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ED C. RAY. Among the public officials of Kiowa county, Oklahoma, is numbered Ed C. Ray, the present high sheriff. He has been prominently identified with the interests of this country and of Hobart since the opening of the country to settlement, and in his present office he has set an example worthy of emulation by his successors. Mr. Ray was born in Kentucky, February 6, 1873, and was reared to farm pursuits and educated in the common schools and in the West Kentucky Normal of Murray, of which he is a graduate. He is a son of John R. and Mary (Pryor) Ray, both of whom were also born in the Blue Grass state of the southland, and there they yet reside. Mr. Ray., Sr. is a prominent farmer and tobacco dealer. He is also an honored veteran of the Civil war, having entered the Confederate army early in the struggle and he served until its close, always in the front rank. He was with General Forrest, who knew no such
thing as fear, and "Onward to Victory" was his motto. Mr. Ray was four times wounded but was never imprisoned, although he suffered a11 the deprivations, hardships and exposures known to a true solder.
     After the close of the war he returned home and resumed farming. He has always taken an active interest in all matters per taining to his state and nation, and uses his influence for the Democratic party. He is now serving his second term as a state legislator, having succeeded himself to the office in the last term, and he is one of Graves county's best and strongest men, widely known and highly respected and. a leading member of the Methodist church. Mrs. Ray is a daughter of Richard Pryor of Kentucky, a prominent farmer and a consistent Presbyterian. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Ray are: Richard, who maintains his home in Kentucky; Ed C., who is mentioned later; Lillie, at home; Albert, also in Kentucky; and George, the deputy sheriff of Hobart.
     Ed C. Ray remained in his parent's old home in Kentucky until the year of 1900, when he came to Chickasaw, Oklahoma, and remained there until the opening of Hobart in 190l. He came here at that time and enraged in the real estate business, later becoming a clerk in a dry goods store, and in 1904 he was elected the high sheriff of Kiowa county. He was sought for instead of seeking the office, and would not accept a re-election, only serving now until his successor is qualified. He has filled the office creditably to himself and satisfactorily to the people, and has executed the law to the very letter with but little difficulty, never having had to use violence in any way. He has usually from fourteen to twenty-two prisoners under his charge, they now numbering fourteen, seven of whom are held for murder, while some are out on bail and about forty are charged with lesser crimes. Throughout the period of his residence here, Mr. Ray has been active in the development of this community, and is constantly looking toward to a greater Hobart.
     In this city, in July, 1904, he was married to Miss Maida L. Moore, who was born in Granbury, Texas, in 1883, a daughter of Rev. W. J. Moore, of Georgia, and Shirley Moore, of Mississippi, but they were married in Texas, and the father was a professor in and the president of Granbury College and among the leading educators of that state for a number of years. He was a strong temperance worker and was secretary of the only anti-saloon league in Texas in an early day; this organization later bore rich fruits. Later he joined the ministry, and coming from Texas to Oklahoma he took charge of the Methodist church, South, at Hobart, and ministered to the people of this city for many years. He now has charge of the church at Norman, Oklahoma, an active and efficient worker in the Christian cause. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Moore are: Alice, the wife of John Boon, in the science department of the college at Fort Worth, Texas; Maida, who became Mrs. Ray; M. D., a cotton buyer at Hobart; and Carrol, who is in the University of Norman. To Mr. and Mrs. Ray has been born a son, John W., whose birthday was the 13th of October, 1906. Mr. and Mrs. Ray are consistent and worthy members of the Methodist church, South, and he also has membership relations with the Knights of Pythias, the Modern Woodmen of America, the Fraternal Union and the Woodmen of the World.

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cont.

D. S. WOLFINGER. The cashier of the City National Bank of Hobart needs no introduction to the residents of this community, for the bank is one of the best known institutions of Kiowa county and vicinity and its cashier is one of its most popular officers and a prominent and well known resident in Hobart. The City National is the outgrowth of the first bank of Kiowa county known as the Kiowa State Bank. The first charter for this institu-

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bon was secured by Messrs. D. S. Dill and D, S. Wolfinger three months before the opening of the county, and at the organization of the Kiowa State Bank its capital consisted of but five thousand dollars, its motto being "We Walk Before We Run," a suitable one in those early days when all men were strangers and climatic conditions unknown. The wonderfully rapid development of the country, however, soon convinced the stockholders that banking conditions were favorable, and after three months the capital was doubled. The securing of another railroad, the building of an oil mill, the establishment of a foundry and a wholesale shoe house, and a proven production of that great staple product, cotton, led to the belief that the time had arrived for the Kiowa State Bank to become the City National, and the new bank was organized with a capital of twenty-five thousand dollars. The stock was quickly taken, every stockholder a Kiowa county resident, and on May 1, 1902, the City National began business. In six months a more favorable location was warranted, and fifty-five hundred dollars was paid for the corner where the bank now stands. A two-story building, splendidly equipped for a large banking business, was constructed but just twenty-nine days after moving into the new quarters, in fact before the building was entirely completed, Hobart experienced her great fire on the evening of July 30, 1903. During this fire and even before the bank watts had fallen the officers were distributing circulars through the vast crowd announcing that the bank would open for business at the regular hours next morning in a tent on the public square. And the following day found them doing a regular business in a small tent, the amount deposited during that day reaching over four thousand dollars, while they checked out less than five hundred dollars, thus demonstrating to the management that their customers had splendid faith in the ability of the bank to stand its heavy loss. When the large vault was opened the records were found to have sustained no injury.
     Just four months after the fire the new bank building, a duplicate of the one burned, was ready for occupancy, newly built from the ground up, the vault enlarged and made still stronger, and the City National then, as now, stood with cash on hand to pay every depositor on demand in full. With the exception of abolishing the office of assistant cashier there has been no change in its officials since the organization, and its future is bright with promise, a credit to the great Southwest. The bank's statement for August 22, 1907, was, Resources: Loans and discounts, $112,H56.60; cash on hand and with other banks, $97,695.23; building and fixtures and all other resources, $229,465,13. Liabilities: Capital stock, $25,000, surplus and profits, $11,115.67; circulation, $6,300; certified check, $500; deposits, $187,049.46. Total, $229,465.13. The wonderful growth yearly from September, 1901, with deposits of $15,439.61, to September, 1907, with deposits of $204,461.57, is phenomenal.
     The cashier of the City National Bank of Hobart, D. S. Wolfinger, has worked his own way from his school days to his present high position. He was born in Lucas county, Ohio, July 31, 1871, a son of J. Henry and Martha (Elliott) Wolfinger, who were born and married in Ohio. In 1883 they moved to Nickerson, Kansas, where Mr. Wolfinger, who was a mechanic and farmer in Ohio, secured employment with the Santa Fe Railroad Company, with whom he continued successfully until 1901, coming at that time to Hobart and Kiowa county, where he has ever since remained, an active factor in its upbuilding and development. Since coming here he has done some work as a contractor, is a stockholder and director in two or three banks, a member of the Working Men's Club, arid a stanch Republican politically and a member of the Baptist church. The two children of Mr. and Mrs. Wolfinger are D. S. and Roy J., the latter a teacher in the high school of Hobart.
     D. S. Wolfinger, the older, was reared on a farm, and when twelve years old moved with his parents to Kansas, where he entered school and later graduated at the state normal at Emporia. His first employment was in the Santa Fe Railroad yards at Nickerson, while later he clerked in a store and still later was the proprietor of a meat market at Nickerson. He next became a teacher in the country schools, in time working his way up to the superintendency of the city school and later was a bookkeeper in a bank. In 1901, at the opening of Hobart and Kiowa county, he came here, and his subsequent history is the history of the City National Bank of Hobart.
     Mr. Wolfinger married, in 1895, in Kansas, Miss Beatrice Brightman, who was born in Hillsdale, Michigan, a daughter of Samuel Brightman, a native of the state of New York

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and a competent machinist and mechanic in his earlier years. He finally drifted into Michigan and later to the south, and when the Civil war was inaugurated he found himself surrounded by the wrong element. With difficulty and without means he made his way north as far as St. Louis, Missouri, where he enlisted for service in an Illinois regiment and went into quarters at Jefferson Barracks. To occupy his time while there he obtained a manual and began to study drill tactics, in a short time becoming able to drill the men as well as the officers, and when the time came for them to go to the front they were well drilled. Mr. Brightman was seriously wounded in the left thigh at the battle of Corinth, and from the hospital was sent to Columbus, Ohio, where as soon as able he was placed in charge of a large number of prisoners. From there he was sent to Washington, D. C., where he was again made provost marshal, and from Washington went to Michigan and was commissioned major of a regiment, which he subsequently raised to its full quota and was later given the rank of colonel. This regiment was held at different places and finally detailed to go to the Rio Grande country. About this time, however, the war closed, and all received an honorable discharge. During his military service, Mr. Brightman saw hard service and suffered the deprivations and exposures ever the lot of a true and valiant soldier. After a time he located in Kansas, where his wife died, and he now finds a home with his daughter, Mrs. Wolfinger, in Hobart, where he is living quietly retired from active business. His children are: Harry, city editor of the Republican at Newton, Kansas; a son who died in infancy and Beatrice, the wife of Mr. Wolfinger.
     To Mr. and Mrs. Wolfinger has been born one son, Dill, who was born in March, 1899. The wife and mother is a member of the Baptist church. Mr. Wolfinger is a member of the Masonic order, and also of the Odd Fellows, the Modern Woodmen of America, and the Independent Order of United Workmen.

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cont.

JAMES C. ANDERSON. At the opening in 1889, James C. Anderson, who had previously been a hardworking farmer in Illinois, came to the territory and secured a homestead near El Reno. While in that vicinity he improved two good farms, and it has been rather a policy of this pioneer citizen of Oklahoma to secure land and improve it into salable farms. He has attended every opening in Oklahoma. By the time of the Kiowa opening in 1901 he had exhausted his homestead rights, but as soon as the right of transfer was obtained he bought land near Hobart, in Kiowa county. He spent considerable time in making his selection and bought land that has proved to be among the choicest in Kiowa county. Of the 320 acres in his farm, much of it is valley land, and as a result of great expenditure of money and labor he has made it a model farm of western Oklahoma. It cost him over eight thousand dollars to establish his title against rival claimants, so that the land has cost him a round fortune, but is worth m(.'re than he paid for it. Horses as a specialty, besides hogs, alfalfa, wheat, corn, oats and cotton, are the principal productions of a farm that is noted for the diversified fertilitv of its soil and the enterprise of its owner.
     Before coming to Oklahoma, James C. Anderson was one of the only moderately successful men of the middle states who had begun life without money and up to that time had found the road to success beset with many difficulties. He was born in North Carolina, December 20, 1853. During the years usually devoted to school, the war was ravaging that part of the south, and for that reason his education was limited, though practical in many ways that the ordinary school training is not. At the close of the war he remained in the old home state several years, endeavoring to restore something of that which was lost to the family, but at the age of twenty, with only a few dollars in his pocket, started west. In St. Louis, Missouri, and in Minnesota, he had varied experiences in laboring for a livelihood. For four years he was at Muscatine, Iowa, then worked as farm band in Knox county, Illinois, and for about five years farmed as a renter.
     In lineage, Mr. Anderson is connected with some of the oldest families of the south Atlantic states. James C. and Ruth Morgan Anderson, his parents, were both natives of North Carolina. The Morgans in particular have an ancient claim to residence on American soil, it being the family tradition that the first Morgan came over with one of the first colonies sent into this country during the seventeenth century. Green D. Morgan, the father of Ruth Morgan, was a direct descendant of the original American ancestor, and was himself a man of more than ordinary prominence both as a farmer and a citizen of North Carolina. He married a Miss Morton,

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of German stock, and connected by family ties with Levi P. Morton. The senior James C. Anderson spent all his life in North Carolina. A farmer by occupation, he was in the quiet pursuit of his vocation when the war between the states called him into a service the hardships and rigorous duties of which broke him in health and spirits and cost him much in addition to the time spent in devotion to the cause. He was a worthy member of the Baptist church, and though he never adorned a public office, he exhibited a character that won him the respect and esteem of an entire community. His wife still survives and lives in North Carolina at the age of seventy-eight. She is also a member of the Baptist church. They had five children, of whom S. C., the oldest, came to Oklahoma in 1889, got a homestead claim, but was accidentally killed by a horse the same year; Calvin A. is a successful fanner of North Carolina; James C., Jr., is the subject of the preceding paragraphs; Lindsey W. lives in North Carolina; Dicy E. is the widow of W. S. Littlejohn, and with her three children lives in North Carolina.
     Mr. James C. Anderson has been an influential though hardly what would be called an active member of the Democratic party, having been at one time proposed in convention for the office of county commissioner. Having been reared in the faith of the Baptist church, he has never departed from that church. He married, in 1881, Miss Olive Hand, a native of Knox county, Illinois, and a daughter of William and Sarah Darnell Hand. Her father was a representative farmer of Illinois, and the family were identified with the Methodist church. Mrs. Anderson's brother, Charles Hand, lives in Knox county.
     Mr. and Mrs. Anderson's children are the following: Mrs. Clara Hart, whose one child, Edward B., lives with its grandparents; Mervin H., of Oklahoma, at home; Myrtle, the wife of John Elkins; James C., Jr., Earl, Eva, Lee D., and Dicy (born November, 1901), all at home.

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cont.

ALBERT E. FRITSCHE, one of the leading business men of Hobart, extensively engaged in the manufacture of cold drinks, ice cream and ice, was born in the city of Indianapolis, Indiana, February 5, 1871, a son of Charles C. and Anna H. Fritsche, both of whom were born in Germany, and were married in Indianapolis. The father was reared on a farm there, and to get from under the monarchial yoke he left his native heath at the age of twenty and came to America, first locating at Indianapolis, where he later took out citizens' papers and became a loyal son of America, with all its rights and privileges. A few years afterward he visited his old home in Germany, and was fined fifty dollars by the army officers for having left the country without the usual army service. However they later gladly returned him his money with apologies.
     Coming again to the United States, Mr. Fritsche followed his trade of a baker as a journeyman in Indianapolis for two years, and he then engaged in the Same business for himself, in time building up a large trade, principally wholesale, and he also became a large holder of city property, continuing actively in business until death claimed his wife in 1881. In 1882 be bought a farm and moved to the country, where he remained for fifteen years and then returned to the city and began dealing in city property, owning at the present time considerable rental property. During all these years he has visited the fatherland a few times, the last time to recuperate his health, and he returned to his adopted home strong and vigorous. His name is well known in the business circles of Indianapolis and vicinity, and he is a consistent and worthy member of the Evangelical church. For many years he affiliated with the Democracy, but voted for Garfield when he made his presidential race and has since been a Gold Democrat. Mrs. Fritsche was also born in the fatherland of Germany, but was brought to America when young, and from Ohio she moved with her parents to Indianapolis, and was reared and educated in that, city. Her father died in Germany. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Fritsche: Albert E., who is mentioned later; Frank, of Indianapolis; Otto L., whose home is in California; Velta, of Arizona; and Catherine, who is married and lives in Tennessee. Mr. Fritsche, the father, was a second time married, Miss Henrietta Kissell becoming his wife. She was born on a farm in Marion county, Indiana, east of Indianapolis seven miles, and she is also of German parentage. Five children were also born of this union—Harry, Louise, Eddie, Gustive and Lillie. Mrs. Fritsche was reared in the Lutheran church, but now worships with her husband in the Evangelical church.
     Albert E. Fritsche moved with his father to the farm when eleven years old, and when he had attained the age of twenty he rented the place, his father having at that time returned

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to the city, and he planted and raised a good crop which he sold to his father :n the field. He then went west to Portland, Oregon, and spent twenty months as a hotel employe, then attended the World's Fair at Chicago in 1893, and from there returned to his home in Indianapolis. He had saved seven hundred dollars from his earnings, and this he invested in horses and lost the most of the amount. His next occupation was as a stock farmer and in the bee business in Arizona, where he remained for five years, his apiary making money for him. Returning east again he took charge of the Queens Lake Fruit and Stock Farm, is Illinois, and after one year there entered school at Lebanon, Illinois, and later pursued a business course in St. Louis, Missouri.
     While in Arizona, Mr. Fritsche had formed the acquaintance of the one who later became his wife, a teacher in the Arizona schools, and they were married in 1900. It was following this event that he took his school course, and in 1901 he came to the opening of Hobart and Kiowa county, purchasing lots in Hobart at the opening sale. After this he made a prospecting tour through the west, visiting California and Arizona en route, and returning established his family here in 1902 and joined the party of progress in the development of a Greater Hobart. Forming a partnership with Attorney Davidson he engaged in the practice of law and the real estate business, but after three months, in February, 1903, he purchased a half interest in the Hobart Bottling Works, and after another three months had passed bought his partner's interest and continued the business alone at the same location for a year and a half. Then purchasing what had formerly been used as a grain storage warehouse, he remodeled and repaired the buildings, made additions thereto suitable for his enlarged business, installed improved machinery, and began extensively the manufacture of cold drinks, ice cream, and ice. He finds a good market for his products at home and also ships to the surrounding towns. Mr. Fritsche is now erecting an ice plant on the railroad switch which will greatly increase his business facilities. He is quite a large property owner in the city.
     Mr. Fritsche has always worked politically in Republican harness and helped organize the Citizens Party, formed in one of the church houses, and takes an active interest in party affairs and in the general upbuilding of Hobart and Kiowa county. He is a worthy member of the Odd Fellows fraternity having filled all the offices in the local lodge.
     Mr. Fritsche married Miss Mary A. Crouse, born in Iowa, an accomplished and competent lady and before her marriage an excellent educator. She is a daughter of Abe Crouse, of German descent but reared in Indiana, and during the Civil war he enlisted in an Indiana regiment and served at the front until the close of the conflict. Returning to his home in Indiana, he married and soon afterward located in Iowa, where he improved a good farm and was extensively engaged in farming and stock raising. He was very successful in raising thoroughbred live stock. He died in 1899, but his wife yet survives and remains at the old homestead in Iowa. Their children are: Anna, now Mrs. Wilhelm; Mary A., the wife of Mr. Fritsche; George, Harvey, Frank and Calvin, all prominent farmers; and Charles, at home. One son has blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Fritsche, Harold E., born June 14, 1902.

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cont.

S. A. HOLCOMB has the honor of being the, first resident of Kiowa county, for he obtained the first claim after the country was opened for settlement and was the first to locate permanently in the county, while he can also claim the honor of being one of its councilmen and leading business men. He was born in Virginia, January 4, 1854, and was reared as a farmer lad and received a good elementary education in the common schools of his neighborhood. He is a son of Lewis H. and Martha (Akres) Holcomb, both of whom were also born in Virginia, and there they were also married, reared their family and died. Mr. Holcomb, the father, was a plain, honest farmer, and both he and his wife were consistent and worthy members of the Primitive Baptist church. They were blessed with fifteen children, six daughters and nine sons, twelve of whom are living.
     S. A. Holcomb was twenty-two years of age when he left home and journeyed to Texas, this being in the year of 1876, and he located near Waxahachie and followed farming there three years. From there he went to Denton and followed the grocery business for seven years, during the following seven years was engaged in cotton buying and clerking in a store in Honey Grove, for seven years he was a traveling salesman for a marble firm at Sherman, from there went to Celeste and bought cotton, thence to Falls Valley, Indian

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Territory, in the same occupation, and three years afterward, in 1901, occurred the opening of Kiowa county, Oklahoma. As above, stated Mr. Holcomb came here then and drew claim No. 1, which he located adjoining the townsite of Hobart, and he has since platted Holcomb addition from a portion of this land and has sold lots. He has the remainder fenced and a portion in cultivation, the rest being pasture land. He expects to hold this land until the extension of the city will demand more building lots, when he will plat and sell.
     At the opening of the territory for settlement the government platted three hundred and twenty acres and sold lots to the highest bidder, the proceeds to be appropriated for public buildings in the county seat of Hobart, and at the same time appointed county commissioners to serve eighteen months, and at the expiration of that time the commissioners, of which S. A. Holcomb was one, were elected by the people. He served as chairman of the board for two years, and these commissioners laid the foundation and started correctly the work of building' Hobart. Those appointed by the government did not take hold of the work as they should and accordingly the government withheld the finances, thereby causing a delay in the construction of the court house, jail and other improvements. They in turn began work at once and handled the money conservatively, building the court house at a cost of about $30,000, the jail at a cost of $10,000, both of which were completed in the spring of 1905, the schoolhouse at a cost of $13,000, and furnished $15,000 for the water works, the city paying the remainder of the cost. The new commissioners placed everything in good running order, built roads and bridges and laid substantially the foundation on which the present city of Hobart now stands. Mr. Holcomb continued in the office for one term and refused a re-election. He assisted in organizing the City National Bank and was its vice-president for two years, is a member of the present city council and a member of one of its most important committees, that of finance, and also that of fire, light and city property, and is an active factor in the development of both town and county. Fraternally he is a member of the Knights of Pythias.
     In Coldwater, Mississippi, in 1886, Mr. Holcomb was married to Miss Ida T. Yates, who was born in that state June 18, 1862. Her parents, a Mr. and Mrs. (Waldeap) Yates, were both born in South Carolina, were married there, and later located in Mississippi, where he was a prominent planter and slave owner, widely known and highly respected. He entered the Confederate army during the Civil war and was killed on duty. His wife survived him but a short time, and at her death left two children: Mark C., a merchant of Cold water, Mississippi, and Ida T., who became the wife of Mr. Holcomb. Mrs. Yates was a member of the Missionary Baptist church. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Holcomb are: Maud E., the wife of Dr. G. F. Border, of Mangum; and Stephen L., who died in infancy. The wife and mother is also deceased, dying on the 27th of July, 1905, a prominent and consistent member of the Baptist church.

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cont.

A. BEASLEY, M. D. One of the most prominent and best known physicians and surgeons of Hobart and Kiowa county is Dr. A. Beasley, whose identification with the medical profession covers the long period of twenty-five years, and whose residence in Hobart dates from the opening of the country for settlement. He was born in Union county, Illinois, May 18, 1849, a son of Ransom and Lucy (Wheeler) Beasley. They were born respectively in North Carolina and Kentucky, and were married in the former state, and soon afterward located on a farm in Illinois, where they reared their large family and spent the remainder of their lives, both dying at ripe old ages, the husband being the first to pass away, when eighty years of age, and his wife died at the advanced age of eighty-five. Both were members of the Methodist church, and he was a Democrat politically. In their family were the following children: Felix and John, both now deceased and the former was a farmer and the latter a physician; Henry, also an agriculturist; Clinton, a physician in Kansas; Albert, of whom later; Mary Shephard; and Jane Davis.
     Dr. A. Beasley spent the early years of his life on a farm, attending first the district schools of the neighborhood and later the Ewing Baptist College of Ewing, Illinois. With this excellent education he began teaching, but after four terms as an educator he began reading medicine with Dr. John McClain, of Duquoin, Illinois, and while studying he also accompanied the Doctor on his rounds of visits and thus gained much valuable information. Later be took two full courses at the St. Louis Medical College,

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graduating in that institution in 1882, and he then began practice at Grand Detour, Illinois, hut after eighteen months moved to Lindon, Kansas, where he practiced with his usual excellent success until 1900. It was in that year that he came to Oklahoma, first stopping at Alva, and on the 5th of August, 1901, he arrived in Hobart, where the opening sale of lots began on the following day. Buying a residence lot, he pitched his tent thereon and this served as his office for four months, in the meantime establishing himself well in practice. Later he moved into a better office, and remained in practice there until entering upon a post graduate course in Chicago, which he entered in 1903 and pursued two courses of study, also studied in Kansas City and again in Chicago in 1905, and completed the full course of study in the diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. With this excellent training completed, Dr. Beasley looked about for a better location, visited the mining country of Wyoming, and in 1905 opened an office in Muskogee, Oklahoma, where he soon won a large practice, but not being satisfied with the climate there he returned in February, 1907, to Hobart, where the altitude is much higher and climatic conditions unusually favorable. He has located permanently here, and has erected a commodious two-story residence of modern architecture and has built up a large and lucrative medical practice. During his residence in Lindon, Kansas, Dr. Beasley served as secretary of the U. S. pension board, was local physician for the Santa Fe Railroad Company, and was examining surgeon for the following life insurance companies,—the New York Life, the New York Home, the New York Equitable, the New York Mutual, and the Northwestern of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was also a member of the Tri-State Medical Society of Illinois, Missouri and Iowa, and is a member of the Kiowa county society at Hobart. He has a large library and both ancient and modern works pertaining to the profession and is a daily student, keeping fully abreast of the many new discoveries, and has an office well equipped with all modern appliances for both medicine and surgery. He fully merits the confidence in which he is held. He is an independent political voter, reserving the right to vote for the man of his choice, but he was reared in the faith of Democratic principles.
     Dr. Beasley was married first in Illinois to Miss Frances Westfall, who was born in Ohio, a daughter of David and Elizabeth (Lyons) Westfall, both of whom were also born in that state. Before the opening of the Civil war Mr. Westfall had gone to Mississippi and when the war commenced he was almost forced into the Confederate service, but making his way back to Illinois with much difficulty he joined the Federal forces and was made a ship carpenter on a gun boat. During the siege of Vicksburg, in which he took part, he became ill and died. His widow remained in Illinois until her death. Their children were as follows: Mary, who became the wife of C. Hack, and died soon afterward; Salmyra, who became Mrs. Hartsman; Frances, the wife of Dr. Beasley; Adam, who died in young manhood; and Melvina, Mrs. Nawsley. Both Mr. and Mrs. Westfall were members of the Methodist church. Four children were born to Dr. and Mrs. Beasley: Charles W., a physician in Lindon, Kansas; Charlotte, the wife of R. D. Williams, of Kansas City, Leona F., a competent stenographer in Kansas City; and Effie L., a stenographer in a commission house in that city. Dr. Beasley was married secondly in 1903, Mrs. Clara N. Fuller becoming his wife. She was the widow of Ned Fuller, by whom she had one son, Paul Fuller, whom the Doctor has reared and educated. Mrs. Beasley is a daughter of John Nelson, from Illinois, but now a prominent farmer and stock raiser in Kansas, shipping his stock to Chicago and other markets. He entered the Federal army from Illinois when only a boy, becoming a drummer boy in an infantry regiment, and he remained in the Civil war until its close. He and his wife are members of the Christian church. They were married in Kansas, and she bore the maiden name of Ann E. Veach. Their children are: Charles, a railroad man; Clara M., who became the wife of Dr. Beasley; Wylie, a telegraph operator; Nora Harris; Ernest, a school teacher; and Lizzie, at home. Both Dr. and Mrs. Beasley are members of the Christian church, and he has fraternal relations with the Masonic order.

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cont.

GEORGE W. GORDON. Among those who have taken an active interest in the development and improvement of Kiowa county is numbered George W. Gordon, a prominent farmer and fruit grower. He was born in Clark county, Missouri, June 8, 1849, a son of William and Sarah (Walding) Gordon, natives respectively of Kentucky and Tennessee, and a grandson of Robert Gordon, who located in middle Tennessee in an early day

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in its history and became a prominent farmer and slave owner there. He was of Scotch descent, and his children were: William, the father of George W.; Patsy, the wife of James Walding; Isaac, who died in Missouri; Sally, who married a Mr. Smith and lives in St. Louis, Missouri; James, who died in that state; David, whose home is in Houston county, Texas; and Jane, who became the wife of a Mr. Cusham.
     William Gordon was reared in Tennessee, but became a pioneer in Missouri, one of the old pioneer landmarks of Clark county, a large land owner and a prominent farmer. Although his home was near the Iowa line his slaves never attempted to escape, for they were well and kindly treated, and Mr. Gordon remained there contented and successful until the war cloud arose. He was a Union man, stanchly opposed to secession, and to keep from trouble he refugeed in Iowa for three years, returning to Missouri at the close of the war to settle up his business. Selling his possessions there he moved to Texas in 1867, purchasing land in Lamar county and again becoming an influential farmer, there spending thirty years of his remaining life and dying on the 4th of April, 1897, aged eighty-seven years. He had married in Tennessee in 1835 Sarah Walding, who was born in April, 1807, and died at her home in Texas In 1881, a worthy member of the Methodist church. She was a daughter of Hosea Walding, of Tennessee, a prominent millwright who erected many of the old style mills there, and in an early day moved to Texas and became one of the early pioneers of Houston county. He remained there many years, but after the death of his wife went to the Cherokee Nation and died there. His wife was a member of the Methodist church, and their children were: Sarah, who became the mother of George W. Gordon; James, Elisha, Hosea, Jr., Polly and Sally. Seven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Gordon: Stokely R., Sarah McAldowney, James, Susan J. W. Dickey, William, Charles and George W.
     George W. Gordon was born and reared in northern Missouri, and remained under the parental roof until twenty-three. In 1867 he had moved with his parents to Lamar county, Texas, being then a lad of eighteen, and he assisted his father in improving his homestead there. In 1872 he married and began farming for himself, and later, there being then no railroads in the state, he engaged in freighting with ox teams, finding this a profitable employment and thus continuing until 1877, when he got together a bunch of cattle and took them to Jack County, later buying land in Young county, adjoining, and he continued in the stock business there until 1880. Selling his stock he followed the sheep business until 1885, when he sold both his land and sheep and moved to the Chickasaw Nation, where he leased land and remained for six years. At that time there were no railroads in that part of the country and Mr. Gordon hauled his farm products one hundred and ten miles to market. In 1889, at the opening of the Cheyenne country for settlement, he obtained a claim in Wichita county, improving an excellent farm. and remaining there ten years, during four years of which time his wife was postmistress of Canterberry postoffice, the office being located in his farm house. This house was also a popular stopping place for all who came that way, all being welcome, and Mr. Gordon became widely known and very popular in that community. In 1901 he sold his land in Wichita county and coming to Hobart bought three lots during the first sale here, each of which has since been improved and sold to business men. In 1904 he bought sixteen and a half acres adjoining the corporation limits, and built a brick business house on Fourth street, but this has since been sold. During his residence in the city he was in ward four, which he represented two terms in the city council, and was also elected a justice of the peace, but would not qualify for that office.
     Soon after buying his sixteen and a half acre tract he built a barn, and this served as his home until his nine-room brick residence could be erected. This is a pleasant home, overlooking the town and surrounding country, and it is comfortably furnished and finished. Mr. Gordon devotes a large portion of his land to the cu1tivation of fruits of various kinds, having at present two thousand trees and one and a half acres in different kinds of berries, and among his growing fruit trees he has planted four acres of alfalfa, which produces all the hay he will need for his team of horses, his cow and hogs. He also raises about fifty dollars worth of cotton to the acre. He has a farm of 160 acres in Kiowa, and one of like size at Altus, Jackson county. He is a stockholder in the Farmers Gin Company, and is numbered among Kiowa county's leading and influential citizens.

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     Mr. Gordon married, in Texas, Miss Mary Mobley, a native of Mississippi and a daughter of Harvey Mobley, a prominent planter and slave-owner, who died at his Mississippi homestead about 1860. His wife afterward moved to Texas and married David Gordon, an uncle of George W. Gordon, and both later died in that state. She was a member of the Missionary Baptist church, and by her first marriage became the mother of the following children: James M., of New Mexico; Jeff, who was killed in the Civil war; Monroe and Andrew, also deceased; Mary, who became the wife of Mr. Gordon; George, a merchant in Dale, Texas; and Laura, who married a Mr. Meriweather. Eleven children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Gordon, as follows: Andrew and Lewis, both of whom reside at Mountain View, Kiowa county; Laura, the wife of J. K. Coker; Fanny, wife of C. W. Calvert; Ivy, wife of S. M. Ward; Anna B., wife of E. W. Bottom; Effie, wife of C. Richards; Jessie, wife of Guy Pettijohn; Walter and Bertie, at home; and Virgil C., who was born July 2, 1895. Mrs. Gordon died January 24, 1897, aged forty-one years and nine months, a valued and worthy member of the Christian church. In 1899, Mr. Gordon married Miss Rosa R. Coen, who was born in Indiana, November 12, 1861, a daughter of Hugh and Mary Coen, both from Ohio, but they were married in Indiana and were farming people there. Mr. Coen moved to Texas in 1881, locating first in Tarrant county, near Fort Worth, where he rented a form for one year, and then coming to Greer county, Oklahoma, bought land near Prospect, intending soon to remove his family here, but sickness overtook him and he died in 1881. In the latter part of that year, however, his widow carried out his wishes and came with her family to Greer county, where she brought a farm to an excellent state of cultivation. She now resides at Altus, the county seat of Jackson county, which was until recently a part of Greer county, and her old homestead farm is yet in the possession of the family. Mr. Coen was a Republican politically, and while residing in Indiana filled many of the minor offices. He was a member of the Baptist church. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Coen are as follows: Stephen, a railroad superintendent in New Mexico; John W., a merchant of Altus; Sarah R., who became the wife of Mr. Gordon; William, a farmer; Edgar, a farmer and merchant; Ira, a hardware merchant; Ernest, who died aged twenty-nine years; and Bessie. Mrs. Gordon is a member of the Free Will Baptist church, and Mr. Gordon is a member of the Christian church, in which he has served as a deacon. He has more than a score of grandchildren.

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cont.

JOHN W. DICKSON is one of the prominent young merchants and thoroughly identified with the growth and development of Hobart. He came to Hobart in 1904 and soon after organized the Grain and Elevator Company, an enterprise which has taken a conspicuous part in the grain and other agricultural activity and trade of this section. In 1906 he was one of the organizers of the chamber of commerce, at which time he was made secretary, with A. H. Kramer as president. As a grain merchant Mr. Dickson is one of the most enterprising and able in Western Oklahoma, possessing an almost encyclopedic knowledge of the markets and the various departments of the business. Of Greater Hobart he is one of the most active exponents, and a public spirited citizen in every way.
     John W. Dickson was born in South Carolina, March 4, 1879, was reared in the neighborhood of Greenville, attending public school there, and also the Greenville University and the University of Michigan for two terms. Returning to South Carolina he became his father's assistant in the store, and after a year as clerk he lived in Birmingham, Alabama, until coming to Oklahoma in 1904. Mr. Dickson is a son of John M. and Eleanor (Johnson) Dickson. It is an old South Carolina family on both sides. John M. was a son of James K. Dickson, who came to that state from Scotland, and the other children were: Robert A., Edward B., E. R., James M., Elizabeth Saul, and Annie (deceased). John M. Dickson is still a successful merchant at Greenville, S. C., an occupation to which he turned his attention in early life. At the age of seventeen he became a soldier in the Confederate army, and as a member of the famous Hampton Legion he gave four years of hard service to the southern cause. He was twice wounded and twice a prisoner of war. After returning he began merchandising and was married and settled down to the career in Greenville which he still continues. In his town and vicinity he has always been noted as a man of integrity and plain honesty, without ambition for political or other preferment. He is a Democrat in politics, is a member of the Presbyterian church,

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and affiliates with the Masons, the Odd Fellows and the Woodmen. His wife, who died in 1890, was a daughter of Rev. Benjamin F. Johnson, an Episcopal minister and for a long time rector of Grace church at Charleston, South Carolina. He was also a chaplain in the Confederate army. His children were: Eleanor (Mrs. Dickson), Mrs. H. Haskell and Mrs. J. A. Rowland. The children of John M. Dickson and wife are: Eleanor, Mrs. Mary Bence, James K., John W., Charles E., of Harrisburg, Illinois; Joseph and Anna, at home. John W. Dickson is a Democrat, and is a member of the Presbyterian church and the Elks fraternity.

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cont.

NESTOR RUMMONS. At the opening of the Kiowa land in August, 1901, along with the distribution of homesteads by lottery, the government set aside three hundred and twenty acres in what is now Kiowa county as the townsite of Hobart. The lots were sold, and as was the gel1eral custom the proceeds were directed to the construction of public buildings, sewerage and water works. One of the first citizens of the town, and one who had come to stay, was N. Rummans, the well known attorney and ex-mayor, who as quickly as possible erected a little building that he used as his first law office, and there and then began the practice of law. As a lawyer he has been one of the ,successful members of the bar in Western Oklahoma, but his career is especially important in connection with the history of Hobart, to which prosperous city he has given much of personal energy and enterprise from the date of its organization, and in numerous ways has assisted in developing the town and county. As a member of the school board and as mayor for one term he was closely identified with the most important public affairs of the city.
    Mr. Rummons was born in Warren county, Missouri, January 16, 1869, and was reared near Warrenston, attending common schools and later graduated from the Central Wesleyan College. Mr. Rummons is a graduate from the law department of the University of Michigan, with the class of 1890, and he soon afterward began the practice of his profession at Lincoln, Nebraska. Business called him to southwest Nebraska in 1898, and there he .remained, opening an office and engaged in the practice of law, until 1901, when he came into Oklahoma. He has a general practice, in all the courts, and does a large business. His other interests are in a granite quarry company of Greer county, which supplies large quantities of building stone. In politics he is a strong Democrat, and fraternally is known by membership in the Odd Fellows and Elks. He was married, while living in Nebraska, in 1895, to Miss Clara Schroeder. She was born at Mendota, Illinois, in 1871, a daughter of Frederick H. and Mary (Hager) Schroeder, both of German birth. The father was a grain dealer and merchant. Mr. and Mrs. Rummons have two children, Constance, born in 1896, and Helen, born in 1906.
     Nestor Rummons is the only child of Landon and Martha (Lacey) Rummons, both of whom are now residents of Hobart. The father was a native of Missouri, and the mother of Virginia, and both belonged to pioneer families of the former state, where they were married. C. H. Lacey (the mother's father), was a tobacco manufacturer. Closely connected with this branch of the family were two soldiers of the American Revolution, one of them a member of General Washington's body guard. Landon Rummons (who was a son of John) was educated in Missouri and practiced law there many years. From that state he enlisted in the Confederate army, and was a part of that valiant army that held Vicksburg until the final surrender to the Union troops in 1863. At the opening of the Kiowa reserve he came to Oklahoma, and after securing a claim abandoned the practice of law. Though a successful lawyer, he has led a rather quiet career, without any participation in practical politics. He is a member of the I. O. O. F.