Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-04-01
HENRY SUITS, AGED 1os YEARS,
DIES At Als HOME IN
COUNCIL DLuFFs.
9ETTLEp an kANEsvlLLE
OVER FIFTY YEARS AGO
Assisted in Erecting First House in
Omaha, in 1s44-son Killed by Light.
ming on Twenty First eirthday-ln
Early Lite Was Pony Exprsssman in
Indiana.

Council Bluffs, April 1.-ASed about
los years and months, Henry w.
Suits, accounted the oldest person In
the state Of Iowa, died at the home
! Of his youngest daughter, Mrs. II. w.
Payne, aged so years, at 1850 o'clock
Thursday afternoon. Mrs. Payne lives
at 2310 West Broadway, where Mr..
Suits had been living the last few years
of his life. He had lived in Pottawat-
annie county. near Council Bluffs, for
6fty-eight years.
| Three weeks ago the aged man, who
had always possessed strong ply
sique. was slightly affected by pneu-
monia from which he seemingly re-
covered. Later the symptoms developed
| into dropsy. which was the final cause
of his death.
Native Of New York.
| The dead man was born In New
York, Aug 9. 1905. Both his parents
lived until well over 80 years old, While
his brothers and sisters have all died
before him; each of them living 10 De
extraordinarily old.
His early life was spent in Indiana.
where he was pony expressman out OF
vincennes for number of years. 1t
was there that he met Miss Phoebe Ann
Hewitt and married her in 1887.
The couple crossed the plains with
number Of other emigrants few years
lister and took up their abode in Coun-
-. Bluffs, then Kanesville. For time
they uved in the first house to be built
in this city It stood on East Broad
way, near a small log store. the only
business establishment in this part OF
the country. At that time he was en-
gagged in a general business OF horse
trading and bartering.
Built First House in Omaha.
Several years later, about 1914 he
assisted another man in erecting the
first house to be built in what Is now
Omaha. He lived in the log cabin with
his family for only few months. being
finally driven back to Council Bluffs by
the bands of land grabbers and Indians
which infested the western banks OF
the river
Returning to this city, he took up ms
residence on what is known as THE
Old Powers farm" in the Mosquito
creek valley, near where the old paper
mill used to stand. For years he lived
on the farm with his wife and grow
ing family of ten children. Stock rals-
ing and small gardening were the oc-
equations which he followed until his
age drove him from active life on the
farm and he took up his residence on
a five-acre lot on Harrison street There
he followed the life he had been living.
but on "a smaller scale. His wife died
several years before he moved, her
death occurring in 1864.
Mr. Suits. like all old men. became
reminiscent at times and told of expert
6,,Yi
story Of his was when he was pony
expressman in Indiana and noticed the
falling stars in 1898, when the wild ami
+; mails of every kind grew frantic in the
night and made their way, for some
unknown reason, to the south.
Lightning Kills Son.
Another was an accident 35 years
ago. when his son, Beecher. was struck
by lightning on his twenty first birth
Rday and killed: Mr.. Suits himself be-
ing burned so badly about the right
arm and neck that he bore scars the
rest Of his life. 1t was in the night.
while the family was sleeping on the
| floor. it being too hot to remain in bed.
that bolt Of lightning struck and
entered the flue OF the home and
crashed into the rooms killing the boy
who was sleeping at his fathers side.
Mrs Payne was the first to recover
consciousness following the stroke and
saved the home and family by extin-
gushing the blaze caused by the light
ming.
He is survived by three Of his ten
children: S. Suits, of Oshkosh. Neb.,
"a years old: John Suits, living on
Eighth street. this city. and Mrs Payne.
There are also twenty-seven grand
children and thirty-five great grand
children living.
He was member of the United
Brothers.