Charles Hervey Packard, pp. 460-461

Among the sterling New Englanders who have settled in Hardin county since the pioneer days, none have shown more worthy traits of character or whose biography we herewith present.  Mr. Packard, who is now living retired after a long, industrious and useful career, is the owner of a fine farm in Ellis township which has been developed from a wild state to one of the best in the locality through his skillful management.

Charles Hervey Packard was born in Franklin county, Massachusetts, January 31, 1836, and is the son of Willard and Rosina (Beals) Packard, both natives of the vicinity where the subject was born.  The paternal grandfather, Caleb Packard, was also of the old Bay state, in fact, the Packards have been well known in Massachusetts for many generations.  The first member of the family to come to America was Joshua Packard, who emigrated from Hingham, England, in 1638, he having been a farmer in his native land, as were the rest of the family.  The father of the subject was born in 1800 and his death occurred in 1868.  There were the following children in his family:  Chester, who became a soldier in the Union army, lost his health during the Civil war and died a few years afterwards;  Philena married Martin Phillips; Cynthia became the wife of Jacob White and is now living in Orleans, Michigan; Christie married Stephen Remington; Charles Hervey of this review; Cornelius died in youth; Cornelia married Hiram Lyon, of New London, Wisconsin; Leavitt died in New London, Wisconsin, in 1860.

Mr. Packard of this review received his elementary education in the common schools, and in 1858 he was united in marriage with Lovina Lyon, daughter of David and Sarah (Wilbur) Lyon.  Mrs. Packard was born June 26, 1838, in Genesee county, New York.  Her paternal grandfather, Thomas Lyon, followed school teaching for many years in the state of New York.  The Lyon family is of French origin.  David Lyon was born in 1797 and died in 1874; his wife, who was born on November 24, 1800, died in 1886.

Charles H. Packard came to Wisconsin in 1856, locating near Lyons, where he lived eight years.  In 1864 he brought his family in a wagon overland to Hardin county, Iowa, and engaged in farming and school teaching in Ellis township where he soon became well known and well established and he now owns a farm there which he has placed under a high state of improvement and cultivation; but he and his wife are now living in their pleasant and substantial home in Georgetown, a hamlet near Iowa Falls.  They are the parents of the following children:  Elsie is the wife of J. W. Bullis, of Iowa Falls; Anna is the wife of I. C. Bullis, of Ellis township, this county; Chester W. is a physician at Gary, Indiana; Judson L. is a hardware merchant at Ocheyedan, Iowa.

About twenty years ago Mr. Packard promoted and organized the Farmers Mutual Insurance Company which he has managed almost during its entire existence, he having filled the position of president in a manner that has reflected much credit upon himself and to the entire satisfaction of all concerned, and the wide popularity of this excellent company has been due very largely to his energy, his foresight and judicious management.  There are now over thirteen hundred members and they carry over three million dollars in risks.  The company operates mostly in Hardin and Franklin counties and is rapidly growing.

Mr. Packard is a Republican, has long been more or less active in  political affairs and has held township offices.  He has always taken much interest in whatever pertained to the general progress of this locality and not withheld his support from any worthy movement looking to the betterment of local condi-  [sketch ends here]

Richard Palmer, p. 509 � 511

Though no land is richer in opportunities or offers greater advantages to its citizens than America , success is not to be attained through desire, but must be persistently sought. In this country �labor is king,� and the man who resolutely sets to work to accomplish a given purpose is certain of success if he has but the qualities of perseverance, untiring energy and practical common sense. One of the worthy citizens of Hardin county who, through diligence and persistent efforts, has attained definite success and has won the respect of all who know him through his fair dealing with his fellow men is Richard Palmer, who spent his early life in our sister kingdom across the Atlantic, but who realized that this country held greater opportunities for advancement if one applied the right principles.

Mr. Palmer was born September 21, 1829 , in Northamptonshire , England , and he is the son of William and Elizabeth (Fieldsend) Palmer, both natives of the above named place, and they spent their lives engaged in farming in England . Ten children were born to them, namely: William, deceased; Richard, of this review; Charlotte , deceased; George lives in England ; James is deceased; John lives in England ; Harry, Rosanna, Jane and Charles. The subject was the only one of the family to come to the United States .

Richard Palmer had little opportunity to obtain an education, being compelled to work hard as a boy. He was married in February, 1856, to Mary Nailor, of Yorkshire , England , the daughter of James and Margaret Nailor, who lived and died in England . Three children of this family to America , namely: James lives in Colorado ; Ellen married John Watson and lived in Williams, Iowa , though now deceased; Mary, wife of the subject. Mrs. Palmer, who was a woman of many praiseworthy traits, passed to her rest on May 17, 1906 , at the age of seventy-two years.

Eight children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Palmer, six of whom as now living, namely: Ellen, who married Alphus Hurd, of Marshall , Minnesota , and they have four children, Nettie, Gertrude, Harold and Mary. George W., a carpenter at Alden , Iowa , married Cora B. Allen and they have one daughter, Cecil. Margaret Palmer died in infancy; Margaret Ann, who married Henry Sheldon, died when twenty-two years of age; she has three children, Essie, deceased, Mary E. and Richard H. Elizabeth Alice married Henry Sheldon. Palmer married Ella Rankin; they live near Hollister , Idaho , and have two children, Robert and Gladys. Charles Henry Palmer, who lives in Hamilton county, Iowa , married Luella Wood, and they have five children: Bertha, Richard, deceased, Albert, Clifford and Bessie. Susie A. married, on November 8, 1899 , William A. Crabtree, of Buckeye township, this county, the son of John and Lena (Berg) Crabtree, of Boone , Iowa ; they were early settlers of Buckeye township, Hardin county. Susie A. and husband have four children, Letha Rose, Maggie May, Vivian Mary and an infant son, deceased.

After his marriage Richard Palmer lived at Wentworth , England , two years and emigrated to America in 1858 on the sailing vessel �Ellen Austin,� which was thirty-one days making the tedious voyage, landing at New York city . From that place Mr. Palmer came west to Fairplay, Wisconsin, where he worked at farming for nine years, and, having got a good start there, he came to Alden township, Hardin county, Iowa, in 1870, and on June 14 th of that year bought eighty acres of John C. Nibs in section 34, Alden township, which was all wild land. Here Mr. Palmer put up a small house and stable and began developing the place. On July 9, 1887 , he bought of James A. Townsend and wife eighty acres in section 33, Alden township, and in the fall of 1892 bought forty acres more in section 33. He is now the owner of one of the choice farms of the township, consisting of two hundred acres, and which he has made all the improvements, which are modern and extensive, and his place is under a high state of cultivation. He has been very successful as a general farmer and stock raiser, making a specialty of short-horn and Durham cattle, Poland-China hogs and draft horses. His stock is of such a superior quality that they find a ready market at any time they are offered for sale. Mr. Palmer has a substantial home and outbuildings and has succeeded admirably well as a general farmer since comint to this county. Politically, he is a Republican and he has held a number of township offices. He started in life a poor plowboy, and his large success in his old age has been richly deserved. He is now living practically retired, not having done much regular farm work since 1901. Since that time the place has been operated by his son-in-law, Mr. Crabtree. Mr. Palmer is a member of the Congregational church and a man of known honesty and sobriety.

William Parrish, pp. 1031-1032

Of the farmers of Union township, Hardin county, one of the most capable and most representative is William Parrish, who has led an industrious and hard-working life, is one of the solid and substantial men of his community, and who owns an excellent farm which is cultivated in the most up-to-date manner and yields him abundant returns for his labor bestowed upon it.

William Parrish was born in Grundy county, Iowa, June 20, 1864, on the old Parrish homestead.  His father, Barrett Smith Parrish, was born in Ohio in 1821 and came to Indiana with his future father-in-law, William Martin, and married there Martha J. Martin, who was, like himself, a native of Ohio.  He came to Grundy county, Iowa, in 1856, and lived there until the spring of 1902, when he moved from Grundy county to Whitten, Iowa, where he died on March 13, 1905, and where his widow now lives.  For several years he was connected in the lumber business with T. N. Hauser at Union, Iowa.  The most of his time was spent on his farm, in the work of which he took great pride, and his crops were always well cultivated and his farm well kept.  He was an extensive stock raiser.  Barrett S. Parrish was a member of the Christian church, and lived a life in consistence with its teachings.  He was especially opposed to the use of intoxicating liquors as a beverage.  Fraternally, he was a member of the Knights of Pythias and of the Odd Fellows.  His family consisted of three children:  May, who married A. A. Allen; William, and Ethel R., who married T. E. Lockard, of Marshalltown, Iowa.

William Parrish received his education in the district schools and began farming on rented land.  In 1900 he located on section 12, Union township, Hardin county, on a one hundred and sixty acre farm, which was unimproved.  He has erected a large and comfortable home, and has put up other buildings and improved the land.  

Mr. Parrish has been three times married, the first time in 1874 to Minnie Nelson, of Grundy county, who bore to him one child, Earl W., now at home, aged twenty-two, who married Grace Sisson.  Mr. Parrish was next married in September, 1897, to Mrs. Cora Hutchinson Zufall, who was the mother of one child, Ethel may, and who died on March 14, 1905.  In the fall of 1905 Mr. Parrish was married to Mrs. Fannie Long Baker, of Hardin county.

William Parrish is widely known in his township, and because of his companionable and sociable nature has many friends, who esteem hime for his true worth.  In politics he is a Democrat and takes a becoming activity in the governmental affairs of his locality.

Herman F. Patzer, pp. 695-696

The Patzer family is highly honored and well known in the locality of which this history treats, and they are well worth a careful consideration by the readers of this work.  One of the best known and most highly respected of the younger members of this worthy family is Herman F. Patzer, who was born in Prussia, Germany, August 19, 1870.  He is the son of Louis and Mary (Kison) Patzer, in whose family there were six children, two dying in Germany; Emil came to America and died in Grant township; this county, June 5, 1902; Herman F., of this review; Annie, wife of Henry B. Gogerty, whose sketch appears elsewhere; Gustav A. lives at Madison, Minnesota; Carrie married Frank Danger, of Grant township.

About 1874 the father, Louis Patzer, came to America and went to Nebraska, where he worked out by the day; then went to Illinois, later coming to Hardin county, Iowa, about 1882.  In 1875 he brought his family to the new world, making his home at Geneseo, Illinois.  In that city his wife died about 1878 and he later married Eveline Rahbien, a native of Prussia.  To this union two children were born, William F. and one that died in infancy.  The living son makes his home in Hubbard, Iowa, and teaches school in Grant township.

After reaching Hubbard, Louis Patzer worked on the section gang until 1886, when he bought an eighty-acre farm in Concord township, where he lived until about 1904, then moved to Hubbard.  His second wife died about 1908.  He made a success of farming, and, having laid by a competency, sold his farm and is now living in Hubbard.

Herman F. Patzer has hustled for himself ever since he was eight years of age.  He worked out at different places until his father bought a farm, with whom he worked on that place a short time.  In 1893 he began farming for himself, renting a farm in the southwestern part of Grant township and there began farming for himself.  Later he worked the farm of a neighbor.  In 1902 he bought eighty acres in section 29, where he has farmed ever since.  In 1898 he was united in marriage with Alma G. Hardy, daughter of William and mary (Fansey) Hardy.  To this union six children have been born, Edna F., Leslie M., Elsie F., Emma M., Ernest W. and Herman F.

Mr. Patzer is a Republican and he is now serving his fifth term as township assessor of Grant township, and he discharges his duties very acceptably.   He is a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias.  He and his wife belong to the Christian church at Grant Center.

Theodore J. Perkins, pp. 888-890

From an honored and sterling New England family is descended Theodore J. Perkins, well known and highly respected citizen of Jackson township, Hardin county, in fact, he himself was born near Mansfield, Vermont, March 6, 1837.  He is the son of Alfred and Mary (Miller) Perkins, the father a native of Canada and the mother of Vermont, to which state Alfred Perkins went when a boy with his parents.  In 1846 he moved to Jefferson county, New York, where he made his home until he was fourteen years old.  In 1851 he came to Rock county, Wisconsin, locating near Beloit, where he secured wild timber land, which he cleared and improved.  His death occurred in 1870, at the advanced age of eighty-two years, and his wife died in 1904 when considerably older - eighty-nine.  They were a fine old couple, members of the Presbyterian church, in which he was an active worker, and politically he was a Republican.  They were the parents of seven children, namely: Mary Ann, Luther, Emily, Mary, all deceased; George lives in Rock county, Wisconsin; the next died in infancy; Theodore J., of this review, was the fourth in order of birth.

The subject attended the home schools and lived at home until he was twenty-one years of age.  On December 10, 1863, he married Abigail Divan, a native of Coshocton county, Ohio, and the daughter of Frederick and Hannah (Cessna) Divan, the father a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Indiana.  They grew up and married in Coshocton county, Ohio.  In 1842 they went to Green county, Wisconsin, and in 1872 to Hardin county, Iowa, locating in Jackson township.  The father died in 1903 and the mother in February, 1887.  They were members of the Lutheran church and were the parents of seven children, namely: Abigail, wife of Mr. Perkins; Susanna married George Perkins, of Rock county, Wisconsin; Helen and Mary are deceased; Perry lives in Thompson, Iowa; Frederick lives in Green county, Wisconsin; Lorenzo lives on a farm in Ellis township, Hardin county; Minerva married Durias Sanders and they live near Beloit, Kansas.

Mr. and Mr. Perkins are the parents of five children, named as follows: Myra, who was killed by lightning when twenty-four years old; Idell married W. E. Smith, of Union, Iowa, and they have two children, Wade and Isabelle; Minnie married William Searls, of Iowa Falls, Iowa, and they have two children, Hampton I. and Nada.  Clarence Perkins, who married Lillie Bende, is farming in Jackson township, this county, and is the father of two children, Wayne and Mary M.; Jesse married Ella M. King, and he is employed by the Eldora Motor Car Company, Eldora, Iowa.  These children were all educated in the home schools.

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Perkins lived in Rock county, Wisconsin, until 1869 and came to Hardin county, Iowa, locating in section 32, Jackson township, on wild prairie land, on which they built a small home and lived on it thirty-two years, meanwhile improving their place.  The present substantial and comfortable home was built in 1897, and all the improvements were made on the place.  Mr. Perkins has prospered by reason of hard work and good management, and at one time he was the owner of three hundred and twenty acres of land.  Although he has carried on general farming and stock raising, dairying has been his main business.

Mr. Perkins has held many of the township offices, always to the general satisfaction of the public.  Politically, he is a Republican and a member of the Baptist church.  He is one of the honored veterans of the Civil war, having enlisted in Company M, Second Illinois Light Artillery, at Beloit, Wisconsin, on March 6, 1862.  He was sent to Harper's Ferry, Virginia.  He was thrown from a gun on which he was riding at Martinsburg, Virginia, and the ribs of one side were crushed in, as a result of which he was in the hospital four weeks.  Later he was sent to Harper's Ferry, where he was captured by the Confederates, and was sent to Chicago, where he was in a hospital until November 4, 1862, when he was discharged for disability.  The accident was a very serious one, his heart being thrown out of place, and he was not able to work for quite a long time after the war, and he has always suffered from the injury.  He is deserving of a great deal of credit for what he has accomplished, being thus handicapped and having started with practically nothing.  When he landed in Hardin county, he had six cows and four horses; three of the cows and one of the horses died, but he has never been discouraged at bad luck and is today well fixed, has a fine farm and comfortable home.

George O. Pierce, pp. 1007-1008

A farmer of Providence township, Hardin county, who is deserving of the success he has attained is George O. Pierce, and the following paragraphs have to do with the history of a man who has been the architect of his own fortunes, having elevated himself from obscurity to comparative affluence.

Mr. Pierce was born January 27, 1868, twenty-five miles east of Knoxville, Tennessee.  He is the son of George T. and Mary (Walters) Pierce, both natives of that state; there they grew to maturity, were educated and married, and in 1875 they came to Hardin county, Iowa, locating in Providence township, where they rented land, also rented a farm in Union township, and here the father's death occurred, and the mother died in 1893.  He was a Republican and held office before leaving Tennessee.  They were members of the Baptist church, and there were eight children in their family, namely: Mary married F. M. McMannis, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Sarah married W. W. Drake, of Union, Iowa; Mattie is deceased; Samuel is farming in Providence township, this county; John is also farming there; Lizzie married Ed McLean, of Union township, this county; Eva, who has remained single, is living in Union, Iowa; George O., of this review.

The subject received only a limited education, since he was compelled to assist his two brothers in keeping the family together and provide for the other members.  He got a start early in life through hard work and economy and the father spent his last days with him.  On August 30, 1905, Mr. Pierce was married to Nettie Wood, of Union, Iowa, the daughter of A. F. Wood, whose sketch appears elsewhere in this work.  To Mr. and Mrs. Pierce one child has been born, Vera, whose birth occurred February 1, 1908.

In 1904 Mr. Pierce bought his present farm in Providence township, which was originally entered from the government by John Bond.  It consists of one hundred and twenty acres of well improved and valuable land, on which stand a comfortable home and substantial outbuildings, and here he carries on general farming and stock raising.  He built his fine home in 1907.  It is finished down stairs in oak, the rest being in hard pine; it is two stories, six rooms below and four above.  It is modern in all its appointments, beautifully located and nicely furnished.  Mr. Pierce has made all the other improvements on his place and it now ranks with the best in the locality.  He is widely known as a raiser of short-horn cattle, Duroc-Jersey Red hogs and Norman horses, all of a high grade.

Mr. Pierce is a Republican and while he is deeply interested in the affairs of his community and county he has never aspired to office.  He and his wife belong to the Congregational church at Union, Iowa.