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History of Warren County, Iowa ... to
1908 P Unless otherwise noted, biographies submitted by Dick Barton. Among the pioneer settlers of Warren county is numbered John Park, who now lives on section 28, Lincoln township. He has for more than a half century lived in this locality and in fact took up his abode here in 1852. Many changes have occurred since that time, until the county today bears little resemblance to the great stretches of wild, uncultivated prairie which was its chief feature at the time of Mr. Park's arrival. Considerable wild game was yet to be had and the homes of the settlers were very primitive as compared to the attractive and commodious farm and town residences of the present day. Mr. Park was born in Ireland in 1835 and was there reared to the age of thirteen years, when he came with his parents to America , locating in Jackson county, Ohio , in 1848. There he resided for a number of years, during which time his father died. He afterward came with his mother to Iowa , arriving in Warren county when a young man of seventeen. He is largely a self-educated as well as self-made man. On reaching years of maturity he purchased land in Polk county, Iowa , where he improved a farm, which he cultivated for several years. He then sold out and came to Warren county, settling in Richland township, where he again purchased land. Going to Illinois , he married, in that state in 1857, Miss Margaret Greeg, a native of Ireland and of Scotch-Irish parentage. Mr. and Mrs. Park began their domestic life on a farm near Hartford and in the years which have since elapsed he has purchased and improved four different farms in Warren county, thus aiding materially in its development and progress. In 1889 he bought two hundred and thirty acres where he now resides and has transformed it into a valuable property, equipped with many modern conveniences and accessories. He has erected here a good residence, also barns and outbuildings, has planted an orchard and fenced the fields with woven wire and barbed wire fencing. In fact, his labors have been along lines of progressive agriculture and as the years have passed he gained a goodly measure of success. In 1901 Mr. Park was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who was laid to rest in the Odd Fellows cemetery at Indianola. He has nine living children, while Maggie is deceased. The surviving members of the family are as follows: Jane, the wife of Curgus Carnes; Elizabeth, the wife, of Thomas Piles; Dora, the wife of Ed Young; Lula, who married Charles Peck; Martha, who is occupying a business position in Indianola; John Thomas, now a farmer and harnessmaker of the state of Oregon; William, a farmer of Warren county; Samuel J., who is carrying on the home farm, and Jessie, at home. The children have all been liberally educated and the older members of the family have been successful teachers. In 1904 Mr. Park rented his farm and went west to California , spending three years on the Pacific coast. He visited many points of interest in that state, making his home, however, in Los Angeles . He was accompanied by one son and two daughters. The son was engaged in the creamery business there, while the elder daughter had charge of the trimmers in the wholesale millinery establishment in that city. In 1907, however, Mr. Park returned to the farm in Iowa , whereon he now resides. He has never cared for or desired office and when he was elected supervisor refused to qualify. He and his wife were active members of the Presbyterian church, taking a helpful interest in its work, and for years Mr. park served as presiding elder, besides filling all the other church offices, while in the Sunday school he acted as superintendent and teacher. He has been a generous contributor to the church and has put forth effective effort in its behalf. On reaching Hartford he found no church and he and five others built a Presbyterian church. Of that number he is now the only survivor. Widely known in Hartford , Palmyra and Indianola, and in fact throughout Warren county, Mr. Park has been a witness of its growth and progress through many years and can relate many interesting incidents of the early days. He has lived to see the wild prairie grasses supplanted by large crops of the cereals best adapted to the soil and climate, while instead of wild game the finest stock is today seen. The little hamlets have grown into thriving towns and cities and many changes have occurred in the citizenship, but at all the times Warren county has been peopled by a class of enterprising and progressive men, of whom Mr. Park is a splendid type. Starting out in life on his own account at an early age, he has depended upon his own resources, and realizing the fact that untiring labor is the surest foundation for success, he has put forth strenuous effort to win prosperity. He is now in possession of a handsome competence that enables him largely to leave the arduous work of the farm to others and enjoy well merited rest. George W.
Parsons, a practical and progressive farmer who stands prominent among those who have won success along honorable
lines, now lives on section 29,
Richland township, and derives his income from three
large and well improved farms in this county.
The home place contains one
hundred and sixty acres which has been well tilled and carefully
improved, so that it constitutes one of the attractive features
in the countryside. He also has a
well improved farm of three hundred
and twenty-three acres nearby, and the Parsons homestead is also his
property. He needs no introduction to the readers of this volume, for
he is one of the native sons of Warren county, his birth having here occurred
June 14, 1857. His father, George
C. Parsons, is a native of Virginia
and was here reared. When a young
man he went west, settling first in
Tippecanoe county, Indiana, where he was married to Miss Catherine Shults, a native of Virginia. Mr. Parsons followed farming in Indiana for some time, beginning his domestic life there, but
in the fall of 1855 he came to Iowa
and established his home in Warren county, which,
as yet, was a largely undeveloped region. He
performed the strenuous task of
turning the first furrows on a new farm near Palmyra, but
though the labor was difficult, he was persistent and energetic and in
the course of years was enabled to add to his original holdings until he
owned six hundred acres of valuable land. He
reared his family upon this place,
spent his life here and died in 1865, his wife surviving him for
a number of years. Their family
numbered two sons and two daughters,
of whom George W., is the eldest. His
surviving sister is Mrs. Lucy Jane
Canady, the wife of George Canady, of Warren county.
One sister and one brother
have passed away. There was nothing unusual to
differentiate the youth of George W. Parsons
from that of other farm boys of the period.
He worked in the fields from
an early age, attended the district schools and remained with
his father until the latter's death and with his mother until he attained
his majority, when he carried on the home place and at length succeeded
to the ownership of the property. He
has never engaged in any other
occupation than that to which he was reared, for he has found that it
returns a good income to the man who is diligent and persevering.
In 1884 he was married in
Richland township, this county, to Miss Janet V. Rawson,
who was born in Indiana but was reared in this county.
They traveled life's journey
together for about nineteen years and were then separated
by the death of Mrs. Parsons, in September, 1902. Their marriage
was blessed with four children. In
November, 1904, Mr. Parsons was
again married, his second union being with Miss Lou B. Art, who was born
and reared in this county, a daughter of A. Y. Art, one of the early
settlers and a farmer of Richland township.
By this marriage there is
one child. The sons and daughters
of the first union are: P. M., who
is married and is cultivating the home farm;
Flossie L., at home; Eula
Fay, who is also under the parental roof, and George F., who died
at the age of nine months. The
daughter of the second marriage is Margaret
Catherine Parsons. As the years passed, Mr.
Parsons purchased more land from time to time but resided on the old home place until 1907, when he removed
to his present home on section 29,
Richland township. He has just
completed a neat, modern residence,
equipped with furnace heat, acetylene gas, hot and cold water, bath, and in fact every modern convenience.
Few farm homes are so thoroughly supplied with all things which add to
the comfort of life. Mr. Parsons now owns three farms near Palmyra, his possessions
aggregating nearly eight hundred acres. These
farms are all well improved, have
good buildings, orchards, etc., and are largely fenced
with woven wire fence on Osage hedge posts.
There is six miles, or more,
of woven wire hog-tight fence on his land.
In addition to the tilling
of the soil, Mr. Parsons is extensively engaged in feeding stock. In all of
his business affairs he displays sound judgment and through the careful utilization of his opportunities he has
worked his way steadily upward.
He is a man of honorable purpose and his diligence and
integrity constitute the keynote of his character. Politically, Mr. Parsons was
formerly a democrat, but a change in his political views has led him to become a Roosevelt republican.
He has never sought, nor would he hold office save that he served as
a member of the school board for
eight or ten years and has been a delegate to county
conventions. His wife is a member
of the Christian church and a teacher
and worker in the Sunday school. They
are both well known in this part of
the state and aside from his extensive and important farming interests Mr. Parsons is a stockholder and director in
the Worth Bank at Indianola.
Opportunities that others have passed by heedlessly he
has noted and improved. Success has
never meant to him the mere accumulation
of wealth but the right use of it and as he has progressed in life his labors have not only proved a source of individual
benefit but have been an element in
public progress and improvement. He
is well known in Warren and
adjoining counties as a successful farmer and business
man and his life might well serve as a source of encouragement and
inspiration to others, showing what may be accomplished in a country where
diligence and determination are not hampered by caste or class, custom
or prejudice. Daniel G. Peck, while now numbered among the successful business men of Indianola, started out in life on his own account with but limited capital and has through his own labor and diligence won the prosperity which he is now enjoying. He was born in Putnam county, Indiana, in 1831, and was the fifth in order of birth in a family of ten children, whose parents, John and Sally ( Taylor ) Peck, were both natives of Kentucky . The Peck family is of Scotch-Irish descent. John Peck followed the occupation of farming as a life work. He removed from his native state to Ohio and in 1826 became a resident of Indiana , where from the government he entered a tract of timber land, which he cleared and developed, bringing the fields under a high state of cultivation. He successfully carried on the farm work there until 1853, when he came to Iowa and entered a tract of land in Lincoln township, where he continued to spend his remaining days. He was a typical pioneer resident, whose home was noted for its warm hearted hospitality. It was always the stopping place for the preacher who visited the neighborhood and who always received a hearty welcome. In politics Mr. Peck was a democrat. He was not long permitted to enjoy his home in Iowa for after a residence here of about nine years he passed away in 1862, at the age of sixty-four years. His widow, long surviving him, died in 1894, at the very advanced age of ninety-four years. As a farm boy Daniel G. Peck spent the days of his boyhood and youth. He early began to follow the plow and in the winter seasons when the work of the farm was practically over for the year, he attended the country schools. He gave his father the benefit of his services until seventeen years of age and then began learning the blacksmith's trade, becoming an expert workman in that line. He followed that pursuit for many years in Indianola and built the first blacksmith shop in the town. He was also engaged in the grain business at that place for four years and for a third of a century has continued in his present line of trade, having in 1875 opened a hardware store. He also deals in farm implements and buggies and carries a large line in each department. In fact his establishment is regarded as headquarters for anything desired in hardware, implements or carriages and throughout the intervening years he has enjoyed an extensive patronage, from which he has derived a just and reasonable profit, so that in the course of years he has become one of the substantial business men of the city. Mr. Peck was married in 1854 to Miss Flora Marsh, who was born in Ohio in 1835. They traveled life's journey together for forty years and were then separated by the death of Mrs. Peck in 1894. They were the parents of seven children: Ginevra; Florence, who became the wife of J. M. Harlan and died in the fall of 1907, at the age of fifty-six years; Walter, who is engaged in the grocery business in Indianola; Frank, who has a gas light lamp system and resides in Wichita, Kansas; Alta, the wife of T. D. Swan, a farmer near Indianola; Benjamin, who has departed this life; and Orlin, who is with his father. In the spring of 1852 Mr. Peck drove across the plains with ox teams on his way to California , passing through Oregon , and for a time was engaged in mining on the Pacific coast. He then returned home by way of the Isthmus of Panama . He is a supporter of democratic principles and has served as school director and as a member of the city council. Few men of his years, for he has attained the seventy-seventh milestone on life's journey, are so active and enterprising and in spirit and interests he seems yet in his prime and is justly regarded as one of the leading factors in business circles in Indianola, where for many years he has conducted a successful business along honorable principles that have neither sought nor required disguise. ALONZO PUDERBAUGH, who has met with a well deserved and gratifying measure of success in his farming and stock-raising interests, was born on the old homestead farm on section 26, Liberty township, August 12, 1873 . His father, Andrew Puderbaugh, is mentioned at length on another page of this work. Alonzo was reared and educated in the place of his nativity and still resides on the home farm, being successfully engaged in farming and stock-raising and making a specialty of shorthorn cattle, of which he has a fine herd. He is also a copartner of R. O. Miller, of Norwood , Iowa , in the ownership of thoroughbred Norman and Clydesdale stallions, of which they have some fine specimens. For the past six years Mr. Puderbaugh has been one of the largest feeders of draft horses in Liberty township. His farm comprises one hundred and sixty acres of valuable and well improved land and he is recognized throughout the community as a progressive and enterprising young agriculturist. In 1895, in Warren county, occurred the marriage of Mr. Puderbaugh and Miss Effie Smith, a native of this county and a daughter of Abraham and Elizabeth (Crumrine) Smith. By this union there have been born five children: Merl, Vivian, Estaline, Marvin and Alton , all of whom were born in this county and are still under the parental roof. Mr. Puderbaugh gives stalwart allegiance to the men and measures of the republican party and has served for four years as township clerk. He is identified with the Yeoman of Liberty Center, and is a public-spirited citizen, giving his cooperation to every movement which tends to promote the moral, intellectual and material welfare of the community. ANDREW PUDERBAUGH, who passed away at his home in Liberty township, Warren county, Iowa , April 19, 1901 , was born near Elkhart , Indiana , February 2, 1832 . Removing to Darke county, Ohio , he acquired his education in the common schools of that place and, owing to the early death of his parents, he was reared by an uncle. On coming to Warren county, Iowa, in 1854, he located on the farm on section 26, Liberty township, which is now owned by his son, Alonzo. First entering a quarter section, he later added to his landed holdings until at the time of his demise he owned three hundred and twenty acres, a part of which was timber. He met with a creditable and gratifying measure of success in his business undertakings and in addition to the work of general farming was engaged in shipping stock for about eleven years under the firm style of Sandy & Puderbaugh. He as also one of the early auctioneers of this county and vicinity and cried sales for many years, his specialty being live stock. He was widely recognized as one of the prominent and influential pioneers of this county and his efforts were an important factor in its growth and development. In 1855 Mr. Puderbaugh was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Wagoner, a native of Darke county, Ohio , who passed away here in 1878, when about forty-eight years of age. She was reared in the faith of the Dunkard church. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Puderbaugh were born eight children, namely: Madison, who died in infancy; Minerva, the wife of J. T. Vincent, of Ackworth , Iowa ; William A., an agriculturist of Oklahoma ; David Lincoln, whose sketch appears on another page of this work; Charles A., who for the past eleven year has resided in St. Francis , Kansas , and who is state live-stock inspector, owns a ranch and is a shipper of stock; Amy, the wife of R. O. Miller of Norwood , Iowa , who is one of Iowa 's largest importers of Percheron stallions from France and also Clydesdale stallions and Scotch shorthorn cattle from Ontario , Canada ; Sadie, who became the wife of Roland Barlett and resides in Hopeville , Iowa , and Alonzo, who is also mentioned on another page of this volume. The father was again married in 1881, his second union being with Mary A. Vorlis, of Lacona, Iowa, by whom he had one child, Samuel Oliver, who lives with his mother in Medford , Oregon . In his political views Mr. Puderbaugh was a republican and served as trustee, justice of the peace and in other offices of public trust and responsibility. In the early days he was likewise identified with the Grange, and at one time was a member of the Dunkard church. He is still gratefully remembered as one of the early pioneers whose earnest efforts made possible the present splendid development of the county, and the work which he began more than a half century ago is still being carried on by his sons. D. L. PUDERBAUGH, a successful farmer and stock-raiser of Liberty township, where he owns and operates two hundred acres of valuable land known as the Crystal Fountain farm, was born August 30, 1864 , on section 26 of this township. Extended mention f his father, Andrew Puderbaugh, is made on another page of this volume. Our subject remained under the parental roof until he had attained his majority, thoroughly mastering the various branches of learning taught in the public schools. His attention throughout his business career has been largely given to agricultural pursuits. He spent the years 1886 and 1887 in Wyoming and, being married in the latter year, located in Lucas county, Iowa . In 1898, however, he took up his abode on his present home farm, being here successfully engaged in the tilling of the soil and the raising of cattle, hogs and horses. His place is called the Crystal Fountain farm, on which he has recently erected a model dwelling and also added many modern improvements and accessories. He has a fine well, from which water is siphoned to the various fields and to the barn, having three different tanks which hold a fine supply of water. He has likewise installed a Kewanee water system, supplying hot and cold water all over the house. Mr. Puderbaugh was united in marriage to Miss Elzina Nine, a native of Lucas county, Iowa , and a daughter of henry and Catherine (Marker) Nine, who still reside in Lucas county. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Puderbaugh have been born seven children: Gertie, Jennie, Fern, Harley, Homer, Ora and Ardis, all of whom were born in this county and are still at home. In his political views Mr. Puderbaugh is a republican, while fraternally he is connected with the Modern Woodmen of America at Lacona. He is well known as one of the prosperous and enterprising residents of his native county and justly merits the respect and esteem everywhere accorded him.
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