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JOHN CLARK.
John Clark, whose life was one of struggles and
hardships in his early years, is now comfortably
situated on section 18, Garner township, where
he owns a good farm, deriving therefrom a fair
income, so that now in the evening of life he
is enabled to rest from the more arduous duties
of farming and still enjoy those comforts which
go to make life worth living. He was born in Leicestershire,
England, October 29, 1829, his parents being James
and Rachel Clark, both of whom were natives of
England, where they spent their entire lives,
the father dying in the house in which he was
born. He was a frame work knitter and worked at
the looms.
At the age of fifteen years John Clark was apprenticed
to the shoemaker's trade, which occupation he
followed for about forty years. In 1843 he was
married to Miss Rachel Smart, of Leicestershire,
and for sixty-one years they traveled life's journey
happily together, sharing with each other their
adversities and hardships of early life and the
prosperity that came to them at the
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later date. While in England, Mr. Clark was converted
to the Mormon faith and became a preacher of that
denomination, but after his emigration to America
he left that church because he was not a believer
in polygamy or atonement by blood. He still advocates
some of the doctrines of the church but does not
agree with their teachings.
It was in January, 1851, that Mr. Clark started
for the new world with his wife and two children.
He landed at New Orleans without a dollar and
within a few minutes a baby was born unto them,
but it died soon after birth. Mr. Clark sold a
gun in order to pay the passage of himself and
family to St. Louis, where he worked at the shoemaker's
trade during the day and at night lighted lamps.
In fact, he availed himself of every opportunity
to secure employment that would yield an honest
living for his family. Dark days were before them
and yet through all Mr. Clark manifested a strong
spirit of determination and enterprise, making
the most of his opportunities. During the first
summer he became ill and was in poor health for
a long time. Because of his health he left his
wife and family in St. Louis and went to New Orleans,
where for two months he worked at his trade. He
then proceeded by boat to Memphis, Tennessee,
where he remained until he could get a boat going
to St. Louis. He spent two weeks in the latter
city, after which he took his family to New Orleans,
where they remained through the winter, going
again the following spring to St. Louis, where
they resided until 1853. In that year they came
to Pottawattamie county, making the journey with
ox teams to Council Bluffs, where Mr. Clark worked
at shoemaking for some time. By economical and
frugal living and careful management on the part
of himself and wife, he was at length enabled
to purchase the farm upon which he now resides.
. For three years after taking up his abode on
the farm, however, he would walk each morning
to Council Bluffs, a distance of three miles,
and there work at his trade, returning home in
the evening. Thus he earned sufficient money to
pay for the farm. He first invested in ten acres
and later traded property which he owned in Council
Bluffs for the remainder of the farm. He had already
entered forty acres from the government and he
now owns three hundred and twenty-five acres,
constituting a valuable property. He also has
one hundred and twenty acres in Mills county and
property in Council Bluffs.
As the years passed seven children were added
to the family, of whom five are now living: Alam
Joseph, who was born in England and is living
on his father's farm; Rachel Elizabeth, also born
in England and now the wife of Sylvester Winchester,
a farmer of Garner township; John Thomas, who
was born in St. Louis and is living on the home
farm; Henrietta, who was born in Council Bluffs
and is the wife of William H. Wright, of Boomer
township; and Henry James, who was born in Council
Bluffs, in which city he is now residing.
When Mr. Clark arrived in Pottawattamie county
there were no frame houses in Council Bluffs save
those made from clapboards and but one brick house
in the town, that being used for a powder storage.
At a later date Mr. Clark bought that property.
In pioneer times the Indians frequently visited
the town and camped in the hollows nearby, and
even after removing to the
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farm Mr. Clark frequently saw Indians in the
neighborhood, it being some time before they left
this district for reservations further west. At
the time he purchased his farm there was a log
house on the place and it is still standing near
his present residence, a mute reminder of the
early days, indicating by contrast the progress
that has been made in the county. For several
years the family occupied this primitive home
and Mr. Clark then erected his present residence.
He has also put other buildings upon the place,
and his land has been brought under a high state
of cultivation.
In politics he is a democrat with independent
tendencies. For several years he held the office
of justice of the peace, his opinions being strictly
fair and impartial, and for some time he served
as school director and was instrumental in securing
the establishment of the school in his district.
He has always believed in the employment of good
teachers and the maintenance of progressive schools,
and in matters of citizenship he has always stood
for advancement and improvements. Mr. and Mrs.
Clark have traveled to some extent, having returned
to England upon a visit and also going to Utah,
where Mrs. Clark had a sister and two brothers
living. More than half a century has come and
gone since they arrived in this county and Mr.
Clark has a very wide acquaintance because of
his long residence here and his business connections.
In the early days he was well known as a musician,
performing creditably upon the violin and cello.
He can relate many interesting incidents of the
early days when there were few evidences of civilization
here. Conditions were those of the frontier, but
there came into the county a band of sturdy and
courageous men who have made the county one of
the leading districts of this great commonwealth.
Mr. Clark has been a hard worker, living a life
of activity and usefulness. He has faced conditions
of poverty and illness which would have utterly
discouraged a man of less resolute spirit, but
by persistent labor he has overcome all the difficulties
in his path and is now classed with the substantial
agriculturists of his community.
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Dexter S. Frank, one of the leading business
men of Council Bluffs and a member of the firm
of Frank & Campbell, dealers in agricultural
implements, gas engines, pumps, carriages, wind
mills, wagons, etc., was born on a farm in Lake
county, Ohio, near the town of Kirkland, in 1850.
When but seven years of age his parents removed
to Pottawattamie county, Iowa, where they took
up their home on a farm, and 1n 1903 came to Council
Bluffs.
Mr. Frank received his early education in the
district schools and gained a practical training
in all the details of agriculture while assisting
his father upon the home farm. He supplemented
his early education by his attendance at the public
schools of Council Bluffs and was given these
advantages until he had attained the age of eighteen
years. Agriculture had been his principal interest
up to this time, but he was still a very young
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man when he entered his present business and
in January, 1905, assisted in forming the present
firm. It has always been noticed that the most
enterprising business men of our large cities
were energetic and successful farmers in their
early years and Mr. Frank's success is a practical
illustration of this' fact. It is largely through
his enterprise and business courage, as well as
foresight, that the present firm owes its rapid
growth and phenomenal success.
For three or four terms Mr. Frank has been justice
of the peace and has served as a most efficient
member of the board of education. .In his political
views he has always been a stalwart republican
and has been active in promoting the interests
of the party. Reared in the faith of the Presbyterian
church, he is still an active member and a generous
supporter of that denomination.
Mr. Frank was married in 1878 to Margaret A.
Orr, a most estimable young woman, whose help
and encouragement have gone a long way toward
assisting him in his success in life. Their home
is always open to their friends who are ever glad
to avail themselves of its hospitality.
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W. C. Van Pelt is the owner of an excellent farm
of one hundred and sixty acres, upon which he
has made his home since 1880. It is situated on
sections 14 and 15, Lewis township, and a beautiful
grove in front of the house adds to its value
and attri1ctive appearance. The farm is indeed
well kept in every particular, indicating the
careful supervision and progressive methods of
the owner, who though now well advanced in years
still gives personal supervision to his agricultural
interests.
He was born in Brunswick, Rensselaer county,
New York, in June, 1839, his parents being Daniel
N. and Malissa C. (Gardner) Van Pelt. The father's
birth occurred in the same house in which our
subject first opened his eyes to the light of
day, while the mother was a native of western
New York. In the paternal line the ancestors came
from Holland, three brothers settling on Manhattan
Island during an early period in the colonization
of the new world. After the capture of the city
by the British during the Revolutionary War the
family scattered. Christopher Van Pelt, the grandfather
of our subject, owned and operated the farm on
which Daniel N. and W. C. Van Pelt were born.
It was a tract of land of several hundred acres,
which upon his death passed into possession of
Daniel N. Van Pelt and his brother. On leaving
that farm the former removed to Lansingburg, New
York, where he remained for several years and
then purchased a farm upon which he continued
to reside until his demise. His political allegiance
was given to the democracy, while his wife in
religious faith was a Presbyterian. In their family
were five children: W. C., of this review; Eugene
A., still living in Rensselaer county, New York;
Sarah Elizabeth, who died when
858
twenty-one months old; Stephen H., who died when
a year old; arid Frank N., who departed this life
in Ionia, Michigan.
The public-school system of the Empire state
afforded W. C. Van Pelt his early educational
privileges and when eighteen years of age he entered
the Lansingburg Academy, in which he completed
his education. He then started out in life on
his own account, being. first employed in a general
store. He removed from Lansingburg to Albany,
where he became bookkeeper in a commission house,
filling that position until 1879, when he took
up his abode upon his father-in-law's farm. The
following year, however, he came to Pottawattamie
county and purchased one hundred and sixty acres
of land, of which one hundred and twenty acres
had been placed under cultivation. He has here
made his home for twenty-seven years, has erected
all the barns and out buildings upon the place
and now has one of the attractive farms of the
township, its beauty being greatly enhanced by
the fine grove of trees which surrounds the dwelling.
He exercises much care and judgment in the cultivation
of the fields and therefore annually gathers good
harvests.
It was in February, 1876, that Mr. Van Pelt was
united in marriage to Miss Kate Van Vorhees, a
daughter of John and Anna Elizabeth Van Vorhees,
of Saratoga county, New York. They now have a
daughter, Carrie, who is the wife of W. H. Plummer,
living upon a farm adjoining her father's place
on the east. Unto this marriage has been born
a daughter, Eva Plummer.
Mr. Van Pelt is connected with the Christian
Science church, while his wife holds membership
in the Baptist church. He cast his first presidential
vote for Abraham Lincoln and supported the party
for a number of years but is now independent in
politics. He has served as township clerk and
for several years has been secretary of the school
board, being the incumbent in the position at
the present time. During his residence in Pottawattamie
county he has so lived as to merit in high degree
the respect and confidence of his fellowmen and
both he and his wife enjoy the warm friendship
of the great majority of those with whom they
have come in contact.
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Andrew O. Graham, for more than four decades
connected with the business interests of Council
Bluffs, is now president of the board of park
commissioners and no citizen has done more for
the establishment and improvement of the park
system than he nor more deserves the gratitude
of the general public for his labors in this connection.
A native of Ayrshire, Scotland, he was born in
1832, his parents being Walker and Mary (Farey)
Graham, and he spent the first twenty-five years
of his life in that country, acquiring his education
in its public schools and there receiving business
training that brought him a knowledge of the value
and worth of industry and unfaltering enterprise.
On the 6th of July,
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1857, having crossed the Atlantic to America,
he arrived in Council Bluffs, where he has since
made his home, with the exception of two years
spent in Idaho. He went to that state in 1863
but returned in 1865 and opened an outfitting
store, carrying guns, fishing tackle, tents, etc.,
for the use of emigrants. He carried on this business
with constantly growing and gratifying success
for thirty years as a member of the firm of Oliver
& Graham and later Graham & Son. This
became one of the leading mercantile establishments
of the city, developing with the growth of !the
western country, and Mr. Graham continued active
in its control until 1898, when he withdrew from
that line and has since been engaged in looking
after the parks of the city, in which he hag been
interested for about thirty years. He deserves
more credit than any other man for the preservation
and acquisition of the parks of Council Bluffs
and he put forth his labors in this connection
for twenty years without receiving any compensation
for his services.
Mr. Graham was married in Scotland, in 1853,
to Miss Margaret Oliver, and they have one son,
Robert O. Mr. Graham has belonged to the Masonic
fraternity for forty years and is also connected
with the Benevolent & Protective Order of
Elks. His political support is given the democracy
and he has served for four years as a member of
the city council and for six years on the county
board of supervisors, in both capacities proving
a capable officer whose official labors proved
of practical and far-reaching benefit. In reviewing
the life history of Mr. Graham, we are reminded
of the words of Ex-Governor Mickey, of Nebraska,
who said: "He who travels safely in the business
life must be a true citizen, must be a man who
reads, must be a man of right and who does justice
and who will do that which will result in great
good in after years as well as the present."
Such has been the history of Mr. Graham. In commercial
interests he has made an unassailable reputation
and gained his success worthily, while in his
unselfish public service he has performed for
Council Bluffs a work which entitles him to the
gratitude of not only this but of coming generations.
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Andrew McMillen, cashier of the freight department
at the transfer depot of the Union Pacific Railroad,
has worked his way steadily upward to his present
position of responsibility. Throughout his entire
business career, dating from July 26, 1886, he
has been in the employ of the railroad company
and no higher testimonial could be given of capable
service and reliability. His life record began
May 21, 1868, at Kenton, Hardin county, Ohio.
His father, James McMillen, who resides at No.
1700 Ninth avenue, Council Bluffs, was born near
Antrim, Ireland, about twenty miles from Belfast,
November 8, 1837. He acquired his early education
on the Emerald isle and came to America at the
age of fourteen years. Here he entered business
life as a water boy for the Fort Wayne Railroad
Company in Ohio,
860
working for fifty cents per day. Gradually he
was advanced in recognition of his usefulness
and trustworthiness and when he attained his majority
he was serving as section foreman for the same
road at ninety cents per day. He continued there
until 1869, when he came to Council Bluffs and
here engaged in railroad work as foreman of a
gang of men loading material for the construction
of the Union Pacific bridge over the Missouri
river. For several years he continued in the employ
of that railroad company, having in charge the
ticket offices of this and various other railroads
running into Council Bluffs until 1817. He then
took charge of the transfer depot as its master
and continued in that position until 1900, when
he retired from active business life and has since
enjoyed a well earned rest. On the 10th of June,
1866, at Elyria, Ohio, James McMillen married
Miss Kathryn Baker, who died in Council Bluffs,
November 20, 1905. She was a member of the Baptist
church in early life, also belonged to the Order
of the Eastern Star and to the Degree of Honor.
She was born in Vermilion, Ohio, May 21, 1848,
and pursued her education in a Baptist seminary
at that place. Five children were born unto Mr.
and Mrs. McMillen, of whom Andrew was the second.
The father has usually supported the democracy
since casting his first presidential ballot for
James Buchanan but voted for William McKinley.
In 1861 he went to Cleveland, Ohio, to enlist
for service in the Civil war but his mother also
made her way to that city and persuaded him not
to join the army. Three months later he was drafted
but, secured a substitute to go in his stead.
Andrew McMillen has spent almost his entire life
in Council Bluffs and is indebted to its public
school system for the educational privileges he
enjoyed. On the 26th of July, 1886, he entered
the employ of the Union Pacific Railroad Railroad
Company as a clerk in the freight office and later
was appointed cashier, in which capacity he has
since served. That he is one of the trusted employes
of the road is indicated by the fact that he has
remained with the company for twenty-one years,
discharging his duties with dispatch and accuracy.
On the 28th of September, 1898, Mr. McMillen was
married in Council Bluffs to Miss Lola May Odell,
a daughter of Alfred and Marilla (Stevens) Odell,
natives of Indiana and of Illinois respectively.
The father was a farmer by occupation and served
as a soldier of the Union army in the Civil war.
At one time he was captured and incarcerated in
Andersonville prison. He died when Mrs. McMillen
was only a year old and his wife survived for
only eight years, so that Mrs. McMillen was left
an orphan when a little maiden of nine summers.
In 1887 she came to Council Bluffs and was educated
in the public schools here. She has won many warm
friends and is a popular member of the Order of
the Eastern Star and the Degree of Honor, while
her religious faith is indicated by her membership
in the Presbyterian church.
Mr. McMillen affiliates with the Masons and the
women's auxiliary of, that order, with the Independent
Order of Odd Fellows, the Ancient Order of United
Workmen and the Yeomen. He is a stockholder in
the Odd Fellows temple. Politically his support
is given to the republican party. Unto
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Mr. and Mrs. McMillen have been born two children:
Gerald Odell, born September 23, 1899; and Kathryn
Frances, born December 18, 1902. Both are natives
of Council Bluffs. The family; home is a beautiful
residence at No. 1113 Fourth avenue and its hospitality
is greatly enjoyed by their many friends.
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Cyrus True needs no introduction to the readers
of this volume, for the True family is most widely
known in this section of the state. Its representatives
have been actively connected with agricultural
interests here from pioneer times and none are
more worthy of public regard than Cyrus True,
now one of the venerable citizens of Pottawattamie
county, within whose borders he has made his home
since the fall of 1857. He has now attained the
venerable age of seventy-nine years, his birth
having occurred in Lincoln county, Maine, on ,the
26th of September, 1828.
His parents were Samuel and Jane (Beal) True,
of whose family of six children only two are now
living, the sister of our subject being Mrs. Mary
J. Chase, a widow, who resides in Putnam, Connecticut.
The father was born in Lisbon, Maine, and the
mother in Boardingham, that state. Samuel True
continued to reside in his native state until
1834, when he removed to Bradford, and in later
life became a resident of Waterloo, Maine, where
he and his wife made their home with a daughter.
He attained to the very advanced age of eighty-five
years, while his wife was more than eighty years
of age at the time of her demise.
Under the parental roof Cyrus True spent his
boyhood days, remaining in Maine until his twenty-third
year. He learned the carpenter's trade in Bangor,
and in 1851 removed to New Haven, Connecticut,
where he followed carpentering for three years.
On the expiration of that period he went to Boston,
Massachusetts, where he was connected with building
operations for two years and in the fall of 1857
he arrived in Pottawattamie county, Iowa, coming
through S1. Louis by boat to St. Joseph, Missouri,
and thence by stage to Council Bluffs. From the
county seat he hired a man to drive him across
the country by wagon to what was then Big Grove
but is now Oakland, and from that point he made
his way to his present location in Knox township.
Here he invested in eighty acres of land, upon
which he has since lived, and later he bought
eighty acres just across the road from his present
farm. On the original tract he built a small frame
dwelling, occupying that modest home for several
years, when he erected a more commodious frame
building on the farm just across the road from
his first residence. There he took up his abode
but after a number of years he sold that farm
and built on his first location, where he now
makes his home.
On the 20th of March, 1857, Cyrus True was married
to Mrs. Sarah J. Hunting, a daughter of Ephraim
Barrows, living near Dover, Maine. By
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this marriage there were three children: Ella,
the wife of Arthur F. Conner, of Colorado Springs,
Colorado; Charles A., living in Osceola, Iowa;
and Albertine E., the wife of M. Guy Martin, of
Avoca. The wife and mother died in 1896, and in
1901 Mr. True married Mrs. Melinda R. Pope, formerly
a Miss Cowder, a native of Fayette county, Ohio.
In his political views Mr. True has been a stalwart
republican since the organization of the party
and for years has served in various township offices.
He is a member of the Presbyterian church and
a man who throughout his entire life has been
highly esteemed because of his fidelity to honorable
purposes and manly conduct. He is today one of
the oldest residents of the county, having for
a half century here made his home, during which
period he has witnessed its development from a
wild region into one of fertility, its natural
resources having been claimed for the uses of
the white mall. The little pioneer cabin is today
a thing of the past and no longer one can ride
for miles through the prairie grasses, adorned
with flowers of spring and summer. Today one journeys
over well kept roads amid fine fields, in the
midst of which, here and there, are soon beautiful
homes, while the county, too, is rich in its manufacturing,
commercial and industrial interests. Mr. True's
memory forms a connecting link between the primitive
past and the progressive present and as an honored
pioneer he well deserves mention in this volume.
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