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Jasper County, Iowa
Historical and Genealogical Data Exchange
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Allen W. Forsyth It
will always be a mark of distinction to have served in the Federal Army during
the great Civil War between the States. The
old soldier will receive attention no matter where he goes if he will but make
himself known, especially if he puts on his old faded uniform.
And when he passes away, which all of them will do in the course of
another decade or two, friends will pay him suitable eulogy for the sacrifices
he made fifty years ago on the field of battle, on the long, weary march or the
no less dreaded hospital, and ever afterward his descendants will revere his
memory and take pride in recounting his services to his country in the hour of
peril. Allen W. Forsyth, long one
of the enterprising farmers of Jasper County, who is now spending his last years
in honorable retirement in his cozy home in the town of Sully, is one of the old
soldiers who went forth to fight to save the Union of the states Mr.
Forsyth was born in Decatur County, Indiana, August 14, 1847, the son of Thomas
Harris Forsyth, a native of New Jersey. He
devoted, his life to farming and in early life came to Indiana where he bought
a: farm. In 1847 he drove an ox
team and wagon overland to Marion County, Iowa, and bought a farm, in fact, two
farms of eighty acres each. He
traversed Jasper County on his way and found but one house between Lynnville and
Newton. He was a typical pioneer and was delighted with the new country,
although to many less courageous souls it would have been far from inviting, for
the roads were little less than winding trails, no bridges spanned the streams,
no fences stretched across the seemingly interminable plains, still the roaming
grounds of the wolf and other kindreds of the wild.
He had the wisdom to foresee a great future for the country and he did
not mind the hardships in getting a foothold here.
He had married Mary Ann Hawk, a native of Kentucky, and they worked hard,
economized and soon had a comfortable home in payment of their pains, and there
Mr. Forsyth became influential, taking a leading part in public affairs.
For some time he was a member of the board of supervisors, and for a
period of twenty years he was a justice of the peace, filling these offices in a
most worthy manner. He was a
Republican and a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
He ably served his country as second lieutenant in the Fortieth Iowa
Volunteer Infantry. His family
consisted of four children: Charles
died during the Civil war while in the service: Alien W., of this review; John
is deceased: Fred lives in Nebraska. Allen
W. Forsyth attended school in Marion County, and he assisted his father with the
general work about the place until his marriage. He then bought forty acres in Marion County, which he later
sold and he came to Jasper County in 1881 and bought two hundred acres in Linn
Grove Township, his father having assisted him in the purchase.
Later disposing of this, he bought one hundred and twenty acres, which he
still owns and which he brought up to a high-state of cultivation and
improvement and successfully carried on diversified farming until 1907, when he
retired and moved to Sully and there built a modern, well-arranged and beautiful
home. Politically,
Mr. Forsyth is a Republican and he served as assessor for seven years in
succession. He is a member of the
Congregational Church and the Grand Army of the Republic.
During the Civil war he enlisted in Company K, Third Iowa Cavalry, and
served very gallantly in the Western army, taking part in many important
Southern campaigns. He was only
sixteen years old when he enlisted, but he performed his duty as well as the
seasoned veterans during his service of eighteen months, which was terminated by
the close of the war, during which time he was not off duty a single day on
account of sickness. Mr.
Forsyth was married on November 7: 1868, to Priscilla Banthysen, who was born in
Shelby County, Indiana, October 24, 1849, the daughter of John Banthysen and
wife, who moved from Indiana to Marion County, Iowa, in 1852, driving overland
with an ox team. The mother of the subject's wife was known in her maidenhood
as Sarah Clayton. To Mr. and Mrs. Forsyth the following children have been born: Edwin S., born September 7, 1869, lives in Colfax, Iowa, and is engaged in the hardware business; Harry E. and Mrs. Clara Sherman, twins, were born May 5, 1872; Thomas C., who lives in Spokane, Washington, was born March 10, 1875; Mrs. Lola B. DeWitt, born June 7, 1880, lives with her father; she has one son, John Doyle DeWitt. Past and Present of Jasper County Iowa, Gen. James B. Weaver, Editor-In-Chief, B.F. Bowden & Company, Indianapolis, IN, 1912, p. 1038. |
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