Biography of William McIlroy

WILLIAM McILROY. – The active and capable gentleman whose name appears above, is one of Union county’s progressive and enterprising stockmen and agriculturists, having wrought here as well as elsewhere with display of ability and sagacity that commend him to all lovers of thrift and industry and which have resulted in the accumulation of a goodly portion of property and the placing of our subject among the most prominent and influential men of this section, while his integrity and uprightness are commensurate with his other characteristics. Iowa City, Iowa, is the birth place of our subject, and July 27, 1861, … Read more

Biography of William A. Meese

When that evil day shall come whereon William A. Meese exchanges his 7 1/8 derby of commerce for the starry crown of heavenly reward, doffs his conventional haberdashery of the Mississippi Valley for the celestial cerements of eternal bliss, Moline will pause in its onward march to industrial eminence, consider well this life-time of devotion to the city’s interests, drop a tear of affection for a departed comrade and wonder with apprehension where the half-dozen men are to spring from to take his place in the struggle for civic improvement. He has been for a half-century the loyal friend of … Read more

Biography of Orley Hull

ORLEY HULL – The experiences of the early pioneers were severe almost beyond belief; and, were it not for the fact that their hardships were intermitted by times of peace and plenty, it would have been scarcely possible for them to have gotten through. Mr. Hull is a pioneer of 1850, and in crossing the plains, and in the early days of Southern Oregon and Northern California, saw times and circumstances as hard as were to be found. He was born in New York in 1821, and when a young man went to Missouri, but was deterred from making a … Read more

Biography of William F. Hill

William F. Hill is the dean of the newspaper profession in Pottawatomie County. The Becorder had been published consecutively at Westmoreland for thirty-two years, and Mr. Hill had been proprietor and publisher of the paper for more than a quarter of a century. When he first came to Kansas it was in the role of a teacher, and he was at one time principal of schools in Havensville, and Westmoreland of Pottawatomie County. He is of English ancestry, and his forebears came to Virginia in Colonial times. His grandfather, John R. Hill, was born in Ohio and spent his life … Read more

Biography of Arthur C. Wallace

Since 1908 Arthur C. Wallace has been identified with the Miami bar and in the intervening period of thirteen years he has become well known throughout Oklahoma as an authority on mining, railroad and corporation law, having been entrusted with much important litigation along those lines. He was born upon a farm near Grace Hill, in Washington County, Iowa, February 20, 1882, his parents being Dr. George C. and Mary E. (Miksch) Wallace, both of whom were natives of Ohio. As a young man the father removed to Iowa, and his professional training was acquired in a medical college at Keokuk, … Read more

Biography of Ancil F. Hatten

Ancil F. Hatten has been continuously editor and owner of the Westphalia Times at Westphalia since 1889. This is the only newspaper of Westphalia, and is one of the oldest journals of opinion in Anderson County. It was founded in 1885 by A. D. Reed, and four years later Mr. Hatten took charge and had been responsible for the large circulation and influence the Times had enjoyed throughout the past thirty years. Mr. Hatten is a former postmaster of Westphalia and had long been an influential figure in democratic politics in that section of the state. He came to Kansas … Read more

Biography of Henry C. Lindsey, Col.

One of the most interesting citizens of Kansas is Henry C. Lindsey of Topeka. He is one of the men who know by ectual experience and recollection the pioneer times of this state. He was a soldier in the Civil war, afterwards took nart in one of the important Indian campaigns in Western Kansas, and added to his military prestige and honor by service during the Spanish-American war. He is also one of Topeka’s oldest business men. He comes of a family that have apparently lived on the frontier and taken a leading part in its activities for several generations. … Read more

Biography of Justin Dewitt Bowersock

Justin Dewitt Bowersock. The secret of human leadership is a matter both of determination and temperament. Some men achieve it by a rugged aggressiveness which bears all before them, leaving in their wake many painful bruises and some wounds which never heal; other progress, perhaps even more rapidly, endowed with a decisive elasticity, a considerate and friendly spirit, a broad and attractive outlook, and obtain the enthusiastic cooperation of those who are best qualified to advance laudable enterprises and movements, either private or public in their character. It is to the latter class of elastic, able and pleasing leaders that … Read more

Biography of Edward Bumgardner, A. M., M. D., D. D. S.

Edward Bumgardner, A. M., M. D., D. D. S., of Lawrence, had been a resident of Kansas for over thirty-five years. Though not a native, he is a loyal Kansan and deeply interested in its progress and standing among the states. He had read and studied with sympathy and understanding Kansas history, and his pride in the state’s past and her institutions had prompted him so far as consistent with his professional work to assist in various public and semi-public undertakings. Doctor Bumgardner is a native of Indiana, born in Warren County, April 10, 1865. His parents were Andrew and … Read more

Biography of Justus Nathan Baird

Justus Nathan Baird. Since his admission to the Kansas bar in February, 1909, Justus Nathan Baird has concentrated every energy upon the worthy task of building up a clientage and reputation at Kansas City, Kansas, and the esteem paid him by his fellow lawyers and the large practice he enjoys is ample evidence of his success. He practices in all the courts of the state and has offices in the Husted Building. Mr. Baird is a graduate in law from the University of Michigan, and was influenced to locate in Kansas by the presence in this state of two brothers, … Read more

Biography of S. T. Yoder

S. T. Yoder, vice president of the Farmers State Bank of Washington, had been a Kansas business man for over thirty years and had acquired many important interests to identify him with Washington County. Mr. Yoder is of the old Pennsylvania stock of Yoders, a family that originated in Switzerland and was planted in Pennsylvania during the very early colonial period in that state. Mr. Yoder himself is a native of Pennsylvania, born in Somerset County May 3, 1851. His father, Benedict Yoder, who was born in the same county, spent his life in that county as an active farmer, … Read more

Biography of Charles J. Searle

An attorney whose marked ability has been repeatedly recognized not only in Rock Island County, by whose Bar Association he has, at the time this sketch is written, recently been honored by the election as its president, but throughout the State of Illinois, is Charles J. Searle, of Rock Island. A biographical sketch of a man so well and widely known, seems almost superfluous, for there are but few in Rock Island County, and indeed in this section of Illinois, who do not enjoy a personal acquaintance with the gentleman himself. And were these sketches written and published merely for … Read more

Biography of Robert Wagner

One of Rock Island’s native sons, a man upon whom devolves to a large extent the management and control of a great and growing industry, is the subject of this sketch, Robert Wagner, president of the Rock Island Brewing Company. He is the son of George Wagner, the story of whose life and rise in the world appears elsewhere in this book, and Frederica Wagner. He was born in Rock Island, June 15, 1866. During his boyhood he attended the city’s public schools and private German schools, fitting himself for entrance in the University of Iowa, at Iowa City. After … Read more

Biography of John H. Moorehead

J. H. Moorehead came to Ida County in June, 1856. He was born in Zanesville, Ohio, September 21, 1808. He was a son of Thomas Moorehead who was of Scotch ancestry. He had been engaged in shipping flour down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to New Orleans. In 1854, Mr. Moorehead came to Iowa City, Iowa, where he remained until 1856, when he and his family came to Ida County. He took an active part in all public affairs and assisted in the upbuilding of the county. He had been a man of business for many years and shouldered the … Read more

Cox, Patricia Karen – Obituary

Patricia Karen Cox, 66, of Cove, died Oct. 11 in Boise. A graveside service will begin at 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Cove Cemetery. Viewing will run from 4 to 6 p.m. today at Daniels Chapel of the Valley, 1502 Seventh Street. Patricia was born on Nov. 18, 1940, to Delbert C. and Adria (Nicholson) Webster in Iowa City, Iowa. The family moved to Cove where she graduated from high school. On Dec. 26, 1958, she married Craig Cox in Weiser, Idaho. She was a stay-at-home mom and a homemaker who loved to take care of her family. She loved … Read more

Biography of Judge Glenn Alcorn

Judge Glenn Alcorn of Muskogee, who formerly occupied the bench of the county court and is now giving his attention to the practice of civil law, was born in Clark county, Kansas, June 10, 1886, a son of Steward Tackett and May (Cummings) Alcorn. The father was a farmer, devoting his life to that occupation. Judge Alcorn was educated in the schools of Perry, Oklahoma, the family removing to this state during his early boyhood. Later he attended the University of Iowa, from which he was graduated with the class of 1908, his broad literary learning serving as an excellent … Read more

Biography of R. P. Kelley

R. P. Kelley. While the law had been his profession and he had been a member of the Eureka Bar continuously since 1884, R. P. Kelley had found his time increasingly absorbed by his various business affairs and interests. Financial success had come to him in large measure, and he had property and business interests in diverse parts of the country. He had traveled considerably for recreation, had covered most of the states of the Union and Canada, and had well defined opinions on events and affairs outside of his immediate province. Mr. Kelley is a native of New England … Read more

Biography of Aaron B. Perine

Aaron B. Perine. One of the few remaining of the old pioneers of Kansas. Aaron B. Perine, of Topeka, came to this state sixty-three years ago, and has been a permanent resident of Kansas since 1854, except for the two years he was out of the state. In the early days he was engaged in work among the Indians for the Government, later turned his attention to the blacksmithing trade, and for many years now has been at the head of the successful Perine Plow Works. He was born at Dansville, Livingston County, New York, May 4, 1836, and is … Read more

Biography of Peter S. Beck, M. D.

The physician wields an influence in any community which is peculiarly strong, because it is based on relations with the general public more intimate than those of almost any one else, and any good physician who is at the same time a good man may continue to broaden and deepen this influence to the end of his days. These reflections have been suggested by the success of Dr. Peter S. Beck, ex-mayor of Genesee, Idaho. Dr. Beck is a Homeopathic physician, and Homeopathy is gaining in popularity, but that does not fully account for his success, for he has carried … Read more

Biography of James J. Rooney

James J. Rooney, contractor and builder of Muskogee, who died July 8, 1922, was well known throughout the state. His building operations carried him into various cities where there stand as monuments to his skill and ability some of the finest structures found within the borders of the commonwealth. Mr. Rooney was born in Iowa City, Iowa, January 2, 1864, and was a son of Lawrence and Maria Rooney. The father devoted his life to merchandising. The son obtained a public school education and then started out to make his own way in the world. He first learned the trade … Read more