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John L. Richardson
Born January 31 1838 |
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| John L. Richardson, a retired agriculturist residing in Wyoming, where he has made his home since 1898, is still the owner of five hundred and five acres of valuable land in Madison township, Jones county. His birth occurred in North Argyle, Washington county, New York, on the 31st of January, 1838. His father James Richardson, who was born at Ewart, Northumberland, England, in 1798, was a carpenter and joiner by occupation and for several years worked at his trade in Edinburgh. In 1827, he crossed the Atlantic to the United States, settling in New York, where he worked at his trade until the time oil his marriage to Miss Susan Small, a native of Jackson township, Washington county, New York. Her parents were from Perthshire, Scotland, and in the maternal line she was descended from the same ancestry as the Beveridge family of which Senator Beveridge is a member. Following his marriage James Richardson turned his attention to general agricultural pursuits and in 1850 removed to Morrow county, Ohio, where he followed farming for twelve years. On the expiration of that period, in 1862, he came to Jones county, Iowa, locating in Madison township, where be purchased a farm of one hundred and ninety-five acres in 1864. He successfully operated the place for a number of years and on putting-aside the active work of the fields sold the property to his son, John L., and took up his abode in Wyoming, where his remaining days were spent. He passed away in 1880 and his wife was called to her final rest eight years later.
John L. Richardson, who was the third in order of birth in a family of nine children, received his education in an old log schoolhouse in Ohio and, though his advantages in this direction were limited, he eventually became a well informed man through reading, observation and experience. On the 18th of July, 1861, he enlisted in the Union army, joining Company E. Twenty-sixth Regiment of Ohio Infantry, with which he served until discharged at Chattanooga on the 31st of December, 1863. He reenlisted on the following day - January 1, 1864, becoming a member of Company E, Twenty-sixth Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry. He served in the Army of the Cumberland and participated in all the engagements of his command, including those at Shiloh, Stone river, Mission Ridge, Chickamauga, Resaca, etc. Although in many sanguinary conflicts, he was fortunate in that he was never wounded and when the country no longer needed his aid he returned home, being honorably discharged on the 21st of October, 1865. On the 2d of January, 1866, he arrived in Jones county, Iowa, taking up his abode on his father's farm in Madison township, which he eventually purchased and which still remains in his possession. However, he extended the boundaries of the place by additional purchase until it now embraces five hundred and five acres of rich and productive land. The work of the farm claimed his attention throughout his active business career and he annually gathered bounteous harvests which found a ready sale on the market. In 1898, having accumulated a handsome competence, he left the farm and came to Wyoming, where he has since lived retired, enjoying the fruits of his former toil in well earned ease.
Mr. Richardson has been twice married and by his first wife, whom he wedded in 1868, had four children, Mrs. Florence Thomas, being the only one living. In 1883, he was joined in wedlock to Miss Elmira Iler, a native of Ohio, by whom he also had one child, namely: Mrs. Ruby E. Peeler, of Wyoming.
In his political views Mr. Richardson is a stanch republican and for seven years has capably served as a member of the town council. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the United Presbyterian church. The period of his residence in this county now covers more than four decades and he has long been numbered among its most substantial, respected and enterprising citizens.
Source: History of Jones County, Iowa, Past and Present, R. M. Corbitt, S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago, 1910, p. 69. |
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© Copyright 1997-2013, The Art Department, © Copyright 2014-2020, Richard Harrison.
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