Chapter XXV · BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY (continued 15)

Mr. Bullock was married in 1869 to Miss Emma Graham, a native of Wisconsin, and a daughter of Gustavus and Sarah Maria Graham, who were both born in New York State. For fifteen years previous to her demise Mrs. Bullock’s mother, Mrs. Sarah Maria Hale, made her home with her daughter, dying September 29, 1915, at the great age of 100 years and nine months.

Edmund Bullock was a Union veteran, who enlisted in 1862 in the Twenty-fifth Wisconsin regiment of volunteers and served until the close of the Civil war, participating in several hard-fought engagements with his regiment. He was affiliated with the Grand Army of the Republic and the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. He was prominent in Masonic circles 848and was well versed in Masonry. Politically, Mr. Bullock was a Republican, who voted independently on local and county matters. He was reared in the Episcopalian faith, but was a liberal donator to all denominations who sought his assistance. He was an honest, straight-forward citizen who was blessed with a jolly disposition and had a fund of anecdotes which he was continually retailing to a crowd of interested listeners, especially children who would gather around him at times when he was not busy and listened enthralled to his wonder tales. Mr. and Mrs. Bullock lived an ideal married life and were deeply devoted to each other.

PRESLEY H. CALVERT.

Presley H. Calvert, retired farmer, of Muscotah, Kan., was born November 14, 1835, in Owington, Ky., a son of B. Warren Calvert, a native of old Virginia, and a direct descendant of Cecil Calvert (Lord Baltimore), who founded the Maryland colony in America. The mother of Presley H. Calvert was Lucy J. Hawkins before her marriage with Warren Calvert, and was born in Frankfort, Ky. In 1837 the Calvert family migrated from Kentucky to Platte county, Missouri, and were among the earliest pioneer settlers of that county. Being slaveholders in Kentucky they brought along the family slaves and improved 160 acres of land in Missouri. Both parents ended their days on the old home place in Platte county.

Presley H. was reared on the farm in Platte county and was educated in the Pleasant Ridge College, the same school attended by B. P. Waggener, of Atchison. He followed farming until the outbreak of the war between the States and then served three months in the army of General Price, being under the direct command of Captain Mitchell and in Steen’s division. He fought at the battle of Lexington, Mo., in behalf of the Confederacy and received his discharge on account of sick disability at Osceola, St. Clair county, Missouri. After his marriage in 1867 he farmed for ten years in Platte county, Missouri, and then came to Kansas, settling on a farm three miles south of Muscotah in Kapioma township. For the first ten years Mr. Calvert rented land and then invested in 160 acres of good land three miles north of Muscotah in Grasshopper township. He improved this farm and resided thereon until 1895. He then rented his farm and moved to Muscotah. Mr. Calvert paid twenty dollars per acre for his land and sold it for $5,000 when he retired from active farm work. He is now making his home with Mr. and Mrs. Will Warren. Mrs. Warren is his niece.

849Mr. Calvert was married in 1867 to Miss Cora A. Jackson, born and reared in Platte county, Missouri, a daughter of Wallace Jackson, a native of Kentucky and an early settler of Missouri. Two children were born to this union: Edna and Charles, both of whom are deceased. Mrs. Calvert died in 1908, at the age of sixty years. Mr. Calvert has been a life-long Democrat of the old school. When a young man he formed one of the hardy army of freighters who crossed the plains to the Far West in charge of the great overland freight trains before the advent of the railroads. He crossed the plains on four trips to Salt Lake City and other western points in Colorado.

WILLIAM THOMAS WARREN.

William Thomas Warren is one of the younger generation of farmers in Atchison county, and is the owner of 320 acres of land one and one-half miles east of Muscotah on the White Way highway. He was born December 25, 1876, in Brown county, Kansas, and is a son of Rodney T. (born in 1846, died March 5, 1914), and Chariet (Speaks) Warren (born in 1846). Both parents were born and reared in Kentucky and came to Kansas in the spring of 1876 and settled on a farm in Brown county. Later, in 1905, Rodney T. Warren bought a farm near Centralia in Nemaha county, and resided thereon until his demise. Mrs. Warren lives at Hiawatha, Kan.

W. T. Warren was educated in the public schools of his native county and followed farming until 1903, when he left the farm and was employed in the retail meat market of Mr. Zimmerman, at Hiawatha, for a period of five years. He was then employed in the same avocation at Atchison, Falls City, Neb., and Fairbury, Neb., until October of 1911. He then came to Muscotah and entered the employ of E. W. Allen, who conducted a grocery and meat market. He remained with Mr. Allen until 1914, and then he and Mrs. Warren invested their combined capital in 320 acres of land near Muscotah.

He was married on May 22, 1912, to Miss Ella, a daughter of A. H. Calvert, grain merchant of Muscotah. (The reader is referred to the biography of A. H. Calvert, brother of Presley H. Calvert, for further details concerning Mrs. Warren’s parents.) Mrs. Warren served as the assistant cashier of the Muscotah State Bank for fifteen years. Mr. Warren is a Republican in politics and attend the Congregational church, of which Mrs. Warren is a member.

850

WILLIAM MANGELSDORF.

The name of Mangelsdorf is indelibly linked with the story of the commercial development of northeast Kansas and the Middle West, and the Mangelsdorf family is one of the most respected and substantial of Atchison, Kan. The review of the life of William Mangelsdorf, deceased, begins across the Atlantic in the Fatherland of Germany, where he was born and spent part of his youth, coming to America with his parents when twelve years of age. William not only achieved a wonderful success in business and accumulated wealth, but he assisted in making the family name known and respected throughout a great extent of territory wherever the output of the great seed house founded by him and his brother, August, carried its business. He left behind him a monument for business integrity and upright methods which has made his name universally respected and honored for years to come.

William Mangelsdorf was born in Armin, Prussia, February 15, 1845, a son of Christopher and Marie Anna Dorothy Mangelsdorf. Christopher Mangelsdorf died in Germany in 1849 and his widow married Andrew Stehwein, who with the family emigrated from their native land in 1849 and settled on a farm in Gasconade county, Missouri. In 1868 the family removed to Douglas county, Kansas, where they resided until the mother’s demise, after which Mr. Stehwein came to Atchison to spend the remainder of his days with his children. Five children were born to Christopher and Marie Anna Mangelsdorf: Mrs. Anna Buhman, of Atchison, Kan.; Henry, in New Mexico; Mrs. Dorothy Beurman, Lakeview, Douglas county, Kansas; William, with whom this review is directly concerned; and August, residing in Atchison.

In 1868 William Mangelsdorf left the family home in Gasconade county, Missouri, and came to Atchison, Kan. His first employment in this city was as a laborer in various capacities until 1872. During the four years in which he was earning his living by the hardest kind of labor he was all the time obsessed with the idea that the mercantile field of the new country being developed afforded opportunities to become successful for an ambitious young man. He accordingly, carefully saved his money, and with a small capital embarked in business for himself. He was first engaged in the retail grocery business with John Ratterman under the firm style of Ratterman & Mangelsdorf, and remained a member of the firm until 1875, when he disposed of his interest in the grocery business and purchased a half interest in the retail grocery conducted by his brother, August Mangelsdorf, forming the firm of Mangelsdorf Brothers. It was about this time that the brothers 851tried the experiment of adding a seed department to the grocery in order to meet a growing demand for farm and garden seeds. The experiment proved successful and the business grew even beyond the greatest expectations of the promoters. What was intended as a side line on their part developed into an extensive business which soon dwarfed the grocery trade; it was not long until they engaged in the wholesale line; the enterprise grew to be one of the most important in northeastern Kansas, and was later incorporated as the Mangelsdorf Brothers Company. An extended mention of its development is to be found elsewhere in this publication. Not many years after the partnership of the Mangelsdorf Brothers was formed, William established another general merchandise store at Ellinwood, Kan., in 1877, and later another store at Bushton, Kan. The stores were conducted under the name of the Mangelsdorf Brothers Company, which was incorporated about this time, and the other partners in the various enterprises were August Mangelsdorf, of Atchison, H. D. Back, of Atchison, Kan., and C. F. Stehwein, manager of the Bushton store. William resided in Ellinwood in active management of the stores until 1895; then he removed with his family to his farm near there. In 1898 he moved to Bushton, taking the active management of the store at that place. He also established a banking business at Bushton which was successful from the start, and his activity in commercial life continued until 1904, when he removed to Atchison, where he lived in retirement from active business pursuits until his demise, May 15, 1911.

Mr. Mangelsdorf was married August 6, 1875, to Miss Minnie Halling, and this marriage was blessed with six children, namely: Clara, residing in Pueblo, Colo.; William C., who also lives in Pueblo, Colo.; Edward F., a member of the Mangelsdorf Brothers Company; Minnie, at home; Frank A., cashier of the German-American State Bank of Atchison; Albert H., cashier of the Farmers State Bank, Potter, Kan. Mrs. Mangelsdorf was born in 1854 in Pennsylvania, and died in Atchison, Kan., in 1904. Her father was an early settler in Kansas, and first resided in Doniphan county, where he preëmpted land on Independence creek, later removing to Atchison. William Mangelsdorf was a member of the Evangelical Lutheran church, to which denomination he was a liberal contributor. During his life he was a hard and indefatigable worker, who was ambitious to succeed and achieve a competence for his children. He was a liberal supporter of local enterprises, and was regarded as one of the wealthy and substantial citizens of Kansas, and will long be regarded as one of the leading figures of the commercial development of Atchison county and central Kansas.

852

ALBERT H. MANGELSDORF.

Albert H. Mangelsdorf, cashier of the Farmers State Bank of Potter, Kan., was born February 15, 1890, in Barton county, Kansas. He is a son of the late William Mangelsdorf, a pioneer settler of Atchison, and one of the successful merchants of Kansas, extended mention of whom is given elsewhere in this volume. Mr. Mangelsdorf was educated in the common schools of Barton county, Kansas, and received his preparatory training at St. Benedict’s College, Atchison, Kan. He attended the University of Kansas, class of 1912, pursuing a course in mining engineering. After the completion of this course he was in the employ of the Newmire Vanadium Company, located at Newmire, Colo., in the capacity of engineer. Later, he was in the employ of a mining firm at Weinkleman, Ariz., and later with the Arizona Copper Company at Morenci, Ariz., after which he served as superintendent of the main building of the Mangelsdorf Brothers Company at Atchison until his appointment as cashier of the Farmers State Bank of Potter, Kan., in December, 1914.

Mr. Mangelsdorf is a Republican in politics and is fraternally affiliated with the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, the Knights of Columbus, and is a member of the Catholic church.

FRED BINKLEY.

The late Fred Binkley, of Potter, Kan., was born April 8, 1832, in Warrick county, Indiana, a son of George and Catharine (Chinn) Binkley, both of whom were born and reared in the State of North Carolina, and were among the earliest settlers of southwestern Indiana. George Binkley was of German origin, and Catharine (Chinn) Binkley was of English origin. In the year 1828 George Binkley with his wife and infant son, James, set out for Indiana, equipped with one horse, their personal belongings and a camping outfit. The horse was used to transport their outfits and it was necessary for George and his wife to walk practically the entire distance from North Carolina to their destination in Indiana. They arrived in the wilderness of Indiana without mishap and at once set about making a home in the new country. A few years later they removed to a farm in Gibson county, Indiana, where George and Catharine Binkley spent the remainder of their lives. They reared a family of eleven children, of which Fred was the third child.

853Fred Binkley grew to manhood on the pioneer farm in Indiana and learned to rough it at a very early age. After his marriage in 1854 to Elizabeth Dougan, he and his wife lived for one year on a farm in Gibson county, and then the father of Mrs. Binkley (James Dougan) sold out his holdings in Indiana and migrated to Atchison county, Kansas. Two years later Fred and his wife followed and settled on 160 acres of land one and one-half miles northwest of Potter in Mt. Pleasant township. The land was mostly raw prairie and it was necessary for him to erect a suitable home which was an humble one at first, but as the years passed and Mr. and Mrs. Binkley became more and more prosperous they built a better home and added sixty acres more land to their holdings.

Fred Binkley was married September 15, 1854, to Elizabeth Dougan, and eight children have been born to this union: Robert, born in Indiana in 1855, a farmer living in Mt. Pleasant township; Sarah, wife of S. Watson, of Leavenworth county, Kansas, was born in 1860; Lewis, born in 1863, and died in 1899; James, born in 1868, living on a farm near Effingham, Kan.; George, born in 1870, died in 1910; Dora, born in 1872, wife of Samuel Hall, of Leavenworth county, Kansas; Lou, born in 1874, at home with her mother; Kate, born in 1877, wife of Albert Hawley, of Atchison county, Kansas. The mother of these children was born May 10, 1835, a daughter of James and Sarah (Healt) Dougan. James Dougan, the father, was born in Kentucky, a son of Samuel, who was a soldier of the Revolution, and who received a large grant of Government land for his services. His grant was located in Dyer county, Tennessee, and consisted of 1,300 acres of wild land, which was divided among the children of the Revolutionary soldier (James). Samuel removed with his family to a portion of this land, which was wild and rough and covered with dense timber. A few years of living in the wilderness of Tennessee sufficed for them, however, and they left the State and went to Gibson county, Indiana, to found another home. They traveled horseback to the new location. Samuel, at that time an old man, became ill on the trip and was forced to return to Tennessee, dying there in about 1828. The family later made a permanent settlement in Gibson county, Indiana. Samuel and Molly Dougan (his wife) reared a family of five children, of whom James, the father of Mrs. Binkley, was the third child. The mother of James died in 1845. James Dougan was married in 1831 to Sarah Healt, and eleven children were born to them, of whom nine were reared to manhood and womanhood. As early as 1855 James Dougan came to Atchison county and preëmpted 160 acres of land, built a cabin, and returned to Indiana for his family, whom he brought to Atchison county, Kansas, in the spring of 8541856. He was comparatively a poor man when he located in Kansas, but became quite prosperous and well-to-do and became the owner of a half section of well improved land. James died in 1900, at the age of ninety-two years. Two brothers of Mrs. Binkley served in the Union Army during the Civil war. One of them enlisted in the Eighth Kansas cavalry regiment, and the other in the Thirteenth regiment.

Fred Binkley departed this life August 2, 1910. He was well and favorably known in Atchison county and his demise marked the passing of one of the sturdy pioneer settlers of the State. He was a stanch Republican during his whole life and was a pronounced Free State man in the days when the struggle was on to make Kansas a Free State. He took an active part in the stirring scenes before and during the dark days of the Civil war, and like many others, suffered from the forays of the border ruffians. The Methodist church, of which he was one of the members and a builder, having been burned by border ruffians, he never united with any other denomination.

JOHN DRIMMEL.

John Drimmel, farmer and stockman, of Shannon township, Atchison county, was born on the farm where he resides, in 1863, a son of John and Mary (Karn) Drimmel, natives of Austria. John Drimmel, Sr., was born in Austria in 1829, and immigrated to America with his wife in 1853. They were accompanied by the oldest child, Veronica. He settled on a rented farm of eighty acres north of Atchison in Shannon township, which he cultivated for three years and then bought eighty acres of land four miles west of the city. John, Sr., erected a small, rough box house, which was the family home for the first twelve years, and which was then replaced by a large, handsome brick residence of ten rooms, which is now the home of the son, John. This fine home is modern and fitted with a lighting system and a cellar runs underneath the entire body of the house. It is one of the most attractive places in Atchison county. Mr. Drimmel added to his acreage as he was able and accumulated a total of 230 acres of fine land which is now being cultivated by his son. During 1914 John Drimmel, with whom this review is concerned, had planted forty-five acres of corn, 100 acres of wheat, and ninety acres of oats, all of which yielded splendid crops. Mr. Drimmel is renting eighty acres, in addition to the home farm. The elder Drimmel was a Free State man and served as company cook in the Union army during the Civil 855war. He reared a family of seven children, as follows: Mrs. Veronica Miller, living in Doniphan county, Kansas; Antony, of Atchison; Florence, Everest, Kan.; John, the subject of this review; Arnold, of Kansas City; Frank, living with his brother, John; L. J., a farmer, living in Shannon township. All of the children of this pioneer family are well-to-do and in good health, the oldest of the family being over sixty-one years of age. John Drimmel, the father, died in 1891. The mother was born in 1829, and died in 1889. They were a worthy pioneer couple who achieved a comfortable competence and reared a fine family in the land of their adoption.

John Drimmel owns and manages the old home place of the Drimmel family in Shannon township, and is one of the representative and well known farmers of Atchison county. All of his fifty-three years of life have been spent in Atchison county and he has always lived on the farm which he now owns. Mr. Drimmel was married in 1893 to Miss Marie Blodig, who died in the first year of her marriage, leaving one son, Frank, born March 1, 1894, and studied in St. Benedict’s College. He was again married in 1896 to Miss Marie Jahl, who has borne him the following children: Anna Marie, born November 24, 1898; John Albert, born April 28, 1900; Marie Veronica, born September 6, 1901; Agnes Cecila, born December 23, 1902; Irene Florentine, born June 11, 1904; Ernest Gabriel, born January 15, 1906; Alfred William, born March 28, 1908; Reinhold Leapold, born September 20, 1909; Rose Helena, born January 23, 1911; Maximilian Louis, born August 21, 1912; Genevieve Frances, born August 14, 1914. The mother of this large family of eleven children was born in Austria in 1877, a daughter of John and Anna Jahl. John Jahl, the father of Mrs. Drimmel, was born in Austria in 1852, and departed this life March 10, 1879. Mrs. Jahl was born July 22, 1855, and came to America in the year 1894, and has since resided in Atchison county. Mrs. Jahl resides with her daughter. She and Mr. Jahl were married in Austria in 1875 and were the parents of three children as follows: John Jahl, Jr., born February 21, 1876, and died in October, 1877; Mrs. Marie (Jahl) Drimmel, born March 10, 1877; Frank Jahl, born September 17, 1878, and died in June of 1879.

Mr. and Mrs. Drimmel and their children are all members of St. Benedict’s Catholic Church and are liberal supporters of this denomination. Mr. Drimmel is a Democrat in politics, but simply does his duty as a citizen and has never been a seeker after political office. The Drimmel home is a very happy one, and the Drimmel family is one of the largest families in Atchison county or the state of Kansas, and Mr. and Mrs. Drimmel have good and just right to be proud of the fact, inasmuch as Atchison county is proud of 856them. The children of this fine family are all receiving the benefits of a good school and college education, and it is the firm intention of the parents that all of their sons shall be educated in St. Benedict’s College, and the daughters shall finish their training in Mt. St. Scholastica Academy. John, Jr., is at present a student in St. Benedict’s College, class of 1917, and Anna and Marie will enter Mt. Scholastica in the fall of 1916 in order to complete the course in this excellent young ladies’ school. Mr. and Mrs. Drimmel believe thoroughly in giving their children every educational advantage within their means in order to properly fit them for becoming useful men and women and become a credit to their ambitious parents.

AUGUST MANGELSDORF.

August Mangelsdorf has been a citizen of Atchison for over half a century and has accomplished during that period two things which entitle him to recognition and even renown. He established and built up the Mangelsdorf Brothers Seed Company, one of the largest concerns of its kind in the West, and now managed by his sons. The other is the rearing of a large family of fifteen children. If Mr. Mangelsdorf had done no more than to bring into the world and rear his family of fifteen children he would have been entitled to more than ordinary mention as one of the sturdy pioneer citizens of Atchison. He is now living a retired life at his beautiful place, “Homewood,” in South Atchison, and, while ostensibly retired, works constantly on his farm within and adjoining the city limits. While nominally the president of the Mangelsdorf Brothers Seed Company, he spends the greater portion of his time out of doors working about the grounds and fields of his estate. Mr. Mangelsdorf, while having lived a busy and even strenuous life during his fifty years in business in Atchison, has no desire to “rust out,” but believes that his health can be better conserved by plenty of exercise in the open air. His rugged appearance and keen interest in life bear testimony to the wisdom of his plan of living. He is one of the highly respected and substantial citizens of Atchison and has done his part in the task of making Atchison preëminent among the cities of the West. The great concern which bears his name was originated and built up by himself and is a monument to his enterprise and integrity, and Atchison is proud of him and the outcome of his life work.

857Mr. Mangelsdorf was born in Armin, Prussia, July 27, 1848. He was the son of Christopher and Marie Anna Dorothy Mangelsdorf, who lived in Armin until 1856, when they immigrated to America. The father died in 1849, and the mother married the second time to Andrew Stehwein. The family first settled on a farm in Gasconade county, Missouri, residing there until 1868, when they came to Douglas county, Kansas. Here they lived until the mother died, and then Mr. Stehwein came to Atchison to spend the remainder of his days with his children. Five children were born to Christopher Mangelsdorf, namely: Mrs. Anna Buhrman, of Atchison; Henry, in New Mexico; Mrs. Dorothy Beurman, Lakeview, Douglas county, Kansas; William, deceased August, with whom this review is directly concerned.

August Mangelsdorf came to Kansas from Missouri in 1865 and located in Atchison. He worked as a laborer to earn money for his sustenance and was not ashamed to do the hardest kind of labor. He willingly did anything necessary to earn an honest dollar. His first real business experience was as a clerk in the grocery store of John Belz. It was only natural to see him become the owner of the business in time. Frugality, industry and aptitude, characteristics of his race, enabled him to become proprietor of the store in 1873. He owned the business until 1893. Two years after taking entire charge of the grocery he started a small seed business as a side line with his grocery. This was the foundation of his subsequent fortune, and it was only a question of years until he branched out in the wholesale line and the business outgrew the store. The seed business kept on growing and growing: the sons of its founder became young men; its founder concluded to retire and he turned over the management to his sons who are following in the father’s footsteps. For years his brother, William, was associated with him and they started a general store at Ellinwood, Kan., of which William had charge. Mr. Mangelsdorf established greenhouses in connection with the seed business. These extensive greenhouses are located on the Homewood estate and are in charge of his son, Ernest. In 1912 Mr. Mangelsdorf concluded to retire from active business and is now enjoying life to the full. His sixty-seven years of existence have been well and profitably spent and he can look back over the past years with satisfaction and pleasure over a task well and faithfully done. It is given to but few men to have reared a large family of sons and daughters and to have lived to see them shoulder the responsibilities left by the father and perform the work successfully while he is yet living to observe, guide, and instruct them.

Mr. Mangelsdorf was first married to Anna Charlotte Brune in 1874. She died in 1890. To this union were born nine children: Anna died in 8581890; August, manager and vice-president of the seed company; Fred, the efficient secretary of the concern; Charlotte, cashier of the company; Ernest, in charge of the greenhouses; Bertha, teacher of domestic science in the high school at Seneca, Kan.; Caroline, who is studying in Chicago in preparation for kindergarten work; Marie, deceased; Frank, treasurer of the seed company; Mrs. Marie Schmeling, of Atchison. In 1892 Mr. Mangelsdorf took to wife, Mrs. Louise Brune, who has borne him eight children: Albert, a graduate of the Agricultural College at Manhattan, class of 1916; Carl died in infancy; Paul and Louise, in high school; Theodore, Dorothy, Harold and Helen.

Mr. Mangelsdorf is a director of the First National Bank of Atchison. Politically, he is allied with the Democratic party and has served one term as city councilman and city treasurer for four years. He is a member of the Evangelical church and is fraternally allied with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.

FRANK A. MANGELSDORF.

Frank A. Mangelsdorf, cashier of the German-American State Bank of Atchison, Kan., while the youngest of the bankers of the city, has given evidence that he possesses the inherent ability and the necessary ambition to successfully conduct the important financial institution under his management. The German-American State Bank is the newest of the banking concerns of Atchison, but it is fast coming to the front as one of the important banks of this section of Kansas under Mr. Mangelsdorf’s aggressive and capable control. He is a native son of Kansas and was born and reared in this State, being a son of William Mangelsdorf, merchant and financier, deceased, who came from Germany to America when a boy and achieved a notable success in the land of his adoption. A review of the life of William Mangelsdorf appears in this volume.

Mr. Mangelsdorf was born August 14, 1888, in Ellinwood, Kan. The first ten years of his life were spent there and on his father’s farm, whither his parents had removed from Ellinwood. He received his early education in a country school, later attending the public schools of Bushton, and completed the eighth grade at the age of twelve. From 1900 to 1904 he was employed in his father’s store at Bushton, the family removing to the city of Atchison in the latter year. He pursued a course in the Atchison Business 859College, and then became cashier of the Mangelsdorf Brothers Company, a position which he filled until 1910. He then became assistant cashier of the First National Bank of Atchison, remaining in that position until the organization of the German-American State Bank in 1912, when he became cashier of the newly organized banking concern. The success of this bank is a matter of gratification to its stockholders and patrons.

Mr. Mangelsdorf was married June 22, 1914, to Miss Veva Sawin, a daughter of William H. Sawin, an undertaker of Atchison. He is independent in political matters, preferring to cast his vote for the individual whom he deems best fitted to perform the duties of the office sought rather than to support a party candidate. He is a member of the Catholic church. Although young in years, Mr. Mangelsdorf is recognized as one of the rising young bankers of Atchison and is considered among the city’s best and most enterprising citizens. The unvarying courtesy and dignity characteristic in his conduct of the banking business is carried into his daily life, and he enjoys the respect and esteem of a large number of friends in the city.

PAUL ATKIN.

Paul Atkin, traveling salesman, of Atchison, Kan., was born September 6, 1866, in Lincolnshire, England. He was the son of William and Rebecca (Prestwood) Atkin. William Atkin, the father, was born in England about 1841. He was a farmer in his native country, but emigrated from England to America in 1872. His first place of residence in this country was in Chicago, where he resided a few years. He then moved to Kansas, settling on his farm in Doniphan county. After one year’s residence in Kansas he returned to Chicago and engaged in the transfer business. Again, in about 1880, he returned to Doniphan county, Kansas, and engaged in farming, and cultivated his land until 1899, at which time he engaged in the hotel and livery business in Denton, Kansas. He died in a hospital at Leavenworth, Kan., in 1900. Nine children were born to William and Rebecca Atkin: Mrs. L. H. Priester, living in California; Paul, with whom this review is directly concerned; Mrs. Thomas Wrighter, of Denton, Kan.; Mrs. Fred Hickok, of Haverlock, Neb.; Mrs. Ben Hinchscliff, near Topeka, Kan.; Mrs. Art Hall, Severance, Kan.; William, farmer, of Doniphan county; Arnold, near Severance, Kan.; Ethel died at the age of eight years. The mother of these children was born in England in 1842, and died in Severance, Kan., in 1902.

860Paul Atkin did not leave England until thirteen years of age, when he crossed the ocean and continent and came to Atchison, Kan., arriving in the city ten days before his parents, then living in Doniphan county, Kansas, learned of his arrival. He was nine days on the water and came across the ocean aboard the “City of Richmond,” one of the fastest ocean-going passenger ships afloat at that time. Being a boy and alone, he was given all privileges and made many friends. He never had a day’s illness during the voyage or crossing the continent to Kansas, but became ill on arriving in Atchison and was cared for by Mr. Dorethy, at that time depot master of Atchison. This kind man looked after him until his father was notified of his arrival. From Atchison he went to Doniphan county and assisted his father for many years in operating the farm, later operating the farm by himself for one year. At the age of twenty he began working for himself for twenty dollars per month for a period of one year. He then went to Ellensburg, Wash., and learned the plasterer’s trade, remaining in that city two years, after which he went to Tacoma, Wash., and remained there six months, then going to Portland, Ore., where he worked at the harness maker’s trade, not long after returning to Doniphan county, Kansas, where he followed the trade of plastering for three years. After his marriage he made his home in Atchison, Kan., and after making a trip to Port Arthur and working at his trade, he then opened a meat market in Denton, Kan., which he operated for a time and then sold out. In 1888 he returned to Atchison and entered the employ of Curtain & Clark Cutlery Company, of St. Joseph, Mo., as traveling salesman. He traveled for three years, his territory being through Nebraska. He resigned and accepted a position for another three and a half years with the Rochester Stamp Company, of Rochester, N. Y. Giving up this work he engaged in the hardware business with Krings in Atchison. The firm was known as Krings & Atkin. Later he sold out his interest in the hardware business and became interested in the United States Street Lighting Company, manufacturing street lamps in Kansas City until February, 1909, when he again went on the road as traveling salesman with the Associated Silver Company of Chicago, his territory embracing Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado.

Mr. Atkin was married in 1894 to Addie M. Herring. Mr. and Mrs. Atkin have one daughter, Frances Mildred, a graduate of Atchison High School, and a student in Atchison Business College.

Mrs. Atkin was born in 1871 in Doniphan county, Kansas, a daughter of Henry H. Herring, a native of Pennsylvania and now residing in Atchison.

Mr. Atkin is independent in political affairs and votes for the individual 861rather than the support of any one political party. He is affiliated with the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. His wife and daughter are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

PETER PARSONS.

Peter Parsons, of Atchison, Kan., is a Kentuckian by birth and has the distinction of being the pioneer thresher man of northeast Kansas and western Missouri. He was born in Breathitt county, Kentucky, December 10, 1868, a son of J. W. Parsons, a descendant of an old Virginia family. Peter Parsons’ maternal grandfather, Hatfield, was a soldier in the Revolution and fought under General Washington. The Parsons and the Hatfield families were among the earliest pioneers of the State of Kentucky. When Peter was four years of age the Parsons family removed to Buchanan county. Missouri, and there settled on a farm. Peter was reared to young manhood on the Missouri farm and attended the district schools. When but a boy he developed an aptitude for machinery and showed a knack of handling farming implements possessed by few boys of his age. In 1887 he entered the employ of the A. J. Harwi Hardware Company and worked in the farm machinery department of the store. Desiring to gain a more intimate knowledge of threshing machinery, especially, he went to Battle Creek, Mich., where the machines were manufactured and learned the business of building and assembling threshing machines from the ground up. This was a good business venture on his part, as he soon engaged in threshing on his own account and operated threshing outfits for over nineteen years, and was actively engaged in northeast Kansas and northwest Missouri in this business successfully. He operated several machines and crews and had almost a virtual monopoly of the threshing business in his territory. At the present time Mr. Parsons operates two threshing outfits which he owns, but for some years has retired from active labor in the fields. The wide range of his activities naturally gave him an extensive and favorable acquaintance among the farmers of this section of the country and he acquired a reputation for thorough workmanship and square dealing which has never been surpassed by men engaged in the same industry. He is probably the oldest threshing machine operator at the present time in eastern Kansas or western Missouri in years of experience, and understands the mechanical part of the industry better than any other man 862in this neighborhood. Mr. Parsons has a right to be proud of his record in the agricultural history of Atchison county and Kansas. From 1903 to 1909 Mr. Parsons was a member of the Atchison police force and made a record in the department for efficiency and faithful performance of his duties which is remembered. He is a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles and is well liked by all who know him. He is broad-minded in his views and kindly disposed toward his fellow men.

HENRY SCHIFFBAUER.

Henry Schiffbauer, pioneer, plainsman, Government scout, and friend of Buffalo Bill, now lives in comparative quiet on his farm in Kapioma township, Atchison county, after having seen the wildest and wooliest parts of the great West in its early days. Under his own eyes, Kansas has changed from a land of Indians, daubed with bright paint, shouting a war-whoop and brandishing tomahawks, to a quiet farming community, where peaceable citizens drive to church every Sunday. He has seen Kansas changed from a broad prairie, with its countless thousands of buffaloes to a great farming country, with its productive fields, and the trudging ox has been succeeded by the tractor and automobile. Henry Schiffbauer, in his seventy-five years, has seen the making of a nation; he has seen the wild frontier grow into a civilized community, which ranks among the highest in intelligence and prosperity. Mr. Schiffbauer was born January 27, 1841, on the River Rhine, in Prussia, Germany. His parents, Michael and Gertrude (Frentz) Schiffbauer, had thirteen children. The father followed farming in his native land, and in 1851 immigrated to the United States, settling on General Taylor’s farm, in Gamwell county, Kentucky. Four years later he moved to Missouri, and in the same year came to Kansas, where he homesteaded a claim in Jefferson county, which he farmed until about eight years before his death, which occurred when he was eighty-nine years old. The mother of Henry Schiffbauer died in 1854, at the age of fifty-five years. She fell before the terrible scourge of cholera which swept the United States about that time. The four children living are: Charles, Cripple Creek, Colo.; Trassie, a nun, at Leavenworth, Kan.; Frank, Pittsburgh, Pa.; and Henry, the subject of this sketch. All but Frank were born in Germany, he having been born in Gamwell county, Kentucky.

863Henry Schiffbauer’s boyhood was one of rough and hard adventure. He received his education by driving a six-mule team, and his book learning was scanty. When he was seventeen years old he went to work for Dr. Davis, at Leavenworth, Kan. In 1857 he was stationed in the quartermaster’s department at Ft. Leavenworth, Kan., where he was employed eight years. After Lee’s surrender, in 1865, Henry returned to his home in Jefferson county, Kansas, and met Buffalo Bill, or as he is known in private life, William Cody, for the first time. Here was begun a friendship which continued for many years, and which probably will live until one of the friends passes away. Two years later, however, the two men were thrown closer together, and their acquaintance ripened into a close friendship. Henry was guarding and herding mules when he met Buffalo Bill the second time. The latter was an extra hand on Major & Russell’s overland freight train. Henry Schiffbauer was the man who taught Buffalo Bill to shoot from a saddle, it is said, and the unequalled skill of the great hunter may be laid at the feet of the subject of this sketch. It may be that if Buffalo Bill had not met Henry Schiffbauer, his life history might have been different, for undoubtedly it was the stories which Henry told of his experiences that tempted the young man to leave his oxen and follow the wilder life of a Government scout. Mr. Schiffbauer has seen the most sensational life of the West in its most dangerous days. Just before the outbreak of the Civil war he carried messages for the Government from Ft. Kearney, Neb., to Ft. Laramie, Colo., and to Salt Lake City, and Ft. Floyd, Utah. These were times when it was dangerous to be a Government messenger. The dispatchers of the Government were not held in such awe in those days, and it was not at all unusual to kill a messenger to get his papers. But Mr. Schiffbauer was able to take care of himself, and passed through these uncertain times without harm. He served in the secret service department for eight months, about the time of the second election of Abraham Lincoln. It was feared by governmental officials that attempts on the President’s life were being planned, and General Thayer, then in command at Ft. Smith, Ark., secured the services of Henry Schiffbauer in this difficulty. This was a position won because of fearlessness and coolness, even in the most dangerous situations, and to be one of the protectors of the President was the honor which repaid him. In 1865 Lee surrendered and conditions began to settle.

When Mr. Schiffbauer saw that his opportunity to serve his country had ceased, he located on the farm which he now owns and built a small farm house, thus settling down to the quiet life of a farmer. He broke his ground with oxen, and worked in the most primitive manner for a few years, but 864gradually he was rewarded for his labors, and he came to have more of the comforts and conveniences of a modern farmer, erecting a large stone residence in 1880. His place is one-fourth mile east of Arrington, Kan. It comprises 189 acres, and here he and his wife, Margaret Glimm, to whom he was married in 1865, have lived since, rearing a family of eight children. Mrs. Schiffbauer was born in Germany, March 6, 1848. She is a daughter of John and Christian Glimm, who came to Kansas in the early days, bringing their daughter with them. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Schiffbauer are: Christena, who married Allen Kinkaid, of Washington State; Charles E., Belle Plains, Sumner county, Kansas; Sarah married L. E. Wagner, of St. Louis, Mo.; Henry F., Valley Falls, Kan.; Gertrude married John Nevins, Kapioma township; Robert is farming near La Cygne, Linne county, Kansas; William, Arrington, Kan.; George, passenger conductor, East St. Louis, Ill. Mr. Schiffbauer is an independent in politics. He belongs to the Modern Woodmen of America, and to the Knights and Ladies of Security. He has had a remarkable career and remembers the incidents of his early life with vividness. Atchison county has few characters with such an interesting history.

In 1857 while in the quartermaster’s department at Ft. Leavenworth he was detailed with General Sumner’s expedition against the Cheyenne Indians in the far West. This trip required six months and was filled with great hardships for the troops. In April of 1858 he accompanied Gen. Sydney Johnston’s expedition to Salt Lake City for the purpose of subduing the Mormons, and was gone for eighteen months. He assisted in building a camp at Ft. Floyd, or Camp Floyd, as it became known at the time, forty-five miles south of Salt Lake City. During this trip Mr. Schiffbauer had his first experience in driving a six-mule team and hauling “adobes.” The fort was built under the direction of Colonel Crossmore. He returned to Kansas in the fall of 1859, and went to New Orleans in the Government secret service, and thence to Baton Rouge, where he remained until after Lincoln’s election, finally making his way out of the southland with great difficulty, accompanied with personal danger to himself. For a period of eight years this plainsman never slept under a roof, excepting twice at Ft. Bonta, where he was under shelter for the night. On one of his expeditions to the far West they had fed their last grain to the mules, made camp, and the next morning the entire camp was under two feet of snow. Mr. Schiffbauer himself being covered over in a gully where he had lain down, wrapped in his blankets and buffalo robes. He recalls that on this snowy morning the wagon-master shouted: “I wonder where that damned Dutchman is?” 865Henry raised himself out of the snow and called out: “Here I am.” The mules were picketed out two and two together the night before, but that morning they were put into corrals and were so starved that they tried to eat each other. The pioneer corps cut down cottonwood trees for fuel, and the mules ate the branches, which poisoned them, and they died in their tracks, the ravens eating out their eyes while the beasts were in their death throes. The expedition lost sixty mules each day, and the drove of 500 animals was depleted to less than sixty head. They lay in camp for twelve days, and then moved on the thirteenth day. Henry recalls that the favorite team, belonging to General Johnston, was drowned through the carelessness of a teamster in fording the swollen stream.

While Mr. Schiffbauer was at Baton Rouge in Government service, he was importuned by the rebels to join a company as bugler, but declined, and with the assistance of a steamboat captain, he managed to get out of the country, and at New Orleans boarded the steamer, “Henry Von Pool,” and made his way to St. Louis. From here he went to Ft. Leavenworth and handled Government dispatches, working between Ft. Leavenworth, Ft. Scott, Ft. Gibson, Ft. Smith, Little Rock, and hunting forage and wheat for the Government. During this service he was sent to Valley Falls, with 100 six-mule teams from Ft. Smith for recuperation on the Hoover farm. Henry bought all the forage for miles around in order to feed the mules, and had under him several men for assistants.

WILLIAM ADDISON MCKELVY.

In 1880 a young man, who had graduated but a few months previously from the Philadelphia Dental College came to Atchison, Kan., and finding the city to his liking located for practice. The year 1915 finds the same man, now thirty-five years older, or younger, as his friends speak of him, still in the active practice of his profession, and it is said his practice is a leading one in this section of the State. Thirty-five years in Atchison have done much for this man and he has done much for suffering humanity. He is the nestor of the dental profession in northeastern Kansas, one of the widely known and influential citizens of the city and has justly earned the esteem of a large 866circle of friends and acquaintances; the esteem which slowly develops only through honorable living and kind deeds. His name initiates this review.

William Addison McKelvy was born in the city of Pittsburgh, Pa., June 5, 1858. His paternal grandfather, Hugh McKelvy, emigrated from Ireland about the year 1800. Shortly after reaching America, he located in Pittsburgh and was one of that city’s pioneer brick manufacturers. Dr. McKelvy’s father was Col. Samuel McKelvy, born in Pittsburgh, a member of the firm of Blair & McKelvy, pioneers in the steel industry in that city. He married when a young man, Anna B. Pride, a daughter of David Pride, who was also a pioneer resident of Pittsburgh and a native of Scotland. When President Lincoln issued his first call for volunteers, Samuel McKelvy was among the first to enlist in his home city. He was commissioned captain of the Duquesne Greys, Pittsburgh’s crack troop. He served his country with distinction and was given important assignments and received deserved promotion, being commissioned lieutenant-colonel and served on the staff of General Heintzelman and that of Gen. Phil Sheridan. The convalescent camp of the Union army, situated about seven miles south of the city of Washington, was under his charge or supervision during his entire term of service. Following his military service, he returned to Pittsburgh and his steel business. He was one of the first to build a country residence at Sewickley, now famous for its beautiful suburban homes owned by the prominent families of the steel city. The old McKelvy mansion, now owned by the Doctor’s brother, William Henry Seward McKelvy, is known as the Park Place Hotel, and is operated by its owner. Colonel McKelvy died in Sewickley in 1889. To Colonel and Mrs. McKelvy were born nine children of which our subject is the eighth.

William Addison McKelvy was reared in his native city and acquired a thorough education in its public schools. He later entered the Philadelphia Dental College and graduated with the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery, a member of the class of 1880. Following his graduation he returned to Pittsburgh and was engaged in practice for a few months. In November of that year he came to Kansas and located in the city of Atchison on the twenty-fifth of the month. His choice of location was partly due to having in the person of Dr. William F. Ferguson, a well established surgeon of the city, a friend who assured him that Atchison would prove a most satisfactory place in which to build up a practice. Dr. Ferguson assisted in getting him properly started and gave every evidence of a sincere friendship. He had little difficulty in building up a lucrative practice and has for many years 867past been recognized as one of the leading men in his profession in his section of the State. He is a member of the Kansas City Dental Society, the Kansas State, the Missouri State and the National Dental Associations.

Dr. McKelvy has never neglected his civic duties, has favored those measures and projects which meant a bigger, better city, but has never had time nor the inclination for public office. He has, from the time he graduated given his entire time and attention to his profession. He is a member of Washington Lodge, No. 4, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and Atchison Lodge, No. 647, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.

Dr. McKelvy has been twice married. His first wife was Miss Ella M. Ferguson, a daughter of Dr. Eli Ferguson, a pioneer physician of Atchison. They were married in November, 1888. Mrs. McKelvy died in 1892. Two children were born to this union: William Ferguson McKelvy, a hardware merchant of Marliton, W. Va., and Charles S. McKelvy, employed in the wholesale hardware house of Blish, Mize & Silliman, of Atchison. On October 2, 1899, he married Miss Eleanor Cain, a daughter of Alfred D. Cain, a pioneer miller of Atchison and founder of the Cain Milling Company. They are parents of three children: Alfred D., Addison P., and Mona.

GEORGE ROBERT HOOPER.

George Robert Hooper, an extensive merchandise broker of Atchison, Kan., and president of the Babcock-Arensburg Shoe Company, is a native of Virginia. He was born at Richmond, December 7, 1851, and is a son of John Hancock and Sarah Rebecca Hooper. The mother died when George R., of this sketch, was a child, and in 1867 the father removed from Richmond to Bowling Green, Ky., and later to Paducah, where he died in 1871. He was a contractor and builder. George R. Hooper was one of a family of six children and is the only one now living. He was reared in Virginia and was educated in private schools. He was about twenty years old when his father died, and had just completed an apprenticeship at the carpenter’s trade. After the death of his father he returned to Virginia with the remains, and the following year came to Atchison and entered the retail grocery business as clerk from 1872 to 1876. He was then a traveling salesman until 1884, and after that was engaged in the grocery business in Atchison about a year and one-half, when he engaged in the merchandise brokerage business, which 868he has successfully conducted to the present time. Mr. Hooper was united in marriage in 1876 to Miss Frances Lucy Howe, a daughter of George W. Howe. Mrs. Hooper is a daughter of George W. Howe, who was one of the very early settlers of Atchison county. He conducted a store at the town of Sumner and was later engaged in freighting across the plains from 1860 to 1865. The Howe family came from Plattsburg, Clinton county, New York, and Mrs. Hooper’s mother bore the maiden name, Frances Lucy Ellis. To Mr. and Mrs. Hooper have been born three children, as follows: Edith married O. M. Babcock, a sketch of whom appears in this volume; Gladys Ella is a graduate of the Conservatory of Music, Cornell University, and is now a teacher in the music department of the Iowa State Teachers’ College; and George Frances Hooper, a graduate of Wentworth Military Academy of Lexington, Mo., and is a traveling salesman. Mr. Hooper is a Democrat, but has never aspired to hold political office, although he takes a commendable interest in public affairs and is public spirited and is ever ready and willing to aid any movement for the betterment of the community. He is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and secretary of the lodge. He is also local secretary for the United Commercial Travelers, of which he is a member. He also holds membership in the Knights of the Maccabees and the Independent Order of Foresters.

RUTHERFORD B. HAWK.

The residence and buildings of a farm in any locality are generally taken as evidence of the degree of thrift and enterprise of the owners of the land. If the house and barns and fences of the agricultural plant are in a “run down at the heels” condition, it is taken as evidence of the sterility of the soil and lack of industry, pride and thrift on the part of the proprietor. On the other hand, if the buildings, fencing, etc., are attractive and well kept, it betokens prosperity and a desire on the part of the farm proprietor to keep things in first class condition. The farm home of Rutherford B. Hawk, of the younger generation of farmers in Atchison county, is one of the most attractive and handsome in the county, barns and fences, fields, orchard and gardens all making a pleasing appearance. This farm is located in Benton township, north of Effingham in sections 8 and 9, and consists of 240 acres of good land, 160 acres of which lie in section 8, and eighty acres in section 9, range 869618. This is the old home place of Andrew Hawk, father of R. B., and the present owner has lived on the place since 1883.

Rutherford B. Hawk was born February 28, 1877, on a farm near Bakersville, Coshocton county, Ohio, a son of Andrew and Lavina (Landes) Hawk, both of whom were born and reared on pioneer farms in Ohio. The late Andrew Hawk was born February 4, 1825, and died in 1903. He was born in Carroll county, Ohio, a son of Leonard and Margaret Hawk, and was one of a large family of ten children. Leonard was born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, and his people were pioneers in Ohio. Andrew Hawk came to Kansas in the eighties to make a visit with his brother, Daniel, in Atchison county, and liked the country so well that he returned to Ohio and disposed of his property and in 1883 came again to Atchison county and bought a section of land, one mile north and west of Effingham, in Benton township. He developed this large farm and lived on the place until 1903 when he sold 160 acres. Mrs. Hawk, the widow, was the owner of 240 acres of this tract which she sold to her sons.

Andrew Hawk was twice married, his first marriage taking place in Coshocton county, Ohio, with Mary Jane Walters, whom he married on May 5, 1848. The following children were born to this union and who are yet living are as follows: Mrs. Margaret Alice Zinkorn, of Baltic, Ohio; Mrs. Rachel Emily McFarlan, living on a farm near Monrovia, Atchison county, Kansas; Mrs. Teletha Ellen Dreher, of Minerva, Ohio. The second marriage of Andrew Hawk took place May 12, 1864, with Lavina Landes, and the following children were born to this union: William Sherman, Howard, Allen, a farmer near Salina, Kan.; Edgar Russell, located on a farm two miles west of Effingham; Arvilla Florence, wife of Herbert Harris, Horton, Kan.; Charles Arthur, living near Atchison, Kan; Rutherford B., with whom this review is directly concerned; John Andrew, a farmer in Benton township; Clarissa, at home with her mother. The mother of these children was born April 2, 1844, in Coshocton county, Ohio, a daughter of Valentine and Elizabeth (Hufford) Landes, the former a native of Germany, and the latter a native of Switzerland.

Rutherford B. was six years of age when his parents came to Atchison county to make this county their permanent home. He attended the district school and studied for one year in the county high school. He has always resided on the farm where he now lives with the exception of one year spent in the West. Upon his father’s demise he came into possession of eighty acres by inheritance and purchase, bought an additional eighty acres, and eighty acres of land which came to his wife, make the total of 240 acres 870which he owns and cultivates. He was married on March 31, 1909, to Mary Agnes Mackay, who was born near Effingham, educated in the district school and completed the course in the Atchison County High School, graduating therefrom in 1898. She taught school successfully for a period of ten years, the last two years of which was as principal of the Effingham school. During the summer of 1908 Mrs. Hawk visited Europe and spent some time amid the old home scenes of her parents in Scotland and also visited places of interest in Ireland and England.

Mrs. Mary Hawk was born on a farm near Effingham, a daughter of George and Jeanette (Macnee) Mackay, both of whom were born and reared in Scotland. George Mackay was born in Sterlingshire, April 18, 1840. Jeanette Mackay was born January 21, 1843 in Perthshire, Scotland. This worthy and industrious couple was married July 27, 1868, and three years later emigrated from their native heath to America. They first settled on the prairies of Wisconsin near the city of Janesville, and after a residence of three years in that locality they removed farther west to Kansas (1874). Mr. Mackay rented land for a short time and then purchased a tract of prairie land in Benton township. The land which he bought was unbroken prairie, unfenced and had never known the mark of the plow. He at once set about the hard task of developing his prairie farm and in the course of time developed it into one of the best and most productive agricultural plants in Atchison county. This farm which Mr. Mackay built up was well known as “Walnut Hill Farm.” The Mackays prospered as they deserved, and with true Scottish thrift increased their land holdings to 280 acres.

George Mackay died on his farm May 1, 1907. He was a sturdy and upright citizen whose honesty was proverbial and he enjoyed the respect and high esteem of his neighbors. He was a member of the Presbyterian faith and was a Democrat in politics. He was also a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. Two years after Mr. Mackay’s demise the widow and children removed to a pleasant home in Effingham.

The children of this estimable couple were: Alexander, and Georgette, at home with their mother; Mary, wife of Rutherford B. Hawk; Nellie Jeanette, deceased wife of Frank Sutter.

The subject of this review is a Republican in politics, and while interested in the success of his party, and a believer in Republican principles of government, has never sought political preferment. He and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church, and Mr. Hawk has served as an elder of the church for the past six years.

871

CALVIN BUSHEY.

There is an atmosphere of refinement and well being about the town of Muscotah, Atchison county, Kansas, that is not always found in the western towns which the traveler passes through. The handsome residences, with well kept lawns, shaded by great trees, and the generally attractive appearance of things in the residence portion of this prosperous community is sure to attract the eye and cause favorable comment. The people inhabitating this town are mostly of eastern descent and are nearly all pioneers who many years ago settled on the prairies in the western part of Atchison county, and by dint of industry and hard work transformed the wilderness into a smiling and fertile landscape. Many of them, their work done, have retired to comfortable homes in Muscotah. Among these is Calvin Bushey and his estimable wife, who came to Kansas, fought the good fight for a competence and are now taking life easy in a beautiful and comfortable home in this attractive Kansas town.

Speaking in a biographical sense, Calvin Bushey, Union veteran and retired pioneer farmer, was born July 17, 1844, on a Pennsylvania farm in Adams county, near the historic city of Gettysburg. He comes of good old Pennsylvania German stock and is a son of Nicholas (born 1797, died 1852), and Esther (Mickley) Bushey. Nicholas Bushey was born in the Fatherland and immigrated with his parents to America when a youth. Eight children were born to Nicholas Bushey and wife, namely: Peter died in 1905, at the age of eighty-five years; Mrs. Sarah Hartman died in 1910 at the advanced age of eighty-seven years: George, Union veteran, died at the age of eighty-four years; Jacob M., a Union veteran, residing at Holmesville, Ohio: Henry died in 1858; Catharine died in 1881; Calvin, with whom this review is concerned; John, a resident of Arendtsville, Pa., and James, deceased. The parents of these children lived and died on the homestead in Pennsylvania. The grandfather of Mr. Bushey, on his maternal side, was John Jacob Mickley, who figures in American history as one of the men who helped to haul the old Liberty Bell from Baltimore, Md., to keep it from being captured and destroyed by the British invaders and hid the bell under a church for safe keeping. A son of John Jacob was a soldier in the Revolution. Daniel Mickley, an uncle of Calvin Bushey, lived to the great age of ninety-nine years, and two other uncles lived to the age of ninety-four and ninety-five years. Longevity is a characteristic of the members of this remarkable family. Daniel Mickley served in the War of 1812 as a sergeant.

872Calvin Bushey was reared to young manhood on his father’s farm. When President Lincoln called for troops, with which to quell the rebellion of the southern states, he responded and enlisted in August of 1862, in Company K, One Hundred and twenty-sixth regiment, Pennsylvania infantry, for a period of eight months, but served one and one-half years in all. He participated in the great battles of Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg. After Mr. Bushey received his honorable discharge from the service he studied in Hayesville Institute for one year and was then engaged in mercantile business for two years, and after his marriage in 1867 came to Kansas to make his fortune. He and his young wife came directly to Atchison county and bought 160 acres of land six miles southeast of Muscotah. Not being exactly satisfied with this farm they sold it three years later and bought a quarter section of land three miles southeast of Muscotah. This land was all raw prairie at the time of purchase and it was necessary for Mr. Bushey to place all the improvements on it. He cultivated this farm until 1903 when he and Mrs. Bushey retired to a home in Muscotah. He sold the old homestead for a good price and invested in 120 acres of land southwest of Muscotah which is being cultivated by his son.

Mr. Bushey was married in January of 1867 to Miss Eva J. Taylor, who has borne him the following children: Mrs. Myrtle Belle, wife of J. D. Miller, garage proprietor and farmer, of Muscotah; John C., farmer and stock buyer, of Muscotah; Esther, wife of J. N. Roach, a farmer, living near Muscotah; Chastine Dwight Bushey, a farmer; and two children died in infancy. The mother of these children was born September 20, 1842, in Defiance, Ohio (at that time Paulding county, Ohio), a daughter of John and Lucretia (Bell) Taylor, the former a native of Huntingdon, Pa., and the latter a native of Nova Scotia. John Taylor was a son of William Taylor, who emigrated from Ireland to Pennsylvania, whence he came to Ohio and made a permanent settlement. John Taylor was a prominent man in his section of Ohio and served as a member of the Ohio legislature in 1860, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865 and 1866, six years in all. He also served as a justice of the peace and was probate judge of Ashland county, Ohio, for twelve years. He died in Ashland, Ohio, in 1881. The Taylor children were as follows: Mrs. Eva Bushey, William, Arabella, Wilson, Don Fernando, Lavona, and Emma Luverna. Mrs. Bushey is a well educated lady and taught school in Ohio. It was at Perrysville, Ohio, that Calvin and Eva Bushey first met. Calvin had left his home in Pennsylvania, and after studying at the Hayesville Academy he was employed at Perrysville, Ohio, keeping store, attending the railroad 873office, the express office, and was general all-round railway factotum, as well as managing a general store. The future Mrs. Bushey came to the store one day to buy a pair of shoes and Calvin fell a victim to her charms while attending to her wants. They became friends; the friendship ripened into love, and marriage ensued, which has been one of the happiest on record.

Mr. and Mrs. Bushey are members of the Congregational church and contribute to the support of this religious denomination. He is a Republican in politics and is a member of the local grand army post. This well known and highly respected couple have a total of twenty-one grandchildren, as follows: Mrs. Olive Laughlin, Eva, Nannie, Marguerite, Lillie, Josephine, Julia, children of Mr. and Mrs. J. D. Miller; Helen, a teacher, Ruth, also a teacher, Calvin Dwight, Mildred, and Dorothy, and Louis, children of John C. Bushey; Charles Calvin, Mrs. Bertie Yazel, and Gail, children of Mrs. Esther Roach; Paul Everett, Ralph, Dessa, Essa, and Claude, children of Chastine Dwight Bushey. They have one great-grandchild, Margaret, daughter of Mrs. Olive Laughlin.

MARTIN C. VANSELL.

Forty-six years ago Martin C. Vansell, pioneer settler of Grasshopper township and one of the best known farmers and live stock breeders of Atchison county, landed in Muscotah with a cash capital of five dollars. During the forty-six or more years he has lived in the vicinity of Muscotah he has risen to become one of the wealthy and substantial landed proprietors of the county and has reared to maturity a fine family of sons and daughters, educated them and given them a start in life. What more honors can a man wish for than these? Could any citizen contribute more to the upbuilding of his State and county than this pioneer?

Mr. Vansell was born of old southern stock, on a plantation in Union county, Tennessee, October 24, 1854. He was a son of Dr. Elias Vansell, of German descent. His mother was before her marriage, Tabitha Willis, born and reared in Tennessee, and a daughter of Moses Willis, whose farm adjoined the Vansell homestead on the river bottoms. She was of English descent. There were seven children in the family of Elias and Tabitha Vansell, of which M. C. was the youngest. The ancestral home of the Vansells was a large plantation which stretched for one and one half miles along the banks of the Clinch river in Tennessee, and before the Civil war the land 874was cultivated by slaves. Dr. Vansell was a physician of fine education and exceptional talent.

When a boy M. C. Vansell’s education was cut short by the troubles which beset the neighborhood during the Civil war when all schools in the State were closed and Tennessee was torn by the marching and ravaging of contending armies. The fortunes of the Willisses and Vansells suffered an eclipse for the time being and when fifteen years of age he decided to leave the old home and try his fortune in a newer land. He set out for Dade county, Missouri, with a party of men who were en route to the wild country of southwest Missouri. There was little to induce the boy to remain at home as his father had died and his mother had re-married. Upon his arrival in Dade county he was given work as a cow-boy on a big cattle ranch owned by David Scott and George Igue, brothers-in-law. Young Vansell at that time was a fair horseman and his work consisted in driving herds of cattle to the ranch from Indian Territory and Texas. The nearest point of supply to the ranch was at Sedalia, 100 miles away. His next move was to the State of Kansas, and this migration came about in this wise: In the year 1856 his uncle, Martin C. Willis, had gone from Tennessee to Brown county, Kansas, where he had preëmpted land and become quite wealthy. This uncle heard that his nephew was working on the cattle ranch in Missouri and sent for him to come to his home in Brown county. Although quite in love with the wild free life of the cattle ranch, he heeded his uncle’s request and joined him at his home. For eighteen months after going to his uncle’s home he attended school and was then employed by his uncle and others as a farm hand for some years. On July 17, 1870, he stepped off the train at Muscotah, Kan., with a cash capital of five dollars in his pocket. He worked at farm labor until he was twenty-one years of age and then began operating on his own account. Mr. Vansell has always been somewhat of a trader. The first deal which he ever made in his life was the purchase of a horse in Muscotah which involved an outlay of thirty-five dollars for horse, saddle and bridle. He later sold this animal for sixty-five dollars, took a note in payment, but, sad to relate, the note was never paid and he lost the whole amount. When he became of age he traded a span of mules, of which he had become the owner, for his first forty acres of land which he had farmed on shares, and with the money earned had bought the mules. This trade was made with a Kickapoo Indian. He fenced the forty-acre tract and rented it to a son-in-law of the Indian who had formerly owned it, and finally traded the land for some colts, five cows and twenty-five head of hogs. In a short time afterwards he 875bought an eighty-acre tract with borrowed money and during the first summer broke up seventy acres of his eighty, and in the fall built a home for himself. The following winter he sowed seventy acres of the tract in wheat and then sold the land at a good profit in November of that year. The following February he bought 160 acres of land, comprising the old townsite of Cayuga in Grasshopper township. Mr. Vansell cultivated this tract for about two years and then sold it at a profit. In 1882 he bought the quarter section which is now the Vansell home place. He has added to his possessions since that time until he is now the owner of 362 acres of land, 320 acres of which is all in one body. It is one of the finest and best improved farms in Atchison county. When Mr. Vansell settled on this land there were little or no improvements. He now has a large modern ten-room house, two large barns, hog and carriage houses, a big double corn-crib and granary, a horse barn, and a special cattle barn. The Vansell farm also boasts a 250–ton concrete silo, forty-eight feet in height and sixteen feet in diameter. From the start of his successful agricultural career Mr. Vansell has handled pure bred live stock, and he is widely known as a breeder of thoroughbred Shorthorn cattle, Poland China hogs, and standard black Percheron horses. In addition to this he has some standard trotting horses which are his pride. Since the start of his career Mr. Vansell has never bred any but the purest strains of live stock on his ranch and keeps from forty to sixty head of pure bred cattle on his place at all times.

Mr. Vansell was united in marriage with Miss Alice Trimble, February 23, 1882, and this union has been blessed with the following children: Lena, wife of Frank Campbell, of Horton, Kan.; Ralph, at home, manages the Vansell home farm; Ray, a student for two years in the State Agricultural College at Manhattan, Kan., and is now operating a cattle ranch in Montana; George, a graduate of Kansas University, class of 1915, and now employed as an entomologist by the State of Kentucky, located in Lexington; Erma, wife of T. C. Whittaker, of Nortonville, Kan., and Willis Blaine, who died at the age of seventeen years in July, 1904. Mr. Vansell has given each of his children a good education. His two daughters are graduates of the Atchison County High School, and his son, Ralph, is a graduate of the Veterinary College of Kansas City, and Ray studied for two years in the Manhattan State Agricultural College. Mrs. Alice (Trimble) Vansell, mother of the foregoing children, was born May 23, 1854, in Fayette county, Ohio, a daughter of Nathaniel and Jane (Lorimer) Trimble, natives of Ohio and Pennsylvania, respectively, and who were pioneers of Johnson county, Missouri, settling there in 1868.

876Mr. Vansell is an independent Republican in his political affiliations, and refuses to wear a party yoke when his conscience and knowledge lead him to think independently, and make up his own mind concerning the qualifications of candidates or the merits of political principles at issue. Aside from his extensive farming interests he is a stockholder of the Farmers State Bank of Muscotah. He is a member of the Modern Woodmen and is religiously connected with the Congregational church. Mr. Vansell is a broad-minded and well read citizen who keeps abreast of the times and stands high in his community. In a way he is a philosopher who holds to the correct idea that some men or too many men never grow up and take the serious view of life which they should in order to achieve the success which is their right and in justice to those dependent upon them.

FRANK W. BISHOP.

Frank Wilson Bishop, live stock dealer and broker, and leading citizen of Effingham, Kan., has spent the greater part of his sixty-one years of life in Atchison county. When a boy he knew what it was to endure the hardships of the frontier and had little opportunity for schooling until he had attained the age of sixteen years. He is a descendant of a fine old colonial family which can trace their ancestry back to the early days of the settlement of New England. His forebears were Puritans, and he is a direct lineal descendant of Governor Bishop of Connecticut. A grandfather, Levi Bishop, was a soldier in the regular United States army and fought in the War of 1812. On the maternal side of his grandfather’s family he is a descendant of the old Higgins family of New York, which numbers among their progeny Governor Higgins. The Bishops for many generations have been military men and in practically every generation the annals of the country show that members of the family fought in the various wars in which this country has been engaged.

Mr. Bishop was born December 12, 1854, in Alleghany county, New York, a son of Lucius Hazen and Betsy Morse (Wilson) Bishop, the former a native of Windsor, Vt., and the latter having been born in Whiteside, N. Y. Lucius was the son of Levi Bishop, who served his country in the War of 1812 as a regularly enlisted soldier. The second wife of Lucius Bishop was a Miss Higgins of the Higgins family of New York. It is worthy of note 877that while the Bishops were soldiers and fighting men who believed in serving the Nation on the battlefields of its wars, the Higgins family were as a class opposed to warfare and it is not recorded that any of the members of the family enlisted in behalf of their country. They were men of letters, teachers, authors and Statesmen rather than warriors. The father of Levi Bishop was a soldier in the Revolution, according to tradition. The Bishop family left the old home in Alleghany county, New York, in April of 1859. Lucius Bishop having previously made a first trip in 1857 and selected a quarter section of land just north of Monrovia, Atchison county, Kansas, for his home site. He returned home and brought his family to Kansas with the intention of making a permanent home in Atchison county, and thus giving his children a better opportunity for gaining a livelihood than the older eastern country afforded. On his previous trip he had made arrangements for the erection of a home, and an abiding place was already for the family to occupy when they came here. Frank W. and his mother landed from the Missouri river steamer, which they boarded at St. Louis and he recalls that the day they landed at the foot of Commercial street in Atchison was very rainy and disagreeable. The family had taken the overland train at Belmont, N. Y., and rode by rail as far as St. Louis and then boarded the “Ben Louis,” which carried them to Atchison. They breakfasted in town and then made the trip to the claim by wagon. The outlook and surroundings of the vicinity of the family home were not encouraging, and it required considerable courage to get ready to face the struggle for a livelihood in what was then almost a barren wilderness with few settlers in the neighborhood. Every fall the members of the family had the ague, which did not entirely disappear for many years. There was also some trouble with the Indians, and the border warfare added its quota of troubles to beset this pioneer family. Lucius Bishop served in Company F, Twelfth regiment of Kansas cavalry, under Capt. A. S. Best in the battle of Westport, which resulted in repelling General Price and his army of invasion. The elder Bishop prospered as the years passed, and in old age he and his faithful helpmeet left the farm and retired to a comfortable home in Effingham, where they both died. Lucius Bishop was born January 6, 1824, and died August 9, 1905. Betsy Ann Bishop was born in 1832, and died March 31, 1907. They were the parents of the following children: Frank Wilson, with whom this review is intimately concerned: Willis E., who resides on the home farm near Monrovia; Amelia Ann, wife of C. H. Oliver, both deceased, who were the parents of three sons and two daughters; Sarah H., wife of Hugh N. Gillan, of Hill City, Kan. The two daughters were 878twins. A sister, Helen Bishop, accompanied Lucius C. to Kansas. She was the oldest of the family, dying July 6, 1913, at the advanced age of ninety-two years. Helen Bishop was born in Randolph, Vt., March 12, 1831, and came to Kansas in 1858. She began teaching when sixteen years of age, receiving one dollar per week and boarded around. At the end of nine years she was receiving two dollars per week. She taught several years in Atchison county, and conducted a private school at Monrovia. She taught at Monrovia and Lancaster. She was one of the pioneer advocates of teaching domestic science in the schools and was far ahead of her time. She advocated progressive teaching methods in the seventies, which are now in practice. She was a thinker and was an advocate of purity in living. After the death of her parents she made her home with Frank W. Bishop.

Frank W. Bishop was reared to young manhood on the pioneer farm, and had little or no schooling until he attained the age of sixteen years, at which time he realized the necessity of securing an education and managed to attend a short term at the State College at Manhattan, Kan. His father purchased a fine tract of farm land in 1873, consisting of 160 acres which Frank leased from him for a few years and then purchased. He practically built up the farm from a barren tract of prairie land to be one of the excellent producing farms in Atchison county. He erected all buildings on the place and cultivated the land very successfully until 1908, when he removed to Effingham to be better care for the extensive live stock business which he had begun in 1895. Mr. Bishop has one of the most attractive homes in this beautiful city, which was formerly the Potter property and maintains a down-town office where he looks after his business affairs. He is not only a buyer and shipper of live stock but is principally a broker, buying stock in the city yards in carload lots for his farmer patrons who feed them on their farms for the market. In this manner in the capacity of broker he does a very extensive business annually.

Mr. Bishop was married in 1880 to Miss Viola T. Horton, of Atchison county, whose demise occurred in 1886, leaving three children, as follows: Ernest L., a farmer, of Atchison county; Carl A., who is first sergeant of Company I, engineering division, United States regular army, and who is on duty in the Hawaiian Islands; one child died in infancy. In 1890 Mr. Bishop was again married to Miss Mary E. Scott, of Tama county, Iowa, a daughter of Robert A. and Anne (Cannon) Scott, natives of Scotland, the former born in Kirkcudbrightshire, and the latter born in Wigtonshire. The Scotts came to America in 1880. Robert was a stonemason and was one of 879the builders of the United States treasury building at Washington. In 1870 the Scotts settled on a farm in Tama county, Iowa, and reared eight children. Robert A. and Anne were married May 26, 1848. Robert died November 24, 1911, aged eighty-five years, and Anne Scott died May 18, 1905, aged eighty years.

Mr. Bishop is a Democrat in his political affiliations, and has held local city offices, doing his duty as a citizen when called upon by his fellow citizens. Mrs. Bishop is a member of the Presbyterian church, of which Mr. Bishop is a Supporter.

WILLIAM RYAN.

William Ryan, former chief of police of the city of Atchison and prosperous farmer and iron moulder of Walnut township, was born in Ottawa, Ill., in 1874. He is a son of James and Ellen (Charleston) Ryan, the former a native of Connecticut and the latter having been born and reared partly in Boston, Mass. James Ryan was a son of Patrick Ryan, a native of Ireland who, after emigrating from the Emerald Isle, settled in Connecticut and later became a pioneer of Ottawa, Ill. Patrick Ryan, with his wife and seven children, moved to Ottawa, Ill., in an early day. Later James and his family went to Nebraska and in 1874 moved to Kansas. Patrick Ryan, grandfather of William, was a very prominent citizen of his county in Illinois. He served as captain of his company of Union soldiers during the Civil war and held the office of county treasurer for several terms, besides filling other important county offices. James Ryan, the father, was also a soldier, holding the position of sergeant in a company forming part of the Fifty-sixth regiment of Illinois volunteers. He was taken prisoner and confined for a time in the notorious Andersonville prison. His trade was that of iron smelter and for thirty years he was employed in the John Seaton foundry in that capacity. His son, William, also became an expert moulder and is now employed in the Seaton foundry.

William Ryan, with whom this review is directly concerned, was but an infant when the family located in Atchison. He attended the old Doniphan school in the city and also the Washington public school, where he was a school-mate of Sheffield Ingalls. He learned the trade of iron moulder at the Seaton foundry and saved his earnings until he was able to purchase a farm in Walnut township in 1908. He removed to his farm and cultivated it until 1910 and then returned to Atchison. In 1911 he was appointed chief 880of the Atchison police department. Previous to his appointment to the head position of the city police force he had served as a member of the city council and was very active in behalf of a number of public and street improvements which were badly needed at the time. He was one of the official body responsible for the completion of the South Atchison sewer and for the building of a number of paved streets. For his activity in behalf of these public improvements he was defeated for re-election, but some years later Mr. Ryan was again elected to office by a handsome majority. Mr. Ryan has a fine farm of 160 acres in Walnut township which was originally covered with a heavy growth of timber, much of which has been cleared away in past years. Upon his retirement from the position of chief of police he returned to his farm, where he resides while he is employed as iron moulder.

He was married in 1898 to Miss Nellie Cairns, and this union has been blessed with five children: Blanche, born in 1899; Ruth, born in 1901; Mary Louise, born in 1903; Hugh, born in 1905; Florence, born in 1910. Mrs. Ryan is a daughter of Irish parents and was born in Atchison.

In his younger days William Ryan was a noted baseball player. He played the left field position on the Atchison team in the first game of baseball ever played in Forest park. The aggregation of players with whom he was associated were known as the “Corn Carnival Colts.” This team became known as the fastest amateur team ever banded together in the city of Atchison and became famous over northeast Kansas for their proficiency in the national game. The name was given to the team when they succeeded in defeating the fast “Kansas Blues,” a professional team, at the time of the corn carnival held in Atchison. Several players from this team broke into the professional league game and became famous.

JAMES H. GARSIDE.

James H. Garside, retired, is one of the best known and best liked pioneer citizens of Atchison. He has resided in this city for the past fifty-one years and has a large acquaintance throughout the city and county. For thirty-eight years Mr. Garside was engaged in railroad work and for twenty-seven years he served as a member of the board of education and was vice-president of the board which had charge of the erection of the Ingalls High School building and other school edifices in the city. During the time in which he served as the local freight agent of the Santa Fe railroad Mr. Garside’s 881position brought him into contact with all classes of men and his fine courtesy and obliging manner of conducting the company’s business won him high regard and an enviable reputation.

Mr. Garside was born in Canton, Fulton county, Illinois, January 26, 1848, a son of Joshua and Anna (Cox) Garside. His father was born in England and immigrated to America in 1836. He became engaged in banking and was a member of the banking firm of Maple, Stipp & Garside, at Canton, until his removal to Nebraska City, where he opened a bank for S. F. Nukols. The family came to Atchison in 1864 and Joshua Garside was associated with A. S. Parker & Company, forwarding agents, and also agents for the Star line of steamers plying between St. Joseph and St. Louis. This firm later became Garside & Son and did an extensive freighting business to Denver, Salt Lake and Montana points. They shipped a vast amount of grain by river steamer; a single boat used in their freighting sometimes took on from 3,000 to 10,000 bushels of grain and lay at the levee two or three days while loading. This was in the days when the Missouri river was the great waterway for transporting freight to southern and eastern points. Joshua Garside and wife reared a family of two sons and seven daughters, of which James H. was the eldest.

James H. Garside received his education in the public schools of Nebraska City, Neb., and the high school of Atchison. For several years he was engaged in the freighting business with his father, as above stated. Prior to the completion of the Atchison bridge across the Missouri river, Mr. Garside had charge of the business of transferring the railroad freight cars across the river and which were carried to the Missouri side, and vice versa, by the “William Osborne.” When the bridge was completed he was in the employ of the Hamilton & Flint Transfer Company, engaged in transferring freight with teams across the river. In 1881 he entered the service of the Santa Fe Railroad Company as local freight agent and held this position continuously until his retirement from active service. Before he was engaged by the Santa Fe Mr. Garside was an agent for the Continental Fast Freight line, the Commercial Express line and the Star Union line.

Mr. Garside was married in 1872 to Miss Hattie H. Preston, of Canton, Ill. One son blessed this union, William Preston. Mr. Garside is affiliated with the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and is a member of Washington Lodge, No. 5, of Washington Commandery, and of the Mystic Shrine. For twenty-seven years he was a member of the board of education and did his duty as a very useful citizen in helping forward the advancement of the 882Atchison city schools to first rank in the state of Kansas. He served as vice-president of this body for several years, and was always found in the forefront of the movement for better school buildings and the installation of better educational facilities for the benefit of the youth of Atchison. He is one of the charter members of the Flambeau Club and also of the Atchison Gun Club. He is religiously affiliated with the Congregational church and has been one of the trustees of this body for several years. In the days of his retirement the same geniality and courtesy which he maintained during his years of public service marks the demeanor of this grand old citizen of Atchison.

WILLIS J. BAILEY.

Willis J. Bailey, vice-president and managing officer of the Exchange National Bank, Atchison, Kan., since 1907, and governor of the State of Kansas from 1903 to 1905, was born in Carroll county, Illinois, October 12, 1854. He was educated in the common schools, the Mount Carroll high school, and graduated at the University of Illinois as a member of the class of 1879. In 1904 his Alma Mater conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws. In 1879, soon after completing his college course, he accompanied his father to Nemaha county, Kansas, where they engaged in farming and stock raising, and founded the town of Baileyville. Upon reaching his majority Governor Bailey cast his lot with the Republican party, and since that time he has been an active and consistent advocate of the principles espoused by that organization. In 1888 he was elected to represent his county in the State legislature; was reëlected in 1890; was president of the Republican State League in 1893; was the Republican candidate for Congress in the First district in 1896, and in June, 1898, was nominated by the State convention at Hutchison as the candidate for Congressman at large, defeating Richard W. Blue. After serving in the Fifty-sixth Congress he retired to his farm, but in 1902 was nominated by his party for governor. At the election in November he defeated W. H. Craddock, the Democratic candidate, by a substantial majority, and began his term as governor in January, 1903. At the close of his term as governor he removed to Atchison, and since 1907 has been vice-president and manager of the Exchange National Bank of that city. Shortly after his retirement from the office of governor he was prominently mentioned as a candidate for United States senator, and in 1908 a large number of Republicans of the State urged his nomination for governor. 883Mr. Bailey has always been interested in behalf of the farmers of the country, and from 1895 to 1899 he was a member of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture.

JOHN A. KRAMER.

John A. Kramer, a leading and prosperous farmer of Shannon township, has the double distinction of being a pioneer in the county and having one of the largest families in the State. In this day of small families it is gratifying to note that in Atchison county, within a few miles of the city, resides a man who takes a just pride in the fact that he is rearing thirteen children to become good citizens of the community. Mr. Kramer is the owner of one of the oldest farms in the county which has been in the family for nearly fifty years. It is one of the valuable fruit farms in this section of the State and is noted for its small fruits and orchard products. A handsome brick residence built by the father of Mr. Kramer sets well back from the highway and is surrounded by large trees which have grown to immense size during the life of Mr. Kramer.