Brown County Biographies
From "The Annals of Brown County", Grant Harrington, 1903
Morris Fraley.
There are few, if any men, now living who can claim any longer residence in Brown county than Morris
Fraley of Irving township. Mr Fraley was born in Montgomery county
New York, Jan. 16, 1837 and lived in
his native state until 1842 when he
came to Holt county Mo., where he
worked at the carpenter trade. In
the fall of 1856 he became a resident
of Brown county and located a claim
on the north-east quarter of section
29, township 1, range 18 which place
he still owns. The records show but
one transfer, that of James
Buchanan to Morris Fraley. In 1857 he removed to White Cloud where he remained for three years and then returned to Brown county where he
farmed for two years and then returned to White Cloud where he resided for five years working at his
trade and freighting; across the plains.
He then returned to the Brown county farm where he has since resided.
During the war he enrolled as a
member of Company C of the 9th regiment of Kansas militia and served
until the close of the war when he
was discharged at White Cloud.
He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and a charter member of
White Cloud lodge A. F and A. M.
Mr. Fraley cast his first vote for
James Buchanan for President. He
was a free state man however and
so voted for Abe Lincoln in 1860. He
voted for Lincoln again in 1864 and
for Gen. Grant the first time he ran
for the presidency. He returned to
h s first love, the Democratic party,
in 1872 and has voted that ticket
ever since. He has never taken an
active part in politics and aside from
the fact that he has been a member
of the school board almost continuously for forty years, has never
held office. Mr. Fraley was married
Jan. 12th I860 at Council Bluffs. Iowa
to Miss Jennie Mawhenny, a native
of West Virginia. Mrs. Fraley died
in 1887 and two years late r Mr. Fraley was married again to Miss Martha Dickson a native of Scotland.
Six children have been born to the
second marriage; Jennie, James,
Emery, Lester, Nye and Mabel. Mr.
Fraley owns 240 acres of Brown
county land all enclosed and under a
high state of cultivation with a fine
supply of pure water, large orchard
and other fine improvements. He is
a stockholder and one of the promoters of the Brown county Fair Association and ranks as one of Brown
county's most progressive and successful farmers.
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This website created Jan. 11, 2012 by Sheryl McClure.
� 2011 Kansas History and Heritage Project
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