Iowa

Biography of William B. Allison

One of the most prominent pioneer citizens of Salubria valley, an organizer of Washington county, and now (1898) its assessor, is William B. Allison, an enterprising and leading stock-raiser in the beautiful valley of Salubria. where he has a rich and finely improved farm of five hundred and twenty acres, through which runs a splendid stream of water. Mr. Allison was born at Glasgow, Columbia County, Ohio, on August 22, 1845, and is of Scotch ancestry, his parents, Alexander and Sarah (Glover) Allison, having been natives of Scotland. In 1837 the father emigrated to America, and was married in Pottsville, … Read more

Biography of Hon. John I. Mitcham

The well known and popular postmaster of Kendrick, John Irving Mitcham, was born in Indiana, April 7, 1849, and is of Scotch-Irish lineage, his ancestors being early settlers of South Carolina. His paternal grandfather emigrated to Ohio at an early day, and there John Mitcham, father of our subject, was born and reared. When a young man he removed to Indiana and was married in the Hoosier state to Miss Jane McCann, a native of Indiana. They have been life-long and faithful members of the United Brethren church, and now, in their declining years, are surrounded by the veneration and … Read more

Biography of Jacob C. Garber

The efficient and capable postmaster of Grangeville, Jacob C. Garber, is a native of Rockingham County, Virginia, born near Fort Republic, January 7, 1829. The family is of Swiss origin and the ancestors of our subject crossed the Atlantic to the New World prior to the Revolutionary war. They were long residents of Pennsylvania and Virginia, and in religious faith were Dunkards. Martin Garber, the father of our subject, was born in the Old Dominion and married Miss Magdalen Mohler, a lady of German lineage and a representative of one of the old Virginian families. Fourteen children were born of … Read more

Biography of Theron J. Smith

Theron J. Smith, of Idaho Falls, Idaho, has influenced the settlement of more families in the Snake river valley than any two or three other men. He has been a factor in local real-estate transactions, and without doubt has been, in a general way, one of the most efficient promoters of the growth and prosperity of Idaho Falls and the settlement and development of its tributary territory. As immigrant agent of the Oregon Short Line Railroad, he has brought many excursions to this part of the country from Iowa, Nebraska and Illinois, and these excursions have resulted in a marked … Read more

Biography of Captain R. Pickering

The veteran soldier who risked his life in defense of the flag, all things else being equal, takes high rank as a citizen. This may be partly because of the quality of the patriotism of the American public, but there is another reason for the preeminence of the veteran. The man who has the form of character to rise to distinction as a soldier possesses the resourceful perseverance so necessary to success in other fields. Captain R. Pickering, who has been a prominent resident of Genesee from its earliest history, was born in Belmont County, Ohio, May 3, 1842, and … Read more

Biography of Robert V. Cozier

On the roll of Idaho’s statesmen and eminent representatives of the bar is found the name of Hon. Robert V. Cozier, who has left the impress of his individuality upon the legislation and public progress. He is a man of strong mentality, of marked patriotism and broad humanitarian principles, and is therefore well fitted for leadership in the public movements which affect the welfare of the commonwealth. He is now acceptably filling the position of United States attorney for Idaho, and his comprehensive knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence and his ability in handling intricate legal problems make him a … Read more

Biography of James F. Kane

James F. Kane, the leading grocer of Pocatello, Idaho, was born at Joliet, Illinois, April 3, 1858, to Michael and Anna (Smith) Kane, natives of Ireland, who emigrated to Boston, Massachusetts, early in life and there met and married. At Joliet, Illinois, Michael Kane became a prosperous farmer, and for years he was foreman of the Illinois prison quarries. He is now, at the age of sixty-nine, a prominent farmer and stock-raiser of Nuckolls County, Nebraska. His wife died in her fiftieth year, in 1882. As is her husband, she was a devout member of the Catholic Church. They had … Read more

Biography of William W. Woods

Idaho is fortunate in having an able bar. The importance of the legal business growing out of mining enterprises early drew to the state lawyers of ability and experience in large affairs and litigation involving big sums and values. As a result, there is at every important business center of the state legal talent which would do credit to Chicago or New York. Major William W. Woods, one of the leading lawyers of Idaho, was born in Burlington, Iowa, January 24, 1841, a son of James W. and Catharine (Wells) Woods. His father was a successful lawyer, and was born … Read more

Biography of V. W. Sander

Success is not always the result of fortunate circumstances, but is the outcome of labor and business ability, and the one who achieves success along industrial or commercial lines must be possessed of energy, strong determination and executive force. Such are the qualities which have won for Mr. Sander a leading position among the merchants of Idaho and gained for him the presidency of the Idaho Mercantile Company, Limited, of Coeur d’Alene. A native of Germany, he was born February 4, 1857, and is a son of Henry and Henrietta (Othmer) Sander, also natives of the same country. In 1860 … Read more

Biography of John C. Brady

The profession of teaching is one which develops a man symmetrically, affords him opportunity for study and thought and fits him for the higher duties of citizenship in a manner thoroughly logical and rational. The successful teacher is a lover of popular enlightenment, and to be that he must be himself enlightened and patriotic. When teachers come to public office they bring to the service of the public a broadminded grasp of affairs and a capacity for work which make them useful, influential and respected. John C. Brady was born in Cedar county, Iowa, May 19, 1863, a son of … Read more

Biography of Shepard Keene Linscott

Shepard Keene Linscott. The late Shepard Keene Linscott, who was born March 6, 1887, and died December 11, 1905, represented in the best sense the highest type of American manhood. A farm near Chesterville, Maine, was the place of his nativity and he was the only son of Shepard and Esther (Keene) Linscott. The house in which he was born was built by his grandfather, Samuel Linscott, who was a soldier of the Revolutionary war. When but sixteen years of age, Shepard Keene Linscott left the parental roof and became a pioneer farmer of Henry County, Indiana. Realizing the importance … Read more

Biography of John B. Adams

John B. Adams is manager of the Security Abstract Company of Independence. This is the largest abstract firm in Montgomery County, and in many ways its business rivals in volums that of any similar concern in the entire state. Mr. Adams had had a very active business career, beginning in boyhood, and taking him into many fields of activity, and during his life in Southern Kansas he had seen Independence grow from a frontier town to one of the metropolitan centers of Kansas. He comes of that same ancestry which, originally transplanted from England to the shores of Massachusetts, produced … Read more

Biography of Clement Smith, Dr.

Dr. Clement Smith. The undaunted, inquiring attitude of the Twentieth Century is nowhere more definitely perceptible than among the exponents of medical science. The labor of the scientist and specialist of today is destroying ancicnt delusions and thereby placing the health of the nation in the hands of reasoners and independent thinkers. To this class of rational thinkers belones Dr. Clement Smith. of Topeka, whose opportunities along the lines of his specialty have been exceptional and whose use of the same had made him an important factor in connection with the treatment and cure of hernia for many years. Doctor … Read more

Biography of Frederick William Herman

Frederick William Herman identified with a number of substantial business enterprises at Lincoln, Kansas, Frederick William Herman, who had been a resident of Lincoln County since 1873, conducts them with the thorough efficiency that brings profit to himself and contributes also to the commercial prosperity of the city. Mr. Herman is a grain merchant and owned a fine elevator. He is also an extensive grower of flowers and vegetables and markets the same all over this section of the state. Frederick William Herman was born in Ross County, Ohio, September 21, 1851. His parents were Alexander and Amelia (Bodenstadt) Herman. … Read more

Biography of James A. Paull

James A. Paull, present county treasurer of Ellsworth County, had long been identified with business, industrial and civic affairs in this section of Kansas. Mr. Paull had a very interesting ancestry. The family originated in Alsace Lorraine, immigrated to England, and from that county Richard Paull established the name in America. Richard Paull was born in 1615 and at the age of twenty, in June, 1635, embarked on the “True Love de London” for the Bermudas. He soon settled in Massachusetts and on November 7, 1638, married Margery Turner, of Cohasset, now Taunton, Massachusetts. There are several public records concerning … Read more

Biography of Maynard L. Meek

Maynard L. Meek is the present mayor of Ellsworth, Kansas. Local citizens take a great deal of pride in referring to the efficiency and accomplishments of his administration, and express a great deal of satisfaction that Mr. Meek had consented to serve four consecutive terms. Mr. Meek is first and last a thorough business man, and that accounts for his success in public life. Mayor Meek was born in Jones County, Iowa, September 8, 1869. He comes of an old American family, pioneers in Virginia and later in Ohio. His father, Eli C. Meek, was born in Meigs County, Ohio, … Read more

Biography of Thomas K. Tomson

Thomas K. Tomson. A life of more than ordinary fruitfulness and influence came to a close with the death of Thomas K. Tomson at his home in Dover, Shawnee County, November 2, 1910. He was one of the ante-bellum settlers of Kansas. In the fifty years of his residence in the state his name became widely known and respected and as a farmer and stockman he was one of the most successful in his section of the state. He was in his eighty-fifth year when death called him. He was born in Mahoning County, Ohio, September 25, 1826. He grew … Read more

Biography of Jacob Shafer

Jacob Shafer. An old and honored resident of Kansas, Jacob Shafer for the past ton years had lived on his fine farm north of Topeka, among his children and surrounded with the comforts which his life of earnest endeavor and industry have enabled him to accumulate. A native of Indiana, he was born in 1844 in Tippecanoe County about nine miles south of the historic battleground where General Harrison fought the Indians just prior to the outbreak of the War of 1812. His father was Jacob Shafer Sr., a native of Ohio, while the grandfather was born in Pennsylvania about … Read more

Biography of Glocus P. Crosby

Glocus P. Crosby. There are few men better known in Ottawa County than Glocus P. Crosby, who had been an active and useful resident of Minneapolis for forty-five years, is county surveyor and is a veteran of the Civil war. He had seen this section of Kansas develop and had done his full part both in personal effort and in professional activities. Mr. Crosby was born October 7, 1843, at Piketon in Pike County, Ohio, and is the elder of two sons born to his parents, Ezra and Elizabeth (Maddox) Crosby. The early Crosbys were New England people, and Cummins … Read more

Biography of Gideon Penrod Marner, M. D.

Gideon Penrod Marner, M. D. This is a name known throughout the length and breadth of Marion County because of Doctor Marner’s long and active career as a physician and surgeon. Doctor. Marner had practiced at Marion for a quarter of a century and most of his experience and work in the profession had been in Kansas. He was born January 4, 1856, at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a locality famous as the scene of one of the greatest calamities in history, the Johnstown flood of 1889. However, the Marner family had moved from Western Pennsylvania many years before. His parents, Jonathan … Read more