CAMPBELL, ROSS TURNER
Ross Turner Campbell, president of Sterling College, was born in Clifton, Ohio, December 1, 1863, the son of William
Alexander and Mary Ann (Turner) Campbell. The father, a clergyman and ardent prohibitionist, was born in Quarryville,
Pennsylvania, November 26, 1829. He died February 24, 1914. His Scotch-Irish ancestors came to America in 1790.
Mary Ann Turner was born in Oxford, Pennsylvania, December 13, 1830, and died October 24, 1902. She was a teacher
both before and after her marriage. She was Scotch - Irish ancestry.
Educated in the elementary schools of Clifton, Ohio, until 1877, Ross Turner Campbell attended the Academy of Westminster
College. He received his Master's degree in 1903 and the degree of Doctor of Divinity in 1904. In 1891 he was graduated
from Xenia Theological Seminary, Xenia, Ohio.
On July 21, 1892, he was married to Margaret Swartwood of Oakmont, Pennsylvania. She was born in Nichols, New York,
June 10, 1866, the daughter of George Harrison and Maria (Lambert) Swartwood. She was a teacher before her marriage.
There are three children,k Helen S., born June 4, 1893, who married J. Wray Henry; Ross T., Jr., October 31, 1896,
who married Beneda Monroe; and John W., August 15, 1904, who married Ruby Grumbein. All are teaching.
Dr. Campbell served as pastor of the Hanover United Presbyterian Church at Hanover, Illinois, from 1892 until 1894,
and the following ten years was principal of Pawnee Academy at Pawnee City, Nebraska. He moved to College Springs,
Iowa, in 1904 to come president of Amity College, and in 1910 came to Sterling College as its president. He is
the author of Outlines of Old Testament History (1910) and Class-room Lectures on the Apostle's Creed (1930).
During the summer of 1930 Dr. Campbell made a trip abroad under the direction of The Travel Institute of Bible
Research of New York. The main object of this trip was to tour Palestine. Sixteen foreign countries were visited
and members of the party took in the Passion Play and the Mediterranean cruise. Three mounts were devoted to the
trip. Dr. Campbell spent a week in Scotland visiting his cousins and viewing the country of his ancestors.
Among his memberships are the United Presbyterian Church, the Young Men's Christian Association, the Chamber of
Commerce, the Lions Club, and Pi Kappa Delta. He is eligible to membership in the Sons of the American Revolution.
His side line is delivering addresses and lecturing on the Bible.
Dr. Campbell was for some six years Bible man on the Redpath Chautauqua circuit. He has three times been Bible
instructor at the New Wilmington (Prennsylvania) Missionary Conference, and twice on the program of the National
Young Peoples Convention of the United Presbyterian Church. He devotes one month each year to this work. He has
since reaching maturity, delivered more than one hundred and fifty commencement addresses. Residence: Sterling.
(Illustriana Kansas, by Sara Mullin Baldwin & Robert Morton Baldwin, 1933, Page 195)
GLEADALL,
RUTH EMMA
Ruth Emma Gleadall, educator was born in Mercer County, Missouri, August 10, 1858, daughter of Anderson and Margaret
(Swope) Thomas. Her father, a native of Kentucky was born February 22, 1822 and died near Virginia, Illinois, March
9, 1902. He was a farmer of English and Scotch extraction, his parents born in America. Her mother, Margaret Swope,
was born in Tennessee, January 22, 1825, and died at Chandlerville, Illinois, January 8, 1879. She was of Irish
ancestry.
Ruth Emma Thomas attended rural school in Illinois and was a student at Chandlerville, Illinois High School. In
1878 she left Chandlerville to come to Kansas with her oldest brother William, they came overland in a covered
wagon and locateda bout 5 miles northeast of Lyons.
Upon their arrival they made their home with another brother, Henry. However, after a few months William returned
to Illinois but Mrs. Gleadall remained. Among her most prized possessions is her first certificate to teach, pressed
to her by J. FK. Farrer, the county superintendent in Rice County in 1880. She afterwards attended Kansas State
Teachers College at Emporia, the University of Chicago, and the University of Boulder Colorado, where she specialized
in kindergarten work since 1902, and has been a kindergarten teacher in the Sterling public schools, a period of
thirty years.
On September 2, 1886, she was married to Joseph T. Gledall at Lyons, Kansas. He died March 10, 1910, at Sterling.
Mrs. Gleadall has been an active worker in the Sunday School of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is a member
of the Foreign and Home Missionary Society. She is also an active Junior League worker, and was superintendent
of the primary and beginners classes for 15 years. For four years she was district superintendent of Junior League
work.
She is a member of the Parent Teachers Association, the Kansas State Teachers Association, the Business and Professional
Womens Club, and the Mutual Improvement Society. Her hobbies are fancy work and the cultivation of flowers. Residence:
Sterling. (Illustriana Kansas, by Sara Mullin Baldwin & Robert Morton Baldwin, 1933, Page 442)
GUTTERY,
MARIE EVELYN
Marie Evelyn Guttery, fraternal and religious worker and writer was born in Centerville, Indiana, daughter of Marion
Jasper and Sara Elizabeth (Elliott) Barr. Her father was born in Crawfordsville, Indiana, March 27, 1844, and died
at Sterling, Kansas, April 29, 1919. The mother was born at Richmond, Indiana, April 23, 1850, and died in Sterling,
March 15, 1915.
On December 1, 1919, Marie Evelyn Barr was married to Charles M. Guttery at Sterling. He was born at Blue Mound,
Illinois, March 20, 1874, and is in the real estate and insurance business. Mrs. Guttery is the author of poems
published in the Kansas Authors Bulletin and in various newspapers and magazines. She was editor of a column in
the Lyons Daily News for three years and is the author of the poem, The Old Home Paper.
She is a member of the First Baptist Church, past noble grand in the local Rebekah Lodge and a member of the Eastern
Star. She is press chairman for the Parent Teacher's Association and for the Women's Union of the local Baptist
Church. She is a member of the Mutual Improvement Club, the Sterling Music Club, the H. D. Club, the Four Square
Writers Club of Rice County and the Kansas Authors Club of Topeka. Residence: Sterling. (Illustriana Kansas, by
Sara Mullin Baldwin & Robert Morton Baldwin, 1933, Page 464)
JOHNSON,
CARL OSCAR
Carl Oscar Johnson, city manager of Sterling, was born at Salina, Kansas, September 9, 1872, son of John and Christina
(Anderson) Johnson, John Johnson, who was born near Visby in Sweden, September 29, 1826, came to the United States
in 1868. He engaged in farming until his death in Mitchell County, November 5, 1906, where he had homesteaded.
His wife, Christina was born in Halmstad, Sweden, June 20, 1845 and died at Lindsborg, Kansas, April 9, 1932.
Carl Oscar Johnson attended public and high school and was graduated from commercial college at Saint Joseph, Missouri.
His education in public school was supplemented by home study and reading.
From 1922 until 1923 he was secretary of the Mitchell County Fair Association, and from 1919 until 1920 was president
and director of a building and loan association at Beloit.
A Republican, Mr. Johnson has never held a political office by election. He served as city assessor by appointment
three terms, and as city clerk from 1926 until 1929 at Beloit. He was appointed city manager of Sterling by the
city commissioners in July 1929, and is still serving in that capacity.
On January 9, 1907, he was married to Hilma Victoria Swenson at Beloit. She was born there on February 5, 1888
of Swedish parentage. Her father was born near Visby, Sweden, September 29, 1834, coming to America in 1869. The
mother was born near Nybro, Sweden, December 18, 1859. The parents of both Mr. and Mrs. Johnson were among the
very oldest settlers in Solomon Valley.
There are three children, Ralph O., born November 2, 1907, who is a salesman for Montgomery Ward & Company,
Paul E., February 9, 1909, who is a bank clerk in the First National Bank at Beloit; and Louise H. October 18,
1915, who is a student. Paul E. was married to Gladys M. Rhodes at Beloit, May 28, 1931.
At the present time Mr. Johnson is a member of the Beloit Presbyterian Church, the International City Managers
Association, the United Charities Board of Sterling, the Sterling Chamber of Commerce, and the Odd Fellows at Beloit,
which he joined February 8, 18098 and of which he has served as noble grand. His hobby is reading. Residence: Sterling.
(Illustriana Kansas, by Sara Mullin Baldwin & Robert Morton Baldwin, 1933, Page 595)
PINKERTON,
JOHN CLARENCE
The Reverend John Clarence Pinkerton, pastor of the United Presbyterian Church at Sterling, was born near Fair
Haven, Ohio, September 1, 1870, son of John Riddlge and Narcissa Scroggins (Henry) Pinkerton.
His father, a farmer, whose grandfather came from the north of Ireland in 1790, was born near Fair Haven, February
27, 1830. His death occurred there on August 12, 1872. His wife, also of Scotch-Irish descent, was born at Clarksburg,
Indiana, April 1, 1837, and died at Indiana, Pennsylvania, November 7, 1925.
John Clarence Pinkerton received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Indiana University in 1897. He was graduated
from Allegheny (now Pittsburgh-Xenia) Theological Seminary I 1900 and in 1914 was awarded an honorary degree of
Doctor of Divinity from Monmouth College.
On June 2, 1900 he was married to Abigail Gilbert near Lewisville, Indiana, her birthplace. Mrs. Pinkerton who
was a teacher before marriage was born April 10, 1869. There are two children living, one deceased, John G., born
March 10, 1905, who died March 14, 1905, Helen M. May 8, 1906; and Mabel E., April 30, 1908.
Helen, who received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Muskingum College in 1928, taught English and Spanish 1928-29,
received her Master's degree from Ohio State University in 1930 and now teaches English at Sterling College. Mabel
received her Bachelor of Arts from Muskingum in 1929, and is a graduate student in English at University of Colorado.
From 1889 until 1891, Dr. Pinkerton taught district school near Richland, Indiana, and from 1892 until 1894, taught
in the city schools of Oxford, Indiana.
Ordained in June, 1900, he was pastor at Ontario, Ohio, three years and from 1903-11, served the First United Presbyterian
Church at Detroit, Michigan. He was pastor of the First United Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles from 1911 until
1919, and executive secretary of the California State Church Federation the following four years.
In 1923, he became pastor of the First United Presbyterian Church at Indiana, Pennsylvania and from 1929 until
1932 was executive of the board of administration of the United Presbyterian Church of North America. He is a member
of the Arkansas Valley Presbytery the Ministerial Allicance. Residence: Sterling. (Illustriana Kansas, by Sara
Mullin Baldwin & Robert Morton Baldwin, 1933, Page 922)
BRIGADIER-GENERAL SAMUEL
ALLEN RICE
FIRST COLONEL, THIRTY-THIRD INFANTRY
Samuel A. Rice, who received his death-wound at
the battle of Jenkin's Ferry, is the most distinguished officer our gallant State has lost in the War of the Rebellion.
Sprung from the great middle class, without name or wealth, he had, at the age of thirty-five, attained such distinction
as to make his death a national calamity.
General Rice was a native of New York, and was
born in Cattaraugus county of that State, the 27th of January, 1828. His boyhood was passed in Belmont county,
Ohio, where his parents removed when he was young. There he gained a common school education. The father died soon
after removing to Ohio, leaving his family in limited circumstances, and his son, Samuel, as their chief support.
He, accordingly, engaged in the boating business on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, that promising the amplest
remuneration. As a flat-boatman, he made one or more trips to New Orleans.
General Rice was liberally educated; but the expenses
of his education he had to defray himself. He pursued his preparatory course at the Athens Academy, Ohio, and in
1844 or 1845, entered Union College, New York. After graduating there, he entered the law department of that University,
where he studied for one year, and then left for the wild West—for so Iowa was regarded, at that day, in the Eastern
and Middle States.
The history of General Rice is widely known in
our commonwealth; for he was one of our most prominent public men. He first settled in Fail-field, Jefferson county,
where he practiced his profession, and occasionally assisted in the editorial department of the whig newspaper
of that place. But in the tall of 1851, he removed to Oskaloosa, at which place his family still reside. His first
public office was that of prosecuting attorney of his county. Naturally excelling as a criminal lawyer, he attracted
general attention by the able manner in which he discharged the duties of his office; and it was this which secured
him the nomination in 1856, to the office of attorney-general of the State. In 1856, and again in 1858, he was
elected to the last named office; and at the close of his last term, he had established a reputation that placed
his name among the foremost lawyers of the State, and, I might add, among the foremost of our public men. I do
not speak of him in extravagant terms. The attention and deference that were paid to his arguments before the Supreme
Court, would have flattered an attorney of the greatest experience, and the most extensive practice; and the influence
which he wielded, as a leading member of the Republican Party, was recognized by all of our most prominent men.
General Rice entered the United States service
in the summer of 1862. He would have entered the army sooner; but he could not leave his large business without
pecuniary sacrifice; and, besides, he did not believe at first that the war would be of long duration. He was commissioned
colonel of the 33d Iowa Infantry, on the 10th day of August, 1862; and late in November left with his regiment
for St. Louis. Early in February, 1863, he arrived with his command at Helena, Arkansas, the point where was organized
the Yazoo Pass Expedition; and the first important services of the 33d Iowa were in clearing this Pass of obstructions,
and opening it for the passage of our transports. For nearly three weeks prior to the starting of the expedition,
the regiment was engaged in this fatiguing and dangerous work. The history of this expedition is given elsewhere.
In the long list of battles that were fought in
the South West from the 27th of December, 1862, to the 4th of July following, that of Helena, Arkansas, ranks high
in point of importance, not simply because Helena with all its government property was saved from capture; but
because the spirit of our troops caused the rebels, on the west side of the Mississippi, to despair of ever re-possessing
their lost country. Colonel Rice had met the enemy before in skirmishes, but the engagement at Helena was his first
battle. Here his brigade saved the place from capture, and his gallantry and soldierly skill made him a brigadier-general.
The names of his troops deserve special mention: the 33d Iowa and 33d Missouri, who most distinguished themselves
and suffered most severely, engaged the enemy at batteries C and D, near the Little Rock Road: the 29th and 36th
Iowa regiments would have done as well and suffered as severely, but they were stationed on the hills to the right,
near batteries A and B, and were not so severely engaged. The main attack of the enemy was made on the Little Rock
road, where they staked every thing on forcing an entrance. They captured battery C, and so far succeeded; but
the raking fire they received from the other batteries, and from the infantry and Fort Curtis, soon forced them
to abandon their dearly- won prize. Our pickets were driven in at half past three in the morning, and the fight
lasted till nearly 11 A. M., when the enemy retired precipitately. I have said his command saved Helena from capture;
and I may add that his casualties amounted to more than half the entire Union loss. It should be stated that two
regiments of his command—the 33d Iowa and 33d Missouri—were, during the engagement, under the more immediate command
of General Solomon.
In August, 1863, Colonel Rice was appointed a brigadier-
general. He had saved General Prentiss and his command from defeat as a colonel; as a brigadier-general, he saved
General Steele's army and train from capture at Jenkin's Ferry, on the Saline River; and, had he survived the injury
he received in that engagement, he would, doubtless, have been made a major-general.
In General Steele's march against Little Rock,
which left Helena on the 10th of August, 1863, General Rice commanded a division, and it was on this march that
he received his appointment as brigadier-general. No great battles were fought on this expedition, and no opportunities
offered for special distinction. With others he is entitled to equal credit for the success of our arms.
General Rice's coolness and bravery, and his ability
as an officer were best illustrated in General Steele's Campaign into South Western Arkansas, which resulted disastrously
to our arms, and gave new hope to the rebels. Here he held only a brigade command. Had he commanded the expedition,
some have thought the result would have been different; but this is unjust to General Steele. The loss of a brigade
and wagon- train at Mark's Mills might have been avoided; but, considering the difficulties under which General
Steele labored, no one could have hoped for entire success. That the chief credit which attaches to this movement
or rather to the battle at Jenkins' Ferry, belonged to General Rice, no one will dispute.
The expedition in question left Little Rock on
the 23d of March, 1864. Between that point and Camden, the enemy were met at Terra Noir Creek, Elkin's Ford, Prairie
de Anne, and six miles north-west of Camden. The sharpest of these engagements was that at Elkin's Ford, on the
Little Missouri River. Colonel Rice, though not in command of the forces engaged, received a scalp-wound, while
riding to the front But the great battle of the campaign was fought at Jenkins' Ferry, on the morning of the 30th
of April, 1864.
On the evening of the 29th of April, the expedition
had reached the Saline River, on its return to little Bock. That same evening, General Steele's rear-guard had
been attacked by the enemy, under Price and Kirby Smith; and it was probable that on the following morning he would
have to give them battle; for a pontoon-bridge must be constructed on which to "cross, and the difficulties
to be overcome were well- nigh insurmountable: these, however, have been spoken of elsewhere.
That night was stormy and dismal, and will be long
remembered by Steele's old command. The floods of falling rain had swollen the Saline to the top of its banks,
and covered the low bottom-lands bordering the river with water. But few slept that night: in front was a swollen
river; in the rear a confident enemy, and under foot mud and water half-leg deep. Some collected piles of brush
to rest on, and others passed the night on stumps and old logs. Day-light was longed for; and yet it promised little,
for all believed it would be ushered in by an attack of the enemy. Some were cheerful, and cracked their jokes;
but the great majority pulled their ponchos or blankets tightly about them, and remained quiet: they were thinking
of their homes and friends, and of the comforts they had exchanged for these hardships.
But morning came at last, and with it the opening
battle. Already General Rice's command was in line to engage the enemy, should he advance, and to defend the crossing:
they were engaged promptly. The troops of his command, who met the first shock of battle, were the 29th Iowa on
the right, the 50th Indiana in the center, and the 33d Iowa on the left. Of the position of the other two infantry
regiments of his command (the 9th and the 28th Wisconsin) at the opening of the fight, I am unadvised. His battery
(Captain Voglies') had been sent over the river. The enemy—four to one in the first onset—advanced fairly and squarely,
confident of easy victory; but they were repulsed. And not only in this, but in each renewed assault were they
repulsed; till finally, near noon, they withdrew and left our forces in possession of the field. At about two o'clock,
the last of our infantry forces crossed the river; and after destroying the pontoon-bridge, resumed, unmolested,
their march to Little Rock. We lost in this engagement about eight hundred men. The enemy lost, according to his
own estimate, nine hundred and fifty; but it is known that his loss was greater.
That was a most gloomy hour for the Federal cause
in Arkansas, and the enemy were every where jubilant over the "prospects of peace and independence."
They boasted that Steele's army was defeated and disheartened, and that, if it escaped at all, it would do so as
a disorganized rabble. They never seemed to doubt that Steele would be compelled to abandon Little Rock, and that
the entire State of Arkansas would pass again under Confederate rule. They moved north and blockaded the Arkansas
River, and threatened seriously the Little Rock Railroad. The Government became alarmed, and sent nearly two divisions
from New Orleans to Steele's assistance. Indeed, for many months the post of Little Rock was little better than
in a state of siege; and it was only after Price's reverses in Missouri that the hopes of the Federal cause in
Arkansas again rose in the ascendant. But to return.
In the enemy's last charge, and as General Rice
was riding down his left wing, he received the wound which resulted in his death. He was shot by a musket-ball
"through the right foot, the ball passing under the instep, just in front of the ankle, and driving the buckle
of the spur before it."
He left Little Rock for his home in Iowa, on the
18th day of May. For a considerable time after reaching his home, it was supposed he was convalescing; but, (I
quote from the Oskaloosa " Herald") " the virus of his wound had permeated his whole system, poisoning
the vital fluids, and putting his case beyond the reach of human aid." He died on the 6th day of August, 1864.
The night before the general's death, Judge Loughridge,
of Oskaloosa, his warm and tried friend, watched by his bed-side to assist in answering his wants, and to offer
consolation to the grief-stricken family. His pain seemed to be intense, making the night drag heavily, and, as
he turned restlessly in his bed, the judge inquired: "General, how do you feel now? Are you willing to die?"
Looking up, and his eyes brightening, he replied: "I am ready. 'Though I walk through the valley of the shadow
of death, He is with me. His rod and His staff, they comfort me.'"
Four years before, he had said, while pronouncing
an eulogy upon our lamented Judge Stockton:
"We can but feel and realize that, like the
deceased, we too must undergo that great change, allotted to all living. When that change shall come; when the
shadows of the last night shall gather around us, may we meet it like one that draws the drapery of his couch about
him, and lies down to pleasant dreams."
His prayer was realized. He died in the full possession
of his mental faculties, and with the hopes of a Christian.
My admiration of the character of this noble man,
I am unable to express. Few as able and deserving as he have been sacrificed to the Moloch of Slavery. One who
served long with him In the army writes thus of him:
"But above all, and overall stands the name
of one, whom Iowa will be proud to own—General Samuel A. Rice. I have never yet seen his equal, either on the field,
or in the camp. * * All admit that his brigade saved the army from defeat and consequent destruction, at the battle
of Jenkins' Ferry."
Testimonials of his worth meet me on every hand,
to which, I regret, I am unable to give place. His old division has contributed funds for the erection of a monument
to his memory; but his "good name will live, when monuments of brass and stone shall have crumbled to dust."
The proceedings of the Supreme Court at Des Moines,
on learning of his death, I must briefly allude to. Hon. C. C. Nourse, the general's successor, as Attorney-General
of Iowa, Hon. Thomas F. Withrow, and Hon. Chief Justice Wright offered touching eulogies to his memory. In the
course of his remarks, our honored Chief Justice said:
"I parted with him in May, as he was nearing
his home, with his family and friends around him: he was reclining on what proved to be his death-bed. I shall
ever remember his face, and the sparkling expression of his flashing eyes, as, taking me by the hand, he said:
' I shall not die: I know that I shall live—I shall live to return to the field, and assist in crushing this most
accursed rebellion.' These hopes—these high resolves were doomed to disappointment."
After the addresses were closed, the following
preamble and resolutions were entered of record:
"Whereas, General Samuel A. Rice, formerly
a member of the bar of this Court, and for four years Attorney-General of the State, died at his home in Oskaloosa
on the 6th day of July, 1864, from a wound received in battle at Saline River on the 30th day of April, 1864, and
whereas, the high standing of the deceased as a member of the profession, as well as his exalted patriotism and
many personal virtues, demand a special notice of his memory upon our part; Therefore, be it "Resolved, By
the members of the bar now in attendance upon the Supreme Court:
1. "That we deeply deplore this dispensation
of Divine Providence, in thus removing from our midst one who adorned his profession, and endeared himself to us
by his uniform courtesy and upright conduct.
2. "That by his death a brave and true soldier
and officer has fallen in defense of his Government, a kind father and true husband has been lost to his family,
a valued citizen has been lost to the State, and an honored and able advocate has been lost to the profession.
3. " That we will cherish in affectionate
remembrance his many virtues, and request the members of the bar to wear the usual badge of mourning during the
term.
4. " That we tender to the bereaved family
our sincere testimony of the worth of the deceased, and assure them of our sympathy and condolence in their affliction.
5. "That the court be requested to have these
proceedings and resolutions spread upon the records of the court, and to furnish a certified copy of the same to
the family of the deceased.
" Committee.—Jefferson F. Polk, H. 8. Winslow, William H. Seevers, C. C. Nourse."
I first met General Rice in the spring of 1857,
at the Oskaloosa bar. Then, he had just been elected Attorney-General of the State; and I scanned him closely.
He was, at the time, arguing a case with Judge Seevers; and Governor Stone was sitting upon the bench. He was dressed
poorly; was unshaven, and looked to me to be below the medium in size. I thought we never elected such men to like
positions in New England. Three years later, I saw him again; when he looked more like himself—an able and polished
gentleman. The portrait here published is not a perfect likeness, though the mild, intelligent expression of the
eye is correct.
General Rice was not a man of brilliant parts.
He had a large brain and a sound judgment; and hard study did the rest. He was an able reasoner. His cast of mind
was more practical than theoretical; for instance: on one occasion, two applicants for admission to the bar presented
themselves in the Oskaloosa Court. It was Governor Stone's first term upon the bench. Judges Loughridge and Seevers
and General Rice, having been appointed by the court the examining committee, the latter approached the young men,
and, taking one of them by the hand, said: "Gentlemen, you look as though you could practice law; if you can
not, you will get no business, and if you can, all right. I will vouch for you."
The general was kind-hearted and unassuming. I
never saw him without a smile upon his face, and no one could be embarrassed in his presence. Few promised him
the success he met in the service. He was as successful with the sword, as he had been in his civil profession.
He was a noble exemplar of our Free State Chivalry.
(Source: Iowa colonels and regiments: being a history
of Iowa regiments in the war of ...By Addison A. Stuart - Submitted by Barbara Ziegenmeyer)
FAIR, DANIEL J.
Daniel J. Fair, a late pioneer resident of Sterling,
Kan., and one of the most prominent and substantial citizens of Rice county, was born on a farm in Indiana county,
Pennsylvania, Aug. 22, 1847. His youth was spent in the outdoor and health-giving life of the farm and his education
was acquired in the district schools near his home. After the death of his father he removed to Wisconsin, where
he had an elder brother. Having earned the necessary money for a three-months commercial course he attended a business
college at Sparta, and shortly after graduating sought employment at different points along the Mississippi river.
With a small capital saved from his wages he joined his brother, A. C. Fair, in a little retail lumber yard at
Andalusia, Ill., below Rock Island. This was Mr. Fair's first experience in the lumber business and it was not
an extensive one. In the spring of 1870 the brothers sold out their interests and removed to Texas, where they
engaged in the cattle business for a short time. Later, for six months, they conducted a dry goods store at Lebanon,
Collin county, Texas, but in 1872 Mr. Fair returned to Eau Claire, Wis. It was in June, 1872, that he came to Sterling,
Kan., and while possessing at that time a capital of $1,700, he at first secured employment by the month with Edwards
& Kinney, lumber dealers there. In the fall, however, being convinced of the brilliant future of that part
of Kansas, he purchased the interest of Mr. Kinney and the firm of Edwards & Fair was formed. This style of
firm continued until 1878, when a brother of the senior member bought into the concern and it became Edwards Brothers
& Fair. In 1884 this partnership was dissolved and Mr. Fair became sole owner. A branch yard had been established
at Nickerson, and later he established branches at Burlingame, Partridge, Abbyville, Stafford and Hutchinson. He
was also the principal holder of the interests of the Fair & Shaak Mercantile Company, with lumber yards and
hardware stocks at Raymond and Sylvia. In all of those places he was well known and highly respected. Besides his
lumber interests his holdings in farms and lands were also extensive. He was a broad minded man who never neglected
his business interests and was a leader in the enterprises of every place where he had any dealings.
He was married to Miss Demia Walker, in 1874, from which union there were four sons : C. E. Fair, D. J. Fair, Jr.,
N. R. Fair and Wilber Fair, the last named having died when an infant. D. J. Fair and C. E. Fair, the two older
brothers, succeeded their father in business and perpetuated his name by organizing the D. J. Fair Lumber Company
(Incorporated), shortly after the death of Mr. Fair, Sr., on May 16, 1905. Under their management the business
has grown to still larger proportions. D. J. Fair II was born in Sterling, Kan., on June 14, 1876, and after graduating
from the high school at Sterling he finished a three years preparatory course in the University of Kansas at Lawrence,
following which he took a three-years course in law at the Chicago. Kent Law School, Chicago, Ill. Upon completing
one year of post-graduate work in that institution he received his degree of Bachelor of Laws on May 26, 1898.
Returning home he later engaged in business in Sterling and is now the president and general manager of the D.
J. Fair Lumber Company (Incorporated). On April 2, 1907, at the age of thirty-one years, Mr. Fair was chosen mayor
of Sterling by the largest vote ever polled in that city. Nineteen years before his father won in a similar contest
and served as mayor of Sterling one term. At the expiration of the junior Mr. Fair's first term he was reelected
by a still larger ma-jority and had the distinction when first elected to that office of having been the youngest
and the first native born mayor of Sterling. While still in his second term as mayor the people of Rice county
chose him as their representative for the Seventy-ninth district in the state legislature as a "Progressive
Republican," and during the session of the legislature of 1911 he was chairman of the committee on rules and
a member of the judiciary and military committees, serving faithfully and well his constituents.
On Nov. 24, 1910, Mr. Fair was married to Miss Margaret Ebright and they took up their residence in the old home
of Mr. Fair's parents. On Sept.10, 1911, a son was born to Mr. and Mrs. D. J. Fair II and the name has been perpetuated
by making the son D. J. Fair III. Mr. Fair is a Thirty-second degree Mason, holds membership in the Consistory
at Wichita, Kan., and is also an Elk. (Kansas Biography, Part 2, Vol. III, 1912, Pages 1062-1063, Transcribed as
written by Millie Mowry)
BENAJAH COFFIELD
Benajah COFFIELD was born March 02, 1835 in Ohio County, VA. (now Marshall County, W. VA.) His parents were Adam
and Sarah (MARTIN) COFFIELD. His known siblings were a sister, Suzanna (married Parris T. CALDWELL) and a brother,
Joseph Adam (married Martha A. BEAL).
Benajah married Anna RUTH July 15, 1855 and they remained near Limestone in VA. (W.VA.) where three children were
born: Samuel Martin, Mary (died at 9 days old), and Sarah Eleanor.
In August 1856, Probate papers show that Benajah inherited 1/8th of his grandfather’s estate (Jacob COFFIELD),
in Marshall County, VA. It notes that Benajah’s father, Adam COFFIELD was deceased. His mother, Sarah, married
Lewis WETZEL in 1850.
Benajah, Anna, and family are listed in the 1860 and 1870 census for Guernsey County,Ohio, Oxford township, in
Middletown/Middleton (now Middlebourne). Four more children were born in Ohio: James Adam, Leah Catharine, John
Willis, and Delilah Jane. Benajah’s occupation was listed as blacksmith.
Their home was on Lot #5 in Middletown and on the old National Road which ran thru the town. They must have witnessed
many wagon trains passing thru town loaded with people who were "moving West".
In 1873, the family moved West to Madison County, Iowa. Anna’s parents, James and Eleanor (WILSON) RUTH had moved
to Iowa earlier. Lillie Ann COFFIELD and Benajah Hillis COFFIELD were born near Winterset, Iowa, making a total
of nine children born to Benajah and Anna.
In the Fall of 1878, Benajah moved his family to Rice County, Kansas where they resided on a farm a few miles southwest
of the town of Frederick, Eureka township. (NW 1/4 of 23-18-9 - deed recorded in 1886, this land was purchased
from Union Pacific Railway.) Benajah received a patent from the United States of America (Homestead Certificate
No. 4176, dated in 1885, for land (E1/2 of SW 1/4, Section 14, Township 18 South, Range 9 West of the Sixth Principal
Meridian in Kansas containing eighty acres) recorded in 1887.
Benajah COFFIELD died July 26, 1908, Anna RUTH COFFIELD died December 5, 1926 and both are buried in Frederick
Cemetery, Rice County, Kansas. (My great-grandparents - by Sylva Carter Rhodes)
