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From left to right, Ardis Eilts as Alice
Stewart, William Eilts, Verla Van Sloten, Dennis Hulshof
as Levi Black, Ruth Holtkamp as Johanna Marienau, Paige,
Olivia & Janice Fedders as Hattie Carder Campbell and
students, Steve Brown as Henry Kluter, Renae Brown as
Mattie Kluter, Roger Broek as Marshall Elder and Linda
Broek as Polly Elder.
Historical Walk
Pleasant Hill Cemetery
Ireton, Iowa
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Due to a rainy morning and
misting afternoon - and with the prospect of more rain
on Sunday - the Pleasant Hill Cemetery Walk was moved
indoors to the Ireton Community Center. We could
not move the gravestones but our "actors" used props and
costumes in telling the story of area pioneers.
Approximately 100 people
enjoyed the portrayals sponsored by the Ireton Area
Historical Society. We are grateful to the
"actors" for the time and skill that they used in
bringing historical figures to life. We are also
grateful to our sponsors: Porter Funeral Homes,
Thrivent Financial, Iowa State Bank, Services Unlimited
and the City of Ireton. We also greatly appreciate
all of the assistance that we received from the Gems,
Cadets and 4'Her's and from the volunteers who moved
props, set up chairs, baked and served cookies, coffee
and lemonade,
took photographs and videos, had golf
carts at the ready, wrote and published articles about
the walk and helped in so many ways.
This inaugural "walk" was
designed to focus on the early days of Reading Township
and the town of Ireton - the period from 1870-1900.
We are having trouble
editing a portion of the video. The segments
through Hattie Carder Campbell have been posted to
YouTube and may be viewed with at the bottom of this
page. When we have been able to edit the portion
on Alice Stewart and the closing patriotic salute, we
will add them. Leave it to the ghost of "Biddie"
Stewart to cause problems!
Marshall
Elder, born in 1849 in Indiana, moved to
Marshall County, Iowa as a child. In 1870,
he and 3 friends embarked on a "Wild West
Mission" travelling across the prairies of
northwest Iowa in a lumber wagon drawn by a
team of horses. They wound their way to
Sioux County where they were able to claim a
complete section of land (Sec. 8 - just east
of the present town of Ireton). Many of the
trees that M.M. planted on the east side of
the section still exist.
Polly Stough was born in Ohio in 1854 and at
the age of two moved with her family to
Marshall County. She married M.M. Elder in
1872 and returned with him to Sioux County
where they had 6 daughters, 4 of whom lived
to adulthood. M.M.'s memories of pioneer
days are recounted in "A History of Reading
Township". To our knowledge there are no
descendants remaining in the area.
Born in
Germany in 1843 and 1837, Mattie and Henry
Kluter were married in Guttenberg, Iowa in
1867. While living in eastern Iowa, they had
2 children. In 1870, Henry came to Sioux
County, claimed homestead land and built a
cabin in the SE 1/4, Sec. 6, Reading Twp.
(south of the farmstead now owned by his
great-grandson Lloyd Eilts). In 1871, he,
Mattie and the children came to Sioux County
via covered wagon - with a pig inside and a
cow tied behind.
Henry and
Mattie had 5 additional children while
living here. They were founding members of
St. John's & St. Paul's Lutheran churches
and encouraged many of their German friends
and relatives to settle near Ireton.
Although there are no longer any descendants
with the Kluter name in Ireton, many of
their great; great-great; and
great-great-great grandchildren still live
here.
Denny and
family live on and farm the Black Homestead
in eastern Washington Township.
L.M. Black was
born in Henry County, Indiana in 1842. He
enlisted in the 57th Indiana infantry and
served honorably during the Civil War. In
1871, he and wife Sarah and sons Enoch and
Harley homesteaded in Washington Township.
After Sarah's death in 1873, he and second
wife Arfinda had three children Fannie,
Olive and L. Morris (Morey). Arfinda died in
1904 and L.M. married Josephine Paul.
L.M., the "Tall Willow from Reading
Township", farmed, taught school, served as
Sioux County auditor, was Ireton's first
postmaster, operated a mercantile, sold real
estate, was a bill clerk in the Iowa
legislature, and served as a self-taught
legal advisor. He was very active in the
G.A.R. and served on the committee that
arranged for the funding and erection of
Ireton's Civil War Monument. He was also
active in Republican politics and served as
Ireton's mayor and on the school board.
Johanna Haage
was born in Germany in 1863. She came to
Plymouth County in spring, 1884 joining 2
sisters and a half-brother. Fred Marienau,
born in Missouri in 1865, moved to
Litchfield, Illinois while still a child.
After his father's death in 1881, he moved
to Plymouth County with his mother and
siblings. Fred and Johanna were married in
1885 and moved to Ireton where Fred worked
in a mercantile for 3 years. He then opened
his own general store which he operated for
48 years.
Fred was very active in business and civic
affairs. He served as Ireton's fire chief
for more than 30 years, was on the Town
Council for 20 years and served a term as
mayor. Fred and Johanna were founding
members of St. Paul's Lutheran Church where
services were conducted in German until
World War I. Johanna enjoyed socializing and
visiting with her German friends in their
native tongue.
Alexis, Erin & Kortnie
assisted Jan in demonstrating games played
by pioneer children.
assistance
from her granddaughters, Paige & Olivia
Hattie Carder
was born in Garden Grove in far south
Central Iowa in 1876. She came to Ireton in
1884 with her family. Her father, Horton
Carder, had been recruited by local
businessmen to build a flour & feed grinding
mill. He sold the mill several years later
and then operated a hotel in Ireton.
Hattie attended the Ireton Public School and
was in its 3rd graduating class in 1892. She
taught in Center Township (north of Ireton)
in the 1890's and married a fellow
schoolteacher, George Campbell. They moved
to South Dakota then returned to Ireton in
1915 where he was involved in banking for
nearly 20 years before his death in 1935.
Hattie and George had three children but to
our knowledge, there are not any descendants
in the Ireton area.
Alice
Everitt was born in Ft. Wayne, Indiana in
1861. Her mother died when Alice was 2 and
her father moved the children to Atlantic,
Iowa shortly after the end of the Civil War.
In 1880, she married Daniel R. (D.R.)
Stewart who was born on Prince Edward
Island, Canada. They came to Ireton in 1885.
Dan purchased a blacksmith shop on the east
side of Main Street that he operated for 47
years and Alice owned a series of
restaurants. The couple also built a large
home where the community center now stands.
"Biddie" was an enthusiastic booster of
Ireton - she was a strong proponent of the
creation of a high school, was an active
member of the First Presbyterian Church and
lent her cooking and baking skills to many
fundraising efforts. The Stewarts' only
child was a daughter, Alberta "Birdie"
Stewart Noon, and no descendants remain in
the area.
Verla Van
Sloten and William Eilts closed
the program by honoring our veterans.
Verla read several articles about early
Decoration Day observances and the erection
of Ireton's Civil War monument.
William sang the national anthem and
"America" and Verla joined William in
leading the audience in singing the "Battle
Hymn of the Republic".
