Wapello County IA Archives Biographies.....Myers, Josiah H. 1826 - 
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Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 July 5, 2013, 9:36 pm

Source: See Below
Author: S. J. Clarke, Publisher

JOSIAH H. MYERS.

No resident of Ottumwa has resided in the city for a longer period than has
Josiah H. Myers, now living at No. 136 North Davis street. For almost the
psalmist's allotted span of threescore years and ten he has made his home here,
arriving in 1845, when a young man of nineteen years. Great and wonderful have
been the changes which have since occurred and none rejoice more heartily in
what has been accomplished than Josiah H. Myers. He was born in Botetourt
county, Virginia, now Roanoke county, February 5, 1826, a son of John and
Elizabeth (Britts) Myers, who w ere also natives of the same locality. The
paternal grandfather, John Myers, was a Hessian, who came from Hesse-Cassel as
one of the soldiers hired by Louis Philippe and sent by King George III of
England to aid in putting down the "Rebellion" in America. Following his arrival
in the new world the sympathy of John Myers went out to the American forces, so
that he deserted and joined Washington's army. He served as a wagon master of
one of the regiments at the battle of Yorktown. Continuing his residence in the
new world, following the attainment of American liberties, he became recognized
as an excellent farmer and good citizen in the communities in which he lived. He
died in Montgomery county, Indiana, at the age of seventy-five years, while his
wife survived him for five or six years. They had four sons and four daughters,
all of whom lived to maturity, were married and had families. The youngest,
William, died in Montgomery county, Indiana, about 1910, when ninety-four years
of age.

John Myers, the father of our subject, was the eldest of the family, his birth
occurring in 1792. He died on a farm two miles north of Ottumwa November 30,
1865, while his wife, who was born in 1798, passed away in Indiana September 12,
1833. It was in 1830 that the family left Virginia and established their home
upon a frontier farm in Montgomery county, Indiana, where the mother passed away
three years later. The family continued to reside in that state for fifteen
years and in 1845 arrived in Ottumwa, two years after the city was platted. It
was on the 1st of May, 1843, that this territory was opened up to settlement,
the government having purchased it from the Sac and Fox Indians. In Virginia the
father followed the miller's trade and in Indiana he built a good mill, which he
operated until his removal to Iowa. In the spring of 1844 his son, Joel B.
Myers, and David Armstrong, brother-in-law of Josiah H. Myers, came to Wapello
county and erected a mill before the father and other members of the family
arrived. This was a sawmill, the first in Wapello county, and there was also a
pair of burrs for grinding any kind of grain that the settlers wished to have
converted into flour or meal. This mill stood on the north bank of the river at
the foot of Market street. The county commissioners donated to the company
owning it a tract of land extending from Market to within one hundred and
thirty-two feet of Green street and down to the river. The business was
conducted under the firm name of Myers, Armstrong & Coffin, the third partner,
Thomas C. Coffin, being a son-in-law of the senior partner, Mr. Myers. The
sons-in-law, Messrs. Armstrong and Coffin, afterward withdrew, while Mr. Myers
operated the mill altogether for twelve years, sawing all the lumber that was
used in building operations in Ottumwa in the early days. His entire life was
devoted to the milling business and he was a most active, busy man, his life
being one of value and worth to the community. In Indiana he became the owner of
eight hundred acres of land and platted one hundred acres of that for the town
of Ladoga. Much of his life was spent upon the frontier, first in Indiana and
afterward in Iowa. The last twenty-five miles of his trip that took him to his
Indiana home was over an old Indian trail in the wilderness, for there were no
roads. He became a moving spirit of that section of the country, and he was also
a most valued citizen in Iowa, contributing in large measure to the upbuilding
and progress of Ottumwa and Wapello county. Today the only survivors of the
family of John and Elizabeth Myers are Mrs. Sarah Coffin, of Boise, Idaho; John;
and Josiah.

Ottumwa has been the place of residence of the last named since 1845, or for
almost seventy years, he being today the oldest resident of the city. He learned
the milling business with his father, but ceased activity along that line soon
after his father's death. He became a carpenter and later a contractor and
builder and erected a large number of substantial structures in the city. Later
he turned his attention to the cultivation of flowers and vegetables, building a
greenhouse and continuing in that business for a decade. He then retired and is
now spending the evening of life in the enjoyment of a well earned rest. His
business activities were interrupted by his service in the Civil war, for on the
15th of August, 1862, he enlisted as a member of Company P], Thirty-sixth Iowa
Volunteer Infantry, with which he served for three years. He was detailed for
mechanical work, being engaged on construction work most of the time. Pie
entered the service as a duty sergeant and at the close of the war he was
honorably discharged, having rendered valuable aid to his country.

On the 9th of December, 1856, Mr. Myers was united in marriage to Miss Sarah
Cochran, who was born near Xenia, Greene county, Ohio, April 10, 1836, and in
1844 came to Iowa with her father, her mother having died in Ohio. Mr. and Mrs.
Myers became the parents of three children: Charles, who died in infancy, in
1862; William P., who lives near his father; and Henry G., of Denver, Colorado.

Mr. Myers holds membership in Tuttle Post, G. A. R., and is a loyal and honored
representative of that organization. He cast his first presidential vote in 1848
for Zachary Taylor and in 1856 supported John C. Fremont, since which time he
has voted the republican ticket. In 1855, however, he was identified with the
know nothings. Twice he has been elected city assessor and served for four
years. He has made eleven assessments of Ottumwa, having on other occasions been
deputized for the work by other assessors. No history of the county would be
complete without extended reference to Mr. Myers, who has seen the wonderful
development of the county since pioneer times.

He has watched with interest the changes that have occurred as its wild lands
have been entered from the government and converted into rich and productive
farms. He has seen towns and villages spring up and has witnessed the growth of
Ottumwa from a village of about eighteen houses to its present size with all of
its industrial and commercial interests. His business interests have brought him
into close connection with its upbuilding and improvement and Ottumwa recognizes
her indebtedness to him for his efforts in her behalf. Today he is enjoying a
well earned rest.

"How blessed is he 
Who crowns in shades like these 
The youth of labor 
With an age of ease."


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:
HISTORY OF WAPELLO COUNTY IOWA
ILLUSTRATED
VOLUME II
CHICAGO
THE S. J. CLARKE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1914


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