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Jasper County, Iowa
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James J. Tramel This
biographical memoir has to do with a character of unusual force and eminence for
James J. Tramel whose life chapter has been closed by the fate that awaits us
all, was for a long lapse of years one of the prominent citizens of Jasper
County, having come to this section in pioneer times, and he assisted in every
way possible in bringing about the transformation of the County from the wild
condition found by the first settlers to its latter day progress and
improvement. While he carried on a
special line of business in such a manner as to gain a comfortable competence
for himself, he also belonged to that class of representative citizens who
promote the public welfare while advancing individual success.
There were in him sterling traits, which commanded uniform confidence and
regard, and his memory is today honored by all who knew him and is enshrined in
the hearts of his many friends. Mr.
Tramel was born in Kosciusko County, Indiana, November 28, 1842. He is the son
of W. A. B. and Cynthia (Alexander) Tramel, the father born in February, 1802,
in North Carolina, and the mother born in Indiana in 1804. The family first
moved to Clinton, Georgia, thence to near Richmond, Indiana, and from there to
Kosciusko County, that state, and from the latter place to Clear Creek Township,
Jasper County, Iowa, and here the parents of the subject spent the rest of their
lives, the death of the father occurring in April 1897, and that of the mother
on March 3, 1878. They were the
parents of the following children: Mrs.
Eliza Ann Jeffries died in Jasper County in 1903; Mrs. Nancy Campbell, born in
Indiana on September 17, 1830, died in Independence Township, this County, on
March 25, 1886; Mrs. Martha Price is living in Ira; Alexander is living in Clear
Creek Township; Joseph M. died in East Portland, Oregon, in 1906; Mrs. Caroline
Weston, born in October, 1840, lives in Ira; James J., of this sketch, is the
youngest. James
J. Tramel was ten years of age when he came with his parents to Jasper County
and settled in Clear Creek Township, and here he grew to manhood and attended
the public schools. He took up
farming for a livelihood early in life and up to 1903 was one of the Township's
leading agriculturists, owning in Clear Creek Township a well-improved and
fertile farm of one hundred and ninety acres. In 1903, having accumulated a
competency, he and his wife retired from the active duties of life and moved to
Ira, where they purchased a commodious and cozy home, and here Mr. Tramel
resided quietly, enjoying the fruits of his earlier years of endeavor, until
summoned to close his earthly career on January 7, 1912, after a successful,
useful and honorable career, being one of the sterling pioneers of the
community, the family having been among the first settlers here, their arrival
having been on October 10, 1852. Mr.
Tramel was married on May 21, 1868, to Hannah Crawford, who was born in
Coshocton County, Ohio, August 30, 1849- When young in years she came to
Poweshiek Township, Jasper County, Iowa, with her parents, James B. and Eliza
Ann (Walters) Crawford, the latter a native of Ohio. They established a good
home in Jasper County and spent the rest of their lives here, the father dying
in 1891 and the mother at the age of seventy-two years.
They were the parents of the following children:
Hannah, wife of Mr. Tramel, of this sketch; Jane, deceased; Henry, who
lives in Lake City, Iowa; Mary lives in Audubon County, Iowa; Nellie lives at
Ira, this County; John H., lives in Ira. To
Mr. and Mrs. Tramel were born one son, Frank W., whose birth occurred on January
27, 1871, and is now residing in Clear Creek Township. James
J. Tramel was one of the patriotic sons of the North who risked his life for his
country, during the dark days of the early sixties, having enlisted for service
in the Federal army on August 22, 1862, in Company D, Fortieth Iowa Volunteer
Infantry, in which he served gallantly for three years, taking part in many
trying campaigns and hard-fought battles. He
was in the numerous conflicts along the Sabine River, at the siege of Vicksburg,
and the battle of Port Gibson. His second captain was Myron S. Cox, now living
in Oakland, California. He was
honorably discharged, and was mustered out of the service at Davenport, Iowa. He then returned to Jasper County and resumed farming. Mr. Tramel was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, E. H. Keyes Post No. 511, of Mingo, Iowa. Politically, he was a Republican, and he was active in local public affairs. He was trustee of his Township for a period of nine years, and was also at one time a member of the board of education in Clear Creek Township. He and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Ira. Personally, he was a genial, whole-souled, obliging gentleman, high minded and correct in his every-day deportment and he won and retained the confidence and esteem of all classes. Past and Present of Jasper County Iowa, Gen. James B. Weaver, Editor-In-Chief, B.F. Bowden & Company, Indianapolis, IN, 1912, p. 1114. |
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