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Philip B. Daly
Born July 17, 1869


Philip B. Daly, a well known agriculturist of Wayne township, who has played a rather conspicuous part in local affairs, was born on the farm where he now lives, July 17, 1869, and is a son of Philip and Catherine (Foley) Daly. The former was born in the year 1836, in County Meath, Ireland, his parents being Thomas and Jane (Meloy) Daly. His father died in that country and his mother, after the death of her husband, came to America and spent the remaining years of her life with her son Philip, at whose home she died. She was the mother of five children: Patrick, who died in Wisconsin during the Civil war; John, who had served four years during the war and died in Bloomington, Illinois; Mrs. Bridget Devero, who died in Colorado; Philip, the father of our subject; and Jane, who died unmarried in Illinois.
In 1852 single and alone, Philip Daly came to the United States and for three years lived in the state of New York, first in Oneida county, and then in Auburn, where he pursued his trade as a shoemaker. Then he came west, stopping for a time in Bloomington, Illinois, and reaching Dubuque, Iowa, in 1855. There, three years later he married and then came to Jones county, where he bought eighty acres of the farm he still owns in Wayne township. During the progress of the Civil war, however, he worked at his trade in Anamosa until 1865, when he located on his farm, where he lived and toiled for almost forty years. During that period it had grown from the original eighty acres to three times that size, all located on section 33, Wayne township. In 1903 he relinquished the heavier of life's duties and removed to Anamosa, where he has since lived.
The father of our subject was twice married. He wedded first, in Dubuque, in 1858, Miss Elizabeth Cheshire, by whom he had five children: Joseph and Mary A., twins, the former a resident of Dubuque, the latter a Sister of Charity at Des Moines, Iowa; Matthew, who lives with his brother on the farm in Wayne township; John, unmarried who died in Denver at the age of thirty-nine; and Mrs. Elizabeth Donohue, who died in Spokane, Washington, in 1908, leaving two children. Mrs. Daly, who was a native of the same county in Ireland as was her husband, died in 1867. Two years later Mr. Daly wedded again, his second wife being Miss Catherine Foley, who was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, May 5, 1845. Her parents came to America when she was but two years old and she was reared by her grandparents. In 1860 she came to this country and went to live in Ohio with her uncle; Edward Foley. In 1867, her grandparents having passed away she came to Jones county, Iowa, which has since been her home. Her father, John Foley, enlisted in the Union army during the Civil war, being one of the valiant members of the One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Of Mr. Daly's second marriage two children have been born; Philip B., the subject of this sketch, and William E., a farmer in Wayne township. He and his family are members of the Catholic church, while politically he is a democrat. He came to this country when the conditions in his native land were especially hard and with the determination that he was not only going to better himself but help others he set to work. He accomplished his purpose and now feels that he may enjoy a well earned rest after his many years of arduous toil.
Philip B. Daly of this review received his first training for life in the district schools of his native township and then spent one year at the Northern Illinois Normal School at Dixon, Illinois. His own education completed, he began to teach in the country schools of Jones county and two years later commenced farming on the two hundred and forty acres of land his father owned in Wayne township. Here he' has worked for the last eighteen years, giving his attention to general agriculture and to the raising and feeding of stock. His undertakings have prospered to a high degree, for by education and training he was well prepared for his chosen calling and with diligence and industry has met and conquered the problems presented him. He is also progressive in his ideas and spares no means to obtain the best returns for his labor.
On the 26th of November 1903, Mr. Daly was married to Miss Lena Bradley, who was born in Jackson township, Jones county, August 6, 1882, and is a daughter of John R. and Catherine (Woodworth) Bradley. James Bradley, the former's father, came to America in 1849, settling first in St. Louis and then coming to Jones county. Later he moved to Lamona, where his death occurred when he had reached the age of one hundred and one years and two months. John R. Bradley was a native of Lincolnshire, England, while his wife was born in Indiana. They were married in Jones county, Iowa, where they lived until of the Civil war, however, he worked at his trade in Anamosa until 1865, when he located on his farm, where he lived and toiled for almost forty years. During that period it had grown from the original eighty acres to three times that size, all located on section 33, Wayne township. In 1903 he relinquished the heavier of life's duties and removed to Anamosa, where he has since lived until six years ago, when in December 1903, they moved to Decatur county, where they are now residing. They have had seven children, two of whom died in early childhood and five are now surviving: Emma R., who is the wife of D. P. Steckel, of Decatur county; James I., of Des Moines, Iowa; J. Nelson, of Decatur county; Lena, who is Mrs. Daly: and Olive, who is the wife of Frank C. Tallman, of Williamsburg, Iowa. Mr. and Mrs. Daly have one child, Vivian.
The families are members of St. Patrick's Catholic church of Anamosa and conscientious in the performance of their religious duties. Mr. Daly is a democrat in his political views and has been active in party organizations and is well known in local affairs for he has been township clerk for the past fourteen years and was his party's candidate for county auditor and for state representative. He made a good run for both offices but was defeated owing to the strong republican majority in the county. He is still in the prime of life and it may confidently be expected, after regarding the success of his previous years, that the future will see him occupy a more prominent place in the minds of the citizens of Wayne township.

Source: History of Jones County, Iowa, Past and Present, R. M. Corbitt, S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago, 1910, p. 619.

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Last updated on Friday, 16-Apr-2021 16:53:24 MST