| page 274
MARTIN SWIFT, a representative farmer and stock-raiser of Oregon Township, resides on section 18, where he owns 285 acres of land, all of which is under a high state of cultivation. He is a native of Ireland, born Nov. 12, 1828, and is the son of Thomas and Mary (Connell( Swift, both of whom were also natives of Ireland, and there died some years ago. The subject of this sketch was reared upon a farm and in 1848 came to America and settled in Albany, N.Y., and then in other parts of the State
page 275
for a period of eight years, during which time he was generally engaged in teaming. He then emigrated to Knox County, Ill., where he remained until 1871, at which time he came to Washington County, Iowa, and purchased seventy-seven acres of land on section 18. He has kept adding by subsequent purchases until he has now one of the finest farms in Oregon Township, consisting of 185 acres of land, with a fine residence, barn, and such out-buildings as are necessary for the proper conduct of general farming and stock-raising. The entire surroundings of the farm prove that its possessor is a man who understands his business and who is only content with the best.
Mr. Swift was married in New York, in 1856, to Mary Gavin, likewise a native of Ireland, born in 1831. By this union there have been eight children: Abigail is now the wife of John Flynn, of Illinis; James married Ettie Lindsey; John t.; Martin married Julia Tobin; Mary E. is the wife of Charles McGugen; A. B., Francis and Jennie reside at home. Mr. Swift is truly a self-made man. Like thousands of others of his fellow countrymen, who knew there was no chance for a poor man to acquire more than an ordinary living in the old country, he came to the United States, the land which is a refuge for the oppressed of all nations, and here, with nothing on which to begin, save a willing mind, with strong arms and a determination to do,he has toiled on until now he is among the well-to-do farmers of Washington County, with a farm of which he is justly proud, and which he can say is the result of his own labors, assisted by his admirable wife and family. Politically, he is a Democrat; religiously, a Catholic.
BENJAMIN UTTERBACK, a retired farmer, is now living in the village of Ainsworth, Washington Co., Iowa. He is a native of Bourbon County, Ky., born Sept. 21, 1825, and is a son of Covington and Sarah (Crose) Utterback. Harmon Utterback, the grandfather of our subject, moved from Virginia to Kentucky in a very early day and located in Nicholas County, where he subsequently died. The parents of our subject lived and died in Kentucky, the father and mother, grandfather and grandmother on the mother's side died within a half a mile of the same place. His grandfather, Harmon Utterback, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War and died at the age of ninety-nine years. The parents of our subject reared a family of twelve children, all of whom lived to rear families of their own, and seven of whom are now living.
Benjamin Utterback was reared on a farm, and continued actively engaged in that occupation until 1884, since which time he has been living a retired life. In 1847 he enlisted in the Mexican War and served ten months. He was mustered into the service at Louisville, Ky., from which place he went to New Orleans, and from there to Vera Cruz, Mex., and thence to the City of Mexico, where he was stationed at the close of the war. Returning to Louisville, Ky., he was there mustered out, and then returned home.
Mr. Utterback was married in 1851, in Bourbon County, Ky., to Eleanor Bryan, who was also born in that county, in 1819. She died in 1854, in Boone County, Ind., leaving two children: Nancy E., now the wife of John H. Pearson, and Mary J., the wife of S.W. Glaize, of Ringgold County, Iowa. Mr. Utterback again married, in Boone County, Ind., Miss Lavina N. Powell, a daughter of Hiram Powell. She was born in Boone County, Ind., May 9, 1836. By this union there were seven children, five of whom are living: Joseph M., of Washington County, Iowa; Sarah E., the wife of James C. Chambers, of Ainsworth; Margaret L., Nora B. and Pearl. The deceased were Hiram and Everett.
Mr. Utterback is the owner of 125 acres of fine land in Oregon Township. He also owns a fine residence in Ainsworth, together with a store house and another house and lot. He acquired all his property by hard labor, economy and good management. Mr. and Mrs. Utterback are members of the Christian Church. Politically he is a Democrat. While a resident of Washington County but little less than a quarter of a century, having come here in 1864, Mr. Utterback is well known throughout
page 276
the county, and has many friends in all its parts. He is a man well posted in political matters, and upon theological questions. He is a firm believer in the Bible and the Bible alone as a rule of faith and practice.
EDWARD DEEDS, attorney at law, Brighton, is a native of Butler County, Ohio, born Oct. 1, 1837. His father, Silas Deeds, was a native of Plainfield, N.J., who emigrated to Ohio at an early day, and from there moved to Jefferson County, Iowa, soon after the birth of Edward. In 1840 he built a sawmill, and two years afterward erected a gristmill at the same place, which was long known as Deedsville, people coming a distance of 100 miles, and having to wait weeks for their grist. He married Lucy A. Forman, a native of Ohio, by whom he had a family of five children, two sons and three daughters, of whom only two are now living—Edward, the subject of this sketch, and Eletha, the wife of Robert Hicks, of Jefferson County, Iowa. The father died of smallpox in January, 1963, and the mother is still living in Brighton. Silas Deeds was a man of great energy and of excellent judgment. In early life he was politically a Whig, and with others of that party had a great admiration for Henry Clay and Daniel Webster. He was not what would be termed a politician, never asking nor expecting office, but always managed to keep well posted in regard to men and events.
The subject of this sketch was educated in the common schools, and for a time was a pupil of Luke Howe. He also took a partial course at Witenburg Academy, Springfield, Ohio, with the intention of going through college, but his father requiring his assistance, he had to abandon this desire. When a young man he developed a taste for the law, and has made that his life profession. He was married in Henry County, Iowa, in 1859, to Miss Lucinda Luellen, a native of Ohio, born in 1838. By this union there were six children, five living—Carroll, Charles, William R. Addison and Juniata.
Politically, Mr. Deeds was first a Republican, casting his first and second Presidential votes for Abraham Lincoln. When the war ended, he believed that all past issues should be buried out of sight, and therefore was classed among the liberal Republicans who voted for Horace Greeley for President in 1872. In 1876 he advocated the election of Peter Cooper, and has since acted with the Greenback party. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, a Master Mason and member of the Royal Arch. For several years he was Master of Brighton Lodge No. 64, A.F. & A.M. He also represented the lodge in the Grand Lodge of the State. He was the first Mayor of Brighton elected to that position. For the past ten years he has given himself exclusively to the practice of his profession, and is regarded as a safe and reliable counselor and a good advocate.
L. F. SIGAFOOSE resides upon section 9, Marion Township, where he pursues the occupation of a farmer and stock-raiser. He was born in Hampshire County, Va., in 1844, and is a son of Jacob and Susan (Lease) Sigafoose, who were natives of Virginia. His father died in 1852, at the age of forty-seven years; his mother is still living, and resides in West Chester; she is now seventy-five years old. She is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Our subject's father dying when he was but nine years of age necessitated his doing something for his own support. He first worked in a brickyard at ten cents per day. In the fall of 1850 the family came to Washington County, Iowa, and settled in Washington. At that time Washington was but a small place with no railroad. L. F. used to drive hogs from Washington to Burlington to market. In 1862 he enlisted in Co. K, 22d Iowa Vol. Inf., and served until the close of the war, participating in the battles at Port Gibson, Jackson, Black River, Champion HIlls, siege and capture of Vicksburg, Winchester, Cedar Creek, Fisher's Hill, and numerous other minor engagements. He was disabled in the service, and is now drawing a pension from the General Government.
In the fall of 1867 Mr. Sigafoose was married to Miss Eliza Hamilton. They have had seven children,
page 277
six of whom are living: Ella, the wife of William Beenblossom, of this county; Maggie E. and Susan, at home; James died at the age of three years; Nathaniel and Kittie, twins, and Howard, are at home. Mr. and Mrs. Sigafoose are members of the Christian Church. In politics he is a Republican, and has held various township offices, filling the same with credit to himself and his constituents.Mr. Sigafoose has traveled all over the West, and has been in every Southern State, and all over the State of Iowa in search of a better place to live than Washington County, but has never been able to find it; in this he has but the experience of many other persons, for surely Washington county is one of the best in the world.
HENRY RATHMELL is a retired farmer residing in Washington. Ireland, England and Germany have furnished many of those who populate this county, but these are mainly second generation. Our subject, Henry Rathmell, has an ancestry from each of the former countries. His grandfather, Amariah Rathmell, was born in Ireland, and his wife was of English birth. They settled in Lycoming County, Pa., long before the War of 1812, in the wild woods of that country, while the Indians were yet residents. They reared a large family, probably nine children,of whom John was the father of our subject.
John Rathmell married Mary Biss, whose parents were natives of England. The Biss family were very early settlers in Pennsylvania, and the family consisted of Gideon, Mary, Jane, James, William, Rosetta, Sarah and Henry, of whom only four are living. The parents resided in Williamsport, Pa., for more than fifty years, where they died at an advanced age. James came to Illinois early in the settlement of Tazewell County, and while engaged in digging a well, the earth caved in and he was suffocated. He married in Illinois, and left one daughter, the wife of De Witt Goosh, a resident of McLean County.
In 1844 our subject moved to LaPorte County, Ind., where he remained five years, during which time he was married to Katie Page, daughter of Michael and Catherine (Kenetel) Page. Mr. Rathmell left his wife with her parents in 1850, and started overland from Indiana for California, driving an ox-team. There were a number composing the party, but they disbanded at Salt Lake City. Mr Rathmell left home as driver of the team, and also without money, and his employer becoming bankrupt at Salt Lake City, he was consequently left without employment, but he secured a situation with William Day, who lived at South Bend, Ind., and for him a team was driven through to Weaversville, Cal., where Henry was discharged. He was yet without money, and started out at sundown to seek a fortune. He slept in a wagon that night, and the next day formed a the acquaintance of a German, who, from similarity of names, asked if Henry was a relation of William Rathmell, a cook at Vantasselle Ranch. Knowing that William Rathmell had gone to California in 1849, but not to what place, after working a few days for the German, Henry started for Vantasselle, and was fortunate enough to find his brother, who loaned him $25, and Henry then formed a partnership with another man, and they opened a claim on the Macosm River. although both were inexperienced, they averaged from $12 to $15 per day. Not content with this, and considering the danger from Indians, they moved southward to Calaveras River, and struck a paying lead, where Indians were plenty but not troublesome. Later, Henry fell sick, and the money made was rapidly spent in paying a waiter and the doctor. He recovered sufficiently to return home after an absence of fifteen months, this time making the journey by the way of the Isthmus of Panama and by steamer to New Orleans, and up the Mississippi to Illinois, which carried him to Peru, Ind. His helath was good on his return, and in June with his young wife, he became a resident of Washington County, Iowa.
The first home of Mr. Rathwell was the house in which this sketch was written, where he entered a quarter section with a Mexican soldier's land warrant, which he purchased for $125. He began the improvement of the farm, and in 1852 had a crop planted on a few acres. Having brought an ox-
page 278
team from Indiana, they did the breaking where his house, 16x18, was built, and they were ready to begin life in the new country. Henry now found his cash exhausted, but they managed to get along, he doing everything in the way of improvement himself, while his wife cheerfully lent her aid, and together they lived and prospered from the beginning. Two children were born in Indiana—John, who married Lizzie Cleckner, and Samuel, the husband of Eliza Weidright. The remainder of the children were born in this county: Milton, the husband of Maggie Ulch; Sarah A., the wife of Isaac Hartman; Harrison H., the husband of Sarah Turner; James married Ida, a sister of Sarah Turner; Frank and Minnie, both unmarried.
Being settled, Mr. Rathmell purchased ten acres of timber, and he made the rails which fenced his land, and being by trade a carpenter, he took any kind of job, often taking for pay anything he could use, money being scarce; but it cost little to live, as clothes were inexpensive. Year by year the family prospered, and he made other purchases of land, until he now owns 510 acres, part of which was improved at the time of purchase. Every acre of this land is now improved, and a large part of it is well tiled. In 1881 Mr. Rathmell concluded to retire from farm work, and built a residence in the county seat, washington. His children reside upon his several farms, thus giving them a nice start is life. Mr. Rathmell has grown wealthy as his years increased, and with his good wife, who never failed to do her part, he can enjoy what has been honestly earned. Mr. and Mrs. Rathmell rank among the oldest citizens of Jackson Township, and as they have reared a large family who have married and are well started in life, to them comes the consciousness of not having lived in vain.
|
Visit our family of homepages and join us.