Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-09-10
Father and Twelve Sons and
Daughters Reside in One
Neighborhood
ALL OWN LAND
Knox Family, Residing Near Bows, Has
a Rem variable Record-Farmer Who
Sold His Oats Il High Price
Thinks He Got Something for Moth
ins-WiIson's Observations.
Special to Times-pepublican

Bows, Sept 10-For a distance 81
| several miles along one Of the mail
routes from this town the traveller
| passes succession of uniformly well
| improved farms. In the case OF one
of these places it is to be noticed that
the trees are a little taller than those
surrounding the buildings of the
neighboring farms, the style of the
improvements bear evidence of earlier
construction and one at once con-
cludes that here is perhaps the old
est farm in the vicinity. The con-
clusion is entirely correct and the
owner of the farm, man now con-
siderably past the period of middle
age and a good talller, too can en-
terrain his visitor for time with an
Interesting account of rural life in
western Franklin county as 1t was
nearly forty years ago The recollec-
tons of this class are of constantly
increasing interest because those who
can relate them from actual exper-
fence are growing fewer in number
every year and it will be but short
time until all except the more con-
spicuous events of early time will
be a matter of tradition.
In 1869 Mr.. A. l.. Hackbarth. then
a young man, journeyed from Wiscon-
sin. to which state his parents had
"a fa1 taS
Germany, to this section of Iowa in
search of some of the cheap land
which was then attracting the atten-
ton Of landseekers all over the coun-
try. Iowa Falls was then the ives
tern terminus of the Illinois Central
railroad and there Mr.. Hackbarth ar
rived one day and with land sales
man drove to a point few miles
east Of where the town of Bows now
stands. He selected an eighty-acre
tract, paying $3.50 per acre for it, and
settled there, founding the prosper
Gus German community that now COM
prises section several miles in ex-
tent. He broke up the first forty Of
his farm with a yoke of oxen and a
horse, drove his bovine team to
Hampton, fifteen miles distant where
he traded, starting on the trips very
early in the morning and returning
sometime between evening and the
next morning. The first crop of wheat
raised on the land was cut with q
cradle. During the earlier years the
farmers in the community were
troubled by the depredations OF flocks
of cranes that destroyed their corn.
The birds would attack field, eating
every ear Of corn several rods from
the edges Of the fields, but fortunately
they never ventured far into the in
terror. :.
Nine sons and three daughters, all
of whom are yet alive, were born and
grew up on the farm, to which addi-
tons were necessarily made from time
to time, and later the children, nearly
all now land owners, assumed the
ownership of the added portions and !
reside in the netghborhood at the |
present time.
While instances Of large families are |
being mentioned, the case of the Knox
family, some of whom reside north of |
here, Is worthy Of notice. Mr., J. T. |
Knox is one son in family of nine |
whose ages range from 4S |
10 Is years. He himself is the father
If ten children, and his brothers and |
sisters are the parents of twelve chill |
1ren in the aggregate. In the north
ern part of Linn county the aged faith !
er and mother are still living, and to
he present date there has never been |
l death In the Knox family from the
before mentioned grandparents down.
"This is peculiar year." remarked
/ farmer the other day. Last week
vas the first time in all my farming
experience that recollect having got