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History of Sac County
by William H. Hart - 1914
MACKEY, OLIVER -----Sac county,
Iowa, is greatly indebted to the Irish element which has
come here from time to time and became incorporated in
the body politic of this county. These loyal sons of the
Emerald isle have assisted in the development of this
locality from a wild prairie to its present high
standing among its sister counties in the Hawkeye state.
These men of Irish descent came to this country in order
to get to live in a country where freedom was the
paramount thing, and where they could eventually become
owners of a home to themselves, a thing which is
practically impossible in their native land.
Oliver Mackey, one of the
substantial farmers of Clinton township Sac county,
Iowa, was born May 7, 1840. in Londonderry, Ireland. His
parents. William and Elizabeth
(Lindsay) Mackey, came to this country in 1861, settling
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where they lived the
remainder i)f their lives. William Mackey was a day
laborer but was always able to earn an honest living for
his family. William Mackey and wife reared a family of
six children: Mrs. jane McLaughlin, who died in
Minnesota; Eliza, who died in Ireland; Lindsay, who died
in Minnesota; Katherine Mary, who died in Philadelphia;
James, of Minnesota, and Oliver, with whom this
narrative is concerned.
Oliver Mackey received a very
meager education in the schools of Ireland, and when a
very young lad started to work in order to assist the
family. This young boy had visions in his youth, and
before he was fourteen years of age he had been thinking
of coming to America and casting his fortunes in this
“land of the free and home of the brave.” Before he was
fourteen years of age his mind was made up and, with
four pounds of English money, he purchased his passage
to America on one of the old-fashioned sailing
vessels. May 1, 1854, was a
red-letter day in the history of Oliver Mackey, for ,on
that day he landed in this country and when he walked
down the streets of New York this little Irish boy
little dreamed that one day he would become one of the
prosperous farmers of the great state of Iowa, but
history can tell strange stories and there is no
stranger story than one which tells of the career of
Oliver Mackey and thousands of other young men who have
come from foreign lands to this country under similar
conditions.
He had enough money after working a
year in New York to reach Minnesota, and as soon as he
reached that state he homesteaded a farm and after two
years was able to prove his claim. He at once sold it
for seven hundred dollars and a drove of cattle, and two
years later he was in Postville, Allamakee county, Iowa.
By this time he was married and something of the courage
of this young Irish lad may be gathered from the fact
that he was married when he was only sixteen years of
age. After landing in Allamakee county, this state, in
1858, he at once purchased one hundred and sixty acres
of good land, where he lived until 1889. He improved his
land in various ways, and when he sold it he realized
sixty dollars an acre for it and, with the nine thousand
six hundred dollars in his pocket, he came to Sac
county, Iowa, and bought one hundred and sixty acres in
Clinton township, for which he paid forty dollars an
acre. On this farm he has continued to reside up to the
present time, having greatly improved it in the way of
erecting new buildings, improving the old ones, and
building fences all over the farm, so that he has
increased the value of the tract until he has been
offered two hundred dollars an acre for it. The house on
this farm was destroyed by fire and he rebuilt in 1906,
placing a fine, modern and up-to-date residence on his
farm. In 1913 Mr. Mackey took off one crop from one
eighty acres which netted him one thousand dollars, so
it can be readily seen why this land is worth two
hundred dollars an acre.
Mr. Mackey has been three times
married. His first marriage was in 1856, to Mary Love,
who died in 1873, and to this marriage there was born
one son, John, who died in November, 1911. The second
marriage of Mr. Mackey occurred in
1874, to Helen Mitchell, who died in 1883, and to this
marriage there were three children born: Mabel, the wife
of George Long, a farmer of this township: Mrs. Edna
Fox, of Jasper, Minnesota, and Mrs.
Alta Downey, of Bloomfield, Nebraska. Mr. Mackey
was again married February 20, 1886, to Laura Deering,
who was born June 28, 1867, in Berlin, Germany. Her
parents were Charles and Caroline Deering, who came to
America and located in Marquette, Michigan, in 1867. Her
father was a copper and iron miner. He saved his money
and in 1876 came to Postville, Allamakee county, Iowa,
and purchased a farm, where both of the parents died.
There were four children born to the third marriage of
Mr. Mackey: Ray, a farmer of Clinton township; Ethel,
who married A. W. Quick, February 20, 1912. Mr. Quick is
the son of William Quick, one of the early pioneer
settlers of Sac county; Leonard, a farmer of Clinton
township: Laura, who died at the age of six months, and
Leland who is still at home.
The Republican party has always
claimed the ballot of Mr. Mackey and he has always taken
an intelligent interest in the political questions of
the day. His services as a public official have been
confined to the office of road supervisor, which office
he held while living at Postville, in Allamakee
county. Fraternally, he is a
member of the Modern Woodmen of America, while in his
church relations he is found identified with the
Methodist church at Bethel. Mr. Mackey has had few
opportunities except what his own efforts have brought
him. and the success which has attended his career in
this county is proof of the fact that he has fully
mastered every opportunity as it presented itself to
him. He now has the gratification of knowing that he has
a competency to insure against future want and that he
is held in high regard by the community where he has so
long lived and labored.
 MARKLEY, JOHN R. ------One of
Eden township's agriculturists and stock men who is
deserving of a place in this volume is John R. Markley,
a man of courage, self-reliance and of the utmost
integrity of purpose, as a result of which he has,
during his entire life, stood high in the estimation of
his neighbors and friends, whose interests he has sought
to promote while endeavoring to advance his own.
John R. Markley, proprietor of a
half section of fine farming land in Eden township. Sac
county, Iowa, was born June 6, 1878, on the farm where
he is now residing. His parents were Isaac M. and
Emmeline (McLaughlin) Markley. Isaac Markley was born
May 5, 1841, in Canada, and died in Sac county, Iowa,
August 15, 1903. His people left Canada and were among
the early settlers of Alamakee county, this state, and
came to Sac county in its early history. His possessions
were a mule team and a yoke of oxen. His wife, Emmeline
McLaughlin, was born April 13, 1838, in Palo Alto
county, Iowa, and died in Sac county, this state, in
1903. They were the parents of four children: William,
deceased; Harvey A., of Storm Lake, Iowa; John R., whose
history is here presented, and Ernest A., of Buena Vista
county, Iowa.
John R. Markley has always lived on
the farm where he is now making his home. He received a
good, common school education and assisted his father
with the management of his large estate until his
father's death, in 1903. Upon his father's death the
estate was divided among the children find he received
three hundred and twenty acres as his share.
Mr. Markley was married December
18, 1907, to Magdalena Hailing, born March 29, 1888, in
Richland township, Sac county, Iowa, daughter of John
and Anna Christina Hailing. John Hailing was born
November 28, 1856, and is now living in Cook township,
this county. His wife, Anna, was born September 23,
1865, and died December 10, 1897. Both Mr. and Mrs. John
Hailing were natives of Schleswig, Germany. They were
the parents of six children, Oda May, Magdalena,
Lillian, deceased, John Andrew, deceased, Raymond and
Emily Amelia, deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Mark ley have two
children, Hazel Fay, born September 26, 1908, and Leslie
Raymond, born July 14, 1912.
Mr. Markley has been a Republican
since casting his first vote, but has never felt
inclined to be an active participant in political
affairs. He and his wife have a charming home and are
the center of a large circle of friends and
acquaintances who delight in their genuine
hospitality.
MARTIN, CHARLES A. -----Among
the prosperous farmers and stock breeders of Viola
township, Sac county, Iowa, who have made a notable
success in their line of business, is Charles A. Martin,
who was born December 25, 1867, in St. Croix county,
Wisconsin, near New Richmond. He is a son of Michael A.
and Katherine (Donahue) Martin, who were both natives of
Ireland. Michael Martin and
Catherine Donahue came to America with their parents
when they were children. They met in Wisconsin and were
married in that state. In 1875 they came to Sac county,
Iowa, settling in section 5, of this township, where
they accumulated six hundred and sixty acres of land.
Michael Martin was born in 1839 and died in August,
1913, while his wife is still living in Carroll, Iowa.
Michael Martin and wife were the parents of seven
children: Nora, the wife of J. J. Kemper, of Carroll,
Iowa; D. E., of Roswell, New Mexico; Charles A., with
whom this narrative deals; G. E., of Aurora, Illinois;
Francis T., a stock breeder of this township; Clarence
N. of Carroll county, this state, and Mrs. J. F.
Holland, also of Carroll county.
Charles A. Martin was educated in
the district schools of Wisconsin and Iowa, coming to
Iowa with his parents when he was eight years of age and
attended school for some time after coming to this
state. He assisted his father on the work of his large
farm until his marriage in 1898. He and his brother
bought a farm in partnership in that year and continued
to operate it together until the spring of 1909, when he
sold out his interests in the farm and purchased his
present farm of one hundred and twenty acres in Viola
township, in sections 5 and 8. For many years he has
been a breeder of registered livestock, making a
specialty of Aberdeen Angus cattle, and had in 1913
sixty-five head of registered stock of this kind. His
farm is well improved in every way and he has a large
and commodious barn and other outbuildings.
Mr. Martin was married in
September, 1898, to Nellie Duffy, of Waterloo, Iowa, a
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Duffy, and to this union
have been born four children: Margaret, aged eleven
years; Cyril, aged eight; Charles, aged five, and
Arnold, who died in infancy.
While Mr. Martin is nominally a
Democrat, yet he is independent in his voting. He
reserves the right to cast his ballot for the best man,
irrespective of publics. If every voter in the United
States would exercise the same judgment much of the
outcry against our officials would cease. He and his
family are all earnest and devoted members of the
Catholic church and contribute liberally of their
substance and time to the support of their denomination.
He is a man of liberal views, believing in progress and
improvement, and does what he can to further these ends.
He takes an interest in whatever he thinks will make for
the material advancement of his county, as well as its
social, intellectual and moral
good.
MARTIN, FRANCIS T. -----One of
the successful farmers and stock breeders of Viola
township. Sac county, who has
risen to a position of prominence, and is surrounded by
extensive land holdings and commodious buildings of
various kinds, is Francis T. Martin, who has a fine home
located about midway between the towns of Wall Lake and
Lake View. The distance between these two towns is four
and one-half miles, and Mr. Martin’s home is on the main
thoroughfare and enables him to transact business at
either point with but little inconvenience.
On his farm two residences are maintained, barns
of ample size, out buildings of all kinds, silos, and
every modern equipment which is usually found on a farm
of this kind.
Being essentially a farmer, Mr.
Martin has made his greatest success in the breeding of
pure-bred Aberdeen Angus cattle. His father, the late
M. A. Martin, was one of
the pioneer breeders of Angus cattle, and the success
that he achieved would form an interesting chapter in
the history of the breed. At the time of the dispersion
of his herd in 1899 the work was turned over to his son,
Francis T. Martin, who is now entering upon the twenty
eighth year that he has been identified with the breed.
But little attention was paid to the public exhibition
of his stock, but cattle that were bred on the farm won
distinguished careers in the greatest shows of the
country. Probably his greatest
success in this line was the bull “Valiant Knight 2d,”
bred on the farm and who was first in his class for
three successive years at the International show at
Chicago. This is the only bull of the breed that has won
this honor up to the present time.
Francis T. Martin was born March
18, 1874, in St. Croix county. Wisconsin, the son of M.
A. and Catherine Martin, both of whom were natives of
Ireland, and who emigrated to America at an early date,
first settling in Ohio, and later in Wisconsin. The
senior Mr. Martin came to Sac county in the year 1875,
and at the time of his death was the owner of seven
hundred and forty acres of land, with improvements on
each quarter section. Francis T. Martin was
educated in the district schools and later in the Wall
Lake high school. He has been a wide reader on all
matters pertaining to progressive agriculture and to
improved livestock production. He has always displayed
unbounded faith in livestock and land, and the Lakeside
farm, upon which he resides, has been known for a third
of a century as the home of the best improved stock that
skill and judgment could produce.
Mr. Martin was married April 24,
1911, to Ada Albright, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Albright, of Boone, Iowa. Their union has been blessed
with a daughter, Mary Catherine, now two years of
age.
Politically Mr. Martin is a member
of that large and increasingly numerous bodies of men
who prefer to cast their ballot for the best men at
election, irrespective of party affiliations. The day of
partisan politics is past, fortunately, and men are now
voting their convictions. Instead of stamping the eagle
or the rooster, they are now glancing down the list of
candidates, and are using judgment in selecting men who
will represent the best interests of the people as a
whole. He is not a member of any fraternal organization,
but is active in the affairs of the National Aberdeen
Angus Breeders’ Association, as well as the Iowa State
Breeders Association. Mr. Martin has
established a firm reputation for honesty of purpose in
all his dealings with his fellow men, and is a thorough
believer in the workings of the Golden Rule and of its
application to everyday life. His qualities of head and
heart are of commendable character, and he has always
striven to contribute something that is worthwhile to
the community in which he has spent practically every
day of his life. The work that he has accomplished is
worthy of specific mention in a volume of the character
of the one in hand.
MASON, ANDERSON ----While
notable and conspicuous achievements in the history of a
community will continue to occupy the attention of the
lovers of history, it is with the accomplishments of the
pioneer and the individual who has contributed his
ability along the average lines of human endeavor that
these annals of Sac County principally deal. Frequently,
from among the mass of individuals with whom the writer
is brought into intimate contact, there are certain
figures which stand prominent in the forefront and have,
through being endowed high above the average of native
ability, carved a particular place of vantage among
their fellows and hold an unshakable position in the
community in which they reside. The pioneer life of Sac
county is conspicuous, because of the excellence of its
personnel and having enrolled in its roster a number of
genuinely advanced men of ideas and capabilities of
leadership in their own particular sphere. One who has
been identified with the history of this county for over
forty years and enjoys a reputation and a popularity as
a person of broad-minded proclivities and singular
attainments, is Anderson Mason, of Early.
Mr. Mason was born December 5,
1838, in Clinton county, Ohio and is one of a large
quota of citizens which that state has contributed to
the well being and progress of Sac County. His father
was Bagwell N. Mason, a native of Richmond, Virginia,
and a scion of Scotch ancestry. His mother was Nancy B.
Butler, who was born in Baltimore, Maryland. In the year
1851, Bagwell Mason migrated to La Salle county,
Illinois, and settled on a farm. He resided in this
county until his death in 1854. His wife died there in
1864. They were the parents of fifteen children, namely;
Henry B., Gertrude H., Sarah T., William T., Samuel R..
Edward P., James B., Alfred, Stephen, Martha Ann, Betsy
Jane, Mary Ellen and Isaiah, all deceased; Anderson, and
Mrs. Elizabeth Hoy, a resident of Sandwich, Illinois.
James, Stephen and Samuel were soldiers in the Union
army and served throughout the Civil War.
During the War of the Rebellion,
Anderson was the sole support of his widowed mother, and
for this reason, as well as because of the fact that the
required quota of soldiers was filled when he was
drafted into the service in October, 1864, he was
relieved from further duty after a few weeks spent in
drilling, At the time he was sixteen years of age he
became the head of the family and labored to support his
mother and sister. In the fall of 1864 he removed to a
farm in Grand Rapids township. La Salle county, which he
cultivated for two years. He then journeyed to Franklin
county, Kansas, in 1866, and lived on his sister's farm
for one year. He returned to La Salle county in 1867
and, after a year's residence in his home county,
settled on a farm in Livingston county, Illinois. Five
years later he again decided to follow the star of
empire westward and in 1871 came to Sac county. His
first purchase was for one hundred and sixty acres of
land in section 17, Boyer Valley township. He erected a
small house, of one story, which sufficed for his home
for some years and was later replaced by a handsome farm
residence. The Mason family were the seventh to locate
in the west part of Sac county. The country was very
sparsely settled and settlers were few and far between.
The Masons got along first rate and suffered few
hardships. In 1878 Mr. Mason added the adjoining one
hundred and sixty acres to his possessions and created
what is widely and favorably known as Green Bush Stock
Farm. It is now divided into two farms which are known
as East and West Greenbush and are tilled by his two
sons. He was a pioneer breeder of fine stock in Sac
county. The farm became famous for the quality of its
pure bred livestock and was a large producer of
Shorthorn cattle, Norman Percheron horses, and Poland
China hogs. It is likewise noted for its well-kept
buildings and barns. In 1888 he removed to the town of
Early and purchased a fine residence. He is also the
owner of a large brick business building situated on the
main street of the town. Mr. Mason has
generally been allied with the Republican party and has
figured prominently in the official life of Boyer Valley
township, of which he was the first school treasurer,
holding this office for several years. He also served as
township trustee for a long period. Since making Early
his residence he has filled the office of mayor for two
terms. For several years he was vice-president of the
Early State Bank. At one time he ran his opponent a very
close race for the office of county supervisor and also
held the important position of county road supervisor by
appointment, and it was due to his suggestion and
personal influence that the county roads were
established along sectional lines. He is a member of the
Methodist Episcopal church.
Mr. Mason's wedded life began on
January 1, 1862, when he was married to Marion Elizabeth
Hart, of La Salle county, the daughter of Jason and
Inline (Lewis) Hart, natives of Vermont and who were
early pioneer settlers of Branch county, Michigan. Five
children have been born to this highly esteemed couple:
Grant, who died at the age of two years; Arthur L., who
resides on East Greenbush farm, and is the parent of
four children, Chester, Virgie May, Emma Marian and
Duane : Elmer, residing on West Greenbush farm, and has
two children. Opal May and Elmer Ellsworth :
Mrs. May Evans, of Early, who is
the mother of three children, Roy Dewey, Aria and Leland
Anderson ; Mrs. Rose Jackson, deceased, who is survived
by two children, Verla Jeannette and James Alton.
Mr. Mason's family are a credit to him and his
good wife, and are blessed with the same sterling
qualities which have enabled him to achieve such success
as has been his lot. This history of Sac County would be
incomplete were it deficient in a proper estimate of his
usefulness and this compendium is intended for a slight
tribute to him and his for the part they have taken in
making this county what it is today.
MATTES, HON. JOSEPH
-----Eminent business talent is composed of a
combination of high mental and moral attributes;
although these are essential, there must be sound
judgment, breadth of capacity and rapidity of thought,
justice and firmness, the foresight to perceive the
drifting tides of business and the will and ability to
control them to the individual's advantage. It is often
found that the successful businessman becomes a faithful
public official. It is an oft repeated maxim among our
people that if more of our men of business turned their
attention to governmental affairs and there applied the
same tenacity and grasp of purpose, and exercised their
talents on behalf of good government to an equal extent
with that which is so necessary to insure their success
in a competitive line of business, we would enjoy much
better government and have laws more in sympathy with
the general welfare at large. As a merchant and
legislator, Hon. Joseph Mattes, of Odebolt, Sac county,
has attained a certain eminence which has firmly been
established in the esteem of his fellow citizens. He
ranks as one of the pioneer merchants of this
progressive and hustling city, and has made a marked
record in the legislative halls as a true representative
of the people. He is self-made, as are practically all
of our citizens who are born of German parents, and
endowed with but little of this world's goods at the
outset of their career in this land of opportunity.
Joseph Mattes was born October 1,
1855, in the town of Comanche, Clinton county, Iowa, the
son of Roman and Mary (Moore) Mattes, natives of
Germany. They were born, reared and married in the
fatherland, and emigrated to America in the year 1854,
settling in Comanche, where the father conducted a
grocery business until 1861, when they removed to Lyons,
Iowa. Roman and Mary Mattes reared a family of nine
children: Mrs. F. P. Motie, of
Spokane, Washington; Mrs. E. Stoessenger, also of
Spokane; Mrs. George Reiser, of Eureka, California; J.
R. and Joseph, of Odebolt, and four deceased. The mother
of these children died in 1904, and the father in 1905.
Joseph was educated in the public
schools of Lyons, Iowa. After leaving school
he was in the employ of Armstrong & Company for a
period of seven years. He came to Odebolt in 1879 and
was employed for the first five months by Mr. Van Dusen.
the hardware merchant. He then became a partner of J. H.
Ketterer, the new firm purchasing the stock and good
will owned by Van Dusen. This partnership continued
until 1887, when Mr. Mattes became the sole proprietor
of the business which has developed into one of the
largest in the county. In 1891 he erected a large
two-story brick building in which the business is
conveniently located. In 1899 he became a stockholder of
the First National Bank of Odebolt and was elected
vice-president of this institution in 1901. He served as
vice-president until 1907, when he was elected president
of the bank, a position which he holds at the present
time.
Politically, Mr. Mattes is a
Republican. He has held, during his residence in
Odebolt, several minor offices such as school treasurer
for a term of eleven years, and has served as a member
of the school board for over sixteen years. He was
elected a member of the Legislature in the fall of 1900
and served as representative in the twenty-ninth,
thirtieth and the thirty-first General Assemblies. In
1906 he was elected to represent the people in the Iowa
State Senate, and was re-elected in 1910. He was a
member of the committee on retrenchment and reform in
the thirtieth, thirty-first, thirty-fourth and
thirty-fifth General Assemblies and was chairman of the
committee on appropriations in the thirtieth and
thirty-first General Assemblies.
He was also chairman of the Senate committee on
appropriations during the thirty-fourth and thirty-fifth
sessions of the General Assembly.
Mr. Mattes is a member of the
Presbyterian church, and is fraternally connected with
the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and the Modern
Woodmen at Odebolt. He was married in 1879 to Catharine
Shelley, of Lyons, Iowa. To this union have been born
four children, namely: Grace E., wife of Joseph A.
Young, of Bellevue, Iowa: Howard J., a lumber merchant
of Rearden, Washington; George H., who is associated
with his father, and Hattie E., who died in
1894.
MAYHALL, ROSS -----Good
newspaper men, like poets, are born not made. The
complex duties of a newspaper man require the utmost in
energy, courage and judgment, as well as that
indefinable quality we call tactful journalism has many
opportunities denied those in other walks of life. His
relation to the community is peculiarly one of
responsibility. His profession makes him a public man,
in a sense, and his opinion upon current topics becomes
ofttimes of paramount importance to his community. A
chronicler of events, a dispenser of news, he is also
the greatest single factor in molding public
opinion.
One of the enterprising young
journalists of western Iowa whose heart and brain and
versatile pen are readily enlisted in behalf of every
worthy cause of the community is Ross Mayhall, editor
and publisher of the Sac County Bulletin of Sac City,
Iowa. Mr. Mayhall is a native of Missouri.
having been born at New London, Ralls county,
that state, on November 8, 1875. He is the son of W. S.
and Sarah Jane (Ross) Mayhall, natives, respectively, of
New London, Missouri, and Ohio, Illinois.
W. S. Mayhall removed to Illinois
in 1872, where he lived three years.
and then returned to New London, Missouri, where
he remained one year, after which he located on a farm
near Ohio, Illinois, where the family made their home
until 1895. Removing then to Walnut. Illinois, W. S.
Mayhall there conducted the Walnut Motor. Disposing of
this, he originated the Mail and Express, which he also
later disposed of, and in 1904 he removed to Tamarack,
Minnesota, where he now resides.
Ross Mayhall was educated in the
public school near Walnut, Illinois.
and the Walnut high school and at Eureka College,
pursuing special work and taking a commercial course.
After completing his schooling he worked for one year in
the office of the Mail and Express. He then accepted
employ ment as a clerk in the Chicago post office, where
he was employed for a period of seven years. In 1907 he
purchased the Sac County Democrat, and in 1910 he
changed the name of the paper to the Bulletin.
Mr. Mayhall was married in June,
1903 to Anna Throne, of DePue, Illinois, and to them two
children have been born. One child died in infancy, and
J. Ogden Mayhall was born in July, 1906.
Mr. Mayhall is a member of the Christian church,
and holds membership with the Modern Woodmen and the
Mystic Workers. Politically, he is a progressive
Democrat. Through the Bulletin he expresses his views in
an able and fearless manner and champions all things for
the betterment of his community.
McCARTER, WASHINGTON -----Among
the prosperous retired farmers of Sac county, Washington
McCarter is one who has played a prominent part in the
upbuilding of his community.
A man of excellent education and high ideals, he
has been a benefit to the community in which he has
lived. While he has been interested many years in
launching his own material interests, he has never
forgotten the duty which he owes to his fellow
citizens.
He was born September 9, 1847, in
Canada and is the son of Joseph and Phoebe (Hawley)
McCarter. Joseph McCarter was born in 1821 in New York
and died March 1, 1898: his wife, Phoebe Hawley, was
born December 12, 1827 in Canada and is the daughter of
Tina and Phoebe (Palmer) Hawley, natives respectively of
Vermont and Delaware. The grandfather of Phoebe Palmer
was Peter Brown, a Revolutionary soldier and a
participant in the raid of John Brown at Osawatomie.
Joseph McCarter left Canada in the year 1863 and located
in Sac county, Iowa, where he lived until 1878. He then
moved to Iowa county, where he died in 1898; his wife is
now living with her son, Washington, in Lake View, this
county. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph McCarter were the parents of
five children: Washington, with whom this narrative
deals; Mrs. Jessie Atkinson, of Iowa county; Van Daca,
who died in Ohio in 1913; Alceste, deceased, and Phoebe,
deceased.
Washington McCarter received his
education in the schools of Canada and New York and
taught school for several terms in Iowa when a young
man. He came with his parents to Clinton county in 1863
and went with them to Iowa county in 1878. In 1888 he
came to Sac county and located in Boyer Valley township,
where he purchased eighty acres for seven dollars and
fifty cents an acre. He sold this farm in 1900 and moved
to a farm in the east end of Wall Lake. He paid
thirty-six dollars an acre for the farm of one hundred
acres and sold it in 1908 and moved into Lake View where
he has since continued to reside.
Mr. McCarter was married in 1887 to
Anna Disterhoft, of Iowa county, and to this marriage
have been born three children : Daca, a teacher of this
county; Bertha, bookkeeper in a bank at Moville in
Woodburn county, and Frances, a teacher in Sac
county.
Politically, Mr. McCarter has been
a life-long Democrat, but has never taken an active part
in political affairs. Personally he is a man of pleasing
address and kindly manner, who by his very presence
inspires hope and contentment among his friends. His
life has been marked by high purposes and a diligent
devotion to duty He is a man whom it is a pleasure to
meet, being genial and straightforward, and a man whom
to know is to trust and respect.
McCORD, ROBERT LEIGH -----A
member of the bar of Sac county who has shown ability in
and devotion to his profession is Robert Leigh McCord.
Mr. McCord is a native of Toulon, Stark county,
Illinois, born March 13, 1875, to the marriage union of
Robert Leeper and Helen (Hopkins) McCord, both natives
of the state of Illinois and descendants of Scotch-Irish
ancestry. His paternal grandfather, James Bennett
McCord, was a native of Georgia, representative of that
line old Scotch Presbyterian stock that settled
numerously in that state in an early day.
Robert Leeper McCord removed to
Calhoun county, Iowa, in 1892, and he died in December,
1909. Of the six children born of his marriage with
Helen Hopkins three sons are living. These are Joel H.
McCord, of Spencer, Iowa: James B. McCord, of Durban,
South Africa, and Robert Leigh the immediate subject of
this sketch.
Robert Leigh McCord was educated at
Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio, and the Iowa State
University at Iowa City, Iowa, receiving from the latter
institution the degree of Bachelor of arts in 1897, and
the degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1898. In October,
1900, he came to Sac City, Iowa, where he has since been
engaged in the practice of law, a profession which he
has ever found worthy of his best efforts and
unqualified allegiance, Mr. McCord was appointed county
attorney in 1908, and was twice elected afterward by the
people to this locally important office.
Mr. McCord was married in June,
1910, to Lily Jane McArthur, formerly of Lake City,
Iowa, and to them have come two children, Helen and Ruth
Eleanor.
Fraternally, Mr. McCord holds
membership with the Masons and the Knights of Pythias.
Politically, he is a Republican. He is a high-minded,
progressive citizen who takes pleasure in assisting
every worthy enterprise that will advance the moral and
material well-being of the community.
McCORKINDALE, ANGUS -----Human
life is like the waves of the sea; they flash a few
brief moments in the sunlight, marvels of power and
beauty, and then are dashed upon the remorseless shores
of death and disappear forever. As the mighty deep has
rolled for ages past and chanted its sublime requiem and
will continue to roll during the coming ages until time
shall be no more, so will the waves of human life follow
each other in countless succession until they mingle at
last with the billows of eternity’s boundless sea. The
passing of any human life, however humble and unknown,
is sure to give rise to a pang of anguish to some heart,
but when the “fell destroyer”’ knocks at the door of the
useful and great and removes from earthly scenes the man
of honor and influence and the benefactor of his kind,
it not only means bereavement to kindred and friends but
a public calamity as well.
The late Angus McCorkindale was
born September 15, 1850, in Argyle, Argyleshire,
Scotland, and died in Sac county, Iowa, on June 10,
1912. He came to America with his parents, four brothers
and two sisters in July 1865, and settled in Clinton
county, Iowa. In 1878 the family moved to Sac county and
located a farm in Richland township.
Mr. McCorkindale received his elementary
education in the public schools of Scotland and on
coming to this country assisted on the home farm until
his marriage.
He was married on September 21,
1882, to Florence A. Maloney, of Mt. Carroll, Illinois.
She was born in Carroll county, Illinois, April 17,
1862, and is the daughter of J. S. and Frances Maloney,
natives of Delaware and Canada, respectively. To Mr. and
Mrs. McCorkindale were born nine children: Mrs. Kate
Pelton the widow of Dr. H. C. Pelton, who died January
1, 1912, is now living with her mother and has one son,
Robert A. The other children of Mr. and Mrs.
McCorkindale are Jessie, Donald, Florence, William,
Dorothy, Kenneth and two who arc deceased, Florence
Grace and John Howard. Jessie is now in the University
of Wisconsin, attending the school of domestic
science.
Mr. McCorkindale was a member of
the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, the Independent
Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias.
Religiously, he was a life-long member of the
Presbyterian church and was earnest in the faith as
exemplified by that denomination. He was a man whom to
know was to admire and because of his many good
qualities of head and heart he had a host of friends
throughout the community where he spent so many years of
his life.
In addition to his widow and the
children, he was survived by one brother and two
sisters: Malcolm, of Wakefield, Nebraska: Mrs. Catherine
Stuart, of Wall Lake, and Mrs. Richard Shilleto, of
Canada.
Mr. McCorkindale was a plain,
simple and dignified man, his devotion to every duty was
intense, while his perfection of truth and worth made
him a man who was esteemed by everyone. Always calm and
straightforward, his life was a steady effort for the
worth of Christian doctrine, the purity and grandeur of
Christian principles and the duty and elevation of
Christian character.
McCORKINDALE, DONALD -----In
Donald McCorkindale, of Clinton township, we had a true
representative of the empire builders and one who
accomplished more than the ordinary man since he came
into the county nearly forty years ago and purchased a
tract of unbroken prairie land. His herds of cattle and
droves of horses now feed over thousands of acres of Sac
County land where at first it was necessary for him to
be content with a few hundred acres purchased on a time
contract similar to that of the other settlers in his
neighborhood. He was known far and wide as one of the
largest land owners and one of the ablest financiers of
the section in a decade-yet, he was just a plain farmer,
shrewd and intelligent, a son of Scotland who naturally
inherited the excellent traits peculiar to his
forbears.
Mr. McCorkindale was born on the
14th day of the month of March 1842, in Killean parish,
Argyleshire, Scotland, the son of Donald and Jeannette (
McNevin) McCorkindale. His father was a farmer in the
old country who emigrated to America in the year 1865
with his family and settled in Clinton county, Iowa.
Here Donald, Jr., worked in a sawmill for a period of
five years and in 1870 Donald. Sr., removed to White
county, Illinois, and purchased a farm. He resided in
White county for five years and then moved to Odebolt,
Sac county, in 1875. He was doubtless influenced to make
this move because of the fact that nearly all of his
children were settled in Sac county near Odebolt and he
wished to be near them in his remaining days. The father
died in 1895. He reared five sons and two daughters,
namely: Donald; Neil, deceased : Malcolm, now a resident
of Nebraska: Mrs. Richard Shileto, of Alberta, Canada;
Airs. Catharine Stuart, of Wall Lake, Iowa; Angus, who
died in Clinton township in June 1912; John, a rancher
in Alberta, Canada, deceased in the spring of 1914.
Donald McCorkindale was
twenty-three years of age when he came to America,
landing in New York City in the month of June. 1865. He
came west and was employed in the sawmills at Clinton.
Iowa, for a period of five years. He went to Illinois in
1870 and spent two years there engaged in farming in
White county. In the spring of 1874 he came to Sac
county and invested his savings in three hundred and
twenty acres of land in Clinton township at four dollars
and fifty cents an acre. During the first two years of
his residence here he boarded and then married. Several
years after marriage he made his next purchase of land
and continued making additions to his holdings until he
had over two thousand eight hundred acres in all. His
most recent purchase was a portion of the Cook ranch,
which he bought in 1909, and consisting of five hundred
and sixty acres at prices ranging from one hundred and
twenty-five to one hundred and thirty-five dollars an
acre. As early as 1885 he
began breeding fine draft horses and met with wonderful
success in this venture, having been at the time of his
death the largest live stock breeder in the county.
On his farm are two imported
Clydesdale stallions which cost in the thousands of
dollars to import; thirty-five head of fine thoroughbred
draft animals which have been exhibited at the county
fairs and have carried off ribbons on several occasions.
He was also a breeder of Aberdeen Angus cattle and had
over three hundred and fifty head of purebreds on his
home farm. In addition be was an extensive feeder and
shipper of livestock, handling from three to five
carloads annually. Mr. McCorkindale was
the owner of a total of two thousand seven hundred acres
of farm lands, two thousand five hundred acres of which
is in Sac county and two hundred acres in Crawford
county. This land is now being farmed entirely by the
sons of Mr. McCorkindale. Practically all of the land is
being devoted to the livestock breeding and now is
rented out except the Cook and Wall Lake lands. It is
the second largest farm in the county which has been
cultivated almost entirely by the owner and is at the
present time the second largest farm in Sac county in
the number of acres devoted to exclusive farming and
livestock raising.
Mr. McCorkindale was married in
October, 1876. to Mary Bremner, also a native of
Scotland, born December 10, 1856, a daughter of James
and Margaret (Kennard) Bremner, who emigrated to America
from Scotland in 1866 and settled in Cedar county for
seven years and then came to Crawford county in 1873,
where both lie buried. The following children have been
born to Mr. and Mrs. McCorkindale : Mrs. Jennie Morton,
of Alberta, Canada; Daniel, on one of the home farms;
Mrs. Margaret McOuistin, of Nebraska; Mrs. Mary
Nicholson, of Jefferson, Dakota; James, at home;
Isabel,William and Anna, at home with their
parents.
Mr. McCorkindale was an independent
in politics and his definite and pronounced views on
matters affecting the government of the people. He
usually voted for the man who seemed best fitted for the
office than for the representative of any political
party. He and the members of his family have naturally
espoused the religion of their forbears and were members
of the Presbyterian church of Odebolt. His devoted and
competent wife, who has been a wise and careful mother
to her children, is still hale, hearty and intelligent,
despite her advanced age. It might well be said of them
that they were not old excepting in years. The home is a
comfortable and hospitable one and, despite the tendency
of the times for the farmer to retire to a life of ease
and comfort in the towns, they preferred to remain on
the farm. Donald desiring to be near the farm work and
his fine livestock, and the mother desiring to care for
and look after the welfare of her sons.
Donald McCorkindale passed away
Monday night, May 18, 1914, at about ten-thirty o'clock
before medical aid could be summoned. On the Sunday
preceding he had attended church, as was his custom, he
had appeared to be in the best of health. The funeral
services were held on the Thursday following. May 21st,
from the Odebolt Presbyterian church in the presence of
a large concourse of relatives and friends. Rev. Robert
McInturff officiated at the ceremony. Burial followed in
the Odebolt cemetery. Rendition of the
services with song and discourse was beautiful and
impressive and in keeping with the character of the
deceased.
McCRAY, FRANK H., M. D.
-----Sac county, Iowa, has reason to take pride in the
personnel of her corps of medical men from the earliest
days in her history to the present time, and on the roll
of honored names that indicates the services of
distinguished citizens in this field of endeavor there
is reason in reverting with gratification to that of Dr.
Frank H. McCray, of Schaller, who has attained eminence
in his chosen calling and for a number of years has
stood among the scholarly and enterprising physicians in
a community long distinguished for the high order of its
medical talent. He realized early that there is a
purpose in life and that there is no honor not founded
on worth and no respect not founded on accomplishment.
His life and labors have been eminently worthy, because
they have contributed to a proper understanding of life
and its problems.
Dr. Frank H. McCray, of Schaller,
Iowa, was born November 30, 1866, in Henry county, this
state, the son of Francis and Esther (Van Vost) McCray.
Francis McCray was born in Warren county. Ohio, in 1815,
and his wife was a native of Indiana. Her mother's
maiden name was Carroll, her grandfather being a
Revolutionary soldier. In 1844 Francis McCray and family
came to Iowa, settling in Henry county, and were among
the pioneer families in that county. As a youth Francis
McCray taught school in Mississippi, and as a result of
his interest in education he gave all of his children a
good, practical educational training himself. Francis
McCray and wife reared a family of seven children:
Albert, deceased: Orlando, of Great Falls, Montana ;
Mrs. Sarah Phoneta deceased, who left two sons, Carl and
Earl, and a daughter Lulu; John N. is now living on the
old homestead place in Henry county, Iowa ; Mrs. Mary
Hart, whose husband is a professor in Amherst College,
Massachusetts, and she herself was a former teacher in
the State Normal School of Iowa; Martha, deceased at the
age of seventeen years; Joseph G.. of Trenton, Iowa, and
Dr. Frank H. The mother of Doctor McCray was born on
November 25, 1832 and died in 1905.
Doctor McCray was educated in the
high school at Trenton, Iowa, and then took a course in
the college at Sioux City and Elliot's Business College,
Burlington, Iowa. He then entered the Northwestern
Medical College, Morningside. Sioux City, and took the
three years' course offered by that institution, at the
same time being interne at Samaritan Hospital. Upon his
graduation April 1, 1896 he immediately began the active
practice of medicine in Sioux City, and continued in the
practice there for one year, at the end of which time he
came to Schaller and has been in continuous practice
here since April, 1897. He is a member of the Sac
County, Iowa State and American Medical Associations and
has been secretary of the Sac County Medical Society for
the past four years. He takes. a great deal of interest
in all of the associations which have to do with his
profession and keeps well informed upon all the latest
developments in medical science. He has a large and
lucrative practice and a full share of the business of
his community.
Doctor McCray was married in 1896
to Elizabeth Nicholson, who was formerly a nurse in the
hospital at Sioux City. She is the daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Alexander Nicholson, of Holstein, and
was born in Scotland. Mr. and Mrs. McCray are
the parents of one son. Francis F.. who was born October
12, 1899.
Doctor McCray is a Republican in
politics and has served on the city council for the past
six years. He and his wife arc loyal and consistent
members of the Methodist Episcopal church and give to it
their zealous support at all times. Fraternally, he is a
member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and was
master of the local lodge for three years. He is also a
member of the Modern Woodmen of America. In addition to
his creditable career as a member of the most useful and
exacting of professions, he has also proved an honorable
member of the body politic and has gradually risen in
the confidence and esteem of the public of this
community since becoming a resident.
McCREA, L. H. -----One of the
prosperous farmers of Wall Lake township, who has built
up a comfortable home for himself and risen to a
position of affluence in the county, is L. H. McCrea,
who was born September 12, 1868, in Michigan and is the
son of Leander A. and Anna (Berm) McCrea. Leander McCrea
was born in 1835 in New York of Scotch-Irish parentage.
In 1878 Leander McCrea and his family moved from
Michigan to Iowa and settled in Sac county on a farm
near Carnarvon, and the town of Carnarvon is now built
on part of the land which Mr. McCrea purchased in 1878.
Mr. and Mrs. Leander McCrea are
now living in Butler, Missouri, where they moved in
1898. They were the parents of eight sons and one
daughter: Frank, of Arthur, Iowa; Perry, of Terry,
Montana; William Joseph, of Ashton, Illinois; L. H.,
whose history is here recorded; Alfred, of Westbrook,
Illinois; Roy, of Auburn, Sac county; Jay, of Baxter
Springs, Kansas; Leander, of Rockerville, South Dakota;
Mrs. Nellie Feeley, of Missouri.
L. H. McCrea was educated in the
public schools of Michigan and Sac county, Iowa. He
finished his education at the schools of Carnarvon in
Wall Lake township. He stayed at home until he was
twenty years of age and then began working out by the
month. Upon his marriage in 1890 he rented land and
continued to rent until he purchased his present farm of
one hundred ninety-one and a half acres in 1911. His
farm cost eighty-seven and a half dollars an acre, and
is one of the best productive farms in the
township. Practically all of
the farm is under cultivation. In 19 13 he raised, in
addition to his corn and other crops, forty head of
cattle, seventy-seven head of hogs and thirteen head of
horses. He is making a pronounced success of his stock
raising, and finds the larger portion of his annual
profits lying in that direction.
Mr. McCrea was married in 1890 to
Minnie Morton, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. L.
Morton, of Sac City. To this marriage have been born
fourteen children, ten of whom are now living: Ruby,
Barbara, Gordon, Merl, Louis, Vivian, Sherman, Marjory,
Henrietta and Burl. Ruby is clerking in the store at
Lake View, Sac county, while Barbara is a public school
teacher. All of the remaining children are still with
their parents.
Mr. McCrea was, up until 1912, a
Republican, and in the division which came about in the
Republican party at that time he cast his influence in
favor of the Progressive party. He is now, like
thousands of other voters, somewhat undecided as to
which party he will support, although he is progressive
in his views. He and his family attend the Methodist
Episcopal church and contribute of their substance to
its support. Fraternally, he is a member of the Yeomen.
Mr. McCrea is one of the sterling and substantial
citizens of his township and a man with genial
disposition and optimistic way of viewing life, which
has endeared him to a large circle of friends and
acquaintances throughout his community.
McDONALD, J. F. ----Practical
industry wisely and vigorously applied, never fails of
success. It carries a man
onward and upward, brings out his individual character
and acts as a powerful stimulus to the efforts of
others. The greatest results in life are often attained
by simple means and the exercise of the ordinary
qualities of common sense and perseverance. The everyday
life, with its cares, necessities and duties, affords
ample opportunities for acquiring experience of the best
kind and its most beaten paths provide a true worker
with abundant scope for effort and
self-improvement.
J. F. McDonald, of Cedar township,
Sac county, Iowa, was born in the good old Hoosier state
of Indiana in Fayette county, April 14, 1853. His
parents, Simon and Anna (Kenna) McDonald, are both
natives of the Emerald Isle, born, reared and married in
the land of their nativity. They came to New Orleans
first, and after two years came to Indiana and settled
in Connersville, Fayette county, where J. F. was born.
In 1855 Simon McDonald and his family went to Stark
county, Indiana, and two years later moved over into
Jasper county, Indiana. From there they moved to Macon
county, Illinois, and bought a farm and lived there the
remainder of their days, Simon McDonald dying in 1891
and his widow in 1904. They reared a family of fifteen
children, seven of whom are still living: J. F. whose
history is portrayed in this connection; John T. of
Hamilton county, Iowa; W. H., of Calhoun county, Iowa;
Mrs. Mary A. Nice, of Valparaiso, Nebraska; Mrs. Clara
Bigger, of Varina, Pocahontas county, Iowa: Daniel, of
Beeson, Illinois; Elnora, of Rapid City Illinois, and
Isabel, who died at the age of eighteen years.
J. F. McDonald was educated in the
country schools of Indiana and Illinois, and at the age
of twenty-one rented a farm of two hundred and eighty
acres in Illinois and for the next thirty years lived on
this rented farm. He made money and, what is more
important, saved it, with the result that when he came
to Iowa in 1896, he was able to purchase two hundred and
forty acres of his present farm. He left his brother in
charge of the farm and returned to Illinois, where he
stayed until March, 1907. He then moved his
family to Sac county, where he is still residing. He has
erected a large barn and other outbuildings and has done
considerable tiling. His farm is now worth
at least two hundred dollars an acre. In 1913 he had one
hundred and twenty acres of corn which averaged fifty
bushels to the acre. His year's production of livestock
included one hundred head of hogs, thirty-five head of
cattle and twelve head of horses and mules.
Mr. McDonald has been twice
married, his first marriage being to Mary Nice, of
Illinois, in 1876. She died in December, 1894, leaving
four children: S. F., of Oklahoma: J. T., of Cedar
township, Sac county, Iowa; Elmer, of Chicago, and Mrs.
Abbie Krick, of Chicago. In 1896 Mr. McDonald was
married to Minnie Terry, of Clinton, Illinois, and to
this second marriage have been born two children Rex and
Donald.
While Mr.
McDonald has always taken an active interest in
Democratic politics, vet he has never been a seeker for
any public office. He is a member of the Ancient Free
and Accepted Masons of Sac City and also belongs to the
chapter and commandery. His wife is a member of the
Christian church and gives it her earnest and loyal
support. The industry, energy and high moral traits of
integrity which have characterized Mr. McDonald since he
came to this county have placed him among the prominent
citizens of his locality. He has lived a life which
measures up to a high standard of citizenship, and his
influence has ever been on the side of light and for the
best interests of his community.
McGEACHY, ALEXANDER -----From the nations
of Europe have come many of the best citizens of Sac
county, Iowa, and among these there have been a few who
have claimed faraway Scotland as their native land.
While that country has furnished only a few settlers for
this county, yet the few who have come here have
prospered and made good homes for themselves in this
county. In their home country they learned habits of
industry which they invariably brought with them to this
country and wherever they have settled they have soon
become among the most substantial citizens of their
respective communities. Among the citizens of Sac county
who are of Scottish ancestry, the late Alexander
McGeachy stands as a prominent example.
Alexander McGeachy was born at Glen
Barr, Killian parish, Argyleshire Scotland, on July 7,
1847, and died in this county on January 18, 1902.
His parents were Malcolm and Jean (McCorkindale)
McGeachy, the first of whom lived and died in his native
land. Jean came to America in 1873 and died a few years
later in Sac county.
Alexander McGeachy came to America
in 1870 and immediately went to Illinois, where he
settled temporarily near Rockford. In the fall of the
same year he went farther west and settled in Clinton
county Iowa, where he remained until his marriage, in
1878. He and his young wife then came to Sac county and
located on a farm of one hundred acres on section 31,
Clinton township. Six years later they were able to add
sixty acres to their farm and by the time of Mr.
McGeachy’s death in 1902 they owned a fine farm of two
hundred acres in this township. The land at first was a
vast unbroken prairie, but they applied themselves with
true Scottish determination to the task of bringing the
land under cultivation and succeeded beyond their
expectations.
Mr. McGeachy was married on January
10, 1878, in Monroe county, Iowa, to Isabelle McQuistan,
who was born on February 14, 1852, at Saddell, Scotland,
and is the daughter of Edward and Margaret (McAllister)
McQuistan. The McQuistan family came to America in 1873
and first settled at Rockford, Winnebago county,
Illinois. In 1881 they came to Sac county, where they
lived the remainder of their lives. Mr. and Mrs.
McQuistan were the parents of ten children: Mrs. John
McLean, of this county: Donald, of Pender, Nebraska;
John and Ronald, of Bloomfield, Nebraska; Mary, of Sioux
City, Iowa; Mrs. John McCullum, of Bloomfield, Nebraska,
and Mrs. Andrew Bruce, of
Kingsley, Iowa. To Mr. and Mrs. McGeachy were born seven
children: Malcolm, Edward, Jean, Alexander, Margaret,
Agnes and Isabelle, who died at the age of five years.
Malcolm, Margaret and Alexander are still with their
mother; Edward is a farmer in Levey township, this
county; Jean married Earl Manly, a farmer of Clinton
township, and Agnes is a student in the college at Cedar
Rapids, this state.
Mr. McGeachy was a man of high
civic ideals and a warm supporter of all measures and
enterprises which were to promote the general welfare of
his community. Politically, he was a Republican, but,
while interested in the great political questions of the
day, he never felt that he had the time to engage in
politics. He and his family were life-long members of
the Presbyterian church and contributed liberally of
their means to its support. Mr.
McGeachv was a man of great force of character
and personality and enjoyed a wide degree of popularity
in the community where he spent so many years.
He left a good name which will be honored by his
friends and cherished by his descendants.
 McGEACHY, DONALD -----The sons
of Scotland who have come to America and made homes in
this country have been among the most prosperous
citizens wherever they settled. Some of these have come
to Iowa, and Sac county is proud to number a few of
these thrifty people among her number. The McGeachys who
have come to this country from Scotland have been
reckoned among the most prosperous and substantial
people of the county and have shown those
characteristics which have made their native land famous
in history.
Donald McGeachy, the son of Malcolm
and Jean McGeachy, was born November 12, 1850, at
Glenbar, Argyleshire Scotland. He received a good common
school education in his native country, and at the age
of twenty-three 3ecided to come to America and seek his
fortune. Upon reaching this country he immediately went
to Iowa and settled in Clinton, Clinton county, where he
worked in a sawmill for six years. He wanted to invest
in land, and with this in view he saved his money in
order to make a cash payment on his first purchase. In
1879 he came to Sac county and lived on a farm in the
western part of Clinton township for eleven years. In
1890 he came to his present farm of two hundred and
sixty acres in Clinton township, where he was farming at
the time of his death, on January 10, 1907. He was a
thrifty farmer and used good judgment in all his
agricultural ventures. In addition to raising all the
crops of this locality, he raised considerable livestock
each year.
In 1891 Mr. McGeachy returned to
Scotland and married Jeannette Huie, who was born
February 21, 1862, in Argyleshire, Scotland. To this
marriage have been born seven children: Maria Stuart;
Jane L., a graduate from the Odebolt high school and is
now a teacher; Malcolm, who works on the home farm;
Jeannette, a graduate of the Odebolt high school;
Margaret and Mary, who are now in the Odebolt high
school, and John, who is still in the common school. All
of the children are still at home with their
mother. Mr. and Mrs. McGeachy
gave to all of their children a good education, feeling
that there was nothing which would fit them better for
the coming years of life than a good education.
Mr. McGeachy was a member of the
Presbyterian church, and rendered it his earnest support
at all times. He was a warm-hearted, generous friend and
modest and unassuming in all his relations with his
fellow men. He was a man of sound conviction, and no one
ever had any doubt as to where he stood upon any
question. The memory of such a man will be cherished by
his friends and honored by his children. Mr. McGeachy
was a man of sterling worth. Thoroughly honest, his word
was as good as his bond. Quiet and unassuming, his good
impulses were always uppermost, and his friendship was
valued by those who knew him well. He was devoted to his
wife and children, and they to him.
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