Hang Down Your Head, Frank Doole

I have been digging away at various pieces and parts, hither and yon, and took a second look at this fellow who had married three times - two of those times into families that are connected to me.  He seems like less than a pleasant character, but a character for sure.

Lydia Hinmon

Francis Doole was born 20 Jun 1823 in Antrim, Northern Ireland. His wife, Martha Shaw, born in 1825 in Ireland, traveled with him to the United States, arriving 25 Dec 1843 in New York City. They moved to Ware, Massachusetts, where they became US citizens in November of 1854.

Their daughter, Mary Jane, was born in Ware, but by the time the first of their three sons came along in 1854, the family was in Floyd County, Iowa, which is a hop and a skip from both Bremer and Butler counties.

Martha died in 1879 and Frank remarried to Lydia Hinmon Stuck Harshman.

Lydia was born about 1839 to George Richard Hinmon and Anna Lewis in Erie County, Pennsylvania. Her first husband, William Stuck, died during the Civil War. They had been married in 1855 and he died in late 1863. They had one son. She married George Harshman next, in 1866, and it appears that marriage ended in divorce. George seems to have moved on from Iowa, where several Hinmon's had settled and headed West to Nebraska. Lydia then married Francis Doole, widower, on 05 Jun 1880 in Floyd County.

The 1880 Agrigultural Schedule 2 of the Census indicated Doole was fairly successful. He owned 130 acres of farmland in Floyd township and his farm was valued at over $5,000. Just looking at the record, it seemed all was pretty normal.

Things changed - he had fractious relations with his children which culminated in the following event involving the desecration of wife Martha's grave:

I have not discovered whether Lydia died or they divorced, but Doole married my 2xGG William Custer Smith's sister Sarah Jane, a long-time spinster who had spent many years living with her mentally disabled brother and mother and big brother WC Smith and his wife Mary Ann. That marriage occurred in 1887. In 1888, Frank made the news again:

"A "Blind Pig" which has been successfully operated the past two years at Floyd by Frances Doole, was raided and a large quantity of beer and whiskey seized. Doole is in jail at Charles City.

Atlantic Daily Telegraph, Dec 26, 1888, pg 4 Atlantic, IA"

I wasn't able to find out what happened to this case, but perhaps it led to the divorce that followed between Aunt Sarah and Doole. It was a sad situation for Sarah, who had been cared for by her relatives her entire life. She was left without a place to go after the divorce, and ended up residing in the Bremer County Poor Farm and Asylum for the rest of her life, dying there in 1924.

Doole most likely died prior to 1900, since there is no record of him in the 1900 census.

What's a blind pig? In the Midwest, Blind Pigs started in the 1880s and were quite a problem, according to the anti-alcohol crowd. It got it's name because some wily proprietor would sell tickets to a back room to see a "blind pig," and the ticket price included a drink.

SIDEROAD: The Remarkable Ripley's: Veterinarians of Marble Rock

I talked a little last time about Lovina Ripley Wood, who lived to the ripe age of 100. Her parents, Col Judge David C Ripley and Easter Griswold were early Iowa pioneers.

All of Lovina's kids moved to the Denison, Texas area except for veterinary surgeon, Dr. Asa Wood, who settled in Marble Rock in Floyd County and had a thriving large animal veterinary practice for many years.

Dr. Wood was born 18 June of 1854 in Gallia County, Ohio and came with his parents to Iowa in 1865. He married Juda Jane Reams on 28 Sep 1877 in Charles City, Iowa, and the couple had at least eight children all told.

Veterinary surgeons/Veterinarians of the early 1900s had many jobs. There were no antibiotics, the conditions in which most animals lived were often dirty and bug-filled, and payment was often problematic. Before World War I, over half the country was in the farming industry. Vets ended up concerning themselves with the health of humans and their food supplies within their animal care. Vets were also at the fore in identifying and treating animal diseases. Dr. Wood's practice thrived and the couple shared a lot of travel to the homes of various relatives over the years. As one might imagine, being a large animal vet is sometimes dangerous business.

One day last week while attending to a colt, which had been badly cut in a wire fence, Asa Wood had his left arm badly injured.
Marble Rock Journal, Marble Rock, Iowa
Thursday, October 15, 1908

MARBLE ROCK MAN IS INJURED WHEN HORSE STUMBLES

Marble Rock, Ia, July 11 - Dr Asa Wood, veterinary surgeon, suffered a collarbone fracture and crushed shoulder when a horse fell against him at the Peter Staudt farm.
Waterloo Evening Courier, Waterloo, Iowa
Wednesday, July 11, 1928

He somehow managed to survive his various accidents in the line of duty only to be claimed by a lingering illness at his home on South Main St in Marble Rock on 18 Sep 1931 in Marble Rock. His son Leo continued the veterinary practice after his father's death. His wife Juda died 18 Mar 1938 in Floyd County.

SIDEROAD: Remarkable Ripleys: Lovina Ripley Wood, Centenarian

Col Judge David C Ripley and wife Easter Griswold

The Ripley's are a family my family married into and adopted into. They also remain one of the most fascinating families in the old tree. They arrived from North Yorkshire in about 1642. One of the grandchildren of William married into the Bradford family who were here with the first Plymouth Rock landing of the Mayflower.

Some branches were far more well-to-do than others, but even those less wealthy were pretty interesting. I put into this group the great great grandfather of my uncle Marvin Ripley, Col Judge David C. Ripley, who lived a grand life of adventure and was a daring early pioneer into Iowa and Colorado. He was a territorial legislator and Ranger in Colorado and was the judge who ruled on the fractious battle for the Floyd County county seat that occurred in the 1850s.

Last photo of Lovina prior to her death

David and his wife had nine children, among them was Lovina, who was born in Gallia County, Ohio on 22 Nov 1822. She married James L. Wood on 15 Jan 1847 in Gallia County. James hailed from the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and was born in 1821. In 1865, the couple followed many of her close relatives to Iowa and in 1883, they moved on to Illinois.

They kept moving and ended up in Denison, Texas by 1888. The couple had nine children, three having died, and three of whom settled in the Denison area. Son Asa Wood, DVM, a large animal vet, lived in Marble Rock in Floyd County, Iowa.

Here are a couple of excerpts from an article republished from the Denison Herald in about 1912:

"You will think it's funny, when I tell you, but we were married in jail. This is how it happened. Her father was sheriff and tended the jail and my wife has shut many a prison door behind a prisoner. Well, they lived on one side of the jail and as her father married us, it took place in the jail at Gallipolis. We started housekeeping on rented land without a dollar in the world, but we got along alright. We didn't have to spend so much in those days. I worked ten years for one man. We raised flax to make our own clothes and raised sheep for our woolen ware. My wife carded, spun, and wove many a hundred yards of cloth." The entire article, which was written upon the occasion of them being declared Denison's oldest citizens, is fascinating and posted below.

James died in 1915 at the ripe age of 94, but Lovina continued to be active and alert until past her 100th birthday. Her own statements indicate she never needed to wear glasses to read the paper and according to her family, her memory was great up to the end of her life. She finally passed away on 11 Mar 1923 in Denison. Six of her children survived, ranging in age from 59 to 74.

The Waggoners of Centre County: William Wagner

JOHN WAGGONER > William WAGNER m Julia Rider

Peter Smull married Mary Waggoner/Wagner, daughter of John Waggoner/Wagner. I've not ascertained who the mother is, but it appears as though John, brother William, and the Smulls were all neighbors in 1830/1840 census.  As a whole bunch of people from Miles Township did, William Wagner and his family moved on to Stephenson County, Illinois in the 1850s, settling in Oneco. Father John and wife are no longer living in the 1850 census. It also appears there is at least one other child of John - aged 30-40, married, with at least three children living with them. Who that is, I don't know yet. Still working on that angle.

William, born in about 1797 married Julia Rider. She was born in 1805 in York, Pennsylvania. The couple had ten children, some of whom stayed in Pennsylvania as their parents and other siblings

Wm Wagner, died Oneco,
Stephenson County 1870

moved west.

William lived until 29 Sep 1870 and died in Oneco. His will went through probate in December. His wife lived on until 20 Apr 1879, and also died in Oneco.

1. Margaret was born 03 May 1827 in Miles Township, Centre County. She married William Herman and I've thus far located three children, John Henry, Clark, and Arabella  Herman Keen, all of whom settled in Pennsylvania. She died 03 Sep 1893.

2. Sarah was born about 1829 and died in 1865 in Miles Township, Centre County. She married first George Aurand and had a daughter, Emily Jane. George died and she married Samel Shutt and had four more children.

3. Joseph Wagner was born 04 May 1831 in Miles Township, Centre County. He married Mary Hershey about 1855. She was born 06 Jun 1837 in Canada. They had three children, Nancy Amelia, Abraham, and William "Will" Washington Wagner. Joseph and his wife originally settled in Stephenson County, Illinois and then moved on to Black Hawk County, Iowa. Nancy & Will both moved to Iowa; Abraham remained in Stephenson County. Joseph's grandson, William Joseph Wagner, played professional baseball from 1915-1919 for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Boston Braves. I'll post about him separately.

4. George Wagner was born in Oct 1833 in Miles Township, Centre County. He married Anna Margaret Weiss. They had eight children and lived in the Lock Haven area of Pennsylvania. George died in 1921 in Lock Haven. His wife Anna, died in 1888.

5. William Wagner was born 1835 in Miles Township, Centre County He married Elizabeth Rex about 1858. They moved to Floyd County, Iowa. Their five children were raised in Floyd County. Elizabeth died in 1922 and William died in 1913.

6. Mary Wagner was born about 1837 in Miles Township, Centre County. I have no other information on this child.

Rosa Klontz Wagner

7. Jacob R Wagner was born in 1840 in Miles Township, Centre County. He married Eliza Jane Divan on 17 Feb 1867 in Green County, Wisconsin. They then located to Illinois and then southern Wisconsin, the moved on to Iowa and settled in Butler County. Their twelve children are spread across Wisconsin, Illinois,  and Iowa. Jacob died in 1925 in Butler County and his wife preceded him in death in 1919.

8. Peter Wagner was born 23 Aug 1841 in Miles Township, Centre County. He reportedly died on 02 Aug 1918 in Oneco, Stephenson County, but I have not been able to find a lot on this Wagner. His wife was Catherine Divan, sister to Jacob's wife.

9. Samuel Wesley Wagner was born in 1848 in Miles Township, Centre County. He married Rosa A Klontz in Stephenson County about 1872. They had six children who were raised and lived in Marble Rock, Floyd County, Iowa.Samuel died in 1927 and Rosa died in 1928 in Floyd County.

10. Emily Wagner was born about 1851 in Miles Township, Centre County. That is all I know about her at this time.

Sideroads: The Remarkable Ripley's Judge Colonel David C Ripley

Several of Joshua Ripley's children were as adventurous as he himself had been. And many left Appalachia for Iowa and Illinois. But for today, we will focus on his third child, David C. Ripley, the forefather of many of the northeast Iowa Ripley's.

David was born in Warren County, New York on 20 Feb 1798. He then moved to Gallia County, Ohio, deep in Appalachia, where his father had gone to preach the Baptist gospel. He married Easter Griswold on 13 Oct 1819 in Lawrence County.

He served his first term as Sheriff of Gallia County from 1834-1838. He then served a term as a state legislator for the term beginning December 1838. After his service in the legislature, he served as Sheriff again from 1845-1853.

After a visit to Iowa in 1853, he and his wife had seven children by the time he decided to join his oldest son, Sanford, in Riverton Township, in what became Floyd County, Iowa in 1854. Sanford had arrived in Nashua, Chickasaw County, the year previously. David's brother Joseph's entourage, of which Sanford was part, had arrived. "The following year he moved in 94 N 16 W, where he built the log house in the grove in which all early settlers were welcome to stay until they had their cabin or shanty finished." Joseph's family eventually moved on to Fremont County, Iowa. David's father Joshua (see previous post) and sister Roxie and husband John Dovenor, sister Cynthia and husband Stephen Johnson, and sister Phebe and husband George Carter all came to Cedar County some time prior to 1850. Phebe is reported to have died there in 1849. George returned eventually to Gallia County.

The Ripley's were one of the founding families in the area, along with several other Gallia County families including the Parishes, Warburtons, Wilcoxes, Clarks, Dyases, Gibsons and Perrys. He was elected County Judge which position he held during the old county seat fight.

Ripley Bridge, Ripley Crossing, Floyd County

This was rugged, untamed territory and after multiple skirmishes with Indians, including a solo foray by David into Minnesota after the raiding Indians, the David Ripley's pulled up stakes and relocated to Boulder in the Colorado Territory in 1861. There he again felt the call to serve and rode with the Territorial Rangers during the Indian Wars. He then served in the Colorado Territory Legislature, Third Session in 1863, where he served as the Chairman of the Education Committee.

In 1866 he came east, stopping in Missouri, where he lived one year. He then came back to Iowa, settling in Fremont County and Decatur County but by 1870 had returned to Riverton Township where he lived with his son Sanford. He suffered from prostate cancer for five long, painful years before dying in 1881. His wife Easter lived until 1893.

Judge Colonel David C Ripley & wife Easter Griswold Ripley

Judge Colonel David C. Ripley's funeral was attended by many. His son Sanford also made a mark in the Floyd County area. This sketch was published:

"Sanford Ripley was born in Gallia County, Ohio, July 27, 1829.  He left there in March, 1953 and came, via the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, to Muscatine, Iowa; from there with a two-horse team, in company with others, to Red Oak Grove, Cedar County, Iowa; from there to where Nashua is now, June 4, 1853.  His father built the first house inside the town of Nashua.  George H Clark built one a little outside in 1851 or 1852.  In the fall of 1854, Mr Ripley moved to the place where he still lives, section 34, range 15, Riverton Township.  Snow being knee-deep and no house there, the family camped under the wagon till he could build a cabin.  He has 250 acres of well-improved land.  He married in 1846 to Susan Norton, nee Bumgartner, who was born in Gallia County, Ohio, in January 1820.  They have three childre, Esther, born Dec 31, 1855; Lovina, Oct 6, 1860; Maria, June 14, 1863.  He ran out with a compass and staked the first road from Nashua, going in a northwesterly direction till he struck section 1, range 94-17, which is now Union Township.  This continued to be the regular traveled road for may years. 

History of Floyd County, Iowa;  Together with Sketches of Its...Vol 2"

The sketch does not include his son William, who died in 1881 and is buried in Riverton Cemetery.

Sanford Ripley Family: Front Sanford & Susan Back: Lovina Ripley Parker, William Ripley, Mariah Ripley Lindaman, Easter Ripley Wert (before 1881)

Riverton Cemetery in Floyd County is chock-full of early settlers, incuding David Ripley, his wife Easter and many of his children. The names in this cemetery are rife through the early history of this area.

We'll head back to Nathaniel Ripley's son, William Young Ripley, of the Remarkable Ripley's of Rutland, Vermont, next.