Page County IA Archives Obituaries.....Hepburn, William Peters 1916
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Clarinda News
Col. William Peters Hepburn
Lawyer, Congressman and Representative in the Republican Party
November 4, 1833 - February 17, 1916
William Peters Hepburn died Monday, Feb. 7, 1916, at the home of J.L. Brown, in
this, his home city of Clarinda. He was 82 years of age last November. 
He long had been ill with heart and kidney troubles. Although the distinguished
man had been in ill health for a long time it was thought that he might regain
his strength sufficiently to be about again; his improvement had given his
friends hope; his return to Washington to his law practice there was under
consideration; in fact, he had been gaining so that apprehension concerning his
condition had been allayed, so that when his death was announced the report was
heard as of startling nature. At any time it would have been heard with great
regret; as it was the announcement came as a great shock. He was in his room
upstairs, in bed, at the noon hour, resting comfortably it appeared. The family
meal was going on down stairs and as there seemed to be no reason for anyone
staying with him meanwhile he was left alone for probably twenty minutes, when
his wife returned to his bedside. She then discovered that his condition had
changed. Medical help was instantly summoned. No human help could aid him,
however; he had passed away. It is thought that in the short time in which he
was alone that he quietly slept into eternity. The time of his departure is
estimated to have been at 12:45 Monday afternoon. 
Truly, it is impossible for mortals of know more about the precise time of the
end of a human life than that it is uncertain as to the day, the year, the hour
and the minute, but that inevitably the end will come! 
The funeral will be held at the Methodist Episcopal church in this city at 3
o'clock this afternoon. It was arranged that the body should lie in state at
that church from 10 o'clock this morning until the hour set for the funeral. The
funeral service will be conducted at the church by Rev. Abram S. Woodard, pastor
of the church in which it is held, and of which the deceased was a member, and
by Rev. W. C. Williamson, D.D., pastor of the United Presbyterian church. At the
grave the Masonic burial service is to be given by Nodaway lodge, No. 140, A.,
F. and A. M., of which, also, the deceased died a member. 
The music at the church will be by a male chorus. Among relatives expected here
for the funeral are Mr. and Mrs. B.O. Byington of Iowa city, E.E. Morsman of
Omaha, Will Bremmen and George Bremmen of Chicago, and Hepburn Chamberlain of
Bayonne, N.J., a grandson of the deceased. It was at first thought possible that
another grandson, Hal Hepburn, of Oakland, Calif., might attend the funeral, but
it has been learned that he will not be able to. Mayor D.M. Creal has issued a
proclamation paying high tribute to the deceased, referring to him as
"Clarinda's most distinguished citizens and one of the nation's greatest men."
the mayor in his proclamation "earnestly requests that all places of business
within the limits of our city be closed and no business be transacted from the
hour of 2:30 p.m. to the hour of 4:30 p.m.," the day of the funeral -- Feb. 10.
The mayor asks this as a tribute to William P. Hepburn's "distinguished public
service, his loyalty to the interest of his home and community and to his pure
and upright character." The deceased was best known by the title of colonel.
Upon learning of the death of Col. Hepburn, Judge J. B. Rockafellow, here
holding a term of the Page County district court, appointed the following
committees composed of members of the page county bar -- a bar at which the
Colonel in former years was a most able and successful practitioner: On
resolutions, H.H. Scott, Earl R. Ferguson and William Orr; on program and
general arrangements, Earl Peters, J.E. Hill and Frederick Fischer; on
notification, W.A. Turner, T.F. Willis and William F. Stipe. 
Col. Hepburn, accompanied by Mrs. Hepburn and their daughter, Mrs. R. H.
Chamberlain, arrived in Clarinda, Oct. 17, last, coming here from Washington,
D.C. The colonel, although seemingly to outward appearances in excellent health,
and with a strong, vigorous voice, with mind bright and active, was not in good
physical condition. Yet he was about town, visiting friends and taking his usual
large interest in public affairs. Not long after his arrival, however, he became
ill, and for a time it was feared that the end was near. His son, Capt. C.B.
Hepburn, was summoned from Washington, and has been here for about two months.
Later the colonel gained handsomely, and, as previously indicated, alarm
concerning his condition was allayed. A phase of the colonel's condition is
illustrated by the fact that at the time of his death, his son, Capt. Hepburn,
was over in Decatur County on business for his father, it having been thought
safe for the Captain to leave him for the trip. 
William Peters Hepburn was born Nov. 4, 1833, at Wellsville, Columbiana County,
O. He was the son of Dr. James S. Hepburn and Ann Fairfax Catlett Hepburn. Dr.
Hepburn died while fighting against cholera scourge at New Orleans. His widow
married in 1836, George S. Hampton. The family moved to Iowa when it was a
territory, and located near Iowa City in 1841. Col. Hepburn in his youthful days
attended school, learned the printer's trade, and studied law. Oct. 7, 1855, he
married Miss Melvina A. Morsman. From this marriage there were born two sons and
two daughters. One of the daughters and one of the sons have died. The deceased
children are Mrs. Edith Thummell, wife of W.F. Thummell, and her brother, Frank
Hepburn. Mrs. Thummell is buried in New York, and Mr. Hepburn in Clarinda. The
surviving children are Mrs. Margaret Chamberlain, wife of R.H. Chamberlain, and
her brother, Capt. Charles B. Hepburn. 
Col. Hepburn was admitted to practice law in 1854; served in the Second Iowa
cavalry as Captain, Major and Lieutenant-Colonel during the war of the
rebellion; was a delegate from Iowa to the Republican national conventions of
1860, 1888, and 1896; was a presidential elector at large from the state of Iowa
in 1876 and in 1888; served as solicitor of the United States Treasury during
the administration of President Benjamin Harrison; was elected as a
representative to the Forty-seventh, Forth-eight and Forty-ninth congresses, in
which he served six years. Then, in 1893 he was continuously elected to congress
as a representative and served therein from 1893 to 1909. During all of his
congressional career he was a resident of Clarinda, to which city he came in
1867, and where in the early days of his residence he was for a time editor of
the Clarinda Herald and for years a practicing attorney.
 His career was intimately connected with public service in the state and
nation. He performed many services of an important nature in his earlier
manhood, and as he grew in years increased in ability and influence. He was a
power in the Republican party. In congress he became a most important factor in
national legislation and some of the greatest bills enacted into law were
written by him. He was powerful in debate and capable in leadership against any
opposition that he might encounter. 
Back of the reserved sections of the church and in the gallery the pews were
filled by men and women to join in the tribute of respect to the departed states
man. The remains, resting in their casket before the pulpit, were in the midst
of floral offerings. Covering the casket and back of it were flowers in
profusion -- beautiful flowers, in emblems and otherwise, tributes of
individuals and organizations, mute messages of love and sympathy. Shortly after
the members of the Masonic fraternity filed into the church and were seated the
funeral service began. An affecting prayer was uttered by Rev. W.C. Williamson,
D.D., pastor of the United Presbyterian church, who, like Col. Hepburn, had
borne arms for the Union in the Civil War. The prayer was followed by a
historical sketch of Col. Hepburn, prepared and read by James F. Bryan of
Creston, for a long time the colonel's private secretary while the colonel was a
member of congress, and in connection with the most interesting details in the
sketch was eloquent tribute to the distinguished statesman's ability, integrity
and generosity. A chorus of twelve male voices sang "Lead, Kindly Light," after
which Rev. Abram S. Woodard, pastor of the church in which the service was
conducted, read from the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew the verses relating to
the talents -- the five talents, the two talents and the one talent. Taking
these scriptural talents for the foundation of his touching and appropriate
remarks Mr. Woodard dwelt upon Col. Hepburn's achievements and the inspiration
he had been to others by reason of his achievements.
 He referred to his individual case, how he had been helped through admiration
for the Colonel, even before it was his fortune to know him personally. He
commended, endorsed and highly complimented the Colonel on his public record and
especially as the Colonel had stood on the right side of questions while in the
national law making body. In addition to the Colonel's greatness in other
directions the speaker paid high tribute to the departed for his zeal in
religion and for his modest but important helpfulness to others. Mr. Woodard
toward the close of his remarks observed that Col. Hepburn was "a five talent
man."   Prayer was offered by Mr. Woodard, after which the chorus sang "Abide
with Me," the church service was over, the audience passed out of the building
and the casket was borne to the hearse for the journey to the cemetery. 
The chorus which sung the hymns at the funeral was composed of Charles Lankert,
Guy H. Lain, William Millen, H.L. Maxwell, Bert Green, Otis Lucas, Sutton
Morris, H.R. Spry, R.G. Sands, Prof. F.A. Henderson, L.H. Jones and H.F. Jones.
Mrs. H.L. Maxwell played the pipe organ accompaniments. 
The guard of honor was composed of Henry Loranz, J.N. Miller, G.H. Ferris, J.D.
Jones, Allen McClarnon, G.W. Standage, J.W. Osborn and D.C. 
The active pallbearers from Nodaway lodge No. 140, A., F. and A. M., were I.W.
Shambaugh, D.D. Stitt, Orville C. Greene, Fred H. Sperry, Hugh Miller, C.E.
Blair, William F. Stipe and T.L. Brown. The honorary pallbearers were J.N.
Miller, Henry Loranz, J.D. Jones, G.F. Fisher, D.C. Reynolds, G.H. Ferris, J.W.
Osborn and Dr. D.P. Brown. 
Nearly one hundred and fifty Masons were in the funeral procession which
accompanied the remains to the Hepburn family lot in the Clarinda Cemetery.
Among the fraternity were members of the order from Shenandoah, Blanchard,
Villisca, Creston and Gravity. By invitation of Worshipful Master Earl Peters
the Masonic funeral service at the grave was delivered by Past Master Dr. W.C.
Phillips. The marshal for the Masonic service was past Master Dr. T.E. Powers.
Each Mason at the grave deposited a sprig of evergreen on the casket of Col.
Hepburn, as he had done at the funeral of other Masons who had gone before him,
and so, in the presence of his immediate family, close friends and fraternal
brothers, the remains of Col. William Peters Hepburn were at rest in the spot
where he had expressed the wish to be laid away when his time should come, and
the funeral party wended their way solemnly out of the burial place according to
the human custom, bearing with them memories in honor of the great man called to
his reward. 
Masons other than members of Nodaway lodge, No. 140, A., F. and A. M., living
out of Clarinda, were in attendance at the funeral as follows: From Shenandoah
-- H.E. Deater, Earl R. Ferguson, Ed F. Rose, W.D. Jamieson, Frederick Fischer,
J.W. Behm, C.E. Fliesbach, G.W. Brown, D.L. Wilson, H. Seal, S.A. Thomas, G.B.
Jennings. From Blanchard -- W.N. Dewhurst, L.E. Nuckolls, T.W. Puthuff, A.H.
Elbert, Guy Thurman, E.G. Smith, S. Francis, G.C. Webster.


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