BUTLER COUNTY,
KANSAS
BIOGRAPHIES
LEIDY, FREMONT
Fremont Leidy, former United States internal revenue collector for the district of Kansas, who has been one of the forceful men of the State for years, was born in Jefferson county, Kansas, April 4, 1863, the son of Abram and Martha (Stith) Leidy, the former born in Pennsylvania and the latter in Kentucky. They both left their native States when young and were as loyal to the State of Kansas as if native to the soil. Abram Leidy was reared on a farm in the Keystone State, learned the practical branches of the vocation, and when only sixteen years of age determined to cross the mountains to the broad plains of the West and make his fortune in the new country. He first went to Texas, then to Jasper county, Missouri, and finally, about i860, came to Jefferson county, Kansas. After his son was born, Mr. Leidy returned to Missouri for a short time, but found that the broad plains of Kansas called him and he returned there in 1870, taking up land in Butler county. During the Price raid, in the fall of 1864, he served in the State militia in defense of his adopted State. The Leidy family passed through the first hard years in Kansas when many settlers were discouraged by drought, grasshoppers and winter frosts that reduced so many to almost a state of starvation. But they were confident in the future of the State, and time has proved that their faith was not in vain. Fremont was one of the three children born to Abram and Martha Leidy, and is a thorough Kansan, reared on his father's farm in Butler county, attended the country schools and learned farming by practical experience. lie was an ambitious boy and as his father wished to give him every advantage, he entered the Fort Scott Normal School, where he graduated with the class of 1887, after attending the high schools at Augusta and El Dorado. He then accepted the principalship of the Severy schools, where he remained two years. He then took the superintendency of the Augusta schools, which he held for three years. He then entered the law department of Kansas University, Lawrence, Kans., read law in an able attorney's office at El Dorado and was admitted to practice in 1893. He at once opened an office at El Dorado, where he practiced a short time, when his health failed and the doctors advised a change. Mr. Leidy at once determined to live out doors and started to farm, which he has followed since. He has always taken an active part in local affairs and is held in high esteem by the people among whom he has lived, and who showed their appreciation of his worthy qualities by electing him to the State senate in 1900. In 1908 he was reelected to the same important office. Governor Stanley selected him as a member of the text-book commission, where he served with credit to himself and for the benefit of all the school children of the State.
On June 27, 1910, Mr. Leidy was appointed United States revenue collector for the district of Kansas, a position which he held in an able manner until the National administration changed, when his successor was appointed. In politics he has always been a loyal Republican, never wavering from the great fundamental principles of that party, and has ever been an earnest worker in its interests. He made some thirty-eight speeches in Butler county on the sound money doctrine when it was said there were only two men in the county who believed in that theory. When only a lad of twelve Mr. Leidy attended his first county convention in the company of his father, and has missed but one since that time, due to the fact that he was confined to his home by illness. He has decided views on the tariff question, is an ardent supporter of protection and many other principles of the Republican party.
Mr. Leidy is a gifted orator and an effective and forceful political speaker, clear, logical, and with an ever ready supply of statistics, to verify his position on every question and policy he supports. During his service in the State senate, no man made his influence felt more keenly or to better effect. All his life Mr. Leidy has been a student, not alone of books, but also of men, and each year sees him expanding along all lines. He is one of the native sons of Kansas of whom she should be most proud. In July, 1893, Mr. Leidy was united in marriage with Myrtle Jenkins, of Augusta, Kans. She was born in Tennessee but came as a child of two years to Kansas with her parents. She died on July 22, 1906, leaving three children: Pauline, Richard J., and Roger. Mr. Leidy is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America, but has no other fraternal affiliations. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 802-804)
C. B. Dillenbeck, proprietor of the "City Dairy Farm," El Dorado, is known not only in Butler county, but throughout the country as a breeder of thoroughbred standard trotting horses of national reputation.
Mr. Dillenbeck was born in Jefferson county, New York, in 1842, and is a son of Jacob and Catherine (Ostrander) Dillenbeck, natives of New York. He was one of a family of eight children, the others being as follows: John S., died in New York; Mrs. Amanda Nellis, died in New York; Menzo, died in New York; Sophia, married a Mr. Simmerman, who was killed in the Civil war, and she afterwards married Luther Dillenbeck; and Jerome, now living retired at El Dorado.
Mr. Dillenbeck was educated in the public schools of his native State, and at the age of nineteen, enlisted at Watertown, N. Y., in Company M, Tenth New York heavy artillery. He served in the army of the Potomac, and took part in many important campaigns. He was with Sheridan in the Shenandoah valley, and was at the seige of Petersburg, and was mustered out of service at Sacketts Harbor, N. Y., in July, 1865, after having served three years.
After returning from the army, Mr. Dillenbeck was engaged in farming in New York State until 1882, when he came to Butler county, reaching here September 19 of that year, and engaged in farming, stock raising and dairying on 640 acres of land west of El Dorado, which his brother had previously bought. Later C. R. sold his interest in that farm to his brother and bought the Van Slyke farm of 320 acres, and conducted his farming and dairy business there, but lived in El Dorado a part of the time. He bought this farm for $12.50 per acre in 1888, and ten years later, sold it for $27.50 per acre. He also bought another quarter section a half mile south, for $900, and sold it for $2,000 at the time he sold his other farm.
For the last fifteen years, Mr. Dillenbeck has lived in El Dorado. where he has been engaged in buying and shipping horses, and at the same time he has been engaged in the dairying business, and his son, W. E., is in partnership with his father. They have bred and developed some very high class and valuable standard bred registered trotting horses, among some of the well known ones are: Julia D., 2:14-1/4; Harbor Master, 2:07-1/4; Daisy Dorff, 2:10-1/4, and Symbol Meath, 2:07-1/2. At the present time they have eleven head of standard bred registered horses which are undeveloped, but Mr. Dillenbeck has never yet raised a thoroughbred that was a failure. In March, 1916, he shipped three head of horses to Indianapolis, Ind., Symbol Meath, 2:07-1/2; Daisy Dorff, 2:10-1/4, and Fair Margaret. While the Dillenbecks have been successful in developing thoroughbred horses, they have not neglected the pure bred cattle department of that business. Mr. Dillenbeck breeds Holstein cattle on the farm, and at present, has thirty-seven head of high grade Jerseys also. The City Dairy herd is headed by "Katimas Sultan," which is one of the best registered Jersey bulls in the State of Kansas.
Mr. Dillenbeck was married in 1865 to Miss Helen R. Visscher, of Gouverneur, N. Y. She was a daughter of William Visscher, who came to Butler county the same time that Mr. and Mrs. Dillenbeck came to this county, and he died here. His wife died in New York State, in 1863. To Mr. and Mrs. C B. Dillenbeck were born the following children: Dr. F. E., El Dorado, Kans.; W. E., who is associated with his father in business, married Marie Olin, of Eudora, Kans., and they have three children, Helen, Charles and Doris. The wife, and mother of these children, died March 19, 1915.
Mr. Dillenbeck is one of Butler county's substantial citizens, whose efforts, since coming to this county, have been rewarded with success. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 804-805)
Mrs. B. A. Russell, now living in
Logan township, belongs to that type of pioneer women who performed their part nobly and well, at a time when the
great plains of Butler county offered many hardships and inconveniences and few comforts or luxuries. She can relate
many interesting reminiscences of the early history of this section of Kansas, and knows what she is talking about,
for she was here and received her information by experience and observation. Mrs. Russell bore the maiden name
of Smith and is a daughter of William R. and Narcissa (Bagley) Smith, natives of Tennessee. Her father was a prominent
farmer and stockman.
The Smith family located in Butler county in 1871, and here Mr. and Mrs. B. F. Russell were married in 1873. B.
F. Russell was a native of West Virginia, or what is now West Virginia, and was born in 1832. The following children
were born to Mr. and Mrs. Russell: Mrs. Myrtle Sopher, who resides with her mother on the old homestead. She married
L. D. Sopher in 1890, and they have one child, Russell B., born in 1900; and Mrs. Edith E. Morris, resides in Wichita.
Mr. Russell died in 1899 and his remains are buried in the Fowler cemetery, and since that time Mrs. Russell has
continued to make her home on the old place.
Mrs. Russell relates, with much amusement, a careless incident in her career that developed into a romance which culminated in her marriage. When a girl she threw out a bucket of ashes, from which a prairie fire started and spread for miles. Among those who were attracted by the fire, and came to render what assistance they could, was Mr. Russell, and that was their first meeting, and they were married soon afterwards. Mrs. Russell frequently saw Indians, after coming to Butler county, as they traveled back and forth considerably through this section of the country. Mrs. Russell distinctly remembers when the grasshoppers came and ate every vestige of green in sight on the place, and about all that she had left after the grasshopper scourge, was her chickens and they ate so many grasshoppers that they all died. So one calamity followed another, but early life on the plains seemed to be made up of calamities, and the early settlers became amused with them and were really not surprised unless something good happened. And yet, hardships and failures were soon forgotten by the hardy residents of the plains, and they had many good times, and enjoyed themselves with the true spirit of innocent pleasure. A neighbor at that time was a loyal friend and always stood ready and willing to accommodate and share anything that he had, with his less fortunate brother; and the bonds of neighborhood friendship seemed to be much stronger, and human sympathy more abundant than in these days of over legislation and organized communities.
Mrs. Russell is one of the entertaining and interesting pioneer women of Butler county, and is truly deserving of due recognition in a work of this character. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 805-806)
Marion W. Jones, a prominent farmer and stockman of Rose Hill, Kans., was born in Georgia in 1859. He is a son of Hampton and Mary (Cox) Jones, natives of Georgia. They were the parents of seven children, as follows: Miles, died at Rose Hill; Mrs. Elizabeth Mitchell, lives in Pleasant township; William, died in Texas; Mrs. Eliza Ketsler, Wichita, Kans.; John Nelson, died at Rose Hill, at the age of nineteen; Mrs. Lucinda Wells, Portland, Ore.; and Marion W., the subject of this sketch.
Marion Jones was educated in the common schools of Butler county, Kansas, and has followed farming and stock raising all his life. He came to Kansas with his father in 1865, and located first in Lyon county. In 1871, they came to Butler county, and located on Eight Mile creek in Pleasant township. The parents are both deceased. His father died in Arkansas, and his mother at Rose Hill, Kans.
Marion W., the subject of this sketch, fell heir to forty acres of land and later bought 280 acres, partly rich bottom land, and altogether he has one of the best farms in the county. He has forty acres under alfalfa. He has made a success of stock raising. His land is leased for gas and oil.
Mr. Jones was married in 1882, to Miss Ella Davis of Rose Hill, Kans. Her father, John P. Davis, came to Butler county in 1878, and settled in Richland township, and later moved to Pleasant township. Two children have been born to this union: Willie, deceased, who was accidentally killed by a kick from a horse in 1906, and Oscar A., residing at home. He married Miss Gertrude Silkwater, of Rose Hill.
In 1872 a prairie fire came sweeping
from the southwest, jumped Eight Mile creek, and caught George Herit, a school teacher, on the prairie, two and
one-half miles east of Rose Hill. He had started to his claim and the high wind carried the fire so swiftly that
he could not escape. He was able to get to the creek opposite the Jones residence, and call for help. His clothes
were almost burned off. They took him to the house and cared for him, but he died four days later.
Mr. Jones is a member of the Friends Church of Rose Hill and the Jones family is one of the representative pioneer
families of Butler county. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 806-807)
Bruce Alexander, a substantial farmer and stockman and one of the representative citizens of Walnut township, is a native of Tennessee, although he came here with his parents when he was two years of age, and therefore comes within two years of being a native of Butler county. He was born in Macon, Tenn., in 1873, and is a son of Dr. E. II. and Matilda E. (Haynes) Alexander. They were the parents of seven children, six of whom are living, as follows: Mrs. Nettie VanArsdall, Stillwater, Okla.; Mrs. Luella DeMoss, Stillwater, Okla.; Bruce, the subject of this sketch; W. F., Ira and Grace, all residing at home in Walnut township. Dr. E. H. Alexander came to Kansas in 1875 and located in Walnut township, Butler county, where he bought 200 acres of land, which is now the home place. He was a successful physician and practiced his profession after coming here and at the same time was interested in the development of his farm and stock raising. He died while yet a young man in 1883. His widow, who still survives him, is seventy-two years of age, and is unusually active, both mentally and physically, for a person of her age.
When the Alexander family moved here the county was wild and unsettled; there were no railroads in this section, and Bruce Alexander, the subject of this sketch, recalls many early day conditions, which made indelible impressions on his mind, when he was a boy. The old stage line from El Dorado to Winfield passed the Alexander home, and he recalls one time when a band of over 500 Indians from the reservation passed over the old stage line.
Bruce Alexander was reared on the home farm and educated in the public schools of Walnut township, and he also attended the high school at Augusta for three years. He is one of the substantial men of the community, and has an extensive acquaintance throughout Butler county. He takes a commendable interest in local political affairs, and has served as trustee of Walnut township one term. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Augusta, having been identified with that organization for the past six years. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Page 807)
J. P. Colyar, of El Dorado, is a Civil war veteran, and comes from a long line of military ancestors who have distinguished themselves in all the principal was in which this country has been involved. J. P. Colyar is a native of Michigan, born in 1833, and is a son of John E. and Hanna (Reams) Colyar, the former a native of Ohio, and the latter of Michigan. They were the parents of five children, of whom J. P. is the only survivor. After the death of the mother, the father married again, and three children of this union are living, John and Newton, who live in Oklahoma, and Mrs. Hannah Romne, Kansas City, Kans.
J. P. Colyar enlisted at Burlington, Iowa, during the Civil war, in an Iowa regiment of infantry, and during the course of his military career served in many of the southern States. He was with Sherman on the memorable march to the sea, and at the battle of Bloomington, N. C. had his collar bone broken while constructing breastworks. At Co-lumbus, S. C, his knapsack was struck by a bullet. After the surrender of General Lee, Mr. Colyar was discharged at David's Island, New York Harbor. Mr. Colyar had thirty-two cousins from Cass county, Michigan, all of whom served in one regiment in the Union army during the Civil war. Mr. Coylar's father was also a Union soldier during the Civil war, enlisting at Humboldt, Kans., and served with a Kansas regiment until he was discharged on account of disability. His hearing was impaired, which was caused by the concussion of artillery firing. Samuel Colyar, grandfather of J. P. Colyar, served in the Revolutionary war, as did his father also, the elder Colyar having attained the rank of captain by the time the Revolutionary war closed.
J. P. Colyar came to Kansas in 1871, and settled in Chanute, his father having located there in 1850, which was a very early day in the settlement of that section of the State. Indians were numerous at that time, and there were very few settlers in that part of Kansas. In 1882, Mr. Colyar came to Butler county, while in the employment of a grading gang, constructing a railroad into El Dorado from Ft. Scott. Since coming here Mr. Colyar followed constructing, and in later years was engaged in the draying and transfer business.
In 1858, Mr. Colyar was married to Olive M. Shelton, of Shelby county, Missouri. Her parents were Griffith and (Paris) Shelton, pioneers of Shelton county, Missouri. To Mr. and Mrs. Colyar have been born the following children: Mrs. Mary Virginia Lewis, deceased; Mrs. Laura J., married and resides at Ft. Scott, Kans.; Mrs. Frances M. Smith, Chanute, Kans.; J. G. Okmulgee, Okla.; W. F., Emporia, Kans.; J. H., Salt Lake City, Utah; G. W., Neodesha, Kans.
As a soldier and pioneer, J. G. Colyar has performed his part nobly and well, and is a citizen well worthy of recognition in a work of this character. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 807-808)
David Landis was born in Wayne county, Ohio, in 1847, and his parents moved to Indiana the same year and he was reared to manhood in that State. His parents were Frederick and Catherine (Holdeman) Landis. They were the parents of fourteen children, of whom the following are living: Jerome Colwell, Allen county, Kansas; Mrs. Anna Culp, Constantine, Mich.; Mrs. Barbara Kennison, Red Key, Ind.; Mrs. Christiana Staley, Elkhart, Ind.; J. H., Valpariso, Ind.; A. J. and H. R., Chico, Cal.; David, the subject of this sketch; Jennie Colwell, Moran, Kans.
David Landis was educated in the common schools of Indiana, and for three years was a school teacher, teaching his first school in 1866, and his last term closed March 25, 1869. He then went to Missouri, remaining two years, and returned to Indiana for nine years and came to Kansas in January, 1882. He located in Anderson county, where he remained four years. He bought eighty acres there from Andrew Caldwell, which he sold in 1885, and removed to Linn county, remaining for one year, coming to Butler county in 1887. He located in Richland township for two years, and removed to Walnut township, where he lived three years, near Hilton school house. He then removed to Pleasant township, remaining there three years, and then lived for six years in Rock township. He rented his present place and moved here in 1904, and still resides in this township.
Mr. Landis was married in January, 1872, to Marjorie Ann Wooden, of Whitley county, Indiana, and eight children were born to this union, six of whom are living, as follows: B. F., living in Jewd county; H. W., at home; Ira O., Allen county, Kansas; Mrs. Dora Briles, Richland township; David Delta, Richland township, and Irene lives in western Kansas.
Mr. Landis, while an invalid, is cheerful and a most interesting talker. Eight of the Landis brothers and sisters each write a letter once a month, and the recipient forwards the letter to another, and then the letter is sent around to the others until all have read it. Mr. Landis usually writes his the next day after receiving the letter. He is able to get to the mail box when the weather permits. Mr. Landis is one of the old subscribers of The El Dorado "Republican," and was a great admirer of the late "Bent" Murdock, who was editor of that paper for so many years. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 808-809)
Charles Love, who is engaged in farming and stock raising in partnership with his brother, J. P. Love, under the firm name of Love Brothers, is a typical representative of the progressive agriculturalist of today. Charles Love was born in Martin county, Indiana, in 1867. and is a son of J. P. and Mahala (Smith) Love, also natives of Indiana. They were the parents of the following children: Mrs E. T. Rollins, Douglass, Kans.; L. M., Syracuse, N. Y.; A. C, St. Joseph, Mo.; Mrs. Florence Emerson, Oregon; H. C, Scotts, Saskatchewan; Charles, the subject of this sketch; J. P., Gordon, Kans.; Mrs. Nora Thompson, Douglass, Kans.; Mrs. Amanda Elliott, deceased, and Mrs. Adeline Hinkle.
The Love family came to Butler county in 1876, and two years later the father homesteaded a claim in Walnut township, near where Gordon is now located. One of the sons, L. M. Love, came to Kansas before the other members of the family. He came to Augusta in 1874 and engaged in the grocery business in partnership with a Mr. Freeman, under the firm name of Freeman & Love, one of the pioneer mercantile firms of Augusta. The father, J. P. Love, became a successful farmer and stockman, and was prominent in the community. He was a good citizen and was of material assistance in the development of Butler county. He died July 5, 1893, and his widow now resides at Gordon.
Charles and J. P. Love own 360 acres of land, which are located one-half mile west of Gordon, and they also rent the Blood farm, which consists of 400 acres and adjoins their own property. They have operated that place in connection with their own farm for the past sixteen years. In addition to the well known value of farm property in Walnut township, the recent development of oil and gas is revealing a source of wealth which at this time cannot be estimated, and the Love farm is within the undefined boundaries of this great oil and gas belt. There are now two good gas well on their place, and further tests are in operation.
Charles Love was united in marriage in 1892 to Miss Eldora J. Dugan, of Gordon, Kans., and the following children have been born to this union: Walter L., a graduate of the Augusta High School, class of 1915, an employee of Blood's bank at Augusta; Ruby L., a graduate of the Augusta High School, class of 1916; Myrtle E., a student of the Douglass High School, and a member of the class of 1916, and Parkhurst L., at home with his parents. Mrs. Love's parents were Kansas pioneers. They came to Marion county in 1870, and homesteaded near Lincolnville. In 1880 they came to Butler county and now reside in Gordon. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 809-810)
J. E. Hanes, a well known farmer of Walnut township, although a young man, is numbered among the pioneers of Butler county. The fact of the matter is, that Mr. Hanes was a very young pioneer when he came to this county with his parents, being only five years of age. He is a native of Tennessee, born in 1869, a son of Thomas and Mary (Prudence) Hanes. both natives of Macon county, Tennessee. They were the parents of five children, as follows: Mrs. Martha Long, Augusta, Kans.; Mrs. Maggie Woods, Mulvane, Kans.; Mrs. Nora Black, Douglass, Kans.; Mrs. Kelly Black, deceased; J. E" the subject of this sketch. The father died in 1900, and the mother departed this life in 1899.
The Hanes family came to this county in 1874, and the father purchased eighty acres of land in the Walnut valley, Walnut township, for which he paid $1,300. At that time there were no railroads in this section and most of his supplies had to be hauled from Wichita, a distance of twenty-four miles, although they did considerable trading at Augusta, which was a small settlement at that time. The father engaged in farming and stock raising, meeting with a reasonable degree of success. He was a good reliable citizen and a man who by his straight-forward manner and honest methods, won the respect and confidence of his neighbors and those with whom he had business relations.
J. E. Hanes, the subject of this sketch, was reared to manhood on the home farm, and educated in the public schools. He was among the first to attend the first school established in that locality. The district where he attended school was known as Floral School District, No. 120. However, he attended school before the school house was built in that district when school was held at the old Baum residence, and taught by Hattie Tremak.
Mr. Hanes recalls, among the pioneers who were here in 1874, Clark Haskins, Daniel Baum, J. K. P. Carr and George Lang, who formerly owned the Hanes farm; W. H. H. Adams, Erastus Cease and Robert Ralston. J. E. Hanes owns the old homestead, where he carries on farming and stock raising. The value of the Hanes homestead cannot be estimated at this time, as it is in the rich oil and gas belt of the Augusta field, and it is for future operations to divulge the hidden underground wealth of almost every foot of the section where the Hanes property is located. However, there has already been brought in one gas well on this property, the daily production of which is one and one-half million feet. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 810-811)
Ray Hammond, one of the progressive younger farmers of Butler county, who is making a record in the agricultural world, is a native son of Butler county. He was born in Towanda township m 1886, and is a son of Isaac and Rebecca Hammond, who were pioneer settlers of Towanda township. The family located four miles southeast of Towanda upon coming to this county. The father was a successful farmer and a good citizen. He died in Augusta in 1909, and his wife now resides in that town. They were the parents of the following children: Walter, deceased; Harry, Towanda, Kans.; Mrs. Jennie Valentine, Greeley, Colo.; Sidney, lives in Augusta township; Isaac, also lives in Augusta township; Gladys, deceased, and Ray, the subject of this sketch.
Ray Hammond was reared on the home
farm in Towanda township, and after receiving a good education in the public schools, engaged in farming, operating
the home place for three years. He then began farming the Shumway place, one mile south of Towanda. He is extensively
engaged in general farming and stock raising, making a specialty of Herefords, and he has a fine herd. He owns
400 acres of valuable land, 160 acres of which is a part of his father's old homestead.
Mr. Hammond was married in 1907 to Miss Nora B. Shumway, a daughter of Andrew J. and Johanna Shumway, natives of
Ohio, and early settlers in Towanda township, and who are now deceased. The father died in 1908 and he mother passed
away in 19T3.
Mr. Hammond is a member of the Knights of Pythias at Towanda, Kans., and is one of the enterprising and successful farmers of Towanda township. He is inclined to keep fully up-to-date in the application of all approved modern methods in farming, but is not a faddist. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Page 811)
M. A. Wait, a member of the board of commissioners of Butler county, is a native of Livingston county, Illinois. He was born in 1856, and is a son of W. C. and Hannah E. (Putman) Wait, natives of New York. The father died at Whitewater, Kans., in 1913 and the mother died in 1879. They were the parents of five children, as follows: Mrs. Ida L. Stearn, Towanda; M. A., the subject of this sketch; Ella E., died in 1884 on the old homestead; Mrs. Florence A. Pace, Whitewater, Kans., and Mrs. Maggie Cozad, who resides on the 6ld Wait homestead.
M. A. Wait attended the public schools
of Illinois in early boyhood and later attended the schools of Nevada, Mo., where the family had removed. In 1871
the Wait family came to Kansas, settling in Towanda township, about one and one-half miles west of town, where
the father bought a homestead right of a quarter section of land from J. W. Tucker. The place was unimproved, with
the exception of a small shack, 12x16 feet, of native lumber, which the Wait family occupied as their home on the
prairie during their first year in Butler county. The old building is still standing, but has long since ceased
to serve the purpose of a residence. The elder Wait lived on this homestead for thirty-six years, and was a successful
farmer and stock raiser. During the last few years of his life he lived retired at Towanda.
M. A. Wait is one of the successful farmers and stockmen of Butler county, and is quite an extensive feeder and
has met with marked success in this branch of the cattle industry. His farm, consisting of 300 acres of well improved
land, is located in Towanda township, and is one of the model farms of that section. Mr. Wait has taken a keen
interest in political affairs since reaching his majority, and has served three terms as trustee of Towanda township,
and in 1912 was elected county commissioner of the third district, which comprises twelve townships, for a term
of four years, and is now serving in that capacity. Public affairs have always received from Mr. Wait the same
careful attention and efficient management that he has devoted to his private business, and during his term as
county commissioner his straightforward and business-like method of handling the business of the county has met
with the uniform approval of his constituents.
Mr. Wait was united in marriage April 9, 1885, with Miss Florence L. Stevens, of Towanda, Kans. She is a native
of McDonough county, Illinois, born in 1856, and is a daughter of H. Stevens and Amanda (Russell) Stevens, natives
of New York, Mrs. Wait was a pioneer Butler county teacher. She was educated in the El Dorado High School, and
the public schools of Santa Cruz, Cal. She taught her first school at Elm Creek district, three and a half miles
southeast of Towanda. She recalls many instances of early school conditions and has pleasant memories of the old
literary society which flourished, in Towanda in the seventies and eighties. Here is where Judge Vol. Mooney, Judge
Chris Aikman and many other men who later became well known, began their oratorical careers, and played their dramatic
roles in "East Lynn" and kindred dramatic masterpieces. The meetings were held in the old Towanda school
building, which was later blown away by a cyclone. While the old literary society may seem of little interest to
to the present generation, it occupied an important sphere in the social and literary life in those pioneer days,
and its influence was far-reaching and it is doubtful whether its place has been adequately filled by modern methods
and institutions. Mrs. Wait has never ceased her interest in the public schools, and has always given her influence
to the upbuilding and betterment of the public school system. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney,
1916 Pages 811-813)
J. W. Williams, of Augusta, who for the past twelve years has been identified with Butler county, is a native of Kansas. Mr. Williams was born at Spring Hill, Johnson county, November 18, 1881, and is a son of James and Mary A. Williams, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Maryland. The father died at Augusta in March, 1913, and the mother now resides at Edgerton, Kans. James and Mary Williams were the parents of twelve children, seven of whom are now living, as follows: Mrs. Violet Schendler, Augusta, Kans.; Mrs. Anna McKoin, Edgerton, Kans.; Joshua, Edgerton, Kans.; Frank, Augusta, Kans.; Mrs. Delila Markley, Augusta, Kans.; Mrs. A. E. Cowen, El Dorado, Kans., and J. W., the subject of this sketch.
J. W. Williams received his education in the public schools of Ohio and Johnson county, Kansas. In 1898 the family removed to Butler county and located at Keighley, where they remained one year. When a youth, J. W. Williams learned the barber trade, serving an apprenticeship at Overbrook, Kans., for three years. He then came to Augusta and worked at the plasterer's trade and cement work in Augusta and various parts of Butler county. He has worked on many of the important buildings erected in Butler county within the last ten years, including the Butler county court house, the old school building in Augusta, the postoffice building, the McKinley school building at El Dorado and R. H. Hazlett's residence there, and also the high school buildings at Leon and Rosalia and the hotel at Beaumont. Mr. Williams is is perhaps the best known man in Butler county in connection with his special lines of work.
On December 29, 1908, Mr. Williams was united in marriage with Miss Pearl Malosh, of El Dorado. Her parents were natives of Ohio and came to Kansas at quite an early date. To Mr. and Mrs Williams have been born two children, as follows: James Duane and Howard Edward. Mr. and Mrs. Williams are well known in Augusta, and have a large circle of friends. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Page 813)
J. W. Smith of Augusta, is a Butler county pioneer who in the early days was engaged in freighting. He is a native of Tennessee, born in 1849, and is a son of James and Martha (Burkhart) Smith, natives of Tennessee. They were the parents of nine children, only two of whom are living: W. C, who lives at Seneca, Mo., and J. W., the subject of this sketch. J. W. Smith was denied the advantages of an education in his boyhood days, but attended school in later life, and even when he was forty years old went to school with his own children. By constant application, he has obtained a good education, which is today a great source of satisfaction to him, and he appreciates it more from the fact that he experienced several years of his life without an education, and in that way came to appreciate its value to the fullest extent.
J. W. Smith began life as a freighter, hauling lead from the mines at Granby, Mo., to Sedalia, and later from Granby to Rolla. When the railroad was built between those points he and a number of other freighters were crowded out of business. He then took up freighting along the proposed line of the Missouri, Kansas & Texas railroad and managed to keep just ahead of the terminus of the railroad, and found plenty of business in the way of hauling goods from the terminus to the next town to which it was building. For seven years, while he was engaged in this line of work, he never slept m a house.
In 1875, Mr. Smith came to Butler county, Kansas, and settled six miles southwest of Augusta, where he traded a team and wagon for 240 acres of land. He has added to his original holdings and now owns 512 acres. This is one of the fine farms of Butler county and now possesses the additional value of being in the oil and gas belt, which is being rapidly developed. Mr. Smith has followed farming and stock raising for thirty years, and was also a successful stock feeder on quite an extensive scale. He prospered and made money, and is one of Butler county's substantial men of affairs. In 1908 he removed to Augusta. where he built a comfortable home, and has since resided there.
In 1876 Mr. Smith was united in marriage
with Miss Delila Golden at Seneca, Mo. Mrs. Smith is a member of a pioneer family of Missouri. To Mr. and Mrs.
Smith have been born nine children, five of whom are living, as follows: J. C, married Miss Ollie Roundtree, and
resides on the home place; Harvey, married Hazel Fuller, of El Dorado, and lives near Augusta; Mrs. Cora Higgins,
of Wichita; Mrs. Ola Johnson, Rose Hill, Kans., and Virgil, a student in the Augusta High School.
Mr. Smith is a member of the Masonic lodge and has been identified with that organization for over twenty years.
(History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 813-814)
Thomas J. Powell, a Butler county pioneer, who was one of the first to respond to president Lincoln's call for volunteers and for four and a half years served his country faithfully and well, is now living retired. Mr. Powell was born near Berlin, Worcester county, Maryland, within three or four miles of the coast, April 17, 1843. His parents were James R. and Matilda (Folks) Powell, the former of English and the latter of Irish descent. They were the parents of nine children. In 1849 the Powell family left their native State and went to Ohio and in 1852 drove across the country from there to Illinois, settling in Tazewell county.
Here Thomas J. Powell lived the peaceful life of the average pioneer boy until the Civil war broke out and President Lincoln called for volunteers to defend the Union. He enlisted July 30, 1861, in Company B, Forty-seventh regiment, Illinois infantry and was mustered into the United States service at Camp Lyons, Peoria, Ill. He was one of the first to reach Benton Barracks, St. Louis, and from there went to Otterville, Mo., and then, with his command, marched back to St. Louis and from there went to Cairo, Ill., then to Point Pleasant, opposite Island No. 10. From Island No. 10, his regiment was sent to Fort Pillow and from there to Pittsburg Landing. He then participated in the battle of Corinth and that fall took part in Grant's Oxford campaign, and later to Memphis, and then took part in the Vicksburg campaign. He was at the capture of Jackson, Miss., and then joined Grant's army at Vicksburg, in the meantime doing considerable scouting. His regiment was stationed at Young's Point, within ten miles of Vicksburg for a time, during which time the ranks of the Forty-seventh were badly depleted from sickness. In fact, Mr. Powell was one of the only three men in the regiment who were fit for duty. After the fall of Vicksburg, they were in camp on the Big Black River in Mississippi for a time and then went to New Orleans, later taking part in the capture of Mobile, this regiment capturing one of the forts on Mobile Bay at night. From Mobile they went to Montgomery, Ala., and then with the thirteenth corps went to help out Banks on the Red River expedition. They did considerable garrison duty after Lee surrendered. Mr. Powell was accidentally injured while in the service by being struck in the eye by a bayonet. In July, 1864, after enlisting as a veteran volunteer, he was promoted to sergeant of his company, and in the fall of 1864 was commissioned second lieutenant and in the spring of 1865, was promoted to a first lieutenant. He was discharged February 10, 1866, with a highly commendable military record, after having served four and a half years.
After the war he returned to his home in Illinois and after taking a course in business college, engaged in farming. He was married in 1869, to Miss Elizabeth Hart, a native of Illinois. Her parents immigrated to America from Ireland in the early fifties, and the father died soon after coming to this country. In the fall of 1869, after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Powell came to Butler county and located on the banks of the Whitewater in Plum Grove township. They drove from Illinois to Butler county with a team and prairie schooner. After coming here Mr. Powell filed on a quarter section in section 12, range 3, township 24, and proceeded to build his cabin and make his home in the new country. His start was slow. The first few years he met with the various obstacles common to the lot of most of the pioneers of Butler county, but after a time prosperity dawned and Mr. Powell has become one of the successful and well to do men of Butler county. In addition to the 160 acres which he homesteaded, he owns considerable city property in Whitewater.
To Mr. and Mrs. Powell have been born the following children: Julia F., born March 25, 1870, died October 24, 1873; George C, born October 16, 1871, died October 26, 1871; Lucy L., born May 7, 1873, married Joseph Wallace and lives in Arkansas; Lewis C, born May 12, 1876, lives in Butler county; Callie, born June 7, 1878, married Engene LaFever, Fort Worth, Tex.; Caroline J., born October 6, 1880, married J. Baman of Caldwell, Kans.; Royal O., born November 14, 1882, lives in San Antonio, Tex.; Musie A., born July 2, 1888, lives in Los Angeles, Cal., and Bessie H., born April 29, 1890. The wife and mother died June 21, 1903, and thus one of the noble pioneer women of Butler county passed to the great beyond.
Mr. Powell is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and is a progressive Republican. He is one of the brave pioneers of the plains and defenders of the Union who will be remembered as long as gratitude remains an element of American patriotism and civilization. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 814-816)
Abel Cartwright, now living retired on his farm in Fairmount township, bears the unusual distinction of having passed the one hundred and first milestone in the journey of life, which of itself, without further inquiry, bespeaks a life of right living for himself as well as his antecedents. Mr. Cartwright comes from an old and honorable American family who were ably represented in the, Revolutionary struggle by his grandfather, Christopher Cartwright.
Abel Cartwright was born in Hinesburg,
Vt., November 9, 1814. His parents were Silas and Sallie (Heath) Cartwright, natives of Vermont. Silas Cartwright,
the father, was a son of Christopher Cartwright, who was born in Connecticut in 1755. The archives of the War Department
at Washington, D. C, contain records which show that Christopher Cartwright enlisted February 10, 1777, in Captain
McCune's regiment, Col. Seth Warner's Continental regiment at Pownal, Vt The war records also show that he applied
for a pension, July 28, 1818, which was allowed, and he received the same until the time of his death. March 7,
1839. Christopher Cartwright reared a family of several daughters and two sons, Silas, the father of Abel, being
one of the sons. Silas Cartwright married Sallie Heath, and they spent their lives in their native State, Vermont.
Four children were born to them: Abel, whose name introduces this sketch, and three daughters.
Abel Cartwright grew to manhood in his native State, and afterwards removed to New York State, and on March 20,
1848, he was united in marriage at Plattsburg, N. Y., to Miss Adaline Hilliard. She was a native of Plattsburg,
born September 4, 1828, and a daughter of Arson and Amity (Smith) Hilliard. Anson Hilliard was also a native of
Plattsburg, N. Y., born in 1795, and spent his life in that locality, and died December 1, 1857. He was the son
of Joshua Hilliard, who was born in Norwich, Conn., January 7, 1757. According to the records of the War Department
at Washington, D. C, Joshua Hilliard served four terms of enlistment in the Continental army during the Revolutionary
war, one term of which was in the marine service under Captain Smedley, and he saw service on the Continental brig,
"Defense." He was at the battle of White Plains, N. Y. It will be remembered that here it was that Alexander
Hamilton distinguished himself as a soldier. Joshua married Mollie Grinnell, a member of the Grinnell family known
in the history of this country as a family of explorers. Captain Grinnell, who fittted out an expedition and went
in search of the North Pole, being the distinguished member of this family.
Abel Cartwright, the subject of this sketch, and his wife resided in Plattsburg, N. Y., until 1865, when they went to LaSalle county, Illinois. Here they bought 160 acres of land and followed farming until 1903, when they came to Butler county and bought 480 acres of land in Fairmount township. This is one of the fine farms of western Butler county, and makes an ideal home. To Mr. and Mrs. Cartwright have been born the following children: L. N., Whitney, Neb.; Hettie A. resides at home; Truman, at home; Silas, died in infancy; Mary E., wife of William Hallett, Elbing, Kans.; Albert H., at home; John H., deceased; Abel C, Jr., deceased, and Sherman A., Moline, Ill.
Mr. Cartwright has been a lifelong Republican and a steadfast supporter of the policies and principles of that party at all times. His life represents an unusually honorable as well as a long career, which might well be emulated by the present and future generations for the benefit of the human race, physically, mentally, and morally. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 816-817)
J. B. Moore, a prosperous farmer and stock raiser of Fairmount township, is a native son of Butler county. He was born in Fairmount township in 1875, and is the only child born to Albert and Jane (Harris) Moore. Albert Moore, the father, was born near Terre Haute, Ind., in 1843, and when about twelve years old went to Iowa with his parents, who settled in Mohaska county. They were very early settlers in that section of Iowa, going there in 1855. Jane Harris, mother of J. B. Moore, was born in Illinois, a daughter of John and Nancy Harris, who went to Iowa when she was a child.
Albert Moore and Jane Harris were married in Iowa in 1870 and the following spring drove through from that State to Butler county, Kansas, with a yoke of oxen and wagon. They brought with them all their earthly possessions, which consisted of the emigrant outfit and a few chickens and a pig. The pig and chickens were hauled in a cart behind the regular wagon. It required three weeks to make the trip. When they reached Butler county they homesteaded a quarter section in Fairmount township, which is still the family homestead. During a part of the first summer they lived in the wagons in which they made the trip until they were able to build a small house, which in turn was replaced a few years later with a modern farm residence. Mr. Moore bought additional land, which he added to his original homestead, and became a very prosperous farmer. He died in 1900.
J. B. Moore, the subject of this sketch, was reared on the old homestead in Fairmount township, and attended the district schools. He obtained a good common school education and later attended the Wichita Business College for two years. Mr. Moore was married in 1902 to Miss Nora Worline, a daughter of Marion and Harriet (Eyestone) Worline, the former a native of Delaware county, Ohio, and the latter of Illinois. Marion Worline was a son of Abraham and Susan Worline) Worline, who, although they bore the same name, were not related. They were both natives of Pennsylvania. They were the parents of ten children, nine of whom were born in Pennsylvania and one in Missouri.
When Marion Worline was a young man he went to Fayette county, Illinois, and there met Harriet Eyestone and they were later married. She was a daughter of Martin and Nancy (Loche) Eyestone. The father was born in Germany, but of Welch ancestry, and was brought to America by his parents when he was a child, and they settled in Fayetteville, Ill., where the parents died. Shortly after their marriage, in 1870, Marion Worline and his wife removed to Missouri, and after spending one winter with Abraham Worline, they came to Kansas in 1871 and settled in Butler county and took a homestead in Fairmount township on the northeast corner of section 2, where they engaged in farming and stock raising, and added to their original homestead until they owned 200 acres of land. Mr. Worline became well-to-do and was one of the influential men of the community. He took an active interest in local political affairs, but never aspired to hold political office. He died in 1914 and his widow now resides on the old homestead in Fairmount township. They were the parents of seven children, of whom Mrs. J. B. Moore is the eldest. She was born in Fairmount township in 1874. This will be remembered as grasshopper year, and the Worline family as well as the other early settlers, suffered greatly from the devastation wrought by these pests of the plains, who devoured and destroyed everything in sight that year. Roth Mr. and Mrs. Moore bear the distinction of belonging to two of Butler county's old pioneer families. Mr. Moore is a stanch Democrat, and has always advocated and supported the principles of that party. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 817-818)
William T. Davis, a prominent farmer of Clifford township, is one of the oldest living pioneers of Butler county and has been a witness to the great transformation that has taken place here in the last forty-eight years. Mr. Davis was born in Lewis county, Kentucky, March 18, 1841, and is a son of Thomas and Susan (Cottingham) Davis, the former a native of Virginia and of Irish descent, and the latter a native of Maryland and of Scotch ancestry. The parents were pioneers of Kentucky, and eleven children were born to William T. Davis' parents, of whom he was the eighth in the order of birth. The Davis family migrated from Kentucky to Missouri in 1848 or 1849 and located in Jackson county. After remaining there four or five years they removed to Vernon county, where the father died, after which the mother came to Kansas and spent the balance of her life with her sons. Dr. J. V. and W. T., of this sketch. She died in 1884.
W. T. Davis came to Butler county from Vernon county, Missouri, in 1868 and homesteaded the southwest quarter of section 15, in the Congressional township, which was later called Clifford. He built a log cabin on his claim, overlooking what was then known as Davis creek and now called the Whitewater. Mr. Davis was unmarried and lived in his cabin on the plains alone. There was now and then a claimer's cabin to be found here and there, but they were few. Thomas L. Fenner and W. H. A very were his neighbors, but they were a long distance away. The winter of 1868 and 1869 is memorable in the history of Kansas for its Indian uprising and rumors of threatened Indian raids were frequent; in fact, that is about the only kind of news they had in those days. On one occasion some Paul Revere of the plains notified the settlers of approaching hostile Indians, but overlooked Mr. Davis, and while all the other settlers fled to safety he continued to live on, ignorant of his impending fate. Some days before that he had borrowed a plow of Avery, and after plowing his garden, drove over to Avery's place with the plow and found that the door of Avery's cabin was barred and the place deserted. Thinking that Avery had gone to Emporia. a distance of sixty miles, for supplies, which was not unusual, and seeing that Avery's own garden needed plowing, Mr. Davis proceeded to plow it and then took the plow back home with him. But Avery had gone away on account of the Indian scare, and when he returned he told Davis that those Cheyenne Indians were not such bad fellows after all, for they had plowed his garden while he was gone.
The summer of 1868 was dry and the settlers raised little or no crops, and they were hard up the following winter, which was a hard winter, with considerable snow. One day a stranger came to the Davis cabin and said that the trail was so badly drifted that he would like to stay over night. It proved to be Col. William F. Cody, "Buffalo Bill/' who at that time was a Government scout and engaged in watching the movements of the Cheyenne Indians, who were making hostile demonstrations. Mr. Davis entertained the famous Indian scout with the best that his table afforded. He had no meat of any kind, but having a supply of meal and flour, he gave his honored guest all the biscuits and johnny cake that he wanted.
When Mr. Davis came here buffalo were plentiful in the locality where he homesteaded, and he has seen a great many herds northwest of his claim, and deer and prairie chickens were in abundance for several years after Mr. Davis settled here. He was something of a hunter in the early days and made several trips or hunting expeditions over the plains still farther west. While on one of these expeditions southwest of Wichita, he and his two companions, after they had gone into camp one night, heard the warwhoop of a band of hostile Indians, who seemingly had located them, and the hunters proceeded to throw up earthworks and fortify themselves for the impending assault. After they had completed their fortifications they decided that on account of the vast number of Indians they would move farther west, They traveled all night and the Indians did not pursue them, so they escaped once more. The Indians were numerous in this section when Mr. Davis settled here, but most of them were friendly nuisances. They were great beggars, but never did any great amount of harm.
Mr. Davis was married in 1874 to Miss Henrietta Dean, a daughter of Culbertson and Elizabeth (Myers) Dean both natives of Pennsylvania, the former of English and Irish and the latter of Holland-Dutch descent. Culbertson Dean was a son of Daniel Dean, who removed from Pennsylvania to Illinois in 1847. Elizabeth Myers came to Illinois with her parents when she was fourteen years old. The Dean family came to Butler county in the fall of 1868 and homesteaded on the Whitewater and afterward went to Cedar Point, where the father died in 1873. The mother now resides at Whitewater at the advanced age of eighty-three. To William T. Davis and wife have been born three children, as follows: W. I., Martha Alma and George.
Mr. Davis has been engaged in farming and stock raising ever since coming to Butler county, excepting two years, from 1873 to 1874, when he was engaged in the drug business in partnership with his brother, Dr. J. V. Davis, at Cedar Point, Kans. He owns 160 acres of land and is in comfortable circumstances. Mr. Davis has been a witness to many of the history making events of Butler county and he is entitled to no small amount of credit for the part that he has played in the development of the "State of Butler." (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 818-820)
Joseph P. Liggett, a pioneer stockman and farmer of Butler county is a native of Ohio. He was born in Zanesvillc, in 1846. He grew to manhood in his native State, and when the Civil war broke out, he enlisted in an Ohio regiment and served until the close of that great conflict. He then returned to Ohio and was married to Mary Jane Tucker, also a native of Ohio. After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Liggett remained in Ohio until 1870, when they went to Missouri, and the following year, came to Butler county, Kansas. They drove through from Missouri with a team and prairie schooner, camping nights on the trail. When they reached Butler county, Mr. Liggett pre-empted the southwest quarter of section 6, Clifford township, and proceeded to make a home for himself and his family in the new country. In those days times were hard, and money scarce, and Mr. Liggett frequently worked out by the day to get money, with which to support his family. He has worked many a day for fifty cents.
After passing through the first few years of uncertainty and meager returns, he began to prosper, and in 1885, bought 140 acres more land, and about five years later, added still another eighty to his holdings, and now owns 320 acres of well improved and valuable land, which he and his eldest son, J. M., operate in partnership. They are extensively engaged in general farming, and give special attention to the feeding feature of the stock business, handling on an average of about 400 head of cattle annually, however, they have fed as high as 700 head in one year. They sometimes buy their feeders on the Kansas City markets, and sometimes they buy in the country, conditions determining which course to pursue. The Liggetts thoroughly understand the cattle business, and as a whole, their business has been very profitable. and yet they have sometimes, as have all other cattle men, fed at a loss.
The Liggett ranch is an ideal location for the cattle business. It is situated on a gentle slope, overlooking the old Wilcox place, which .was famous in the early days as one of the largest cattle ranches in this section of the country. J. M. Liggett, the junior member of this firm, is one of the prominent stockmen of this State. He is a member of the Kansas Live Stock Association, and takes a prominent part in the annual meetings of that organization.
J. M. Liggett was married, in 1888, to Miss Mary J. Ferrier, a daughter of Thomas L. Ferrier, and three children have been, born to this union: Edna, deceased; Jessie and Bernice. Mr. Liggett's second marriage took place, in 1901, to Miss Pearl Cretsinger, daughter of John J. and Josephine (Clark) Cretsinger, natives of New York, the former of Erie county, and the latter of Niagara county. The father was born May 24, 1856, a son of John and Barbara (Rushman) Cretsinger, both natives of Germany, who came to this county with their respective parents, when they were children. Mrs. Liggett's father, John J. Cretsinger, left New York when he was about twenty-five years of age, and went to Flint, Mich., where he was married to Josephine Clark. She is a daughter of Sylvester Clark, a native of New York, and a son of Pendleton Clark, in whose honor the town of Pendleton was named. To Mr. and Mrs. M. J. Liggett has been born one child, Josephine Milford, who is now thirteen years of age, and gives every promise of a brilliant future as a vocalist.
J. T. Liggett has spent several years in California recently, and now spends a great deal of his time in Peabody, where he has extensive interests. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 820-821)
A. J. Barker, a Civil war veteran and Kansas pioneer, is a native of Illinois. He was born in Schuyler county September 3, 1844, and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Stephenson) Barker. William Barker was a native of Virginia and of English descent. He was an early settler in Schuyler county, Illinois, where he received a government land grant for having rendered meritorius service in the Black Hawk Indian war. The Barker family were well known cutlery manufacturers in England.
A. J. Barker was one of a family of ten children. He spent his early life on the pioneer farm in Illinois, engaged in the peaceful pursuits of the average boy of his time. Before he was eighteen years old, on July 19, 1862, he enlisted in Company D, One Hundred and Fifteenth regiment, Illinois infantry, under Colonel Moore. His command was attached to the army of the Cumberland under General Thomas, and Mr. Barker participated in the battles of Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge, Buzzards Roost, Buzzards Roost Gap, and was captured at the latter place and kept prisoner with 8,000 other federal soldiers and two weeks later was paroled. He served throughout the war with distinction and was discharged with an enviable military record, June n, 1865, on account of the close of the war, lacking eight days of serving three years. He saw much hard service but has never regretted the sacrifices that he made on the march, under fire or in confederate prisons, that the Union might triumph over her vanquished foes.
After receiving his discharge from the army, Mr. Barker returned to Illinois, where he was married in 1867, to Miss Elizabeth Bean, a native of Illinois of Kentucky parentage. Mr. Barker and wife remained in Illinois, where they engaged in farming until 1870, when he sold his farm of eighty acres at a good profit and he and his family came to Kansas, locating in Brown county. He bought eighty-five acres of land there and from time to time, bought additional land until he owned 303 acres. In 1895, he sold his Brown county property for $25,000 and came to Butler county and bought 480 acres of land in Milton township, which he later sold at a profit and bought 400 acres, to which he added 120, and afterward bought 240 acres more in Oklahoma.
Mr. Barker has been extensively engaged in the cattle business and has met with marked success in that industry and in addition to his general farming and stock operations, he has been a money loaner for over twenty years and is very heavily invested in farm mortgages. His career has been one of unusual success which he largely attributes to the fact that he has always followed the policy of sticking to his business. In 1910, Mr. Barker retired from active business and gave each of his children 160 acres of land, but this act of generosity by no means impoverished him as he has enough of this world's goods left to properly classify him among Butler county's wealthiest citizens. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 821-822)
J. L. Kimberlin, of Clifford township, belongs to one of the pioneer families of Butler county, coming to this county with his parents in 1870. when he was six years of age. He is a son of M. D. L. and Winifred (Hourigan) Kimberlin, both natives of Kentucky. The mother was born in Marion county, and was a daughter of James and Susan Hourigan. James Hourigan was a native of Ireland and a Kentucky pioneer. He was the first man to plant an orchard in Marion county, Kentucky. M. D. L. Kimberlin was born in Washington county, Kentucky, in 1824, of Irish and Scotch ancestry. John Kimberlin, his father, was a Kentucky pioneer, settling in that State, not far from the date of Daniel Boone's settlement there.
M. D. L. Kimberlin came to Kansas in 1870. and after spending about a year in Bourbon county, came to Butler county in 1871, and bought a quarter section of land upon which he built a two story house, 20x36 feet, which was considered one of the finest houses in that section at the time. He had more capital than the average pioneer of that time. He had been a tobacco raiser while in Kentucky, and had made considerable money there. Shortly after buying his first quarter section here, he bought an additional quarter, and at the time of his death in 1886, he owned a half section of land and was fairly prosperous. lie died about the time that the development of Butler county had really begun, and was thus denied the privilege and pleasure of seeing his faith in Butler county fully verified. When he came here, he built his house exactly on the old trail leading from Emporia to the Southwest, and after that the trail made a circuitous route around the place. In the early days, great herds of cattle were driven over this trail from Texas and New Mexico to Kansas City. Old Plum Grove was quite a frontier town then, and had a general store, a blacksmith shop and a saloon, and the cowboys and cattlemen generally camped in this vicinity with their herds, and now and then, after some of them had a plentiful supply of the "oil of joy," they would celebrate the event by shooting up the town of Old Plum Grove in true frontier style. Most of the land in that section at the time was what was known as speculator land, and a great deal of it was owned by Mr. Pot win, after whom the town of Potwin was named, who had bought this land for thirty-two cents per acre.
J. L. Kimberlin was born in Washington county. Kentucky, February 1, 1864. and was one of a family of eight children. After coming to Kansas he grew to manhood, surrounded by the primitive pioneer conditions and had very little opportunity to obtain an education. However, he has been a student all his life and an extensive reader, and is what might properly be termed a thoroughly self educated man, and is one of the best posted men on current events to be found in Butler county. In early life he followed the cattle industry on the open range, more or less, and has been a cowboy in New Mexico and Texas as well as Kansas, and has an interesting stock of reminiscences of the early days and happenings on the plains when he was a boy. One of his first business enterprises was herding hogs for the neighborhood, long before the days of fences. He herded a drove of 400 hogs one season for $12 per month in the early seventies. Another one of his early boyhood enterprises was trapping and shooting rabbits and prairie chicken which he shipped to St. Louis in considerable quantities, which developed into quite a profitable business and the money, which he received in this way, gave him his first real start in life. He invested it in calves, and gradually developed quite a herd. He worked some at the stone mason's trade in the early days, building cellar walls for the settlers, and for a time, rented land and carried on the stock business, and later he and his brothers, Frank and George, bought a half section of land, going into debt for most of the purchase price, which they paid in six years. When they divided their interests, J. L. got the southeast quarter of section 33, which is now a very well improved farm. He is one of the successful fruit growers of Butler county, and has a fine apple orchard as well as an abundance of small fruit. He finds the fruit industry to be profitable and much to his liking in connection with his other work, and always finds a ready market for his fruit of all varieties. He has made careful study of horticulture, and uses the most modern methods of spraying and caring for his trees generally. Mr. Kimberlin has perhaps the best barn in Butler county. The plan of it, which is entirely his own, is unique in many ways. The building is 56x40 feet with a circular roof, with every convenience for handling grain and hay. His place is well equipped with other farm buildings, affording the most modern and scientific methods of farming.
Mr. Kimberlin was married to Miss Minnie Van, a daughter of J. G. and Evelyn f Adams) Van, the former a native of Missouri, and the latter of Illinois. J. G. Van was a son of William Van, a native of England who was one of the earliest settlers of Butler county and who homesteaded near where Towanda now is. Mrs. Kimberlin was one of a family of six children. Mr. and Mrs. Kimberlin have a wide acquaintance in Butler county, and are well and favorably known. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 822-824)
Ed C. Varner, one of the most conspicuous men in the development of the Augusta gas and oil field, is a native of Illinois. He was born in Jackson county in 1867, and is a son of Jesse V. and Olive (Orr) Varner. The father was a native of Washington county, Ohio, born in 1828, and a son of Joseph and Martha (Drumm) Varner, natives of Ohio. He died in 1904. The mother, Olive Orr, was a native of Mahoning county, born in 1837, a daughter of Russell and Eleanor (Winans) Orr. She is one of Butler county's pioneer women and now resides in Augusta.
Ed C. Varner came to Kansas with his parents when a boy eleven years of age. He received his education in the public schools of Illinois and in Butler county after coming here. He was reared on his father's farm and as a boy became familiar with general farming methods and stock raising. He began farming on his own account in 1891, and in 1894 bought a farm, upon which he has lived for eleven years. In the fall of 1902, he bought the northeast quarter of section 17, Walnut township, for which the paid $2,600. He bought the place from Merle Karnahan and here he engaged in general farming and stock raising, and by his industry and good business judgment has met with success and profited.
While Mr. Varner was more successful as a farmer and stock raiser than the average man, his real success, which made his name familiar to the oil producing world from one end of the country to the other, came with the development of the Augusta field, which today is the mecca of the oil investors and producers of the country.
Mr. Varner owns 285 acres within the oil belt, and the first gas well brought in on his place was on April 28, 1914, and there are now five good producing gas wells, besides several offsets. The first oil well brought in on Mr. Varner's place was on July 12, 1915, and there are now ten producing oil wells, some of the best in the country, located on his property. The last one brought in was on May 24, 1916, and as a producer far excels any well in the district up to date. The most conservative estimate of the production of this well places it at 7,000 barrels per day.
Ed Varner's brother, Frank, is also a large land owner in the Augusta oil and gas district, owning 277 acres upon which there are now ten good producing oil wells, and in all fairness to the Varner brothers, and to others interested in the Augusta oil fields, it can be said that the Varner brothers were prominent factors in bringing about the (Jeep tests in this district, which have been so prolific in production to date. The original intention of the operators of this district seemed to contemplate gas production only, but Ed and Frank Varner insist that deeper tests should be made than those contemplated before leasing their properties. The world knows the result.
Ed C. Varner was united in marriage at Augusta, September 23, 1894, to Miss Ona Carr, daughter of D. M/ and Nancy (Dobbins) Carr, both deceased. The Carr family located at Augusta in 1882. To Mr. and Mrs. Varner have been born five children, as follows: Ethel, was graduated from the Augusta High School in the class of 1916; Ralph, a student in the Augusta High School, and member of the class of 1917; Chester, in his second year in the Augusta High School; Cecil, a student in the grade school of Augusta, and Velma.
Mr. Varner is a conscientious man, and his business methods have always been straightforward and candid,, and he has the absolute confidence of his fellowmen with whom he has had dealings, and the friendship and well wishes of his many old friends and acquaintances. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 824-825)
Joseph Mead, a prominent farmer and stockman of Plum Grove township and a veteran of the Civil war, is a native of Delaware county, New York. He was born February 26, 1844, and is a son of Jabez and Lucetta (Nickason) Meade, natives of New York and of English descent. When Joseph Mead was a child, the family removed to Michigan and settled on a farm in Kalamazoo county. There were nine children in the Mead family. The parents spent their lives in Michigan.
Joseph Mead served in Company C, Sixteenth regiment, Michigan infantry, during the Civil war and experienced much hard service. His command served in the Army of the Potomac under General Grant. At the siege of Petersburg, he was one of a small detachment that became separated from his regiment and for five days, while endeavoring to get back to his regiment, he was without food, however he came upon his regiment one morning just as they were at breakfast which was a very opportune moment for a hungry soldier to join his comrades. After the surrender of Lee he participated in the Grand Review at Washington and later was discharged at Jeffersonville, Ind., and mustered out at Detroit, Mich.
After the war Mr. Mead remained in Michigan and followed lumbering to some extent. In the winter of 1878 he took a contract to cut 300 cords of wood and in order to fulfill" his contract he and his men were compelled to work in snow, four feet deep, and had to shovel the timber out of the snow. They endured much hardship that winter, which led Mr. Mead to the conclusion that if there was any other place on earth where snow and winter weather were not the dominant features of the climate he wanted to see what it looked like. With that end in view he bought a ticket to Hutchinson, Kans., where some friends of his lived at that time. That section of the State seemed a little too treeless to a man from the woods of Michigan, and after looking around considerably he found a location to his liking in Plum Grove township, Butler county. He had very little capital and at first invested in a small tract of land upon which he built a small house, and later he bought eighty acres of land on Diamond creek, making a payment of $10.00 and going in debt for most of the purchase price. He raised a big crop of corn the first year, which gave him a good start, and he now owns 200 acres which is one of the best farms in Plum Grove township.
Mr. Mead was married in 1871, to Miss Hattie Thair a daughter of Orleius Thair, a native of New York and a pioneer of Michigan. To Mr. and Mrs. Mead have been born the following children: Henry. Butler county; Joseph R., Butler county; Maude, married Samuel Thomas. Butler county; Lily, married Elias Eckhardt, Oklahoma; Frances, mar-ried Joseph Wilson, Butler county; Matty, married Rowe Ullem.
Mr. Mead is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, tl^e Masonic lodge, and is a Democrat. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 825-826)
John H. Poffinbarger, a Civil war veteran who is now a prominent farmer and stock raiser in Plum Grove township, is a native of Ohio. He was born in Ross county, April 30. 1844, and is a son of John and Sorrenia (Simmerl) Poffinbarger, both natives of Ohio, the former of German and the latter of English descent. John II. was the eldest of a family of three children. When he was six years of age, the family migrated from Ohio to Illinois, locating in Cumberland county. They left their native State on Christmas day in 1850. The father died a short time after the family settled in Illinois and the mother married again and soon afterward the family removed to Missouri, where John IL grew to manhood.
He was yet a mere boy of sixteen when the Civil war broke out, but even at that early age, he enlisted in the home guards and in December, 1861, he enlisted in Company B, Twenty-third regiment, Missouri infantry, serving under Capt. John Fisher and Colonel Robison in General Prentice's division. They were first engaged in northern Missouri against the Confederate guerillas which infested that section of the State. Later they were transferred to the army of the Cumberland, going by boat from St. Louis down the Mississippi and up the Ohio and Tennessee rivers. They reached Shiloh just in time to participate in that memorable engagement. They disembarked at six o'clock on Sat-urday evening and the battle began at daybreak on Sunday morning, before many of the soldiers had breakfast. The battle raged all day but darkness ended the conflict, only for a time, to be resumed at davbreak the following day which was ended at noon by a Union victory. Mr. Poffinbarger was severely wounded about six o'clock on the evening of the first day, being struck on the hip by an ounce ball. lie remained all that night and until noon the next day on the field where he fell, when almost exhausted from loss of blood, pain and exposure, he was removed to a field hospital and later sent to a hospital at Louisville, Ky. He remained there about a year when he was transferred to a hospital at Gallipolis, Ohio, remaining there another year. He finally recovered sufficiently to leave the hospital but still carries the effect of that great conflict, in which he nearly gave his life to the cause of the Union. He was finally discharged on account of disability and went to his old home in Ross county where he remained with an uncle about six months, during which time he was under the care of a physician, and later went to Cincinnati where he remained in the hospital until he recovered. After returning to Harrison county, Missouri, he went to Vernon county, that State, where he remained three years.
On June 17, 1866, Mr. Poffinbarger
was united in marriage at Kickapoo, Kans., to Miss Rebecca Jeffries, a daughter of Mathias and Margaret (Miller)
Jeffries, natives of Ohio, the former of Fayette county and the latter of Clark county. Mrs. Poffinbarger was one
of a family of six children. When she was ten years old her parents removed from Ohio to Harrison county, Missouri,
and settled in the neighborhood where Mr. Poffinbarger's people had settled. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs.
Poffinbarger resided in Vernon and Platt counties, Missouri, until 1870. In the fall of that year they came to
Butler county, Kansas, and homesteaded a quarter section of land on Four Mile creek in Plum Grove township. At
that time there was not even a trail across their claim and only three families lived on Four Mile creek and surrounding
country. Here they engaged in farming and after passing through the pioneer struggles of the first few years prosperity
came and in a short time, Mr. Poffinbarger bought another quarter section of land and has continued to add to his
homestead until he now owns 560 acres of some of the best land to be found in Butler county. His place is well
improved with good farm buildings, and is an ideal stock farm. Mr. Poffinbarger is not only an extensive stock
raiser and farmer but one of the successful, feeders of this section. He has conducted his business in a way that
bespeaks for him marked business ability and keen foresight.
To Mr. and Mrs. Poffinbarger have been born the following children: Charles P.. Butler county; John H., Jr., on
the home place; Warren, Butler county; Fannie, married B. O. Graham, St. Louis." Mo.; James, Butler county,
and Grace, married Clyde Harper, El Dorado, Kans. Mr. Poffinbarger is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic
and is a Republican, although he has never sought political office. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol.
P. Mooney, 1916 Page 826-827)
Philip Smith, a Civil war veteran and early settler of this county, has been a successful farmer and stock raiser of Plum Grove township for a number of years. He was born in Armstrong county, Pennsylvania, May 17, 1841, and is a son of Adam and Mary Ann (Shoemaker) Smith, both Pennsylvanians, the former a native of Northumberland county, and the latter of Westmoreland county, and of Holland descent.
Philip Smith was reared on the home farm in Armstrong county. He was one of a family of eight children, and is now the only surviving member. The old homestead in Armstrong county, which Mr. Smith has visited four times since coming to Kansas, is still in the family, now being owned by a son of his oldest brother. Philip Smith and two of his brothers served in the Union army during the Civil war. J. E. enlisted July 4, 1861, in Company D, Sixty-second regiment, Pennsylvania infantry, and served in the army of the Potomac, at first under Gen. George B. McClellan. W. A., a younger brother, enlisted in October, 1864, serving in the Seventy-eighth regiment, Pennsylvania infan-try, until the close of the war. On August 14, 1861, when he was a few months past twenty, Philip Smith enlisted in Company B, Seventy-eighth regiment, Pennsylvania infantry. His command was attached to the army of the Cumberland under General Thomas at first, and after joining the army at Pittsburg, Pa., he went to Camp Nevin, near Louisville Ky., and from there to Bacon creek, Knolluns, Green River and Bowling Green, Ky., and then to Nashville, Tenn., and guarded railroad bridges and other property in that vicinity, and went from there to Murfreesboro and participated in the battle of Stone River. They then participated in the battle of Chickamauga, and his regiment was the first to cross Lookout Mountain on their way to the battlefield at Chickamauga. After that battle, they fell back to Chattanooga, and remained there until May 3, 1864, when they joined Sherman on his march to Atlanta and from Atlanta to the sea. After the battle of Kenesaw Mountain, Mr. Smith's regiment was sent back to Chattanooga with General Thomas' army to guard supply trains to Sherman's army, and they operated back and forth between the base of supplies and Sherman's army during that campaign. They were detailed in squads of about twenty soldiers to each train and had many interesting and exciting clashes writh rebel guerillas who were harassing the Union supply trains. After that campaign they went from Chattanooga to Nashville, where the Seventy-eighth regiment embarked on a steamboat, and went up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to Pittsburg and from there to Kittanning, Pa., where Mr. Smith was discharged and mustered out of service, October 4, 1864.
After the war, Mr. Smith engaged in farming in Armstrong county within three miles of his first place. He remained there until 1878 when he came to Butler county, Kansas, where his brother, J. E., had located in 1871, and had taken up a homestead. Here he settled on section 23, Plum Grove township, and later bought a half section of land which he still owns. He paid $8 per acre for this farm, which, at a conservative estimate, is now worth $75 per acre. Mr. Smith has followed stock raising quite extensively, and has been successful in raising cattle and hogs. He has been quite an extensive feeder, which has proven very profitable. He began in Butler county with very little capital, and is now one of the well-to-do men of the community.
On March 16, 1865, Mr. Smith was united in marriage with Miss Susanna Wise, a native of Pennsylvania and a daughter of Jacob and Katherine (Holden) Wise, natives of Pennsylvania, and of Holland descent. To Mr. and Mrs. Smith, the following children have been born: Cora, married S. A. Markee, Plum Grove township; Clara, married R. M. Poe, Potwin, Kans.; J. E., Potwin, Kans.; Minnie, married R. L. Fowler, Marion county, Kansas; Edward, El Dorado, Kans., and Homer, Potwin, Kans.
Mr. Smith is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and is commander of Potwin Post No. 377. He is a member of the Evangelical Church at Potwin. Although he has never taken an active part in politics, he has supported the policies and principles of the Democratic party, and has served as township trustee three terms, and has been a member of the Potwin council, two years. Mrs. Smith died August 11, 1914. Mr. Smith is now living' retired, and is one of Butler county's most substantial citizens. (History of Butler County, Kansas, by Vol. P. Mooney, 1916 Pages 827-829)
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