Muscatine County IA

Biography of John E. Brooks

JOHN E. BROOKS. – John E. Brooks was born October 29,1822, at Canton, St. Lawrence county, State of New York. His father Cooper Brooks, and his mother, Sophia Brooks (formerly Tuttle), moved from Cheshire, New Haven, Connecticut, and settled at an early day in St. Lawrence county, making the trip with an ox-sled drawn by a yoke of cattle from state to state. To them were born six children, four boys and two girls. The entire family is now dead, except J.E. Brooks, the fifth, and Aniasa Brooks, the youngest of the family, who now live at McMinnville, Oregon. His … Read more

Callaway, Roy D. – Obituary

Keating, Baker County, Oregon Roy D. Callaway, 84, Keating Star Route, an employee of the Oregon Lumber Co. in Baker for more than four decades, died Saturday, August 14, 1982, at St. Elizabeth Community Hospital. His funeral will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Grays West & Co. Pioneer Chapel. The Rev. Ralph Holcomb of the First Christian Church will officiate. Interment will follow at Mt. Hope Cemetery. Mr. Calloway was born may 13, 1898 in Muscatine, Iowa, the son of George and Mary Jane Allen Callaway. He moved as a young man to Baker County, where he and his … Read more

Biography of Robert Couch Kinney

ROBERT COUCH KINNEY. – Oregon will always treasure with respect and admiration the memory of the men and women who came in the days when the Pacific Northwest was the home of savage tribes, mountain men and a few traders, to plant homes and lay the foundation of an empire on the waters of the Columbia. They dared much when they accepted the roll of pioneers to the Pacific. Some became notable for success, and developed character that gave standing to the new state; for the constitution and early legislation of Oregon showed statesmanship seldom equaled in the erection of … Read more

Biography of Martin Schoonmaker

Much has been written in this historical work of the banks and bankers of Rock Island and Moline. However, in estimating the financial strength of Rock Island County the banks and bankers of its smaller municipalities are deserving of very prominent mention, for they are the tributaries of larger financial institutions and have an important part in swelling the stream of the county’s prosperity. To the village bank comes the farmer from the surrounding countryside and deposits the golden fruits of his toil. From the proprietor of that bank its customers may ask and receive sound financial advice. He is … Read more

Biography of Franklin P. Ake

The historian Bancroft has said. “Taken altogether Idaho is the most grand, wonderful, romantic and mysterious part of the domain enclosed within the federal Union;” and no one who has ever looked upon its beautiful and off times sublime scenery will doubt that it rightly deserves to be called “The Gem of the Mountains.” Its natural resources are probably more diversified than any other state can show, for in the midst of its high hills, rich in their mineral de-posits, are fertile valleys affording ample opportunity to the agriculturist, horticulturist and stock farmer. The owner of one of the finest … Read more

Biography of Freeman E. Nipps

Freeman E. Nipps is one of the veteran railroad men of Kansas. Like many who have found success in that army of industrial workers, he began at a country station and as a telegraph operator. For more than a quarter of a century he has been the agent of the Missouri Pacific Railway at Topeka. Unlike many railway men, he has at the same time identified himself closely with local affairs, and at the present time his name is familiarly known throughout Shawnee County as chairman of the board of commissioners. Though most of his life has been spent within … Read more

Biography of Elwin Elbert Parmenter

The life of a good and just man, and the memory of his noble, kindly deeds, are in themselves his true biography. In the life of such an individual the observer of human character may find both precept and example. He may find in such a life sermons that speak more eloquently and leave a deeper impression upon the heart than any human words. The simple goodness and unconscious influence of such a man is a benediction to all with whom he comes in daily contact. Such were the attributes of the late Judge Elwin E. Parmenter, a man highly … Read more

Biographical Sketch of C. C. Van Houten

C. C. Van Houten lived on a farm near Battle Creek, in Maple Township, Ida County, Iowa, and was identified with the agricultural interests of this place since 1882. Mr. Van Houten was born in Clarion County, Pa., April 24, 1856. John Van Houten, his father, a native of the Keystone State, served during the Civil War as a member of Company K, One Hundred and Forty-eighth Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He then resided near Cushing, Iowa. John married Miss Mary Ann Boyles, a native of Pennsylvania. They had seven children, 3 sons and 4 daughters. C. C. Van Houten was … Read more

Iowa Death Records by County

Many experts recommend starting your research with the death records first. The death record is the most recent record, so it will more likely be available to you. Death records are kept in the state where your ancestor died, not where they were buried. However these records can provide a burial location. Death records are especially helpful because they may provide important information on a person’s birth, spouse, and parents. Some researchers look first for death records because there are often death records for persons who have no birth or marriage records. Early death records, like cemetery records, generally give … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Jesse Baldwin

Jesse Baldwin is a native of Logan county, Ohio, and was born June 16, 1832. His parents, David and Hannah Baldwin, were also both natives of the Bnckeye State. He was reared upon a farm and educated in the common schools of Ohio, and has made farming his business through life. In 1855 he moved to Ft. Dodge, Iowa, and two years later moved to Muscatine county, in the same State, where he lived four years. In August, 1863, he enlisted in Company G, Second Regiment Iowa Cavalry, and the regiment was sent to Memphis, Tennessee, and from there began … Read more

Biography of Edmund Raymond Kinsey

Edmund Raymond Kinsey, president of the board of public service of St. Louis and identified in a professional capacity with the public interests of the city since 1912, was born in Muscatine, Iowa, January 24, 1873, his parents being William M. and Lucy Loretta (Chapin) Kinsey. In the paternal line he is descended from one of the old and distinguished American families that has figured prominently in public affairs throughout the history of the nation. A member of this family was one of the first justices of. the supreme court of Pennsylvania and his portrait is over one of the … Read more

Biography of John Edward Stewart

The business world of New England and the manufacturing stationers’ trade suffered an irretrievable loss in the passing of one of Springfield’s most substantial citizens, John Edward Stewart, president of the printing company which bears his name, a veteran officer of the Civil War, prominent Grand Army man and highly esteemed throughout the community for his personal worth and by his business connections for his high sense of honor and unimpeachable integrity. The city of his adoption and scene of his successful labors could ill afford to part with such a forceful character, loyal friend and kindly neighbor, who was … Read more

Biography of Garrison G. Gray

To the prominent and esteemed citizen of Malheur County whose name appears above we grant a representation in the history of the County, since he is today one of the leading men domiciled here, has always labored for the up building of the County, is a man of integrity and uprightness, and receives the commendation of his fellows. Mr. Gray’s grandfather, John Gray, was said to be the last living soldier from the Revolution. He was a drummer boy at Bunker Hill and saw his father fall, then seized his sire’s musket and fought until the struggle closed. He worked … Read more

Biography of Samuel Kinney

SAMUEL KINNEY. – Samuel Kinney, a brother of Robert C. Kinney, was one of the founders of our early society in Oregon, and a man of unusual force and of marked worth. He was born in 1810 in the State of Illinois. He was brought up on a farm, acquiring nerve and muscle and an intrepid spirit, and gained the education of the times in his native district. He was early married to Miss Ann Maria Porter, who was also a native of Illinois, where she was born in 1814. Soon after his marriage, about 1832, he removed to Iowa, … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Oliver Farrar Emerson

Emerson, Oliver Farrar; university professor; born, Traer, Ia., May 24, 1860; son of Oliver and Maria Farrar Emerson; A. B., Iowa College, 1882, A. M., 1885; Ph. D., Cornell University, 1891; married, Annie L. Logan, of St. Louis, Sept. 24, 1891; supt. schools, Grinnell, Ia., 1882-1884, Muscatine, Ia., 1884-1885; prin. Academy of Iowa College, 1885-1888; Goldwin Smith fellow in English, 1888-1889, instru. in English, 1889-1891; asst. prof. rhetoric and English philology, 1892-1896, Cornell University; prof. English, Western Reserve University, since 1896; member Modern Language Ass’n America, American Dialect Society (pres., 1905). Author: History of the English Language, 1894; A Brief … Read more

Iowa Atlases, Farm Directories, and Plat Books

1859 Map of Washington County Iowa

This collection contains digital atlases, farm directories, and plat books for all 99 Iowa counties. We have collated these from a variety of online sources, and provide them here as a single source for all online Iowa County Atlases, Farm Directories, and Plat Books.

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 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 Col. Homer F. Fellows

In these days of money-making, when life is a constant struggle between right and wrong, it is a pleasure to lay before an intelligent reader the unsullied record of an honorable man. To the youthful it will be a useful lesson, an incentive to honest industry. Col. Homer F. Fellows is acknowledged by all to be one of Springfield’s most public-spirited and honorable citizens. He has been largely identified with the public enterprises of that city, is a promoter of its improvements and the real founder of one of the largest mechanical industries in this part of the State. He … Read more