revolutionary soldier, and his father, E. Headlee, was
born in the State of Now Jersey in May, 1760, and was married there to
Mary Fairchild, and soon after, in 1790, removed to North Carolina. Judge
Headlee was the seventh of eleven children and was born in Burke County,
N. C., in October, 1802, where he received a limited education. He went to
Maury County, Tenn., with his parents in 1828, and there, in 1825, he
married Rachel Steele, who was also a North Carolinian, born in 1803, and
removed with her people to Tennessee in 1810. Mr. Headlee farmed in
Tennessee after his marriage until 1836, then became one of the pioneer
settlers of Greene County, Mo., and eventually one of it's most prominent
citizens. He was a justice of peace for some years, and in 1846 was
elected a member of the county court for four years, after which he
received his appointment from the Governor and served two terms more. In
1858 he was appointed Public Administrator and served in that capacity
until 1872. He was a Democrat all his life, and voted for Gen. Jackson in
1824 and for every Democratic presidential candidate until his death. He
was a Union man during the war. In 1813 he became a member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, and after the war became a member of the
southern branch. He and his wife spent a happy wedded life of over half a
century and became the parents of nine children: Dr. Samuel H., a
physician of St. James, Mo., who once represented Phelps County in the
State Legislature; Mary Caroline, who died in childhood; Caleb C., who
died in Louisiana in 1891, having been a farmer; Martha J. (Mrs. Cowden);
Hannah A., widow of J. D. W. Kerr; David A., who died while serving in the
Federal army; Emma A., wife of Robert Armor; Margaret M.; Rachel E. and
Harriet I. To Robert B. and Martha J. Cowden, the following children were
given: William H., the immediate subject of this sketch; Christopher C.,
who resides on the old home farm in Polk County; Mary Caroline, who died
unmarried, and Albert S., a prominent lawyer of Springfield. The early
education of Dr. William H. Cowden was received in the common country
schools at Ebeneezer and at McGhee College in Macon County, Mo., and
during this time a portion of the year was spent in teaching. He finished
his education in Drury College, and in 1876 began the study of medicine
with his uncle, Dr. Samuel H Headlee, of St. James, Mo., and in 1878
entered the Missouri Medical College of St. Louis, from which institution
he graduated in 1880. After practicing for two years he left that place
with the intention of locating in Texas but finally decided to remain at
his home in Polk County for some time and until 1887 practiced his
profession there. Since that time he has resided at Fair Grove where he
has an exceptionally large and paying practice. Soon after making his last
location here he purchased a drug store and has been connected with that
business ever since, in connection with his practice. In 1890 hewas
married to Miss M_____ daughter of J. M. and Fannie Butts, natives of
Kentucky and Barry County, Mo., respectively, and are now residents of
Fair Grove, where Mr. Butts is a prosperous druggist. Mrs. Cowden was born
in Barry County, Mo., but ever since early childhood has been a resident
of Fair Grove, where she was reared and educated. Dr. Cowden is prominent
Mason, being a member of Ozark Lodge, No. 297, at Fair Grove; also of
Vincil Chapter, No. 110, and St. John's Commandery, No. 20, both of
Springfield.




DR. LEE COX. Nothing is more true than that men grow by accretions from
without and that association of kindred minds results in the expansion of
ideas and enlargement of the horizon. This being true, what a fine field
is afforded the young physician in Springfield, where is gathered so large
a number of men eminent in the profession. This city is well known for the
loyalty of the brethren to the traditions of the profession and at the
same time for the progressiveness of the members in the noble science. The
population considered, there is no city in America that has so many
successful physicians and surgeons as this. Among those whose skill has
shed lustre upon the profession is Dr. Lee Cox, who is known in medical
circles throughout Missouri and is universally recognized as a scholar of
rare attainments and a practitioner of renown. He was born in McDonald
County, Mo., in 1861 (February 28), and is a son of W. R. and Eliza
(Behaven) Cox, the former of whom was a native of Kentucky and was born
about 1828 to William Cox and his wife. William was also a Kentuckian and
was a soldier in a number of the early wars of the country. In an early
day he became a resident of Missouri and until his death, which occurred a
few years ago, he was a successful farmer of Pike County. He was
seventy-five years of age at the time of his demise, and his wife's death
also occurred in Pike County. They reared a family of four children:
Leander, William R., Elizabeth and ----. After the death of his first wife
the grandfather married a second time and this wife bore him two sons and
two daughters: Nana, William, Emma and John. William Cox was a man of some
note and was at one time judge of Pike County. He seemed to possess the
faculty of money-making and became possessed of a fine property before his
death. He was a church member and politically a Republican. At the time of
the removal of the family to Missouri, W. R. Cox, the father of the
subject of this sketch was but a boy, but he had previously attended
school in Kentucky for some time and finished his education in Pike
County, Mo. As soon as old enough he began learning the trade of
cabinetmaking and at an early day which he followed with success for many
years, but prior to the opening of the Civil War moved to McDonald County,
where, in connection with following his trade he has been engaged in
tilling the soil and has been reasonably successful. He was married in
McDonald County and there reared his family whom he reared in comfort and
gave such educational advantages as the public schools afforded.
Politically he is a Democrat and for many years has been a member of the
Masonic Fraternity. He is a man who has become well known for the interest
he takes in public affairs, as well as for his devotion to his home and
family, and during the thirty-five or forty years that he has lived in
McDonald County he has gained many friends, and few, if any, enemies. His
wife was born in Indiana in 1835, a. daughter of William De Haven, who was
a York Stater by birth but removed to Indiana at an early day, where he
followed the trade of a mill-wright. At an early day he came to McDonald
County, Mo., also, and here followed his trade with great success. He
eventually became a large land owner and built and owned several mills. In
1849 he was taken with the "gold fever" and made the overland journey to
California, where he was successfully engaged in mining and later in the
sheep-raising business. His family went to that region with him, their
journey thither occupying about six months. He died in California in 1878
or l879, where his wife also died, both being earnest and worthy members
of the Methodist Episcopal Church. To the parents of Mrs. Cox six children
were given: Jehial, Joseph, Eliza, Sarah, William and Hiram, who died in
the West, where all the family are living with the exception of Mrs. Cox.
The parents of Dr. Lee Cox were united in marriage about 1850 and a family
of five children were given to them--four sons and one daughter: Albert,
who is a bookkeeper in the Anchor Mills of Springfield, married Maggie
Teaque, by whom he has five children-Clarence, Clyde, Blanche, Mildred and
Early; Lee, the immediate subject of this sketch; Bell, wife of Samuel
Prater, a native of Kentucky but now a resident of McDonald County, Mo.,
is the mother of four children--May, Ray, Teresa and an infant; Leonard is
in the confectionery business in Webb City, Jasper Co., Mo., and Charles,
who is now attending business college in Springfield. The parents of these
children are living on a farm in McDonald County, which place is located
about two and one-half miles from Pineville the county seat. They are
among the highly honored people of their section and have numerous
friends. Dr..Lee Cox spent the first years of his life in his native
county and obtained his education in the public schools of Pineville and
in Drury College. After leaving this institution he entered the office of
Dr. Barrett in the spring of 188-- and, after studying medicine there
until the spring of 1888, he entered the St. Louis Medical College in 1889
and graduated from the same in 1891, after which he at once commenced
practicing with his former preceptor, Dr. Barrett, since which time he has
been very successful in his chosen calling. He is a genial companion and
his agreeable and cheerful ways have a great influence on his patients, by
whom he is retained after being once employed. Politically he is a
Democrat, is a member of the County Medical Association, and, like his
father and grandfather before him, is decidedly public spirited.




COL. J. C. CRAVENS. Among the most esteemed and respected citizens of
Springfield, Mo., there is not one who has been a more faithful soldier, a
more pleasant or agreeable member of society, or a more thorough or
sagacious attorney than the gentleman whose name is mentioned above. He is
a native of Saline County, Mo., where he was born February 18, 1838, a son
of Dr. John and Ruhannah (Chaplin) Cravens, the former of whom was born at
Harrisburg, Rockingham County, Va., a son of Dr. Joseph Cravens. This
family is of Scotch-Irish descent and first took root on American soil in
the early part of the eighteenth century. For a long period they were
known in Virginia alone, but the members finally separated and branched
out for themselves until now their descendants are found in all parts of
the United States. The grandfather of the subject of this sketch was a
soldier of the Revolution and was present at the surrender of Lord
Cornwallis. The branch of the family of which Col. Cravens is a member
left Virginia and settled in Indiana, and there Dr. John Cravens and his
brothers became distinguished citizens. James H. still resides in the
Hoosier State; Oscar was a participant in the Florida war, and who is a
resident of Madison, Ind. All of the male members of this family were
Whigs and have since supported the Democratic party. Dr. John Cravens was
educated in the schools of Virginia and was married at Harrisburg, to a
daughter of J. Chaplin, of Welsh extraction and a very wealthy man. Mrs.
Cravens was born in Virginia, and after her marriage she and Dr. Cravens
moved westward, for the benefit of the latter's health which had become
much impaired by too closely following the arduous duties of his
profession. In 1840 he moved to Davis County, and there made his home
until his death in March, 1882, at the age of eighty-five years. He became
a surgeon in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, but served only
one year on account of his advanced age, and until the last gun was fired,
in 1865, he made his home in Texas. During the latter part of his life he
voted the Democratic ticket, although he had formerly been a Whig. He took
a prominent part in the affairs of his section, and being naturally a
leader, he became extremely well and favorably known throughout his
section. His wife also died in 1882 at the age of seventy-eight years. To
their union seven sons and three daughters were given: Elizabeth, who
married Philip R. Wirt, a prosperous merchant, died in 1867; Coraline,
married John A. Leopard, an attorney-at-law; Robert O., went to California
in 1850, and is still residing there engaged in merchandising and
practicing law; Joseph was killed by lightning when about eighteen years
old; Amanda is the widow of Douglas McDonald of Davis County; William,
died in Springfield in 1881, having been a prosperous farmer in the
vicinity of that place since 1867. He was a private in Col. Craven's
regiment during the war, was a Democrat politically end was well known
throughout Greene County; John N., died in Davis County in 1876, having
been a successful physician. He was a soldier in a regiment of Missouri
Infantry during the war; J. C., the subject of this sketch; Edgar H., who
lives on a farm in Davis County, Mo.; and Oscar who died at the age of
twelve years. The parents of these children were members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church and the father was an active and prominent Mason. He was
well educated and took pride in keeping well posted and up with the times.
The early life of Col. J. C. Cravens was spent on a farm up to the time he
was fourteen years old, at which time his father moved to Gallatin, to
give his children better school advantages, and there, after finishing his
education, J. C. Cravens began clerking in a drug store which was owned by
his father. Later he began the study of medicine for which purpose he
entered the Masonic College of Lexington, but finished his studies in the
State University, from which he graduated in 1860, after which he accepted
a position as principal of an academy in his native town. At about this
time the great Civil War came on and he cast aside personal considerations
to shoulder a musket and don a suit of gray. He enlisted in Company B and
the first engagement in which he participated was at Carthage in 1861. He
was afterward at Wilson's Creek, then Dry Wood, Lexington and Rolla, and
while in camp at Osceola he was made lieutenant-colonel by his commander
December 1, 1861, but after the reorganization of the army at Springfield,
Col. Cravens was on the staff of General Slack. He then participated in
many engagements throughout the State and in Arkansas, the most notable of
which was the battle of Pea Ridge, and after the death of Gen. Slack he
was on staff duty with Gen. Martin Green, with whom he went to Corinth,
Miss. He was in the battle of Farmington and at Tupelo, after which he was
sent as recruiting officer to Arkansas, and while at Fayetteville was
captured, but luckily made his escape the next day and joined Col. Hughes,
whom he assisted to organize a company of 100 men in the neighborhood of
Fayetteville. While on their way to the Missouri River they had a number
of skirmishes on the way. When Col. Hughes was killed Col. Cravens
organized a company, known as Company F and attached it to Col. Hayes'
Missouri Cavalry Regiment, and a few days later the battle of Lone Jack
was fought. He was elected captain of his company and in the fall of 1862
it was attached to Col. Smith's regiment of the same brigade and he
commanded it at Cave Hill, Prairie Grove, Springfield and Hartville. He
accompanied Marmaduke into Missouri in the spring of 1863, during which
time he took part in a number of unimportant engagements and also some
sharp fighting, especially at Helena, Ark. Later he was with Gen. Shelby
through Missouri, which expedition was planned by 600 volunteer men and
Col. Cravens and his lieutenant were among the number. They captured a
number of towns in Missouri and Arkansas, until they were defeated at
Marshall, Mo., shortly after which they retired into winter quarters. When
the regiment was reorganized the title of major was conferred upon Mr.
Cravens and the entire Arkansas Infantry was sent to reinforce Gen. Kirby
Smith in Louisiana. In the engagement at Marks' Mill, Col. Crayons with
about fifty followers, captured 100 men with six pieces of artillery and
300 wagons. After the defeat at Steele he returned with his command at
northeast Arkansas and during that summer was on active duty all the time
and in numerous skirmishes. They captured a gunboat on the White River,
known as the "Queen City " and were then for some time with Price in
Missouri and were in an engagement with the Federals on the Big and Little
Blue, and at Independence with Gen. Blount. Col. Cravens was left at
Independence with a force of 100 men and was told not to leave that place
until he was ordered or driven out. He remained there until __________
army came up, when he was compelled to retire. He took part in the battle
of Westport the next day and later was with. Price in the engagement at
Ft. Scott and saved that noted General's army at a still later period by
checking the advance of the Federals. At Newtonia, November 11, 1864,
having lost his colonel in the battle he was promoted to
lieutenant-colonel and held this rank until the war closed. He was
slightly wounded at Lone Jack by the explosion of a gun, but may be said
to have been singularly fortunate in this respect during the four years
that he was on active duty. He surrendered at Little Rock and returned to
his home with the consciousness of having performed all his duties
faithfully and of having lent valuable aid to the cause that was very dear
to him. Col. Cravens was married at Belleville, Ark., in 1864, to Miss
Annie Smith, a daughter of Col. Robert Smith of Arkansas, who was a
wealthy planter of that State and a member of the first convention held in
Arkansas. He died in Springfield, Mo. in 1879, his wife's death occurring
here two years earlier, in her native State. He was born at Georgetown in
the District of Columbia. Mrs. Cravens was born in Arkansas, the only
daughter of her parents, and after her marriage she and Col. Crayons
settled at Belleville. In 1866 he graduated from the law department of the
State University, having previously studied with Judge Barnes and Judge
James Butler of Belleville and soon after graduating was admitted to the
bar. He then formed a partnership with Judge Butler which continued until
1868, when they severed connection and Col. Cravens came to Springfield,
Mo., and opened a law office. He practiced alone for some time then became
associated with Col. Crawford, then Judge Bray, and finally with Mr.
Goode, the firm name being Cravens & Goode. Col. Cravens has practiced law
in all the counties of southwest Missouri and his reputation as an able,
successful. and experienced lawyer is of the best. He has conducted many
cases to a successful issue and has always been known to advise against
litigation when it could be avoided. He is the attorney for the Gulf R.
R., as well as other important corporations, and has taken part in some of
the most important criminal cases in the southwestern part of the State.
He has always been active in the political affairs of his section and in
an early day held the office of city attorney of Springfield, being
elected on the Democratic ticket of which he is an enthusiastic member.
Socially he belongs to A. F. & A. M., and the Royal Arcanum. The Colonel
and his wife are members of the Presbyterian Church and have a very
pleasant and comfortable home on Market Street, Springfield. To them seven
children have been born: Susan, who is the widow of a Mr. Bowden, a
prosperous attorney, has; one child, Jerry, and makes her home with her
father, Col. Cravens; Bell is the wife of Henry C. Cran, an attorney of
Springfield and has two children, Robert and Louise. Elizabeth; Irene;
Robert O.; Jerry, Jr.; and Zoe L. Although Missouri has its full quota of
successful and well posted lawyers, whose popularity is based upon their
thorough understanding of the law in all its details and who are forcible
and convincing pleaders at the bar, none among, these is more highly
regarded than Col. Cravens, and his time is fully occupied with a large
and arduous and profitable practice.




HON. THOMAS T. CRITTENDEN was born on Blue Grass soil, in Shelby County,
January 2, 1834, his father being Henry Crittenden, the brother of Hon.
John J. Crittenden. The father did not interest himself greatly in
political matters, but was at one time a Whig candidate for Congress. He
was married to a daughter of Col. John Allen, a successful lawyer of
Kentucky at one time, who was slain in battle at River Basin in the War of
1812. Mrs. Crittenden was a devout Christian, and for many years a zealous
worker in the Presbyterian Church, but also devoted herself to the
welfare, happiness and moral training of her children. She was left a
widow when Col. Crittenden was only two years old, but some years
afterward married David R. Murray, of Colverport, Ky. This last union
resulted in the birth of a son, E. H. Murray, who distinguished himself in
the Union army during the Civil War, in which he attained the rank of
general, and since that time he has been United States Marshall for
Kentucky, and is a very prominent and influential citizen of that State.
Col. Crittenden received his education in Center College, Kentucky, and
after graduating studied law under his illustrious uncle, Hon. John J.
Crittenden, at Frankfort, Ky., and was admitted to practice by Chief
Justice Simpson, at Winchester, in 1856. In the fall of that year he led
to the altar Miss Carrie W. Jackson, daughter of Samuel Jackson, of
Lexington, Ky., an accomplished and intelligent lady. The year following
his marriage he removed to Lexington, Mo., and after being permitted to
practice at the bar of this State by Judge Russell Hicks, who became one
of his most intimate friends, he opened an office and at once embarked in
a very prosperous practice. He was associated with Judge John S. A. Tutt,
and was very kindly and cordially received by the old established members
of the bar. He entered the Union service in the early part of the Civil
War, and was appointed by Gov. Gamble to the position of
lieutenant-colonel of the Seventh Regiment of Missouri Cavalry, which was
commanded by Col. John F. Philips, and this regiment performed such good
service and did such active fighting in Missouri and Arkansas that it was
repeatedly complimented in orders by commanding generals. His military
record and service was of a very high order, and he proved himself to be a
soldier of great gallantry and of fine qualities. He was mustered out of
the service and finally discharged in 1865, after which he returned to
civil life at Warrensburg, Mo., where he formed a law partnership in 1867
with Gen. F. M. Cockrell. He succeeded in procuring a large, lucrative and
eminently successful practice. During the war he was appointed
attorney-general of the State by Gov. Willard P. Hall, to fill a vacancy,
which was a very high compliment to one so young as he was at that time,
and showed the appreciation in which he was even then held. He was the
nominee of the Democratic party for Congress in the seventeenth district
in 1872, and was elected by 1,500 majority, defeating Hon. S. S. Burdett,
who was running for re-election on the Republican ticket. In 1874 he was
defeated for re-nomination in the famous contest between Col. Philips, A.
M. Lay and himself; in which over 600 ballots were taken and Col. Philips
elected. In 1876 he received the nomination without solicitation or
expectation on his part, and was elected by about 3,500 majority. This was
more than double the majority ever before given the Democratic ticket in
the district. His canvass of the State was very brilliant and successful
at the time, as a Democratic candidate for presidential elector at large,
a nomination which had been given to him almost unanimously by the State
convention at Jefferson City, July 19, 1876. He resigned this position to
enter upon the canvass for Congress, with the above results. As a soldier,
politician, lawyer and citizen, he has been remarkably successful, and the
services rendered by him in Congress were important and valuable, his
talents commanding him both respect and influence in the House of
Representatives. He is a model American citizen-patriotic, law-abiding and
enterprising, and all classes of people hold him in the highest regard.




HENRY C. CROW. The bar of Greene County, Mo., is given much force and
power by the membership of Mr. Henry C. Crow, who, although but just
entering upon the dawn of a successful career, has already won golden
laurels. His life thus far has been an example of the success that comes
to him who strives, for his advancement has not been the result of chance,
but of his individual and continuous efforts. Mr. Crow is a product of
Missouri, born near Bowling Green, April 17, 1860, and the son of Martin
and Harriet L. (Hendrick) Crow. The father was born in the Blue Grass
State and in 1829 came to Pike County, Mo., settling on the farm where he
and his estimable wife now reside. During the gold fever excitement he
went to California and was engaged in mining from 1850 to 1852. Previous
to the Rebellion he was a Whig in politics, but since that eventful period
he has affiliated with the Democratic Party. The mother of our subject was
born in Pike County, Mo., one-half mile from where she now lives. Her
father, M. Hendrick, was one of the pioneers of that State, having settled
there at an early date, and was one of the prominent citizens. To Mr. and
Mrs. Crow were born nine children, named in the order of their births as
follows: Emma E., wife of J. A. Dixon, resides in Missouri; James M., died
at the age of two years; H. C., subject; Edward C., a merchant at Bowling
Green, Mo.; John S., a hardware merchant of Mosca, Col.; Warren E., died
young; Sallie M., wife of Dr. George S. Sherman, resides at Ashley, Mo.,
Orra B., at home, and L. E. also at home. Nearly all the members of this
family hold membership in the Universalist Church. The original of this
notice comes of good old fighting stock, for members on both sides of the
house fought valiantly in the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. He
spent his early life in assisting on the farm and in attending the Watson
Seminary and Bowling Green College, where he was thoroughly educated.
Later he entered the law school at Lebanon, Tenn., and graduated in June,
1884. The same year he was admitted to the bar at Bowling Green, Mo., and
began immediately to practice in Springfield. Although at first by
himself, he subsequently was in partnership with several attorneys of that
city. From there he went to Kansas City, Mo., and practiced there for
three years, after which he returned to Springfield. He has held the
office of tax attorney, and is a man loyal to home interests and a
representative citizen of Greene County. He is an able attorney, a wide
counselor, and a man who has won the respect of all with whom he comes in
contact. He is a sincere, direct, positive man--a true man in the best and
highest sense. In politics he has always been a Democrat and has ever been
active in such matters. He is now a member of the Royal Arcanum, and at
one time was a member of the I. O. O. F. On the 11th of October, 1888, he
was married to Miss Mary B. Cravens, daughter of Col. J. C. Cravens, and
the fruits of this union have been two interesting children: Robert H. and
Susie L. Mr. and Mrs. Crow attend the Presbyterian Church and are liberal
contributors to all worthy enterprises. They have a pleasant home at No.
463 South Main Street, and Mr. Crow's office is in the Baldwin Theater
building.




MARTIN J. CUNNINGHAM has been a resident of Springfield, Mo., for the past
seventeen years, coming thither in 1876 from Auburn, N. Y., where he is
the owner of a machine shop which is conducted under the firm name of
Cunningham, Bailey & Co. He was born in County Mahone, Ireland, in 1838, a
son of John and Catherine Cunningham, who came to this country in 1855 and
took up their residence at Syracuse, N. Y., where the father died some
twenty years ago, his widow still surviving him. Martin J. Cunningham is
one of their three children and his early boyhood days were spent in his
native land, where he obtained a very good education. At the age of
seventeen years he entered a mercantile establishment and had become well
posted in this line of business endeavor when the great Civil War of this
country broke out. During this time he worked with the firm of Rogers &
Spencer, and later with the Remington Revolver Works, after which he was
with the Stone Company at Binghampton, N. Y., and in the New York Navy
Yards of Brooklyn. From this place he returned to his early home in New
York and embarked in business with Mr. Bailey and the firm of Cunningham,
Bailey & Co. was formed. About 1876 Mr. Cunningham became attracted to
Springfield and for some time after reaching this place he had charge of
the machinery department of the woolen mills of the city and later became
foreman of the Perkins Water Works. In 1887 he established the Cunningham
Machine Works, which, with the exception of a year or so, he has conducted
successfully ever since. He carries on all kinds of foundry work but makes
a specialty of building hand-power elevators and steam-power elevators,
thirty-one of which he has put in different public buildings of
Springfield. The present company is composed of T. F. Gray and M. J.
Cunningham, under the firm name of the Columbian Elevator Company, and has
facilities for manufacturing elevators of all kinds and of any capacity.
They make a specialty of the Columbian elevator, which has many points of
advantage over those of other makers, one of them being that it is very
simple in construction, thereby making it light running, although it is
strong and durable. It is absolutely safe, for it is so arranged that the
eccentric acts as an equalizer, throwing an equal strain on each cable,
there being two, and should either cable break the elevator automatically
locks itself, thereby rendering danger to occupants absolutely impossible.
The company has fitted up some of the largest warehouses of the city and
other points with this elevator and have met with a gratifying success and
a constantly increasing trade. Their plant is an exceptionally complete
one and all the machinery used is of the very latest and best kind, among
which is found the latest gear-cutting machine. Mr. Cunningham was married
to Miss Ann Nevins, of New York State (though a native of Ireland), and to
their union a family of seven children have been given, six of whom are
living. He has a comfortable home at 738 Boonville Street, his prosperous
business house being advantageously located on the corner of Benton Avenue
and Water Street. He has always been a man of energy and public spirit and
has taken a great deal of interest in the political affairs of his
section. Mr. Cunningham is of a very ingenious turn of mind and has
invented a machine for trimming hedge by horse-power, which has proven a
great success, but the cost of its manufacture prevents it from being in
general use. He has also invented a machine for the cutting and peeling of
potatoes and other vegetables, as well as other inventions which have
proven of a very practical and useful kind. All of his inventions show
that he is a man of brains and one who uses them for the benefit of his
fellow men. He is one of the leading business men of Springfield, where he
has, by right living, gathered about him a large patronage and a wide
circle of friends.




JUDGE JAMES BAKER, Springfield, Mo. A biographical work on Springfield
would certainly be incomplete unless it recorded the life and public
services of Judge Baker. There is no man to whom southwest Missouri owes a
deeper debt of gratitude than to the man who was the chief promoter of the
first line of railroad that ever ran through its boundaries the
difficulties surrounding the raising of the large sum of money required
for the construction of the Santa Fe Railroad were very great and were
overcome by Judge Baker almost solely and unaided. He is also one of the
most prominent lawyers of the southwest, a-ad as a public man has been
identified with all matters of public importance. Judge Baker descends
from an old Colonial family of English descent, the remote ancestors of
our subject coming from England at an early period in old Colonial days.
The original founder of the family in America had a grant of the entire
body of lands comprising Harvard County, Md., and on these lands Morris
Baker, grandfather of our subject, passed his days. His son, also Morris
Baker, was the father of our subject, and was born on this estate. When a
young man he went to Kentucky, where he was one of the pioneers, and
married Margaret, daughter of Samuel Waters, who was one of the original
pioneers of Kentucky, and a contemporary of the celebrated pioneer and
hunter, Daniel Boone, and who was engaged in the early Indian wars of
Kentucky. Mr. Waters was also one of the first surveyors of the State, and
his surveys are yet referred to. Morris Baker settled in Mason County,
Ky., where he cleared up a farm and lived until six of his children were
born. He moved to Jefferson County, Ind., in 1823, and settled near
Madison, but soon after moved to Jennings County, Ind., where he settled
on land. Mr. Baker and wife were the parents of thirteen children:
Margaret, William H., Robert, Emeriah, James, John, Leo W., Harriet,
Matilda, Morris, Louisa, Mark and Ezra. This is the proper order of birth.
The seven older children were born in Kentucky. In 1838 Mr.Baker moved to
Iowa and settled near Davenport, the State being then almost entirely
unsettled, and here he improved a farm and passed the remainder of his
days, and died at the age of seventy years. He was a soldier in the War of
1812, and served at the battle of Vincennes, Ind., against the Indians
under Capt. Zachary Taylor, afterward general and President of the United
States. Both Mr. and Mrs. Baker were Baptists in religious belief. Mr.
Baker had a good education for his day, was a lover of reading, and a man
of intelligence. In Indiana he held the office of sheriff. Politically he
was a Jacksonian Democrat. He was a prominent member of the Masonic
Fraternity, and one of the early Masons of Indiana. Mr. Baker was a
typical American and a pioneer in three States. He was a man of sterling
character and always maintained the respect of the community in which he
lived as a man of honorable character. Judge James Baker,son of above and
subject of this sketch, was born on his father's farm in Kentucky, and was
between three and four years of age when his parents brought him to
Indiana. He received first the common school education of the pioneers and
then attended the State University at Bloomington, Ind., two years. He
then read law at Davenport, Iowa, with Judge James Grant, and remained in
his office until the spring of 1843, when he went to Ottumwa, Iowa, and
entered upon his profession where he practiced law for ten years with
success. During this time he was elected and served as county collector,
judge of probate court, district attorney, and in 1853 was appointed
register of the United States land office at Sheridan, Iowa. In l856 he
was elected attorney general of the State of Iowa. When Judge Baker first
went to Iowa in 1837, it was still a territory, being admitted as a State
in 1846. In 1837 it contained no more than 30,000 inhabitants. When the
war broke out the State Legislature appointed a commission of three to aid
the Government in raising funds and equipping troops for the war, and
Judge Baker was appointed chairman. While acting in this capacity he
recruited the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Iowa Infantry, and was to have
been colonelof the Thirteenth Infantry, but gave place to Col. Crocker,
who had more experience in military affairs, a graduate of the Military
Academy at West Point, and who became a major-general, and who was
afterward highly complimented by Gen. Grant. Judge Baker was commissioned
Captain of Company C, Thirteenth Iowa Infantry. He was in the battles of
Pittsburgh Landing and siege and battle of Corinth, after which he left
the army on account of sickness, and returned to Iowa. In December, 1863,
he came to Springfield and engaging in the practice of law, soon built up
a very extensive business, and for some time was one of the judges of the
Supreme Court of the State of Missouri. The Santa Fe Railroad, then called
the Southwest Branch, having been sold to Gen. John C. Fremont and his
company, who failed the first year, the citizens of Springfield at a
public meeting appointed a committee of which Judge Baker was chosen
chairman, to go to New York City and secure capital to build a railroad
from the Gasconade River, west. The labor of securing the capital fell
principally upon Judge Baker, who remained in New York city three months
and secured capital to the amount of $1,500,000. He then secured in the
State Legislature the necessary laws to vest the title of the railroad in
the party he had formed, who immediately incorporated themselves under the
laws of the State of Missouri and deposited the money as agreed in the
State treasury and entered upon the work of constructing the railroad,
which was in June, 1858, and the railroad was pushed through to
Springfield in May, 1870. Thus Judge Baker had alone received from New
York capitalists this large sum which enabled the first railroad through
this section to be constructed. This company leased the Missouri Pacific
Railroad and Judge Baker became the general solicitor of both these
railroads and continued in this office until this company dissolved and a
new company formed known as the St. Louis & Santa Fe Railroad, of which
Judge Baker was general solicitor, vice-president and president. Judge
Baker remained president of the St. Louis & Santa Fe Railroad until 1881,
when he resigned. He possessed the entire confidence of the eastern
capitalists, so much so that he bought the Joplin & Girard Railroad and
immediately telegraphed Banker Seligman, of New York City, asking him to
honor his draft for $300,000. Banker Seligman replied by telegraph that
the draft would be honored, but to be very careful about buying railroads.
The object in buying this railroad was to prevent it from extending its
line to Arkansas and tapping valuable territory, which was being
projected. Judge Baker was connected with the Santa Fe Railroad as a
prominent officer for thirteen years. When he took the management of the
road its gross receipts were only about $1,200,000 per annum, and by his
judicious policy in extending branch railroads into new territory, the
receipts were soon augmented to $7,000,000. Among other enterprises he
bought the railroad from Pierce City to Oswego, Kas. Then called "The
Carthage Branch," of which Judge Baker was at one time president. This
road he consolidated with the Santa Fe Railroad and extended it to
Wichita. His whole policy was to advance the interests of the road by wise
and judicious enterprises. While Judge Baker was solicitor of the 'Frisco
Road his wide and thorough knowledge of railroad law and his intimate
acquaintance. with the western people and their legislators, enabled him
to make many skillful legal points, and to pursue a course which resulted
to the great advantage to the road. Judge Baker is the only man in the
State of Missouri who ever owned a railroad personally. When the Missouri
Pacific was sold on foreclosure, Judge Baker became the purchaser for the
bond-holders, paying for the road $3,000,000, and this road was operated
in his name and under his management for three months, until a new company
was formed to whom he turned it over, receiving for his services and for
preventing serious litigation and loss, the handsome sum of $20,000. All
through these years, Judge Baker's policy and wisdom guided the management
of the 'Frisco Road, and its success and freedom from litigation is
largely due to his legal acumen. Judge Baker has invested his capital in
Springfield, and in this way has been a direct promoter of its growth. He
has erected thirteen residences and business buildings. In 1885 he erected
the substantial and commodious office building of stone, brick and iron on
the northwest corner of the public square of Springfield, called the Baker
Block. It is by far the finest office building in the city, is four
stories in height with ample basement, and containing sixty-five well
lighted and convenient business offices and rooms. It has steam heat and
elevator. Judge Baker married October 4, 1844, Thomar Overman, and to them
was born one daughter, Emma. This wife died in 1851, in Iowa, and Judge
Baker married Cynthia Moore, and they were the parents of one child,
Herbert J. Mrs. Baker died in the spring of 1871, and Judge Baker married
Maggie C. Clark, and they have three children: Edith, John and James.
Originally Judge Baker in politics was a Democrat, and became a
Republican, with which party he affiliated until 1883, since which time he
has been a Prohibitionist. Socially, the Judge is a Royal Arch Mason, and
one of the prominent early Masons of Iowa, and held the office of master,
senior grand warden and high priest of the chapter. He is a member of the
Methodist Church, and has been a liberal contributor to all the churches
of Springfield, and assisted with his means in their erection. His
protection of defenseless and friendless women in Springfield who were
unjustly threatened with mob-violence, is well remembered. His courageous
defense of Mrs. Malloy, who was persecuted because she was a temperance
advocate by the worst saloon element in Springfield, is a true index to
his character as a man who in the defense of his principles is fearless
and uncompromising. He has always been a stanch advocate of free speech,
law and order, and although born and reared in the West among the scenes
of frontier life, his voice and pen have been ever ready in this cause. It
is related of him that soon after the war when the country was yet in a
disturbed condition and the rougher element among the farmers of Greene
County had lynched several men that 200 of these followers of Judge Lynch
rode into Springfield for the purpose of intimidating the attorneys and
officers of justice, making demands that the leading lawyers should
address them, that Judge Baker in a bold speech severely reprimanded the
taking of human life without proper legal proceedings, and advocated law
and order as the only remedy for lawlessness, while several other public
men well known as fearlessly courageous, made conciliatory speeches.
During his long career as a public man, Judge Baker was personally.
acquainted with many of the most prominent men, viz: Gens. Grant and
Sherman, with whom he had an army acquaintance, and many military men of
lesser note, with statesmen like Frank P. Blair, Senators Blaine, Evarts,
Edmunds, Carpenter, Conklin and Cameron. Among capitalists Jos. Seligman,
Commodore Garrison, Russell Sage, Jay Gould and Commodore Vanderbilt Judge
Baker has always desired to see the success of enterprising young men of
ability, and has assisted many of them to positions of prominence, among
them securing the appointment of John O'Day as attorney for the 'Frisco
Road.




BANK OF ASH GROVE, Greene County, Mo., ranks among its banking
institutions one that for the past ten years has preserved its integrity
and under all circumstances guarded jealously the rights of its depositors
and stockholders; maintaining a standard of honorable and fair dealing in
no wise inferior to that of sister organizations. Originally the Bank of
Ash Grove was established in 1883, with a capital stock of $30,000 and Mr.
J. L. Perryman was elected president and J. F. G. Bentley, cashier, Dr.
Thomas Doolin being chosen vice-president. Unlike many organizations of
its class, the Bank of Ash Grove does not promise results that are beyond
the reach of possibility nor does it depend on losses and forfeitures to
increase its profits, but aims to treat all with fairness and equity. The
organizers of this bank made a careful study of banks of a like character
before engaging in the business for them- selves and have embraced all the
best features as well as avoided the poor ones in their own venture,
features that have been brought to light through the channel of
experience. The building in which business is done on such safe principles
belongs to the organizers of the bank, and is a handsome one having a
frontage of twenty-five feet and is of solid brick, two stories in height.
It was put up at a cost of $3,000 and is located on Main Street in Ash
Grove. The officers of the bank are the principal stockholders, and Mr.
Bentley is president of the Bank of Springfield and is a man of large
capital, and is one of the shrewdest financiers of the country. In 1885
the officers of the company were chosen as follows: Mr. Bentley,
president; Dr. Doolin, vice-president and Mr. Perryman, cashier. Dr.
Doolin is an exceptionally prominent and successful physician and Mr.
Perryman is one of the leading business men of Ash Grove. Through upright
and strictly honorable business dealings the bank has a large amount of
deposits and only loans money on personal securities. Such an institution
is a credit to the city as well, as to the men who founded it, and
deserves continued success at the hands of the citizens of Greene County.




B. A. BARRETT, M. D. It is gratifying to trace the history of those of the
early settlers of Greene County, Mo., who have persevered through trials
and hardships and have at last reached the point where they can enjoy the
wealth and prosperity which rightfully belongs to them. In the life of the
gentleman whose name we now give we find such a history, and the
popularity which belongs to such a man is the just mood which all are glad
to pay to his worth and work. For nearly forty years he has resided in
Springfield, and during all that time his career has been above reproach.
Mr. Barrett is a product of this State, born in St. Genevieve County,
January 8, 1826, and was one of a family of ten children born to John S.
and Margaret (Patterson) Barrett. In tracing the genealogy of the Barrett
family in America we find that the great-grandfather of our subject was
the first to settle on the soil of this county. He came from Emerald Isle
and settled in the Old Dominion, where he reared a large family of
children. The grandfather of our subject was born in Virginia and fought
bravely for independence in the Revolutionary War. He was killed at the
battle of Cowpens. The father of our subject, John S. Barrett, was born in
Culpeper County, Va., the latter part of the eighteenth century and was
one of a large family of children born to his parents. Some of these
children emigrated to Tennessee, others to Kentucky, and some to Missouri.
The father of our subject was but a boy when he emigrated with his parents
to Tennessee, and he there grew to manhood and married. In 1811 he moved
to Missouri, settled in St. Genevieve County and there reared his family.
He served in the Black Hawk War, and he, with two others swam the
Mississippi River at St. Mary's Landing to rescue the people in Illinois
from the ravages of the Indians. He took a prominent part in that war and
probably was an officer. A man of superior education, he took an active
part in the government affairs of Missouri, and served in the first
Legislature ever held in the State. At one time he was State marshal; he
was also sheriff of his county and was serving in the Legislature when
Missouri was admitted as a State. Later he represented his county a number
of times in that body. In the early part of his career he carried on a
large farm, but during the closing scenes of his life he practiced
medicine. He was intimately acquainted with Gen. Jackson, with whom he
served while in the army, and was a man of great physical endurance,
retaining his strength of mind and body up to the last day of his life. He
died in 1868, when about seventy years of age, but was capable of carrying
on his business. For many years he was a member of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, and held the office of steward. A man of great public spirit, he
was ever interested in the upbuilding of his county, and was well known
throughout its length and breadth. In politics he affiliated with the
Democratic party. His wife was born in Maury County, Tenn., and was a
daughter of James and Margaret (Carr) Patterson. The Patterson family came
originally from Scotland, and at first settled in North Carolina, and
later in Tennessee, where they were among the pioneers. Grandfather
Patterson served in the Revolutionary War and lost an eye in fighting for
independence. He was a minister and teacher and died about 1840 in St.
Genevieve, Mo., whither he had moved at an early day. He was very
prominent in church work and assisted in establishing many of the churches
in this State. Mrs. Barrett died in Springfield in 1864. She was the
mother of ten children, as follows: James, died in Webster County, Mo.,
where he was engaged in farming; Nancy, died in 1844 (she was the wife of
John W. York); Joseph, died when about twenty-four years of age; Mary A.,
died in Springfield about 1854 (she was the wife of Dr. MoLure) ; John C.,
was a physician and died in Buffalo, N. Y; B. A. (subject); George, who
died in 1865, was a physician and practiced his profession at Springfield
for fifteen years (he left a wife and four children, all of whom are
living in Springfield; as a practitioner of the healing art he was a
decided success and accumulated considerable means); Jane, died when
eighteen or twenty years of age; Mildred, residing now in Springfield, is
the widow of Dr. Van Hoose, who was a very prominent physician of this
State (she became the mother of three children. James B., Ella and Lula);
the last two are teachers in the public schools of Springfield, and are
considered first-class educators. The mother of these children was a
lifelong member of the ,Methodist Episcopal Church, and was an earnest
Christian lady. Dr. B. A. Barrett spent his early life in his native
county, studied under a private tutor and later attended school at
Fredericksburg and St. Louis, thus receiving a thorough education. His
medical education was received in St. Louis, and in the year 1853 he
started out to practice in Buffalo, Mo., continuing there until 1858. In
1858 he came to Springfield, but in 1863 went to St. Louis, where he
practiced his profession until 1870. Returning to Springfield, he has
continued to practice in that city up to the present time, and stands at
the head in his profession. He is about the oldest practicing physician in
the city. The Doctor is a member of the State Medical Association, the
Mississippi Valley Medical Association, and the Springfield Medical
Society. Ever since his twenty-first year Dr. Barrett has been a Mason, is
a member of Salome Lodge, No. 271, Springfield, and has held all the
offices in the lodge He and Mrs. Barrett are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church and are deeply interested in religious matters. The
Doctor was first married in 1848 to Miss Susan Randleman, a native of
Illinois, St. Mary County, and the daughter of Jacob and Mary (Holcomb)
Randleman. Mr. Randleman was an early pioneer of Illinois and was a
prominent man of the county. By this union the Doctor became the father of
five children-three sons and two daughters-as follows: Mary, who died in
1876, when about thirty years of age, was the wife of Harley Moore and the
mother of five children: Ada, Zack, Elizabeth, Lula and Ida. All are
living and married except Ida, who resides with her father and attends
college. The next of the Doctor's children, Edward, is a resident of
Johnson County, Wyo., and is a first-class dentist. He has a large ranch
and is a wealthy man. His wife, who was Miss Lula Mallison, bore him three
children-two sons and a daughter: Al., Charles and Mabel. The next of the
Doctor's children, Freddie, married Miss Anna Radford and is now engaged
in the boot and shoe business in St. Louis. Ada married George Mygott, and
Robert L. resides in Fort Scott, Kas. He is a railroad man and married
Miss Lula Burns. They have four children: Leah, Robert, Mary and George.
The death of the Doctor's; first wife occurred in 1863, in St. Louis.
Nearly all her life she had been a member of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, and was a lady whose excellent qualities of mind and heart
endeared her to all. The Doctor's second marriage was with Miss Mary
Priest, of Spring Hill, Tenn, and the daughter of Thomas H. and Nancy
(Merritt) Priest, who were early settlers of Tennessee, where they passed
their last days. Mrs. Barrett was born in Maury County, Tenn., and is
still living. She is a lady of culture and refinement, and is a consistent
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Dr. Barrett has ever taken an
active part in politics, and is an earnest supporter of the principles of
his party.




DR. EDWARD L. BEAL, Republic, Mo., is one of the most prominent of the
younger physicians of Greene County who stands deservedly high in the
medical profession. He springs from an old American Colonial family. His
great-grandfather was a native of North Carolina. His grandfather, Daniel
N. Beal, was born May 19,1799, in North Carolina. He was a cabinet maker
by trade and when a young man went to Giles County, Tenn., where he
married Nancy, daughter of George Gibson, and they were the parents of
seven children: George T., Allen H., James N., Martha A., Damaris, Mary J.
and Penelope. Mr. Beal remained in Giles County, Tenn., until three
children were born and, in 1831, moved to Crawford County, Mo., and
settled near where Verona now stands. Judge James White came the same
time, and here Mr. Beal made a clearing and began his home. He was in
company with Judge White in the ownership of land and as they thought the
tract of land not large enough for both, Mr. Beal sold out and came to
what is now known as Greene County, the latter part of 1833 and settled in
Campbell Township four miles west of Springfield on Wilson Creek. Here he
cleared up a farm and passed the remainder of his days, owning 288 acres.
In politics he was a Democrat, and both himself and wife were members of
the Baptist Church. Mr. Beal lived to the age of about forty-seven years
and died December 7, 1847. He was one of the old pioneers of southwest
Missouri and highly respected by the older settlers, by whom he was well
known as a man of integrity of character and honest worth. Capt. George T.
Beal, the son of above and father of the subject of this sketch, was born
November. 10, 1832, on his father's farm near Verona, Mo., and was an
infant when brought by his parents to Greene County. He attended the old
pioneer log schoolhouse three months each year until he was twenty years
of age. He was reared a farmer and at the age of twenty-one, 1854, he was
one of the gold seekers, crossing the plains to California in company with
three of his neighbors, Samuel G. Bragg, John H. West and George Likins,
the journey being made with an immense ox-wagon drawn by four yoke of
cattle. They also had along two riding horses. The trip across was
pleasant and occupied four months. Mr. Beal engaged in gold mining at
Shasta City on the Sacramento River for two years and then returned via
the Isthmus of Panama and New York City. The next year he again crossed
the plains driving a herd of cattle and milch cows, remaining nine months,
and returning home via Panama and New Orleans. In l860 he married Ann
Eliza, daughter of Junins and Martha J.Roundtree. (See sketch of
JudgeRoundtree.) After marriage Mr. Beal settled on his present farm which
was bought the year previously. This farm then consisted of 120 acres but
by thrift and industry he now has 200 acres in a good state of
cultivation. To Captain and Mrs. Beal have been born five children, all
now living. Edward L., Marshall F., Joseph S., Carrie M. and Nettie R. In
the spring of 1861, when the Civil War broke out, Capt. Beal enlisted in
the Home Guards and he was one of the guides for Gen. Lyon, from
Springfield, to Wilson Creek battle-ground the night before the attack.
The army left Springfield in the evening, the sun being about one hour
high and Mr. Beal rode with Gen. Lyon and staff in the advance, the
General frequently asking questions about the road. The route taken was
the Mt. Vernon road until five miles from Springfield and then across the
prairie in the direction of the Rebel encampment. About two o'clock in the
morning a halt was called at a point one mile east of Brookline, where
Milford Norman now resides; the army resting quietly on their arms until
day- light, which at that time, August 10, was about 5 o'clock. Mr. Beal
was sent back to the Mt. Vernon road with dispatches to Maj. Wright, who
was in command of several companies of cavalry and was encamped as a
picket outpost, to instruct him to close up immediately and be ready to go
into battle at daybreak. By the time the command was in marching condition
it was daylight and they rode rapidly to the battlefield, the fighting
having begun when they reached the ground. Mr. Beal reached the
battlefield at six o'clock A. M. a, little behind the cavalry. The Rebels
had been taken entirely by surprise and their first alarm was the shooting
at two Rebels who were out after roasting ears and gave the alarm. The
firing began on both sides when the armies were fully one mile apart but
little of the battle could be seen owing to the broken condition of the
country. The Federal retreat began about 10:30 A. M. and Capt. -Beal and
another guide rode back to Springfield, the country being entirely
deserted and they met no one on the way. Mr. Beal returned to his farm,
bringing his wife back from her mother's, where she had been for safety.
He remained on the farm until November, when Fremont's army occupied
Springfield, and went on to Raleigh. Mr. Beal went to Illinois, taking his
wife and remained there until March, and returning home made a crop. On
August 9, 1862, he was elected captain of a company of Missouri State
Militia which he had assisted in enlisting in his township and served as
captain until he resigned two years later. He commanded his company at the
battle of Springfield when Marmaduke attacked the city. Fifteen of his
company were wounded and two killed. Capt. Beal was struck by a spent ball
but not seriously injured. This was all done from one fire of the Rebels,
Capt. Beal's company being situated where Col. Moore's residence now
stands; here the hardest fighting occurred. After the war Capt. Beal
settled on his farm where he afterward remained; he is one of the
substantial citizens of Greene County and is entirely a self-made main. He
is a friend of education and has served his district for several years as
school director, and has given all his children liberal educations. His
son, Dr. Edward L. Beal, is a prominent physician at Republic. His son,
Marshall, was also a liberally educated man. In political opinions the
Colonel is a stanch Democrat, although he has neither sought nor accepted
office. Both Mr. and Mrs. Beal are members of the Cumberland Presbyterian
Church, the Colonel having been deacon for twenty years. Dr. E. L. Beal,
his son, was born January 16, 1864; big education was obtained at Ozark
College and at Morrisville; he then attended the Missouri Medical College,
at St. Louis, 1886-7, and afterward Jefferson College, 1887-8. He
immediately began the practice of his chosen profession in the office of
Dr. Tefft, a prominent physician of Springfield and continued with the
doctor one year. In 1889 he came to Republic where, by big skill as a
physician and his gentlemanly course, he soon established a lucrative
practice. Socially he is a member of Relief Lodge, No. 341, Republic. He
is also a member of the I. O. O. F. In politics he is a stanch Democrat.
He married, March 30, 1889, Mary E. Lambrs. While Dr. Beal is one of the
younger physicians of Greene County, there is no man who stands higher in
his profession. He has won the confidence not only of the people but all
members of the medical profession. The Doctor is a leading member of the
prominent Missouri medical societies.




JAMES R. BELL. There is no business of more importance than that of the
abstractor of titles, as it is of the greatest value to the purchaser of
real estate that his title be clear and untarnished. Mr. James R. Bell is
one of the most prominent in this line of business in Springfield. He
springs from an old American Colonial family of English stock. His father,
Morgan Bell, was born in Greene County, Penn., and was merchant and
farmer. He married Catharine A. (Kimball) Bell, who was born in Wheeling,
W. Va. She was from a Massachusetts family, To Mr. and Mrs. Bell were born
four children: James R., Carrie, Ralph D., and Della L. Mr. Bell is now a
respected citizen of Springfield. James R. Bell, our subject, was born in
Greene County, Penn., October 10, 1853, and received a good common
education. He began his business career as a clerk in a mercantile
establishment and went with his father and family in 1867, when a boy of
fourteen, to Brownsville, Fayette Co., Penn. In l870 he came also with his
father to Ozark, Christian County, Mo., and in company with his brother,
Ralph D., became editor and publisher of the Ozark Leader and soon after
consolidated the newspaper with the Ozark Monitor, and published this
paper for six years. In 1878 he was appointed Circuit and County Clerk by
Gov. Phelps in place of J. M. Pettijohn, resigned. He was also Deputy
County Clerk under John C. Rogers, four years. In 1883 he came to
Springfield and engaged in the abstract and loan business and has
established a large office in this line and has made a success. He is an
abstractor of skill and accuracy and has the most complete as well as the
oldest set of abstract books in Greene County, and his abstracts are
relied upon for their accuracy. In 1877 he married Sallie Vaughan,
daughter of Thomas H. and Susan B. Vaughan. Mr. and Mrs. Bell have five
children: Maude, Bessie, Ralph, Blanch, and Lucile. Mr. Bell is a
substantial man owning real estate in Springfield and is a man of energy
and business ability and strict integrity in his line.




CHARLES M. BENNETT. Material wealth must not exclude the riches of
character and ability in our recital of the values which have been brought
to this State by its citizens, and among its most precious treasures must
be estimated the lives of those citizens who have, by their intelligence
and their eminence in the higher walks of life, assisted in raising the
standard of life and thought among us. No one has probably done more in
this line than he of whom we now write. He was born in Chenango County, N.
Y., July 31, 1847, but at an early date accompanied his parents to Kendall
County, Ill., where he received his schooling. At an early age he started
on a business career and in 1871 came with his father to Greene County,
Mo. While residing in Illinois he assisted on the old home place and after
removing to Missouri he remained with his parents and managed the farm. He
is now living on the old homestead, which did consist of 474 acres,
located within two miles of the public square of Springfield. The land is
probably the best farming land in Greene County, and was a portion of the
old Campbell place. The father died in 1882 and since then our subject has
taken the entire management of the place. He has made many changes and now
has one of the best improved places in the county. In the past he has
taken great interest in raising live stock but most of his attention is
given to agricultural pursuits. On the 20th of October, 1881, he was
married to Miss Sarah A. Smith, of Kendall County, Ill., and the daughter
of Samuel and Catharine (Everett) Smith, natives of New York State. The
Smith family was among the pioneer families of New York State, and in
their religious views the members were Quakers. The Everett family settled
in Massachusetts at an early day. Mr. Smith died in Kendall County, Ill.,
about 1889, but his wife had died in 1873. They were the parents of nine
children as follows: Jane, wife of Emery Fishell, resides in Illinois, and
is the mother of four children; Luther, resides in Kansas and is a man of
a family. He was a private in Company A, One Hundred and Twenty-seventh
Volunteer Infantry, enlisting in 1862, and was discharged on account of
sickness after serving two years; Phoebe, resides in Benton County, Ind.,
and is the wife of Daniel Fishell. They have three children: Henry, was a
soldier in the Fourth Illinois Cavalry; he was wounded in Tennessee and
died from the effects of the same after serving almost two years; he was
not yet twenty-one years of age. Eliza, married Daniel Bowman, and at her
death left three children. Mary, is the wife of James B. David and resides
at Clinton, Iowa. She has three children: Sarah (wife of subject); Kate,
was the wife of Don Winn, died in Kendall County, Ill., leaving one child;
and Fred who resides in Chicago, and is engaged in the real estate
business. The parents of these children were highly respected in the
community in which they lived and were early settlers of the same. Mr.
Bennett and wife came to the old farm after marriage and by their
uprightness and social, agreeable ways, have won a host of warm friends.
They have had two children, Charles Martin, born September 11, 1882, is
now attending school; and Everett, born in 1888, died January 7, 1891.
Public spirited and enterprising, Mr. Bennett has ever affiliated with the
Republican Party. He is industrious and progressive and classed among the
very best citizens of the county.




LYMAN G. BENNETT. Nothing is more true than that good management, fair
dealing and application to business will result in profit to the parties
interested, and failure rarely, if ever, comes unless as the consequence
of negligenc, rash speculation or dishonesty. Lyman G.Bennett is one who
has been successful in the accumulation of worldly goods and owes all his
prosperity to his own good business management and honest dealing. He was
born in Schuyler County, N. Y., August 1, 1832, to Charles M. and Louisa
(Canfield) Bennett, the former of whom was of English descent. There is a
tradition that the family came to this country at a very early day and
settled in Massachusetts. An early ancestor of the subject of this sketch
was banished with Roger Williams to Rhode Island. Prior to the
Revolutionary War a company of people from Connecticut and Rhode Island
started westward with the intention of locating in the Wyoming Valley in
Pennsylvania, but the war coming on and the Indiana proving troublesome
they stopped temporarily in Orange County, N. Y., Ephraim Bennett, the
grandfather of the subject of this sketch, served with credit in the
patriots' ranks during the war, after which the original intention of the
colonists was carried out and they removed to Pennsylvania. After a short
residence in that State the Bennetts removed to western New York and there
the great grandfather and grandfather took up a tract of land near Elmira
on the Newtown battle ground, where they remained some years. They
eventually located in Schuyler County where the grandfather died at the
age of eighty-one years. He reared. a family of twelve children and a
number of his sons took part in the War of 1812. Charles M. Bennett was
the youngest of this family and in the Empire State he grew to manhood and
married. In 1849 he moved to Kendall County, Ill., where he made his home
until 1872, when he came to Greene County and took up his residence on a
500 acre tract of land which he purchased and on which he lived until
1882. In that year while making a visit to his native State of NewYork
death overtook him. He was a Democrat in politics until 1856, then became
a Republican, which he continued to be the remainder of his life, and
although not an active politician he was public spirited. He was
successful in the accumulation of means and left an estate valued at
$20,000, not withstanding the fact that while in the State of New York he
was compelled to pay a security debt of $15,000. This act of honesty
materially diminished his means and was the direct cause of his removal
westward for he deemed the Mississippi valley offered good inducements to
the tiller of the Boil, and subsequent events showed the wisdom of his
views. He became well known throughout Greene County and war highly
honored in business circles, as an upright Christian gentleman. His wife
was a native of New Britain, Conn., and a daughter of Peter Canfield, of
Irish descent, who moved from the Nutmeg State to New York in an early
day, in which State Mr. and Mrs. Bennett were married. Mrs. Bennett was
the youngest of five children and died in Greene County, Mo., in 1888, a
member of the Baptist Church, and at the time of her death was seventy-six
years of age. To herself and husband the following children were born:
Lyman G.; Elizabeth, who. died at the age of five years; Guy, is now a
successful stockman of Arizona, is married to the daughter of a former
governor of Arkansas, and is a man of family; Martin V., is a farmer of
Norwich, Kan.; Hannah died at the age of four years; Ephraim died in New
York State at the same age; Caroline is the wife of Col. William Christy,
of Phoenix, Ariz., who was colonel of an Iowa regiment; Louise, the wife
of Marsh Christy, of Phoenix, Ariz.; Charles M. is living on the old home
place of his father in Greene County, near Springfield; Frank who is
living at West Plains, Mo., is engaged in operating a mill, and Catherine,
who is the wife of Orlo H. Christy, of Phoenix, Ariz. Some members of the
Bennett family were great Indian fighters; in the early history of this
county and were in the bloody Wyoming Massacre. The early life of Lyman G.
Bennett was spent in the State of his birth and in attending the district
schools and the Havana Academy, and he began an independent business
career in 1855, after which he became a teacher and followed that
occupation five winters, He began clerking in a United States land office
in Minnesota upon giving up the calling of a pedagogue, but two years
later gave up that calling to learn that of a surveyor or civil engineer
and was afterward made surveyor of Kendall County, Ill. He was there
married in 1859 to Miss Melissa E. Lyon, a native of New York State and
daughter of William Lyon, who was of Scotch descent and an early pioneer
of Kendall County. He and his wife are deceased, he having died in Kansas
in 1859. Mrs. Bennett is one of the four surviving members of their eight
children. Upon the opening of the Civil War Mr. Bennett war the first to
volunteer from Kendall County, Ill., in a company formed at Oswego for the
300 day service, but not being accepted many of them joined the
Thirty-sixth Illinois Volunteers, went to Rolla, Mo., where Mr. Bennett
was detailed as engineer to construct fortifications and inspect the
country round about and make a map of the region. Later he was sent to St.
Louis under Gen. Halleck, who ordered him to go to Cape Girardeau to build
a fort, but he asked leave to rejoin his regiment, was permitted to do so
and rejoined the evening before the battle of Pea Ridge in which he hook
part. After that he was on detached duty with Gen. Curtis and helped to
construct the fort at Helena, Ark. He, together with Col. William M.
Fishback, who is now governor of Arkansas, raised a regiment of Arkansas
troops called the Fourth Arkansas Cavalry, and took part in the battle of
Little Rock, holding the rank of major, after which he was engineer of
Gen. Curtis' staff until 1866, being in the service almost six years. He
was in numerous engagements and skirmishes and followed Price to the
Arkansas River. During the winter of 1864-5 he was sent to build forts
westward from Fort Kearney to Denver, and succeeded in establishing a line
of posts along the overland route including Forts McPherson and Sedgwick.
He was then attached to the expedition of Col. Cole to the Black Hills,
Powder River and Big Horn Mountains as engineer, where he remained some
months. He was honorably discharged in March, 1866, and returned to his
family in Illinois, soon after which he was appointed county surveyor and
deputy circuit clerk, and three years later was appointed to fill that
office by reason of the death of the former incumbent. In 1872 he was
elected to the office of circuit court clerk and re-elected in 1876. In
December, 1880, he came to Missouri and bought land in Greene County on
which he erected a handsome residence, and. which he has since tilled with
good success. He has always been a Republican with a tendency toward
Prohibition. In 1890 and 1891 he surveyed No Man's Land strip in the
Indian Territory, under the direction of Secretary Noble and has also
surveyed railroads in the State and additions to Springfield. He is a
member of the A. F. & A. M., the I. O. O. F. and the Good Templars, is
much interested in temperance work, and also belongs to the G. A. R. Mr.
Bennett has had four children: Minnie, wife of C. E. Phillips, of
Springfield, by whom she has one daughter, Edith; Edgar A., who is a
farmer of Greene County, is married to Bessie Calkins and has three
children, Helen, Ralph and Edgar A.; and Edith who died at the age of five
years. Carrie died at the age of eighteen. She was a graduate of the
public schools of Springfield and then a teacher in them. Mrs. Bennett is
a member of the Calvary Presbyterian Church, and the family are highly
respected by all who know them. respected by all who know them.




J. F. G. BENTLEY. The American bank is the synonym of dignity,
respectability and safety; the medium of exchange between cities and
foreign countries, and the great sustainer of the various business
enterprises of the country. The bank is the teacher of method and system,
and is a check upon reckless and indiscriminate speculation, the spirit of
which is too prevalent in the country. Although established in September,
1882, the Bank of Springfield, of which Mr. J. F. G. Bentley is president,
it must be admitted, is one of the most notable banking houses in
Springfield, Mo., and the gentlemen who constitute its officers have long
been known in the financial and commercial world. The capital stock of the
concern at the time of its establishment was $100,000, and its first
officers were C. W. Rogers, president; F. E. Atwood, cashier. The present
officers are J. F. G. Bentley, president, J. A. Sloughton, vice-president,
and J. W. Hall, cashier. The bank is located in a handsome building at the
corner of Commercial and _____ Streets, and has built up a large and
reliable business. It has ever pursued a safe policy, has conducted its
operations in an entirely reliable manner and the methods by which it has
been conducted have been steadily improved. Its deposits at the present
time amount to $290,000. The reputation of this establishment is such that
a treatise upon the representative business concerns of Springfield would
be somewhat akin to a fiasco if it failed to take cognizance of the Bank
of Springfield. There is undoubtedly no one department of enterprise which
has been so powerfully instrumental in the development of the city's
prosperity as the business of the banker, and it is in the hands of such
gentlemen as form the officers and directory in the Bank of Springfield
that the calling under discussion becomes one of the most important levers
for good in the commercial machinery of the country. Mr. Bentley, the
president, is a native of Ohio, and came to the State of Missouri in 1869,
locating at Ash Grove, where he followed the calling of a merchant for
many years. About 1882 he came to Springfield, and while following the
calling of a merchant operated on different lines until he became
interested in the Bank of Springfield, since which time his attention has
been given principally to this line of work. He has made a very wide
acquaintance here among the most prominent business men, and this fact has
largely contributed toward the success of the institution with which he is
connected. Mr. Bentley is treasurer of the Metropolitan Street Railway of
this city, which office he has hold since the organization of the company;
is a director in the National Loan and Investment Association of
Springfield, which has a capital stock of $5,000,000, and the bank with
which he is connected has correspondence with the National Bank of
Commerce of New York City, the National Bank of St. Louis and the National
Bank of Commerce of Kansas City, Mo. Mr. Bentley and his family have a
pleasant and comfortable home at the corner of Washington Avenue and
Calhoun Street, his residence being considered the handsomest in southwest
Missouri. In him is the stuff of which noble and useful citizens are made,
and that he is one is attested by the fact that he has numerous warm
personal friends, who repose in him the utmost confidence.




HON. THOMAS HART BENTON is a product of Hollsborough, Orange County, N.
C., where be was born March 14, 1782. Being left fatherless at the age of
eight years his mother sent him to a grammar school for a short time,
after which-he entered the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
which institution he quitted without receiving a degree, after which he
commenced the study of law in William and Mary's College, Virginia. Upon
her removal to Tennessee the mother settled on some land belonging to her
husband's estate, but young Thomas had no taste for agriculture, and as be
was fond of books he devoted himself to reading in order to better prepare
himself for the profession of law which he had decided upon following. In
1811 he began practicing at Nashville, and there soon rose to eminence. He
was shortly elected to the Legislature, in which he served one term, but
during this time be secured the passage of a law reforming the judicial
system, and one giving to slaves the benefit of a trial by jury. At that
time Andrew Jackson was a judge of the Supreme Court of Tennessee, and he
became Benton's personal friend and patron, and during the War of 1812 he
served under this noted man as commander of a regiment of volunteers, from
which he received the title of Colonel. The intimacy of these men
continued for some time, then was cut short by a sudden and violent
quarrel, and during Jackson's attempt to strike Benton with a horsewhip be
was severely wounded by a pistol shot fired by the latter. Although they
were bitter enemies for a long time, a partial reconciliation was
afterward effected, but they never again became intimate. In 1813 Mr.
Benton was appointed by President Madison Lieutenant-Colonel in the
Thirty-ninth Infantry ; but while on route to join, his command in Canada,
peace was declared, and he resigned in 1815. He then went to St. Louis and
was soon in the enjoyment of a lucrative legal practice. Being a man of
decided opinions and aggressive temperament he entered the field of
politics and established the Missouri Inquirer, and as he was fierce and
outspoken in his denunciations, he was the principal in many disputes,
altercations and personal encounters. At that day the "code" was in vogue
and in a duel with Mr. Lucas he killed his opponent, an act he sincerely
regretted to the day of his death. Mr. Benton strongly urged the admission
of Missouri with a slave constitution, through the columns of his paper,
and in 1820 was elected one of the senators from the now State. He at once
took high rank in the national councils, for be possessed a vigorous
intellect, large and liberal culture and was studious, temperate and
resolute. He was soon an acknowledged leader in a body which contained
some of the most eminent men of the nation. He originated a bill granting
the right of pre-emption to actual settlers and a gradual reduction in the
price of public land in proportion to the time it had been in market,
besides a donation of homesteads to certain persons. His speeches in this
behalf attracted the attention of the whole country, but nevertheless
failed in their effect on Congress. His steadfast support of the
administration gave him great influence with the Democracy, and he
succeeded in inducing the President to embody the substance of a bill in
one of his messages, which secured its final adoption. To him is also due
the credit of the opening of the saline and mineral lands of Missouri, and
be was instrumental in securing the repeal of the salt tax in 1829-30. He
favored a railroad to the Pacific, the opening. of trade with New Mexico,
the establishment of military stations throughout the interior, the policy
of cultivating friendly relations with the Indians, and secured an
appropriation for marking out and maintaining post-roads, the value of
which is acknowledged everywhere. At the expiration of the charter of the
United States Bank he advocated a gold and silver currency as the only
remedy for the financial difficulties, and made many speeches on the
subject and won himself a reputation throughout the Old World as well as
his own country. His attitude on this question won him the sobriquet of
"Old Bullion." He supported President Van Buren's financial policy and was
also deeply interested in the annexation of Texas, the boundary of Oregon
and various other important matters. He urged a vigorous prosecution of
the Mexican War, and so great was the confidence reposed in Mr. Benton by
President Polk that he proposed to confer upon him the rank of
Lieutenant-General with full power to carry out his conceptions, but the
bill was never passed. He opposed the compromise measures offered by Henry
Clay in 1850 in regard to the slavery question after the acquisition of
Mexican territory, and he warmly espoused the cause of President Jackson
in his opposition to Calhoun in regard to nullification, the result of
which was a bitter personal enmity which lasted throughout their lives. He
denounced Mr. Calhoun's resolutions in regard to the admission of states,
the territorial powers of Congress and the use of common property, all
bearing upon the slavery question, as "firebrand resolutions." Although
they never came before the Senate they were adopted by some of the slave
holding states and were passed by both branches of the Missouri
Legislature. These measures he denounced as not expressing the views of
the people, as countenancing the doctrines of secession and nullification,
and refused to obey them. He made a direct appeal to the people by a
thorough canvass of the State, and his speeches added new lustre to his
already brilliant fame as an orator. However, be here met his first defeat
at the hands of the pro-slavery Democracy. The close of his term ended
thirty years of service in the national councils, and he withdrew from the
Senate, of which he had so long been an active and prominent member. In
1852 he was elected to Congress over all opposition and exerted himself to
destroy the influence acquired by the nullification party and supported
the administration of President Pierce, but thinking it had fallen under
the influence of Calhoun's followers, he withdrew it; in return for which
the administration displaced all his appointments in Missouri. He opposed
the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, and denounced the Kansas-Nebraska
bill in a remarkable speech in the House, which aroused the country
against the measure but failed to defeat its passage. At the election in
1854 he was defeated and retired to devote himself to literature, but his
friends prevailed upon him to accept the nomination for Governor in 1856,
but Trusten Polk was elected. During the Presidential contest of the same
year Col. Benton supported Mr. Buchanan in preference to his own
son-in-law, Colonel Fremont, having confidence in Mr. Buchanan's ability
to restore the Jacksonian Democracy while he feared Col. Fremont's
election would endanger the Union, but this opinion he subsequently
changed from. He resumed his literary labors after his defeat for
Governor, and completed his "Thirty Years' View," a comprehensive
narrative of his own official experience. At the age of sixty-seven be
began the laborious task of condensing the debates of Congress from their
commencement until 1850, and concluded the work upon his deathbed,
dictating in whispers when unable to speak aloud. He was a man of strong
intellect, great will power, ambition, and exerted all his energies to
accomplish the success which lie eventually achieved. He had a faculty of
judging men and their motives and he was thus enabled to exercise a
controlling influence in the councils of both nation and state, and for
years his power in Missouri was almost unlimited. During the latter years
of his life he was actuated by a sincere desire for the welfare of his
country without regard to partisanship, and his unfaltering devotion to
the Union will ever be remembered gratefully by all who love progress and
liberty. In the home circle he was pleasant, companionable and genial, but
in official intercourse was reserved and austere. It was said of him in
1846 that "his action and gestures are expressive and he has that gentle
self-possession of manner which is so usual in those who are conscious of
superior strength." After becoming Senator be was married to Elizabeth
McDowell, a daughter of Col. James McDowell, of Rockbridge County, Va., by
whom be had four children: Mrs. William Carey Jones, Mrs. Jessie Ann
Fremont, Mrs. Sarah Jacob, and Madam Susan Boileau. His wife died in 1854
from a stroke of paralysis received in 1844, and from the time of that
calamity her husband was never known to go to any place of festivity or
amusement. He died in Washington, April 10, 1858, and the entire nation
mourned him. His remains were taken to St. Louis, and buried by the side
of his wife in Bellefontaine cemetery, and in that city a colossal statue,
by Harriet Hosmer, has been erected to his memory in Lafayette Park.




GEORGE J. BIGGS. In giving a history of the prominent citizens of Greene
County, Mo., the biographical department of this work would be incomplete
without mentioning the gentleman whose name heads this sketch, for he is
deservedly ranked among its prosperous agriculturists. He was born in
Montgomery County, Va., in 1827, a son of Moses and Elizabeth (Surface)
Biggs, also of that county and State, the birth of the former occurring in
1792 and that of the latter in 1800. They were reared in the Old Dominion,
obtained fair educations for that day, were married there and there
several of their children were born prior to their removal to Johnson
County, Ind., in 1830. After remaining there two or three years they
removed still further westward to Jackson County, Mo., in which section
Mr. Biggs paid the last debt of nature in 1848, having been an industrious
farmer and blacksmith. He was a Jacksonian Democrat, a Presbyterian in his
religious views, and was one of those rare men whose word was as good as
his bond. He was one of seven children born to John Biggs, who was a
Virginian by birth, in which State he spent his entire life, his death
occurring at the patriarchial age of ninety-two years and was his first
and last sickness, which then lasted only three or four days. He was a
worthy tiller of the soil, was a soldier in the Revolution and was under
Gen. Washington. His father was also a Virginian, but of Scotch blood.
After the death of her husband Mrs. Biggs married a Mr. Bowlin and removed
to Kansas, where she died in 1857 in full communion with the Methodist
Episcopal Church. She was a daughter of George and Sallie Surface, natives
of Virginia, where the mother died. Mr. Surface removed with his
motherless children to Indiana, where be became wealthy and gave each of
them a start in life. He was of German descent and, being a far-seeing
man, gave all of his children good educational advantages, some of whom
became lawyers, preachers and teachers. One of them, Prof. William E.
Surface, was for some years principal of the high school at Independence,
Mo. George J. Biggs was one of twelve children; Polly, widow of Chelsey
Brassfield, who died while a tiller of the soil in Kansas; Susan, the
deceased wife of a Mr. Owen of Texas; Oney, the deceased wife of Jonathan
Peart, her death occurring in Kansas City soon after her marriage; Jane,
who died in Kansas in 1866, the wife of John Brown; Amanda, who died at
the age of nineteen years; George J.; Elizabeth, wife of John A. Spratt of
Platte County, Mo., Mahala, who died in Kansas some years ago, the wife of
F. S. Attaberry; James H., a carriage maker in the State of California;
Lydia, wife of Michael Shannon, a miller of St. Joseph, Mo.; Allen, a
carpenter of Independence, Mo., was a soldier in the Fourth Iowa Cavalry,
was injured in battle at Pea Ridge and was discharged, and Thomas, who was
also in the Fourth Iowa and was killed at the Siege of Vicksburg. He was
commanding his company at the time of his death, having served from the
beginning of the war. He had been a resident of Iowa. The early days of
George J. Biggs were spent on his father's farm, and although he
unfortunately received a limited education he has always been a great
lover of books and has read extensively, thus becoming a well-informed
man. At the age of sixteen he learned the wagon and carriage maker trade
at Independence, Mo., and in 1848 be went to Kansas City, Mo., where he
built the first wagon factory that was ever erected there. He followed
this business exclusively until 1853, when he removed to Fremont County,
Iowa, for the benefit of his wife's health which was at that time very
poor. He continued his trade until 1856, when he was elected treasurer,
collector and recorder of Fremont County, and was twice re-elected,
holding the office for six years. In 1866 he came to Greene County, Mo.,
and located on his present farm near Willard, where he is the owner of a
splendid estate amounting to 280 acres, all of which are well improved. He
suffered the loss of a fine residence a few years ago but immediately
replaced it by a new one. He was first married in 1849 to Miss Lovica Jane
Barnett, a native of Giles County, Ky., where her father died of cholera
in 1832, and her mother at her birth. She was reared by her grandmother,
Mrs. Lovica Singleton, in Buchanan County, Mo. She died in 1872, after
having become the mother of nine children: Mariah and Lovica, who died in
infancy; James, who resides in this county; Charles H., of Iowa; Cora,
wife of S. E. Lee, of Greene County; Ida and Alice, who died in infancy;
William W. is living at home; Etta, who died in infancy. In 1876 Mr. Biggs
married Elizabeth Ernest, who was born in Tennessee but came with her
parents to Greene County, Mo., when small. She was a daughter of Wesley
slid Nancy Ernest, natives of Tennessee, but in a very early day came to
Greene County, where Mr. Ernest died, during the war and his widow a few
years ago. They were Presbyterians and reared a large family of children,
nearly all of whom are now deceased. One of the sons, James C., now of
Dallas County, was in the Confederate Army and was on several occasions
captured. Charles was in the Missouri Militia during the war and now
resides at Cave Springs. By his second wife Mr. Biggs became the father of
four children; Eva, George (deceased), Edith and May. Since his residence
in this county he has devoted his attention to farming and stock raising
and has always taken a deep interest in movements; tending toward the
development of agriculture. He was a Democrat until 1876, when he left
that party on account of its financial views and went with the Greenback
party, and in the last campaign was an active Populist. He was made a
Mason in 1848, in the Heroine Lodge, No. 103, at Kansas City, but now
holds membership in the St. Nicholas Lodge, No. 435 at Willard, of which
he is now secretary, having been Worthy Master for some years. He was a
Union sympathizer during the war, and has ever been loyalty itself to his
country, and one of its law-abiding and worthy citizens.




L. A. BIGGS. It is generally considered by those in the habit of
superficial thinking that the history of so-called great men only is
worthy of preservation and that little merit exists among the masses to
call forth the praise of the historian or the cheers and appreciation of
mankind. A greater mistake was never made. No man is great in all things
and very few are great in many things. Many by a lucky stroke achieve
lasting fame who before that had no reputation beyond the limits of their
neighborhood. It is not a history of the lucky stroke which benefits
humanity most, but the long study and effort which made the lucky stroke
possible. It is the preliminary work, the method, that serves as a guide
for the success of others. Such a history is found in the life of L. A.
Biggs, who is one of the leading farmers of Campbell Township. No worthier
man has found his home in Greene County than he, and no man is more highly
esteemed. His grandfather, David Biggs, was of Scotch-Irish descent and
the son of an Irishman who left his native country for this at a period
long antedating the Revolution. The latter settled in the Old Dominion,
but subsequently removed to Tennessee, where he was one of the pioneers.
David Biggs was a carriage maker of Robertson County, Tenn., and a
well-to-do man. For many years he was a member of the Baptist Church and
was highly respected by all who knew him. His son, Allen G. Biggs, father
of our subject, was a native of Robertson County, Tenn., and there
received his education. After growing up he embarked in farming and
stock-raising and continued this in his native county until 1836, when he
sold out and moved to Greene County, Mo., settling three miles west of
Springfield. He married, October 3,1843, Miss Nancy Robertson, daughter of
John and Keziah (Briggs) Robertson, and five children were born to them:
Napolia A., Leonidas A., John R., W. W. and Mary K. By industry Mr. Biggs
became quite prosperous and owned 500 acres of land west of Springfield,
near Nichols Junction. He has now divided most of his property among his
children, giving them all a good home, and although seventy-two years of
age is enjoying comparatively good health. He and wife are members of the
Christian Church and he has always contributed liberally of his means to
build churches and support the Gospel. Honorable and upright in every walk
of life, he is one of the county's best citizens, and has assisted so far
as able all meritorious causes. Kind and benevolent, he allows no worthy
movement to fail for want of support on his part and always extends a
helping hand to the poor and needy. In politics he is an ardent supporter
of Democratic principles and was a strong Union man during the war. He
served as a soldier in the Home Guards, Missouri State Militia. Mr. and
Mrs. Allen G. Biggs, on October 3, 1893, celebrated their golden wedding,
having spent their entire wedded life thus far in Greene County. On this
occasion, besides their own family, about eighty descendants and relatives
were present, and a very enjoyable time was experienced. All the children
of Mr. and Mrs. Biggs are settled in their immediate vicinity, and are
prosperous and respected people. Leonidas A. Biggs, son of the above, and
the subject of this sketch, was born on his father's farm, in Greene
County, one mile from his present home, February 18, 1848, and the
district schools of his township afforded him a fair primary education.
Later he attended the high school of Springfield and then became a clerk
in the dry-goods store of Robertson & Mason, with whom he remained three
years. On February 8, 1871, he married Miss Nannie R. Fulbright, who was
born May 5, 1852, and who was the daughter of David L. and Caroline
(Hooker) Fulbright. After marriage Mr. Biggs settled on his present farm,
of which he received seventy acres from his father, and to this he has
added from time to time until he now owns 200 acres of fine farming land,
on which he has, erected a substantial, tasteful residence and commodious
barns and outbuildings. In the year 1875 Mr. Biggs was appointed a member
of the school board and filled that office in a capable and satisfactory
manner for eighteen years, during that time being clerk of the board. He
has ever been interested in having good schools in his community and has
assisted with his time and means to their advancement. Five children were
born to his marriage and are named in the order of their birth, as
follows: Mabel, who died infancy, Lon A., Roy, Mary and Dorsey. Like his
father, Mr. Biggs espouses the cause of the Democratic party and is
committeeman of his precinct for the second time. Both he and wife are
members of the Christian Church and he has been an elder in the same for
eighteen years. He assisted liberally with his means to build the
Christian church at Nichols Junction and was a member of the building
committee. His son Lon A. is a member of the same church. Mr. Biggs is a
practical farmer and stock-raiser and has for many years been a breeder of
fine stock. By perseverance and good management he has succeeded in life
and stands deservedly high in his native county, Not only as an honorable
citizen but as a man of high moral character. Lon A. graduated at the high
school in Springfield in 1892 and is now attending the Western Dental
College at Kansas City. He received his education in the preparatory
department of Drury College, which he attended for two years, after which
he was appointed by the representative of his district to the State
University at Columbia, Mo., which he attended one year. He is a young man
of ability and has inherited much of the push and energy of his father and
grandfather. The Fulbright family, from which Mrs. Biggs descends, is one
of the original pioneer families of Greene County. William Fulbrigbt, the
original pioneer, was born in North Carolina, was of German descent and
could speak the German language fluently. He married Miss Ruth
Hollingsworth and soon after settled in Tennessee, where Mr. Fulbright
became the owner of a large farm, owning many negroes. He became a very
wealthy man. In the spring of 1830 he came to Missouri and settled with
his family at Springfield, Greene Countv, near where the Gulf Railroad
shops now stand. The spring at this place has ever since been called the
Fulbright Spring, as has also the spring four miles north of the public
square, where the city gets its water, on account of William Fulbright
having built a grist-mill on the spot. This mill was the first in Greene
County. William Fulbright and wife were the parents of eleven children, as
follows: Ephraim R., Levi C., Rhoda, Henry, John L., David L., Wilson,
Samuel, W. D., Daniel N. and Elkana. Mr. Fulbright brought his family and
household goods from Tennessee in wagons drawn by oxen and horses, and
also brought with him several slaves, to whom he was always kind and
considerate. He had four brothers, who also came to Missouri : David,
John, (who settled where Col. Fellows' wagon factory now stands), Martin
and Daniel. From these brothers sprang the Fulbrights, who are now settled
throughout the Southwest. Several of them afterward settled in Laclede
County, Mo., William being the only one who remained in Greene County. He
entered a large tract of land, most of the south part of Springfield, and
built on this land. When the Fulbrights settled at Springfield the country
presented a beautiful appearance. It was not covered with heavy timber,
but was open, with large trees scattered about and the grass growing with
great luxuriance. The country was full of game, deer and wild turkeys
being plentiful. The Fulbrigbts, however, were farmers and business men
and attended strictly to business, leaving the hunting to others. Henry
Fulbright, one of the sons of William, was one of the first merchants of
Springfield. William Fulbright himself was a large farmer, and as the
emigration rapidly increased to southwest Missouri, he conducted a large
business. He had many peculiarities that have been remembered by the older
settlers. One was his unvarying price for his farm produce, without regard
to market price. His price for corn was 50 cents per bushel, and it being
a new country and corn high, it frequently sold for $1 per bushel, but 50
cents was Mr. Fulbright's unvarying price. Both he and wife were members
of the Christian Church and he lived to be about sixty years of age. He
was a man of rugged constitution, weighed about 300 pounds and was known
far and wide among the pioneers. Hospitable in his nature, his house was
always open to the early settlers, and many of them made their home with
him while prospecting for their farms. The town of Springfield received
its name not as popularly supposed from the springs in its vicinity, but
in the following manner: The old settlers, meeting together to name the
young town, a number of them were from Springfield, Tenn., and the town
was accordingly named Springfield. David L. Fulbright, son of William, and
the father of Mrs. Biggs, was a product of Tennessee. born in 1820, and
was a farmer and stock- raiser by occupation. He was married in Laclede
County, Mo., to Miss Caroline Hooker, daughter of Matt. H. Hooker, who was
a farmer of that county. After marriage Mr. Fulbright settled on what is
now College W. Springfield, and owned a large farm to the southwest of it,
now covered by the corporation of Springfield. Like many of the
Tennesseans, he owned slaves, having about fifteen when the war broke out.
During that stirring period he settled in Laclede County, Mo., but after
peace was declared he returned to Springfield, and there passed the
remainder of his days, his death occurring June 25, 1876. He was an active
member of the Christian Church and held the position of elder in the same.
He was a kind-hearted man and ever liberal to the poor, giving freely of
his means to sick or suffering humanity. Some of his old slaves remained
with him after obtaining their freedom until their deaths. Five children
were born to Mr. and Mrs. Fulbright: William N., Nancy R., Mary V., Samuel
R. and Wilson D. Mr. Fulbright was a devoutly religious man, and in early
days assisted in establishing the churches in this county. On the maternal
side Mr. Biggs is a grandson of John Robertson, one of the well-known
pioneers of this county. The latter's father, William Robertson, was a
native of that grand old State, Virginia, and a soldier in the
Revolutionary War. John Robertson was born on the Potomac River, Va., not
far from Washington, in the year 1803, and when but a few years of age was
taken by his parents to Kentucky, where they settled on a farm near
Lexington. Other branches of the Robertson family remained in Virginia and
on the rise of property there he became a wealthy and influential citizen.
John Robertson was reared principally in Kentucky, and in about 1820 he
removed from that State to Tennessee. He had brothers who remained in
Kentucky, and from them have sprung rural Kentuckians of prominence. When
John was nineteen years of age he was married in Tennessee to Miss Keziah
Briggis, of Robertson County, and to them were born six children, who grew
to mature years. This marriage occurred in 1822, and in 1835 the family
moved from Tennessee to Missouri, settling a mile and a quarter from
Springfield, on the farm afterward occupied by William B. Farmer. The
second child and oldest son, William Rufus Robertson, was born in Lincoln
County, middle Tennessee, on August 4, 1826, and he became a prominent
citizen and extensive farmer and stock-raiser of Greene County.




HON. FRANCIS PRESTON BLAIR. The gentleman whose name heads this sketch was
born at Lexington, Ky., February 19, 1821, a son of Francis P. Blair, by
whom he was taken in 1830 to Washington, D. C., in which city young
Francis attended the primary and preparatory schools and later entered
college at Chapel Hill, N. C., and still later Princeton College, N. J.,
from which he graduated with high honors at the age of twenty. He then
began reading law with Lewis Marshall, of Kentucky, and with his brother,
Montgomery Blair, at St. Louis, and completed his legal studies in
Transylvania University. After being admitted to the bar he began
practicing in St. Louis in 1843, but his health becoming impaired soon
after he made a trip across the plains with some traders and trappers, and
remained in Colorado (then New Mexico) until the arrival of the force
under Gen. Kearney, when he joined the enterprise and served with it in a
military capacity. In 1847 he returned with restored health to St. Louis
and again opened a law office, and in the same year he was united in
marriage to Miss Appoline Alexander, of Woodford County, Ky., and of eight
children born to them seven are living. In 1848 his father kindly provided
him with a considerable amount of money, but unlike the majority, who
obtain money in this manner, he invested it judiciously, and from it and
his law practice derived a comfortable competency. He was deeply
interested in political matters and soon became a prominent leader of the
Free Soil party. At that time it required a good deal of courage to make
speeches against slavery on slave soil, but Mr. Blair understood his
opponents well and his political adversaries soon found that he could not
be put down by threats He became a stanch supporter of Col. Benton in
1849, and in 1852 was elected to the Lower House, from St. Louis on the
Benton ticket, and re-elected two years later. In 1856 be was elected to
Congress, but in 1858, when running for re-election, he was opposed by J.
R. Barrett, who was declared elected. Mr. Blair contested the seat and was
decided to be entitled to it, but declined it, and left the question to be
decided by the people. In the summer of 1860 the election for the
unexpired and full term took place, and Mr. Barrett was elected for the
former and Mr. Blair for the latter. In 1860 he was a leading delegate to
the Republican National. Convention, at Chicago, and originated the idea
of the "Wide Awake" organization, a peculiar feature of the campaign of
that year. At the opening of the Civil War, Mr. Blair became captain of
the first Federal company enlisted in Missouri, and was unanimously
elected colonel of first regiment organized. He first discovered the plan
to seize the arsenal at St. Louis, and on his advice Gen. Lyon captured
Camp Jackson May 10, 1861, Col. Blair commanding the First Regiment of
Volunteers on that occasion. He was the acknowledged leader of the Union
party in 1861, and the following year was a candidate for Congress and was
awarded the certificate of election, but his seat was successfully
contested by his opponents Mr. Knox. He was active in his devotion to the
Union cause, and after being appointed brigadier-general he raised a
brigade in Missouri and joined Gen. Grant in his operations on the
Mississippi and against Vicksburg. He commanded the First Brigade of the
Fourth Division, which behaved so gallantly in the unsuccessful attack on
Vicksburg in December, 1862, and was conspicuous for the good judgment he
displayed until the fall of Vicksburg July 4, 1863. He was soon after
promoted to major-general, and from that time on shared in the toils and
honors of the grand old Army of the Tennessee until the war closed. Upon
the organization of Gen. Sherman's army for the Atlanta campaign in the
spring of 1864, Gen. Blair was placed in command of the Seventeenth Army
Corps, succeeding Gen. McPherson, who was one of America's finest
soldiers, and distinguished himself on the March to the Sea, for in him
were imbued all the qualities of a great and chivalrous soldier. Praise of
the courage, discipline and enterprise of his corps was the theme, of
every tongue, and this was without doubt owing to having been commanded by
McPherson and Blair. He was present at the surrender of Gen. Johnston's
army, and the practical finish of the war, at Chapel Hill, the place
where, as a boy, he first entered college, and was then present as a great
military commander. He at once returned to his old home and entered the
political arena, and with great spirit and characteristic generosity
opposed the disfranchisement of the citizens of Missouri who had taken
part in the rebellion against the Union. In 1867 be became one of the
commissioners to inspect the work done on the Union Pacific Railroad,
which business occupied his time until March, 1869. In 1868 he was the
Democratic candidate for Vice-President, with Horatio Seymour, of New
York, as candidate for President. In 1870 he was elected to the Lower
House of the General Assembly, from St. Louis, and in January, 1871, was
elected to the United States Senate to fill the unexpired term of Mr.
Drake, who had resigned. In 1872 he supported the Nomination of Mr.
Greeley for President, and was very active in the campaign of that year,
particularly in Missouri. November 16, 1872, he was stricken with
paralysis, and although he rallied somewhat be never entirely recovered
from the shock. He was able to take his seat in the Senate in January,
1873, and took part, perhaps injuriously to himself, in its deliberations
until the expiration of his term, March 4, 1973. Then began a slow
decline, until finally, on the 8th of July, 1875, his brilliant career was
closed forever. In his death Missouri lost one of her greatest, wisest and
best men. He was a man of great and varied -powers of mind, an expressive
and forcible writer, an eloquent, logical and ornate speaker, and was
brilliant as a conversationalist. He was of fine and commanding presence
and genial in disposition and manner. His honor was above suspicion, and
while he entered public life with abundant means, he died comparatively
poor. He was the soul of generosity and magnanimity, and yet in political
or military strife, he was persistent, courageous and formidable. He had
the utmost contempt for danger and morally and -physically was the bravest
of men. His knowledge of men, his judgment of affairs, his insight into
future events, was the most exceptional and remarkable. He was firm and
true to his convictions, and bold, able and judicious -in his advocacy of
them. He was not an Abolitionist, but early saw the necessity of Missouri
becoming a free State. He was not a fanatic, and supported or opposed
public measures at all times from a wide and comprehensive grasp of the
situation, and was firm, energetic and immovable, but charitable and just
toward his adversaries. He espoused the cause of the Union at the opening
of the Rebellion with patriotic fervor, and taken all in all, he was truly
great, and his history is an honorable and enduring part of his State and
country. He was a professed member of the Presbyterian Church.




HON. RICHARD P. BLAND. From poverty and obscurity all the eminent men of
the West have fought their way in the battle of life and by their own
persistence and perseverance have attained to prominence and honor. They
have given permanency to every enterprise that they have honored with
their patronage and have stamped upon them their own individuality. The
subject of this sketch is a man well known to the people of Missouri, and
needs no eulogy from the pen of the biographer, for his deeds are his
monuments and will endure long after he has mouldered into dust. He was
born near Hartford, Ohio County, Ky., August 19, 1835, his parents being
Stouton E. and Margaret (Nall) Bland, both of whom were born on Blue Grass
soil. The family originally came from Virginia, but emigrated to Kentucky
in the time of Daniel Boone, and were among the early settlers of that
country. The father devoted his life to the occupation of farming, and at
the age of thirty-five, when just in the prime of life, was called upon to
pay the last debt of nature, his widow surviving him several years. Of the
four children born to them three are now living: Richard P., Charles C.,
who is judge of the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit of Missouri, and
Elizabeth, wife of Frederick Tutley, of St. Francois County, Mo. Young
Richard P. received his initiatory training in the public schools in the
vicinity of his rural home, and afterward finished his education in
Griffin's Academy. In 1855 he left the home of his childhood and took up
his residence in Wayne County, Mo. after which he taught school at
Patterson for one term, and in the fall of the same year went to
California, where be studied law. In 1859 he located in Virginia City,
Nev., and was admitted to the bar by the United States Court at Carson
City. He at once opened an office in Virginia City, where he remained
until November, 1865, when he returned to Missouri and located at Rolla,
at which place he and his brother, C. O. Bland, practiced law in
partnership until 1869. He then came to Lebanon, Laclede County, where be
practiced his profession until 1872, at which time he was elected to
Congress, and has been re-elected ever since, thus holding his membership
for twenty years. The fact of his knowing but little of a father's
guidance and support, probably more than any-thing else formed within him
the spirit of self-reliance that has characterized him through life.
During his long years of public life be has placed himself securely on the
list of Missouri's statesmen, and his brilliant record is but the natural
sequence of his brilliant mind applied in the right direction. Few men
have seen more of public life, and very few have been more useful. He has
many friends and few enemies, fewer enemies than any man of his decided
mental nature, strong will and public worth, but even these can say naught
against his honor. In 1877 he purchased the fine farm where he now lives,
consisting of 160 acres, and built thereon a commodious and handsome brick
residence. While in Utah he was elected treasurer of Carson County, which
position he held until 1863, and at various times he was also engaged in
warfare against the Indians. Since his election to Congress he has given
up his profession, although as a lawyer he was preeminently a success;
well and deeply read, with a clear and logical mind, which had been
disciplined and strengthened by laborious study. The many eulogies
pronounced upon him by the bar of the State evince the high estimation in
which he was held by. his legal brethren. On the l9th of December, 1873,
he was married to Miss Virginia E. Mitchell, of Rolla, Mo., by whom he has
five children: Fannie, Theodric R., Ewing C., George V. and Margaret. Mr.
Bland is a Knight Templar in the A. F. & A. M. He is a man of noble and
generous impulses and throughout the temptations of a long public career
he has been strictly just in all his actions, never stooping to intrigue
himself nor permitting it in others if he could prevent it, and has always
shown supreme indifference to the opinions of enemies, his sole ambition
being to serve his country faithfully in his line of duty, in which desire
he has been preeminently successful.




CHARLES D. BOEHMER has been a resident of the city of Springfield for the
past three years. He was born in Warren County, Mo., August 12, 185-, a
son of Eberhard and Eliza (Schnoor) Boehmer, the former of whom was born
in Hanover, Germany, coming to this country with his parents when about
fourteen years of age, and settling in St. Charles County, Mo. Here his
parents died, and here he was principally reared. He died while the Civil
War was in progress, but his widow survives him, and resides in St. Louis
with some of her children. Their family consisted of seven children, four
of whom are living: Otto J., an architect of St. Louis and unmarried;
Emma, wife of L. G. Landberger, of Joliet, Ill. a minister of the
Sweden-borgian Church; Louisa M., who is a teacher in the public schools
of St. Louis, and Charles D., who is the oldest of the family. The latter
spent his early life on a farm, and received a good high school education.
At the age of twenty he began teaching school, and for three winters he
followed that occupation, his summers being devoted to farming. At the end
of that time he began traveling for Aultman, Miller & Co., of. Akron,
Ohio, in Missouri and Illinois, continuing from 1891 to 1889, his home
during this time being in St. Louis. In December, 1889, he came to
Springfield, and in the spring of 1890 became a member of the firm of
Koenigsbruck & Boehmer. He earned the money with which he started in
business by his own exertions, and he has shown himself to be a man of
exceptionally fine business qualifications. He has always been interested
in religious matters, and for some time has been a member of the Y. M. C.
A. He has been married since 1886 to Miss Katie Wolf, of St. Louis,
daughter of August G. Wolf. She was born in Chester, Ill., and has borne
her husband three children Florence E. and Elnora S. Edwin died at the age
of two years. Their residence is at 969 South Jefferson Street, where they
own fine residence property. During the four years that Mr. Boehmer has
resided in Springfield he has been one of its public spirited, law abiding
and progressive citizens, and has at all times shown much interest in its
progress and welfare. He and Mr. Koenigsbruck have been phenomenally
successful, and are recognized as among the solid, substantial and
representative business men of the place. Politically Mr. Boehmer has
always been a Republican.




THOMAS Y. BOSTON. In tracing back the ancestors of the Boston family, the
great grandfather of Thomas Y. Boston is supposed to have been born in
Germany and upon his arrival on American Shores settled in Virginia where
his son, James Ewell Boston, the grandfather of Thomas Y., was born,
reared and married. He became one of the pioneers of Greene County, Ky.,
and there spent the remainder of his days in tilling the soil and fighting
the Indiana and the British in the War of 1812, in which he took a
prominent part. His son, James Boston, was born in Virginia, prior to
their removal westward, and on Blue Grass soil he received his rearing and
such education as could be had at that day, which was by no means of the
best. He was married there to Miss Biddy Slinker, who was also born in the
Old Dominion and was taken by her parents to Kentucky when she was a
child. After their marriage they resided for some time in Greene County,
after which they moved to Hart County and from there came by wagon to
Greene County, Mo., in 1856, locating on a small partially-improved farm
one and one-half miles west of Cave Springs, where they spent the rest of
their lives. Mr. Boston died in 1887 and Mrs. Boston in 1871, both having
for some time been members in good standing of the Christian Church. Mr.
Boston was a life-long farmer and being industrious and intelligent, he
accumulated a comfortable competency, amply sufficient to meet all the
requirements of himself and family. He was a Republican in politics, but
was quite conservative in his views. The maternal grandfather of the
subject of this sketch, Christopher Slinker, died in Metcalf County, Ky.,
in 1876, having been a farmer and mechanic by occupation. He was of
English descent and be and his wife, who also died in Kentucky, became the
parents of five children: Murphy, who died in Hart County, Ky.; Lemuel,
who also died there; Biddy (Mrs. Boston); Amaryllis, wife of Edmund
Galloway; Fannie, who died in Kentucky. Mr. Thomas Y. Boston received such
education and rearing as usually falls to the lot of the youth reared on a
pioneer farm. During the warm months his days were spent in falling timber
and in general farm work, but at the age of seventeen years, in 1853, his
birth having occurred in Hart County, Ky., June 24, 1836, he left home to
make his own way in the world and went to Clinton County, Mo., where he
spent three years working on a farm. In 1857 he returned to Greene County
and began farming in Cass Township, and here, in 1861, he married Nancy,
daughter of William and Matilda Killingsworth, who were natives of North
Carolina and Tennessee, respectively. The father was taken by his parents
to Tennessee in his youth, where he lived until 1839, when be came by ox
team with his family to Greene County, Mo., being nearly two months on the
road. He located on what is now Section 1, Boone Township, the country at
that time being rough prairie land, and here he made a fine farm on which
he contentedly spent the rest of his days, dying in 1866, and his widow in
1886, both having been members of the Baptist Church of many years
standing. Mr. Killingsworth was at one time sheriff of Monroe County,
Tenn. James McClure, the father of Mrs. Killingsworth, came to Polk
County, Mo., from Tennessee in 1839, and here died prior to the Civil War.
To Mr. and Mrs. Killingsworth a family of twelve children were given:
James, a farmer of the county; Margaret Ann, the deceased wife of William
Hamilton; William A. John (deceased); Mary, widow of Hughey Gilmore, of
Dade County; Alfred, of Texas; Bennett, of this county; Nancy (Mrs.
Boston); Robert, of this county; Oliver, also a farmer of Greene County,
and two children that died in infancy. Mr. Thomas Y. Boston lived on the
old home farm until 1864 when he removed to his present farm, purchasing
240 acres, which he has succeeded in increasing to 1,247 acres, but has
given considerable to his children, and now has 821 acres in different
farms, all in Cass Township. He received a small inheritance from his
father's estate, but the bulk of his property has been acquired through
his own efforts. His land is some of the finest and most productive in the
county, and it is handsomely and substantially improved with excellent
buildings. He is a prominent member of Nicholas Lodge, No. 435 of the A.
F. & A. M. at Willard, and he and his wife have been members of the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church for thirty years. Mr. Boston, is one of the
following children: Abner, who died young in Kentucky; Mary, wife of
Hayden Taylor, of Lebanon, Mo.; Reuben, of Oklahoma; William, of Oregon;
Thomas Y.; Elizabeth, wife of S. P. Collins, of Cedar County; James, of
Cedar County; Martha, who is the deceased wife of John Kime; Emily, wife
of David Elam: George, of Oklahoma, and Sarah Ann, who died in 1862.




WILLIAM E. BOWDEN (deceased). All people of true sensibility and a just
regard for the memory of those who have departed this life cherish the
details of the history of those whose careers have been marked by
uprightness and truth and whose lives have been filled up with acts of
usefulness. Such a man was William E. Bowden, a rising and promising young
attorney of Springfield. He was born in Henry County, Tenn., September 22,
1857, and when a mere lad was taken by his parents to Weakley County, of
the same State, where he was reared to a knowledge of farming. At the age
of twenty-one years he entered McKenzie College, Tenn., and after
graduating from that institution he became a teacher in the same, a
position be held two years. At the end of this time he began the study of
law and was very shortly afterward admitted to the bar and at once opened
an office, and his own ability and knowledge of his profession soon placed
him among the leading attorneys of the State. He was an active Democrat
and by that party was nominated to represent his county in the House of
Representatives in 1882, but the following year came to Springfield and at
once started on a successful legal career which he continued alone until
1884, at which time be formed a partnership with Mr. Wolf, with whom he
remained associated until his health began to fail him, and he died
December 7, 1889, at Thomasville, Ga., whither be had gone to recuperate,
at the untimely age of thirty-two years. Although young he had already
risen to eminence in his profession, and his death was doubly sad from the
fact that his future was so bright with promise and gave every evidence of
being one of distinguished honor. He was highly respected throughout
Greene County, not only for his ability as an attorney, but also for his
qualities of useful citizenship, which he manifested at all times. He at
one time made the race for Prosecuting Attorney of the county against John
A. Patterson, but with his entire ticket was defeated. He was of a very
social and genial disposition, kind of heart, noble in sentiment, and a
true and faithful friend. He was a member in good standing of the
Presbyterian Church. He was first married in Tennessee in 1879 to Miss
Mollie McCain, who died November 18, 1885, in Springfield, after having
become the mother of one daughter--Georgia. His second marriage took place
October 11, 1887, Miss Susie Cravens, a daughter of Col. J. C. Cravens, of
Springfield, becoming his wife. To this union a son, Jeremiah C., was
born, who, with his widow, survives him. Mrs. Bowden makes her home in
Springfield where she has a wide circle of friends and acquaintances.




COL. S. H. BOYD was born May 28, 1828, in Williamson County, Tenn., and
grew up to sturdy manhood, ambitious to excel and possessing much energy
and determination, attributes which are essential to success in any
calling and which have been his stepping stones to success, his parents
being Marcus and Eliza (Hamilton) Boyd, the birth of the former also
occurring in Tennessee. The paternal grandfather was William G. Boyd, a
native of Mecklenberg County, Va., and a son of a Scotchman, John Boyd,
who was the founder of the family in America. The Boyds; were residents of
the Old Dominion for a number of years but gradually branched out into
different States and those of that name in Kentucky and Tennessee are
members of The same family. Marcus Boyd removed with his family to Greene
County, Mo., in 1840 and settled on a farm two miles east of Springfield,
where they made their home for a number of years, but the mother did not
long survive the removal, for her death occurred six years after their
arrival in Missouri. She bore her husband eight sons and one daughter and
some time after her death the father formed a second marriage and became
the father of six more children. A number of his sons served in the Civil
War, but their sympathies were with the Southern cause and they served in
the Confederate Army, Dr. E. H. Boyd being a surgeon in a Texas regiment,
Audley a sergeant in Campbell's regiment, and Rufus, who was also a
Southern sympathizer, and after the war was Secretary of State in Alabama
for a number of years. Not- withstanding the proclivities of his sons
Marcus Boyd was a stanch Union man and being prominent and well known in
Greene County, he raised a regiment for the Union service and did heroic
duty in various ways in upholding the Union. Prior to this he had been a
slave owner and he lost all of his property during the turbulent times of
war. He followed the occupation of farming the greater portion of his
life, became well known in the political circles of Greene County and
repeatedly represented that county as a Whig in the State Legislature. He
was also prominent in Masonic circles and was at one time master of the
State lodge. The youthful days of Col. S. H., Boyd were spent in Greene
County and like many others who have attained prominence in American
history his lot in youth gave no hint of the honors that a strong
intellect, fairly used, coupled with unwearying industry, were to bring
him. In 1849 he was taken with a severe case of the "gold fever" and did
not rest until he had obtained a glimpse of what was then the Mecca of the
civilized world. He remained in California until 1855. Upon his return
home he began the study of law with William C. Price of this city and in
1857 was admitted to the bar and up to 1861 was actively engaged in the
successful prosecution of his profession. When the War of the Rebellion
came upon the country, he at once cast aside personal considerations and
organized the Twenty-Fourth Missouri Volunteer Regiment of Infantry and
during his term of service was with Generals Sigel, Lyon, Davison, Steele
and Curtis and was finally given an independent position in southeast
Missouri and the State of Arkansas. In 1862 he was elected a member of
Congress but continued to remain with his command until December, 1863,
under the impression that he could render more effective service to his
country by remaining in its active service, then took his seat in
Congress. In this position he showed so much civic ability that he was
appointed by President Lincoln as minister to Venezuela, but the death of
the president interfered with him taking his seat. He then returned to the
seat of war and organized the Forty-Sixth Missouri Regiment of Infantry,
soon after which he resigned from the army and accepted the office of
circuit judge of the twenty-first judicial circuit, but a short time after
resigned this position also. In 1869 he was chosen a member of Congress
for the second time and in the discharge of his duties displayed the same
clear intellect and unsullied integrity with which he ever met every
function allotted to him. In 1867 he operated with Col. John C. Fremont in
purchasing the Southwest Pacific Railroad and after building thirteen
miles of railroad, operations were suspended, only to be resumed after a
company had been formed of some Boston and Springfield men, and Mr. Boyd
assisted in operating it until 1874. He then founded a wagon factory in
Springfield, to which business his attention was devoted for two years,
after which he continued to carry on a successful law practice up to 1890
and then was appointed Minister Resident and Consul General to Siam but
while discharging his duties his health became much impaired and being
afflicted with malaria he returned home on leave of absence July 12, 1892.
He has been two times mayor of Springfield, has been city clerk, city
attorney and prosecuting attorney of Greene County, and being gifted with
intellect of a high order and possessing a varied and extensive
information he has filled these positions to the satisfaction of all
concerned. He is especially gifted as a criminal lawyer and his name is
well known throughout the southwest. His career is of value, for it shows
that honesty, capacity and power "to hustle" receive their reward at last
and in good measure. He has a handsome residence at the corner of
Washington and Chestnut Streets where his home has been since 1866, and
his grounds are beautifully laid out and extensive. He has long been a
Republican in politics and has been a Mason of thirty-six years standing.
He has always deported himself according to the dictates of his own
conscience and that his career has been a model one is attested by the
numerous friends he possesses. He was married to Miss M. McElhaney,
daughter of Robert J. McElhaney, and by her has two children: Mrs. Thomas
Delaney, of Springfield, and Robert M. Boyd, who is now Consul General of
Siam in his father's stead. He was born in Springfield in 1870, and
received his education in Drury College and graduated from the Chicago
Medical College in 1890. The ability and honesty of Mr. Boyd have been
warmly recognized, have met with their reward, and he enjoys the respect
of all, his friendship being considered a personal privilege and much
sought after. He is socially one of the most companionable of men, and is
a beau ideal citizen, for he is enterprising, public spirited and law
abiding.




DR. J. A. BROWN. Springfield, Mo., is one of the oldest and best known
physicians of Greene County, and one of the old-time school teachers,
descending from old Quaker stock. The great grandfather of our subject
came from England before the Revolutionary War and settled at Jamestown,
Va. He was a Quaker preacher. Henry Brown, the grandfather of our subject,
was at the battle of Lexington, and wounded in the head with a saber. He
settled in North Carolina, Randolph County, Deep River. He married Mary
Smith, a Quakeress. He was a prosperous farmer of Randolph County, N. C.,
where he passed all his days, and died an aged man. He was the father of
Henry, William, Joshua, Elisha, Jean and John D. Joseph Brown, brother of
Henry, was also at the battle of Lexington. John D. Brown, father of our
subject, was born in Randolph County, N. C., October 4, 1804, on his
father's farm, and received his education at Greensboro College, N. C.,
and was principal of the Springfield Female Academy, N. C. He married
Joan, daughter of Eli and Mary (Cox) Bray. Eli Bray was the son of Henry,
who was the son of Dempsey Bray, who was from England, and settled in
Camden County, N. C. The Brays were wealthy and influential people. To Dr.
Brown and wife were born eight children; Mary E., Joseph A., Lydia Jane,
John D., Henry, Eli B., William T. and G. P. S. Mr. Brown studied law but
did not practice much. He was judge in a court of chancery until he
removed from North Carolina. He was justice of the peace many years, also
being appointed to both offices by the governor of the State. He owned a
large farm, flouring mill, and was also in the mercantile business, and
owned twenty-three slaves. In 1845 Judge Brown came to Greene County, Mo.,
bringing his family by means of wagons drawn by horses. He settled in
Washington Township, where he prospered and remained until the war broke
out. He served one term as school commissioner. During the war he went
South to Arkansas, with his slaves, and died in November, 1864. He married
out of the Quaker Church and became a Baptist in religion. He was a man of
more than ordinary ability and education, and highly respected by the
people both in North Carolina and in Greene County, Mo. Dr. J. A. Brown,
our subject, was born in North Carolina on his father's farm in Randolph
County, December 8, 1828, and was about seventeen years of age when he
came with his parents to Greene County, and well remembers the early
settlement of the county. His father taught school when he first came to
the county, and our subject learned a good deal from him. He also attended
the pioneer district school and the Methodist College at Ebenezer, and
taught school from the time be was eighteen years of age, teaching at
times for five years. He studied medicine with Drs. S. Shackelford and
Parish, and then read law with his father two years, and then completed
his medical studies at McDowell College, St. Louis. He began practicing
his profession in Greene County in 1859, and is still practicing. He has
ridden over the entire county in his practice, is widely known, and has
been uniformly successful, and still has an extensive practice. He married
July 21, 1857, Martha A., daughter of William and Martha A. (Roberts)
McFarland, and to Dr. and Mrs. Brown have been born seven children, six
living: Alice R., William, Mae F., James H., Joseph E., Martha J. and
Daniel K. After marriage Dr. Brown settled on a farm in Taylor Township,
and in 1863 went to Springfield and practiced medicine until 1867, when he
settled on a farm in Campbell Township, and in 1885 he moved to his
present farm. Dr. Brown was one of the early Masons of Greene County.
Politically he is a stanch Democrat, but has taken no interest in office
holding. He has taken an interest in education and has been school
director. His son, Dr. W. Mac F. Brown, is a physician at Stafford, Mo.
Dr. Brown stands high among his medical col -leagues, in Missouri, and is
a member of the medical society of southwest Missouri. He has had years of
practice in Greene County, and when medical advice was difficult to
obtain. He has ridden horseback to the homes of the pioneers at all times
of day and night and in all kinds of weather. During his long practice in
Greene County, Dr. Brown has made many friends, and it may well be said of
him that his character, as a man, and skill as a physician, have never
been impeached.




DR. WILLIAM McF. BROWN. There is generally a wide diversity of opinion
among the people outside of, the medical profession in their estimate of
the skill and ability of a particular physician. A family is likely to pin
its faith to one practitioner and distrust all the rest. If there is a
member of the profession in Greene County who has successfully fought down
this prejudice, and now stands secure in the confidence and high esteem of
the general public, that man is Dr. William McF. Brown, a man whose
research in the fields of science has. produced such remarkable results as
to leave no question of his knowledge of his profession. He was born in
Springfield, Mo., in 1861, a son of Dr. Joseph Addison and Martha A.
(McFarland) Brown, who were born in North Carolina in 1828, and Greene
County, Mo., in 1836, respectively. The father came with his parents to
Greene County, Mo., and was educated at Ebeneezer and Green Mountain, N.
C. He afterward became a student of medicine and graduated from the
McDonald Medical College of St. Louis, after which be entered upon the
practice of his profession at Springfield, and there made his home for
some years prior to the war. For quite a number of years he has resided
near the National Cemetery, where he still practices among his old patrons
and friends. He is one of the oldest and best known physicians of the
county, and is a man whom to know is to respect. Although of southern
birth and breeding, he remained neutral during the war, prescribing and
caring for the Federal and Confederate soldiers alike, and this was the
means of making him many enemies who did all in their power to make his
life in that section unbearable, their persecution continuing for a number
of years after hostilities had ceased. He was of an amiable and peaceful
disposition, and this doubtless prevented him from receiving harsher
treatment at the hands of his tormentors. He is a prominent Mason, and in
social and professional circles he occupies a high position. His brothers
and sisters were: Emeline, wife of William Jessup, of Jamestown, Ark.;
Lydia (deceased) was the wife of Anderson Pendleton, of Christian County,
and at her death left one child; Jane, wife of Eli Jessup, of Christian
County; John D., of Lead Hill, Ark., was all through the Confederate Army
with Gen. Price, and was once wounded; Dr.Eli B., a practitioner of
Billings, Mo., was shot through the shoulder while serving in the
Confederate Army; William T. was in the Federal Army about one year, at
which time he was honorably discharged for disability caused by sunstroke,
and Dr. G. P. S., a practicing physician and surgeon of Christian County,
and a graduate of the St. Louis Surgeons. Their father, John D. Brown, was
perhaps a native of Randolph County, N. C. ,and was of English descent. He
removed to Arkansas at an early day and soon after to Greene County, Mo.,
locating on a tract of wild prairie land near Henderson, which he
converted into a fine farm and on which he died in 1863 of smallpox. He
was a man of much natural intelligence and tact, and by profession was a
lawyer. He was in public life a great deal, both in North Carolina and
Missouri, and was Probate Judge of Randolph County, N. C.; for some years,
was school commissioner of Greene County, Mo., for several years, and
politically was a Democrat and an active worker for his party and for the
public good. He was quite wealthy at the opening of the Civil War, but
lost considerably during that time. His widow, whose maiden name was Jane
Bray, is still living, aged about ninety years. Hon. William McFarland,
the maternal grandfather of the subject of this sketch, removed from
Cooper County, Mo., to Greene County at an early day, and located at Big
James Springs, on the Gulf Railroad, where he built a mill which he run
for some years. He became a prominent farmer and stockman, in which be
acquired considerable wealth, but died on the farm on which Dr. J. A.
Brown now resides, in 1865. He was twice elected a member of the State
legislature, defeating John D. Brown, the paternal grandfather of the
subject of this sketch. Mr. McFarland was first a Whig, but later became a
Republican. He was considered an eloquent and forcible public speaker, and
in this capacity his services were often required during political
campaigns. His wife, Patsey Roberts, died about 1884. Her father, John
Roberts, came to this country at a very early day from Kentucky, and
conducted a distillery at Big James Springs. He was a man of undoubted
courage, was very fond of pioneer life and one time killed a bear with no
other weapon than his dirk knife. His wife, Rebecca Langley, died at the
advanced age of about ninety years. Dr. William McF. Brown is one of the
following children: Alice, wife of Joseph Danforth, of Greene County; Dr.
William McF.; Henry, who died in childhood; James (deceased); Jennie, wife
of C. J. Edmondson, of Greene County; Martha; Joseph Edward, and David
Keating. The Doctor was reared on his father's farm andr eceived his
education in the public schools of Springfield and in the Morrisville
Institute after which he read medicine with his father, and in 1882
attended the Missouri Medical College, from which he graduated in l885. He
practiced in Springfield for about a year thereafter, then a short
distance east of the city until 1890, since which time he has been located
at Strafford, where be has built.up a large and lucrative practice. He is
a member of the Greene County Medical Society, and makes it his aim, and
object, to keep thoroughly posted in the progress made in his profession.
He is painstaking and conscientious in his practice and deserves the high
esteem in which he is held. December 18, 1891, he was married to Alta,
daughter of Robert and Margaret Love, of Pike County and Greene County,
Mo., respectively, the latter being fifty-one years of age. They are now
living at Strafford and have been the parents of ten children. Mrs. Brown
was born in this county, and she and the Doctor have two children.




CALVIN V. BUCKLEY. of the well known law firm of Heffernan & Buckley, of
Springfield, Mo., has been a law practitioner of this city for the past
ten years and during this time he has acquired a reputation for legal
acumen and sagacity that is vouchsafed to few. In Simpson County, Ky., he
first saw the light of day, January 28, 1869, his parents being Marion S.
and Mary P. (Bratton) Buckley, who were born and reared in Tennessee,
afterward moved to Kentucky, and after the war took up their residence in
Fort Smith, Ark. Marion S. Buckley is a Southerner heart and soul, and
upon the opening of the great Civil War he enlisted in the Confederate
service and did all in his power to aid that cause. His chief business
throughout life has been merchandising and he still follows that
occupation. Calvin V. Buckley inherits Irish blood of his parents and was
one of their eight children, three of whom died in infancy. William H. is
a physician of Little Rock, Ark.; M. Alonzo is a physician of Springfield,
Mo.; Benjamin is a resident of Fort Smith, and the daughter resides in the
Indian Territory. The early training of Calvin V. Buckley was acquired in
Fort Smith, Ark., and his literary education was finished in William
Jewell College, at Liberty, Mo., from which institution he graduated in
the class of 1877, after which he entered the University of Missouri at
Columbia, from which he was graduated in 1878. As early as 1877 he had
commenced the study of law and he entered upon the practice of that
profession at Fort Smith, Ark., in the United States District Court, where
he continued successfully until 1883, at the end of which time he came to
Springfield and up to 1890 pursued his practice alone. He then formed a
partnership with Mr. Heffernan, and these gentlemen are able practitioners
of all branches of their profession. Mr. Buckley has conducted to a
successful issue many important cases, and in his addresses before the
court he is logical, forcible and convincing. He is a Democrat,
politically, and has taken great interest in all public affairs. He has a
good home at 465 Market Street, Springfield.




JAMES ABBOTT. There is something essentially American in the life and
character of the gentleman who is the subject of this sketch. The United
States has given rare opportunities to men with courage, honesty of
purpose, integrity and energy, to achieve success. The bulk of our public
men and those who have legitimately achieved fortune, have been men of the
above characteristics, and Mr. Abbott is certainly one of that stamp. He
is of the people, and his success as a business and public man has come as
his devotion to right and his tenacity of purpose. Born in Salem County,
N. J., February 13, 1835, Mr. Abbott was the second son and third child
born to William and Abigail (Steward) Abbott, both natives of New Jersey,
the father of English and the mother of Scotch descent. Joel and Rebecca
(Van Neman) Abbott, the paternal grandparents of our subject, were natives
of New Jersey, and there passed their entire lives, the grandfather
engaged in agricultural pursuits. The latter was an old line Whig in
politics. His marriage resulted in the birth of nine children, as follows:
Joseph, John, Joel, Isaac, William, James, Mary, and two who died in early
life. William Abbott, father of subject, grew to manhood on the old home
place in New Jersey, and most of his youthful days were spent in assisting
in cultivating the soil. Like most of the boys of his day he received a
limited education, but being a man of observation and reading, he secured
a fair education in that manner. He was left fatherless at the youthful
age of three years, but remained with his mother until grown. About 1830
he married Miss Steward, who was the youngest of seven children, six as
follows: Joseph, Mary, Rachel, Hannah, Nancy and Bashabie. William Abbott
died in the city of Springfield, Mo., in 1886. He had moved to Illinois
from his native State in 1855, settled in Macoupin County, and there made
his home until a few months prior to his death. He had followed farming
all his life, was a public-spirited man and one who was active in his
support of all worthy enterprises. At first a Whig in his political views,
he later became a Republican, and continued to support the principles
advanced by the party up to the time of his death. By his marriage he
became the father of seven children: Rebecca, Joel, James, Mary,
Elizabeth, William and Isaac, all now living but Joel, who died in
Springfield in 1887. The latter had been a resident of that city for
twenty years, and was not only a first-class business man but an excellent
citizen as well. He was ever a strong Republican and was in the Civil War,
enlisting in the three months' service. Rebecca married C. O. Matlock, of
Shipman, Ill.; Mary married J. B. Matlock, of Riverside, Cal., and is the
mother of two children; Elizabeth married Col. Z. B. Cogswell, of
Missouri, and has three children; William resides in Springfield; Isaac is
a merchant of Alton, Ill. He is married but has no children. The mother of
these children died in her native State in 1847. Both parents were
exemplary members of the M. E. Church, and the father was class leader and
held other positions in the same. The original of this notice passed his
youthful days in his native county, attended the subscription schools of
his day, but only until thirteen years of age, when be started out to
clerk in a store in Goshen, N. J. After five years spent in that capacity
and when eighteen years of age, he was hired to take charge of a store at
Goshen, N. J, and filled that position creditably for two years. When
twenty years of age he came West and first located at St. Louis, Mo.,
where he began clerking in a dry goods store and where he remained for
seven years. From there he came direct to Springfield, and during the late
unpleasantness between the North and South he enlisted for three months in
the U. S. Reserve Corps. Later he was discharged for disability. Putting
what money he had in a stock of general merchandise, he followed that
successfully for twenty years in Springfield, and was one of the most
popular business men of that city. In 1870 he sold out, but previous to
that, in 1868, be was elected to the office of -----------,_and from 1871
to 1874 he was elected county collector. Later he was elected Mayor of
Springfield, and discharged the duties of that responsible position in a
most satisfactory manner. While holding the different offices and
positions of trust with which he has been honored, Mr. Abbott has
jealously guarded the interests of his people, and faithfully discharged
his duty in whatever capacity they have seen fit to place him. In 1875 he
became associated with the Springfield Foundry & Machine Company as
secretary and treasurer, and continued with that company until 1890, when
be was appointed postmaster at Springfield. He also held the office of
city treasurer at one time. Mr. Abbott has ever been an active Republican
in politics, was chairman of the county------- for twelve or fifteen
years, and is one of the leaders of his party in Springfield. For many
years he has been connected with the Calvary Presbyterian Church, and
during most of that time he was a member of the board of trustees.
Socially he is a member of the K. of H. In the year 1866 be was married to
Miss Mary E. A. Woolley, a native of New York City, and the daughter of T.
C. and Elizabeth (Lathan) Woolley. Mr. Woolley was a native of New Jersey
and of English descent. Mr. and Mrs. Abbott's nuptials were celebrated in
the city of New York, and their union has been blessed by the birth of
seven children, as follows: Mary E., wife of McLain Jones, of Springfield;
Anna M.; Edna A.; William C., who is in Kansas City; Carrie R.; James R.
and James T., who died in infancy. Mr. Abbott is the owner of considerable
real estate in Springfield, as well as large tracts of land in other parts
of the State. By his honorable conduct through life he has won many
friends who respect and esteem him.




PROF. C. D. ADAMS, now acting as president of Drury College, is a native
of the Granite State, born at Keene, N. H., October 21, 1856, and of
English origin, his ancestors coming to New England in Colonial times. Dr.
Daniel Adams, his great-grandfather, was a man of much learning and the
author of the first arithmetic ever published in New England. The latter's
son, Rev. Daniel Adams, grandfather of our subject, was a graduate of
Dartmouth College, where his father had graduated before him. He passed
his days in New England as a pastor of the Congregational Church. His son,
Daniel E. Adams, father of subject, was born in Camden, Me., and was
educated at Bangor, that State, graduating from the theological seminary.
He became a Congregational minister and followed his ministerial duties in
New Hampshire for many years. He is now residing at Wellesley Hills,
Mass., where he is still actively engaged as a minister of the gospel. He
married Miss Frances Kingsbury, daughter of Charles Kingsbury, formerly of
Keene, Mass., and three children have been born to this union, as follows:
Charles D., Mary Catherine and George W. Prof. C. D. Adams entered
Dartmouth College, where two of his; ancestors had received their
education, in 1873, and graduated with honors from that well known
institution in 1877. From 1877 to 1879 he was principal of an academy in
Vermont, and was subsequently a student in the Andover Theological
Seminary. This was from 1879 to 1881. From 1881 to 1884 he was instructed
in Greek in Cushing Academy at Ashburnham, Mass., and was then called to
Drury College as professor of Greek. Previous to this, in 1881, he married
Miss Julia A. Stevens, of Wilton, N. H., and one child, Daniel E., whose
birth occurred in 1891, has blessed this union. Both Professor and Mrs.
Adams are members of the Congregational Church, and in politics; he is
independent. In 1890 Prof. Adams visited Europe and passed some time in
Germany studying Greek oratory. He traveled in Greece and Italy, and upon
his return to Germany received the degree of Ph. H. D. at Kiel University.
Returning to Drury College in 1891, he filled his former position until
the death of President Ingals in 1892, when he was elected by the board of
trustees as the acting president of Drury. In the spring of 1893 Prof.
Adams received a call from Dartmouth College as professor of Greek, and he
has resigned at Drury to accept the call from Dartmouth. His untiring
energy, unflagging zeal, and ceaseless devotion manifested in the
promotion of educational improvements have been highly appreciated in
Springfield, and he is well known throughout the State as one of the
leading educators.




CAPT. HENRY AHERN. There are few branches of business which are so rapidly
assuming prominence as that of real estate. The phenomenal advances of
American cities, the opportunity presented of obtaining choice building
sites, where, in a few years, their value will place them beyond the
possibility of becoming the property of the wage earner or the man of
average means, all render the office of the real estate man, a successful
addition to the business of our cities. Springfield affords a good example
of the advance of the real estate interest, and this advance cannot be
anything but a reflex of the progress and general prosperity of the city,
and being such, it constitutes a strong reason for gratification among all
observant and appreciative business men. It has now been five years since
Capt. Henry Ahern established his real estate office at 220 Boonville
Street, but in February, 1893, he removed to his present place of
business, where he is actively engaged in selling and exchanging all kinds
of real estate and in renting and collecting. His business is established
on a solid basis, and as be is a good business manager and a good judge of
property in both city and country, he has a business that occupies all his
time and attention. He was born in Rochester, N. Y., November 2, 1842, a
son of John and Nora Ahern, who removed to the Hoosier State when the
subject of this sketch was a boy, and there in 1856 the father died, his
wife having preceded him to her long home in 1848 in Buffalo, N. Y. In the
common schools of Indiana the subject of this sketch received a good
education, but his studies were interrupted by the opening of the Civil
War. On the 25th of April, 1861, be enlisted in Company F, Seventh
Illinois Volunteer Infantry, under Col. John Cook, and was mustered in at
Springfield, Ill., as a private but was promoted to the non-commissioned
office of sergeant soon after, and after the battle of Shiloh was made
second lieutenant and first lieutenant after the battle of Corinth. In
May, 1864, he became captain, and thus became commander of the company
with which he first enlisted. He was mustered out of the service July 9,
1865, at Louisville, Ky., having participated. in the following
engagements: Shiloh, Fort Donelson, second battle of Corinth, Altoona,
Ga., Bentonville, N. C., and in the engagements with Sherman on his March
to the Sea. He was neither taken prisoner nor wounded during his service
and was in the hospital only once. The only light service be saw was when
he was quarter master on the staff of Col. Bain of Quincy, Ill., and
although he was only eighteen years old when he entered the service, he
bore the hardship and privations of war well, but of late years has been
feeling the effects of his long and hard service, which extended over a
period of four years and three months. After his return home from the war
he engaged in the sale of carriages at Springfield, Ill., locating in that
city about 1879, but later he was engaged in the sale of musical
instruments at Decatur, Ill. In 1888 he came to Springfield, Mo., and his
time and energies since that time have been given to the real estate
business, in which he has met with remarkable success. He has shown
exceptionally good judgment in the management of his affairs, and being
enterprising, though at all times prudent, be has amassed considerable
property and is in independent circumstances. All his life long he has
been a Republican and has been interested in the political affairs of -the
day. He is a member of the G. A. R. and belongs to the Blue Lodge of the
A. F. & A. M. He was married in Illinois to Miss Alice A. Tullis, who was
born in Delhi, Ill., and they have a pleasant home on E. Walnut Street,
Springfield. They are attendants of the Methodist Episcopal Church of the
city.




COL. C. C. AKIN. It is impossible to place too high an estimate on the
importance of the real estate business in regard to the various other
elements of commercial and financial activity. None other rests upon a
more vital or honorable basis as regards the growth and welfare of a city.
The Springfield real estate market has come to be recognized as the
leading financial interest of this progressive city of the Southwest, and
among the leading and well-known agents engaged in this is Col. C. C.
Akin, who is well and favorably known for his upright and honorable
methods of transacting business. He is an energetic land agent, is
locating many families in this section of the State on prairie and timber
farms, and is a rustler with a big "R." He has done much to advance the
corporate growth and business interests of Springfield by inviting hither
men of capital from various parts of the country and offering inducements
to residents to own houses and lots, as well as to purchase lands for
manufacturing, mercantile and other purposes. This most enterprising
gentleman was born in Bullitt County, Kentucky, August 16, 1849, and was
reared to manhood in Green County of the Blue Grass State. After attending
the best schools in the locality, including Gilead institute, he taught
school two years in Kentucky, one in Illinois, and three in North
Missouri, closing his career as a teacher as principal of the graded
school of Amazonia, Missouri. Studying law in Missouri, be was admitted to
the bar by the Hon. H. S. Kelley, judge of the twenty-ninth Missouri
circuit, on October 29, 1879. Since that time he has practiced his
profession and also engaged in the real estate business. For two years be
resided in Brule County, South Dakota, and is fully prepared to sympathize
with his unfortunate brethren in that country of drouths and blizzards.
Mr. Akin's father, Rev. Moses Akin, was one of the best known ministers in
Kentucky, celebrated as a pulpit orator and revivalist. Mrs. Akin's
father, William Sallee, is one of the wealthiest farmers in Buchanan
County (near St. Joseph), Mo. During the past five years Mr. Akin has
conducted one of the most active land offices in southwest Missouri, at
the handsome city of Stockton, in Cedar County, and none among the dealers
of realty enjoy a larger measure of public confidence than he. He has met
with a success simply commensurate with the abilities he has displayed and
is eminently qualified by long experience and practical ability to render
service of the most valuable character.




PERRY T. ALLEN, who for four years has been a resident of Springfield,
Mo., is an example of the usefulness and prominence to which men of
character and determination may attain. Although young in years he is one
of the most sagacious, practical and skillful attorneys of the place, has
his full share of the practice, and impresses one at once as a man of
great strength, depth and grasp of mind. He is a native of the Sucker
State, born in Centralia, March 19, 1865, and was one of a family of
children born to Houston and Elizabeth (Watts) Allen. The father was a
Tennesseean by birth, but about 1830 he moved to Illinois where he
cultivated the soil until his death, He was of Scotch-Irish descent, but
for a number of generations his ancestors had resided in this country. The
grandfather, Greenberry Allen, was one of the early pioneers of Tennessee
and a prominent man in the history of that State. The maternal
grandfather, Rev. Hicks Watts, was a pioneer Methodist Episcopal minister
who located in the State of Illinois in 1814. The Watts family is of
English origin and the first ones to cross the ocean to this country
settled in Virginia and Canada. The one who settled in Virginia took part
in the Revolutionary War. The father of our subject died in 1870, and six
years afterward the mother followed him to the grave. Perry T. was reared
by an uncle and in 1884 removed to Missouri with him. His early education
was received in the schools of his native county, but after coming to
Missouri, he entered the Baptist College at Bolivar, Mo., and graduated
from that institution in the class of 1887. Later he took up the study of
law, entered the office of Judge Neville and was admitted to the bar in
Girard, Kan. He was appointed deputy clerk of the district court at that
place, and there made his home until 1889, when he came to Springfield and
opened an office. He has already won an enviable reputation as a lawyer
and his future prospects are bright. On the lst of January, 1893, he
received the appointment of assistant prosecuting attorney, and has had a
number of criminal cases of importance. He has a nice practice and is
doing unusually well. Like his father and grandfather before him, he
affiliates with the Republican Party and is always deeply interested in
political matters. He has shown his appreciation of secret organizations
by becoming a member of the Masonic Fraternity, Gate of the Temple, No.
422 ; Vincil R. A., Chapter No. 110, and Palatine Commandery, No. 28,
Girard, Kan., and he is also a member of the K. of P. Coronado Lodge, No.
63, also of Girard, Kan., and Mystic Division, No. 12, of the same place.
Mr. Allen resides at 1813 Main Street, and his pleasant home is presided
over by his most excellent wife, who was formerly Miss Jennie Wolford. She
is the daughter of Samuel Wolford, of Springfield. One child has been born
to this union, Arthur. Mr. and Mrs. Allen attend the Presbyterian Church,
of which Mrs. Allen is a member, and are liberal contributors to its
support. Mr. Allen's professional career so far has been a decided
success, and he is one of the sagacious, practical and skillful attorneys
of Springfield.




ISAAC ALTSCHUL, Springfield. This gentleman is not only one of the leading
business men of the city, but is deservedly very popular. While he
possesses a Hebraic name, he comes from a family who have long been
residents of America. His father, Solomon Altschul, was born in Monheim,
Germany, in the early part of this century. He was a member of a prominent
and wealthy German family. When young he married Julia Reinach, a handsome
young lady of a wealthy German family in opposition to the wishes of her
parents. The young couple fled to America, and finally established
themselves in Cincinnati, Ohio. Mr. Altschul finally settled at Pine
Bluff, Ark., and engaged in general merchandising, and accumulated a
handsome property. When the war broke out he enlisted as a private in the
Confederate army, and was promoted for meritorious and gallant conduct to
captain. He commanded a company at the battle of Wilson Creek. After the
war he returned to Pine Bluff, where he re-engaged in the mercantile
business. He had been a severe loser by the fortunes of war, United States
troops having burned $25,000 worth of his cotton. To Mr. Altschul and wife
have been born six children: Joseph, Charles, Isaac, Julia, Carrie and
Fannie. In politics he is a stanch Democrat. He was a man who succeeded in
life by industry and thrift, and was always known as a man of integrity.
Isaac Altschul, the son of above, and subject of this sketch, was born at
Cincinnati, Ohio, in April, 1861, as were all his brothers and sisters. He
received a good education in the public schools, and early in life became
a commercial salesman. In 1889 he located in Springfield, and established
his present business. He married Miss Lebolt, of Piqua, Ohio. They are the
parents of three children. In political opinion he is a stanch Democrat.
Mr. Altschul is a genial and pleasant gentleman, and conducts his business
in an orderly and liberal manner. His many friends in Springfield always
speak of him in the kindliest tones. Charles Altschul, a brother of above,
was born in August, 1859. He was well educated, and has passed a large
portion of his life as a commercial salesman. He has been for many years
connected in business with his brother, Isaac. He is an energetic and
efficient man, prompt and square in all his dealings, and enjoys the
confidence and good wishes of many friends.




GEORGE E. ANDERSON. The gentleman whose name heads this sketch is a young
man full of enterprise and push and is recognized as among the leading
business men of Springfield. He has been a resident of the place since
August 31, 1890, but has been. connected with the business interests of
the city since 1883. He first engaged in the manufacture of lumber in 1883
in a town known as Sargent, Texas County, Mo.; his plant turning out from
12,000 to 15,000 feet of lumber per day, but he removed his business from
that place to Shannon County in 1885 and increased the capacity of his
plant from 20,000 to 25,000 feet per day. The name of the firm that owned
the plant was Anderson & Son, George E. Anderson's father being at the
head of the concern. He remained in that county from 1885 to 1888, then
purchased 21,000 acres of pine land and moved his plant to McDonald County
and closed out their wholesale business in January, 1892. In 1891 they
leased a planing-mill near Springfield and did a wholesale business for
some time, amounting to about one half million dollars a year, which was
one of the largest businesses of that kind done in the State of Missouri.
All this time they conducted a mercantile business also, and carried a
general line of goods valued at about $7,000. Since about August 19, 1892,
George E. has carried on a retail lumber business, and in this, as in
other occupations in which be has been engaged, be has been remarkably
successful. The father, John S. Anderson, was born in White County, Ill.,
March 28, 1834, a son of John and Nancy (Trapp) Anderson, the grandfather
being of Scotch descent but a native of Kentucky. John S. Anderson was a
volunteer in the first Illinois Cavalry, in which he served for about four
years, at the end of which time he enlisted in Fourteenth Illinois
Infantry, Company I, of which he became first lieutenant. He was captured
on Gen. Stoneman's raid and was kept in captivity for some time. He was
wounded once while in the service but on the whole was exceptionally
fortunate in this respect while in the service, and also suffered little
from sickness, being at all times ready for duty. In 1867 he and a brother
went to southeast Kansas, where they established a saw-mill, but also
farmed one year, after which he purchased a large flouring-mill. In 1877
he closed this out and in 1883 be and his son closed this business and
began dealing in lumber, as above stated. He was married twice, his first
wife being Mary J. Wrenwick, who was born in White County, Ill., a
daughter of James and Nancy (Galt) Wrenwick, who were born in Tennessee
and Kentucky, respectively. When the subject of this sketch was a mere lad
his mother died, he being the oldest of the three children she bore her
husband. The other two are Eliza, widow of A. B. Chapman, who died in
1881, and Anna, who is living in Kansas, married to J. M. Holt. After the
death of his first wife Mr. Anderson married again in 1870, Rachel E.
Wrenwick, her sister, and to them nine children have been born: Albert,
Francis, Cora, Roy, Terry, Clifford, Claud, Bertha and one that died
young. John S. Anderson was a member of the A. F. & A. M. and the Albert
Anderson Post of the G. A. R., which was named in honor of his younger
brother who died in that foul pen, Andersonville Prison. He was interested
in the political affairs of his day, was a strong Republican and died on
December 21, 1891. He was a man of sound judgment, of excellent business
qualities, and his successful career in the business world was but a
natural sequence of the mature judgment he at all displayed. George E.
Anderson was born in White County, Ill., August 10, 1856, but upon the
death of his mother, which occurred when he was about four years old, he
was taken by her parents with whom be made his home until February, 1868,
when he went to Montana, Kan., where he attended school and learned the
trade of an engineer, which he followed in that State for sixteen years.
He left school at the age of nineteen years, but being bright and
intelligent and keenly alive to his own interests, he made the most his
opportunities and obtained a thoroughly practical education. Later he
became connected with his father in the saw-mill business and this has
received considerable portion of his attention up to the present time. His
business succeeded the Home Lumber Company, and he has since been a
prominent figure in the lumber interests of the Southwest, ranking among
representative men engaged in that line of trade. His yards are locate
(the corner of Boonville and Pine Streets, and although located in the
heart of the city, is dotted by towering oak and sturdy hickory trees,
whose delightful shade renders manual labor by no means a hardship. His
yard one of the most complete and finely stocked in this section of the
country from it comes a large part of the lumber used in the city, while
large shipments are made to other points. His office at No. 709 Boonville
Street is handsomely and conveniently furnished and is provided with a
fine safe and other essential office fixtures. He gives employment to
quite a number of men and has his own teams which are kept constantly
busy. He is a member of the A. F. & A. M., in which he has attained high
rank, and is a member of Ararat Temple of the Mystic Shrine of Kansas
City. Politically he has always been a Republican, and socially a
public-spirited man. He married August 20, 1890, to Miss Emma Morley, of
Eureka Springs, Kan., and to their union a little daughter has been given.
They own and occupy a pleasant and comfortable residence at No. 899 East
Walnut street, Springfield, where it is their delight to welcome their
numerous friends. Mr. Anderson is a man full of enterprise and push and is
deservedly classed among the leading business men of the place.




A. L. ARNOLD. Among the worthy residents of Greene County, Mo., it is but
just to say that A. L. Arnold occupies a conspicuous and honorable place,
for he has always been industrious and enterprising, and as a result has
met with more than ordinary success. He at present occupies the
responsible position of constable of Campbell Township and discharges the
duties incumbent upon that position in a very satisfactory manner. He came
originally from Scott County, Mo., his birth occurring June 21, 1868, and
is a son of G. W. Arnold, who has been a resident of Springfield since
1883, and who is now in the United States land office at Springfield.
While a resident of Scott County, Mo., G. W. Arnold hold the office of
sheriff and collector four years, also was ex-officio county recorder and
circuit clerk twelve years, and was considered a most capable and faithful
man. Since his residence in Greene County his true worth has been
recognized and he has bold the office of deputy circuit clerk and deputy
county recorder. He studied law while a resident of Scott County and is a
deep reasoner and able speaker. He is progressive in his ideas and
tendencies and favors all reforms and enterprises that tend to build up
the city of Springfield, or that will benefit his, fellow man. In his
political views he affiliates with the Republican Party and is secretary
of the County Republican Committee. He occupies a high position in the
estimation of the people and is known as a man of strict integrity of
character. The original of this notice A. L. Arnold, passed the early part
of his days in Scott County, this State, received a good common school
education and began fitting himself for an active business career. When a
boy he came to Springfield and engaged in any honorable employment he
could find. He was with the Adams Express Company, was also clerk in the
circuit clerk's office and the office of the county recorder. Later he
worked for the Gulf R. R. held various positions, and finally was
appointed chief of the store department on that railroad. For about eight
years he remained with the Gulf R. R., and then became a candidate for
constable of Campbell Township in 1892, being elected by a good majority.
He is a young man of steady habits and has a host of warm friends in the
county. His vote has ever been cast with the Republican Party, and
although young in years he is quite influential in all public matters. Mr.
Arnold has his office in Room 6, Raney Building, and fills the position he
holds with credit. He is quite a collector of curiosities and has many in
his office, where they may be seen at any time, for he takes pleasure in
showing them. . The Arnold family is an old Missouri family, respected and
esteemed for many years.




J. S. ATKINSON. Among the reputable men of Springfield who in their
conduct of business matters and the duties belonging to the various
relations of life have acquired a worthy name, we may well mention Mr.
Atkinson, who has been a resident of this city for at least ten years. A
man of superior intelligence and rare business ability and efficiency he
has done not a little to advance the reputation the county enjoys as a
commercial center. He is the manager of the Springfield White Lime Works
and this calling to lie devotes his attention suits him admirably for his
efforts have been crowned with success. The limestone that Mr. Atkinson
makes a specialty of has been tested by some of the leading chemists and
found to yield as follows: --Silica 0.33 per cent, Oxide of Iron 0.21 per
cent, and Carbonate of Lime 99.46 per cent, and pronounced the purest
limestone ever analyzed. The Springfield White Lime Company has been in
existence since 1884 when it was established by James H. Smith of
Springfield. In October of that year the concern was incorporated under
the law of Missouri, with James H. Smith president, J. G. Schermerhorn
vice-president and J. S. Atkinson secretary and treasurer. On the 4th of
March 1885, Mr. Atkinson bought Mr. Schermerhorn's interest after which
Mr. Smith was elected president, M. M. Atkinson vice-president and J. S.
Atkinson secretary and treasurer. Thus the firm continued until February
8, 1892, when J. S. Atkinson was elected president and treasurer, James H.
Smith vice-president and M. M. Atkinson secretary. On the 6th of March,
1893, J. S. Atkinson was made president and treasurer, J. E. Atkinson
vice-president and M. M. Atkinson secretary. Thus the firm stands at the
present time. This large industry was established with a capital stock of
$18,000 and is now doing an annual business of $50,000. About twenty hands
are employed, four kilns are kept going, and it has a capacity of 1,000
bushels per day. His business has always been on a paying basis and he has
one of the largest plants in this section of the country. The firm ships
to Kansas City, St. Joseph, Denver and to a large number of points in
Kansas and other States. The lime is of perfectly pure nature, being made
of a shelly formation of limestone, and is of very superior strength. The
quarries are located at the crossing of the Frisco and Gulf Railroads on
East Phelps Avenue, Springfield, and there is a large supply of the
limestone which extends from 150 to 200 feet deep and extends for one half
mile on the top of the hill near the plant. M. Atkinson. the general
manager, was originally from the Keystone State where be grow to manliood
and received his education. He is a son of E. S. Atkinson, who still
resides in Pennsylvania. When twenty-one years of age Mr. Atkinson turned
his face toward the setting sun and located in Kansas where he followed
merchandising. Later be resided in Ft. Smith, Ark, and after this for
eighteen years was in Indian Territory where he followed merchandising.
After coming to Springfield he was engaged in the real estate business for
about a year and then embarked in his present industry. His business
qualifications are of the highest order, and he is recognized as one of
the best citizens of the city. In his political views he leans to the
Republican party and gives that the weight of his influence and vote. In
1887 and '88 he was elected mayor of Springfield and was well liked as a
public official. He has been a member of the city council two or three
times, is of a social, genial disposition, and has a large share of those
traits of character to go to make up the popular citizen. He was chairman
of the County Republican Committee one year. In 1859 be became a member of
the Masonic Fraternity, Mound City Lodge No. 33, and is also a member of
the Knights of Honor. While a resident of Kansas he was married to Miss
Maria Manington, a native of New York State and five children were born to
this union, three of whom are living: John E., Ruth S. and Ethel M. The
son is in a hardware store in Springfield and the daughters are attending
Drury College. Mr. Atkinson has a pleasant home at 1251 Benton Avenue,
near Drury College, and is surrounded with all the comforts of life. He
and family attend the Presbyterian Church of which they are all members,
and contribute liberally to its support.




LEMUEL B. AUSTIN. In the midst of the failures which occur on the sea of
life, it is a real pleasure to chronicle the life of a man whose efforts
have been crowned with success, and whose career has been as honorable in
every particular as has that of L. B. Austin. A large class of the farmers
and stockraisers of Greene County, Mo., are doing magnificent work in
their line, and they deserve the utmost credit for the admirable way in
which they have surmounted the many difficulties that have strewn their
pathway. Mr. Austin's walk through life has been one of strict integrity,
usefulness and success, and the fortune which he has accumulated enables
him to enjoy to the fullest extent the true comforts of a home that is
made beautiful by the sweet spirit of kindliness, mutual regard and
appreciation among the members of the family. He was born in Greene
County, Mo., November 14, 1836, a son of Greene and Nancy (Freeman)
Austin, and grandson of Samuel Austin, who was a North Carolinian by birth
and a soldier in the war of the Revolution for a short time, being
discharged from the service on account of sickness. In 1835 he followed
his son, Greene, to Greene County, Mo., and here took up some land, a
portion of which is now in the possession of L. B. Austin. He followed
farming throughout life, in which occupation he was successful and became
wealthy. and during his residence here, up to the time of his death in
1854, he became well known and gained many friends. He was a member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, and in politics was a Whig, to the principles
of which he clung all his life. He reared a family of eight children,
three of whom are now living. All of the family came to Missouri except
two children who remained in North Carolina. Their names were Anna, Mary,
John, Greene, Jennie, Catherine, Sarah and Samuel. Greene Austin was born
in the Old North State in 1805, and there he was brought up, receiving the
advantages of the common schools, which were by no means the best, in his
youth. He followed in his father's footsteps, and became a farmer and
stockraiser, and in 1834, a number of years after his marriage in North
Carolina, he came to Missouri and took up land in Greene County, upon
which the Pickwick addition to the city of Springfield is now located.
This tract, comprising 160 acres, he tilled for six years, then traded for
a farm about three miles east of Springfield, which is now owned by his
son, L. B. Austin. There he followed general farming until about 1880,
when he retired from active business life, dying in 1885. He was always a
Democrat, politically, and at all times took a deep interest in all
movements for the improvement of his section, and was an earnest and
active worker in the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he was a member.
His wife was a daughter of William and Mary (Collins) Freeman, who were
North Carolinians, the former having been a soldier in the war of the
Revolution. He reared a family of seven children, as follows: Redrick,
Michael, John, Lawrence, Lemuel, James, Nancy, Fannie and Rachel. The
parents of these children came to Greene County, Mo., about 1834, and here
Mr. Freeman died in 1838 and his widow in 1845. They were also members of
the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Freeman was a Whig, politically, and
being a pioneer became well known throughout Greene County. The most of
their children came to Greene County, but the family also became
represented in Indiana and in the Old North State. Mr. Freeman was a
soldier in the war of the Revolution, and for services rendered during
that time he was given a land grant in Missouri. L. B. Austin was left
motherless in 1874, he and five other children surviving her: Mary, wife
of William Robertson, died after rearing a family of seven or eight
children who now live in Springfield; Louisa, who married Martin Beshears,
died after becoming the mother of seven children, all of whom are now
grown; Wesley is living in Benton County, Ark., is a man of family, an
extensive farmer and stock dealer, and although reared in Greene County,
has been a resident of Benton County since 1867; Bettie married Robert
Adams, of Greene County, and died in 1859, leaving two small children, who
are also dead; Lemuel B., the subject of this sketch, and Sallie, who
married Job Rose, and died in 1859, leaving two children, one of whom
died. Mr. and Mrs. Austin were among the very first settlers of southwest
Missouri, where they were classed among its very finest citizens. In
Greene County their name was a synonym for all that was kind, generous and
hospitable, and their friends were, as a natural consequence, legion. L.
B. Austin was born just on the outskirts of Springfield, and in the
schools of that place he obtained his knowledge of the "world of books."
He started in active business life at about the time of the opening of the
Civil War. After the war he resumed farming, and that occupation and
stockraising and trading have occupied his time and attention up to the
present time. His estate comprises 462 acres of fine farming land, well
improved, and much of his attention is given to raising and dealing in
cattle. He is much interested in the breeding of Shorthorn cattle, and has
some magnificent animals on his place. In politics he has always been a
Democrat, and nearly always has been a delegate to county conventions,
being active in the political affairs of his section. He is a Mason of
many years' standing, and is a member of Solomon Lodge. He was married in
1863 to Miss Louisa J. Mitchell, a native of Greene County, born January
11, 1845 a daughter of George W. and Mary (Freeman) Mitchell, who became
residents of this county about 1842, coming from the Blue Grass State, and
dying here in 1860 and 1852, respectively. They were the parents of four
children- Louisa J., Josie, Hosea and George, all of whom are dead except
Josie, who lives in Illinois. Mr. Mitchell was a Democrat of pronounced
type, was prominent in local political affairs, and held the office of
justice of the peace and was recorder in the land office at Springfield
for some time. He was a farmer by occupation, and he and his wife were
members of the Presbyterian Church. Mrs. Austin, their daughter, was born
and reared in Greene County, and after bearing her husband seven children,
died on April 1, 1888. She was a life-long member of the Christian Church,
was earnest in her labors for the welfare of humanity, and was a kind and
considerate wife and mother. Their eldest son, Charles G., was born
December 6, 1863, and died January 11, 1888. He was married to Miss Lulu
Hubble, but died before their son, Charles H., was born. The second child,
Mary E., was born March 17, 1864, and became the wife of Charles Tuthill,
a prominent farmer of Campbell Township, by whom she has three children:
Lemuel R., Lulu and Seth. Anna L. was born July 11, 1870; Victoria was
born December 25, 1872; Albert M. was born September 4, 1875, and Blanche
L., who was born July 3, 1880. Mr. Austin and his family are highly
respected in the community in which they reside.











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