Biographies for Chase County, Kansas

BIOGRAPHIES

Chase County, Kansas

ALLEN, THOMAS G.

Thomas G. Allen, farmer, stockman and educator, was born at Friendsville, Tennessee, February 15, 1857, son of Thomas Norris and Elizabeth (Morgan) Allen. The father, a native of Tennessee, died at Toledo, Kansas, January 11, 1875. His wife Elizabeth also a native of Tennessee died at Toledo, June 16, 1890.

During his mature life he has been a farmer, stockman and educator. At the time present time he is probate and juvenile judge of Chase County, Kansas. He is a Republican.

On February 15, 1881, he was married to Lottie Valentine Brown at Cottonwood Falls. She was born on a farm in Wabaunsee County, Kansas, February 14, 1863. She is the author of Prairie Poems and others.

For the past 40 years Judge Allen has been associated with school work in Chase County as a teacher and superintendent. He has held his present position of probate judge for 14 years. He is a member of the Friends Church, the Chamber of Commerce and the Modern Woodmen of America. Residence: Cottonwood Falls. (Illustriana Kansas, by Sara Mullin Baldwin & Robert Morton Baldwin, 1933, page 28)

ARNOLD FLORA WILCOX

Flora Wilcox Arnold, county treasurer, of Chase County, was born on a farm near Corning, Kansas, September 26, 1887, daughter of Edward Jasper and Flora Estella (Martin) Wilcox. The father was born at Ostrander, Ohio, November 4, 1862, and is a retired farmer. The mother was born in Hyattsville, Ohio, November 4, 1867. Her grandfather, Thomas Robison Hamilton was the first cousin to Alexander Hamilton.

Flora Wilcox attended public school at Cottonwood Falls and was graduated from the Chase County High School in 1906. During the year 1918-19 she attended the University of Kansas at Lawrence (summer session). She taught in the country in Chase County for three years after leaving school; was study hall teacher during 198-1919 in the Chase County High School; during 1919-20 taught school at Abilene, Kansas, in the grade school and during 1920-21 was principal of the high school at Woodruff. From 1921 until 1922 she was principal of the grade school at Woodruff, Kansas.

A Democrat, she served three years as secretary of the Democratic County central committee and was delegate to the state convention at Lawrence on May 16, 1932. In 1928 she was elected county treasurer of Chase County and in 1930 was re-elected to the same office.

On July 15, 1908 she was married to Don Edwin Arnold at Cottonwood Falls. Mr. Arnold was born on a farm near Saffordville, Kansas, April 21, 1883 and is a contractor and architect. He is the brother of Anna E. Arnold, author of Kansas History, Civics and Citizenship. They have two children, Dorothy Estella, born May 15, 1909, who married A. Dale Trayer, and Charles born May 22, 1911. Dorothy has two children, Danny Dale, aged 5 years and Harold D. two years. Charles is deputy county treasurer.

A member of the American Legion Auxiliary, Mrs. Arnold was secretary of the local unit, 1928-29 and president, 1931. During the years 1926, 1927 and 1928 she was secretary of the fourth district. She is a Protestant, a member of the Shakespeare Study Club, the State Federation Women's Clubs and District Federation of Women's Clubs. Her hobbies are flowers and gardening and free hand drawing. Residence: Cottonwood Falls. (Illustriana Kansas, by Sara Mullin Baldwin & Robert Morton Baldwin, 1933, page 43)

VERDAN, F. M.

F. M. Verdan, pastor of all the Catholic churches of Chase and Marion counties, Kansas, was born in Savoy, France, and was the only one of a family of seven brothers to take up the work of the church and come to America. His younger brother became a noted surgeon in the French army and died in Africa when only twenty-six years of age. Father Verdan as a child was remarkably precocious. He could read as soon as he could talk, and at the age of nine years began his studies preparatory for entrance to the priesthood. He found no difficulty in keeping up with his classes, notwithstanding his youth, and was graduated from the highest institutions of learning in Paris. When twenty-six years of age he came to America and entered Notre Dame University, at South Bend, Ind., where he learned the English language. He afterward went to New Orleans and was a teacher of languages in St. Isadore College for eight months. He was then ordained to the priesthood and went to Montreal, Canada, where he remained only eight months, because of a loss of hearing in one ear. From there he came to Crawford county, Kansas, in 1881, and located first at Greenbush, but at the beginning of his pastorate a number of different small towns were included in his parish. A friend and a member of his church gave him a mule on which to make his pastoral calls, which necessarily extended to all parts of the entire county. He was very successful in that field of work, and on his transfer from Crawford county to Strong City, Kan., a Girard paper gave the following account of it: "Friday, Jan. 24, 1908, when Father Verdan received the order from Bishop Hennessey, stating that he was to be transferred from the parish which he had built, and in which for over twenty-five years he had faithfully served as pastor and priest, he glanced back and thought of the remarkable changes that had taken place in that quarter of a century. In a vivid picture before him were the memories of the past. In his parish he had baptized 776; married 138 couples; prepared 552 members for
confirmation and performed the last sacred rites of the church at the deaths of 218 members of his congregation. There was scarcely a family in his parish that the death angel had not visited. But now he is leaving this host of friends, the home and church which he built, to take up his labors in a new field-sad indeed-but seeing his duty he obeyed the command promptly."

Father Verdan began his pastorate in Strong City, Jan. 29, 1908, and assumed charge of all the Catholic churches in Chase county, since which time he has built up the church in Strong City alone to about fifty families. In May, 1909, Marion county was added to his parish, and Father Verdan has organized and built tip strong churches at the towns of Florence, Spring Branch and Burns. Though Father Verdan has been in charge of this parish but a short time he has already greatly endeared himself to all of his parishioners. (Kansas Biography, Vol. III, Part 2, Pages 787-788. Transcribed by: Millie Mowry)