Biographical Sketch of W. P. Halley, Johnson County, Missouri, Columbus Township. >From "History of Johnson County, Missouri," by Ewing Cockrell, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, Cleveland, 1918. ********************************************************************** W. P. Halley, a worthy representative of an honored and respected pio- neer family of Saline county, Missouri is one of the most capable and enterprising agriculturists of Columbus township. He was born in Oct- ober, 1868 in Saline county, a son of J. A. and Susan E. Halley. Mr. and Mrs. Halley, the parents of W. P., the subject of this review, were noble types of the sturdy pioneer, citizens of broad humanitarian prin- ciples, earnest purposes, clean, moral lives. They did all in their power to uplight their fellowmen and promote the welfare of the commun- ity in which they had settled. The Halleys were widely known and respected for their genuine worth. In the common schools of Saline county, W. P. Halley obtained his early education. Later, he attended business college and completed the course in the commercial school located at Stanberry, Missouri in Gentry county. After leaving school, Mr. Halley began life for himself on the farm in Saline county. He moved thence in 1905 to his present country home in Columbus township, Johnson county. The Halley farm comprises 264 acres of land, the orig- inal purchase, and 106 acres purchased in 1915, in all, 370 acres of some of the best farm land in this section of the state. The place is supplied with an abundance of water and, having four large barns, is well equipped for handling stock. At the time of this writing, in 1917 Mr. Halley has 40 head of high grade cattle, 70 head of sheep, and 130 head of pure-bred black Poland China hogs. He has a registered male at the head of the herd of hogs. He has had excellent success in stock raising and also in general farming, harvesting, this past season of 1917, 1100 bushes of wheat, 600 bushels of oats, and 15 tons of hay and in addition had 90 acres of the farm in corn. Mr. Halley has planted 130 acres of the place in winter wheat. He is a progressive and well informed farmer and he is doing all in his power to bring the soil up to a high state of cultivation, rotating his crops, planting clover, pasturing the land, and keeping his manure spreader constantly working. Mr. Halley has been very successful also in growing alfalfa and he is an enthusiastic advocate of this crop. In 1911, he built the present residence, a nine room structure, comfortably arranged and modern throughout. In 1894, W. P. Halley and Clara May Lewis, daughter of J. A. Lewis, of Saline county, were united in marriage and to this union have been born three sons: Morris P., Elmer L., and William Alfred, all of whom are at home with thier parents. The two oldest sons, Morris P. and Elmer L., are associated with thier father in farming and stock raising. William Alfred is attending school at Odessa, Missouri. Mr. Halley is one of the comparatively recent arrivals in Johnson county, having located here twelve years ago, yet he has already taken a place among the leading and influential citizens of his township. He believes in progress and is sparing no trouble or expense in a laudable efforts to make his farm one of the best in the country. He prosecutes his farm work according to the most advanced methods of modern agriculture and personally he enjoys a large measure of popularity. By a careful observance of the ethics of life Mr. and Mrs. Halley have secured for themselves the kind regard and highest respect of all their neighbors and fellow citizens of Columbus town- ship. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: <> Penny (Eisenbarger) Harrell ====================================================================